Batch and dynamic leaching experiments were conducted to evaluate the influence of clay mineralogy and soil organic matter (SOM) present in two highly weathered, surface and subsurface soil materials on Pb sorption and subsequent extraction using ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA) and carboxymethyl '-cyclodextrin (CMCD). Saturated soil columns were leached with an acidic Pb solution to simulate a contamination event, followed by injection of artificial groundwater (AGW) at constant velocity. Greater Pb retardation was observed within the surface soil compared to the subsurface soil material, and a significant increase in effluent turbidity was observed coincident with the Pb breakthrough in the subsurface soil material. Electrophoretic, thermo-gravimetric, and X-ray diffraction analysis of the resulting suspension suggested that the presence of strongly adsorbing Pb 2+ and excess H + increased the positive charge on amphoteric mineral surfaces and reduced the negative charge on clay minerals, which induced selective dispersion and transport of Fe oxides. In contrast, no increase in turbidity was observed for the surface soil following Pb injection. While only 30% of adsorbed Pb was mobilized from contaminated subsurface soil material, less than 10% of adsorbed Pb was extracted from surface soil when Pb-contaminated soil columns were flushed with AGW. Following leaching with AGW, extraction solutions containing either 0.37 g L -1 (1 mM) EDTA or 10 g L -1 CMCD were applied to extract the residual bound Pb. Nearly 100% of residual Pb was extracted from the surface soil by EDTA as compared to about 56% removal by CMCD under similar conditions. About 80% of residual Pb was removed by EDTA from the Pbcontaminated subsurface material, but less than 2% of residual Pb was extracted by CMCD under similar conditions.


Between 1816 and 1859, some European travellers visited the Mucuri River Valley, part of the Brazilian territory where the Atlantic Forest once flourished. From the travellers' accounts, we discuss the conditions of exploration, and some aspects of the historical changes that took place in that territory. Their reports comprise a rich documentation for the debate that is still alive on varied interactions among human societies and transformations of the natural environ ment. The tropical forests remain a challenge to be faced.


In this paper, we present a new X-filling technique to reduce the shift and capture transitions occurred during scan based test application. The unspecified bits in the test cubes are filled with the logic value of 1's or 0's using the proposed don't care filling technique, namely CSP - filling in such a way that the both average power and peak power in test applications are reduced. In our approach, the capture transition is made to be within the peak-power limit of the circuit under test while reducing the average power in shift-in phase of test applications. The experimental results obtained from ISCAS'89 benchmark circuits show that, the CSP - filling technique provides a significant reduction in both shift and capture transitions in test mode.


This article is an integral part of a doctoral study conducted on the articulations between transdisciplinary elements and teaching practices related to teaching statistics in the final years of elementary school. We sought to describe and analyze the possible approximations between Statistical Education and transdisciplinary studies, understanding their potentialities in the practices mobilized by teachers. Emerged analyzes from the teaching conceptions that were evidenced in the episodic interview, answered by two graduated participants in Mathematics from the city of Canela / RS. We apply the data analysis method called Discursive Textual Analysis (ATD), being a qualitative and comprehensive approach. The conclusions indicate that there are links between transdisciplinary indicators and teaching practices that permeate the professional dimension and achieve a transdisciplinary attitude that can occur through transcendence and learning to learn.


In recent decades, emerging fungal infections have changed the clinical mycology scenario as a consequence of the advances in medical diagnostics and therapeutic procedures, long hospitalization times, and the growing number of individuals with debilitating chronic diseases and impaired immune systems. This report presents a 19 months old Brazilian female patient who developed a severe fungal sepsis by an uncommon yeast. She was admitted at the intensive care unit with severe pneumonia, bronchopulmonary dysplasia, and weight-for-age z score of less than −2. She remained more than 30 days in the intensive care unit where she had a femoral venous catheter placement, enteral nutrition, broad-spectrum antibiotic therapy, and prophylaxis with fluconazole. Moreover, pericardiocentesis was performed due to cardiac tamponade. She had a previous history of prematurity, cardiac surgery due to patent ductus arteriosus, and a long period of hospital stay. Despite the antifungal prophylaxis, two yeast isolates were recovered from blood and then identified by classical mycological methods and internal transcribed spacer (ITS) sequencing as Wickerhamomyces anomalus. Both isolates exhibited susceptibility to amphotericin B, ketoconazole, itraconazole, voriconazole, and fluconazole. Her clinical state worsened, presenting anasarca, epistaxis, and hemorrhagic suffusions in the mouth, sclera, oliguria, and bradycardia. Two days after the first positive culture, she presented a gradual reduction of the white blood cells count, with severe leukopenia and neutropenia. She died five days after.


This chapter discusses consideration as a requirement for an agreement to be treated as a legally binding contract. Consideration is the price one party pays for the other party's promise or performance. The doctrine of consideration provides, in essence, that a price of some sort must be paid if an agreement is to be enforceable as a contract. This chapter begins with an analysis of the first requirement imposed by the doctrine of consideration: that the act, forbearance, promise, or commodity given in exchange for the promise should be something of value. It then examines the three different conceptual approaches used in the legal understanding of value based on the idea of economic value, benefit and detriment, and practical benefit. It also describes the ingredients of exchange and includes case in depth boxes that cover the most influential and important cases pertaining to consideration.


Sustainably and environment-friendly manufactured semiconductors are at-tractive candidates for next generation electronic and optoelectronic appli-cations ranging from memory storage and computation, to power manage-ment and energy generation. In this regard, organic semiconductors, i.e., semiconductors based on conjugated carbon-based molecules and polymers derived from earth abundant elements, are the subject of intense basic re-search and technological development efforts. Understanding the funda-mental processes governing these low-mobility and disordered semiconduct-ing materials is therefore key to establish next generation applications based upon flexible and solution-processible organic semiconductors as global com-mercial technologies.The work presented in this thesis focuses on the investigation of charge generation and recombination processes on thin film optoelectronic devices based upon organic semiconductors. A suite of experimental techniques, im-proved measurement setups, and expanded approaches are presented, and form the basis of comprehensive studies on state-of-the-art, high-efficiency organic photovoltaic systems. Specifically, an external quantum efficiency measurement technique with unprecedented dynamic range will be detailed. Using this enhanced apparatus, an approach allowing one to accurately de-termine charge generation quantum yields is introduced. After this, an extended technique to probe photogenerated charge carrier densities is out-lined and applied to thin-film solar cells. Having emphasized the importance of studying charge generation, a combined theoretical and experimental ex-ploration of the light intensity dependence of photocurrent and charge col-lection efficiency under the influence of various loss mechanisms is described. These insights provide the basis of a comprehensive study on organic so-lar cells, where recombination caused by localized trap states is found to be universally present under operational conditions limiting photocurrent and power-conversion efficiency. Overall, the work presented in this thesis expands on existing techniques and approaches, and yields important new understanding as to the device physics of thin-film, optoelectronic applica-tions.


Raw testosterone propionate material was tested for preparation of the "Testosterone Propionate Reference Standard (Control 881)". Analytical data obtained were as follows: loss on drying, 0.1%; melting point, 120.6 degrees C; optical rotation [alpha]20D = + 85.4 degrees; ultraviolet spectrum, lambdamax = 241 nm and specific absorbance E 1cm1% (241 nm) = 483; infrared spectrum, the same as that of the NIHS Testosterone Propionate Reference Standard; thin-layer chromatography, no impurities were detected; high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), one impurity was detected; assay result, 100.6% by UV spectrophotometry. Based on the above findings, the raw material was authorized as the Testosterone Propionate Reference Standard (Control 881) of the National Institute of Health Sciences.


Objective: To explore the relationship of postnatal catch-up growth and insulin sensitivity. Methods: Fasting glucose, insulin and HOMA value in 44 small for gestational age (SGA) infants and 74 appropriate for gestational age (AGA) infants at age 3 month were studied by a prospective study, and the relations with catch up growth were analyzed in 44 SGA infants. Results: SGA infants had significantly higher fasting insulin concentration and HOMA value than did AGA infants. Adjustment for gestation, there was a negative association between velocity of catch-up growth and insulin concentration and HOMA value in SGA infants (P < 0. 05). 12 non-catch-up growth in weight and length infants had significantly higher fasting insulin concentration and HOMA value than did they on the third day after birth in SGA group respectively [ insulin : (21. 92 ±14. 25) mU /L vs (11. 08 ±9. 59) mU /L P < 0. 05 ; HOMA : (4. 15 ±2. 96) vs (1. 86 ±1. 71), P < 0. 05 ]. Conclusions: Catch-up growth is closely related with insulin sensitivity in early postnatal life, and poor growth might result in worse insulin sensitivity in SGA infant s during that time.


Purpose: The aim of this research was to study the documents produced in the field of Library and Information Science (LIS) by Islamic Countries which are members of the Organization of the Islamic Conference, during 1994-2009. Design/ Methodology/Approach: By applying the method of citation analysis, the best authors and publications in the field of LIS were identified and a historiographic map of the scientific outputs of Islamic countries was depicted. Findings: The average annual growth rate of publications in Islamic countries during the years studied is calculated to be 13.78%. Furthermore, the annual growth of publications in each Islamic country is calculated using the exponential regression method; results show that according to R2 which shows the annual growth rate of the countries' scientific outputs, the growth of Iran, Bangladesh, Turkey, UAE, Pakistan and Egypt is statistically significant during the 16 years studied (p<0.05). During this 16-year period, the highest rates of growth compared with other countries belong to Iran (33%), Bangladesh (28%) and Turkey (17%). The clusters formed on the historiographic map, which are on the basis of "LCS" and "GCS", are depicted along with the best publications in this field. Conclusion: With respect to the explosive growth of information, the growth of scientific outputs of the Islamic countries in the Web of Science database does not seem to be all it could be. Authorities of these countries are required to make a serious attempt in producing scientific publications and indexing them in valid international databases.


Abstract It has been suggested that mosquito larvae and pupae dive to avoid predators. We tested this predator-avoidance hypothesis by using immature Anopheles gambiae Giles (Diptera: Culicidae) and the wolf spider Pardosa messingerae (Stand) (Araneae: Lycosidae). Because previous studies have suggested that wolf spiders are poor predators of immature mosquitoes, we first examined the predatory ability of the wolf spider and found that the spider was effective at capturing all stages of larvae and pupae. The mortality from experimental cups containing deep water increased with the age of mosquitoes, with the exception of pupae. In contrast, this trend was not observed in shallow water. In particular, mortality was significantly lower in deep water during the second instar. During the third instar, the opposite trend was observed. When the effect of cannibalism was excluded by subtracting the number of missing mosquitoes for the treatment without spiders from those with spiders, the cannibalism corrected mortality was significantly lower in deep water during the second instar. The duration of diving by larvae and pupae decreased with age. With the exception of first instar, diving frequency also decreased with age. We postulate that this diving behavior allows An. gambiae to escape predation by wolf spiders, which supports the predator-avoidance hypothesis. This study indicates some important implications for vector control.


Seaweeds have a wide ecophysiological and phylogenetic diversity with species expressing different Rubisco forms that frequently coexist with biophysical CO2 concentrating mechanisms (CCMs), an adaptation that overcomes the low CO2 availability and gas diffusion in seawater. Here, we assess the possible coevolution between the Rubisco catalysis and the type and effectiveness of CCMs present in six upper subtidal macroalgal species belonging to the three phylogenetic groups of seaweeds. A wide diversity in the Rubisco kinetic traits was found across the analysed species, although the specificity factor was the only parameter explained by the expressed Rubisco form. Differences in the catalytic trade-offs were found between Rubisco forms, indicating that ID Rubiscos could be better adapted to the intracellular O2 /CO2 ratio found in marine organisms during steady-state photosynthesis. The biophysical components of the CCMs also differed among macroalgal species, resulting in different effectiveness to concentrate CO2 around Rubisco active sites. Interestingly, an inverse relationship was found between the effectiveness of CCMs and the in vitro Rubisco carboxylation efficiency, which possibly led to a similar carboxylation potential across the analysed macroalgal species. Our results demonstrate a coevolution between Rubisco kinetics and CCMs across phylogenetically distant marine macroalgal species sharing the same environment.


Polycystic Ovary syndrome is a disorder associated with numerous clinical, endocrine and metabolic complications, such as menstrual dysfunction, hyperandrogenism and insulin resistance. The relationship between hyperandrogenism and insulin resistance is a highly studied aspect of PCOS, and, a current target for treatment. High levels of testosterone interfere with the insulin receptor and its substrates to compromise a cell's ability to translocate GLUT4 to the cell membrane to allow for the entry of glucose. To investigate the potential of the emerging drug simvastatin, cultured C2C-12 myoblast cells were treated with the drug for 24 hours followed by insulin stimulation for 2 hours. Phosphorylation ratios of IRS-1(Ser612) to total IRS-1 along with GLUT4 translocation were measured to detect how the drug interacts with the insulin pathway. There was no significant difference between treatment with and without simvastatin regarding the relative level of IRS-1(Ser612) phosphorylation. Flow cytometry results measuring the translocation of GLUT4 to the plasma membrane indicate that treatment with simvastatin increased GLUT4 translocation by 7.5%, but without experimental repeats there is no way to know if these results represent a significant difference. Overall these results show that treatment with simvastatin for 24hr does not change insulin signaling or GLUT-4 translocation in a mouse muscle cell line.


Ever since the first public seat of learning was founded in antique Alexandria – famed for Euclid, Archimedes and Herophilos – inventors and innovators of diverse orientations have banded together at particular places around the globe. Today, the most prominent of them is the San Francisco Bay area. What make creative people cluster in those places? Numerous studies have shown that they are attracted primarily, not by any material benefits, but by the ambience of the place, where creativity has become a way of life, where inspiration is derived from a heterogeneous environment. In conclusion, the author draws up a psychological portrait of the creative class and considers its development prospects.


Dynamic finite-element simulations have been carried out to study the effects of cell design, material choice and drug eluting coating on the mechanical behaviour of stents during deployment. Four representative stent designs have been considered, i.e., Palmaz-Schatz, Cypher, Xience and Endeavor. The former two are made of stainless steel while the latter two made of Co-Cr alloy. Geometric model for each design was created using ProEngineer software, and then imported into Abaqus for simulation of the full process of stent deployment within a diseased artery. In all cases, the delivery system was based on the dynamic expansion of a polyurethane balloon under applied internal pressure. Results showed that the expansion is mainly governed by the design, in particular open-cell design (e.g. Endeavor) tends to have greater expansion than closed-cell design (e.g. Cypher). Dogboning effect was strong for slotted tube design (e.g. Palmaz-Schatz) but reduced significantly for sinusoidal design (e.g. Cypher). Under the same pressure, the maximum von Mises stress in the stent was higher for the open-cell designs and located mostly at the inner corners of each cell. For given deformation, stents made of Co-Cr alloys tend to experience higher stress level than those made of stainless steels, mainly due to the difference in material properties. For artery-plaque system, the maximum stress occurred on the stenosis and dogboning led to stress concentration at the ends of the plaque. The drug eluting coating affected the stent expansion by reducing the recoiling phenomenon considerably, but also raised the stress level on the stent due to property mismatch.


Activities for alternative sources in order to prevent irreversible or long standing destructions resulting from the use of chemicals in all areas has increased. These kind of researches have been done and made progress in agriculture and animal husbandry. Aquaculture has not been far from this area, as alternative to chemical use; a lot of materials such as probiotics, bacteria compounds, animal extracts and polysaccharides have been used in studies. In addition, studies like the use of various spices and medicinal plants in aquaculture has gained importance today. Probiotics that will be used as a feed additive was need to increase body weight and the utilization rate of feed, to prevent gastrointestinal disorders caused by stress and pathogenic microorganisms, to reduce mortality, to improve water quality when the fish is infused into water, to settle fish on the skin mucus and defense it against pathogenic microorganisms, also to preserve immune-system from pathogens. On the other hand, it has been demostrated that the use of enzymes and plant extracts in food has increased the request for body weight and intake in fish. In this study, it has been analysed some researches about enyzmes, herbal feed additives and probiotics used as an additive


Two cases of skin lesions similar to those caused by Leishmania parasites have been reported from Martinique. Parasites isolated from these lesions were unlike Leishmania reference strains by isoenzyme analysis and electron microscopy and were assumed to be monoxenous trypanosomatids which normally only infect invertebrates. Both strains have now been retyped by isoenzyme analysis and found to be identical to each other and distantly related to all other Leishmania species. The sequence of the 18S ribosomal RNA gene and partial sequences of the DNA polymerase alpha and RNA polymerase II largest subunit genes were obtained. These sequences indicated that the Martinique parasites clustered with L. enriettii and were basal to all other euleishmania. However, support for both the position basal to all euleishmania and the clustering with L. enriettii was low. The Martinique parasites may cluster with L. (Leishmania) or L. (Viannia) or form a novel clade within the euleishmania either with or without L. enriettii.


Most published techniques for mapping two-dimensional texture patterns onto three-dimensional curved surfaces assume that either the texture pattern has been predistorted to compensate for the distortion of the mapping or the curved surfaces are represented parametrically. We address the problem of mapping undistorted planar textures onto arbitrarily represented surfaces. Our mapping technique is done in two parts. First the texture pattern is embedded in 3-space on an intermediate surface. Then the pattern is projected onto the target surface in a way that depends only on the geometry of the target object (not on its parameterization). Both steps have relatively low distortion, so the original texture need not be predistorted. We also discuss interactive techniques that make two-part mapping practical.


Effect of rock phosphate (RP) combined with cattle manure (CM) on plant growth of soybean was studied. As basal fertilizer application, RP at different levels (0, 25, 50, 75 and 100 kg/ha) along with 10 tons/ha CM (T2-T6) were applied and also recommended chemical fertilizer (T1 as a control). The results revealed that seed-pod ratio ranged from 0.68 to 0.74 at the maturity stage (12 weeks) and the highest ratio (0.74) was reported in RP (50 kg/ha) with CM (T4) and lowest value (0.68) was observed when CM solely applied. Further, the plants grown in inorganic fertilizer had a high root-shoot ratio (1:17) while comparatively lower ratios (1:12 to 1:15) were noted in plants grown with RP (0-100 kg/ha) and CM. Application of CM alone or in combination with RP at the optimal level could improve root and shoot growth for better yield of the soybean with less environmental pollution.


Objectives The present study aims to reveal the systemic effects of submucosal injection of plasma-rich platelets (PRP) on blood inflammatory markers which was used in an attempt to reduce the retraction time of the upper canine following extraction of upper maxillary premolars for patients with bimaxillary protrusion. Hypothesis No change on comparing the values of blood inflammatory markers before and after submucosal injection of PRP. Methods Eighteen female patients with bimaxillary protusion were selected from patients seeking orthodontic treatment from the College of Dentistry/University of Sulaimai, whose maxillary and mandibular first premolars were decided to be extracted after proper diagnosis. Thirty-three blood markers (twenty hematological and thirteen biochemical markers) were estimated before orthodontic bracketing, 24 hours and 7 days following submucosal injection of PRP (5 cc) to reveal the systematic effect of PRP on blood inflammatory markers that were used in an attempt to reduce the retraction time of the upper canine following extraction of upper maxillary premolars for patients with bimaxillary protrusion. Results The results indicate nonsignificant differences in the values of all blood markers except for gamma GT (GGT), PDWa, serum albumin, serum total protein, and total calcium. Gamma level significantly increased for both test intervals. On the other hand, there was a significant drop in the value of PDWa while for alkaline phosphatase, there was a drop within the first 24 hr of PRP injection while after 7 days the value was significantly increased. On the other hand, there was a drop in the level of serum albumin, while there was an increase in the serum total protein and total calcium. Conclusion Submucosal injection of PRP could lead to systematic alteration of blood parameters including ALK phosphatase, gamma GT, serum albumin, and serum total protein, which may be related to liver function in addition to increase in the level of PDWa and serum calcium. We present evidence that PRP contains and may trigger systemic effect. Thus, further investigation is recommended to follow up the patient for a longer period of time and on a larger sample. This trial is registered with U1111-1221-8829 by Sri Lanka Clinical Trial Registry, SLCTR/2018/040, and No. 64 on 6th August 2018 at the local clinical studies database, College of Dentistry.


This paper is a part of work on the thesis entitled "The Buddhist Way of Sustainable Food Safety through Right Livelihood". The Buddhist way of sustainable food safety through Right Livelihood for Thai society is the system for physical and mental food safety. The food manufacturer, consumer and state personnel do their duty with Right Livelihood righteously and non-violently for their own and social benefits. The management of food safety is based on the following principles : (1) Dhamma leading Do's : the possession of right knowledge about food safety, natural way, duties and operational methods. (2) Do's in Dhamma : every step of operation is within Right Livelihood and the good friendship network. (3) Do's with Dhamma : all sectors are supportive and co-operate with compassion, discipline, sharing and persistence. To do one's duty with Right Livelihood, which is essential for Thai society, is to do it without meat and poison trade. The agriculture,  production and consumption of vegetarian and organic food, which is an important way forwarding to food safety, then, should be promoted


This research is based on the low interest in student learning towards teaching and learning activities through online. Because there is a limited knowledge of students who are not sensitive to technology and information, some students complain because of the difficulty in accessing this online learning. Even so, there are several learning applications that are free, but because of the low interest in students learning about learning applications and because of a lack of understanding of how to use them, here the researchers conducted student observations of online learning via WhatsApp. The purpose of this study was to determine how much influence the increase in online learning via WhatsApp on student interest in learning. This research is a collaborative classroom action research between the researcher, the teacher as the subject giving action and the students as the recipient of the action. This research was conducted at MA Hasannah in class X MIPA, with 13 students. The data collection method used by researchers is in the form of filling out a questionnaire using google form, while the research instrument is the questions that are presented on the questionnaire filling sheet on the google form. In this study it can be concluded that there is low student interest in online learning so that it affects student learning outcomes, so the solution is to use the WhatsApp application in online learning.


A MASH digital delta-sigma modulator (DDSM) is analyzed mathematically. It incorporates first-order error feedback modulators (EFM) which include prime modulus quantizers to guarantee a minimum sequence length M. The purpose of this analysis is to calculate the exact sequence length of the aforementioned MASH DDSM. We show that the sequence length for an lth-order member of this modulator family M is for all constant inputs, and for all initial conditions, where M is the sequence length of the constituent first-order prime modulus quantizer EFMs.


Significance Multiple myeloma (MM) and triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) are dependent on 26S proteasome for malignancy. We have previously shown that the proteasome-regulating kinase DYRK2 is a viable target for both MM and TNBC. Here we identified a specific DYRK2 inhibitor, LDN192960, which alleviates both MM and TNBC progression via mechanisms including partial inhibition of proteasome activity. At this time we report a single drug target for 2 diverse cancers and highlight the importance of identifying proteasome regulators. Dependence on the 26S proteasome is an Achilles' heel for triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) and multiple myeloma (MM). The therapeutic proteasome inhibitor, bortezomib, successfully targets MM but often leads to drug-resistant disease relapse and fails in breast cancer. Here we show that a 26S proteasome-regulating kinase, DYRK2, is a therapeutic target for both MM and TNBC. Genome editing or small-molecule mediated inhibition of DYRK2 significantly reduces 26S proteasome activity, bypasses bortezomib resistance, and dramatically delays in vivo tumor growth in MM and TNBC thereby promoting survival. We further characterized the ability of LDN192960, a potent and selective DYRK2-inhibitor, to alleviate tumor burden in vivo. The drug docks into the active site of DYRK2 and partially inhibits all 3 core peptidase activities of the proteasome. Our results suggest that targeting 26S proteasome regulators will pave the way for therapeutic strategies in MM and TNBC.


The prevalence and the genetic diversity of grapevine virus D (GVD) isolates from rootstocks, wine and table grape varieties grown in Tunisia were studied. RT-PCR assays performed on the coat protein gene (CP) showed the presence of GVD in 31.5% of the 403 samples tested. The highest rate of infection was found in table grapes (56.5%), followed by autochthonous table grapes (24.1%), wine grapes (20.8%) and rootstocks (12.5%). Sequences and phylogenetic analyses of the partial CP genes 14 GVD isolates showed nucleotide identities that ranged from 84% to 99%. The Tunisian GVD-isolates segregated in 3 phylogenetic groups together with international isolates reported in GenBank. The present study extends our knowledge of the presence of GVD in Tunisian vines and on its genetic diversity, which is useful for developing broad-spectrum molecular diagnostics (RT-PCR) capable of detecting the different isolates infecting vines.


Abstract. Ikhsan Z. 2022. Diversity of Hymenoptera parasitoid species in rice cultivation and their correlation with environmental factors in tidal swamp land. Biodiversitas 23: 2262-2269. Environmental factors can affect biodiversity in a landscape. Differences in microclimate conditions can affect the presence of parasitic Hymenoptera in rice cultivation. This study investigated: (i) Landscape structure and microclimate on tidal swamp rice; (ii) Diversity and abundance of parasitic Hymenoptera; (iii) Correlation of parasitic Hymenoptera with their landscapes and microclimate. Determination of sample plots was made using the line transect method in rice cultivation in four tidal swampland landscapes. Data analysis was performed by calculating the Shannon-Wiener diversity index (H'), the Margalef species richness index (D), and the Pielou species evenness index. The relationship between parasitic Hymenoptera and environmental factors was analyzed using Pearson correlation analysis, principal component analysis, and canonical correlation analysis. Based on the diversity index (H'), three rice fields in complex landscapes had a higher diversity of Hymenoptera parasitoid species than simple landscapes. The presence of Parasitic Hymenoptera on tidal swamp rice can be affected by the landscape's structure and microclimates. Humidity is the microclimate variable that most influences the abundance of Parasitic Hymenoptera in the tidal swamp landscape. Good microclimate management is needed to increase the presence of Parasitic Hymenoptera in tidal swamp rice.


Food insecurity has long been classified as one of the major threats to human wellbeing. In the field of international relations, the concept of human security as highlighted by the UNDP is viewed as an alternative to the mainstream state-centric paradigms designed to tackle the food insecurity issue. In this vein and to address this issue in Southeast Asia, various initiatives and efforts have been taken at regional levels through ASEAN but due to various reasons the desired outcomes have yet to be achieved. This article examines the effectiveness of ASEAN food security framework of cooperation and elucidates the factors that encourage Malaysia to support the existing mechanism. It is based on descriptive content analysis utilising primary data from field interviews and related secondary data. The findings show that in addition to the poor commitment of member states, conflicting national interests between member states are among the major factors that have hindered the regional cooperation framework from effectively addressing the food security issue, as well illustrated by the 2007/2008 episode of food crisis experienced by the region. In spite of the relative ineffectiveness, Malaysia continues to support the regional framework because it does provide a backup strategy in the event of domestic emergencies. Nevertheless, while working for more effective participations of member countries, the Malaysian government would do well to pay more serious attention to the nation's domestic food production sector in the interest of the people. Keywords: ASEAN, food security, human security, international relations, Malaysia, regional cooperation


Background: The Expanded Program on Immunization was launched in Nigeria in 1980 but the target for immunization coverage has been elusive. As part of its social responsibilities the Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) supported immunization activities in the Niger Delta region of the country. In this study a cross sectional study was carried out to estimate the coverage of BCG, OPV, DPT and measles vaccines and, to determine the predictors of full immunization coverage among children aged 12 to 23 months in selected SPDC supported communities in the Niger Delta. Using modified cluster randomization, 2432 children were included in the study. Results: Of 2432 children studied 1585 (65.2%; 95% CI: 61.9% to 68.5%) were fully immunized with the four vaccines; 2323 (95.5%) had received at least one dose of a vaccine (card and history). About one third (36.6%) of the children aged 12 to 23 months with immunization card were fully immunized by their first birthday. The proportion of children fully immunized with valid doses of vaccines by one year was 19.9% (485 of 2432) based on card only. One hundred and nine (4.5%) had never received immunization. Major reason for failure to be immunized was fear of side reactions. Main predictor for full immunization was availability of a health facility in the community. Discussion: The coverage of immunization was high in the study area; but the proportion of valid doses administered was low. Training of health workers and strategic behavioral communication to dispel fears of side reactions are recommended.


In this article the productivity and international impact of Dutch sociologists is measured over the period 1992-1994. The productivity is measured as a weighted sum of the publications. Appendix 1 contains the list of sociologists that took part in the study. Table 2 gives the ranking of the fifty most productive sociologists. The international impact is based on the number of citations in the Social Science Citation Index in the period 1992-1994. We investigated these citations for the sociologists in the top-50 and all full professors in sociology research centers (see Appendix 2). Table 3 contains the ranking of the 51 Dutch sociologists with five or more citations in the period 1992-1994. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]; Copyright of Mens en Maatschappij is the property of Amsterdam University Press and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)


Abstract Complex, polygenic phenotypes in psychiatry hamper our understanding of the underlying molecular pathways and mechanisms of many diseases. The unknown aetiology, together with symptoms which often show a large variability both across individuals and over time and also tend to respond comparatively slowly to medication, can be a problem for patient treatment and drug development. We argue that neuroimaging has the potential to improve psychiatric treatment in two ways. First, by reducing phenotypic complexity, neuroimaging intermediate phenotypes can help to identify disease-related genes and can shed light into the biological mechanisms of known risk genes. Second, quantitative neuroimaging markers – reflecting the spectrum of impairment on a brain-based level – can be used as a more sensitive, reliable and immediate treatment response biomarker. In the end, enhancing both our understanding of the pathophysiology of psychiatric disorders and the prediction of treatment success could eventually optimise current therapy plans.


In this book I introduce two models of innovation that explain
the inverted-U relationship between profitability and
innovation, and the findings of Aghion et al. (2005) and Hashmi
(2005) related to the relationship between profitability and
the dispersion of productivity in the industry. The basic model
provides a simple and general explanation of the empirical
findings. In the basic model firms choose R&D expenditures that
maximize their expected profits under the assumption that R&D
expenditures of firms might be constrained by the size of their
profits. The prospect-theory model provides a more specific
explanation of the empirical findings, which includes a
behavioral model of managerial decision-making. Managers in the
model choose R&D expenditures according to the preferences
represented by the prospect-theory value function. For specific
sets of parameter values, both models generate predictions that
correspond to the empirical findings of Aghion et al. (2005)
and Hashmi (2005). Finally, I show that both models generate
realistic predictions for a wider range of parameter
combinations around the specific parameter values.


Fried foods are enjoyed worldwide as snacks or part of a meal. However, because these foods are deep-fried in oil, they tend to have a high fat content. Previous study on a partial- (par-) frying, infrared- (IR-) finishing process showed that French fries cooked by this process had significantly lower fat content than fully-fried French fries (13% vs. 19%, respectively, AŽÂ±=0.05). It was hypothesized that this par-frying, IR-finishing process would be able to produce donuts with a lower fat content but instrumentally and sensorially comparable to fully-fried donuts.
 Experiments were separated into three groups: wheat par-fried, IR-finished donuts, GF fully-fried donuts, and GF par-fried, IR-finished donuts. Four different formulations of GF donuts were tested, each formulation using a different combination of GF flours (commercial GF flour and rice flour) and hydrocolloids (pregelatinized rice flour and xanthan gum). Donuts were fried with and without a methylcellulose coating (0.5 g methylcellulose in 50 g water), which was brushed on before proofing. All of the par-fried, IR-finished donuts were par-fried for 64 s and finished in an IR oven. Two different IR cooking times (45 s or 53 s for wheat donuts, 39 s or 45 s for GF donuts) and four different distance combinations from the IR emitters to the food were tested. Mass, volume, and density changes, percent moisture and fat, crust color, and crust and crumb rheological properties of all donuts were compared to those of fully-fried wheat donuts. Sensory testing was also performed on selected donuts using a 9-point hedonic scale (1: dislike extremely, 9: like extremely) to measure overall acceptance, aroma, taste, and texture/mouthfeel.
 Statistical analysis (AŽÂ±=0.05) showed that all of the wheat par-fried, IR-finished donuts (25.6%-30.6%), most of the GF fully-fried donuts (26.3%-32.2%), and all of the GF par-fried, IR-finished donuts (23.7%-28.2%) had a significantly lower fat content than the wheat control (33.7%). Setting the emitters in either a height gradient from 45 mm to 25 mm or at a height of 35 mm above the top of the donut and using either IR time produced wheat par-fried, IR-finished donuts that were most instrumentally similar to the control, while using the same emitter settings and an IR-finishing time of 39 s produced GF par-fried, IR-finished donuts that were the most instrumentally similar to the control. Gluten-free fully-fried donuts made with a higher ratio of commercial GF flour to rice flour were more instrumentally similar to the control than donuts made with an equal ratio of commercial GF flour to rice flour, regardless of hydrocolloid used.
 Sensory scores of the wheat par-fried, IR-finished donuts (overall acceptance of 5.28-5.85) showed no significant differences from the control (5.83) with the exception of one slightly lower appearance score (5.69 for the par-fried, IR-finished donut versus 6.57 for the control). All GF fully-fried donuts (overall acceptance of 4.33-4.68) and all GF par-fried, IR-finished donuts…


Abstract Maize (Zea mays L.) was the staple domestic food crop for Ancestral Pueblo people throughout the northern American Southwest. It is thought to have been the basic food of the inhabitants of Chaco Canyon, New Mexico, a location that was a major centre of Ancestral Pueblo building and population during the 11th and early 12th centuries ad . Modern heirloom varieties of Native American corn have been difficult to grow in experimental fields in Chaco Canyon. Given an abundance of apparent storage structures in Chacoan buildings, it is possible that some corn recovered from archaeological contexts, was imported from surrounding areas. The ultimate goal of this research is to determine whether the corn in Chaco Canyon was grown locally or imported. This paper establishes the feasibility of a method to accomplish this goal. This study reports the results of using inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometric (ICP-MS) instrumentation to determine chemical constituents of experimental fields and modern heirloom varieties of Native American corn. Analysis of 19 elements is adequate to differentiate soil and corn from three field areas. These results are promising; however, a number of problems, including post-depositional alterations in maize, remain to be solved.


This project developed and tested a bioenergeticlbioaccumulation model to predict concentrations, bioconcentration factors, bioaccumulation factors (BAF) and trophic magnification factors of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) in organisms in terrestrial and aquatic food webs. This is the first bioaccumulation model that conserves both mass of chemical and energy. This model was tested against concentrations of various POPs in wildlife of Canadian Arctic terrestrial and Lake Ontario aquatic food webs. The model is shown to predict BAFs of POPs in organisms that are in good agreement with observed BAFs as indicated by the model bias, which ranged from 0.62 to 5.31. A comparison of the behaviour of the new model to that of a previous aquatic BAF model by Arnot and Gobas (2004) shows that the models are comparable in their ability to predict BAFs. The model can be used for bioaccumulation screening of chemicals in both aquatic and terrestrial animals.


Periodic synchronous discharges (PSD) on the electroencephalogram can be observed in diseases such as Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, hypoxic encephalopathy and Alzheimer's disease (AD). However, in previously reported cases of AD with PSD, PSD have only been found many years after the diagnosis of AD. We recently encountered a patient with mild AD accompanied by transient PSD. To our knowledge, this is the first case report to suggest that PSD can occur in mild AD.


Biochemical, pathogenical, antigenical, and molecular characteristics of Vibrio alginolyticus isolates from diseased cultured gilthead sea bream juveniles (4 and 20 g) were determined by laboratory challenge experiments. Intraperitonal challenge resulted in development of the disease but immersion did not. Electrophoresis of outer membrane protein (OMP) and lipopolysaccharides (LPS) was performed using sodium dodecyl sulphate poly-acrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE). Molecular typing of Vibrio isolates was conducted using random amplification of polymorphic DNA (RAPD). According to SDS-PAGE of surface antigens of the isolates, profiles of both OMP and LPS were heterogeneous. According to RAPD, isolated bacteria varied genetically. The findings reveal differences among V. alginolyticus isolates from diseased cultured gilthead sea bream in Turkey.


BACKGROUND
The clinical importance and recognition of myocardial infarction with non-obstructive coronary artery disease (MINOCA) is increasing. Nevertheless, no studies are investigating the risk of atrial fibrillation and ventricular arrhythmia in MINOCA patients. This study aimed to determine the risk of arrhythmia with electrocardiographic predictors in MINOCA patients.

METHODS
In this study, patients diagnosed with MINOCA and stable out-patients without significant lesions in their coronary arteries were compared. Morphology-voltage-Pwave duration electrocardiography (MPV ECG) score was used to determine atrial arrhythmia risk. QT interval and QT dispersion Tpeak-Tend time and Tpeak-Tend/QT interval were used to determine ventricular arrhythmia risk.

RESULTS
A total of 155 patients were included in our study. Seventy-seven of these patients were in the MINOCA group. There was no statistically significant difference between the two groups in MPV ECG score (1.95 ± 1.03 vs 1.68 ± 1.14, p = 0.128). P-wave voltage, P-wave morphology and P-wave duration, which are components of the MPV ECG score, were not statistically significantly different. The QRS complex duration (90.21 ± 14.87 vs 82.99 ± 21.59 ms, p = 0.017), ST interval (271.95 ± 45.91 vs 302.31 ± 38.40 ms, p < 0.001), corrected QT interval (438.17 ± 43.80 vs 421.41 ± 28.39, p = 0.005) and QT dispersion (60.75 ± 22.77 vs 34.19 ± 12.95, p < 0.001) were statistically significantly higher in the MINOCA group. The Tpeak-Tend (89.53 ± 32.16 vs 65.22 ± 18.11, p < 0.001), Tpeak-Tend/QT interval (0.2306 ± 0.0813 vs 0.1676 ± 0.0470, p < 0.001) and Tpeak-Tend/corrected QT interval (0.2043 ± 0.6997 vs 0.1551 ± 0.4310, p < 0.001) ratios were also significantly higher in patients with MINOCA.

CONCLUSIONS
In the MINOCA patients, there was no increase in the risk of atrial fibrillation based on ECG predictors. However, it was shown that there could be a significant increase in the risk of ventricular arrhythmia. We believe this study could be helpful for specific recommendations concerning duration of hospitalisation and follow up in MINOCA patients.


This baseline cross-sectional analysis from data acquired in a sub-sample of the PREDIMED-Plus study participants aimed to evaluate the relation between the Composite Socioeconomic Index (CSI) and lifestyle (diet and physical activity). This study involved 1512 participants (759 (52.2%) women) between 55 and 80 years with overweight/obesity and metabolic syndrome assigned to 137 primary healthcare centers in Catalonia, Spain. CSI and lifestyle (diet and physical activity) were assessed. Multiple linear regression or multinomial regression were applied to the data. Cluster analysis was performed to identify dietary patterns. The multiple linear regression model showed that a high deprivation index was related to a higher consumption of refined cereals (11.98 g/d, p-value = 0.001) and potatoes (6.68 g/d, p-value = 0.001), and to a lower consumption of fruits (−17.52 g/d, p-value = 0.036), and coffee and tea (−8.03 g/d, p-value = 0.013). Two a posteriori dietary patterns were identified by cluster analysis and labeled as "healthy" and "unhealthy". In addition, the multinomial regression model showed that a high deprivation index was related to an unhealthy dietary pattern and low physical activity (OR 1.42 [95% CI 1.06–1.89]; p-value < 0.05). In conclusion, a high deprivation index was related to an unhealthy lifestyle (diet and physical activity) in PREDIMED-Plus study participants.


In the TREC-8 cross-language information retrieval (CLIR) track, we adopted the approach of using machine translation to prepare a source-language query for use in a target-language retrieval task. We empirically evaluated (1) the effect of pseudo relevance feedback on retrieval performance with two feedback vector length control methods in CLIR and (2) the effect of multilingual data merging either before or after retrieval. Our experiments show that, in general, pseudo relevance feedback significantly improves cross-language retrieval performance, and that postretrieval merging of retrieval results can outperform pre-retrieval merging of multilingual data collections.


P2 Science has raised $12 million in a series C financing round. Chanel and lead investor HG Ventures join existing investors, including Xeraya Capital and BASF Venture Capital. The company says it will use a portion of the proceeds to expand capacity at its facility in Naugatuck, Connecticut. One of C&EN's 10 Start-Ups to Watch in 2017, P2 Science conducts ozonolysis in a flow-chemistry reactor to make specialty chemicals.


Protecting water quality at catchment scales is complicated by the high spatiotemporal variability in water chemistry. Consequently, determining pollutant sources requires costly monitoring strategies to diagnose causes and guide management solutions. However, recent studies have shown that spatial patterns in water chemistry can be persistent at catchment scales, potentially allowing identification of pollution sources and sinks with just a few sampling campaigns. Here, we tested a new method to quantify spatial persistence (SP) of water chemistry patterns with data from synoptic samplings in 22 headwater subcatchments within a 375 km2 catchment in western France (March 2018 to July 2019). This new method to quantify SP reduces dependence on long‐term metrics such as flow‐weighted concentrations, which are usually uncertain or unavailable. We applied the method to 16 ecologically relevant water quality parameters, including soluble reactive phosphorus, nitrate, and dissolved organic carbon. The results showed an average SP of 0.68 among parameters during the study period. For most parameters, SP was higher during the high‐flow winter period but lower and more variable during the low‐flow summer period. We found that the SP ultimately depended on the ratio between the temporal and spatial coefficients of variation (variance explained: 70%) rather than the temporal synchrony among subcatchments (variance explained: 4%). These results demonstrate that in these temperate catchments, synoptic sampling during the high‐flow winter period allows efficient identification of source and sink subcatchments, while more frequent samplings are needed to characterize ecological conditions at low flow.


Biomarkers are critical tools for measuring efficacy of treatments or predicting which patients are mostly likely to respond to a particular therapy. Recently, the VEGF isoform, VEGF165b, was proposed to be a predictive marker for bevacizumab in metastatic colorectal cancer patients. VEGF165b is an anti-angiogenic splice variant that differs from its pro-angiogenic counterpart, VEGF165, by only six amino acids at the C-terminal end of the protein. Members of the VEGFxxxb isoform family are produced by alternative splicing of the 3' untranslated region (UTR) to generate exon 8b, instead of the conventional exon 8 which produces exon 8a. The study of VEGF165b in colorectal cancer (Bates et al, Clinical Cancer Research, 2012) reported that patients with low VEGF165b:VEGFtotal ratio had improved PFS following bevacizumab + FOLFOX4 treatment, while individuals with higher VEGF165b:VEGFtotal ratios did not benefit. On the other hand, another recent study (Harris et al, PLoS One, 2012) reported that VEGFxxxb isoforms may be a RT-PCR artifact. In this study, we sought to test the role of VEGF165b in the response to anti-VEGF therapy using preclinical human tumor models, and to evaluate the prevalence of VEGFxxxb isoform in human cancer cells and normal tissues using RNA-Seq, a next generation sequencing (NGS) platform that is independent of RT-PCR. Our results show that xenograft tumors engineered to overexpress VEGF165b had similar growth kinetics, tumor vascular density and were equally sensitive to aflibercept or bevacizumab treatment in humanized VEGF SCID mice compared to their parental counterparts. These results indicate that VEGF165b does not have anti-angiogenic properties, and VEGF165b levels did not correlate with the efficacy of anti-VEGF therapy. Furthermore, although we were able to detect VEGF165b splice variants by NGS profiling in cells engineered to overexpress VEGF165b, no NGS evidence supporting the VEGFxxxb isoforms was found in a panel of 24 human cancer cell lines and 12 different types of human normal tissues. To our knowledge, this is the first report to survey VEGFxxxb isoforms using NGS RNA-seq technology. Overall, these studies suggest that closer inspection of VEGFxxxb isoforms may be required before employing VEGF165b as a predictive biomarker for anti-VEGF therapy.

Citation Information: Mol Cancer Ther 2013;12(11 Suppl):B4.

Citation Format: Wen Zhang, Cristina Abrahams, Ying Huang, Baosheng Li, Asma Parveen, Min Ni, Yi Wei, Yueming Ding, Eric Zhang, Hsin Chieh Lin, Gavin Thurston, Qing Zhang. Evaluation of VEGFxxxb isoforms as a predictive biomarker for anti-VEGF cancer therapy. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the AACR-NCI-EORTC International Conference: Molecular Targets and Cancer Therapeutics; 2013 Oct 19-23; Boston, MA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Mol Cancer Ther 2013;12(11 Suppl):Abstract nr B4.


Congenital deficiency of the pericardial sac has never been correctly diagnosed during life. It is an anomaly which has aroused the attention largely of anatomists and embryologists. But in spite of its rarity we believe it is not without clinical significance. The first case reported of absence of the pericardium was that of Realdo Colombo in 1559, but it seems probable in the light of present knowledge that this was merely a case of adherent pericardium. The first indubitable example of the condition was that reported by Baillie in 1793. Since then about fifty other cases have been described, but in many instances the protocols have been scanty and in none has the clinical side of the picture been stressed. The unusualness of the condition is further emphasized by the fact that in 1909 Verse found only two examples in thirteen thousand necropsy reports and that the case we are


This nationwide study was conducted to assess the extent of adherence of primary-care physicians to the World Health Organization (WHO)-recommended guidelines on the use of oral rehydration therapy (ORT), antimicrobials, and prescribing of other drugs used in treating symptoms of acute diarrhoea in Bahrain. A questionnaire-based, cross-sectional survey was carried out in primary-care health centres. During a six-week survey period (15 August–30 September 2003), 328 (25.2%) completed questionnaires were returned from 17 of 20 health centres. In a sample of 300 patients, oral rehydration salts (ORS) solution was prescribed to 89.3% (n=268) patients; 12.3% received ORS alone, whereas 77% received ORS in combination with symptomatic drugs. Antimicrobials were prescribed to 2% of the patients. In 11.4% of the cases, rehydration fluids and other drugs were given parenterally. The mean number of drugs was 2.2+0.87 per prescription. In approximately one-third of the patients, three or more drugs were used. Primary-care physicians almost always adhered to the WHO guidelines with respect to ORT and antimicrobials. However, in several instances, ORT was prescribed along with polypharmacy, including irrational use of drugs for symptomatic relief. Effective health policies are needed to reduce the unnecessary burden on the healthcare system.


We examine fund ratings of socially responsible investing (SRI) equity funds in emerging and developed markets by validating the assumptions of the equally weighted U.S. News mutual fund scorecard and the causal interrelations among its rating agencies—Morningstar, Lipper, Zacks, CFRA and TheStreet—for improvement priorities. In so doing, we apply a novel interdisciplinary methodology including cluster analysis, classification analysis, partial least squares structural equation modeling and importance performance analysis. We find evidence against the U.S. News assumptions, as individual rating agencies have unequal effects and exhibit the causal relationships among one another. We suggest emerging (developed) market fund managers allocate their resources—which are often limited—with the first priority to improving fund ratings of CFRA (Zacks), followed by Zacks (CFRA), TheStreet (Lipper), Lipper (Morningstar) and Morningstar (TheStreet). The positive causal relationships among rating agencies indicates that investors consider multiple rating agencies of the U.S. News for investment decisions, rather than simply use any single one of these rating agencies or their equally weighted aggregation. Interestingly, we find disagreement among rating agencies, with Zack (TheStreet) displaying rating deflation for emerging (developed) market funds. Disagreement among rating agencies may increase the monitoring effort of fund managers who usually "shop" for additional ratings in the hope of maximizing their average ratings.


1. PURPOSE This is a quantitative analysis of Sasang Constitution by measuring human body except face. This study is carried out for the purpose of searching out the theory of Sa-cho and the morphologic theory of Sasang Constitution. 2. METHOD (1) SUBJECTS Subjects are 338 person came to Dept. of Sasang Constitutional Medicine (KyungHee Oriental Medical Center) and Oriental Medicine and Western Medicine Cooperative Health Examination Center (KyungHee Medical Center) from October 1997 to Jauary 1998. The mean age is . (2) CLASSIFICATION OF SASANG CONSTITUTION QSCCII(Questionnaire for the Sasang Constitution Classification) is used for the Classification of Sasang Constitution. The distributions of Sasang Constitution Classification are Soeumin 83, Soyangin 98, and Taeumin 157. (3) MEASURING INSTRUMENT & ITEMS Length, Breadth, Circomferece, and Skinfold thickness of each body segment are measured by Martin's measuring instrument and Skinfold Caliper. Measured items of this study is based on Lohman's methods and is added new items. (4) DATA ANALYSIS The Volume, Weight, Rate, and Index of each group are calculated by using measuring items. The difference of each group is analyzed by SPSS 7.0 for Win. 3. RESULT (1) THE MORPHOLOGIC CHARACTERISTIC of TAEUMIN First of all, the Taeumin has a emormous morphology. His trunk is huge but head-neck and limbs is small. The volume and weight of head-neck is smaller than other body segments but the volume and weight of upper-abdomen is bigger than ones. (2) THE MORPHOLOGIC CHARACTERISTIC of SOEUMIN The Soeumin has a small morphology. His head-neck rate is bigger than Taeumin's but his trunk rate is smaller than Taeumin's. And his lower limbs rate is bigger than other constitution but it's not a significant difference. His neck is thinest and longgest than others. His chest is thin and narrow. His lower-abdomen rate is bigger than other constitution but it's difference is not significant. (3) THE MORPHOLOGIC CHARACTERISTIC of SOYANGIN Soyangin has a middle size at head-neck and chest part. But the rate of upper limb is higer than other constitution. And the rate of lower-abdomen part is lower than other constitution. but that's not significant.


A murine model of lethal cytomegalovirus pneumonia following intratracheal inoculation of normal mice was used to study the effects of antiviral therapy with acyclovir (ACV) and interferon (IF), alone and in combination. Five hundred units of fibroblast IF administered intraperitoneally the day prior to infection and 100 mg/kg/day ACV administered intraperitoneally for 7 days beginning within 3 h of infection were both highly effective in preventing mortality. Compared to the condition of untreated animals, each drug reduced viral titers in lung homogenates of the treated animals 7 days after infection. However ACV, unlike IF, diminished viral growth in the lung at 14 days, prevented viral dissemination to spleens and salivary glands in some animals, and significantly protected animals from reactivation of virus during immunosuppression 2 months after infection. The combination of ACV + IF offered no increased antiviral activity compared to ACV alone and failed to protect animals from reactivation. In these experiments the overall antiviral activity of ACV alone was greater than IF and the combination of ACV + IF.


Multiple (15-17) coolings up to the rectal body temperature (19-20 degrees C) without application of narcotic substances bring about various changes in the activity of the rat brain tricarboxylic acid cycle dehydrogenases: the activity of malate, succinate and alpha-ketoglutarate dehydrogenases increases significantly, that of isocitrate dehydrogenase decreases, that of pyruvate dehydrogenase--remains unchanged. The reaction to cooling in animals adapted to supercooling is also specific: in rats cooled for the first time in the state of "cold narcosis" succinic acid is mainly consumed in the brain, and in the adapted rats cooled down to 19-20 degrees C alpha-ketoglutarate dehydrogenase plays an important role.


Using techniques developed by Hall (1975) and modified by Diaz (1991), we maintained rat pups in total social isolation from the time they were 2 or 3 days of age until they were 42 days old. We found that rat pups reared in social isolation exhibited susceptibility to social enhancement of food preference indistinguishable from that exhibited by normally reared rat pups. These data suggest that development of a tendency to use conspecifics as sources of information about what foods to eat does not depend upon previous experience either of interaction with conspecifics or of feeding in social situations.


Introduction: Gastrointestinal Stromal Tumour (GIST) is one of the most common mesenchymal tumours of GIT. They have been proved to be arising from the smooth muscle pacemaker interstitial cells of Cajal, these cells are involved in gut motility and peristaltic movements. They can also rarely arise outside the Gastrointestinal Tract (GIT) from retroperitoneum, mesentery and omentum called as Extragastrointestinal Stromal Tumor (EGIST). Single best defining feature of GIST is positivity for Cytoplasmic Tyrosine Kinase (c-KIT). Aim: The aim of the study was to analyse clinicopathological features and c-KIT expression in both gastrointestinal and EGISTs. Materials and Methods: This was a retrospective observational (cohort) study; over a period of two years from January 2018 to December 2019, done at Navodaya Medical College and Hospital, Raichur, Karnataka, which comprised of 12 cases of GIST. All the cases were a resected specimens and thorough evaluation of clinical, imaging and histopathological studies were done and forwarded for immunohistochemistry for c-KIT expression. Results: Age of cases ranged from 04-70 years, mean age being 50.6 years and male to female ratio 2:1. Presenting symptoms of most of GIST were pain abdomen, diarrhea and few with vomiting whereas, rectosigmoid GISTs (2 cases and one with metastasis to liver) were associated with pain abdomen, bleeding per rectum and constipation. One case of retroperitoneal (extraintestinal) GIST was asymptomatic and other presented with pain in the right hip due to secondaries and one benign gastric serosal GIST was associated with gastric adenocarcinoma. The CT scan in two of malignant GISTs, confirmed metastasis and c-KIT study was negative in these 2 malignant GISTs. Conclusion: This study reaffirms importance of CD117 in diagnosis of GIST and EGIST, however, the negativity of CD117 does not rule out GIST, which requires thorough clinico-radiological and pathological correlation.


Background Breast calcifications seen on mammograms may be associated with benign or malignant conditions which require accurate characterization for treatment and screening purposes. This study was undertaken to review mammographic calcifications. Materials and Methods A descriptive study of all mammograms taken in the radiology department of a tertiary institution within an 11 month period in 2009 was done, using a Villa Systemi stereotactic mammography machine and Concept MC Utrasound Scan machine. Biopsies were performed where indicated and histology results were compared with radiological findings. Data was analyzed using the Epi-info statistical software. Results Out of the 248 patients assessed, the predominant presenting symptoms were breast pain (30.2%) and breast lump (27.4%). While assessing the mammograms, various types of calcifications described as skin (17.0%); worm-like (4.3%); coarse (16.0%); popcorn (6.4%); rod like (8.5%); milk (5.3%); rim (4.3%); vascular (20.2%); micro- 12(12.8%); and widespread pleomorphic calcifications (5.3%) were seen. Calcifications were commoner in the lower quadrant and were evenly distributed in the inner and outer quadrants. Histology revealed that all the widespread pleomorphic calcifications and 75% of the micro-calcifications seen were malignant. Conclusion This study confirms that calcifications are commonly seen on mammograms with microand pleomorphic calcifications as common features in malignant breast lesions. Key words: Mammography, breast, calcifications


Components of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) envelope such as lipoproteins, lypoglycans, lipids, and glycolipids act as Pathogen Associated Molecular Patterns and/or antigens, hence contributing in different ways to the bacillus recognition, phagocytosis, and to immune responses modulation. However, Mtb envelope components are not only encountered at the bacillus-host direct contact but can act remotely from the bacillus envelope. Indeed, they are also released from the bacillus envelope and are detected in different compartments such as the infected cells endosomal compartments or in extracellular vesicles produced by the bacillus itself or by infected cells. Characterizing their trafficking is of main importance for our understanding of their role in host-pathogen interactions and consequently for their potential use as vaccine components. This review aims at providing an overview of the current knowledge of the nature of Mtb envelope components shuttled within extracellular vesicles, the interaction of these vesicles with host immune cells and the remaining black holes.


In uncontaminated natural materials, plutonium and technetium exist exclusively as products (daughters) of nuclear reactions in which uranium is the principal reactant (parent). Under conditions of chemical stability over geologic periods of time, the relative abundances of daughter and parent elements are fixed by the rates of nuclear reactions and the decay of the daughter radionuclide. The state of this nuclear secular equilibrium condition is the primary basis of the geochemical study of these elements in nature. Thus, it is critical that nuclear parent and daughter abundances are measured in the same sample. We have developed a quantitative procedure for measuring subpicogram quantities of plutonium and technetium in gram quantities of geologic matrices such as uranium ores. The procedure takes advantage of the aggressive properties of sodium peroxide/hydroxide fusion to ensure complete dissolution and homogenization of complex materials, the precision provided by isotope dilution techniques, and the extreme sensitivity offered by thermal ionization mass spectrometry. Using this technique, a quantitative aliquot can be removed for uranium analysis by isotope dilution thermal ionization mass spectrometry or α spectrometry. Although the application of the procedure is unique, the analytical concepts may find more general application in studies of environmental contamination by nuclear materials. To assess the precision and accuracy of the analytical results, blanks and standards were analyzed routinely for a 1-year period to ensure quality control of our sample analyses. The average technetium blank is 5 ± 4 fg (n = 8), and that for plutonium is 0.17 ± 0.15 pg (n = 7). Thus, the detection limit for technetium (defined as 3 times the standard deviation of the average blank) is 11 fg, and that for plutonium is 0.44 pg. To assess the procedural precision, Canadian Reference Material BL-5 was analyzed routinely with samples. The results of seven replicate analyses for technetium in this standard reference material yield a technetium concentration of 59.0 fg/g, with a remarkably small standard deviation of 0.6 fg, 1.0% of the average value. The results of six replicate analyses for the concentration of plutonium in BL-5 give 1.012 pg/g, with an equally small standard deviation of 0.016, 1.6% of the average value. No direct measure of accuracy can be done on the technetium or plutonium analyses, because no standard reference material exists for these elements. To help constrain the accuracy of our measurements, equilibrium technetium/uranium and plutonium/uranium abundances were calculated using the nuclear reaction code MCNP. For technetium, such calculations are relatively insensitive to variations in model parameters, and measurements fall within a 21% high/low bias. For plutonium, the calculations are very sensitive to model parameters and hence inherently less precise. Indirectly, spike and isotope mix calibrations made from weighted quantities of certified isotopes (both technetium and plutonium) can be used to determine the bias of the measurement system for these elements. These calibrations show that the measurement system is biased by no more than ±1.5%.


A double logistic model was used to compare six parameters of growth in standing height of 31 children with Down's syndrome with 136 children from the California Guidance Study. Multivariate analysis of variance of the growth data showed that while there were significant differences in all six parameters favouring the normal over the Down's children, there were no significant differences with respect to error of fit. Multivariate analysis with final height as a covariate revealed that differences between the normal and the Down's children in the prepubertal and adolescent components were explainable by differences in final height. In summary, the double logistic model, when applied to this sample of Down's children, identified those well defined logistic components which are characteristic of the growth of normal children, the differences being those of degree, not of form.


In this paper we discuss a rotary implementation of the High Efficiency Hybrid Cycle (HEHC) engine. HEHC is a thermodynamic cycle which borrows elements of Diesel, Otto and Atkinson cycles, characterized by 1) compression of air only (e.g. Diesel), 2) constant volume heat addition (e.g. Otto), and 3) expansion to atmospheric pressure (e.g. Atkinson). The engine consists of a compressor, an isolated combustion chamber, and an expander. Both compressor and expander consist of a simple design with two main parts: a rotor and an oscillating rocker. Compared to conventional internal combustion engines, in which all processes happen within the same space but at different times, in this engine, all processes are occurring simultaneously but in different chambers, allowing for independent optimization of each process. The result is an engine which may offer up to 57% peak efficiency, and above 50% sustained efficiency across typical driving loads.


Biosynthesis of glycosylphosphatidylinositol and N‐glycan precursor is dependent upon a mannosyl donor, dolichol phosphate‐mannose (DPM). The Thy‐1negative class E mutant of mouse lymphoma and Lec15 mutant Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cells are incapable of DPM synthesis. The class E mutant is defective in the DPM1 gene which encodes a mammalian homologue of Saccharomyces cerevisiae Dpm1p that is a DPM synthase, whereas Lec15 is a different mutant, indicating that mammalian DPM1 is not sufficient for DPM synthesis. Here we report expression cloning of a new gene, DPM2, which is defective in Lec15 cells. DPM2, an 84 amino acid membrane protein expressed in the endoplasmic reticulum (ER), makes a complex with DPM1 that is essential for the ER localization and stable expression of DPM1. Moreover, DPM2 enhances binding of dolichol phosphate, a substrate of DPM synthase. Mammalian DPM1 is catalytic because a fusion protein of DPM1 that was stably expressed in the ER synthesized DPM without DPM2. Therefore, biosynthesis of DPM in mammalian cells is regulated by DPM2.


When diagnosing network problems, it is desirable to have a view of the traffic inside the network. This can be achieved by profiling the traffic. A fully profiled traffic can contain significant information of the network's current state, and can be further used to detect anomalous traffic. Many has addressed problems of profiling network traffic, but unfortunately there are no specific profiles could lasts forever for one particular network, since network traffic characteristic always changes over and over based on the sum of nodes, software that being used, type of access, etc. This paper introduces an online adaptive system using evolving connectionist systems based connectionist model to profile network traffic in continuous manner while at the same time try to detect anomalous activity inside the network in real-time and adapt with changes if necessary. Different from an offline approach, which usually profile network traffic using previously captured data for a certain period of time, an online and adaptive approach can use a shorter period of data capturing and evolve its profile if the characteristics of the network traffic has changed.


The importance of the initial diagnosis in the treatment of the intra and periarticular fractures of the elbow joint in the childhood was discussed in the article. Good results in pathoanatomic as well as in functional view were obtained in this series, according to the carefully made terapeutic program and prolonged physiotherapy.


This paper presents a wideband balanced variable-gain low-noise amplifier (VGLNA) implemented in a 55-nm CMOS process. A frequency-selective non-foster gain equalization technique is proposed to compensate the gain variation of interstage dual-resonant tanks. This VGLNA leverages current-steering technique to realize a phase-invariant 18-dB tunable gain range with a measured input 1-dB gain compression point (IP1dB) at 9 GHz from -12.2 dBm to -5 dBm. The LNA achieves a maximum power gain of 20.2 dB with ±0.5 dB gain variation and a minimum noise figure (NF) of 3.26 dB from 6.5 to 12 GHz. Owing to lumped Lange couplers, the input and output matching are both better than -14 dB. This chip occupies 1.44 mm × 0.68 mm area without pads and consumes 75 mW.


Expression of AT-rich genes from microorganisms such as archaea is often inefficient in Escherichia coli. The trpA and trpB genes encoding the tryptophan synthase subunits were cloned from the hyperthermophilic archaeon Pyrococcus furiosus. No apparent difference in codon bias was found between the genes. However, using a conventional cloning vector having the lac promoter, the trpB gene was expressed poorly in E. coli, whereas the trpA gene was overexpressed. The expression of the trpB gene was remarkably enhanced (>12-fold) by the introduction of an overlapping leader open reading frame. The expression of the trpA gene was also improved ( approximately 1.5-fold). This approach may be useful for overexpressing various kinds of AT-rich genes.


The document looks at the identifying community on social networks. There is a graphical approach to the study of social networks. There is a comparative analysis of the basic algorithms and the aggregated al-algorithm proposed by the authors. To test the algorithms, the authors initially generated graphs with different noise levels and gave a common number. To compare the shares of the graph, two well-known metrics that the authors used were Normal Output Mutual Information (NMI) and Split Separation. Each of the indicators has its advantages. To check the basic algorithms and analyze the authors of the geographical social network Facebook for the presence of the community in them and test the aggregate algorithm of MetaClust. The proposed MetaClust algorithm showed high performance compared to the basic ones. The values of the modularity of its shares (average) are higher compared to the main algorithms. Also, the quality of the algorithm can be judged by the lack of "tail" modularity in the distribution. The average results shown by the algorithms on the generated graphs correspond to the results of the application in ego networks. It seems appropriate to use pre-fractional graphs and a wider class of dynamic graphs to generate model data. The sequence of the generated community graphs corresponds to the dynamic trajectory of the graphs, the communities are seeds and blocks, and the noise is the addition of the new end of different ranks between the seeds. The next step is a formal description of the noise of the graphs in the class terminology of the dynamic and pre-fractal graphs


The large-signal code TESLA (Telegraphist's Equations Solution for Linear beam Amplifiers) was originally developed for the analysis and design of klystrons. It has now been applied to the simulation of an extended interaction klystron (EIK) for the first time. Results for the power transfer curve and bandwidth curves computed for a G-band EIK compare well to their measured values. TESLA obtains these results almost on the two orders of magnitude faster than a 3D particle-in-cell simulation code.


The study aims to determine rational overweight permit fee using Mechanistic-Empirical (M-E) pavement design and Life-Cycle Cost Analysis (LCCA). The state-of-art pavement design software, Pavement-ME, was utilized to develop Load Equivalency Factors (LEFs) and estimate pavement service life under various traffic loading conditions. LCCA was conducted to calculate Marginal Pavement Damage Cost (MPDC) in terms of Equivalent Uniform Annual Cost (EUAC) considering variations in maintenance strategies, analysis periods, and discount rates. A methodology framework was established to calculate distance based, weight based, weight and distance based, and flat permit fee for overweight trucks. With the local data obtained in New Jersey (United States), example permit fees were determined for the major and local road network with the thick and thin asphalt pavement structure, respectively. It was found that the truck-induced damage cost varied significantly between thin and thick asphalt pavements considering different failure mechanisms in fatigue cracking and rutting. In general, overweight permit fee may not be fair to overweight trucks at different vehicle classifications if only the total overweight tonnage is regulated in the permit fee structure.


Abstract Microalgae culture has the potential to play an essential role in the application of circular economy principles. Microalgae cultivation allows utilizing industrial side-waste streams while ensuring biomass for a wide range of applications in the industrial sector. Specifically, cultivation in outdoor open raceway ponds are a preferred solution due to low costs, ease of operation and large-scale application. However, the economic viability of the cultivation system largely depends on the amount of biomass produced, the technology implemented and the microalgae species and strains. For this purpose, screening of numerous physical, chemical, and environmental factors affecting microalgae growth must be performed before implementing large-scale microalgae cultivation systems. Furthermore, to obtain the highest biomass yield, the design and operating parameters for open raceway pond cultivation must be investigated in depth. Therefore, this study proposes a kinetic growth model for microalgae cultivation in open raceway ponds based on System Dynamics modelling approach. The proposed model aims at overcoming the major problems of existing growth evaluation tools such as separate assessment of different parameters, high complexity, time consumption and other challenges. The proposed system dynamics model proves to be a simple yet powerful tool for modelling the behaviour of algae biomass in an open raceway pond.


Abstract This article discusses systems for recognizing human faces, as well as systems for identifying flying objects. The paper deals with the main security issues related to the recognition of faces and images of objects. Today, automation systems that help to recognize an object, compare it with existing databases, can help prevent terrorist attacks, unauthorized penetrations, as well as the proliferation of biological and nuclear weapons. To date, the study of issues related to the possibility of using these systems is relevant and very much in demand.


Little is known about the distribution of different sea-ice types of the Southern Ocean, while of the Arctic Ocean sea ice types several satellite data products exist, comprising binary products, partial concentration products, or sea-ice age. This study aims to contribute filling this knowledge gap by means of an empirical approach combining active and passive microwave satellite observations of the years 2013 through 2019. This approach, called ECICE, has been developed for Arctic sea-ice conditions. In this study it is applied with minimum modification to Antarctic sea-ice conditions. Multiyear ice partial concentration corrections developed for the Arctic Ocean are as well applied to Antarctic sea-ice conditions with almost no modification. A few selected examples of obtained icetype concentration maps are shown and discussed in comparison to other satellite remote sensing products in an exclusively qualitative manner.


The development of neurosurgical services and training in Malaysia began in 1963, with the first centre established in its capital city at Hospital Kuala Lumpur, aimed to provide much needed neurosurgical services and training in the field of neurology and neurosurgery. This center subsequently expanded in 1975 with the establishment of the Tunku Abdul Rahman Neuroscience Institute (IKTAR); which integrated the three allied interdependent disciplines of neurosurgery, neurology and psychiatry. The establishment of this institute catalysed the rapid expansion of neurosurgical services in Malaysia and paved the way for development of comprehensive training for doctors, nurses, and paramedics. This culminated in the establishments of a local comprehensive neurosurgery training program for doctors in 2001; followed by a training program for nurses and paramedics in 2006. To date, there are more than 60 neurosurgeons providing expert care in 11 centers across Malaysia, along with trained personnel in the field of neurosciences.


This paper contains a model predictive control (MPC) approach for high voltage direct current (HVDC) lines, where in particular the voltage source converter (VSC) HVDC configuration is investigated. The target is to develop a control method which, given the requested power and alternating/direct voltage references, yields an appropriate set of voltage references to be fed to the modulation scheme of the VSC. Since the chosen control approach directly encompasses the multivariable nature of the problem, no phase locked loop (PLL) is required for dq frame alignment, increasing performance and facilitating tuning in the case of weak grids. The considered system is described, the derived control procedure is illustrated and numerical simulations are presented showing the performance of the proposed approach.


Acamprosate, in combination with psychosocial therapy, has been shown to be clinically effective in maintaining abstinence in alcohol dependence. Current research suggests that its mechanism of action involves functional antagonism of the ionotropic glutamate N-methyl-d-aspartate (NMDA) receptor. However, direct interactions between acamprosate and the NMDA receptor are weak, and recent findings suggest that acamprosate may modulate NMDA receptors via regulatory polyamine sites, or that it may act directly on metabotropic glutamate receptors. All of these mechanisms are novel for the treatment of alcohol dependence and have far-reaching implications for understanding relapse, as well as for the discovery of drugs with greater efficacy. Understanding the mechanism of action of acamprosate may be an important stimulus for change in the perception and treatment of alcohol dependence.


This paper describes how automated measurement capabilities of a Computer-Integrated Electronics laboratory can be adapted to establish a laboratory resource to do optoelectronic device and optical fiber link characterization measurements and SPICE modeling work to augment Optoelectronics courses. It is shown that with minimal additional investment in an Optical Spectrum Analyzer and a ThermoStream temperature controller, light sources, such as LASER diodes, LEDs, Incandescent and Discharge Lamps, and detectors such as Photodiodes and Solar Cells, and optoelectronic combinations of them like Optical Isolators and Optical Fiber Links can be characterized for their electrical, opto-electrical and spectral characteristics. Examples of experimental results are given with descriptions of circuits, experimental setups and measurement methodology.


We examine the impact of SFAS 133, Accounting for Derivative Instruments and Hedging Activities, on the reporting behavior of commercial banks and the informativeness of their financial statements. We argue that because the stricter recognition and classification requirements of SFAS 133 reduced banks' ability to smooth income through derivatives, banks more affected by SFAS 133 will rely more on loan loss provisions to smooth income. We find evidence consistent with this argument. We also find that the increased reliance on loan loss provisions for smoothing income has impaired the informativeness of loan loss provisions.


High-quality Ta-doped La2Ti2O7 (Ta-LTO) single crystal of about 40 mm in length and 5 mm in diameter was successfully prepared by the optical floating zone method. An X-ray rocking curve reveals that the crystal of LTO has excellent crystalline quality. As-grown crystals were transparent after annealing in air and the transmittance is up to 76% in the visible and near-infrared region. X-ray diffraction showed that this compound possessed a monoclinic structure with P21 space group. The dielectric properties were investigated as functions of temperature (0~300 °C) and frequency (102 Hz~105 Hz). Dielectric spectra indicated an increase in the room-temperature dielectric constant accompanied by a drop in the loss tangent as a result of the Ta doping. One relaxation was observed in the spectra of electric modulus, which was ascribed to be related to the oxygen vacancy. The dielectric relaxation with activation energy of 1.16 eV is found to be the polaron hopping caused by the oxygen vacancies.


Hydroelectricity remains the dominate RES (Renewable Energy Source) and the most developed, reaching growth rate peaks in some countries in the 20th century. However, the share of it has fallen over the last few years, as other renewable sources have received rapid development. Despite this, growth for hydroelectricity has remained stable, with China, India, Japan, Russia, Turkey, France, Norway, Canada, USA and Brazil as market leaders. This article analyzes the key trends of development of the hydroelectricity market as a whole, as well as the financial stability of its organizations using bankruptcy likelihood prediction models. The Brazilian and Russian companies were chosen to assess as both countries are classified as developing markets. The bankruptcy prediction models indicate that overall, the financial stability of hydroelectricity giants of Brazil and Russia is at a high level, though profitability ratios are very low. During the COVID-19 pandemic, several financial support measures were implemented by governments, along with the already existing instruments for stimulating renewable energy growth. Authors' forecasts show that current trends on the market indicate that net addition capacity growth in the next few years will not be enough to meet Net Zero goals for the renewables market.


Young and van Vliet have designed computationally efficient methods for approximating Gaussian-based convolutions by running a re- cursive infinite-impulse-response (IIR) filter forward over the input signal, then running a second IIR filter backward over the first filter's output. To transition between the two filters, they use a suboptimal heuristic that produces significant amplitude and phase distortion for all points within about three standard deviations of the right-hand boundary. In this corre- spondence, a simple linear transition rule that eliminates this distortion is derived.


Some studies have been undertaken to decide the impact of hybrid learning on outcomes in higher education settings, with findings indicating that hybrid learning increases student performance more than distant learning or normal face-to-face instruction. This paper focuses on the students' perspective on the impact of hybrid learning-based instruction in teaching English for Business Communication in Vocational Higher Education of Indonesia. This study is ex post facto research that aims to find the causes that allow changes in behavior, symptoms, or phenomena caused by an event, behavior, or things that cause changes in the independent variables which have occurred. This study employed a case study using students' reflection journals and online questionnaires to seventy-five students of Business English for Communication class of the Vocational Higher Education in Makassar, South Sulawesi, Indonesia. Data were analyzed descriptively. In analyzing the data, the researcher used thematic analysis and content analysis. Data analysis steps are data familiarization, generating initial codes, searching for themes, reviewing themes, defining and naming themes, and producing the report. This study showed that students perceived the hybrid learning improved students' technology competence, collaboration participation, and engagement, motivation, self-confidence. The impact of hybrid learning in teaching English for Business Communication can be categorized into three highly impacted, moderately impacted, and lowly impacted on students, attitude, skills and competence, and motivation. This study claims that the more positive students are toward hybrid learning education in the classroom, the higher their English for Business Communication performance. This research improves scholarly understanding of hybrid learning instruction in Indonesian Vocational Higher Education when teaching English for Business Communication.


Purpose: The goal of this study was to investigate the effect of orphan G Protein-Coupled Receptor 50 (GPR50) receptor on inflammation and insulin signaling in 3T3-L1 preadipocyte.Subjects and Methods: A high-fat diet (HFD)-induced obesity-T2DM (Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus) mouse model was used in this research, and high expression of GPR50 in mouse adipose tissue was screened by microarray technology. Expression of GPR50 in 3T3-L1 cell line and obesity-T2DM mouse adipose tissue was confirmed. To gain more insight into the potential role of this new target in obesity-associated IR development, a GPR50 knockout cell line was constructed in 3T3-L1 cell line. Inflammatory cytokine levels and insulin signaling pathways in the GPR50 knockout 3T3-L1 cell line were determined by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction analysis and western blot.Results: GPR50 expression was significantly increased in adipose tissue of obesity-T2DM mice. GPR50 deficiency increased inflammation in 3T3-L1 cells. In addition, GPR50 deficiency induced the phosphorylation of AKT and insulin receptor substrate (IRS)1. Furthermore, GPR50 knockout 3T3-L1 cell line had suppressed PPAR-γ expression.Conclusions: These data demonstrated a novel target GPR50 can affect inflammation and insulin signaling in adipocytes. Furthermore, the effects are mediated through the regulation of insulin signaling and PPAR-γ expression.


Rapid developments in wide-bandgap semiconductors have led to the demand for interconnection materials that can withstand harsh conditions. In this study, novel Ag composite pastes were developed with the assistance of metal organic decomposition (MOD) to significantly reduce the sintering temperature of commercial Ag pastes. The effects of the decomposition characteristics of different MODs on the microstructure, morphology, and the shear strength of the Ag-sintered joints were systematically investigated. Additionally, the low-temperature sintering mechanisms of the MOD-assisted Ag composite pastes were studied and proposed. Among all the MODs studied, the one consisting of propylamine complexed with silver oxalate demonstrated the best performance due to its ability to form Ag nanoclusters with the smallest size (~25 nm) and highest purity (~99.07 wt.%). Notably, the bonding temperature of the MOD-modified Ag pastes decreased from 250 °C to 175 °C, while the shear strength increased from 20 MPa to 40.6 MPa when compared to the commercial Ag pastes.


Background: Slimming products are available for sale on the internet without a prescription. Some slimming products have side effects such as headaches, constipation, nausea, dizziness, dry mouth, insomnia; and in some cases, death. The purpose of this study was to survey the factors influencing slimming products usage among Thais via an online questionnaire.  Method: This was a cross-sectional study. The participants were 400 Thai people who used social networks. The questionnaire was constructed based on a survey website and then distributed online. Descriptive analysis and Chi-square test were used. All statistics were performed by SPSS statistical package version 21, licensed for Mae Fah Luang University. Results: A total of 60.75% of participants were dissatisfied with their body shape; even though most of them had normal BMI (63.00%). There were 173 participants (43.25%) who took slimming products for weight loss, 90 participants (52.02%) perceived the products as quite safe and approved by the Thai Food and Drug Administration (FDA) (114 participants, 65.90%). Most slimming product users searched for product information prior to use (84.97%) and purchased products through the internet (50.29%). Results indicated that 227 participants (56.75%) never used slimming products because they were concerned about the side effects. However, 85 participants of non-users tended to use the slimming products and 87.06% of these (74 participants) tended to use safe products. In addition, gender, income, attitude towards body shape, body satisfaction and BMI were significant factors influencing slimming products use. Conclusions: The findings indicated that attitude towards body shape and body dissatisfaction led to slimming product use among Thais who were active on social networks. Most were concerned about product safety and FDA regulation before actual use; and they tended to use products which were considered safe.