Objective Neuropsychiatric symptoms affect many patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD). (11C)Pittsburgh Compound-B (PIB) positron emission tomography (PET) has enabled the in vivo visualisation of brain amyloid-β (Aβ) deposition. This study exploratively investigated the correlation between brain Aβ deposition measured by (11C)PIB PET and neuropsychiatric symptoms in AD. Methods Participants were 28 patients (15 women, 13 men) with PIB-positive AD. Clinical assessments included Mini-Mental State Examination, Clinical Dementia Rating scale, neuropsychiatry inventory (NPI) and frontal assessment battery. All patients underwent three-dimensional T1-weighted MRI and (11C)PIB PET. The distribution volume ratio (DVR), an index of (11C)PIB retention and, thus, Aβ deposition, was estimated voxel by voxel from (11C)PIB PET data with partial volume correction. Voxel-based correlation analysis was performed to assess the relationships between DVR and each NPI subscale. Additionally, voxel-based analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) of the DVR images was performed between Patients with AD with and without each neuropsychiatric symptom. Voxel-based morphometry analysis of MRI was also performed. Results Apathy subscale was correlated with (11C)PIB retention in the bilateral frontal and right anterior cingulate. (11C)PIB retention was greater in the bilateral frontal cortex of patients with AD with apathy than those of without apathy. Overlapping areas between the two analyses were the bilateral orbitofrontal gyrus and left superior frontal gyrus. Other NPI subscales were not correlated with (11C)PIB retention. Voxel-based morphometry analysis of MRI showed no significant cluster of correlation between grey matter volume and NPI subscales. Conclusions This study revealed that prefrontal Aβ deposition correlates with apathy.


Assuming that density waves trigger star formation, and that young stars preserve the velocity components of the molecular gas where they are born, we analyze the effects that non-circular gas orbits have on color gradients across spiral arms. We try two approaches, one involving semianalytical solutions for spiral shocks, and another with magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) numerical simulation data. We find that, if non-circular motions are ignored, the comparison between observed color gradients and stellar population synthesis models would in principle yield pattern speed values that are systematically too high for regions inside corotation, with the difference between the real and the measured pattern speeds increasing with decreasing radius. On the other hand, image processing and pixel averaging result in systematically lower measured spiral pattern speed values, regardless of the kinematics of stellar orbits. The net effect is that roughly the correct pattern speeds are recovered, although the trend of higher measured Ωp at lower radii (as expected when non-circular motions exist but are neglected) should still be observed. We examine the Martínez-García et al. photometric data and confirm that this is indeed the case. The comparison of the size of the systematic pattern speed offset in the data with the predictions of the semianalytical and MHD models corroborates that spirals are more likely to end at outer Lindblad resonance, as these authors had already found.


This paper presents the concept of risks and opportunities of children's and adolescents' Internet use. The research is a part of the project "Children's and adolescents' Internet use in Lithuania: possibilities and risks tendencies in EU context", which was funded by a grant (No. S-MIP-17-1/LSS-250000-1087) from the Research Council of Lithuania. The main results are presented in comparison with Lithuanian and European studies. Conclusions and recommendations on how to ensure safe children's Internet use on their own and to avoid potential risks, as well as how to open up the opportunities offered by the Internet are provided.


This study investigates the effect of transaction cost considerations on the apportionment of residual bearing, and the assignment of managerial control between two firms involved in the exchange of business know-how. Data were collected from contractual agreements between multinational enterprises and indigenous firms that formed collaborative ventures in developing countries. A simultaneous-equation model was employed to test hypotheses that were derived under a theoretical framework based on the new institutional economics. The empirical results are supportive of the hypotheses. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.


In cryptography, quantum key distribution (QKD) is a highly secure transmission method used to send secret keys from sender to receiver. This paper discusses about the software implementation of the first two phases of QKD: (1) raw key extraction and (2) error estimation. This paper also discusses about future work proposed to enhance these two phases. A TCP/IP based Client-Server concept has been used to implement the communication between two users in C++ language.


Objective: Organic acidaemias are inborn errors of metabolism with an unpredictable course and poorly understood pathogenesis. We hypothesised that oxidative stress due to a relative glutathione deficiency plays a role in these diseases. Glutathione is very important in the intracellular anti-oxidative defence and its synthesis could be impaired because of dietary protein restriction. Simultaneously, adverse effects of organic acids to mitochondrial function could increase free radical production leading to glutathione consumption. To test our hypothesis, we studied the redox state and amount of glutathione in patients with organic acidaemias. If decreased, glutathione levels could be augmented with pharmaceuticals. Methods: The plasma and erythrocyte cysteine and glutathione concentrations and erythrocyte glutathione peroxidase, glutathione reductase, glutathione S-transferase and glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase activities were measured in 11 children with organic acidaemias (methylmalonic, propionic and isovaleric acidaemia) and 10 healthy controls. In addition, glutathione and cysteine concentrations were measured in normal human fibroblasts exposed to increasing concentrations of propionic, methylmalonic and isovaleric acid. Results: Patients with organic acidaemias had lower plasma glutathione than the control group and a greater fraction of their plasma glutathione and cysteine was protein bound and oxidised, suggesting that both decreased glutathione synthesis and increased consumption were present. The cell culture model partly supported these findings. Conclusions: Patients with organic acidaemias seem to have a relative glutathione deficiency, which supports the idea of oxidative stress being involved in the pathogenesis of these diseases. In the future, enhancement of glutathione synthesis could thus provide an improvement in the treatment of organic acidaemias.


In this paper, the general features of the 'classical elitist thesis' will be outlined, to be followed by a closer examination of the individual versions of this thesis put forward by its principal protagonists. Thereafter, we will examine the concept of liberal democracy. The latter discourse will be undertaken with a view to showcasing the relationship between the elite theory of politics and the concept and principles of liberal democracy. In other words, the question is whether the existence of elites is compatible with the existence of democracy.


UNLABELLED
ECG-synchronized retroperfusion (SRP) via the coronary sinus has been recently demonstrated to efficiently deliver arterial blood to ischemic myocardium in an experimental setting and during PTCA. To assess the potential of SRP for identifying hibernating myocardium by improved contractile function resulting from retrograde delivery of oxygen, 10 patients (M/F = 9/1; age 56 +/- 9 years) with ischemic wall motion abnormalities, but, according to ECG-criteria, no transmural infarction in the territory of a totally occluded LAD, underwent 30 min of SRP at a flow rate of 145-250 ml/min prior to mechanical recanalization. Serial digital ventriculograms were obtained before, after 30 min of SRP and, finally, after successful PTCA at follow-up of 28 +/- 4 days.

RESULTS
Wall motion analysis revealed improved global and regional contractile function in seven of 10 patients, which was maintained after successful PTCA. Continuous SRP over 30 min resulted in an improvement of global and segmental systolic function. Left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) increased from 53 +/- 8% to 58 +/- 5% with 30 min of SRP (p < 0.03) and significant improvement in regional function was detected in the anterobasal, apical and inferior segment of the left ventricular circumference (p < 0.05).

CONCLUSION
An improved contractile response to retrograde delivery of oxygen by SRP appears to document the reversibility of myocardial hibernation. Thus, ECG-synchronized SRP via the coronary sinus has the potential to unmask viable myocardium likely to completely recover from contractile dysfunction after successful antegrade recanalization. Moreover, continuous SRP procedure over 30 min was safe and had no hazardous side-effects.


Voice and communication are seen as largely synonymous in social theory, democratic political theory, media studies and in more than 600 human communication theories that have been identified. That is to say, voice is normatively conceptualised as dialogic and communicative, not simply seen as speaking. However, in the context of organisations and organisation-public relationships (OPR), which are extensive in industrialised and institutionalised societies, research indicates that voice and communication are predominantly enacted as speaking. A pilot study reported in this article indicates that allegedly communicative functions including public relations, involve considerable and often massive resources devoted to creating an architecture of speaking and doing the work of speaking on behalf of organisations including government departments and agencies, corporations, and institutions. Conversely, this research raises serious questions about the extent to which organisations listen to those who seek to engage with them. Further, it suggests that organisations cannot effectively listen unless they have an architecture of listening or do the work of listening, and identifies cultural, structural, political and technological components to create this vital missing element in public communication and the public sphere.


An energy harvesting dynamic vibration absorber (EHDVA) is studied to suppress undesirable vibrations in a host structure as well as to harvest electrical energy from vibrations using piezoelectric transduction. This work studies the feasibility of using vibration absorber for harvesting energy under random excitation and in presence of parametric uncertainties. A two degrees-of-freedom model is considered in the analytical formulation for the host along with the absorber. A separate equation is used for energy generation from piezoelectric material. Two studies are reported here: (i) with random excitation where the base input is considered to be Gaussian and (ii) parametric uncertainty is considered with harmonic excitation. Under random base excitation, the analytical results show that, with the proper selection of parameters, harvested electrical energy can be increased along with the reduction in vibration of the host structure. Graphs are reported showing tradeoff between harvested energy and vibration control. Whereas, Monte Carlo simulations are carried out to analyze the system with parametric uncertainty. This showed that the mean harvested power decreases with an increase in uncertainties in the natural frequency as well as damping ratio. In addition, optimal electrical parameters for obtaining maximum power for the case of uncertain parameters are also reported in this study.


Specific lymphocyte-mediated cytotoxicity to cytomegalovirus (CMV) in eight infants (six to 27 months old) with congenital CMV infection and in the mothers of six of these infants was evaluated with use of a 51chromium (51Cr)-release microassay. The control population consisted of 25 normal newborns, children, and adults. The titers of indirect hemagglutinating (IHA) antibody to CMV in the infected infants ranged from 1:16 to 1:1,024. All of these infants had detectable specific immune release of 51Cr that ranged from 3.3% to 48.9% (mean +/-SE, 21.0%+/-5.6%). The mothers of these infants demonstrated significantly elevated titers of IHA antibody to CMV (geometric mean titer, 1:410) as compared with a mean titer of 1:22 in controls (t = 5.71; P less than 0.001) but showed significantly depressed specific immune release (9.2% +/- 3.2%) compared with that of normal seropositive controls (24.8% +/- 2.8%; t = 3.31; P less than 0.001). In addition, two adult nulliparous women with persistent CMV viruria were also found to have depressed specific immune release to CMV (10.8% and 16.2%). These data suggest that a specific impairment in cell-mediated immunity to CMV occurs in mothers of infants with congenital CMV infection and in some persons who persistently excrete CMV.


The potential for rising groundwater is an important consideration in any coastal resiliency assessment. Unlike other groundwater modeling that focuses mostly on contaminant tracking, coastal groundwater resiliency assessments are primarily concerned with the potential for groundwater emergence induced by sea level rise. This provides more options for modelers that range from simplified water table elevation models to fully integrated groundwater and storm water models. The selection is dependent on available data and project needs. However, despite the relative simplicity of some of the techniques, all the methods benefit from a professional with hydrogeological training.


The Phase I effort was directed toward verification of cryogenic laser diode optic technology for optical throughputs of more than one watt average power per fiber. In the test model, 17 diode module/fiber units out of a complement of 28 were operated simultaneously; the bundled fibers formed a 60 by 80 mil source which emitted 21 watts at 9 per cent duty factor through an f 1.6 optical system. The test model circular array configuration imposes disadvantages during fabrication which prevents successful operation of the full complement of module/fiber units. The Phase II task consisted of design studies and experiments to evolve a linear laser diode fiber optic array. An electrical analog model of the array thermal resistance path was constructed to experimentally solve the three-dimensional heat flow problem. A Gallium-Indium eutectic solder which is a liquid at room temperature was developed to provide a high conductivity interface material. Conceptual array designs were examined for modularity, ease of fabrication, and repairability. Sub-array tests using extruded optical quality fibers indicated potential fiber melting due to the insulating vacuum surrounding the array. A theoretical analysis of fiber cooling using a nitrogen gas filled array chamber showed a marked advantage for gas-cooled fibers.more » The proposed final design is a linear, modular array using equal length metallized fibers in a gas-filled chamber. The source size is 66 x 66 mils using 30 diode/fiber units on 15 modules.« less


Cortical stimulation mapping (CSM) studies have shown cortical locations for language function are highly variable from one subject to the next. If individual variation can be normalized, patterns of language organization may emerge that were heretofore hidden. In order to uncover these patterns, computer-aided spatial normalization to a common atlas is required. Our goal was to determine a methodology by which spatial normalization methods could be evaluated and compared. We developed key metrics to measure accuracy of a surface-based (Caret) and volume-based (SPM2) method. We specified that the optimal method would i) minimize variation as measured by spread reduction between CSM language sites across subjects while also ii) preserving anatomical localization of all CSM sites. Eleven subject's structural MR image sets and corresponding CSM site coordinates were registered to the colin27 human brain atlas using each method. Local analysis showed that mapping error rates were highest in morphological regions with the greatest difference between source and target. Also, SPM2 mapped significantly less type 2 errors. Although our experiment did not show statistically significant global differences between the methods, our methodology provided valuable insights into the pros and cons of each method


Introduction: Manifestation of bone metastases is the most frequent cause of death among prostate cancer patients. Since the progression from non-metastatic (M0) to metastatic (M1) is highly unpredictable, molecular analysis of disseminated cancer cells (DCCs) detected before overt metastasis may provide an opportunity to dissect the early stages of systemic cancer and enable detection of critical therapy targets. However, we previously showed that early stage prostate DCCs acquire a bone marrow-associated transcriptomic phenotype (Guzvic et al. Cancer Res. 2014, 15;74(24):7383-94) impeding the definite identification of DCCs. To address this problem we developed a workflow of combined single-cell RNA-Seq and single-cell aCGH allowing high-resolution analysis of genomes and transcriptomes of individual cells. Here, we present a proof-of-concept study using DCCs isolated from bone marrow of prostate cancer patients. Materials and methods: We isolated 24 EPCAM-positive DCCs from bone marrow of prostate cancer patients. In addition, we analyzed two VCaP prostate cancer cells and two peripheral blood lymphocytes of healthy individuals. All isolated cells were subjected to combined whole genome and whole transcriptome amplification using Ampli1TM WGA Kit and a WTA approach (Klein CA et al., Nat Biotechnol. 2002, 20(4):387-92), respectively. The suitability of WTA and WGA products for downstream analyses were assessed using PCR-based QC-assays. Subsequently, WGA products were hybridized on high-resolution SurePrint aCGH arrays and analyzed with Agilent Genomic Workbench Software. WTA products were sequenced using Roche 454 GS FLX+ or Illumina HiSeq 2000 systems. Single-cell RNA-Seq data were evaluated using a bioinformatic pipeline adjusted to the needs of the single cell WTA method. Results: We provide two experimental protocols for single-cell RNA-Seq: (i) allowing detection of low-abundant transcripts and (ii) enabling comprehensive gene-expression analysis. The protocols were validated using VCaP cells, in which we could successfully detect low expression levels of TMPRSS2-ERG fusion transcripts. The established analysis allowed also detection of novel fusion transcripts in a M1-stage prostate cancer patient. Comprehensive gene expression analysis revealed presence of 4.000 to 13.000 transcripts expressed in bone marrow-derived cells. The comparison of RNA-Seq and aCGH data allowed to simultaneously detecting copy number alterations and corresponding changes in gene expression dosage. Thereby, the combined genome and transcriptome analysis of single cells enables to uncover the impact of genomic gains and losses on cellular transcriptomes. Conclusions: Combined genome and transcriptome analysis of patient-derived single DCCs is feasible and enables unambiguous identification and genotypic and phenotypic characterization of DCCs. Citation Format: Stefan Kirsch, Urs Lahrmann, Miodrag Guzvic, Zbigniew T. Czyz, Giancarlo Feliciello, Bernhard Polzer, Christoph A. Klein. High-resolution parallel analysis of genome and transcriptome of single disseminated prostate cancer cells. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 107th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2016 Apr 16-20; New Orleans, LA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2016;76(14 Suppl):Abstract nr 1551.


Molecular and genetic investigations in endometrial carcinogenesis may have prognostic and therapeutic implications. We studied the expression of EGFR, c-Met, PTEN and the mTOR signalling pathway (phospho-AKT/phospho-mTOR/phospho-RPS6) in 69 consecutive tumours and 16 tissue microarrays. We also analysed PIK3CA, K-Ras mutations and microsatellite instability (MSI). We distinguished two groups: group 1 (grade 1 and 2 endometrioid cancers) and group 2 (grade 3 endometrioid and type II clear and serous cell cancers). We hypothesised that these histological groups might have different features. We found that a) survival was higher in group 1 with less aggressive tumours (P⟨0.03); b) EGFR (P=0.01), PTEN and the AKT/mTOR/RPS6 signalling pathway were increased in group 1 versus group 2 (P=0.05 for phospho-mTOR); c) conversely, c-Met was higher (P⟨0.03) in group 2 than in group 1; d) In group 1, EGFR was correlated with c-Met, phospho-mTOR, phospho-RPS6 and the global activity of the phospho-AKT/phospho-mTOR/phospho-RPS6 pathway. In group 2, EGFR was correlated only with the phospho-AKT/phospho-mTOR/phospho-RPS6 pathway, whereas c-Met was correlated with PTEN; e) survival was higher for tumours with more than 50% PTEN-positive cells; f) K-RAS and PIK3CA mutations occurred in 10-12% of the available tumours and MSI in 40.4%, with a loss of MLH1 and PMS2 expression. Our results for endometrial cancers provide the first evidence for a difference in status between groups 1 and 2. The patients may benefit from different targeted treatments, anti-EGFR agents and rapamycin derivatives (anti-mTOR) for group 1 and an anti c-MET/ligand complex for group 2.


In an approach toward the identification of ecofriendly compounds for fusarium head blight biocontrol, the in vitro antifungal activity of 5-n-alkylresorcinol (AR) extracts, obtained from durum wheat intact kernels, was tested. In comparison with ethyl acetate and acetone extracts containing AR, total inhibition of Fusarium graminearum spore germination was observed with cyclohexane extract, which also exhibited a significant fungistatic activity against F. graminearum, Fusarium culmorum, Fusarium avenaceum, and Fusarium poae. Additionally, the study of the influence of such variables as predrying of seeds and durum wheat genotype on AR cyclohexane extract properties allowed the association of its highest antifungal activity with the AR homologue composition and, in particular, with the presence of a higher C21:0/C23:0 ratio. The interesting finding of this study suggests a potential application of the AR homologues in crop protection systems and could be an important step toward the development of commercial formulations suitable to the prevention of fungal diseases.


Our cultural heritage consists of manifold cultural expressions and represents a defining feature of our societies that needs to be further inherited to future generations. Even though humankind always fought a daily struggle for survival, at the same time, it seemed to have a spiritual need that went far beyond mere materialistic satisfaction and nowadays manifests in sometimes very ancient, yet brilliant artistic works. This fundamental legacy is endangered by several instances, including biodeterioration. Indeed, microorganisms play a significant role in the decline of all forms of tangible cultural heritage, including movable, immovable and underwater cultural heritage. Microbial colonization, biofilm formation and damaging metabolite production eventually result in critical decay. Thus, efforts to mitigate the negative impact of damaging microorganisms have been pursued with diverse physical, chemical and biological approaches. Intriguingly, recent advances have unveiled that specific microorganisms and microbial-based technologies also have the potential for cultural heritage preservation and present unique advantages. This short piece provides a quick overview on the duality of microorganisms in the conservation and restoration of cultural heritage.


The proportional and derivative (PD) and proportional, integral, and derivative (PID) controllers have been used extensively in industry due to their simplicity and effectiveness. This paper aims to investigate whether simple PD and adaptive PD-based controllers work for a complex system consisting of a group of multiple autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs). Simple control laws with exact and uncertain gravity compensation are proposed for shape control of multiple AUVs. The proposed adaptive PD-based controller, in the presence of gravity uncertainty, requires only the model of gravity and buoyancy regressor matrix and does not require any knowledge of the inertia matrix, Coriolis and centripetal force, hydrodynamic damping and the parameters of the gravity, and buoyancy forces of the AUVs. Hence, the proposed controllers have the advantages of simplicity and ease of implementation. A novel collision and obstacle avoidance strategy using multi-layer region control concept, which limit the unnecessary use of high control efforts that lead to oscillatory movements of AUVs, is discussed. Lyapunov-like functions are proposed for the stability analysis. Simulation studies on AUVs with 6 degrees-of-freedom are presented to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed controllers.


A series of dicationic PdII-acetonitrile complexes containing bi- and tridentate nitrogen and bidentate phosphine ligands (some of which are chiral) has been prepared as their BF4 salts. The molecular structures for two of these, [Pd(CH3CN)2(bipy)] (BF4)2 (4) and [Pd(CH3CN)((pybox)(i-Pr))] (BF4)2((S,S)-pybox(i-Pr) = 2,6-bis[(S)-4′-isopropyloxazolin-2′-yl]pyridine, 5) have been determined by X-ray diffraction. All of these complexes are shown to be effective homogeneous catalysts for the aldol-type condensation of the isonitrile, methyl isocyanoacetate, with benzaldehyde. Two isonitrile complexes, [Pd(2,2′-bipyridyl)(CNCH2COOCH3)2] (BF4)2 and [Pd((S,S)-pybox(i-Pr))(CNCH2COOCH3)] (BF4)2, have also been prepared.


This study was performed to evaluate the effectiveness of benzalkonium chloride combined with ultrasound in eliminating Listeria monocytogenes biofilm from polystyrene surface. The test strain of L. monocytogenes, previously classified as strong biofilm producer, was grown to form biofilm in tryptic soy broth at 20°C for 6 days in polystyrene specimen containers. The biofilms formed on surface of containers were treated with ultrasound alone, benzalkonium chloride (100 and 400 mg l−1) alone and their combination for three different exposure times (1, 5 and 15 min) at room temperature. Sonication was performed using an ultrasound bath at a constant ultrasound frequency of 35 kHz. After treatments, levels of biofilm biomass and viable cells in biofilm were determined using crystal violet staining and XTT assays, respectively. The combined treatment of ultrasound and benzalkonium chloride resulted in significant (P < 0·05) more decrease in the level of viable cells in the L. monocytogenes biofilm compared to individual treatments of benzalkonium chloride. Our results suggest that the combination of benzalkonium chloride with ultrasound is useful approach for the elimination of L. monocytogenes biofilms from plastic surfaces.


The 12 November 1999 Duzce earthquake (M w 7.1), which occurred on the Duzce fault of the North Anatolian Fault Zone, formed a 40-km-long surface rupture, which extended between Golyaka in the west and Kaynasli in the east. The earthquake nucleated close to the Beykoy step-over, a 0.8-km-wide and 1.8-km-long pressure ridge, with bilateral rupture propagation both to the west and the east. The Beykoy, Kaynasli, and Cevizlik step-overs, through which the 1999 Duzce rupture propagated, are less than 2.5 km wide. The Eften and Bakacak step-overs, where the rupture was arrested, are more than 4 km wide. These exceptional dimensions of step-overs associated with the 1999 Duzce rupture were investigated for their influ- ence on rupture propagation. The earthquake broke three distinct geometric segments, from west to east, the Eften, Dagdibi, and Kaynasli fault segments, separated by left-restraining step-overs at Beykoy and Kaynasli. To the west of the main shock, 3.5 m of average slip on the Eften fault segment propagated into the 2-km-wide Cevizlik releasing double bend, where it was largely arrested, with smaller (0.5 m) slip continuing westward on the Golyaka intervening segment, west of Lake Eften. This is similar to the ter- mination of slip observed on the Karadere fault segment in the 1999 Izmit earthquake, where 1.5 m of slip was largely terminated by a releasing double bend at the Golyaka intervening segment, with minor slip continuing eastward near Lake Eften. To the east of the main shock, 5 m of slip decreased along the Dagdibi fault segment to about 3.5 m at the 1-km-wide Kaynasli step-over. From here to the east, the 2.5 m of average slip on the Kaynasli fault segment continued to decrease, reaching zero at the releasing step-overs to the Elmalik fault. The terminations of the 1999 Duzce surface rupture are defined by distinct struc- tural complexities. The rupture was arrested in the west at the 4-km-wide Eften releasing double bend, where the eastern termination of the 1999 Izmit rupture also occurred. To the east, the rupture terminated at the 4- to 5-km-wide Bakacak releasing double step-overs. Both eastern and western ends of the Duzce rupture have short fault segments that experienced minor rupture during the 1999 Duzce earthquake. The Golyaka intervening segment experienced minor rupture, during both the 1999 Izmit and Duzce earthquakes. The Duzce rupture propagated across 0.8- to 2-km- wide step-overs, but it was arrested at step-overs 4 km wide or wider. These results agree with the observations on ratios between step-over width (in kilometers) and strike-slip displacement (in meters) collected along strike-slip faults worldwide (Let- tis et al., 2002).


Control of denture plaque biofilms is a practical approach to preventing persistent oral infections such as denture stomatitis. Objectives. This study compared in vitro biofilm attachment and growth on a new denture material, Ultaire® AKP, with that on traditional denture materials including cobalt chrome (CoCr), polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA), and polyoxymethylene (POM). Methods. Microbial biofilms were grown with cultures of Candida albicans, Streptococcus mutans UA159, or a mixed Streptococcus spp. (S. mutans 700610/Streptococcus sanguinis BAA-1455) for 6 hours in a static protocol or 24 hours in a dynamic protocol for each material. Adherent biofilm cells were removed, and viable colony-forming units (CFUs) were enumerated. Confocal microscopy of the 24-hour Streptococcus spp. biofilms was used to determine biofilm mass and roughness coefficients. Results. The rank order of C. albicans attachment after 6 hours was CoCr > PMMA∗ > Ultaire® AKP∗ (∗vs CoCr, p ≤ 0.05), and that for 24-hour biofilm growth was CoCr > Ultaire® AKP∗ > PMMA∗ (∗vs CoCr, p ≤ 0.05). The rank order of S. mutans biofilm attachment was CoCr > POM > Ultaire® AKP∗ > PMMA∗ (∗vs CoCr, p ≤ 0.05), and that for the 24-hour Streptococcus spp. biofilm growth was POM > Ultaire® AKP > PMMA > CoCr∗ (∗vs POM, p ≤ 0.05). Confocal images revealed structural differences in Streptococcus spp. biofilms on CoCr compared with the other test materials. Significantly lower roughness coefficients of Streptococcus spp. biofilms on Ultaire® AKP were noted, suggesting that these biofilms were less differentiated. Ultaire® AKP promoted significantly less C. albicans and S. mutans biofilm attachment than CoCr at 6 hours and C. albicans growth at 24 hours. Streptococcus spp. biofilms on Ultaire® AKP were less differentiated than those on other test materials. Conclusion. In addition to its material strength, Ultaire® AKP represents an attractive option for denture material in removable partial dentures.


AI model development for synthetic data generation to improve Machine Learning (ML) methodologies is an integral part of research in Computer Science and is currently being transferred to related medical fields, such as Systems Medicine and Medical Informatics. In general, the idea of personalized decision-making support based on patient data has driven the motivation of researchers in the medical domain for more than a decade, but the overall sparsity and scarcity of data are still major limitations. This is in contrast to currently applied technology that allows us to generate and analyze patient data in diverse forms, such as tabular data on health records, medical images, genomics data, or even audio and video. One solution arising to overcome these data limitations in relation to medical records is the synthetic generation of tabular data based on real world data. Consequently, ML-assisted decision-support can be interpreted more conveniently, using more relevant patient data at hand. At a methodological level, several state-of-the-art ML algorithms generate and derive decisions from such data. However, there remain key issues that hinder a broad practical implementation in real-life clinical settings. In this review, we will give for the first time insights towards current perspectives and potential impacts of using synthetic data generation in palliative care screening because it is a challenging prime example of highly individualized, sparsely available patient information. Taken together, the reader will obtain initial starting points and suitable solutions relevant for generating and using synthetic data for ML-based screenings in palliative care and beyond.


In this paper we focus on differential cryptanalysis dedicated to a particular class of cryptographic algorithms, namely ARX ciphers. We propose a new algorithm inspired by the Nested Monte-Carlo Search algorithm to find a differential path in ARX ciphers. We apply our algorithm to a round reduced variant of the block cipher LEA. We use the concept of a partial difference distribution table (pDDT) in our algorithm to reduce the search space. This methodology reduced the search space of the algorithm by using only those differentials whose probabilities are greater than or equal to pre-defined threshold. Using this concept we removed many differentials which are not valid or whose probabilities are very low. By doing this we decreased the time of finding a differential path by our nested algorithm due to a smaller search space. This partial difference distribution table also made our nested algorithm suitable for bigger block size ARX ciphers. Finding long differential characteristics is one of the hardest problems where we have seen other algorithms take many hours or days to find differential characteristics in ARX ciphers. Our algorithm finds the differential characteristics in just a few minutes with a very simple framework. We report the differential path for up to 9 rounds in LEA. To construct differential characteristics for a large number of rounds, we divide long characteristics into short ones, by constructing a large characteristic from two short characteristics. Instead of starting from the first round, we start from the middle and run experiments in forward as well as in the reverse direction. Using this method we improved our results and report the differential path for up to 12 rounds. Overall, the best property of our algorithm is that it has potential to provide state-of-the-art results but within a simpler framework as well as less time. Our algorithm is also very interesting for future aspect of research, as it could be applied to other ARX ciphers with a very easy going framework.


In the last decade the search for and annotation of human genome polymorphisms associated with phenotype have become particularly important concerning the opportunity of their use in medical and population genetics, pharmacogenomics and evolutionary biology. The study was aimed to calculate the frequencies and analyze the prevalence of 13 germline polymorphisms of two genes, ТР53 encoding the genome-keeper p53 protein and WRAP53 involved in regulation of p53 production, in 28 Russian populations. We obtained data on 9 exonic ТР53 variants (rs587781663, rs17882252, rs150293825, rs112431538, rs149633775, rs144340710, rs1042522, rs1800371, rs201753350), one intronic polymorphism (rs17881850), and three variants of WRAP53 (rs17880282, rs2287499, rs34067256). In the majority of populations the sample size was over 50 people (except five populations with 30–49 surveyed people). The alternative alleles' population frequencies for studies genetic variants in most Russian populations were close to appropriate allele frequencies in European and Asian populations of similar origin taken from global databases. The exceptions were six populations ("Central Caucasus", "Dagestan", "northern Russians", "southeastern Russians", "Tatars" and "Transcaucasia") with increased alternative alleles' population frequencies. All listed populations except the population of "southeastern Russians" are characterized by polymorphisms with high allele frequencies not satisfying the Hardy–Weinberg principle.


Due to a shortage of suitable kidneys for transplantation there has been an increase in the use of kidneys taken from old and marginal donors, which has led to a high incidence of acute tubular necrosis. Several reports suggest that the administration of calcium channel blockers improves the initial function after renal transplantation. We conducted a randomized, double-blind placebo-controlled trial to study the effect of the calcium channel blocker gallopamil on the incidence and course of acute tubular necrosis following cadaveric renal transplantation. A trend developed showing a decrease in episodes of acute tubular necrosis in gallopamil versus placebo, and became statistically significant when the outcome of kidneys from donors older than 50 years was analyzed separately [gallopamil 6/14 (42%) vs. placebo 10/11 (91%), P <0.01 corrected chi2]. We conclude that pre-transplantation renal graft perfusion and post-transplantation recipient treatment with gallopamil reduces the incidence of post-transplantation acute tubular necrosis, particularly in kidney taken from older donors.


In recent years, more and more evidence indicates that circular RNAs (circRNAs) with covalently closed loop play various roles in biological processes. Dysregulation and mutation of circRNAs may be implicated in diseases. Due to its stable structure and resistance to degradation, circRNAs provide great potential to be diagnostic biomarkers. Therefore, predicting circRNA-disease associations is helpful in disease diagnosis. However, there are few experimentally validated associations between circRNAs and diseases. Although several computational methods have been proposed, precisely representing underlying features and grasping the complex structures of data are still challenging. In this paper, we design a new method, called DMFCDA (Deep Matrix Factorization CircRNA-Disease Association), to infer potential circRNA-disease associations. DMFCDA takes both explicit and implicit feedback into account. Then, it uses a projection layer to automatically learn latent representations of circRNAs and diseases. With multi-layer neural networks, DMFCDA can model the non-linear associations to grasp the complex structure of data. We assess the performance of DMFCDA using leave-one cross-validation and 5-fold cross-validation on two datasets. Computational results show that DMFCDA efficiently infers circRNA-disease associations according to AUC values, the percentage of precisely retrieved associations in various top ranks, and statistical comparison. We also conduct case studies to evaluate DMFCDA. All results show that DMFCDA provides accurate predictions.


Bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (MSC) are the non-hematopoietic cellular component in the bone marrow that have multiple differentiation potency. MSC play a key role in the regulation of bone marrow hematopoietic niche and modulation of immune function through various mechanisms. They are currently recognized as a promising cell source in tissue engineering, a vehicle in gene therapy and a powerful tool in the management of graft-versus-host disease after allogeneic stem cell transplantation. In this review some momentous aspects regarding the current status and potential clinical applications of MSC in hematopoietic stem cell transplantation, aplastic anemia and multiple myeloma were summarized.

Key words:
Mesenchymal stem cells;  Hematologic diseases


A 24-amino acid peptide designed to solubilize integral membrane proteins has been synthesized. The design was for an amphipathic alpha helix with a "flat" hydrophobic surface that would interact with a transmembrane protein as a detergent. When mixed with peptide, 85 percent of bacteriorhodopsin and 60 percent of rhodopsin remained in solution over a period of 2 days in their native forms. The crystal structure of peptide alone showed it to form an antiparallel four-helix bundle in which monomers interact, flat surface to flat surface, as predicted.


This study quantifies the effect of state reopening policies on daily mobility, travel, and mixing behavior during the COVID-19 pandemic. We harness cell device signal data to examine the effects of the timing and pace of reopening plans in different states. We quantify the increase in mobility patterns during the reopening phase by a broad range of cell-device-based metrics. Soon (four days) after reopening, we observe a 6% to 8% mobility increase. In addition, we find that temperature and precipitation are strongly associated with increased mobility across counties. The mobility measures that reflect visits to a greater variety of locations responds the most to reopening policies, while total time in vs. outside the house remains unchanged. The largest increases in mobility occur in states that were late adopters of closure measures, suggesting that closure policies may have represented more of a binding constraint in those states. Together, these four observations provide an assessment of the extent to which people in the U.S. are resuming movement and physical proximity as the COVID-19 pandemic continues.


Abstract What drives tax compliance among informal workers, and how does compliance affect their policy preferences? Informal workers in developing countries encounter multiple taxes levied by government authorities and non-state actors. Using an original survey of approximately 800 informal workers in Lusaka, Zambia, this paper shows that compliance is tied to the governance setting where workers operate. In cooperative markets, compliance is higher where services are better and where trust in market leaders is stronger. Yet, in markets overseen by the city council, revenue collection capacity is more relevant. This suggests that the drivers of compliance can vary depending on the routes of accountability between tax payers, revenue collectors, and service providers. A vote choice experiment further reveals that regardless of market type, those who pay taxes are more likely to favour a politician interested in improving market services rather than one campaigning to improve the city's schools and health clinics. The results suggest that even within the informal sector, the process of paying taxes affects policy preferences and shapes citizens' preferences for elected leaders who espouse a platform most congruent with their own priorities.


Introduction: Myeloproliferative neoplasms (MPN) are a heterogeneous group of chronic myeloid malignancies resulting from the combination of a driver mutated gene (JAK2, MPL or CALR) and a variety of acquired additional somatic mutations. Although next-generation sequencing (NGS) has identified high molecular risk mutations associated with adverse prognosis (Vannucchi et al., Leukemia, 2013 , Guglielmelli et al., Leukemia, 2014 ), the clonal evolution of these mutations remains poorly described. Chronic exposure to cytoreductive treatment, especially genotoxic drugs such as hydroxyurea (HU), could impact clonal evolution. A previous study suggested that Interferon-α (IFN) could limit the accumulation of cytogenetic abnormalities compared to HU (Mondello et al., Blood, 2018). The objective of our study was to describe the long-term evolution of the mutational landscape in the era of NGS in a large cohort of MPN patients.
 Methods: A total of 1538 consecutive patients were diagnosed with MPN according to WHO criteria and followed in our hospital between January 2011 and January 2021. This study included 1039 of them in whom a NGS molecular analysis targeting 36 myeloid genes with a sensitivity of 1% was performed at diagnosis and/or during follow-up. Patients with only one NGS (n=588), AML/MDS transformation at either the first (n=3) or the second NGS (n=2) were excluded from the analysis. Serial NGS data obtained in chronic MPN phase were thus analyzed for 446 patients. Clinical and biological characteristics at time of diagnosis and follow-up were collected from medical charts and electronic medical records. Mutation rates per year were calculated for each gene as the difference in the number of mutations between first and last NGS divided by the time interval (in years) between both NGS.
 Results : Median age at MPN diagnosis in our whole cohort was 51 years [IQR 41-60]. Our cohort included 167 (37%), 205 (46%) and 64 (14%) patients with Polycythemia Vera (PV), Essential thrombocythemia (ET) and primary myelofibrosis (MF) respectively. 279 patients (63%) had at least one additional mutation at first NGS, and respectively 27 (6%) and 104 (23%) patients had TP53 and high molecular risk mutations. Median interval between MPN diagnosis and the first NGS was 6.5 years [IQR 1.7-13] while median time between the first and the last NGS was 2.5 years [IQR 1.6-4, range 0.3-14.3]. Overall, 178 patients (39.9%) acquired an additional mutation at last NGS evaluation, most frequently involving TET2, DNMT3A, ASXL1, TP53 and NFE2 genes . To study the impact of chronic MPN therapy on clonal evolution, we focused on patients who electively received HU (n=112) or IFN (n=92) as a monotherapy, or did not receive any cytoreductive treatment (n=119) between the first and the last NGS. The remaining patients received ruxolitinib (n=44), anagrelide (n=10), vercyte (n=7) or polytherapy (n=62). At last follow-up, 74 patients receiving IFN (80.4%) and 65 (58%) treated with HU had a complete hematological response. When combining all additional mutations, the global mutation rate per year did not significantly differ between treatment groups. When analyzing individual genes, TP53 mutation rate was higher in patients treated with HU compared to the patients receiving IFN (p=0.014) or not treated (p=0.008) (Figure). MDS/AML evolution occurred in 4 patients (3.6%) treated with HU, 2 (1.7%) without cytoreductive therapy versus none of the 92 patients treated with IFN (ns). In the whole cohort, MDS/AML evolution was significantly increased in patients harboring TP53 mutations (p= 0.004). In contrast, DNMT3A mutation rate was significantly increased in patients receiving IFN compared to patients treated with HU (p=0.045) (Figure). The latest result is in line with previous observations showing that loss of DNMT3A could confer resistance to IFN in a JAK2-V617F mouse model (Stetka et al., Blood, 2020).
 Conclusion: Our results highlight the impact of chronic cytoreductive therapy on clonal evolution shaping in MPN. IFN limits the emergence of TP53 mutated clones compared to HU, thus potentially reducing the risk of leukemogenesis. Emergence of DNMT3A mutated clones under IFN therapy requires further exploration and could potentially play a role in therapeutic resistance. This study on a large clinically and biologically annotated cohort illustrates how serial NGS analysis may guide therapeutic options for MPN patients.
 Figure 1 Figure 1.

 Raffoux: PFIZER: Consultancy; ASTELLAS: Consultancy; ABBVIE: Consultancy; CELGENE/BMS: Consultancy. Kiladjian: AbbVie: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; AOP Orphan: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Bristol Myers Squibb: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Incyte Corporation: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Novartis: Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Taiho Oncology, Inc.: Research Funding; PharmaEssentia: Other: Personal fees. Benajiba: Pfizer: Research Funding; Gilead: Research Funding.


SUMMARY

The Rytov approximation that expresses phase residuals as an explicit function of the slowness perturbations, is also related to the generalized Radon transform (GRT). Using Beylkin's formalism, we derive the corresponding inverse GRT to give the slowness model as an explicit function of the phase residuals. This expression is used to deduce the resolution limits of wave path traveltime tomograms as a function of source frequency and source–receiver geometry. Its validity is restricted to arbitrary models with smooth variations in velocity, where the scale wavelength of the velocity variations must be at least three times longer than the characteristic source wavelength. The formula explicitly gives the slowness perturbation function as a function of the product of the frequency and the traveltime gradient that can be obtained by ray tracing. It shows that the spatial resolution limits of a slowness anomaly can be estimated by calculating the available wavenumbers of the slowness perturbation function. Using this procedure, resolution limits are obtained for several types of data: controlled source data in a crosswell experiment, data from a diving-wave experiment and earthquake data using the reference velocity model of the whole Earth. This formula can also be used for diffraction-limited pixelization of velocity models or for direct inversion of traveltime data.


A field load testing is an effective method for understanding the behavior and fundamental characteristics of cable-stayed bridges. This paper presents results of the behavior of the reconstructed cable-stayed bridge over river Danube in Novi Sad under test load. The bridge was built between 1976 and 1981 and in 1999 was heavily damaged by two Tomahawk missiles. In 2003 process of the reconstruction began and at the end of 2005 Faculty of Civil Engineering, University of Belgrade was invited to test reconstructed bridge structure. The results of static load testing presented herein include displacements, rotations and strains of the 351 m long main span. Vibrations of the bridge were obtained by impact load produced by heavy truck passing the bridge and the time history response of vertical accelerations was recorded. The frequency content of the signals was determined using Fourier transformation and five flexural natural periods were extracted. The geological structure and engineering properties of the soil are also given. A finite element model of the bridge was made and a good agreement is achieved between the experimental and analytical results. These results have shown that the bridge is in the elastic state under the code-specified serviceability load, which indicates that the bridge has adequate load-carrying capacity and can be put safely into service.


The industrial A. niger strain producing citric acid was mutagenized with the use of new chemical mutagens: free nitroxyl radicals. Strains of higher citric acid production yield were obtained. Citric acid was produced in a shorter time compared to the initial strain. During 6-12 months of storage most of the strains preserved their positive features which proves that mutants with profitable biotechnological properties were obtained. These mutants are used in industrial process.


A set of electron collision cross-sections for the C4F6 molecule has been successfully determined for the first time by using an electron swarm method with a two-term approximation of the Boltzmann analysis. The set is evaluated by fitting the calculated electron drift velocities in pure C4F6 and in C4F6-Ar mixtures to the experimental data in the E/N range of 0.35 — 1200 Td (1 Td = 10−17 Vcm2), where E/N is the ratio of the electric field (E) to the neutral number density (N). The set is confirmed to be reliable due to our ability to reproduce satisfactorily the electron drift velocities in pure C4F6 and in 0.1, 0.5, 1, 5, and 10% C4F6-Ar mixtures with deviations of ±5%. The set may be the best available so far for use in the quantitative numerical modeling of a4 plasma discharge for various processing procedures with materials containing C4F6 molecules.


Apical hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (AHCM) is a known entity since its first introduction by Sakamoto and Yamaguchi. However, unlike classical hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM), it is less explored in terms of its associated diagnosis and long-term outcomes. Given the increased availability and utilization of ultra-sophisticated cardiac imaging modalities, AHCM will be increasingly recognized as a distinct, clinically significant variant of classical HCM. It is associated with a wide spectrum of presentation ranging from asymptomatic course with incidental findings on imaging to rarely being associated with ventricular arrhythmias, syncope and sudden cardiac death (SCD). Contrast echocardiography is the most effective and diagnostic study when performed in the right setting with high suspicion on clinical and typical electrocardiogram (ECG) findings. Cardiac magnetic resonance imaging (CMR) has an equal diagnostic yield as a contrast echocardiogram. We are presenting a unique case report of a 57-year old gentleman with asymptomatic AHCM which was distinctly delineated after utilizing contrast tuned imaging (CnTI) echocardiography sans administration of intravenous contrast agents. This is a first case report of AHCM portrayed by this ingenious technology.
Keywords: Apical Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy, LV Contrast Echocardiography, Contrast Tuned Imaging, 4Dimensional XStrain Echocardiography.


Backgroud: Mechanically ventilated patients in the ICU are usually restricted to immobility in bed. Immobility is associated with the development of peripheral muscle weakness, which acts as a predisposing factor for damage to the musculoskeletal system. The high risk of polyneuropathy and/or myopathy in critically ill patients contributes to the increased length of hospital stay. This weakness can be reversed or attenuated by a mobilization program which interferes directly on the immobility time in the bed. Aim and Objectives: To compare the effects of a standardized protocol of mobilization on peripheral muscle strength of critically ill patients on mechanical ventilation. We hypothesized that the application of a standardized and systematic mobilization protocol can improve the peripheral muscle strength in critically ill patients. Methods: It is quasi-experimental study. 10 patients were submitted to Standardized Mobilization Protocol (SMP). SMP was consisted of a 5-phase strategy, progressing from passive mobilization to walking, as assessed by the Ramsay or Coma Glasgow Scale and peripheral muscle strength. Peripheral muscle strength was assessed by Medical Research Council (MRC) Scale. It was adopted as significant p Results: Significant gains in peripheral muscle strength were found in patients submitted the SMP when comparing the initial and final assessments (MRC initial= 29.4 ± 17.9 points and MRC final = 45.0 ± 17.0 points; p=0.005). Conclusion: The results suggest that a Standardized Mobilization Protocol improves peripheral muscle strength in critically ill patients.


Support vector machines (SVMs) are powerful supervised learning tools developed to solve classification problems. However, SVMs are likely to perform poorly in the classification of imbalanced data. The rough set theory presents a mathematical tool for inference in nondeterministic cases that provides methods for removing irrelevant information from data. In this work, we propose an approach that efficiently used fuzzy rough set theory in weighted least squares twin support vector machine called FRLSTSVM for classification of imbalanced data. The first innovation is introducing a new fuzzy rough set-based under-sampling strategy to make the classifier robust in terms of the imbalanced data. For constructing the two proximal hyperplanes in FRLSTSVM, data points from the minority class remain unchanged while a subset of data points in the majority class are selected using a new method. In this model, we embed the weight biases in the LSTSVM formulations to overcome the bias phenomenon in the original twin SVM for the classification of imbalanced data. In order to determine these weights in this formulation, we introduce a new strategy that uses fuzzy rough set theory as the second innovation. Experimental results on the famous imbalanced datasets, compared to the related traditional SVM-based methods, demonstrate the superiority of the proposed FRLSTSVM model in the imbalanced data classification.


A systematic investigation of luminescence and optical absorption of the ion in the crystal is presented. Most Stark energy levels have been identified. The Judd-Ofelt theory is applied to measured values of absorption line strengths to obtain the intensity parameters: and . These parameters are used to calculate the absorption line strengths, as well as the radiative lifetime and the branching ratios from the metastable state to the manifolds. The relevant spectroscopic parameters for laser applications: emission cross section and quantum efficiency, were then estimated. The spectroscopic quality factor calculated is in agreement with those of other based laser crystals.


ABSTRACT Atrazine, a herbicide widely used in corn production, is a frequently detected groundwater contaminant. Fourteen bacterial strains able to use this herbicide as a sole source of nitrogen were isolated from soils obtained from two farms in Canada and two farms in France. These strains were indistinguishable from each other based on repetitive extragenic palindromic PCR genomic fingerprinting performed with primers ERIC1R, ERIC2, and BOXA1R. Based on 16S rRNA sequence analysis of one representative isolate, strain C147, the isolates belong to the genusPseudaminobacter in the family Rhizobiaceae. Strain C147 did not form nodules on the legumes alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.), birdsfoot trefoil (Lotus corniculatusL.), red clover (Trifolium pratense L.), chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.), and soybean (Glycine maxL.). A number of chloro-substituted s-triazine herbicides were degraded, but methylthio-substituted s-triazine herbicides were not degraded. Based on metabolite identification data, the fact that oxygen was not required, and hybridization of genomic DNA to the atzABC genes, atrazine degradation occurred via a series of hydrolytic reactions initiated by dechlorination and followed by dealkylation. Most strains could mineralize [ring-U-14C]atrazine, and those that could not mineralize atrazine lacked atzB or atzBC. The atzABC genes, which were plasmid borne in every atrazine-degrading isolate examined, were unstable and were not always clustered together on the same plasmid. Loss of atzBwas accompanied by loss of a copy of IS1071. Our results indicate that an atrazine-degradingPseudaminobacter sp. with remarkably little diversity is widely distributed in agricultural soils and that genes of the atrazine degradation pathway carried by independent isolates of this organism are not clustered, can be independently lost, and may be associated with a catabolic transposon. We propose that the widespread distribution of the atrazine-degradingPseudaminobacter sp. in agricultural soils exposed to atrazine is due to the characteristic ability of this organism to utilize alkylamines, and therefore atrazine, as sole sources of carbon when the atzABC genes are acquired.


An awareness on the part of policymakers that the formal sector is only a small part of Ghana's labor market is a necessary precondition of appropriate employment policy. If the government is unwilling to reduce public employment or to alter public spending to invest more in agriculture, and infrastructure employment conditions will worsen, high public-wage policy will fuel inflationary pressures, reducing such investment even further. An active labor policy and employment creation is necessary for sustainable poverty reduction. The slowdown and possible reversal in the rural-to-urban flow of labor in Ghana is symptomatic of a basic shortcoming in the country`s economic recovery: the inadequate growth of the productive sector in the nonagricultural economy. The rate of growth of GDP has been adequate but much of the growth has been fueled and led by the services sector, which (at more than 46 percent) has surpassed agriculture as the main contributor to GDP. In some way growth in the services sector has been positive, but arguably it is a once-for-all adjustment to recover that cannot be sustained at this growth rate without commensurate growth in both agricultural and nonagricultural production. Evidently, stabilization and liberalization measures have not been sufficient to put the industrial sector on a path of sustained growth. There is too little skilled labor in Ghana, and demand for industrial goods has been weak, in part because the cost of credit is high and savings are too low for inefficient, state-run enterprises to buy the equipment they need. Returns to higher (especially university) education are high in Ghana, largely because of high wages for government services. Because of inadequate technical and vocational education, returns to secondary education are low. Employment trends have mirrored the deficiency in output growth. Every year since 1987, industrial employment has fallen. The growing labor force, which agriculture could not absorb productively, has spilled over into service activities and the informal sector. Ghana's large informal sector is symptomatic of an economy with low growth potential. In the medium term, the surest way to absorb labor would be to increase investment in the agriculture sector. And the only way to increase investment in that sector is to change the composition in public spending. As long as the public sector wage bill remains a sizable part of government expenditure, an increase in wage levels not compensated by reduction in employment will create strains in the budgetary balance and will defeat the most important instrument of increasing the growth rate of employment-higher levels of public investment in agriculture. It is possible that a vicious circle is complete. Higher wages in the public sector might be necessary to increase efficiency, without which productive public investment is not possible. But if the government is not willing or able to reduce public employment, and is further unable to alter the composition of expenditure to provide more finance for agriculture-related public investment, a high wage public policy will merely fuel inflationary pressures reducing the real investment ratio even further. The only way out of this vicious circle, if it exists, is a larger infusion of foreign and private investment than has been seen so far, supplemented by corrective monetary policy. This paper - a product of the Human Development Technical Family, Africa Region - is a background paper for World Bank Economic Sector Work on Ghana: Labor Markets and Poverty.


Thermal characterisation of chip-scale packaged power devices is crucial to the development of advanced electronic packages for communication and automotive applications. Solder thermal interface materials (STIMs) are often employed in the packaging of power semiconductors to enhance heat dissipation from the chip to the heat spreader. However, voids formation in STIMs impedes heat flow and could result in increase in the chip peak temperature. Three-dimensional finite element analysis is employed to investigate the thermal effects of lead-free solder void percentages, locations and styles on packaged semiconductor device. The thermal resistance of each voiding case is calculated to evaluate the thermal response of the electronic package. The results show that the thermal resistance and peak temperature of electronic package can significantly increase depending on the percentage, location and style of voids. The results would assist packaging and design engineers in the characterisation of the thermal impacts of different solder void patterns.


The ability of insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) to regulate surface expression of the interferon-γ receptor 2 (IFN-γR2) transducing chain and activation of IFN-γ–induced signal transducer and activator of transcription-1 (STAT-1) in human T cells was analyzed. We show that, especially in the absence of serum (which contains IGF-1), IGF-1 down-regulated surface expression of the IFN-γR2 chain and inhibited both IFN-γ–dependent STAT-1 activation and apoptosis in T-cell lines ST4, Jurkat, and Molt-4. IFN-γR2 down-regulation resulted from its enhanced internalization since IGF-1 completely restored the uptake of anti–IFN-γR2 monoclonal antibody (mAb) in serum-deprived T-cell lines. When the interaction between IGF-1 and its receptor was blocked by anti–IGF-1R mAb, enhancement of IFN-γR2 surface expression, STAT-1 activation, and reinstatement of IFN-γ–induced apoptosis were observed. Enhanced expression of IFN-γR2 was also observed in phytohemagglutinin (PHA)–activated T lymphoblasts cultured in the presence of anti–IGF-1R mAb, whereas IGF-1 or anti–IGF-1R mAb did not modify the high IFN-γR2 expression in B and myeloid cell lines. Both IGF-1 and anti–IGF-1R mAb did not modify the constitutive expression of IFN-γR2 mRNA in T cells as well as the high IFN-γR1 binding chain surface expression in T, B, and myeloid cells. These data indicate that IGF-1 plays a critical role in the desensitization of IFN-γ/STAT-1 signaling in T lymphocytes by delivering a signal for IFN-γR2 internalization.


Composite resin restoration on posterior teeth through the incremental technique is, generally, a time consuming procedure with risk of contamination between the layers. Therefore, It has been developed techniques to facilitate the work of dental professionals and achieve aesthetic and functional results such as the occlusal stamp technique. This technique makes the procedure faster by accurately copying the occlusal anatomy, allowing a little or no occlusal adjustment. The aim of the present study was to present a clinical case in which the stamp technique was performed and to describe the restorative treatment in a patient with hidden carie. It was observed that the stamp technique, when performed correctly, is a reliable and predictable method for the reconstruction of the occlusal anatomy.


Data from current studies of the grief process experienced by parents whose children have disabilities have been incorporated with the results of observations of 130 parents from two support groups to develop a visual representation of this process. The current model is useful in working with parents to facilitate their movement through stages of the grief process into more functional behavior. Behaviors from the traditional models of grief are organized into clusters for a conceptualization that will aid professionals in its use as a counseling tool with families of children with disabilities. Implications drawn from the grief cycle for use with parents and other family members are described including the full range of interactions in this model. These interactions make it unnecessary for the professional to view the parent or family members as dysfunctional.


The kiai's leadership role is the activity of a kiai in behaving, directing, deciding, and making policies in a formal or informal organization in society. This study attempts to describe the leadership of kiyai Abd Mukti to the Muslim community in the community's spiritual search. Research with a field-related approach, and also some literature. With data collection techniques of observation, interviews, and documentation.
The results of the study: the leadership of the kyai who tends to be democratic in their leadership practices is colored with efforts to realize effective human beings. In his leadership, he is not only limited to leading but also directs his mind and energy to achieve a goal, with his patience he leads the Muslim community with the values of life in it. Such leadership will naturally be an example for the community, especially for Muslim members in spiritual matters. The author hopes that this research will contribute to the theory that will be applied. In today's times it is very important for women to become empowered through the Muslim community.


Aim: The aim of this case report is to define dedifferentiated liposarcoma with meningothelial-like whorls pattern and point to the possible significant problems in the differential diagnosis. Case: A 46-years-old man presented with nonspecific systemic symptoms, abdominal pain and weakness and a retroperitoneal mass was diagnosed by multislice computed tomography and ultrasonography. The mass excised was 16x10x8 cm in dimensions with nodular, grayish, firm, well-localized, well-demarcated properties. There are few dedifferentiated liposarcoma with meningothelial-like whorl pattern cases of the retroperitoneum reported in the literature. Histological and clinical differential diagnosis of dedifferentiated liposarcoma with meningothelial-like whorling includes pleomorphic sarcoma and myxofibrosarcoma. Conclusions: Liposarcoma with meningothelial-like whorl is associated with a significantly high local recurrence and distant metastasis rate. Preferred treatment is complete surgical excision and adjuvant chemotherapy or radiation therapy may be necessary.


The aim of this study is to evaluate the relationship between resilience and mental health in older adults and how physical activity influences that relationship. A cross-sectional study was carried out with 312 older adults (179 active and 133 sedentary classified by IPAQ). Considering the whole sample, an inverse relationship was found for resilience (Wagnild-Young's Resilience Scale) with depression and stress (DASS-21). Among the sedentary, in spite of there not being an association between total resilience and mental health, there was an inverse relationship for the "meaning of life" component of the resilience and depression scale. For the active group, there was a relationship between total resilience and its components with depression and stress, but not for the "meaning of life" component of the resilience scale. Physical activity played an important role in the relationship between resilience and depression, showing that active and sedentary people use different components of resilience.


This article focuses on the last decades of the Franco dictatorship in Spain. Two apparently distinct issues are brought together here: the discussions of the National Council of the Movement, which was dependant on Spain's single political party, regarding the possibility of defining a cultural policy to counteract separatist tendencies; and discussions of the possible interpretations of the Basque film Ama Lur (1968). Both exemplify the ideas of the authorities about how to handle the cultural dimension of the challenges represented by peripheral nationalist movements. The aim of this study is to shed light on the questions of how and to what extent attempts by the Francoist authorities to use culture as a political tool worked.


A new speech corpus of connected Bangla words derived from newspapers text corpus BdNC01 has recorded. This has been designed for various research activities related to speaker-independent Bangla speech recognition. The database consists of speech of 100 speakers, each of them uttered 52 sentences as connected words for training database. Another 50 new speakers were employed to speak all the list of speech to construct a test database. Every utterance was repeated 5 times in various days to avoid time variation of speaker property. A total of 62 hours of recording makes the corpus largest in its type, size and application area. This paper describes the motivation for the corpus and the processes undertaken in its construction. The paper concludes with the usability of the corpus.


We present late Quaternary records of metastable carbonate dissolution determined for sediment cores recovered from intermediate water depths on the Nicaragua Rise (Caribbean Sea, 1000–1894 m) and near the Bahama Banks (western North Atlantic Ocean, 655 and 1934 m). Upper North Atlantic Deep Water is believed to dominate these two regions at present. Both areas are predicted to be good locations to study past variations of average middepth Atlantic chemistry and circulation. However, statistical analyses of metastable carbonate dissolution indices (% Mg calcite, pteropod abundance, % whole pteropods, and % clear pteropods) yielded a composite dissolution index (CDI) which displays different carbonate dissolution histories for Bahama and Nicaragua Rise sediments. The Bahama records resemble deep Atlantic carbonate records with dissolution during glacial oxygen isotope stages 6 and 4 and with preservation during interglacial stages 5 and 1. We observe two dissolution patterns at intermediate water depths of the Caribbean. The "deep" intermediate water pattern (1200–1894 m) resembles deep Caribbean carbonate records with dissolution during interglacial periods and preservation during glacial intervals. The "shallow" intermediate water record (<1200 m) resembles at times the Bahamas record and at other times the deep Caribbean record. These CDI records suggest that different water masses occupied the intermediate depth western North Atlantic and Caribbean during much of the late Quaternary. Observed differences between these regions may be related to variations in the flow of nutrient-rich, low CO3= Antarctic Intermediate Water through the Caribbean or to changes in the ventilation rate of equatorial thermocline and intermediate waters. These water-mass variations have influenced Caribbean carbon chemistry from the base of the thermocline down to abyssal water depths and may have had a significant effect on North Atlantic circulation and nutrients.


The European Semester (Semester) was implemented a decade ago. Ample research has addressed the Semester's development, including some major changes in processes and content (Verdun & Zeitlin, 2018). The Covid-19 crisis seems to mark the next stage in the evolution of the Semester. It connects the Semester with the wider Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF) and links its country-specific recommendations to conditional financial support. Thus, the next stage of the Semester suggests a stronger and more deliberate interlinkage of different EU tools that jointly guide national socioeconomic policies. It should support both national public investment and reforms while focusing on meeting the EU priority of moving towards a climate-neutral, digitalized, and resilient Europe (De la Porte & Dagnis Jensen, 2021). This article addresses the question of what room the new-style Semester gives to the involvement of national-level actors, such as national parliaments. Therefore, it expands existing analytical frameworks in order to assess the RRF in connection to the Semester, focusing on the degree of obligation, enforcement, and centralisation. Jointly, this outlines the room the RRF gives to the participation of national actors in the Semester. The article concludes that although the national parliaments are not mentioned in the Regulation establishing the RRF, they could claim a role both in developing national plans for accessing financial support as well as in amending and approving reforms.


Measurements are reported for the circular polarisation of the Lalpha radiation arising from the cascade of the 32Dj states of atomic hydrogen to the 22Pj states detected in coincidence with electrons with n=3 energy loss. Data for the atomic orientation parameter Lperpendicular to are presented at incident electron energies of 54.4 and 100 eV and at scattering angles theta e of 20' and 25'. These data, together with previous measurements for this transition, constitute a determination of the complete parameter set ( gamma ,Pl, rho 00,L perpendicular to ) for 32Dj excitations in this dynamic range. Calculations for P3 and Lperpendicular to using distorted-wave approximation theory are also performed. The theoretical results are presented and compared with the experimental data.


Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) has been historically studied, identified, and diagnosed more in males than females which can be attributed to a range of factors other than biological. The preponderance of males with autism is often associated with the Extreme Male Brain (EMB) theory which contends that this male bias is interceded by the amplification of male-biased sex differences in the expression of autism-associated traits found in typical populations. This long-held notion of attaching autism to the male gender had severely impacted the females on the spectrum leading to late diagnosis, misdiagnosis, and "masking" in order to blend in. Media also played a role in the near-exclusive portrayal of autistic people as white males which is outrageously unrepresentative of reality. The present paper analyses the narratives of self-identified autistic women about their experiences shared through TED Talks which offer both individual and collective counter-narratives to articulate new understandings. The paper attempts a qualitative interpretation of 5 such talks to demonstrate how speaking about these narratives in public and influential spaces like TED Talks de-constructs collective memories (process) and constitutes constructing La Memoire Collective between the knowledge of experience and shared memories.


In 2009, Lucha, a Mexican woman who had migrated to Chicago and worked at a candy factory described her work as 'A slow assassination of your soul'. Her experience in the United States was transformative. The power she previously had as a community activist and college student in Mexico was eroded. Lucha's experience exemplifies a shift in her identity and how that changing identity fashioned the character of her economic activities. Race, ethnicity, and gender shift and change meaning through migration (Gilmartin, 2008, p. 1840) and shape 'migrant women's multiple relations in the process of migration' (Parrenas, 2009, p. 11). We are interested in the struggles, realities and contestations of immigrant women. We want to better understand how migrant women negotiate the dynamic intersections of race, gender and citizenship identities in new places in order to survive, prosper and exert influence in new places and economic environments. Based on indepth interviews with immigrant women in Chicago, Illinois, United States and in the Barcelona area of Spain, we demonstrate that issues of race, gender and citizenship influenced the kinds of jobs they obtained and the working conditions they experienced, as well as their ability to become accepted members of the community. In this chapter, we want to respond to the call made by Parrenas (2009) to contribute to the gender and migration literature by analysing structural gender inequalities beyond differences between men and women, and focusing on how gender inequalities are constructed as they intersect with other inequalities based on race and citizenship. The women we interviewed endured humiliation based on their intersecting identities at work; some questioned their belonging in their new countries while at the same time feeling that they did not belong in their home country, as other authors such as Parrenas (2001) have found. The challenge for planners and policymakers is to understand the intricacies of multiple identities across places and scales. Hearing their complex stories of work and perceptions of belonging in their country of origin and new country can help academics who are training future planners and professionals build more inclusive planning and policy theory and practice.


Background: Pin-tract infection is a major complication of external fixation which in some cases compromises the stability of ty of pin-tract infections in open fractures treated by external fixation. Methodology: This is a retrospective study that reviewed patients who underwent external fixation with unilateral fixator for open fractures in our center between February 2009 and March 2010. Wound swabs for culture and sensitivity were obtained from patients with clinical evidence of pin-tract infections. Pin-tract infection was graded according to Paley's method. Results: A total of 102 patients who had external fixation for open fractures were reviewed. The male female ratio was 1.4:1. Open fractures of tibia (73.5%) were found to be the commonest. This was followed by radius (15.1%), humerus (8.2%), and femur (4.1%). Positive cultures were obtained from 32 samples out of 35 and staphylococcus aureus was the commonest organism isolated. Drainage (51.4%) was found to be the commonest pin related complication. Conclusion: pin-tract infection is a serious complication associated with external fixation and meticulous surgical techniques and proper pin care should be ensured in order to minimize these pin related complications. Key Words External fixation, infection, open fractures, pin-tract


Magnetic Resonance Imaging with parallel data acquisition requires algorithms for reconstructing the patient's image from a small number of measured lines of the Fourier domain (k-space). In contrast to well-known algorithms like SENSE and GRAPPA and its flavors we consider the problem as a non-linear inverse problem. However, in order to avoid cost intensive derivatives we will use Landweber-Kaczmarz iteration and in order to improve the overall results some additional sparsity constraints.


This publication represents a critical review of the literature published so far on the concept of Double Bind (db). The article attempts to describe the development of this concept since its inception by Bateson et al. twenty years ago. The article also illuminates the partly distinctly neglected reference aspect of db, as well as the recent suggestions of a radical reformulation of concept according to which db is no longer a necessarily pathogenous deformation of communication. Since it can be shown that db is a so to say ubiquitous communicative phenomenon, the question as to whether it is specific for schizophrenia, can be definitely negated. An analysis of the quantitative empirical studies published so far, the analysis being viewed under the aspect of a critical review of the methods employed, shows that the development of a methodically and conceptually adequate experimental model which can completely cover db, has not yet proved successful. It becomes evident that the term "db hypothesis" is misleading insofar as this should be considered as a rather comprehensive theoretical construction not easily liable to direct experimental testing, which can be considered as possessing the character of a new paradigm.


The use of skeletal stem cells (SSCs) in cell-based therapies is currently one of the most promising areas for the treatment of skeletal disease and skeletal tissue repair. The ability to control the modification of SSCs could provide significant therapeutic potential in regenerative medicine, with the prospect to permanently repopulate a host with stem cells. Current limitations in the characterisation of SSC differentiation have led to the development and application of alternative strategies that aim to identify molecules at the subcellular level using their inherent properties, without the use of a dye or label, i.e. label-free. Label-free imaging methods are emerging as powerful alternatives to conventional techniques in biomedicine. The work presented in this thesis aimed to investigate SSC differentiation and to engineer strategies to generate skeletal tissue and temporally evaluate SSC development using multimodal and label-free imaging approaches. The differentiation process of adult human bone marrow SSCs into adipocytes was evaluated using coherent anti-Stokes Raman scattering (CARS) imaging. CARS provided an enhanced resolution of lipid droplets compared to conventional staining, detectable as early as 24 hours after adipogenic induction. The combination of CARS microscopy with second harmonic generation (SHG) and two-photon excited auto-fluorescence (TPEAF) offered a novel insight into the chondrogenic differentiation of human fetal-femur derived skeletal cells. Retrieval of 3D information using a non-invasive and non-destructive platform enabled elucidation of the temporal changes in cartilage development. Subsequently, multimodal label-free imaging was used to investigate the differentiation of live human fetal-femur derived skeletal cells differentiated into chondrogenic cultures. The results demonstrated that label-free CARS live-cell imaging at the molecular level did not significantly affect cell differentiation and development into cartilage. Moreover, it was demonstrated that CARS microscopy is a suitable platform to image additional key molecules of interest, namely proteins and glycosaminoglycans, with bioengineered cartilage tissue imaged at different wavenumbers. The ability to dynamically follow the formation of new regenerated tissues in real-time using non-invasive techniques offers exciting opportunities for the design and development of innovative tissue engineering solutions for hard and soft tissues. This thesis indicates that multimodal label-free imaging with non-linear techniques such as CARS and SHG are suitable approaches for the assessment of bioengineered skeletal tissues with potential clinical translation.


Thermoplastic polyurethanes (TPU) are increasingly being used in additive manufacturing design due to their abilities to exhibit extreme elastic properties under an applied stress. In this work, processing parameters in material extrusion (ME) of TPU filaments were investigated to provide a model for component stiffness as a function of the printing conditions. This model allows designers to target processing parameters and conditions to meet constraints of stiffness within flexible components. In this study, a full factorial design of experiments methodology was employed to provide a systematic method for experimentally analyzing the influence and effect of number of outer shells, infill percentage, and infill pattern on compressive strength. Based on the data collected from these experiments, a statistical regression model is presented that can be used to predict rigidity in TPU parts manufactured through material extrusion. Based on the results of the initial model, additional investigations were carried out into impact of number of infill line intersections, exterior corners, and TPU hardness (shore 85A and 95A). It was found that shore hardness and infill percentage had the largest impact with respect to stiffness but that all factors were significant and the only interaction not significant at α = 0.05 was the two-factor interaction of infill pattern and number of external shells. The effect of exterior corners were highlighted due to their additional stiffness as they essentially act as thicker columns in the perimeter of the parts.


In a random sample of Medicare beneficiaries, multiple logistic regression was used to examine clinical, sociodemographic, and insurance coverage risk factors for readmission within 60 days of discharge. The patients most likely to be readmitted were those with poor health status or with chronic diseases and those who had not had surgery. Age, marital status, living situation, and having insurance to supplement Medicare were not independently predictive of readmission risk. The dominant roles of health status, diagnosis, and surgery as predictors of readmission provide evidence that risk-adjusted readmission rates can be equitably used for quality of care studies.


Gaucher disease is a lysosomal storage disorder caused by deficiency in lysosomal acid β-glucosidase (GlcCerase), the enzyme responsible for the catabolism of glucosylceramide. One of the most prevalent disease-causing mutations, N370S, results in an enzyme with lower catalytic activity and impaired exit from the endoplasmic reticulum. Here, we report that the iminosugar isofagomine (IFG), an active-site inhibitor, increases GlcCerase activity 3.0 ± 0.6-fold in N370S fibroblasts by several mechanisms. A major effect of IFG is to facilitate the folding and transport of newly synthesized GlcCerase in the endoplasmic reticulum, thereby increasing the lysosomal pool of the enzyme. In addition, N370S GlcCerase synthesized in the presence of IFG exhibits a shift in pH optimum from 6.4 to 5.2 and altered sensitivity to SDS. Although IFG fully inhibits GlcCerase in the lysosome in an in situ assay, washout of the drug leads to partial recovery of GlcCerase activity within 4 h and full recovery by 24 h. These findings provide support for the possible use of active-site inhibitors in the treatment of some forms of Gaucher disease.


INTRODUCTION
The presence of neuropsychiatry symptoms (hallucinations, delusions and agitation) as stroke-related guideline symptoms, thus forming an acute psychosis of organic cause, are extremely uncommon and often correlate with strategic infarcts (caudate nucleus, striatum and thalamus).

CLINICAL CASE
We report two cases of stroke-psychosis. Case 1. A 67-year-old man with sudden-onset delusions of persecution and complete recovery in three months. The brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) revealed infarctions in both head of the caudate nucleus and body of right caudate nucleus. Case 2. A 49-year old man with sudden-onset delusions of persecution and gustative hallucinations that disappeared in three months. The brain MRI revealed small infarction in the left thalamus.

DISCUSSION
The possible vascular origin of the psychosis in both cases (sudden onset, complete recover, demonstration of acute ischemic lesion in strategic territory) and the underlying psychopathogenic mechanism (dysfunction of prefrontal cortico-subcortical circuits) is discussed.


BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Both the Meyer and Raymond scales are commonly used to report angiographic outcomes following coil embolization of intracranial aneurysms. The objectives of this study were the following: 1) to assess the interobserver agreement of the Meyer and Raymond scales, and 2) to evaluate and compare their performance in predicting major recurrence at follow-up. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A retrospective series of 120 coiled aneurysms was included. Four investigators independently graded DSA images immediately posttreatment and at follow-up according to the Meyer and Raymond scales. On follow-up DSA, readers also evaluated recurrence outcome. Interobserver agreement was assessed via the intraclass correlation coefficient. The ability of posttreatment Meyer and Raymond scales to predict major recurrence was modeled by using logistic regression and assessed by using receiver operating characteristic analysis. RESULTS: For the Meyer scale, interobserver intraclass correlation coefficients were 0.58 (95% CI, 0.46–0.68) on posttreatment and 0.78 (95% CI, 0.72–0.83) on follow-up evaluations. For the Raymond scale, interobserver intraclass correlation coefficients were 0.50 (95% CI, 0.39–0.61) and 0.69 (95% CI, 0.62–0.76), respectively, for posttreatment and follow-up. The areas under the curve for the receiver operating characteristic analyses regarding the performance to predict major recurrence at follow-up were 0.69 (95% CI, 0.60–0.79) for the Meyer and 0.70 (95% CI, 0.61–0.78) for the Raymond scale. CONCLUSIONS: The Meyer scale appears consistent and reliable with observer agreement as high or higher than that of the Raymond scale. Performance of both scales in predicting the risk of major recurrence at follow-up is adequate, with no statistical difference between the scales.


Background: The inability to effectively treat metastases is the main reason for the limited progress in reducing the rates of cancer morbidity and mortality. One major drawback is the lack of quantitative assays for assessing the size and tissue prevalence of tumors in newly diagnosed individuals. Current methods for quantifying tumor burden are mainly qualitative and include measuring the gross weight of the affected organ, counting tumors on the surface of the organ, or evaluating a small sample of the organ using histologic sections. These methods are crude measures of tumor burden and size distribution, and in the case of histology, they are time consuming, difficult to process an adequate sample size and non-quantitative. Methods: Animal models of metastasis have been useful in identifying genes that regulate susceptibility to the development and progression of metastasis and helped highlight potential novel targets for drug development. In particular several small animal imaging technologies including magnetic resonance imaging, high frequency ultrasound, and optical imaging have been recently applied to this task. Each of these methods may be useful for specific research projects, based on their unique combination of resolution, image acquisition time, animal throughput, and cost-effectiveness, yet none of these modalities adequately address the need for rapid quantification of tumors across the entire organism, nor do they assess therapeutic effectiveness in eradicating cancer in xenograft models. We have developed an Accelerator Mass Spectrometry (AMS)-based high precision quantitative method for assessing the metastatic potential of primary tumors isolated from newly diagnosed patients. Results: Our Accelerator Mass Spectrometry-based methodology to study metastasis uses xenograft cancer cells labeled with 14C-labeled thymidine that are delivered intravenously into NSG mice and allowed to develop metastatic cancer over the course of up to 10 weeks. At the end of the experiment, all vital organs are collected; the DNA is isolated and is examined by AMS for the presence of 14C-signal. The labeling was optimized to achieve sufficient signal such that a tumor derived from a single cell could be detected by AMS, in secondary tumors, in vivo, independent of histological data. Conclusions: Using this novel approach we have evaluated the metastatic potential of several prostate cancer cell lines, characterized stem-cell like sublines derived from prostate cancer cell lines [PC3] and examined tissue tropism of cancer sublines derived from kidney and liver metastatic tumors. Further optimization of these techniques will allow us to explore the metastatic potential of primary tumors, isolated from biopsies and expanded in Avatar mice. Citation Format: Kelly A. Martin, Nicholas Hum, Kurt W. Haack, Bruce A. Buchholz, Gabriela G. Loots. Development of quantitative methods for assessing metastatic potential of human primary tumors. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 107th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2016 Apr 16-20; New Orleans, LA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2016;76(14 Suppl):Abstract nr 3891.


We investigate the estimation of channel parameters from the receiver equalizer taps after CMA, in a 8,000km 30×120Gbit/s PM-QPSK transmission system experiment. We also show long-term results of joint measurements of BER, DGD and PDL.


This paper presents an algorithm for computing the distance between two free-form surfaces. Using line geometry, the distance computation is reformulated as a simple instance of a surface-surface intersection problem, which leads to a low-dimensional root finding in a system of equations. This approach produces an efficient algorithm for computing the distance between two ellipsoids, where the problem is reduced to finding a specific solution in a system of two equations in two variables. Similar algorithms can be designed for computing the distance between an ellipsoid and a simple surface (such as cylinder, cone, and torus). In an experimental implementation (on a 500 MHz Windows PC), the distance between two ellipsoids was computed in less than 0.3 msec on average; and the distance between an ellipsoid and a simple convex surface was computed in less than 0.15 msec on average.


In this work, we present a quantum mechanics/molecular mechanics (QM/MM) approach for the computation of solid-state nuclear magnetic resonance (SS-NMR) shielding constants (SCs) for molecular crystals. Besides applying standard-DFT functionals like GGAs (PBE), meta-GGAs (TPSS), and hybrids (B3LYP), we apply a double-hybrid (DSD-PBEP86) functional as well as MP2, using the domain-based local pair natural orbital (DLPNO) formalism, to calculate the NMR SCs of six amino acid crystals. All the electronic structure methods used exhibit good correlation of the NMR shieldings with respect to experimental chemical shifts for both 1H and 13C. We also find that local electronic structure is much more important than the long-range electrostatic effects for these systems, implying that cluster approaches using all-electron/Gaussian basis set methods might offer great potential for predictive computations of solid-state NMR parameters for organic solids.


In this paper we report on a practical experiment, containing isolation, purification, and characterization of plant DNA, which is designed to give students unexperienced in DNA handling and molecular biology a glimpse of the field. Based on well established procedures, genomic DNA of a nutritional crop is isolated, and a non‐coding region of chloroplast DNA is amplified by use of PCR with universal primers. The origin of the sample is revealed by the size of the amplified fragment and in case of indistinguishable fragment sizes of wheat and barley by selective digestion with a suitable restriction endonuclease.