Background: Photosensitivity depends on both genetic and environmental factors. Pheophorbide a, present in various plant-derived foods and food supplements, can be absorbed by the small intestine. Accumulation of pheophorbide a and porphyrins in the systemic blood circulation can result in phototoxic lesions on light-exposed skin. Objective: As the human ATP-binding cassette (ABC) transporter ABCG2 has been suggested to be critically involved in porphyrin-mediated photosensitivity, we aimed to develop in vitro screening systems for drug-induced phototoxicity. Conclusion: Functional impairment owing to inhibition of ABCG2 by drugs or its genetic polymorphisms can lead to the disruption of porphyrin homeostasis. This review article provides an overview on drug-induced photosensitivity, as well as our hypothesis on a potential role of ABCG2 in phototoxicity.


Short carbon fiber enhances the dimensional stability and material strength of composite parts created via large area polymer deposition additive manufacturing, which has been used for rapid fabrications of large-dimension composite parts and tooling. Nevertheless, the flow-induced fiber orientation formed during the material extrusion and deposition leads the deposited composites exhibit non-homogeneous thermal-mechanical behaviors. This study evaluates the fiber orientation state of a 20 wt.% CF-PEI composite fabricated by polymer deposition using the fully coupled flow/orientation approach. The material properties are computed by considering the deposited bead as heterogeneous segments with different local fiber orientation states. The heterogeneous thermal conductivity and expansion coefficient exhibit maximum local differences of 29% and 21%, respectively. The orientation-homogenized material properties are implemented to the finite element simulation for a large area additive manufacturing process of a single bead and notable differences are seen between results computed by employing the homogenous and heterogeneous properties.


Immunophilins were originally discovered as receptors for a family of immunosuppressive drugs including cyclosporin, FK506, and rapamycin. These drugs suppress immune reaction and are clinically used to prevent graft rejection during organ transplantation. More recently, immunophilins have been found in all eukaryotes ranging from yeast, animals, and higher plants, implicating these proteins in foundamental cellular processes. Biochemical analyses have shown that all immunophilins studied so far possess an enzyme activity involved in protein folding. However, a number of more specific functions for immunophilins have also been discovered in mammalian systems. Although research on plant immunophilins is more primitive, ongoing studies suggest that these proteins may play unique roles in plant growth and development. This article will briefly summarize research activities on both animal and plant immunophilins, a promising new area of current biology.


Influenza epidemics worldwide result in substantial economic and human costs annually. However, rapid and reliable flu diagnosis methods are significantly lacking. Here we have demonstrated the selective detection of influenza A viruses down to 29 viruses/μL in clinical exhaled breath condensate (EBC) samples (diluted by 100-fold) within minutes using silicon nanowire (SiNW) sensor devices. For 90% of the cases, we have observed that EBC samples tested positive or negative by gold standard method RT-qPCR generated corresponding positive or negative SiNW sensor responses. High selectivity of SiNW sensing was also demonstrated using H1N1 viruses, 8 iso PGF 2a, and inert nanoparticles. Finally, magnetic beads were shown capable of enhancing SiNW sensing directly for low level viruses and 8 iso PGF 2a. When calibrated by virus standards and EBC controls, our work suggests that the SiNW sensor device can be reliably applied to the diagnosis of flu in a clinical setting with 2 orders of magnitude less time compared to the gold standard method RT-qPCR.


Over four decades, target tracking has evolved into a mature discipline acting as a backbone for emerging engineering applications. Illustrated by examples, we discuss along which lines tracking is likely to evolve into a key technology enabling design and development of real-world surveillance and control systems. Four aspects are of particular importance: (1) extraction of higher JDL level information on target characteristics from precision tracks, (2) tracking-derived anomaly detection, (3) exploitation of attribute information from poor resolution sensors over a time window, (4) in-depth integration of context information enabling information extraction even from unwanted propagation phenomena.


Eugenia jambolana Lam., Myrtaceae, is a widely distributed and traditionally well known plant in India. The root bark of the plant was extracted with ethanol and then successively fractionated into petroleum ether fraction, chloroform fraction, n-butanol fraction and methanol fraction. The extract and fractions of the plant material were evaluated for the antinociceptive activity by acetic acid-induced writhing test and formalin-induced nociception test, and anti-inflammatory activity was screened by carrageenan-induced rat paw edema, cotton pellet induced granuloma formation and adjuvant induced arthritis in rat models. The test materials showed the antinociceptive and anti-inflammatory effect in dose dependent manner and the petroleum ether fraction was found to be most potent among the test materials. At 400 mg/kg b.w., p.o. dose petroleum ether fraction significantly inhibited 54.28% writhing response and 73.77% formalin induced nociception in mice. The fraction with same dose showed significant 79.31% inhibition of carrageenan-induced rat paw edema, 57.78% anti-proliferative effect and 77.93% inhibition of adjuvant induced arthritis. The bioactive petroleum ether fraction was then subjected to column chromatography which led to isolate three compounds, namely, β-sitosterol, stigmasterol and lupeol. These compounds were characterized and identified by IR, 1H NMR, 13C NMR and mass spectroscopy.


The effect of tannic acid (TA) and water-soluble cellulose derivatives on the properties of Pickering emulsions stabilized by cellulose nanocrystals (CNCs) was investigated. The potential to both fully dry CNC-stabilized emulsions and to redisperse the dried emulsions in water is demonstrated. When CNCs are mixed with excess adsorbing polymer, either methyl cellulose or hydroxyethyl cellulose, followed by emulsification with corn oil, oil-in-water emulsions can be transformed without oil leakage into solid dry emulsions via freeze-drying. However, these dry emulsions exhibit droplet coalescence within the solid matrix and thus cannot be redispersed. Addition of TA (after emulsification) imparts dispersibility to the dried emulsions due to complexation between the cellulose derivatives and TA which condenses the "shell" around the oil droplets. When dried emulsions with TA are placed in water, the emulsion droplets redisperse readily without the need for high energy mixing, and minimal change in emulsion droplet size is observed by Mastersizer and confocal microscopy. Therefore, the simple addition of two sustainable components to CNC Pickering emulsions (i.e., TA and methyl cellulose or hydroxyethyl cellulose) has led to the first dried and redispersible CNC-based emulsions with oil content as high as 94 wt %. These processing abilities will likely extend the use of these surfactant-free, "green", and potentially edible emulsions to new food, cosmetic, and pharmaceutical applications.


In a series of over 500 cases of cerebellopontine angle tumors, 19 patients had bilateral neurinomas. Four of these tumors arose from the facial rather than the acoustic nerve. A conservative policy regarding surgery had been adopted in an effort to prevent hearing loss for as long as possible. Nevertheless, all patients operated on in this series are now totally deaf. The results of managing these patients surgically and conservatively are discussed.


The ventricular dimensions of 51 patients with heart disease were determined by ultrasonic echography during cardiac catheterization. These data were used to calculate end-diastolic and end-systolic volumes and stroke volume, using a prolate ellipse as a geometric model of the left ventricle. In 30 patients without valvular regurgitation the stroke volumes determined by the echographic method were compared with those determined simultaneously by the standard Fick method with a correlation coefficient of r = 0.966. In 21 patients with valvular regurgitation, the severity of regurgitation was estimated by comparing the forward stroke volume determined by the Fick method with the total left ventricular stroke volume determined by the echographic method. These calculations of regurgitation correlated reasonably well with the degree of valvular regurgitation estimated from angiocardiographic study. It is suggested that these echographic determinations of stroke volume are an atraumatic, safe, and acceptable method in patients without valvular regurgitation. Moreover, these preliminary studies suggest that the severity of valvular regurgitation can be estimated by utilizing ultrasound echocardiography.


Introduction Psychopharmacology today faces serious challenges, especially related inappropriate drug choices, abuse and resulting side effects. The aim of this pharmacy based study in the City of Tiflet was to profile the prescription and usage patterns of psychotropic drugs. Methods This study was conducted in the pharmacies of the City of Tiflet (Morocco). Descriptive statistics of 5125 prescriptions collected from 21 pharmacies were analysed, and summarized as means, percentages and proportions where appropriate. Results The patterns of psychotropic drugs use were similar, compared to Western Countries, especially for anxiolytics/hypnotics, neuroleptics and anti-depressants. A poor monitoring of the treatment, and the lack of control of its side effects were major concerns. General practitioners ranked first among doctors who prescribed psychotropic drugs (48.5%), followed by psychiatrists (41.7%), and the rest of the prescriptions come from other specialists (neurologists, cardiologists, gynaecologists…). Among psychotropic drugs, anxiolytics dominated prescriptions (52.0%), followed by neuroleptics (29.0%) and anti-depressants (19.0%). Men consumed more psychotropic drugs than women (51.8% against 48.2% respectively). Conclusion Anxiolytics/hypnotics constitute the main class of psychotropic drugs prescribed in the Tiflet City, followed by neuroleptics and anti-depressants. Nearly half of the population currently receive prescribed psychotropic drugs from general practitioners. Psychiatrists are less involved in the prescription and monitoring of these patients. This could predispose the population to addiction, drug misuse, intoxication, and at times, misdiagnosis of serious psychiatric illnesses. Our study highlights the urgency of reinforcing psychotropic prescription regulation and monitoring in Tiflet city.


Abstract The combined effects of Kelvin wave-CISK and the evaporation-wind (E-W) feedback are proposed as a possible mechanism for the Madden-Julian oscillation. A very simple single vertical mode model has been employed to examine the effects of both these processes on moist Kelvin waves. The effects of wave-induced moisture convergence is parameterized by reducing the moist static stability, and CISK occurs when the moist static stability becomes negative. The E-W feedback in the presence of mean easterlies leads to unstable Kelvin modes. The presence of mean westerlies leads to decaying Kelvin modes. When CISK and the E-W feedback work in concert, an unstable Kelvin mode develops that has phase speeds of propagation between 5 m s−1 and 10 m s−1 for a large range of parameter values. On the other hand, the E-W feedback mechanism alone, in the case when CISK is not operating, produces the phase speeds of the observed Madden-Julian oscillation for only a very limited range of parameter values.


Spin-orbit coupling is a single-particle phenomenon known to generate topological order, and electron-electron interactions cause ordered many-body phases to exist. The rich interplay of these two mechanisms is present in a broad range of materials, and has been the subject of considerable ongoing research and controversy. Here we demonstrate that interacting two-dimensional electron systems with strong spin-orbit coupling exhibit a variety of time reversal symmetry breaking phases with unconventional spin alignment. We first prove that a Stoner-type criterion can be formulated for the spin polarization response to an electric field, which predicts that the spin polarization susceptibility diverges at a certain value of the electron-electron interaction strength. The divergence indicates the possibility of unconventional ferromagnetic phases even in the absence of any applied electric or magnetic field. This leads us, in the second part of this work, to study interacting Rashba spin-orbit coupled semiconductors in equilibrium in the Hartree-Fock approximation as a generic minimal model. Using classical Monte-Carlo simulations we construct the complete phase diagram of the system as a function of density and spin-orbit coupling strength. It includes both an out-of-plane spin polarized phase and in-plane spin-polarized phases with shifted Fermi surfaces and rich spin textures, reminiscent of the Pomeranchuk instability, as well as two different Fermi-liquid phases having one and two Fermi surfaces, respectively, which are separated by a Lifshitz transition. We discuss possibilities for experimental observation and useful application of these novel phases, especially in the context of electric-field-controlled macroscopic spin polarizations.


This thesis constructs and tests a model of the career orientation of junior unrestricted line naval officers. Specifically, the influence of biodemographic characteristics, length of service, family financial situation, intrinsic and extrinsic job satisfaction, and perception of external job opportunities are investigated. Results indicate that variables which assess the individual's total amount of sea duty, probability of finding a good civilian job, and satisfaction with the extrinsic aspects of the military job are most important in predicting the career orientation of junior naval officers with between eighteen months and seven-and-one-half years of active service. Knowledge of the variables in the model, and their relative influence on the career intentions of junior naval officers can provide manpower planners with information valuable for managing the retention of these officers.


Ultrafine ferrite + austenite steels with the chemical composition of 0.1%C-2%Si-5wt%Mn show excellent strength (TS = 1 200 MPa) and high ductility (TEl = 25%) balance, compared to conventional TRIP steels. This steel is expected as the third generation advanced high-tensile strength steels (AHSS). This steel can be produced by a simple intercritical annealing, however, longer annealing time is necessary to obtain appropriate ferrite + austenite structure. It is difficult to produce this steel by continuous annealing process. If the annealing time can be drastically reduced, this new TRIP steels can be commercialized. We focused on the effect of the prior microstructures before annealing on the formation of ferrite + austenite structure. The effect of the prior structure is not clear. Therefore, in this study, two kind of prior structures, ultrafine grained ferrite + cementite and martensite were used in 0.1%C-2%Si-5wt%Mn steels. It was found that the prior structure of ferrite + cementite can form large amount (20%) of austenite in a very short time (600 s). This is because cementite finely dispersed in the structure effectively acts as a preferential nucleation site of reverse transformed austenite and C and Mn are concentrated in cementite to enable a short time formation of austenite. Excellent strength-ductility balance (32 000 MPa%) which is superior to conventional TRIP steels is also obtained.


Chronic sinusitis (chronic rhinosinusitis, CRS) is a chronic inflammatory disease of the nasal cavity and paranasal sinuses, pathogenesis of which is not yet completely elucidated. MicroRNA has been shown to extensively be involved in immune response. To analyze the differential expression of miRNAs in chronic sinusitis, with or without nasal polyps (nasal polyps, NP), seven miRNAs (miR- 181b, miR-26b, miR-155, miR-146a, miR-125b, miR-124 and miR-92a) that are associated with inflammation were selected to be quantifying by RT-qPCR in 40 clinical samples and 5 controls. When compared to the normal control group, results showed that, in all patients with CRS, miR- 125b, miR-155 and miR-146a were up-regulated (P < 0.05), while miR-92a, miR-26b and miR- 181b were down-regulated (P < 0.05). MiR124 expression levels were not found to have significant changes. In relation to CRS without NP, miR-125b and miR-155 were significantly up-regulated while miR-92a, miR-26b, miR-181b were down-regulated in NP patients. Furthermore, the miR-92a and miR-26b expression levels were significantly reduced while miR-146a and miR124 expression levels had no significant changes in the NP samples. The RT-qPCR results indicate that the miRNAs were differentially expressed in CRS patients and various inflammation severities could lead to this difference. The results from this study may further reveal the relationship between miRNA expressions and inflammation. These results can also provide an important mechanism (primitive data) on the occurrence of chronic sinusitis and nasal polyps.


A study of the liquid effluents of various production process stages and of the final effluent of the RIPASA sf A Celulose e Papel plant, by means of conventional parameters and toxicity, was undertaken. Using these parameters, the performances of the current treatment system (an aerated pond) and of pilot-scale experimental systems (using aerobic biological processes with one or two stages) were compared. The two-stage system yields better results in the improvement of final effluent quality. Biological degradation rates were also determined. It is thought that these discharges will not have an impact on the receiving water, as far as toxicity is concerned.


A novel approach to solving the false path problem is proposed. The approach is based on an extended Boolean algebra and is capable of modeling the logic and timing behavior of logic networks in terms of modified Boolean functions. By applying algebraic manipulations, one can use this approach to extract correct timing information such as path delays as well as the input vectors to activate the sensitizable paths. There are two innovative ideas involved in the approach: (1) an algebraic method is used to deal with the problem of delay analysis, and (2) the rising and falling delays of each node are extracted separately. The approach has been implemented and tested on ISCAS benchmarks.<<ETX>>


Abstract The local dynamics of a double stranded DNA fragment [d(CpGpCpApApApTpTpTpGpCpG)]2 of twelve base pairs is obtained to second order in the mode-coupling expansion of the Smoluchowski diffusion theory. The DNA is considered a fluctuating three-dimensional (3D) structure undergoing rotational diffusion. The starting structure for the calculations is the B canonical structure of the fragment, while the fluctuations are evaluated using molecular dynamics simulations, with the ensemble averages approximated by time averages along a trajectory of length 1.5 ns. The rotational dynamics of the bonds along the double strands are calculated and compared to experimental NMR relaxation rates of different 13C along the sequence: R(Cz), R(Cxy) and R(Hz→Cz). For a fluctuating 3D structure the mode-coupling diffusion theory is found to be in good agreement with several relative characteristics of the experimental relaxation parameters, while motivations are given for the few differences which are due mainly to poor statistics or to inaccuracies in the diffusion model. With a view to application to larger DNA fragments, discussion is dedicated to the validity of reducing the number of degrees of freedom in the double helix statistics by grouping the atoms in rigid fragments (e.g. the backbone atoms, the sugar atoms and the base atoms of each nucleotide). Consideration is given to the effect on local dynamics properties of reduced descriptions that include only three or four rigid bodies per nucleotide as well as five rigid bodies per base pair. It is found that in general these approximations almost uniformly produce slight increase in the correlation time pattern, which grows as the rigidity in the model increases. The relative effects on the dynamic pattern for the most accurate rigid body models are modest. The errors in C1′ and C5′ mobilities are more significant if C5′ is included in the backbone rigid body. These results offer new tools to analyse NMR relaxation behaviour and new perspectives in studying the role of dynamics in biological macromolecules.


Teaching speaking is an important part in the language teaching, as well as the assessing speaking. Therefore, teachers need to use some strategies in conducting the assessing speaking. Based on that issue, this research was aimed at exploring teachers' strategies in assessing speaking skill. To explore the problems, case study with a qualitative approach was adopted. This research employed observation, questionnaire and interview in collecting the data and involved five teachers from MTsNAndalanPekanbaru. The collected data were analyzed by using flow data analysis process of Miles &Huberman (1994). The findings revealed that teachers apply the strategy of conducting the speaking assessment in the classroom which are started from the way they identify current status of classroom speaking assessment, the purpose of their speaking assessment, types speaking assessment, then selecting the teachers' strategies of speaking assessment and last, teachers' perceptions of the effectiveness of classroom speaking assessment. In general, teachers implementing some strategies in conducting the speaking assessment. There were discussion and conversation, question and answer, role play, repetition, etc. This research was expected to broaden teachers' knowledge about strategies in assessing speaking in terms of the purpose and the type of assessment used, then teachers' perceptions of speaking assessment. Keywords: Teachers' Strategies, Speaking Assessment, Types of Assessments.


Japanese encephalitis (JE) is an encephalitic arboviral disease transmitted by mosquitoes with pigs as one of its amplifying hosts. JE is still endemic in Bali and affects mostly children. People in Bali still rear pigs and live in close proximity to irrigated rice fields which is a perfect habitat for mosquitoes. However, few studies have examined the seroprevalence of JE virus (JEV) in pigs as a risk factor for JE in children in Bali together with pigpen location from houses and irrigated rice fields. Therefore, blood samples were collected from pigs in 5 regencies in Bali where JE cases were reported. Indirect enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays were performed on the sera to detect IgM and IgG antibodies against JEV. A total of 80 pig sera were assayed, 60% of which were positive for antibody against JEV. The seroprevalence of JEV-IgM and JEV-IgG was 20% and 40%, respectively. There were three risk factors that had significant associations (p < 0.05) with JE in children such as JEV-IgG-positive pigs, pigpen location <10 meters from the household, and distance of <500 meters between irrigated rice field and pigpen with an IgG-positive pig. In conclusion, the presence of pigs still plays an important role in the JEV transmission cycle in Bali, as demonstrated by the high seroprevalence of JEV-IgG in pigs, and that pigs kept close to households and irrigated rice fields were risk factors for JE in Bali.


One of frequently asked question by health researchers is how many individuals will I need to study. Sample size determination is one of the central canons of health research. A study is always better when planned scientifically and determining the sample size for a study is a prime component as it will help to determine optimum number of subjects so that statistically significant results can be detected. If the sample size is larger than what is needed, the study will become cumbersome and ethically exorbitant. On the converse, using too few subjects' will eventually result in wasted time, effort and money etc. Literature is full of examples in which sample size is incorrectly determined for health studies thus resulting in bias conclusions. To ensure the reliability of the results, the significance level and power of study must be fixed before the sample size determination. Sample size determination is very important and always a difficult process to handle. It requires the collaboration of a specialist who has good scientific knowledge in the art and practice of medical statistics. There are numerous situations in which sample size is determined that varies from study to study. This article will focus on the sample size determination for hypothesis testing and confidence interval situations commonly used in health studies.


Researchers led by Associate Director Choi Wonshik of the Center for Molecular Spectroscopy and Dynamics within the Institute for Basic Science, Professor Kim Moonseok of The Catholic University of Korea, and Professor Choi Myunghwan of Seoul National University developed a new type of holographic microscope. It is said that the new microscope can "see through" the intact skull, and is capable of highresolution 3D imaging of the neural network within a living mouse brain without removing the skull.


In this paper, the problem of mobility handling in wireless sensor network (WSN) is studied with a simple priority backoff technique. To incorporate this technique for stationary and mobile sensor nodes, a novel hybrid MAC protocol called VMAC is designed with a fixed frame length. VMAC combines the advantages of schedule-based MAC for energy savings and contention-based MAC for short transmission delays. To exploit the bandwidth in the network, channel reuse is encouraged and is readily integrated into the protocol. Simulation results using ns2 demonstrate that VMAC with certain frame lengths are suited for selected topologies, but the frame length of one provides sufficient performance. It is also shown that the energy consumption of VMAC is roughly one-third lower compared to pure schedule-based protocol while the average delay is about two-fold less than that of contention-based protocol in one-hop communication scenarios with frame length of one; meaning that VMAC performs very well in short-range communication. The backoff technique is also shown to be fair when nodes contend for medium access and it is even resourceful in speeding up hardware address resolution and routing.


With Web mashups, data from different Web documents and services are "mashed" together to create a new functionality. The mashup developer usually has a clear vision of the desired output, i.e., the resulting Web page to present to the end user. Complex mashups require multiple processing steps, and become hard to debug if the delivered result is not as expected. In this paper we propose an approach that supports step-by-step debugging for declarative development of data mashups. A dependency graph is constructed from the mashup definition, and developers are able to define breakpoints to inspect a snapshot of the running mashup execution. A Web 2.0 application visualizes the intermediate results in each processing step. On top of that, it is possible to specify expected and unexpected result elements. If the result does not comply with the specifications, the platform helps to identify the processing step which caused the error.


In this study, diffusion welding technique was applied to pure copper and aluminium in argon gas. An experiment set has been designed and series of experiment have been performed. In order to investigate their bonding ability by diffusion of Al and Cu. The best results were obtained at 560 °C under the pressure of 4.5 MPa for 60 minutes. It was concluded that the tensile strength level obtained under the optimum welding condition is sufficient for industrial applications.


One of the advantages of using Islamic social funds is the increased ability of microfinance institutions to provide financial services to the poor. This study aims to (1) investigates the characteristics of the clients of the Islamic Charity Based Microfinance (ICBM) program; (2) test whether the clients ICBM program are more vulnerable than the non clients group (3) discuss the rationale of why poor excluded from the zakat based microfinance program. The study was conducted in the microfinance program at zakat institutions namely Baitul Maal Muamalat (BMMI), BAZNAS, and Baitul Maal Beringharjo (BMB). A total of 236 respondents including clients and non-clients of three case study institutions were participated in this study. The data is analyzed using binomial logit model to evaluate factors affecting clients participation in ICBM programs in Indonesia. The findings show that clients and non-clients of ICBM have a similar demographic profile and the majority ICBM clients live above the national poverty line, yet they live perilously close to the edge of the poverty line. Using logistic regression, this study found that the higher the client's income level, the higher the probability of their being selected in the program. This findings contradict with the existing Islamic microfinance  literature that claim ICBM institutions in general could demonstrate a capacity to extend their services more widely to the poorest if Islamic charity is the main source of microfinance funding. This study suggests some possible barriers to include the poor in the microfinance including institutional selection policy and self exclusion factors.


Through a collaboration of the two universities, senior capstone design classes in Aerospace Engineering at the University of Maryland and Earth and Space Exploration at Arizona State University have spent the last year developing an in-depth analysis of human exploration missions to near-Earth objects. This has included both the design of vehicles and support systems, as well as instruments for scientic investigation upon arrival and approaches for human and robotic geological exploration in the microgravity environment. The engineering design study focused on the spacecraft and in-space propulsion systems required for the mission, starting from a requirement to base all Earth launches on the use of existing expendable launch vehicles. The baseline mission developed supports a human crew of three for up to six months in space, to allow travel to and from the NEO and extended science exploration activities while there. Three specic aspects of this mission were singled out for more detailed examination, including the development of hardware prototypes for the ight systems required. These systems included a small (25-kg class) robotic maneuvering vehicle, with interchangeable science mission kits for carrying out remote exploration of the body under control by the local astronauts. The second technology was the development and testing of a full-scale inatable habitat module, which allows for more habitable volume throughout the trip, and permits the adoption of a minimal-sized core spacecraft dedicated to the launch and entry phases of the mission. The third detailed research area was the development of necessary techniques for human eld geology in the microgravity environment. This paper summarizes the extensive documentation of this mission developed by the design teams, and includes results of the hardware development and testing phases of the program.


Anterior cruciate ligament injury (ACL) affects an estimated 250,000 people annually [1]. Unfortunately, even with ACL reconstruction, the likely prognosis is long-term osteoarthritis (OA) [2]. Many strides have been made in attempting to understand and improve this outcome. The use of robotic technology has provided an avenue for researchers to examine the ACL's role in knee joint stability in all six anatomical degrees of freedom (DOF) [3]. The overall goal of our lab robotics research is to use this technology to understand ACL function during activities of daily living (ADLs) in hopes of developing a biomechanical animal model which can be used as a preclinical tool to design new repair methods and materials. We have examined three species (ovine, porcine, and human), measuring all forces and moments produced from displacement control motion paths developed for cyclic testing in a robotic system (KUKA; KR210). This information will provide a basis for comparing intact knee biomechanics and ACL function across species. With these robotic inputs, we have performed a series of studies to aid in the development of a biomechanical model of the human knee.Copyright © 2011 by ASME


Eighty‐two patients with solid tumors and lymphomas were immunized with New Jersey, Hong Kong, and Victoria influenza vaccines. Patients were divided into groups according to treatment: chemotherapy, radiotherapy, or no treatment. Four parameters were examined to assess the response to immunization: seroconversion, protective titer level, geometric mean titer, and response to multiple vaccines. Patients with lymphoma showed the lowest antibody response. Patients with solid tumors had antibody responses which were not significantly different from controls but were superior to lymphoma patients (p < .01). Timing of chemotherapy, immunoglobulin levels, and lymphocyte counts did not appear to play a major role in determining the antibody response. Patients with neoplastic diseases should be immunized against the prevailing influenza virus. Patients with lymphoma should also receive antiviral prophylactic therapy during influenza epidemics.


An all-CMOS single chip architecture of a frequency-hopped spread spectrum (FH/SS) transceiver is presented. The transceiver implements complete modem functions spanning a tuned RF front-end to a digital binary frequency-shift keying (FSK) modulator/demodulator, all operating from a 3-V supply. This FH/SS transceiver is intended for use in a wide variety of indoor/outdoor portable wireless applications in the 902-928 MHz ISM band [1]. System features such as dual antenna/branch diversity, fast frequency hopping, and adaptive power control are incorporated into the transceiver architecture to achieve robust wireless digital data transmission over multipath fading channels. This paper describes the architectural features of the transceiver and surveys several of the key building blocks which have been completed to date.<<ETX>>


In this paper, we investigate the sequence-based protein-protein interaction prediction by machine learning methods. Specifically, we propose to build classifiers in the space of domain pairs, which are purely based on sequence data. We designed a novel way to select negative samples using a classification-based iterative voting procedure, and systematically compared the effects of negative sample selection on the performance of classification. We also propose an approach to estimate the probabilities for the predictions by SVM. Based on the selected negative samples, we compared nonlinear SVM based on gaussian kernel, linear SVM and linear logistic regression for both classification performance and probability assignments. Our results show that the probability assigned by SVM is more natural than logistic regression, and SVM also outperforms logistic regression for prediction.


The Lifewise Centre DVD seeks to raise awareness of the excellent scenario facilities available. The Lifewise Centre is a purpose built community engagement facility which provides a variety of environments to public, voluntary and private sector organisations wishing to raise public awareness or enter into educational activity which centres on community safety and staying safe issues. The centrepiece of the facility is a realistic film set environment which allows for the development of interactive scenario based activity such as the following events: * crucial crew * special educational needs crucial crew * over 50's safety event * drive 4 life (young drivers event) * point 7 Gun, knife and gang initiative * Staying Safe in Sheffield (international student safety event) Since the centre opened in 2005, in excess of 84 000 attendees have benefited from the facilities and the events held at the centre. The Lifewise film encourages all members of the community to become involved in a variety of ways – attending one of the impactive safety events, facilitating a safety scenario or event (as an organisation) or taking up the opportunity to become a Police Support Volunteer. Events which take place at the centre need to demonstrate a clear link to one or more of the following objectives, in line with the Centre's booking criteria: * community safety * personal safety * personal responsibility * citizenship and * community awareness. Further information about Lifewise can be found on the website – http://www.lifewise.southyorks.police.uk


The antipyretic effect of the non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) ketoprofen (3 mg/kg) and flunixin (2 mg/kg) were studied in pigs. The drugs were administered intramuscularly at 8 and 32 h following endobronchial challenge with Actinobacillus pleuropneumoniae. Infected (non-medicated) and non-infected (non-medicated) controls were used. Endobronchial challenge with Actinobacillus pleuropneumoniae induced laboured breathing, coughing, fever, reduced food and water consumption and increased white blood cell counts. At autopsy, pleuropneumonia was evident. Ketoprofen showed a highly significant antipyretic effect but flunixin did not. The decrease in food consumption of ketoprofen-treated pigs was significantly less than that of the infected (non-medicated) controls. Blood parameters were not significantly influenced by either NSAID and, at necropsy, gastric and renal side-effects were not observed for either drug.


Many problems in dynamic data driven modeling deals with distributed rather than lumped observations. In this paper, we show that the Monge-Kantorovich optimal transport theory provides a unifying framework to tackle such problems in the systems-control parlance. Specifically, given distributional measurements at arbitrary instances of measurement availability, we show how to derive dynamical systems that interpolate the observed distributions along the geodesics. We demonstrate the framework in the context of three specific problems: (i) finding a feedback control to track observed ensembles over finite-horizon, (ii) finding a model whose prediction matches the observed distributional data, and (iii) refining a baseline model that results a distribution-level prediction-observation mismatch. We emphasize how the three problems can be posed as variants of the optimal transport problem, but lead to different types of numerical methods.


Performance prediction of multiple-storage quad trees is treated. Using random graphical data models, expected values of essential parameters such as the number of internal nodes, the number of object references, and the number of lists are estimated. From these results, more practical characteristics such as memory usage and the speed of windowing operations are obtained. The accuracy of the approximations is evaluated on experimental data. >


Aims: To observe the synergistic antitumor effect of chidamide (a novel orally benzamide class of histone deacetylase inhibitors, HDACi) combined with gemcitabine, oxaliplatin or zanubrutinib (a second generation Bruton's tyrosine kinase (BTK) inhibitor) in diffuse large B-cell lymphoma cell lines and explore the possible mechanisms.
 Methods: We used CCK-8 assay to test the inhibitory efficacy of single agent chidamide, gemcitabine, oxaliplatin, zanubrutinib and their combinations on DLBCL cell lines, respectively. And the combination index (CI) was calculated by the CalcuSyn software. The apoptosis and the cell cycle analysis of DLBCL cell lines under different treatments were assessed by Annexin V-APC/PI double-staining and PI staining using flow cytometry, respectively. The expression levels of acetylated histone and apoptosis-related proteins were detected by Western Blot.
 Results:Single-agent chidamide, gemcitabine and oxaliplatin caused growth arrest of the DLBCL cell lines (OCL-LY3、OCL-LY19、U2932、DOHH2) in a dose and time dependent manner, respectively(Figure1a,1b,1c). Single-agent zanubrutinib showed antitumor activity in two activated B-cell like DLBCL (U2932 and OCI-LY3) cell lines in a dose and time dependent manner while no antitumor activity in other two GCB-DLBCL (OCI-LY19 and DOHH2) cell lines (Figure1d). Chidamide combined with gemcitabine or oxaliplatin synergistically inhibited the proliferative viability of DLBCL cell lines. Also, chidamide could enhance the inhibitory effect of zanubrutinib in the two ABC-DLBCL cell lines. And the CI values of all groups were more than 1(Fig2-1~2-8). Chidamide could significantly increase the proportion of DLBCL cells in the G0/G1 phase in a dose-dependent manner(Figure 3). And chidamide combined with gemcitabine can synergistically enhance the cell cycle arrest in U2932 cells (Figure 4). Cell apoptosis rate increased along with the ascending dosage of chidamide in the four DLBCL cell lines. The effect of cell apoptosis became more obviously when combined with oxaliplatin or zanubrutinib (Figure 5.1~5.4). Chidamide significantly up-regulated the levels of acetylated H3 (Lys 9) and cleaved-caspase 3 while down-regulated Bcl-2 (Figure 6~7). Furthermore, PD-L1 protein was upregulated in chidamide-exposed DLBCL cell lines (Figure 8).
 Conclusion:Chidamide combined with gemcitabine, oxaliplatin or zanubrutinib synergistically inhibited the proliferative viability and cell apoptosis rate in DLBCL cell lines. Therefore, it is worthy to further explore the value of Chidamide combination therapy in DLBCL.
 Figure

 No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.


We evaluated clinical effects and toxicities of a combination treatment with cefminox (CMNX) and fosfomycin (FOM) for infections complicated with hematological disorders in 56 patients. Among those, 52 patients including 22 with malignant lymphoma, 19 with acute leukemia, and 11 with other hematological disorders were evaluable. Excellent and good responses were obtained in 33 (63.5%) of the 52 patients. This treatment was also effective in 5 of 9 cases in which granulocyte counts were less than 500/mm3 through the course of administration. Side effects were observed in only one patient. Mild nausea occurred but was not serious. These results indicate that the combination of CMNX and FOM is an effective and safe regimen for the treatment of infections complicated in patients with hematological disorders.


Dogs worldwide share a single genetic origin from Asian wolves. While dog and wolf lineages are diffi cult Dogs worldwide share a single genetic origin from Asian wolves. While dog and wolf lineages are diffi cult to separate in terms of nuclear genes, mitochondrial lineages are clearly distinguishable for the two species, to separate in terms of nuclear genes, mitochondrial lineages are clearly distinguishable for the two species, offering a good opportunity to evaluate the differences between them. Species identifi cation from DNA is an offering a good opportunity to evaluate the differences between them. Species identifi cation from DNA is an important tool for wolf conservation in Croatia, and wolf - dog differentiation is necessary for forensic cases, important tool for wolf conservation in Croatia, and wolf - dog differentiation is necessary for forensic cases, wildlife management and scientifi c research. The goal of this paper was to provide a data set on Croatian dog wildlife management and scientifi c research. The goal of this paper was to provide a data set on Croatian dog and wolf mitochondrial DNA control region sequences, and to research if these sequences can be used as a and wolf mitochondrial DNA control region sequences, and to research if these sequences can be used as a reference for species identifi cation. We analyzed 281 base pair sequences of the mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) reference for species identifi cation. We analyzed 281 base pair sequences of the mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) control region of 20 mixed breed dog blood samples, 91 grey wolf muscle samples and two muscle samples of control region of 20 mixed breed dog blood samples, 91 grey wolf muscle samples and two muscle samples of wolf-like animals. We identifi ed 12 dog and 4 wolf mtDNA control region haplotypes. None of the haplotypes wolf-like animals. We identifi ed 12 dog and 4 wolf mtDNA control region haplotypes. None of the haplotypes were shared, confi rming that mtDNA control region haplotypes can be used to discriminate between Croatian were shared, confi rming that mtDNA control region haplotypes can be used to discriminate between Croatian wolves and dogs, and to confi rm the maternal ancestry of putative hybrids. The sequences of the two wolf-like wolves and dogs, and to confi rm the maternal ancestry of putative hybrids. The sequences of the two wolf-like animals clearly grouped into a dog cluster. animals clearly grouped into a dog cluster.


Glycogen storage disease type Ib (GSD Ib) is caused by biallelic variants in SLC37A4. GSD Ib is characterized by hepatomegaly, recurrent hypoglycemia, neutropenia, and neutrophil dysfunction. Only seven pregnancies in four women with GSD Ib have been reported so far. We report on two further successful pregnancies in two patients with GSD Ib. One of these pregnancies was managed with empagliflozin, an SGLT2 inhibitor, repurposed for the treatment of neutropenia in GSD Ib. Both pregnancies were unremarkable and resulted in healthy offspring. Gestational care and pre‐ and perinatal management in GSD Ib are challenging and require close interdisciplinary metabolic and obstetric monitoring. In our patient, the use of empagliflozin during pregnancy was successful in the prevention of neutropenic symptoms and infections and enabled good wound healing after Cesarean section, while no adverse effects were observed.


Based on a survey conducted in different bases of academic data such as journal articles, undergraduate final papers, theses, and dissertations, this paper presents a critical analysis of different fields of knowledge in the scientific production on Somatic Education, aiming to support future work. The research was quantitative and documentary and it had as priority sources CAPES site and the Brazilian National Library of Dissertations and Theses (BDTD) site. It was concluded that Somatic Education is multidisciplinary and it has the largest academic representation in the field of Arts, followed by the Health sector, possibly reflecting its origins and applications.


With Intradomain Routing Protocols, by optimizing the configuration (Trafic Engineering -TE) of link weights, operators can significantly improve the load of their links, which is known to be an NP-hard problem. Another emerging issue for ISP networks is the fast restoration of IP services in the case of failures. Recently, Fast Reroute techniques have been proposed for pure IP networks. The Loop Free Alternates (LFA) is one of the most promising technique. An LFA for a router A, for a destination d, is a neighbor C of A which does not use A to reach d, so that A can prepare itself to directly reroute the traffic destined to d along its link with C upon the failure of the link that A is using to reach d. Our objective is to provide a TE technique that takes the coverage of LFAs into account during the network resource usage optimization. Constraint Programming and Constraint-Based Local Search are well suited for solving such complex combinatorial problems. Especially in COMET, some classical problems can be modeled in only about a dozen lines of code. So, we have chosen a local search algorithm implemented in COMET for solving our traffic engineering problem.


This full research paper considers the resources needed to meet the research and evaluation needs of the many efforts to incorporate computing education throughout primary and secondary schools. In order to support these efforts, we developed csedresearch.org, a site designed to serve as a resource center for primary and secondary computing education research. We first considered criteria and recommendations for resource centers previously established by others. We provide a general description of the purpose of the csedresearch.org as well as a description of how we used quantitative and qualitative methods over numerous phases of development (pre-concept/research, concept, alpha, and beta, launch) to ensure that it meets the needs of potential users. We discuss how the current product compares against the general criteria for resource centers, its original intentions and expectations, and how it has fared through the phases of development one normally expects from a digital resource center. As the resource center evolves, we continue to seek feedback and resources to further meet the needs of the community. We also discuss the data that is being collected and could be collected to further benefit the community to define not only what educational practices work best overall, but what works best for particular demographic groups, including underrepresented groups in computing. And finally, we are faced with the challenge for maintaining the information so that remains robust and current.


Proceedings: AACR 103rd Annual Meeting 2012‐‐ Mar 31‐Apr 4, 2012; Chicago, IL

Background IDH1 mutation is both a diagnostic and a strong prognostic factor in gliomas. In this work, we investigated the feasibility of detecting the IDH1 mutation in plasma of glioma patients. Patients and Methods The study was conducted in 31 controls and 80 glioma patients with known IDH1 status, and confronted with MRI data. Small Size DNA (ssDNA) was extracted from 4mL plasma and the IDH1R132H mutation was detected by a combination of COLD (co-amplification at lower denaturation temperature) and digital PCR. Results ssDNA concentration (150pb to 200pb) ranged from 0.1 to 6.6 ng/mL (median 1.2 ng/mL) in controls and 0.1 to 50.3 ng/mL (median 1.2 ng/mL) in patients. ssDNA concentration did not correlate with tumor volume in low grade glioma. In contrast, ssDNA concentration in high grade gliomas patients was significantly higher than in healthy controls and correlated with the enhancing volume V (V=0: 0.9 ng/ml [0.1-3.5]; V 10 cm3: 14.0 ng/ml [0.6-50.3]). We then analyzed 39 patients (25 with R132H IDH1 mutated glioma, 14 with IDH1 wild type glioma) for the detection of IDH1 mutation on the ssDNA extracted from plasma. The mutation was detected in plasma DNA of 15 out of 25 patients (60%) with IDH1 mutated tumor, and in none of the 14 patients with IDH1 wild type tumor. The detection rate of IDH1 mutation in plasma was higher in high grade (12/17 patients (70.6%) and was correlated with the enhancing tumor volume. Interestingly all the mutant tumors with an enhancing tumor volume higher than 3.5 cm3 (9/9) were detected by digital PCR in plasma. Conclusions Our study shows that (i) tumor DNA is released in glioma patients; (ii) ssDNA concentration is correlated with enhancing tumor volume, and (iii) IDH1 mutation is detectable in plasma DNA. This represents the first step for developing a quantitative plasma biomarker that could be used to monitor glioma status.

Citation Format: {Authors}. {Abstract title} [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 103rd Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2012 Mar 31-Apr 4; Chicago, IL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2012;72(8 Suppl):Abstract nr 5559. doi:1538-7445.AM2012-5559


Launched in 2008 under the guidance of the doctoral candidates at the Harvard Graduate School of Design, New Geographies offers its third issue (the fi rst issue began as #0) with the timely theme of Landscapes of Energy. The New Geographies series is bound by an interest in a disciplinary pluralism that invites productive collisions between the social and the physical. They argue that the ideal medium for this investigation today is "the geographic," which combines design, agency, and territory. The three issues to date have been a much welcome venue for an emerging generation of critics, designers, and thinkers that are exploring disciplinary peripheries. With the recent issue, Landscapes of Energy, this proposition is taken to task with how energy—through extraction, production, distribution, and use—organizes space(s). Here space is synonymous with territory or regional landscape; space is, again, geographic. And again, pluralism is at work within this broadranging collection of critical essays and design projects, though the former is in greater abundance, contributed by a philosopher, a geographer, engineers, architects, economists, a nonprofi t organization, historians, a blogger, a landscape architect, and a curator. Landscapes of Energy is centered on oil as the primary actor in need of refl ection. Appropriately, the issue is not centered on a particular geography, favoring instead a compareandcontrast model of contested territories or case studies. The issue is focused on a temporal positioning of energy relative to sociopolitical factors, by stating that the intention is to "historicize the dialectical relation between energy and society." Editor Rania Ghosn opens the issue with the provocation that "energy is a spatial product" and the proclamation that "energy needs space." Ghosn identifi es that what is at stake is a deeper understanding of the correlation between the management of energy as a commodity and its impact on territories, socially and physically. And it could certainly be argued that there is no technological or social force more impactful on the land and the environment today (or ever) than that which is seeking stores of energy for economic redistribution. The diverse contributions to Landscapes of Energy can be organized into three types: thematic positioning, geographic case study, and speculative spatial reformatting. The case studies are the most abundant, and serve as a grand tour of worldwide sociopolitical intensities where the management of energy encounters the specifi city of climate and context. El Hadi Jazairy and Economist Abdellatif Benachenhou discuss the case of Algeria and its natural gas sector. Architects Santiago del Hierro and Gary Legget observe the oil blocks in Amazonia. Andrew Barry marks the impact of the 1,768 km (1,099 mi) long BakuTbilisiCeyhan (BTC) pipeline. Center for Land Use Interpretation (CLUI) provides a tour of the TransAlaska Pipeline. Historian Martin Melosi values Houston as a consummate "energy capital." Completing this series, Kazys Varnelis and Robert Sumrell provide a compelling nearcinematic script of the delusions of scenario planning methods and risk management tactics that Shell Oil has enacted since the 1960s. Other contributions are more typological, projecting the spatial formats that energy landscapes might take in the near future. Geoff Manaugh ruminates on the tools of oil extraction (specifi cally, rigs) as preserved adaptive reuse ventures. Geoff Thun and Kethy Velikov offer existing modes of infrastructures (specifi cally, highways and railways) as augmented for sitespecifi c energy collection and distribution. Pierre Belanger Books


SMT solvers can decide the satisfiability of ground formulas modulo a combination of built-in theories. Adding a built-in theory to a given SMT solver is a complex and time consuming task that requires internal knowledge of the solver. However, many theories (arrays [13], reachability [11]), can be easily expressed using first-order formulas. Unfortunately, since universal quantifiers are not handled in a complete way by SMT solvers, these axiomatics cannot be used as decision procedures. In this paper, we show how to extend a generic SMT solver to accept a custom theory description and behave as a decision procedure for that theory, provided that the described theory is complete and terminating in a precise sense. The description language consists of first-order axioms with triggers, an instantiation mechanism that is found in many SMT solvers. This mechanism, which usually lacks a clear semantics in existing languages and tools, is rigorously defined here; this definition can be used to prove completeness and termination of the theory. We demonstrate using the theory of arrays, how such proofs can be achieved in our formalism.


Describes an approach and tool for providing administrative control over the execution of software on a Windows NT/2000 system. The kernel-driver-based approach provides the system administrator with a way of restricting users to running only approved applications. As a result, illegal, pirated, personal and malicious software executables can be prevented from running on corporate machines. We describe the key issues involved in the development of this tool and the features that make this tool an important part of regaining enterprise-wide control over corporate machines.


Purpose
The purpose of this study is to provide a polemic on the evolution of universities and business schools over the past two decades. During this period, universities have increasingly adopted a self-interested stance using business-like practices and behaviours to justify their transformation. The authors provide recommendations aimed at enhancing universities' contributions and relevance to society, increasing their sustainability broadly defined and better positioning them to help solve wicked problems in a post-COVID-19 world.

Design/methodology/approach
This polemic analyses prior literature relating to the evolution of universities and uses this to generate a framework for ways forward for their improvement.

Findings
The authors argue that the evolution of universities into entities with missions and operations designed to mimic business and commercial imperatives has yielded undesirable outcomes including the muddling of the core mission of universities, alienation of key stakeholders and an excessive focus on income growth. Business schools face a tension between forging their own, unique identities and simultaneously striving to meet university university objectives. We term this "the Business School identity paradox". The authors contend that the way forward requires senior management to re-discover the essence of what it means to be a university, re-establish collegial decision-making within universities that includes built-in feedback loops and a fundamental emphasis on developing graduates with an enlightened perspective that goes beyond technical skills.

Originality/value
This paper is novel in that it analyses the evolution of the "Enterprise University" some 20 years after this term was first coined and in a radically changed environment following the COVID-19 pandemic. This analysis is also forward-looking as the authors re-imagine universities and business schools by identifying opportunities for renewal and improvement in their focus and societal impact. The authors also develop a schema that identifies major influences on universities and business schools, the impact of COVID-19 and strategies for them post-COVID-19.


Mature human erythrocytes were tested for their ability to synthetize membrane phospholipids from simple precursors: [32P]-orthophosphate (32Pi), [U-14C] glycerol, [U-14C] glucose, [U-14C] serine, and [U-14C] choline. The incorporation of these labels into phosphatidylcholine (PC), phosphatidylethanolamine (PE), phosphatidylserine (PS), phosphatidylinositol (PI), phosphatidic acid (PA), lysophosphatidylcholine (lyso-PC), phosphatidylinositol-4-phosphate (PIP), and phosphatidylinositol-4,5-bisphosphate (PIP2) was measured. All the phospholipids tested incorporated 32Pi, glycerol, and glucose in a time dependent manner. According to the rate of 32Pi incorporation, three groups of phospholipids could be distinguished: 1) PA, PIP2, PIP, lyso-PC; 2) PI and PS; 3) PC and PE, which incorporated 5 x 10(3), 40, and 6 nmol 32Pi/mmol phospholipid per 1 h, respectively. Moreover, [U-14C] serine and [U14C] choline were found to incorporate into phospholipids, and PS-decarboxylase activity could be measured. The possibility that the observed incorporation was due to contamination with bacteria or other blood cells could be ruled out. Our results bring evidence for de novo phospholipid synthesis of human red blood cells.


ABSTRACT: Because of reluctance to use radioisotopes for studies of iron absorption in children, we have explored the feasibility of using the least abundant stable isotope of iron, 58Fe (natural abundance, 0.322 weight %) in a study of nonheme iron absorption. With a balanced cross-over design, each of 16 school-age children was fed a standardized lunch on 3 consecutive days and, 28 days later, an alternate standardized lunch on 3 consecutive days. The lunch included either a beef patty or a beef-soy patty. The mass isotope ratio, 58Fe/57Fe (MIR58/57), was measured in blood by inductively coupled plasma mass spectroscopy before and 14 days after (i.e. study day 15) consuming the three lunches. The MIR58/57 on study day 15 was used as a baseline value for lunches fed on study days 29, 30, and 31. Incorporation of 58Fe into erythrocytes was greater from the lunch with beef patty than from the lunch with beef-soy patty (geometric mean values 2.02 and 1.05% of the dose, p < 0.03). Based on the similarity of our results with those obtained in adults with radioisotopes. We conclude that 58Fe is a satisfactory tag for studies of nonheme iron absorption from meals.


An Automated Essay Grading (AEG) system is designed to be used in universities, companies and schools, which depends on Artificial Intelligence and Natural Language Processing technologies; as it has the capability to improve the grading system in terms of overcoming cost, time and teacher effort while correcting the students' essay questions and papers. The AEG system widespread use is due to its cost, accountability, standards and technology; as that leads to the system being used and applied for multiple languages, such as English and French, among others. On the other hand, limited research has been conducted to automate Arabic essay grading. Therefore, this paper introduces an Arabic AEG system. In this paper, we propose a model for Arabic essay grading based on F-score to extract features from student answers and model answers along with the use of the Arabic WordNet (AWN) as a valuable knowledge-based method for semantic similarity. The purpose of using the AWN is to find all related words from student answers to give the answer a student score. Students will not be subject to injustice in terms of their marks in cases when they do not write the exact model answer, which subsequently leads to an improvement of the Arabic AEG system to match human grading. The proposed model is evaluated using Arabic essay dataset and the result shows that our proposed model produces a result which matches human grading.


Although scholars have examined numerous facets of broadcast sports, limited research has explored the use of statistics in these broadcasts. Reference to statistical summaries of athlete or team performance have long been a component of sport broadcasts, and for some viewers the rise of fantasy sport has led to even greater interest in quantitative measures of athlete or team performance. To examine the presence and nature of statistical references in sport broadcasts, this study examines National Football League telecasts over time to identify changes in the frequency, type, and presentation form of statistics. Findings revealed an emphasis on individual player statistics over team statistics, as well as an increase in on-screen graphics over time. The study also revealed a simultaneous decrease in statistical references relayed orally by broadcasters. These findings illustrate the importance of statistics as a storytelling tool, as well as reflecting technological innovations in sports broadcasting. In addition, they suggest a possible evolution in audience consumption habits and desires.


The renewal of Daoism in the 12th century did not take place in the Southern Song but in the Jurchen Jin empire, which included a large half of North China. This renewal was realized through various religious movements, among which the Taiyi, Zhendadao, and Quanzhen schools played a major role until the end of the Mongol Yuan dynasty. After a revival in the 17th century, Quanzhen Daoism is still a major component of Daoism today. The chapter presents the history of these schools, as well as the main lines of their preaching. It stresses in particular the relatively well documented history, religious life, and doctrinal aspects of the first decades of the Quanzhen. As inner alchemy was the core of Quanzhen doctrine and practices, special accent is put on the theory and mysticism of this current of inner alchemy.


This thesis presents the design, fabrication and testing of a new, leak-free, permanently sealable MEMS valve for use in vacuum applications. This device is different from existing MEMS valves in that it is leak-free in the closed state and has a relatively high flow rate in the open state. This device relies on the surface tension of a molten seal material to establish a permanent seal over its initially-open port upon heating. The sealable port is a through via located in the center of an isolated silicon island supported on a thermally-insulating silicon nitride membrane in the center of a die. The through via is surrounded by a moderately high aspect ratio ring of indium solder. To seal the solder over the through via, the island and solder are heated by passing a current through a resistive heater on the back side of the device. Upon thermal actuation, the hollow cylinder of solder reflows into a toroid due to surface tension. For sufficiently high solder aspect ratios, the inner edges of the toroid meet in the center, thereby plugging the via. The heater is then turned off, solidifying the solder and forming a permanent seal. Individual subsystems of the device were first analytically modeled using structural, thermal, electrical and geometrical models to optimize the device features. The sealing and thermal isolation subsystems were then separately fabricated and tested to verify the analytical models and key fabrication processes. The individual subsystems were then combined into the final device. Tests on the final device indicate an open state flow rate of 60 to 400 standard cm3 per minute (sccm), a closed state leak rate not detectable above that of the test jig used (10 4 sccm), and an open-to-closed flow rate ratio of greater than 10' to 106. Thesis Supervisor: Carol Livermore Title: Associate Professor of Mechanical Engineering


The interaction between the platelet membrane glycoprotein Ib/IX/V and von Willebrand factor (VWF) is the primary event in the formation of an occlusive thrombus under conditions of high shear stress.1 Several polymorphisms of glycoprotein Ibα (the functional binding site for surface bound VWF) have been reported.2 The relation of variable number tandem repeat (VNTR) and Kozak sequence polymorphisms with arterial thrombosis and coronary artery disease remains controversial. In our recent study we proposed that the glycoprotein Ibα genotypes CC of the VNTR and Kozak −5TT increased the risk of platelet plug formation under the condition of high shear stress generated by stenosed vessels and thus caused the increased risk of myocardial infarction (MI), which we observed in a group of patients with known coronary artery disease status who had those genotypes. We also observed the potential protective effect of the glycoprotein Ibα Kozak −5TC genotype.3 The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of these polymorphisms on platelet function of the same group of patients by using the platelet function analyser system PFA-100 (Dade Behring), which mimics physiological conditions in vivo involving platelet binding to VWF and platelet adhesion/aggregation in response to collagen under conditions of high shear after activation by adrenaline (epinephrine) or ADP.

From 256 patients who had previously been genotyped for the VNTR and Kozak sequence polymorphisms, 84 white men were consecutively selected (mean age 62.07 years). All the patients were taking aspirin 75 mg as their only antiplatelet medication. Patients who had an MI within the previous six months and those with bleeding diathesis, abnormal platelet counts, or abnormal haemoglobin were excluded from the study. A fasting venous blood sample was obtained between 8 am and 10 am with a 21 gauge butterfly cannula without a …


The production of high-quality open textbooks requires the collaboration of different contributors. This work conducts a comparative analysis of the six different collaborative platforms for the production of books. To be able to compare the platforms, several dimensions extracted from literature of collaborative writing and the requirements associated with open textbooks are described and used. As conclusion of the study, it is clear that Connexions is currently the best option for the collaborative production of open textbooks although it lacks some basic functionality. This work recommend the creation of a new breed of platforms that better support the producers of open textbooks that inherit all the successful capabilities of the current generation.


Objectives. To assess the prognostic value of prostatic stromal inflammation in surgically treated localized prostate carcinoma for biochemical recurrence-free survival. Methods. Stromal prostatic inflammation grading was studied in 161 patients who underwent radical prostatectomy for prostate cancer without involvement of the lymph nodes and who did not receive preoperative or postoperative radiotherapy or hormonal therapy until recurrence occurred. Inflammation was graded as high-grade inflammation if confluence of inflammatory cell infiltrate and/or glandular epithelium disruption associated with interstitial inflammatory infiltrate were present and as low-grade inflammation otherwise. Each specimen was graded separately first in the stroma surrounding nonmalignant glands and second in the stroma surrounding malignant glands. Biochemical recurrence based on serum prostatespecific antigen (PSA) level was defined as two successive PSA measurements greater than 1 ng/mL. Results. Malignant tissue was significantly less involved in high-grade inflammation than benign adjacent tissue (9.3% and 19.9%, respectively; P ,0.01). In a univariate Kaplan-Meier analysis, the 5-year recurrence-free survival rate for patients with high-grade and low-grade classified prostates was 61.0% and 66.7% in benign tissue and 27.0% and 65.3% in malignant tissue, respectively, with a significant difference between grades only in malignant tissue (P ,0.02). In a multivariate analysis controlling for Gleason grade, preoperative serum PSA, pathologic stage, and inflammation grade in malignant tissue, the latter factor remained significantly predictive of biochemical recurrence (P 5 0.03). Conclusions. Patients with high-grade inflammation surrounding malignant glands in radical prostatectomy specimens had significantly more postoperative biochemical recurrence than patients with low-grade inflammation. UROLOGY 54: 467‐472, 1999. © 1999, Elsevier Science Inc.


PURPOSE
To evaluate, by means of the polymerase chain reaction (PCR), the presence of Actinobacillus actinomycetemcomitans, Porphyromonas gingivalis, and Prevotella intermedia in the mandibular arch of completely edentulous subjects before implant placement and 4 and 6 months after the placement of mandibular implant-supported fixed prostheses.

MATERIALS AND METHODS
Fifteen patients had bacterial plaque collected with sterile paper points before implant placement (ie, when they were completely edentulous) and at 3 sites on the peri-implant sulci displaying the largest probing depths after placement of 5 implants.

RESULTS
For the edentulous arch, A actinomycetemcomitans was detected in 13.3% of subjects, P intermedia was detected in 46.7% of subjects, and there was no detection of P gingivalis. After 4 and 6 months of implant placement, A actinomycetemcomitans was detected in 60% and 73.3% respectively; P intermedia in 46.7% and 53.3% respectively; and P gingivalis in 46.7% and 53.3%, respectively.

DISCUSSION
Future diagnosis should not be restricted to distinguishing individuals at risk of peri-implant disease. Such individuals should be identified by the employment of microbiologic methods and knowledge of the multifactorial nature of the host response to the action of microorganisms.

CONCLUSIONS
The longer the implants were in the oral cavity, the higher the occurrence of A. actinomycetemcomitans, P. gingivalis, and P. intermedia in the peri-implant sulci of completely edentulous patients rehabilitated with mandibular implant-supported fixed prostheses was, without any clinical or radiographic evidence indicating peri-implant disease in the studied period.


Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a mechanical insult to the brain caused by external forces and associated with inflammation and oxidative stress. The patients may show different profiles of neurological recovery and a combination of oxidative damage and inflammatory processes can affect their courses. It is known that an overexpression of cytokines can be seen in peripheral blood in the early hours/days after the injury, but little is known about the weeks and months encompassing the post-acute and chronic phases. In addition, no information is available about the antioxidant responses mediated by the major enzymes that regulate reactive oxygen species levels: superoxide dismutase, catalase, peroxidases, and GSH-related enzymes. This study investigates the 6-month trends of inflammatory markers and antioxidant responses in 22 severe TBI patients with prolonged disorders of consciousness, consecutively recruited in a dedicated neurorehabilitation facility. Patients with a high degree of neurological impairment often show an uncertain outcome. In addition, the profiles of plasma activities were related to the neurological recovery after 12 months. Venous peripheral blood samples were taken blindly as soon as clinical signs and laboratory markers confirmed the absence of infections, 3 and 6 months later. The clinical and neuropsychological assessment continued up to 12 months. Nineteen patients completed the follow-up. In the chronic phase, persistent high plasma levels of cytokines can interfere with cognitive functioning and higher post-acute levels of cytokines [interferon (IFN)-γ, tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α, IL1b, IL6] are associated with poorer cognitive recoveries 12 months later. Moreover, higher IFN-γ, higher TNF-α, and lower glutathione peroxidase activity are associated with greater disability. The results add evidence of persistent inflammatory response, provide information about long-term imbalance of antioxidant activity, and suggest that the over-production of cytokines and the alteration of the redox homeostasis in the post-acute phase might adversely affect the neurological and functional recovery. Inflammatory and antioxidant activity markers might offer a feasible way to highlight some of the processes opposing recovery after a severe TBI.


The effects of chronic hypersomatotropism on pancreatic islet function were studied in rats bearing the growth hormone secreting tumor MtTW15. These rats did not become hyperglycemic and minimally hyperinsulinemic in the fed state following prolonged massive elevations of serum growth hormone. Islets from tumor-bearing rats were grossly larger and beta cells more granulated than in control rats by light microscopy. Electron microscopy confirmed the increase in cell cytoplasm and increased number of beta granules per cell. Isolated islet preparations from tumor-bearing rats contained four times the insulin found in control rats. Fed control and tumor-bearing rats had comparable serum glucose and immunoreactive insulin concentrations after glucose intragastrically and tolbutamide intravenously. After a forty-eight-hour fast the tumor-bearing rats had higher serum immunoreactive insulin than controls and their insulin levels were higher after glucose and tolbutamide than controls. Some of the tumor-bearing rats became hypoglycemic during the forty-eight-hour fast. The increased stored insulin in the tumor-bearing rats was mobilized by a combination of the individually potent insulinogenie stimuli theophylline and glucagon.


BACKGROUND
Pre-eclampsia contributes significantly to both maternal and perinatal morbidities and mortalities. One of the identified pathophysiology of pre-eclampsia is deranged serum lipid profile of which some components have been found to be elevated early in pregnancy in women destined to develop pre-eclampsia.

OBJECTIVE
To compare the serum fasting lipid profiles of pre-eclamptic primigravidas with normal primigravidas at week 20, 28 ad 34.

METHODS
We conducted a nested case-control study at Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife between November 2016 and April 2018. A cohort of 290 primigravidas was recruited at week 20 and followed up until delivery. Serum fasting lipid profiles were quantified at weeks 20, 28 and 34 for all participants. Twenty four women that developed pre-eclampsia were compared with 48 women that had normal pregnancy. Data were analysed with SPSS version 22. We used a linear mixed-effect regression model with random intercept and slope. Significance was established using p<0.05.

RESULTS
Serum lipid profiles showed average weekly increase in both groups. Primigravidas that developed pre-eclampsia had a weekly increase of 0.2(SE0.14) mmol/l in serum total cholesterol more than those with normal pregnancies.(p<0.001) Serum low density lipoprotein also showed a differential weekly increase of 0.1(SE0.05)mmol/l in primigravidas that developed pre-eclampsia over primigravidas with normal pregnancies.(p<0.001).

CONCLUSION
The average weekly increase in serum total cholesterol and low density lipoprotein were higher significantly in primigravidas that developed pre-eclampsia when compared to the control group. These findings depicted an association between serum lipid profile and pre-eclampsia among the primigravidas..


This study assessed the effect of heavy metals introduced into the soils through human activities which can bio-accumulate in plants and passed to man via the food chain that can pose health risk. Topsoil samples were collected from selected anthropogenic and control sites (dumpsites, mechanical workshops, abattoirs, fuel filling stations and hospital incinerators) in Abeokuta, Nigeria at the depths 0-5cm, 5-10cm and 10-15cm. Physicochemical parameters such as pH, moisture content, bulk density, organic matter, organic carbon, particle size distribution and Mn, Zn, Pb, and Cd were analyzed in soils using standard methods. Soil pH values ranged from 5.17 - 8.28, moisture content ranged from 3.50 - 28.55 %, bulk density ranged from 0.78 - 2.29 gcm -3 , organic matter ranged from 0.09 - 16.01 %, organic carbon ranged from 0.02 % - 8.48 %. Mean concentrations of heavy metals (mgkg -1 ) ranged from 182.69 ± 61.95 - 697.06 ± 85.62; 122.69 ± 30.04 - 632.94 ± 508.79; 19.38 ± 6.72 - 158.50 ± 71.41; 0.25 ± 0.00 - 1.63 ± 1.38 for Mn, Zn, Pb and Cd respectively. Distribution pattern of heavy metals in petrol stations, abattoirs, mechanic workshops and hospital incinerator sites were Mn > Zn > Pb > Cd, while for dumpsites Zn > Mn > Pb > Cd. Pollution index indicated that soil qualities varied between slightly contaminated to severely polluted status. This showed that the heavy metal contamination of the soils does not call for any alarm; proactive measures must be taken to minimize accumulation of these metals. Keywords: Heavy metals, dumpsites, pollution, physicochemical parameters,  abattoirs and soils


The AAI is a powerful tool for assessing the potential of
ageing societies in European countries and enabling to assess
the position of their older adults. It co-creates the current
form of ageing and the concept of active ageing. The goal of
active ageing is to improve older adults´ quality of life,
therefore this chapter analyses the relation between activity
and quality of life. The analytical part focuses on testing the
connection between the AAI, its indicators and subjective
well-being, both at a general level and at the level of
individual European countries. The results of correlation
coefficients and principal component analysis (PCA) showed a
significant correlation but also some problematic indicators in
contribution to the quality of life. Particularly employment
has been identified as the exception among other dimensions
having a significant position in the index, but the results
cast doubts on its relationship with quality of life. Putting
significance on employment leads to overestimation of the
position of countries which despite considerable employment
rate of older adults are behind other countries in other
indicators. An ill-considered interpretation of the AAI could
contribute to a reduced concept of active ageing leading to a
number of unintended consequences.


Volcanic activity produces a broad spectrum of seismic and acoustic signals whose characteristics provide important clues on the underlying magmatic processes. Networks and arrays of seismic and acoustic sensors are the backbone of most modern volcano monitoring programs. Investigation of the signals gathered by these instruments requires efficient workflows and specialist software. The high sampling rates, typically 50 Hz or greater, at which seismic and acoustic waveforms are recorded by multistation networks and dense arrays leads to the rapid accumulation of large volumes of data, making the implementation of efficient data analysis workflows for volcano surveillance a challenging task. Here, we present an open-source MATLAB graphical user interface, MISARA (Matlab Interface for Seismo-Acoustic aRray Analysis), designed to provide a user-friendly workflow for the analysis of seismoacoustic data in volcanic environments. MISARA includes efficient algorithm implementations of well-established techniques for seismic and acoustic data analysis. It is designed to support visualization, characterization, detection, and location of volcano seismoacoustic signals. Its intuitive, modular, structure facilitates rapid, semiautomated, inspection of data and results, thus reducing user effort. MISARA was tested using seismoacoustic data recorded at Etna Volcano (Italy) in 2010, 2011, and 2019, and is intended for use in education and research, and to support routine data analysis at volcano observatories.


Many worker in radiation field are expose to different doses of ionization rays . one of this ray is X-ray . The instruments that produce X-ray are available in hospitals. In this project we measure exposure dose due to X-ray instrument in al-sader medical city in Al najaf city . Our measurements were done to determine the exposure dose by using RAD-CHECKTM PLUS equipment for different time intervals and different locations in the unit . The obtained results show the values of exposure dose for workers in X-ray unit and patients are within the permitted limits .


Objective: Primary tumors of the facial nerve are rare, representing 1% of all intrapetrous lesions. We analyzed the management and surgical outcomes of 16 patients with multisegment facial neuromas treated at our institution during a 16-year period. Study Design: A retrospective chart review. Setting: Tertiary referral center. Patients: All patients included in the study had surgical management of their facial neuroma. There were 9 women and 7 men. The mean age was 46 years, with a mean follow-up period of 3 years. Intervention: Surgical excision (n = 15) or decompression (n = 1) of facial neuroma. Main Outcome Measures: Tumor location, presenting symptoms, hearing outcomes, and facial function. Results: Thirteen (81%) patients had facial paresis as their presenting symptom. Unilateral hearing loss was present in 9 (56%) patients. Most tumors (n = 15) involved multiple segments of the facial nerve and ranged in size from 1.5 to 7 cm. Fifteen (94%) patients had the tumor completely excised, and 1 (6%) patient underwent needle decompression of the cystic component of the tumor. The geniculate ganglion was the most commonly involved (11 patients, 69%) segment of the nerve, followed by the labyrinthine and tympanic segments. Despite multiple types of reconstructive options used, the best recovery of facial function was a House-Brackmann Grade III in 12 patients. Conclusion: Treatment of facial neuromas depends on the extent of tumor, degree of facial paresis, and hearing function. We advocate complete resection of tumor when facial palsy exists. Patients with normal facial function and hearing may be advised on a more conservative treatment option such as radiologic observation, drainage of any cystic component of the tumor for histologic diagnosis, and/or bony decompression of the tumor.


3337 Analysis of the effects of targeted drugs is usually made on cells in vitro or in vivo after they have been fixed or extracted under various conditions. Considerably greater information on the mechanism of specific drug targeting could be obtained in studies where analysis is made on living cells in vitro and in vivo . Toward this goal, we have labeled cancer cells with the green fluorescent protein (GFP) linked to histone H2B in the nucleus and with red fluorescent protein (RFP) on a retrovirus in the cytoplasm. Both cytoplasmic and nuclear dynamics can be visualized in these cells in the living state due to the differential labeling of nucleus and cytoplasm with fluorescent proteins. Human PC-3 prostate cancer cells were labeled with GFP in the nucleus and RFP in the cytoplasm as described above. These cells were used as a model system to determine the specific nuclear-cytoplasmic effects of various agents. When the dual-labeled PC-3 cells were treated with Taxol, the GFP-labeled nucleus was found to undergo dramatic early changes. The nucleoplasm appeared to attach to the nuclear membrane, resulting in the nucleus assuming a ring-like structure. This event preceded the cells entering apoptosis. In contrast to the effect of Taxol, which inhibits tubulin depolymerization, vinblastin, which inhibits tubulin polymerization, resulted in the contraction of the GFP-labeled nuclei. High dose thymidine also resulted in the nucleus assuming ring-like structures prior to entering apoptosis. The tumor cells labeled with GFP in the nucleus and RFP in the cytoplasm can also be readily analyzed in the living state for their cell cycle position as shown by the nuclear-cytoplasmic ratio. Therefore, cell cycle arrest by specific agents can be readily visualized in living dual-color cells. The various stages of apoptosis are also readily visualized in the dual-color cells. These observations can be made in vivo as well as in vitro . Thus, the cells labeled with GFP in the nucleus and RFP in the cytoplasm can be highly useful to establish the mechanism of drug targeting in the living state.


Honore Daumier (1808-1879) is perhaps best known for his political and social caricatures, precise and witty observations of life in nineteenth-century France. This authoritative new study provides a long-overdue assessment of his entire oeuvre, bringing together his paintings, sculptures, watercolours, drawings and lithographs, all of which were greatly admired in his lifetime. Later feted by Van Gogh and Picasso, Daumiers art continues to be appreciated by such contemporary artists as Paula Rego and Peter Doig. Lavishly illustrated with works from throughout Daumiers career, including the satirical lithographs that made his name, the book focuses on the innovative paintings and drawings that formed his more private output. These lesser-known works reveal the artists ambitious range of subject-matter, from Cervantess Don Quixote to the complete spectrum of Parisian street society, and confirm Daumiers unique place in nineteenth-century French art.


This paper presents a 2.5 V/5 V mixed-voltage CMOS I/O buffer that does not need a CMOS technology with a dual-oxide option and complex bias circuits. The proposed mixed-voltage I/O buffer with simpler circuit structure can overcome the problems of leakage current and gate-oxide reliability, which occurring in the conventional CMOS I/O buffer. In this work, the new proposed design has been realized in a 0.25 /spl mu/m CMOS process, but it can be easily scaled toward 0.18 /spl mu/m or 0.15 /spl mu/m processes to serve a 1.8 V/3.3 V mixed-voltage I/O interface.


This note is an appendix to a preprint by E. Hellmann. We give a complete classification of simple objects of the category of vector spaces D over K = Fpbar((u)) equipped with an endomorphism phi whose image generates D and that are semi-linear with respect to the ring morphism sending u to u^b (b > 1 is an integer) and acting on elements of k through a fixed automorphism. Some of these phi-modules are involved in the classification of finite flat group schemes over ring of integers of p-adic fields.


In this beautiful and inspiring guide Kate Rew, founder of the Outdoor Swimming Society, takes the reader on a wild journey across Britain as she plunges into rivers, lakes, lidos and seas. Together with documentary photographer Dominick Tyler she tells the stories of over 100 remarkable swims. Each is a mini-adventure, accommodating humour, glee, beauty, discomfort and hard fact as she and a band of fellow swimmers travel the country with enough common sense to avoid drowning and enough recklessness to dive in. As well as tales for armchair swimmers, this book contains everything needed for would-be adventurers to make their own journeys, with over 300 referenced swim spots. There's something for everyone - waterfalls, natural jacuzzis, sea caves and mellow rivers - suiting every kind of swimmer from a five-year-old in water-wings to an epic adventurer, wild camper, hiker, lazy-hazy summer picnicker or cold-water connoisseur.Containing swim ratings, useful contacts and a fully comprehensive map, "Wild Swim" is the definitive guide to outdoor swimming in Britain from the Outer Hebrides to the Isles of Scilly and everywhere in between.


The analogs based on elliptic curve over finite fields of public-key crypto systems are algorithms that converts input data to an unrecognizable encryption and converts the unrecognizable data back into its original decryption form. The security of the elliptic curve public-key cryptosystem is based on the difficulty of the discrete logarithm problem on elliptic curve, especially over GF(2n), n isin Z+ . This paper demonstrates to find the discrete logarithm on elliptic curve, and is a breakthrough in basic biological operations using a molecular computer. In order to achieve this, we propose three DNA-based algorithms for parallel adder, parallel multiplier, and parallel getting inverse over GF(2n). The biological operation time of these algorithms are all polynomial with respect to n. This work indicates that the cryptosystems using public-key are perhaps insecure and also presents clear evidence of the ability of molecular computing to perform complicated mathematical operations.


A 50-kV laser-triggered spark gap operated at repetition rates to 50 pps is described. Jitter of delay time as low as ± 0.1 ns was demonstrated. Dependence of delay and jitter was investigated as a function of gas mixture, pressure, laser power, and electrode material. Subnanosecond jitter was obtained with as little as 0.17 mJ in a 6-ns giant pulse from a Nd+3in a YAG laser. The dielectric gases used included a high proportion of Ar mixed with N 2 or SF 6 .


Energy is one of the major drivers for the economic development of any country. In order to reduce energy consumptions for sustainable development, continuous energy audit of industrial machines become necessary. Energy audit is one of the most comprehensive methods in achieving energy savings in industry and thus reducing excessive energy consumption. This paper analyzes energy auditing in power system in order to identify the sources of energy waste and assess the effectiveness of the strategies for energy savings using A and T Foods and Beverages PLC as a case study. This was with a view to recommending a policy that would enhance the effectiveness of electrical energy savings in the company. A detailed energy audit is adopted for energy project implementation plan and data from the publication of the International Standard Industrial Classification of All Economic Activities (ISIC) in Nigeria for the period of (2011 -2017)were used for the analysis. The sources of energy in the company comprised of electricity from utility company and use of generating sets (fuel). The result showed that the electrical energy consumption in the companies was mainly from generating set. In addition, the total percentage of electric energy consumed from utility company was 40.95% with an average percentage of 5.85%. The total percentage of fuel consumed by the company was 659.05% with an average value of 94.15%. The results identified areas where the company used and wasted energy, and where actions for energy conservation should be implemented. The study therefore established that energy was not sufficiently utilized, and therefore suggested possible strategies for efficient energy usage for the company. Keywords: Energy Audit, Energy Saving, A and T Food and Beverages PLC, ISIC, Power System, Generating Set, Electric Utility Companies.


Many textbooks exist for the subspecialty of renal disease. Some are large volumes, extensively describing the physiological basis by which the kidney functions and how it adapts to altered pathophysiological states. In addition, many other diseased states that may affect the kidney directly or indirectly have also been extensively discussed. However, this book—The Therapeutic Aspects of Renal Diseases—is unique, in that it deals with the management of a disease state that occurs in the kidney and/or its environment. There are 22 chapters, each contributed by an expert in the field. Most of the contributors are well known for their clinical and research contributions in the field of renal physiology or kidney-related disorders. Each of the first nine chapters initially describes the pathophysiology of the disease process. In the chapters where pathophysiology is not applicable, brief introductory remarks relating to the diseased state have been made. The illustrations and


Following the recommendations of a report submitted by the Central Social Insurance Medical Council concerning the 2002 revision of the Medical Service Fee Schedule, a new inclu-sive payment system, which is based on the Diagnosis Procedure Combination (DPC) sys-tem, was introduced in 82 special functioning hospitals in Japan, effective beginning in April 2003. Since April 2004, the system has been gradually extended to general hospitals that satisfy certain prerequisites. In this paper, the new inclusive payment system is analyzed. Data pertaining to 1,225 patients, who were hospital-ized for cataract diseases and underwent lens operations from July 2004 to September 2005, are used. The lengths of hospital stay and medical payments among hospitals are com-pared. Even after eliminating the influence of patient characteristics, there are large differ-ences among hospitals in average lengths of hospital stay and DPC-based inclusive pay-ments. The highest average inclusive payment is 3.5 times as high as the lowest payment. On the other hand, there are relatively small differ-ences in non-inclusive payments based on the conventional fee-for-service system—the larg-est deviation from the average of all hospitals is approximately 10%. Thus, although payments based on the DPC account for only one-third of the total medical payments for this disease, the major differences in medical payments among hospitals are caused by differences in their DPC-based inclusive payments. The results of the study strongly suggest that revisions of the payment system in Japan are necessary for the efficient use of medical resources in the future.


This paper describes how the timely application of preventive maintenance treatments, including thin surfacings, extends the service life of asphalt pavements. Numerous books and technical papers provide descriptions of various types of thin surfacings and other preventive maintenance treatments and show their ability to extend pavement performance curves. However, there is generally a lack of practical examples of thin surfacing applications, including costs involved, the benefits and in what circumstances they should be used for best return on investment. This paper describes the treatments including costs and user benefits, indicates limitations of particular treatments, and provides practical examples of the use of thin surfacings. The benefits include road safety improvements, mainly surface texture and frictional characteristics and correcting surface irregularities.


Sperm-associated antigen 9 (SPAG9) is closely related to the growth and metastasis of advanced prostate cancer. Docetaxel (DTX) is the gold standard for chemotherapy of prostate cancer, but its side effects decrease the life quality of patients. Therefore, it is urgent to develop combination therapy to increase chemotherapy efficacy for advanced prostate cancer. Oncolytic adenovirus carrying a short hairpin RNA (shRNA) targeting SPAG9 (ZD55-shSPAG9) was applied alone or in combination with docetaxel in prostate cancer cells. Cells were analyzed by cell counting kit-8, Hocehst-33258, transwell and western blot analysis. For in vivo experiments, nude mice were loaded with prostate cancer cells. ZD55-shSPAG9 effectively silenced the expression of SPAG9 in prostate cancer cells in vitro and in vivo. The replication of ZD55-shSPAG9 in prostate cancer cells was not affected by docetaxel, but the combined use of ZD55-shSAPAG9 and docetaxel has a better inhibitory effect on tumor growth and invasion in vitro and in vivo. Our study showed that the combined use of ZD55-shSPAG9 and docetaxel may be a new approach to the treatment of advanced prostate cancer.