Background: Health care professionals come across many ethically difficult situations in their clinical practices and community; the students should be equipped with skills to resolve ethical and professional issues.
Methodology: A cross-sectional study was conducted at Baqai dental college, Karachi. All the faculty members and house officers of the dental teaching hospital were included in the study. The tool used for the data collection was a structured questionnaire, for drawing views of the participants on professionalism and ethics teaching. The survey instrument evaluated two domains; attitudes 25 items, and goals 19 items on ethics and professionalism education. Data were recorded and analyzed in SPSS 24. To compare the responses of both the groups, that is, the house officers and the faculty member's independent t-test was applied to compare the mean scores. A p-value of ≤ 0.05 was considered significant.
Results: The questionnaire was circulated to a total of 157 participants (75 faculty members and 82 house officers) with a 100% response rate. The faculty members and the house officers showed a positive attitude regarding ethics, professionalism, and teachings. The participants agreed with the goals that can be achieved by incorporating professionalism and medical ethics in education. The participant strongly affirmed the learning and teaching of professionalism (4.06 ± 0.989).
Conclusion: The realization of the need to teach ethics and professionalism by dental professionals is the first step to bringing change in their daily clinical practice and interpersonal qualities.
Keywords: Ethics, Professionalism, "Education, Medical", "Personality development", "Social Desirability".


On the basis of the question what came first, the messenger or its specific receptor, the relation between the receptor concept and the messenger concept is discussed. Special attention is paid to opportunistic ligands that serve as messenger molecules and to dormant receptors, receptor-like proteins of unknown function. It is concluded that there is no receptor without a messenger and no messenger without a receptor.


Atrial fibrillation, as the most prevalent arrhythmia, has more impact on morbidity and mortality than any other rhythm disorder. It is often concomitant with structural heart diseases like coronary artery disease. The worst complication of atrial fibrillation is stroke, but the double or triple antithrombotic therapy especially in fragile and elderly patients is associated with significant risk of bleeding. The left atrial appendage occlusion may reduse both the risk of stroke and drug intake. Here we present, to our knowledge, the first description of a simultaneous totally thoracoscopic 3D augmented coronary artery bypass grafting and left atrial appendage occlusion.


Summary Changes to the structure and function of neural networks are thought to underlie the evolutionary adaption of animal behaviours. Among the many development phenomena that generate changes, patterned programmed cell death is thought to play a role. For example, apoptotic cell death is the final fate of 40% of neurons in the developing Drosophila central nervous system. Outside the brain, modifications in the patterning of cell death are known to underlie the adaptation of tissue structure and function. However, whether similar modifications also underlie adaptive changes in neural circuitry remains unknown. Here we show that programmed cell death occurs continuously throughout fly neurogenesis, is stereotyped, happens very soon after neurons are born, and is thus a major force sculpting the architecture of neural networks. Blocking cell death permits the emergence of 'undead' neurons which elaborate complex processes into the neuropil and express distinct transmitter phenotypes. Thermogenetic activation of 'undead' neurons drives locomotion, demonstrating that they are functional. In vivo recordings of 'undead' neural activity in behaving animals demonstrates their integration into motor networks. Together, these data suggest that the evolutionary modulation of death-based patterning could be used to generate novel network motifs. Consistent with this, a comparative analysis of homologous neuronal populations in flightless dipterans reveals that altered patterns of cell death coincide with the loss of flight.


The 1983 Orphan Drug Act (ODA) in the USA, and similar policies enacted in several other global pharmaceutical markets since then, has not only stimulated tremendous focus, product development and launch of new medicines to address a broad range of orphan and rare diseases, but has also had significant impact for the overall delivery of biopharmaceutical products, in general, to patients and the world's population. Key areas of contribution underlying orphan drug development's impact cover the biopharmaceutical spectrum, including compelling discoveries in the life sciences, novel drug technologies and platforms, as well as creative approaches and innovation in clinical development and commercialisation. The significance of orphan drug development's evolution is underscored by the continued growth in orphan designations and approvals, and its increasing contribution to, and share of, the biopharmaceutical industry's performance and value creation. The favourable economics of orphan drug development, and its impact on science and health care, support the outlook that this sector will continue to be an important contributor to ongoing biopharmaceutical innovation.


Mobile commerce is a product of the convergence of the two fastest growing

technologies of the modern era: cellular phones and the Internet (Attwood and

Duncan, 2000). It delivers electronic commerce capabilities into a consumer's

hand via wireless technology, that is an ability to perform a transaction using a

mobile device (cell phone, laptop, PDA), such as the cellphone banking

service. The cellphone banking service allows banking customers to perform

banking transactions directly on their cellphone, using either WAP or WIG

technology. Four big banks in South Africa provide the cell phone banking

offering to customers. Nedcor first launch the cell phone banking service and

other banks followed. Standard Bank launched the service in 2001 and thus

far only 28 000 customers have registered for the cell phone banking service.

The level of service adoption is very low, considering that there are 15million

cellphone subscribers in South Africa. Banks projected that the take-up would

be much higher than it currently is. For the purpose of this research study, the

Standard Bank's cell phone banking offering will be evaluated. The problem

area is that while Standard Bank launched the cellphone banking service in

2001, the consumer take up has been far lower than expected. Thus far, only

28 000 customers have registered for the service. No analysis has been

conducted at Standard Bank to understand the reasons behind the slow rate

of adoption by customers.

The objectives of the study are to:

o identify the factors that contribute to the non-adoption of the cell phone

banking service by customers

o identify factors that can increase the rate of service adoption and

therefore assist the banks in promoting the service to critical mass

o Establish the future of m-commerce in the banking industry.

- v -

A literature review has been conducted, where studies conducted

internationally in mobile banking space have been discussed. These are

studies conducted in Europe and the United States. The cell phone banking

adoption framework model has also been derived. In terms of the research

methodology, qualitative and quantitative research methods were both

employed to gather the required data. For the qualitative methodology,

interviews were conducted with the Standard Bank management team and a

questionnaire was administered. For the quantitative methodology a

questionnaire was designed and was used to gather the information from

Standard Bank customers.

The research results reveal that…


Connectionist models represent powerful learning tools for understanding learning and development in infants and young children. In this case, we discuss two such models and how they have provided key insights into how infants and young children form perceptual object categories and how they come to represent objects in the world. Limitations of these specific models, the appeal of the connectionist modeling approach, and directions for future research are also discussed.


There are many oil and gas fields in Indonesia which contain high CO 2 that need to be treated. The Acid Gas Removal Unit (AGRU) is installed to remove the CO2. The AGRU will release the CO 2 gas from the regeneration column. It still contains a high concentration of CO 2 (higher than 80%). The accumulation of CO 2 emission to the atmosphere will impact the environment. To promote environment-friendly technology, the process can be improved with conversion of CO 2 into methanol. It will provide a relatively closed loop of the carbon cycle and as a renewable energy alternative. This study aims to provide packed bed reactor design which can be implemented in the small-scale methanol production plant utilizing high CO 2 feed gas. The reactor temperature was varied from 200°C to 250°C and pressure were operated in the range of 40 Bar up to 75 Bar. These variations were used to analyze the effects of methanol production. The simulation results showed that peak methanol production rate was achieved at the temperature around 230°C. As the conclusion, the reactor showed better performance at the higher pressure and higher temperature although the reaction is exothermic including the recycling process can reduce the cost of hydrogen.


Although Yugoslavia was not a major power, it played a significant role in the Cold War. The West initially perceived Josip Broz Tito, who became the country's leader in the wake of its partition and occupation by the Axis, to be the most loyal follower of the Soviet leader Joseph Stalin. But Stalin soon came to perceive Tito as a rival and expelled Yugoslavia from the Communist Information Bureau (Cominform) in 1948, hoping to precipitate Tito's downfall. Yugoslavia, facing economic ruin and fearing a Soviet invasion, had no choice but to turn to the West. U.S. officials believed that Yugoslavia's geographic location could make a significant contribution to the security of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), and they assisted the country in its battle to survive Soviet pressure. Tito took full advantage of his position and became adept at playing the United States and the USSR against each other to enhance his country's economic and political security and to develop new initiatives at home and abroad. Yugoslavia's importance as a Communist state resisting Soviet imperialism, as a champion of a "third way" between the capitalist and Communist camps, and as a model for a different kind of state-managed economic system enabled the country to "punch above its weight" in international affairs (p. 256). By the 1970s, Yugoslavia's position had become more precarious. In this wellresearched monograph, Milorad Lazic analyzes the challenges to Yugoslavia's stability posed by several internal and external factors. Tito in the final years of his life was increasingly concerned about how the country would handle the transition to a new leader. Unity and cohesion at home had always been viewed as essential to Yugoslavia's survival, but internal divisions, both ethnic and political, had accelerated. These developments magnified what the Yugoslavs saw as a constant external threat, namely, meddling or outright invasion by the Soviet Union. Tito had always been adept at balancing his country between the United States and the USSR, but Lazic posits that Tito viewed their détente in the early 1970s as a threat to that policy and hence to his country's existence. Was détente merely a façade for a spheres-of-influence agreement, "a new Yalta" (p. xvi) that would leave Yugoslavia at the mercy of the Soviet Union? The Non-Aligned Movement (NAM), which Tito had championed as an alternative to a bipolar international order, was also vulnerable because of the efforts by Fidel Castro's Cuba, encouraged by Moscow, to bring the NAM into the Soviet camp.


A business decision is very important to determine the quality of the Board of Directors in carrying out their duties professionally and responsibly as expected by Good Corporate Governance (GCG). The effectiveness of the Board of Directors is the center of the implementation of Good Corporate Governance. Bank Business is very risky (such: credit risk, reputation risk, etc.). The Board of Directors in making a business decision, will always face unpredictable condition. In Banking practice, the Head of Branch Office Bank is the extension of Director, if the Head of Branch Office Bank signs credit agreement out of the rules (plafond). His action has categorized as ultra vires, so the consequence is the Head of Branch Office Bank can be held responsible for his action. In this case, the Board of Directors has not taken responsibility for the action of the Head of Branch Bank, based on Business Judgment Principle, the Director has not taken its responsibility for ultra vires act which is done by the Head of Branch Office Bank, as along as Director has managed the Company in good faith, carefully and does not against the law. Therefore, Business Judgment Principle gives legal protection to the Director in making a business decision


Autonomous and Intelligent Systems (A/IS, to adhere to the terminology of the IEEE Ethically Aligned Design report) can gather their knowledge by different means and from different sources. In principle, learning algorithms are neutral; rather, it is the data they are fed during the learning period that can introduce biases or a specific ethical orientation. Human control over the learning process is more straightforward in learning from demonstration, where data sources are restricted to the choices of the demonstrator (or teacher), but even in unsupervised versions of reinforcement learning, biases are present via the definition of the reward function. In this paper we provide an overview of learning paradigms of artificial systems: supervised and unsupervised methods, with the most striking examples in each category, without too much technical detail. Furthermore, we describe the types of data sources that are presently available and in use by the robotics community. We also focus on observable bias in image datasets and originated by human annotation. We point at quite recent research on bias in social robot navigation and end with a brief reflection about ambient influences on future learning robots.


Background The origin of several local COVID-19 outbreaks in China in 2020 were confirmed to be frozen food or packages contaminated with SARS-CoV-2, revealing the lack of effective disinfection measures in the frozen food chain. Objective To evaluate the disinfection efficacy at −20°C of a recently marketed thermal fogging disinfection product, with disinfectant-antifreeze combination being didecyl dimethyl ammonium bromide (DDAB) - propylene glycol (PPG). Method Carriers with porcine epidemic diarrhea virus (PEDV) YN1, a coronavirus, and a swine influenza virus H1N1 (SIV-H1N1), and three indicator bacteria, E. coli, S. aureus, and B. subtilis endospores, were respectively placed in a −20°C freezer warehouse with or without DDAB-PPG fogging and activities of the microorganisms were tested. Results At −20°C, DDAB-PPG fogging, which fully settles in 3.5−4.5 hours, fully inactivated PEDV of 10−3.5 TCID50/0.1ml and SIV-H1N1 of 26 hemagglutination titer within 15-30 min, and inactivated S. aureus and E. coli vegetative cells (106/ml) within 15 or 60 min, respectively, but had little effect on B. subtilis spores. The bactericidal effect lasted at least 3 hours for bacteria on carrier plates and for 6 hours for airborne bacteria. Conclusions A practical subzero temperature disinfection technology was confirmed its efficacy in killing enveloped viruses and vegetative bacteria. It would help to meet the urgent public health need of environmental disinfection in frozen food logistics against pandemic and other potential pathogens and to enhance national and international biosecurity. Highlights First report of efficacy of disinfectant didecyl dimethyl ammonium bromide (DDAB) at subzero temperatures The customized thermal fogging machine makes fine droplets of DDAB-propylene glycol (PPG) fog which can suspend for ~4 hours at −20°C DDAB-PPG thermal fogging at −20°C effectively inactivated a coronavirus and an influenza virus DDAB-PPG thermal fogging at −20°C for effectively killed S. aureus and E. coli DDAB-PPG thermal fogging at −20°C inactivated airborne microorganism for up to 6 h


cannot currently be estimated, as ascertainment of such patients is usually on the basis of the presence of a heart lesion. In addition, the true prevalence of 22qll deletions is not known, although a lower limit of 1:4000 has been quoted on the basis of children presenting with congenital heart defects.2 Thus, until prospective studies are carried out that allow complete ascertainment of subjects with a 22ql 1 deletion, irrespective of phenotype, this question cannot be answered. Variability of phenotypic expression among people with presumably identical deletions (that is, familial cases) strengthens the concept that a 22q1 1 deletion merely increases the likelihood of certain anomalies being present but does not guarantee them.3 It is clear, therefore, that the association of heart disease with this deletion is far from deterministic. The discovery of monozygotic twins with


This study is concerned with the general question of the extent to which children between the age of 5 and 10 have achieved mastery of their native language, and explores areas of disparity between adult and child grammar. Mrs. Chomsky has examined a sample of 40 children and presents the actual interview material as well as a report on her experiments, theoretical considerations of linguistic complexity, and a summary. This pioneering attempt to unravel the complex network of the later stages of syntax acquisition will undoubtedly be of great relevance to linguists and psychologists.


Aerospace is a knowledge intensive industry. The knowledge is dependent on the legacy systems and approaches within the industry. The industry has developed a core competency in aerostructure assembly in the UK. This competency has been developed over many years and from vast experience. This has resulted in a particularly knowledge intensive product development process and placed great dependency upon this knowledge base. The paper presents a framework and methodology to capture assembly process planning rationale for aerostructures within an aerospace company.


Objective The goal of this study was to describe medication usage patterns in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) initiating treatment with non-insulin antidiabetic drugs (NIADs), basal insulin, or prandial/mixed insulin using real-world data. Research design and methods A retrospective analysis using the Truven Health MarketScan Research Databases was conducted to identify adults (≥18 years) with T2DM from 2006 to 2012. Patients were categorized into four cohorts based on diabetes treatment. Cohort 1 (n=597 664) consisted of newly diagnosed patients who did not receive any treatment, cohort 2 (n=342 511) included NIAD initiators, cohort 3 (n=99 578) included basal insulin initiators, and cohort 4 (n=62 876) included prandial/mixed insulin initiators. Patients transitioned out of a cohort once they met the criteria for the next one. Results Patients in cohort 2 were younger (56.2 years, SD±12.1) than patients in cohorts 1, 3, and 4 (58 years, SD±0.75). Metformin was the most commonly prescribed drug in cohort 2 patients. Basal insulin usage decreased from 71% in year 1 to 47% in year 4, in cohort 3 patients. Approximately one-third of these patients switched to prandial/mixed insulin each year. In cohort 4, the usage of prandial/mixed insulin decreased to 61% by year 4. Use of basal insulin and NIAD remained common in this group. Mean glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c) values decreased by ∼1% for each of the treatment cohorts following treatment initiation and remained stable during follow-up. All-cause and diabetes-related medical costs were highest for patients in cohorts 3 and 4. Conclusions Overall, our findings demonstrate that treatment intensification was low in all study cohorts despite elevated HbA1c levels during preindex and follow-up period.


Urchin, Anthocidaris crassispina, the coast of jeju. It of three parts of a pair of for grasping power, a fulcrum and a pair of knives for action with 21cm in length and 13cm in width. The operating efficiency of the shell divider was tested out in three place of Jeju coast. Statistical significances of differences of working time between test groups were calculated according to the t-test with the level of significance . In dividing the shell of sea urchin, the average of about 3 seconds of working time by the shell divider was less than that by a knife. At the result of t-test, the statistical significance in the working time existed between the divider group and the knife group. On the other hand, the working time among the divider operators showed no significant differences. It is concluded that the shell divider is more efficient than a knife in tra-ditional operating.


Wine is an alcoholic beverage often made of fermented grape juice. The natural chemical balance of grapes is such that they can ferment without the addition of sugars, acids, enzymes or other nutrients. Wine is produced by fermenting crushed grapes using various types of yeast which consume the sugars found in the grapes and convert them into alcohol. Different varieties of grapes and strains of yeasts are used depending on the types of wine being produced. Although other fruits such as apples and berries can also be fermented, the resultant wines are normally named after the fruit from which they are produced (for example, apple wine or elderberry wine) and are generically known as fruit wine or country wine. Wine is an undistilled product obtained after normal alcoholic fermentation of grapes by yeast. Wine is basically the transformation of sugars of grapes by yeast under anaerobic conditions in to ethanol, co2, and small amounts of byproducts like D-Glucose, D-fructose. In our project, for the extraction of juice grapes must be stemed, cleaned, and crushed and then sodium or potassium metabiosulphate is added to check undesirable organisms. The crushed grape is called must. Fermentation is carried out by adding 2-5% of wine yeast namely sacharomyces cervisiae, anaerobic conditions favors the alcoholic fermentation liberating ethanol, co2. Main aim of this work is to produce white wine from grapes. A detailed study on grapes and different methods to produce wine is also reported. By analysis of wine, we reported the percentage purity, alcohol percentage in produced wine and different compound compositions.


In Kendal for 3 years an increasing number of early age pregnant mother and maternal and infant mortality of early age pregnant mother. These deaths are more prevalent in the northern coast than the mountains, while supporting the health infrastructure in the northern coast more complete. The purpose of this study was to determine the factors that influencing the antenatal care practice to early age pregnant mother in the northern coast of Kendal. Type of study is explanatory research using the survey method and cross sectional approach. Subjects were 35 early age pregnantmother third trimester from the coast, was selected for a total sampling. Data were collected through interviews with a structured questionnaire. Tests performed with chi-square bivariate and multivariate logistic regression test. The independent variables are the characteristics (age, reason for marriage, education, and employment), income, knowledge, attitudes, acceptance of pregnancy, family support, spousal support and the support of health professionals. Dependent variables prenatal care practices. The majority of respondents aged 17-19 years old, married on their own, low education, the majority do not work with household income ≥ minimum wage (Rp 843,750.00) as much as 62.9%. Respondents with a much better knowledge of 54.3%, has a good attitude toward prenatal care 57.1%. Respondents who received pregnancy with either 57.1%, of respondents with good family support 57.1%. Support 88.6% a good husband, a good support health workers 57.1%. Respon-dents with good prenatal care 57.1%. There is a relationship between income (p=0.005), knowledge (p=0.016), attitude (p=0.005) and the acceptance of pregnancy (p = 0.034) with the practice of prenatal care. Attitudes, income and the acceptance of the pregnancy together relate to the practice of prenatal care. The dominant factor associated with the practice of prenatal care is the attitude with OR=15.6. Suggested to the Department of Health to develop SOP and antenatal package in high risk pregnant mother spesially to early age pregnant mother. In addition it is necessary jampersal outreach and cooperation between KUA and Health Office for assistance early age brides in choosing contraception.


Abstract Field bindweed (Convolvulus arvensis L.) is a persistent, perennial weed species that infests a variety of temperate habitats around the globe. To evaluate the efficacy of general management approaches and impacts on crop yield and to identify research gaps, we conducted a series of meta-analyses using published studies focusing on C. arvensis management in annual cropping and perennial systems. Our analysis of 48 articles (560 data points) conducted in annual systems indicated that 95% of data points measured efficacy over short time frames (within 2 yr of treatment). Furthermore, only 27% of data points reported impacts of C. arvensis management on crop yield. In annual systems, herbicide control dominated the literature (~80% of data points) and was an effective management technique up to 2 yr posttreatment. Integrated management, with or without herbicides, and three nonchemical techniques were similarly effective as herbicide at reducing C. arvensis up to 2 yr posttreatment. In addition, integrated approaches, with or without herbicides, and two nonchemical techniques had positive effects on crop yield. There were few differences among herbicide mechanism of action groups on C. arvensis abundance in annual systems. There were only nine articles (28 data points) concerning C. arvensis management in perennial systems (e.g., pasture, rangeland, lawn), indicating more research effort has been directed toward annual systems. In perennial systems, biocontrol, herbicide, and non-herbicide integrated management techniques were equally effective at reducing C. arvensis, while competition and grazing were not effective. Overall, our results demonstrate that while chemical control of C. arvensis is generally effective and well studied, integrated and nonchemical control practices can perform equally well. We also documented the need for improved monitoring of the efficacy of management practices over longer time frames and including effects on desired vegetation to develop sustainable weed management programs.


The growing pervasiveness of broadband Internet expands both the range of rich media assets that can be delivered as well as the universe of possible receivers. This in turn, opens the door for the creation of new forms of delivering rich media content, establishing a diversity of associated value chains and Business Models (BMs). The full adoption of this new medium is something that is yet to be accomplished. It has been stalled by the hesitation of the key players in the content production and distribution industry which is closely related to the technical and legal difficulties in dealing with the free file sharing phenomenon. Their strategy for the adoption of the Internet medium has generally involved the employment of restrictive DRM enforcing technology to preserve pre-Internet (legacy) operating modes. Current approaches, within this context, have aimed at agilizing and facilitating the full adoption of this new medium by providing efficient, interoperable DRM enforcing tools to harness its power. However, the current resistance to DRM adoption, by some major Web media distributors, does not foretell a bright future for the use of restrictive DRM schemes for Internet based delivery of digital goods. New solutions are thus required to enable the creation of new BMs, taking advantage of the opportunities offered by broadband Internet. In this context, the work described here proposes an alternative approach to the use of DRM, aiming at optimizing content distribution and usability and promoting content usage governance. The logic behind this proposal is based on the use of DRM schemes that favor content governance over rigid access restriction. These changes permit the development of new BMs which are very much inline with upcoming Internet businesses. This work was developed within the framework of the European R&D project ENTHRONE.


Abstract Background: Sex-disaggregated data for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) reported higher hospitalized fatality rates among men than women. Objective: To determine whether the risk factors for in-hospital mortality from COVID-19, present at the time of hospital admission, differed by patient sex. Design and setting: Single-center, retrospective cohort study at a tertiary-care urban academic center. Methods: We reviewed the electronic medical records of patients positive for COVID-19 via qualitative polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assay, admitted between March 8 and June 14, 2020. Patients were stratified by sex to assess the association of variables present on admission with in-hospital mortality. Results: The overall inpatient case fatality rate (CFR) was 30.4% (172 of 565). The CFR among male patients was higher than among female patients: 99 (33.7%) versus 73 (26.9%), respectively (P = .08). Among males, comorbid conditions associated with in-hospital mortality were chronic pulmonary disease (P = .02) and connective tissue disease (P = .03). Among females, these comorbid conditions were congestive heart failure (P = .03), diabetes with complication (P = .05), and hemiplegia (P = .02). Variables that remained independently associated with death in males included age >70 years, public insurance, incremental increase in quick sepsis-related organ failure assessment (qSOFA) and C-reactive protein (CRP), lymphocytopenia, and thrombocytopenia. Among females, variables that remained independently associated with mortality included public insurance, incremental increase in Charlson weighted index of comorbidity (CWIC) score, qSOFA, and CRP. Conclusions: Risk factors for in-hospital mortality by sex included public insurance type, incremental increase in qSOFA and CRP in both sexes. For male patients, older age, lymphocytopenia and thrombocytopenia were also associated with mortality, whereas a higher Charlson score was associated with in-hospital mortality in female patients.


Summary:
 The genus Manfreda Salisb. (Asparagaceae) consists of 26–32 species distributed across North and Central America. Manfreda has been subject to a number of alternative taxonomic classifications based on morphology with alternative generic and subgeneric system employed for the taxon. The CBOL Plant DNA barcode (MatK and rbcL) was assessed for the ability to discriminate existing taxa allocated to the genus and construct meaningful phylogenies. Neither Bayesian nor Maximum Parsimony methods of phylogenetic inference were able to find adequate support for any divergence between the 19 specimens of Manfreda studied. It is therefore surmised that CBOL Plant DNA Barcodes have limited utility in the genus Manfreda for species identification or phylogenetic inference.


Religious freedom is often thought to protect, not only religious practices, but also the underlying religious beliefs of citizens. But what should be said about religious beliefs that oppose religious freedom itself or that deny the concept of equal citizenship? The author argues here that such beliefs, while protected against coercive sanction, are rightly subject to attempts at transformation by the state in its expressive capacities. Transformation is entailed by a commitment to publicizing the reasons and principles that justify the basic rights of citizens.


Dairy cattle selected for negative residual feed intake (n-RFI; efficient) should maintain production while reducing dry matter intake over a lactation because of improvements in feed digestion and efficient use of nutrients. The objective of this study was to measure nitrogen (N) digestibility and rumen microbial community composition over a short period during early lactation in lactating Holstein-Friesian cows selected previously for divergent RFI. It was proposed that n-RFI cows would have greater apparent digestibility of N than the positive RFI (p-RFI; inefficient) animals, to compensate for the lower dry matter intake determined during selection for divergence. Sixteen 3-yr-old rumen-cannulated, lactating cows (56 ± 10d in milk) selected for n-RFI (n = 8) and p-RFI (n = 8) were housed in metabolism stalls and fed fresh vegetative ryegrass (Lolium perenne L.) pasture ad libitum as a sole diet during an 8-d digestibility study. Intake of nutrients and outputs of milk, feces, and urine were determined. Rumen parameters were determined by removing, weighing, and sampling digesta, and by cobalt-EDTA dilution. Intakes of N, dry matter, organic matter, or its components did not differ with RFI. Compared with p-RFI cows, n-RFI cows had a greater apparent N digestibility (77.2 vs. 75.5%), and a tendency toward greater dry matter and organic matter digestibilities. The n-RFI cows had a lower fecal N output (126 vs. 138 g/d) and a lower partition of feed N to fecal N (23.1 vs. 24.7%) compared with p-RFI animals. We found no differences between phenotypes in the partition of N to urinary N or milk crude protein but did observe a trend for n-RFI cows to partition less N to milk casein (16.8 vs. 17.9%). Rumen digesta mass was similar for both groups, despite differences in calculated fractional liquid outflow rates, and most bacterial, archaeal, protozoal, and fungal communities were similar for both phenotype groups. In conclusion, dry matter intake and rumen function were similar for both phenotypes when the animals were fed highly digestible fresh ryegrass, but apparent digestibility of dietary N was higher in the efficient (n-RFI) cows. Future research should measure digestion parameters in cows with divergent RFI when fed diets differing in chemical composition (e.g., divergent crude protein contents).


Work is currently underway within the ASTM D.02 N.07 Hydraulic Fluid Testing Committee to evaluate the potential of replacing the Vickers V-104 vane pump with a newer, more current model 20VQ vane pump for use in an updated ASTM D-2882 and other national standards. All of the round robin work conducted within the committee thus far has involved the use of non-aqueous hydraulic oils. Although there are some significant inter-laboratory reproducibility problems, it appears that the overall ranking of the hydraulic oils by most laboratories appears to be consistent. To further evaluate the potential utility of replacing the Vickers V-104 pump with the 20VQ pump, a series of different water-glycol hydraulic fluid formulations with significantly different wear rates were evaluated using a modified ASTM D-2882 testing procedure. The results showed that expected catastrophic pump failures, which occurred with the V-104 pump, not only did not occur with the 20VQ pump, but the relative orders of wear rates for some of the fluids were also different. In this paper, a brief history of the development of the ASTM D-2882 test, as currently conducted, will be presented, a comparison of the features of the V-104 and 20VQ pump and cartridge assemblies willmore » be given and a comparative tabulation of the pump test using the V-104 pump and the 20VQ pump using different testing conditions will be provided. Finally, recommendations for future work will be made.« less


Abstract English education for college students is a major instructional programme with significant developmental importance; yet, its conversations are also crucial. Reflexivity in conversational repair refers to the tendency of speakers to go back to the beginning of the repairing component rather than to implement the repair directly after the wrong word. In order to help listeners solve the connection problem, speakers use different back-referencing strategies. In this study, we used a quantitative and qualitative approach to explore the patterns and strategies of finger-back repair in Chinese college students' English conversations and to compare their similarities and differences with native speakers in the use of finger-back onset words. The study found that the proportion of self-repetition was the highest among college students, reaching about 75%, and the proportion of reorganisation and insertion strategies was very small, about 23%, which reflected the characteristics of college students' ability in linguistic information processing and online processing; moreover, there were significant differences between them and native speakers in the use of reflexive priming words. This paper borrows from the attention theory of cognitive psychology to explain the results and to point out the implications of this study for the teaching of spoken English in college.


Although there are many epicyclic-type automatic transmissions in production, some of the related configurations are still far from attaining maximum sequential velocity ratios. This work in part will attempt to attain the maximum possible velocity ratios for any given epicyclic gear train. A methodology for the design of two-ring Ravigneaux-type epicyclic gear transmissions for automobiles is presented. First, based on the kinematic nomographs of the corresponding basic gear ratios, clutching-sequences are enumerated. Second, a planar-graph representation is used to arrange the desired clutches for each possible clutching sequence into the epicyclic gear mechanism. Then, with the above methods, the designs of the epicylic gear mechanisms are given for demonstrating the feasibility of the proposed methodology. Next, following the general trend of increased shift stages and a wider range of velocity ratios, new six-, seven- and eight-velocity automatic transmissions are enumerated from the two-ring nine-link Ravigneaux gear mechanisms. The result of this work shows that the nine-link two-DOF Ravigneaux-type epicylic gear mechanisms could reach eight-forward speeds at most. It is a major breakthrough to design eight-speed automatic transmissions from the nine-link Ravigneaux gear mechanism since it has only nine links. This structural design has realized a reduced length automatic transmission, while having minimal number of gears . The methodology can be applied to any transmission mechanism depending on its kinematic and geometric constraints.


Background
Entameba histolytica (E. histolytica), the etiological agent of intestinal amebiasis poses significant community health concern especially in pregnant woman due to their physiological status. Pregnancy-induced immunodeficiency can lead to reduced IgA activities which makes pregnant women susceptible to penetration of intestinal mucosal linings and placental barrier especially by E. histolytica.
Objective of study
This study aimed to determine the prevalence and associated risk factors of intestinal amebiasis among pregnant women with acute diarrhea (˂3 days post onset) attending University of Maiduguri Teaching Hospital (UMTH), Maiduguri, Nigeria.
Materials and Methods
This hospital-based cross-sectional study was conducted among 200 randomly selected acute diarrheic pregnant women attending UMTH. Fresh fecal samples were collected and immediately analyzed microscopically for E. histolytica oocytes using iodine wet preparation method. Structured questionnaires were used to assess sociodemographic variables and risk factors for amebiasis. Data analysis was done using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 22 (IBM, California Inc., USA).
Results
Out of the 200 fecal samples analyzed for E. histolytica, 10 (5%) were positive. Those infected by moderate E. histolytica cysts had the highest occurrence rate, 4 (40%) and least by those infected by many E. histolytica cysts, 1 (10%). E. histolytica infection was associated with rural residence (OR=6.86 [95% CI:1.42-33.2]), lower Socioeconomic status (OR=22.0 [95% CI: 4.69-103.1]) and primigravity (OR= 5.76 [95% CI:1.19-27.8]) (p˂0.05). Drinking water from borehole (OR=0.24 [95% CI: 0.06-0.95], p=0.043) and large household (OR=0.1 [95% CI: 0.02-0.41], p=0.001) were significant risk factors of intestinal amebiasis.
Conclusion
The results indicate that E. histolytica infection is one of the etiological agents of acute diarrhea in study participants. Its recommended that pregnant women should avoid risk factors for intestinal amebiasis identified in this study.
Keywords: Immunosuppression, Amebiasis, Risk factors, Diarrhea.


An equipment performance study, based on a combination of statistical analysis and predictive modeling, was undertaken on voltage regulators at an electric utility in the Midwest in order to improve its maintenance program. It determined the reliability of equipment in service by studying the number and types of failures occurring on the different types of single-phase voltage regulators within distribution substations. The research questions addressed in this study were: What type of voltage regulator had the most failures, what type of failures occurred most frequently, and what are the correlations between the types of voltage regulators and failures? In addition, the study determined regression equations for the failures based on the operational variables of the single-phase voltage regulators.


ABSTRACT The vascular endothelium is a selective barrier that separates the organs from the circulating blood. The endothelium has a wide variety of functions controlled by cell-to-cell junctions and in particular by Vascular Endothelial cadherin (VE-cadherin) complexes. Recent research identified the epidermal growth factor receptor kinase substrate 8 (EPS8) and the co-transcriptional regulator yes-associated protein (YAP) as new components of the adherens junction complexes. The binding of these 2 proteins to VE-cadherin determines the formation of different specialized adhesive structures contributing to the dynamic control of vascular permeability. This commentary will summarize what is currently known about the role of EPS8 and YAP in the modification of molecular organization and intracellular signaling of adherens junction complexes, and their potential multiple effects on vascular homeostasis.


The hospital CEO should bring the administrative staff into a long-term, well-planned governing board development process that gradually educates board members on the issues they will be facing.


A series of D–(π)–A′–π–A featured organic dyes with different numbers of 3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene (EDOT) bridges and different anchoring groups, i.e., cyanoacrylic acid or rhodanine-3-acetic acid, have been designed and synthesized for application in quasi-solid-state dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs). The absorption, electrochemical and photovoltaic properties are systematically investigated. Upon the incorporation of an auxiliary EDOT unit into sensitizers FNE60 and FNE61 with D–A′–π–A configuration, sensitizers FNE62 and FNE63 with D–π–A′–π–A configuration exhibit much broader absorption spectra, which is beneficial to the light-harvesting capability and photocurrent generation. When the cyanoacrylic acid group in sensitizers FNE60 and FNE62 is replaced by a much stronger electron-withdrawing group, rhodanine-3-acetic acid, strengthened intramolecular charge transfer interactions are realized, which results in the significantly bathochromically shifted maximum absorption wavelengths for sensitizers FNE61 and FNE63. However, the methylene group in the rhodanine-3-acetic acid unit interrupts the LUMO delocalization on the anchoring group in sensitizers FNE61 and FNE63, as revealed by theoretical calculation, which may result in less effective electron injection from the LUMO to the conduction band of the titania semiconductor. Consequently, the quasi-solid-state DSSC based on FNE62 exhibits a highest power conversion efficiency of 8.2%, which illustrates good long-term stability after continuous light soaking for 1000 h.


The synthesis of 10 novel P-substituted dithienophosphole oxide compounds applying phenylcarbazole and indolocarbazole donors is presented. Based on photo-physical and theoretical investigations, the study reveals that the pyramidal geometry of the phosphorus allows for the synthesis of charge transfer materials by introducing strong exocyclic donor groups but suppresses intramolecular charge transfer below a certain donor strength threshold, which is an appealing structural feature for the design of donor–acceptor materials. The triplet energies of the phenylcarbazole based compounds are in the range of 2.49–2.65 eV, sufficiently high for potential applications as host materials in PhOLEDs. By contrast, the introduction of indolocarbazole, the weakest employed donor, yields materials exhibiting a significantly higher triplet energy of up to 2.87 eV and a remarkably low singlet–triplet splitting (0.18 eV). In addition an interesting example of an intramolecular electronic through-space interaction has been observed for the ortho-linked phenylcarbazole derivative.


Neural networks are capable of learning rich, nonlinear feature representations shown to be beneficial in many predictive tasks. In this work, we use these models to explore the use of geographical features in predicting colorectal cancer survival curves for patients in the state of Iowa, spanning the years 1989 to 2013. Specifically, we compare model performance using a newly defined metric – area between the curves (ABC) – to assess (a) whether survival curves can be reasonably predicted for colorectal cancer patients in the state of Iowa, (b) whether geographical features improve predictive performance, and (c) whether a simple binary representation or richer, spectral clustering-based representation perform better. Our findings suggest that survival curves can be reasonably estimated on average, with predictive performance deviating at the five-year survival mark. We also find that geographical features improve predictive performance, and that the best performance is obtained using richer, spectral analysis-elicited features.


The problem that some electricity customers don't pay for the bills deliberately and steal electricity always plagues the electricity companies. So they have to carry out the customer credit risk management to guard against trading risk. To avoid customer credit risk, it's necessary to establish the customer credit management system and assess the risk. Based on the concept of entropy, this paper has built the customer credit evaluation index system, evaluate the credit of electric customer though both quantitative and qualitative method. In the end, an empirical study is conducted.


This chapter summarizes our current understanding of the electronic properties and related excitations of metal-halide perovskites with particular reference to concept and tools already well deployed in the field of conventional semiconductors and optoelectronics, including the intensive use of group theory. This helps to bring out the most distinctive features that make hybrid, and to a less extend all-inorganic metal-halide perovskites, a new and distinct class of semiconductors. The pseudocubic phase serves as a reference structure and many effects, such as strain, phase transitions, relativistic effects, local distortions due to the organic cations, loss of inversion symmetry, etc., can be considered as perturbations to this reference. Brillouin zone folding is shown to afford a simple yet effective tool to unravel the apparent complexity of electronic properties. The importance of spin–orbit coupling is particularly emphasized as it has a dramatic influence not only through its strength but also by alteration of the symmetry selection rules. Issues related to the nature of electronic excitation and charge carriers, as well as their possible coupling to atomic collective (phonons) or localized (polaron) modes are discussed, as well as non-radiative Auger effects.


A tunnel diode switching circuit is discussed which is useful as well as representative and yet is simple and amenable to detailed analysis. A stability diagram is given showing how the equilibrium states of the circuit change in character as the circuit element values and diode bias are varied. It is shown that when the circuit is arranged to be monostable but with three equilibrium states it exhibits a true threshold for triggering and is, therefore, an ideal pulse amplitude discriminator and pulse regenerator. The ultimate speed capability of this circuit is investigated. Current and voltage waveforms similar to those actually observed are obtained by numerical integration of the nonlinear circuit equations. The dependence of pulse height, width, and cycle time on inductance is shown, and a scaling diagram is given showing the inductance and resistance that should be used with any diode in order to have an optimum cycle time. Several available diodes with 10 to 20 mA peak current may be used with practical loads (about 10 ohms and 1 nH) at repetition periods of 0.3 to 0.5 ns, or pulse rates of 2 to 3 Gc/s. However, a cycle time of 60 ps or pulse rate greater than 10 Gc/s is predicted if a 2 ohm, 20 pH load could be combined with a 100 mA, 1.8 pF junction, values corresponding to the best available diodes. Since the latter values of resistance and inductance are awkwardly low, it is concluded that pulse rates of 2 to 3 Gc/s are practical, and that substantially higher rates are possible but require improved circuits or diodes.


The relationship between migration and development is a topic of growing interest among international organizations. Although there are some variations, those organizations see remittances as an essential resource for the development of the migrant-sending countries. We argue that this view, on which most related public policies are based, distorts the notion of development and obscures the root causes that drive the current dynamics of labor migration. Using Mexico's experiences as our reference point, we suggest that the phenomenon must be analyzed from the viewpoint of the political economy of development, giving consideration to three interrelated key dimensions: regional economic integration, national development models, and social agents. We reach the conclusion that in the context of the regional integration molded by NAFTA, the dynamics of migration to the United States have mushroomed and socioeconomic dependence on remittances in Mexico has deepened. That situation demands a radical change in public policies on migration and development.


InsurTech did not come overnight. Insurance companies from the beginning were experts in collecting and analyzing data to assess risks and to calculate exposures and premium payments. InsurTech is the result of two new developments, however.

First, more data has become available. It is said that the volume of available data in recent years has doubled every two or three years. Perhaps even more importantly, the available data now has various different sources. While in the past insurance companies had to rely mostly on the answers they received in response to specific questionnaires and on statistical data, the technical developments in recent years have allowed much broader sources of data. Social media and other third parties are now providing data independent from the customers. Wikipedia and other open-source data allow a much more efficient gathering of information. Finally, customers are providing data through their own devices, be it at home, in the car, by mobile phone, etc.

Second, analyzing this data has become much more efficient. Big Data analytics – collecting, storing and analyzing Big Data volumes from internal and external sources – is key. The volume of data as such is not decisive, rather the ability to analyse and draw conclusions. New technologies such as the use of algorithms and artificial intelligence provide efficient tools for this.

In particular, the second mentioned aspect creates disruption. Incumbent insurers are confronted with the fact that either they need to invest in acquiring the respective technical capabilities or they need to liaise with third-party providers. In addition, they are faced with new competition by new companies targeting specific markets. While many of the new providers are focusing on certain aspects of the insurance value chain, there are also new full-fledged insurance companies.


INTRODUCTION
Recent studies indicate that bipolar disorder is associated with a profound impairment in almost all areas of functioning. This study aims to evaluate functional recovery in type 1 bipolar patients during remission period.

METHOD
We conducted a cross-sectional study of euthymic type 1 bipolar patients followed up on an ambulatory basis. In the analysis to be reported here we used Hamilton Depression Scale, Young Mania Rating Scale (YMRS), Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale, and Functioning Assessment Short Test (FAST).

RESULTS
More than half of the study population (53.3%) had overall functional impairment. The overall functioning was associated with age, education level, professional activity, the number of manic and depressive episodes, the number of hospitalizations, a higher HDRS score as well as with the two self-esteem subscores: "self-confidence" and "self-deprecation".

CONCLUSION
Our results suggest that a paradigm shift in the treatment of bipolar disorders should happen and that the goals of therapy should be modified from symptomatic remission to functional remission.


Chromium has no remarkable effect on recrystallization process and resultant grain size of Al-1%Mg-0.6%Si and Al3%Mg alloys. However, it has a notable effect of retarding grain growth, and an addition of about 0.3% of Chromium to these alloys remarkably decreases the grain growth at high temperatures. This effect of Chromium is due to the primary inclusion particles. Growth rate of recrystallized grain decreases with decrease in the inter-particle spacing.


In this paper we discuss the second version of F LECS, a generic, open-source coupling shell that can be used to jo in two or more arbitrary solvers. In general multidisciplinar y computations are very computing-intensive. A remedy agai nst long computing times is large-scale parallelism. The challenge of the present parallelization work is to obtain acceptable computing times and to get rid of severe memory requirements that exist on equential machines, for the generic flow problems at hand . The aim is to provide a flexible platform for developing new da ta transfer algorithms and coupling schemes.


We propose to use Inter Vehicle Communications as part of a distributed system for ubiquitous health monitoring of patients. The biomedical data will be collected by wearable health diagnostic devices, which include various types of sensors. When patients are traveling on highways, we propose to transmit the measured biomedical data towards the corresponding Health Monitoring Centers via an Inter Vehicle Communication Network, which will guarantee the needed reliability, especially in areas where other wireless communications are not available. In particular, it is important that the Inter Vehicle Communication Network provides different priorities to various types of messages, depending on their urgency. We extend, a previously proposed inter vehicle hierarchical routing protocol, with priority scheduling to provide the needed priority services. We study various scheduling techniques and compare their effects on the service.


Based on previous studies which proved the decisive importance of the degree of bacteraemia of experimentally infected white mice for the degree of infection of ticks Ixodes ricinus the authors confirmed the possibility of transstadial transmission of Francisella tularensis from larvae via nymphs to imagos by the detection of germs in the ticks and by experiments attempting their transmission to white mice. This applied to imagos even one year after the infection of larvae. Transmission was recorded even in imagos which did not transmit the infection in the nymphal stage. F. tularensis was repeatedly detected in the faeces of nymphs and imagos, which along with possible consumption of infected ticks by hosts, indicates further possibilities of transmission of the infection in nature. The results of quantitative examinations of the degree of infection of ticks enable us to conclude that the germs reproduce in the ticks after feeding on the host.


Vehicle classification has been significantly important to vehicle census as it provides traffic count information to reflect the traffic density of a particular roadway. However, it has been a time consuming and sophisticated task to classify different vehicles into the desired category. Besides, the hardware-based technique used for classification leads to high cost of implementation and maintenance. Thus, we proposed an image processing based solution to extract the features of each vehicle in the traffic scene. The proposed framework incorporates a combination of detection, tracking and classification of vehicle to ensure high accuracy and performance for vehicle census. Experimental results show that our proposed framework can be applicable in real world applications.


Many seasonally stratified lakes accumulate substantial amounts of the greenhouse gas methane in the anoxic zone. Methane oxidizing bacteria in the water column act as a converter, oxidizing methane into carbon dioxide and biomass before it reaches the atmosphere. Current observations and estimates of this methane oxidation efficiency are diverging, especially for the lake overturn period. Here we combine a model of turbulent mixing, gas exchange and microbial growth with a comprehensive data set for autumn mixing to quantify the relevant physical and microbial processes. We show that the microbial methane converter is effectively transforming the increased methane flux during the overturn period. Only rare events of pronounced surface cooling in combination with persistently strong wind can trigger substantial outgassing. In the context of climate change, these results suggest that changes in the frequency of storms may be even more important for methane emissions from temperate lakes than gradual warming.


A shortcut hand-reduction method known as the Karnaugh map (K map) is an efficient way of reducing Boolean functions to a minimum form for the purpose of minimizing hardware requirements. In this paper, by applying the prime group and the essential prime group concepts of the K maps to pattern classification problems, the K1-map reduction method is proposed. The K1-map reduction method can be used to design restricted Coulomb energy networks and to determine the number of hidden units problems in a systematic manner.


The author discusses the applications of collaboration and friendly competition in fusion research. He gives an account of Lyman Spitzer's Model-A stellarator. The Model-C machine is described in detail. A Lawson diagram, showing the improvement in both ion temperatures and the product of density and confinement time from 1953 to 1987, is presented. The Compact Ignition Tokamak is also discussed.


Platelets, derived from megakaryocytes, have an essential role in thrombosis and hemostasis. Over the past 10 years, a great deal of new information has been obtained concerning the various aspects of hematopoiesis necessary to maintain a steady-state platelet level to support physiologic hemostasis. Here we discuss the differentiation of HSCs into megakaryocytes, with emphasis on the key cytokine signaling pathways and hematopoietic transcription factors. Recent insight into these processes elucidates the molecular bases of numerous acquired and inherited hematologic disorders. It is anticipated that the growing knowledge in these areas may be exploited for new therapeutic strategies to modulate both platelet numbers and their thrombogenicity.


Background About a half of patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) have normal or low C-reactive protein (CRP) levels1–3. Calprotectin is a promising and probably more specific biomarker of disease activity than conventionally used acute phase reactants. Objectives The aim of this study was to analyse levels of serum calprotectin in RA patients with clinically active disease and with low CRP (<10 mg/L). Methods A total of 160 RA patients and 32 healthy subjects were enrolled in this study. All patients underwent clinical examination (DAS28). The levels of calprotectin were analyzed in patients with moderate to high disease activity with low CRP levels and in healthy subjects. The discriminatory capacity of calprotectin to identify clinically active patients in spite of normal CRP was assessed using ROC curves. Results Out of all RA patients, 74/160 (46.3%) had low CRP and were in remission or had low activity at the same time. However, 51/160 (32%) had low CRP levels despite moderate to high disease activity according to DAS28. In these patients, calprotectin levels were significantly higher than in patients with low CRP in remission or with low disease activity at the same time (mean 2.7±1.5 vs. 2.1±1.2 μg/mL, p=0.043) and differed from that in healthy subjects (mean 2.7±1.5 vs. ± 1.9±1.2 μg/mL, p=0.011) (Figure 1). The discriminatory capacity for calprotectin to distinguish clinically active vs. inactive patients in spite of low CRP using AUC of the DAS28 was 0.607 (95% CI 0.503 to 0.711, p=0.043) with an optimal cut-off 2.5 μg/mL. Conclusions The present study demonstrates that calprotectin may reflect inflammatory activity in RA patients where CRP fails to do so. References Pincus T, Sokka T. Laboratory tests to assess patients with rheumatoid arthritis: advantages and limitations. Rheum Dis Clin North Am 2009;35(4):731–4. Sokka T, Pincus T. Erythrocyte sedimentation rate, C-reactive protein, or rheumatoid factor are normal at presentation in 35%>45% of patients with rheumatoid arthritis seen between 1980 and 2004: analyses from Finland and the United States. J Rheumatol 2009;36(7):1387–90. Pincus T, Gibson KA, Shmerling RH. An evidence-based approach to laboratory tests in usual care of patients with rheumatoid arthritis. Clin Exp Rheumatol 2014;32(5 Suppl 85):S-23–8. Acknowledgements This work was supported by a project of the Ministry of Health of the Czech Republic for conceptual research development by organization [023728], Charles University Grant Agency (GAUK grant), Czech Republic [880217] and Specific Academy Research Projects (SVV) [260 031]. Disclosure of Interest None declared


Background: The rate-limiting step in prostaglandin (PG) biosynthesis is catalyzed by phospholipase A2 (PLA2) enzymes which hydrolyze arachidonic acid from membrane phospholipids. Despite their importance in uterine PG production, little is known concerning the specific PLA2 enzymes that regulate arachidonic acid liberation in the uterine endometrium. The objectives of this study were to evaluate the expression and activities of calcium-independent Group VI and Group IVC PLA2 (PLA2G6 and PLA2G4C) and calcium-dependent Group IVA PLA2 (PLA2G4A) enzymes in the regulation of bovine uterine endometrial epithelial cell PG production. Methods: Bovine endometrial epithelial cells in culture were treated with oxytocin, interferon-tau and the PLA2G6 inhibitor bromoenol lactone, alone and in combination. Concentrations of PGF2alpha and PGE2 released into the medium were analyzed. Western blot analysis was performed on cellular protein to determine the effects of treatments on expression of PLA2G4A, PLA2G6 and PLA2G4C. Group-specific PLA2 activity assays were performed on cell lysates following treatment with oxytocin, interferon-tau or vehicle (control), alone and in combination. To further evaluate the role of specific PLA2 enzymes in uterine cell PG biosynthesis, cells were transfected with cDNAs encoding human PLA2G6 and PLA24C, treated as described above and PG assays performed. Results: Constitutive cell production of PGF2alpha was about two-fold higher than PGE2. Oxytocin stimulated production of both PGs but the increase of PGF2alpha was significantly greater. Interferon-tau diminished oxytocin stimulation of both PGs. The PLA2G6 inhibitor, bromoenol lactone, abolished oxytocin-stimulated production of PGF2alpha. Treatments had little effect on PLA2G4A protein expression. In contrast, oxytocin enhanced expression of PLA2G6 and this effect was diminished in the presence of interferon-tau. Expression of PLA2G4C was barely detectable in control and oxytocin treated cells but it was enhanced in cells treated with interferon-tau. Oxytocin stimulated PLA2 activity in assays designed to evaluate PLA2G6 activity and interferon-tau inhibited this response. In assays designed to measure PLA2G4C activity, only interferon-tau was stimulatory. Cells overexpressing PLA2G6 produced similar quantities of the two PGs and these values were significantly higher than PG production by non-transfected cells. Oxytocin stimulated production of both PGs and this response was inhibited by interferon-tau. Bromoenol lactone inhibited oxtocin stimulation of PGF2alpha production but stimulated PGE2 production, both in the absence and presence of oxytocin. Cells over-expressing PLA2G4C produced more PGE2 than PGF2alpha and interferon-tau stimulated PGE2 production. Published: 25 April 2007 Reproductive Biology and Endocrinology 2007, 5:16 doi:10.1186/1477-7827-5-16 Received: 15 February 2007 Accepted: 25 April 2007 This article is available from: http://www.rbej.com/content/5/1/16 © 2007 Tithof et al; licensee BioMed Central Ltd. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.


A wide variety of organisms are emerging as resistant to antibiotics, and multiple drug resistant organisms pose a serious threat to the treatment of infectious diseases. Hence, mushroom derived antimicrobial substances have received considerable attention in recent years. In this study antagonistic effects of the methanol, acetone and water extracts of mycelia and fruiting body of Ganoderma lucidum were tested against seven bacterial species: Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, Bacillus subtilis, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Enterobacter aerogenes, Klebsiella pneumoniae, and Salmonella typhimurium. All the extracts exhibited various degree of inhibition against all test bacteria. Widest inhibitory zone (33mm) was obtained with mycelial acetone extract of Ganoderma lucidum against Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Lowest zone of inhibition (7mm) was observed with fruiting body aqueous extract against Staphylococcus aureus and Klebsiella pneumoniae. Minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of acetone extract of fruiting body and mycelial extract was determined, for mycelial extract it ranged between 4 to 12mg/ml and for fruiting body extract it ranged between 15 to 35 mg/ ml for test bacteria.


After Le Fort I osteotomy was first performed by von Langernbeck in 1859, there has been many improvements since. Research on and development of Le Fort I osteotomy procedure has shown downward movement of the maxilla to exhibit lowest stability and accuracy. However, maxillary downgraft movement is necessary in orthognathic patients with insufficient vertical length of the maxilla, but fixation of the maxilla after elongation is often very inaccurate. In this study, the authors utilized 3D virtual surgery, CAD/CAM-assisted 3D printing technology to overcome such limitations of maxillary total elongation. In addition, accuracy at 7 different landmarks from superimposition of virtual simulation data and postoperative Cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) data were measured. Although posterior maxilla exhibited bigger range of errors, an error of <1 mm was measured at all 7 landmarks. Operation time was greatly shortened with cutting guides and customized plates. Although this study is a single-case study, this study shows increased accuracy and efficacy from application of 3D virtual surgery, CAD/CAM, and 3D printing technology.


ABSTRACT Increasing evidence suggests that the generation of cytotoxic T-lymphocyte (CTL) responses specific for a diversity of viral epitopes will be needed for an effective human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) vaccine. Here, we determine the frequencies of CTL responses specific for the simian immunodeficiency virus Gag p11C and HIV-1 Env p41A epitopes in simian-human immunodeficiency virus (SHIV)-infected and vaccinated rhesus monkeys. The p11C-specific CTL response was high frequency and dominant and the p41A-specific CTL response was low frequency and subdominant in both SHIV-infected monkeys and in monkeys vaccinated with recombinant modified vaccinia virus Ankara vectors expressing these viral antigens. Interestingly, we found that plasmid DNA vaccination led to high-frequency CTL responses specific for both of these epitopes. These data demonstrate that plasmid DNA may be useful in eliciting a broad CTL response against multiple epitopes.


Background Current studies on the relationship between XRCC3 rs861539 polymorphism and ovarian cancer risk have been inconsistent. Therefore, we performed a meta-analysis to explore their association. Methods Six electronic databases (PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, Cochrane Library, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, and China Wanfang Database) were searched for relevant studies published before December 2021. Meta-analysis, subgroup analysis, sensitivity analysis, and publication bias analysis were performed using Stata software 16.0. Trial sequential analysis (TSA) was performed using TSA 0.9.5.10 Beta software. Results A total of 12 studies were included in 9 literatures, comprising 4,634 cases of ovarian cancer and 7,381 controls. After Bonferroni correction, the meta-analysis showed an association between XRCC3 rs861539 polymorphism and ovarian cancer risk in the heterozygote model and the dominant model (GA vs. GG: OR = 0.88, 95%CI = 0.81-0.96, P = 0.003; GG vs. GA+AA: OR = 0.89, 95%CI = 0.82-0.96, P = 0.004). In an ethnically stratified subgroup analysis, XRCC3 rs861539 was shown to reduce the risk of ovarian cancer in Caucasian in the heterozygote model and the dominant model (GA vs. GG: OR = 0.88, 95%CI = 0.81-0.96, P = 0.004; GG vs. GA+AA: OR = 0.88, 95%CI = 0.81-0.96, P = 0.004). In the control source and detection method stratified subgroup analysis, hospital-based studies and PCR-RFLP-based studies were found to increase ovarian cancer risk (GG vs. AA: OR = 1.30, 95%CI = 1.05-1.62, P = 0.016; GG vs. AA: OR = 1.31, 95%CI = 1.06-1.62, P = 0.013). Conclusion This meta-analysis showed a significant association between XRCC3 rs861539 polymorphism and ovarian cancer risk, especially in Caucasians. Large-scale multicenter case-control studies in more different regions will be needed in the future.


The National Alliance for Medical Imaging Computing (NA-MIC) is a multi-institutional, interdisciplinary team of computer scientists, software engineers, and medical investigators who develop computational tools for the analysis and visualization of medical image data. The purpose of the center is to provide the infrastructure and environment for the development of computational algorithms and open source technologies, and then oversee the training and dissemination of these tools to the medical research community. This world-class software and development environment serves as a foundation for accelerating the development and deployment of computational tools that are readily accessible to the medical research community. The team combines cutting-edge computer vision research (to create medical imaging analysis algorithms) with state of the art software engineering techniques (based on "extreme" programming techniques in a distributed, open-source environment) to enable computational examination of both basic neurosience and neurological disorders. In developing this infrastructure resource, the team will significantly expand upon proven open systems technology and platforms. The driving biological projects will come initially from the study of schizophrenia, but the methods will be applicable to many other diseases. The computational tools and open systems technologies and platforms developed by NA-MIC will initially be used to study anatomical structures and connectivity patterns in the brain, derangements of which have long been thought to play a role in the etiology of schizophrenia. The overall analysis will occur at a range of scales, and will occur across a range of modalities including diffusion MRI, quantitative EGG, and metabolic and receptor PET, but potentially including microscopic, genomic, and other image data. It will apply to image data from individual patients,and to studies executed across large poplulations. The data will be taken from subjects across a wide range of time scales and ultimately apply to a broad range of diseases in a broad range of organs.


There is no universally agreed classification of human error, nor is there one in prospect. Thus, a taxonomy is usually made for a specific purpose. To seek the types of human errors in the environment of man-machine interface under the railway industry, we develop a cognitive information processing model incorporating the human's mental states. Using the model, this study investigates the types of human errors about the railway workers. Thus, a survey is conducted for railway safety personnel-locomotive engineers, station employees, and train commanders- in Korean railway company. Through the survey that is designed to investigate four types of human errors from the Questionnaires composed of thirty Questions, we analyze the types of human errors related to railway safety according to affiliated offices, operation shifts, age, and working years. Finally, from the insights of the results some guidelines for the railway safety management are presented.


Studies on the solid waste management of HDPE waste materials through recycling have been under taken. Test specimens using virgin HDPE pellets (VHDPE), waste HDPE materials (TRHDPE) and 1:10 blend of the virgin HDPEwith thewaste HDPEmaterial labeledVRHDPEwere prepared using extrusion blowing machine. The test specimens were subjected to flexural test, tensile test, impact test and water absorption test according toASTM standard. The results revealed that the virgin HDPE specimen had better mechanical properties than the other two specimens. That notwithstanding the recycled plastic TRHDPE had impact breaking energy of 3.62 J which is within acceptable range of 2 - 18 J for the toughness of HDPE plastic. The deformation pattern of the TRHDPE plastic for flexural and tensile tests is also similar to that of the virgin HDPE and VRHDPE plastics. The results have shown that recycling could be an appropriate and beneficial route for solid waste management of high density polyethylene.


In this paper, we describe a real-time 3D human head pose estimation algorithm by means of eye tracking and on-line reconstructed 3D face data from a stereo image pair. A frame by frame based face coordinate system is formed using eye locations and a face plane which doesn't rely on distinctive facial features. The rest of the algorithm follows the conventional approach of pose estimation between the face coordinate system and a reference coordinate system without any initialization and model fitting. By not relying on arbitrary data on the face such as nose ridge line or a mouth corner points, we minimize the impact of errors which may come from their 3D estimates and facial expression changes. Experimental results demonstrate the accuracy and robustness of the algorithm.


The effects of inhaling 0.4 mg of fenoterol hydrobromide (Berotec), 0.2 mg of albuterol (salbutamol), or placebo were compared in a double-blind three-way crossover study in a group of 12 asthmatic patients. After inhalation of fenoterol, the maximum increase in the forced expiratory volume in the first second (FEV1) was 0.76 L (48 percent) and in the peak expiratory flow (PEF) was 100 L/min (47 percent). The corresponding figures after inhalation of albuterol were 0.68 L (46 percent) and 98 L/min (48 percent), respectively. In comparison with administration of placebo, the FEV1 was significantly increased until six hours after inhalation of either drug. From three to six hours after inhalation, the effect of administration of fenoterol (as measured by FEV1 or PEF) significantly exceeded that of albuterol. Administration of either drug resulted in approximately equal bronchodilation (as measured by the increase in FEV1 or PEF), the effect of inhalation of fenoterol being of longer duration.


Aim: This study aims to assess the knowledge, awareness, and practices of registered dentists regarding COVID-19 epidemiology and transmission during the rapid outbreak of this highly contagious virus in Bangladesh. Subjects and Methods: A cross-sectional web-based survey was conducted among the dentists who were enrolled with their valid unique Bangladesh Medical and Dental Council (BMDC) registration number. A validated questionnaire was developed and distributed among the dentists by using different social media platforms. A total of 184 dentists participated in the survey between March and April 2020. Both descriptive analysis logistic regression analysis was performed.Results: The mean age of the dentists is 31.75 years, with a standard deviation of 6.5 years. About 29.3% of dentists completed their postgraduate qualification, and 76% of them are engaged in private practice. The dentists who completed postgraduate education are three times more likely to know (OR=3.1, 95%CI 1.2-7.9) about COVID-19 compared to the dentists who completed an undergraduate degree. It is also observed that the dentists who are employed in private and independent settings are four times (OR=4, 95%CI 0.7-24) more likely to follow safe practice compared to the dentists who are engaged in the government hospitals or clinics.Conclusion: The dentists from Bangladesh have shown good knowledge, awareness, and practice regarding COVID-19. We recommend that the healthcare authorities, professional organizations, and hospitals coordinate, and conduct mandatory advanced infectious disease training for all the practicing dentists in the country.


ABSTRACT Delayed HIV diagnosis at advanced stages of disease remains common (33%–64%). This analysis of the multi-center FindHIV study including newly diagnosed HIV-infected adults in Germany, focused on the potential role of socio-demographic and psychological factors on late diagnosis (formerly "late presentation", AIDS diagnosis or CD4 cells <350/µL). These data were collected from patient profiles, physician-patient interviews and questionnaires. Participating centers (n = 40) represented the diverse health care settings in HIV care and geographic regions. Of 706 newly diagnosed adults (92% male, median age 39 years) between 2019 and 2020, 55% (388/706) were diagnosed late with a median CD4 cell count of 147/µL; 20% (142/706) presented with AIDS. From the physicians' perspective, earlier diagnosis would have been possible in 45% of participants (late versus non-late presentation 58% versus 29%). The most common physician-perceived reason was an underestimated risk for HIV infection by the patient (37%). In multivariable logistic regression analysis, older age, sexual contacts with both sexes as possible route of HIV transmission, being married, and a poor level of knowledge about HIV treatment were found to be associated with a significantly elevated risk for late presentation. Education, employment status, sexual relations, migration background and personality traits were not. Trial registration: German Clinical Trials Register (DRKS00016351).


To the Editor.— Doherty and Burge 1 reported 43 and 82 divorces per 1000 among male and female physicians, respectively. They compared these findings with the corresponding figures of 55 and 106 in the employed population and concluded that "the marriages of physicians—men and women alike— have a lower likelihood of ending in divorce than the rest of the employed population." This conclusion could be misleading for the following reasons. These figures are based on a population 16 years of age and older. The fact that physicians have a tendency to marry at older ages than other employed populations, 1,2 coupled with the fact that the divorce rate is lower among older populations, 3 could lead to a spurious underestimation of divorce rates among physicians compared with other employed populations. A better indicator of divorce rate among physicians is the percentage of marriages that eventually end in divorce (cohort approach).


Background: Nutrition security of women is one of the most vital foundations for overall development and wellbeing of society. Since understanding the factors that influence the nutrition security of women is very important for implementing appropriate interventions, this study was conducted to determine the determinants of the nutrition security status of rural women in Northwest Ethiopia. Methods: Survey data were collected from 197 rural women randomly selected using a two-stage sampling method (Cluster sampling in the first stage and Stratified random sampling in the second stage). Data in the two outcomes (nutritionally secured whose BMI ≥ 18.5, and nutritionally insecure whose BMI < 18.5 kg/m2) were analyzed using Binary Logit regression model to determine the significance of the determinants on women's nutrition security status. Results: The study showed that 72.6% of the women in the study area were nutritionally insecure. Results of the statistical analysis revealed that family size (negative effect), and women's daily feed frequency, the consumption of milk, fruits and vegetables, and animal products, and women empowerment (all positive effect) were the significant determinants of the nutrition security status of rural women. The weight, the height, and the BMI of nutritionally insecure women (44 kg, 1.45 m, and 15.8 kg/m2, respectively) were significantly lower than those of nutritionally secured women (50.8 kg, 1.55 m, and 21.1 kg/m2, respectively). Conclusions: This is the first study on the determinants of rural women's nutrition security status using social and demographic data collected at the grass root level and analyzed using an advanced econometric model. The findings of the study show the need for government and other stakeholders' interventions to increase access to nutritious food products and to provide trainings on feeding culture and dietary diversity to women. The findings of this study can help the Government of Ethiopia to achieve its National Development Priorities in line with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of UN, particularly Goals 2, 3 and 5.


Cyperus rotundus has been grown for a long time in korea to be used as medicinal crop. This study was conducted to survey the production status and economic analysis in chief producing area of Cyperus rotundus in Koryong, Korea. The Koryong area where was the major production area of Cyperus rotundus was composed of 0.6hectare cultivation size per farm household and the processes like cultivation, processing, shipping were formed unitedly. The most general management type was labor-extensive one which use the Nakdong river basin or idle land effectively. The cultivation area have been decreased gradually because the price was very low so that the income per hectare was just 3,880 thousand won and productivity per hectare was just 6,280kg. Thus, production condition was very inferior, it needs some self-help to encourage the production because it has some possibility as only regional special product.


SUMMARY: Phase-contrast microscopy enables germination to be studied in the spores of Bacillus cereus and B. subtilis a few minutes after the addition of adenosine; by this means adenosine can be identified in minute concentrations. Adenosine in high concentrations is, however, inhibitory to vegetative growth.
Adenosine appears to act as an indicator of conditions suitable for vegetative existence, and induces, almost instantaneously, profound physical changes in spores. The analogy with hatching of eel-worm and amoebic cysts, also susceptible to specific excitants, is stressed.


ABSTRACT Escherichia coli strains, in general, do not ferment cellobiose and aryl-β-d-glucosidic sugars, although "cryptic" β-d-glucoside systems have been characterized. Here we describe an additional cryptic operon (bgc) for the utilization of cellobiose and the aryl-β-d-glucosides arbutin and salicin at low temperature. The bgc operon was identified by the characterization of β-glucoside-positive mutants of an E. coli septicemia strain (i484) in which the well-studied bgl (aryl-β-d-glucoside) operon was deleted. These bgc* mutants appeared after 5 days of incubation on salicin indicator plates at 28°C. The bgc operon codes for proteins homologous to β-glucoside/cellobiose-specific phosphoenolpyruvate-dependent phosphotransfer system permease subunits IIB (BgcE), IIC (BgcF), and IIA (BgcI); a porin (BgcH); and a phospho-β-d-glucosidase (BgcA). Next to the bgc operon maps the divergent bgcR gene, which encodes a GntR-type transcriptional regulator. Expression of the bgc operon is dependent on the cyclic-AMP-dependent regulator protein CRP and positively controlled by BgcR. In the bgc* mutants, a single nucleotide exchange enhances the activity of the bgc promoter, rendering it BgcR independent. Typing of a representative collection of E. coli demonstrated the prevalence of bgc in strains of phylogenetic group B2, representing mainly extraintestinal pathogens, while it is rare among commensal E. coli strains. The bgc locus is also present in the closely related species Escherichia albertii. Further, bioinformatic analyses demonstrated that homologs of the bgc genes exist in the enterobacterial Klebsiella, Enterobacter, and Citrobacter spp. and also in gram-positive bacteria, indicative of horizontal gene transfer events.


Bean production in Cuba: present situation and inmediate perspective. In Cuba aproximately 38.000 ha of beans are sown in the Ministry of Agriculture, with a total production old to the state of 9.000 t. The highest porcentage belongs to state agencies under favorable environment and monoculture rotational system. The reminder is produced in agronomy cooperatives and by individual farmers; in all the cases yields are low. Experimental results obtained in the country, indicate that higher yields could be obtained. The main limiting factors affecting bean produce are: the lack of the areas devoted to this crop, low level of technology adoption and transference, poor availability of quality seed for the whole planted area and unefficient management of the harvest and post harvest. The conclusion is that there are agroecological and structural conditions, as wellas a great deal of research results, which allow to resort to the popularization of the crops, together with a sustainable territorial self-production of the grain for consumption and seed. To develope a broad base extension service program that allows the knowledge up-to-date of the producers and to keep the development of the national research program in permit to meet the availability for new technologies to face the diversity of problems involved in bean production.


Abstract. This paper describes initial work exploring GAM Gaussian Process (GP) splines parameterised by observation location, as a geographical varying coefficient model. Similar to GWR, this approach accommodates process spatial heterogeneity and generates spatially distributed, local coefficient estimates. These can be mapped to indicate the nature of the heterogeneity. The paper investigates the effect of the smoothing parameters used in the splines and how they alter the nature of the modelled heterogeneity. It optimises these in the GAM GP and the tuned model has subtle but important differences with the initial model. This has impacts on the nature of the process understanding (inference) that can be extracted from the model. This in turn suggest the need examine the underlying semantics of the resultant models in relation to the scale of process suggested by the smoothing parameters. A number of areas of further work are identified.


This paper seeks to draw attention to a flaw in the firm's Free Cash Flow model and related statement widely accepted in Corporate Finance. We argue that the common offset of any Current Liabilities against Current Assets distorts the FCF size, composition, and volatility, thereby misstating the firm or project size, debt and assets composition, financial leverage, risk profile, and estimated value. We demonstrate empirically that the offset opens opportunities to manipulate the FCF by systematically overstating its size and understating its volatility. We propose to avoid any offset and rename the standardized statement "Valuation Cash Flow" (VCF).


Inclusive models of government entail executive power reconfigurations that invariably change the landscape and conduct of national administration and policy implementation. This article examines the dynamics of public administration under the inclusive government of Zimbabwe, particularly interrogating the ecological contexts, the structure of government bureaucracy, the distribution of executive powers, cabinet decision making, working relations within co-shared ministries as well as institutional capacity for policy implementation and monitoring. Research findings indicate that while the macro environmental contexts have substantially stabilized, the major frontiers of public administration are in a frail state, choked by a top heavy government bureaucracy, inter-party bureaucratic politics and patronage, weak fiscal resource base and lack of collective will at the levels of decision making and policy implementation. Observed scenarios underline the need to institutionalize a culture of complying with the fundamentals of public administration. Formal structures of authority need to be empowered against informal structures. Best practices of inclusiveness, transparency, accountability, merit, national focus and political neutrality should inform and guide the practice of public administration within the three arms of government.


Aim: To evaluate efficacy and tolerance of a compound drug Co-renitec combining an ACE inhibitor enalapril maleate and diuretic
hydrochlorothiazide. Co-renitec taken for 16 weeks in patients with essential hypertension (EH). Material and methods: 28 patients
with EH (16 males and 12 females aged 47-74 years) of mean duration 132 years. Blood pressure (BP) was monitored for 24 hours
with the device SL 90207 (SpaceLabs Medical, USA). Microalbuminuria (MAU) was estimated with the use of immunoturbodimetric
test. Results: By 24-hour monitoring, Co-renitec reduced day BP by 15/9 - 3/2 mm Hg, nocturnal BP lowered by 19/12 - 3/2 mmHg,
pulse pressure also fell. Coefficient T/P was 53% for systolic BP (SBP) and 60% for diastolic BP (DBP). The target BP was reached in
70% patients. Co-renitec significantly decreased MAU, albumines excretion normalized in 46% patients. Conclusion: Co-renitec lowers
both day and nocturnal blood pressure, improves 24-h rhythm of BP, has a positive effect on the kidneys. This allows its recommendation
as a first-line drug in patients with moderate and severe EH.


Summary Perioperative neurocognitive disorders including postoperative delirium (POD) are common complications of anaesthesia and surgery, associated with morbidity, mortality and a large economic cost. Currently, limited data are available on the incidence of POD in the New Zealand population. The objective of this study was to utilise New Zealand national level datasets to identify the incidence of POD. Our primary outcome was defined as a diagnosis of delirium via ICD 9/10 coding within seven days of surgery. We also analysed demographic, anaesthetic and surgical characteristics. All adult patients undergoing any surgical intervention under sedation, regional, general or neuraxial anaesthesia were included, and patients who received surgical intervention under local anaesthetic infiltration alone were excluded. We reviewed ten years of patient admissions from 2007 to 2016. Our sample size was 2,249,910 patients. The incidence of POD was 1.9%, much lower than previously observed, potentially indicating significant under-reporting of POD in this national level database. With acknowledgement of the limitations of potential undercoding and under-reporting, we found that the incidence of POD was higher with increasing age, male sex, general anaesthesia, Māori ethnicity, increasing comorbidity, surgical severity and emergency surgery. A diagnosis of POD was associated with increased mortality and hospital length of stay. Our results highlight potential risk factors of POD and disparities in health outcomes in New Zealand. Additionally, these findings suggest systemic under-reporting of POD in national level datasets.


Galactoceles are the common benign cystic breast lesions during pregnancy and lactation. This report describes the cytological findings of a case of long standing galactocele which underwent crystallization and mimicked carcinoma clinically as well as on sonography. A young woman presented with a hard painless lump in the right breast. She noticed the lump during her pregnancy 2.5 years back. Clinically the lesion was hard and sonography was equivocal in categorizing the lesion. An FNAC was performed which showed granular amorphous material along with crystals of various shapes and sizes. A diagnosis of crystallizing galactocele was made and woman was assured about the benign nature of the lesion. The cytological findings of crystallizing galactocele have been reported in very few cases. In the present case, a detailed history and clinical examination followed by fine needle aspiration established the diagnosis of crystallizing galactocele.


Aims. Our goal is to identify bipolar H II regions and to understand their morphology, their evolution, and the role they play in the formation of new generations of stars. Methods. We use the Spitzer-GLIMPSE, -MIPSGAL, and Herschel-Hi-GAL surveys to identify bipolar H II regions, looking for (ionized) lobes extending perpendicular to dense filamentary structures. We search for their exciting star(s) and estimate their distances using near-IR data from the 2MASS or UKIDSS surveys. Dense molecular clumps are detected using Herschel-SPIRE data, and we estimate their temperature, column density, mass, and density. MALT90 observations allow us to ascertain their association with the central H II region (association based on similar velocities). We identify Class 0/I young stellar objects (YSOs) using their Spitzer and Herschel-PACS emissions. These methods will be applied to the entire sample of candidate bipolar H II regions to be presented in a forthcoming paper. Results. This paper focuses on two bipolar H II regions, one that is especially interesting in terms of its morphology, G319.88+00.79, and one in terms of its star formation, G010.32-00.15. Their exciting clusters are identified and their photometric distances estimated to be 2.6 kpc and 1.75 kpc, respectively; thus G010.32-00.15 (known as W31 north) lies much closer than previously assumed. We suggest that these regions formed in dense and flat structures that contain filaments. They have a central ionized region and ionized lobes extending perpendicular to the parental cloud. The remains of the parental cloud appear as dense (more than 10(4) cm(-3)) and cold (14-17 K) condensations. The dust in the photodissociation regions (in regions adjacent to the ionized gas) is warm (19-25 K). Dense massive clumps are present around the central ionized region. G010.32-00.14 is especially remarkable because five clumps of several hundred solar masses surround the central H II region; their peak column density is a few 10(23) cm(-2), and the mean density in their central regions reaches several 10(5) cm(-3). Four of them contain at least one massive YSO (including an ultracompact H II region and a high-luminosity Class I YSO); these clumps also contain extended green objects (EGOs) and Class II methanol masers. This morphology suggests that the formation of a second generation of massive stars has been triggered by the central bipolar H II region. It occurs in the compressed material of the parental cloud.


In the context of a Planck scale underpinning for the universe, we argue that both gravitation and electromagnetism can be character-ized in a unified way, in a Sakharov like description. We also consider the issue of observed gamma radiation, which recent observations seem to indicate are caused by the annihilation of exotic Mev particles, as indeed was theoretically predicted earlier. Some other problems are also considered.


The study examined physical educators' perceptions regarding the impact of teaching students with disabilities in inclusive class on social acceptance, developing self-concept, demands on existing equipment, classroom management, teachers' workload, and learning motor skills for students without disabilities. Sixty-seven physical educators teaching in junior secondary schools in Nigeria participated in the study, and a survey research design was adopted using adapted PEATH. Findings revealed positive social acceptance ( M = 3.45–3.90 < 3.00), positive development of self-concept (3.67 < 3.00), discipline problems and disruption of classroom harmony (3.12 – 3.18 < 3.00), demands on specialized equipment (4.47 < 3.00), increase in workload (3.66 – 4.01 < 3.00), negative impact on motor skills acquisition of students (3.67 – 3.69 < 3.00). Multiple regression showed F = 2.13 was not statistically significant. p -value = .08 greater than 0.05.  Subscribe to Palaestra