Dual-task performance depends on both modalities (e.g., vision, audition, haptics) and task types (spatial or object-based), and the order by which different task types are organized. Previous studies on haptic and especially auditory-haptic attentional blink (AB) are scarce, and the effect of task types and their order have not been fully explored. In this study, 96 participants, divided into four groups of task type combinations, identified auditory or haptic Target 1 (T1) and haptic Target 2 (T2) in rapid series of sounds and forces. We observed a haptic AB (i.e., the accuracy of identifying T2 increased with increasing stimulus onset asynchrony between T1 and T2) in spatial, object-based, and object-spatial tasks, but not in spatial-object task. Changing the modality of an object-based T1 from haptics to audition eliminated the AB, but similar haptic-to-auditory change of the modality of a spatial T1 had no effect on the AB (if it exists). Our findings fill a gap in the literature regarding the auditory-haptic AB, and substantiate the importance of modalities, task types and their order, and the interaction between them. These findings were explained by how the cerebral cortex is organized for processing spatial and object-based information in different modalities.


Abstract : The U.S. Navy is constantly looking for ways to improve security. One of the possible solutions proposed has been the use of biometrics, defined by the Biometric Consortium as "automated methods of recognizing a person base on a physiological or behavioral characteristic". One of the least costly, most convenient, and least invasive methods of biometrics is speaker verification. The Naval Research Laboratory's Voice Systems Section has undergone an extensive study of a commercial speaker verification system in adverse military noise and voice encoding environments. Additional testing was conducted to study the amount of improvement that could be achieved using a noise canceling preprocessor. This report documents the performance results in 10 different military noise environments, six different voice encoding algorithms, and all combinations of the two, with and without noise cancellation. Results show that speaker verification definitely show promise under some conditions. In many cases, a significant improvement in performance was achieved by using a noise cancellation preprocessor. While more testing needs to be done to gauge the level of performance under live conditions, this report shows system integrators where speaker verification could possibly be used.


The proper choice of mapping used in space-mapping optimization algorithms is typically problem dependent. The number of parameters of the space-mapping surrogate model must be adjusted so that the model is flexible enough to reflect the features of the fine model, but at the same time is not over flexible. Its extrapolation capability should allow the prediction of the fine model response in the neighborhood of the current iteration point. A wrong choice of space-mapping type may lead to poor performance of the space-mapping optimization algorithm. In this paper, we consider a space-mapping optimization algorithm with an adaptive surrogate model. This allows us to adjust the type of space-mapping surrogate model used in a given iteration based on the approximation/extrapolation capability of the model. The technique does not require any additional fine model evaluations


The ability to continually discover novel concepts is a core task in open world learning. For classical learning tasks new samples might be identified via manual labeling. Since this is a labor intensive task, this paper proposes to utilize causal information for doing so. Image data provides us with the ability to directly observe the physical, real-world appearance of concepts. However, the information presented in images is usually of noisy and unstructured nature. In this position paper we propose to leverage causal information to both structure and causally connect visual representations. Specifically, we discuss the possibilities of using causal models as a knowledge source for identifying novel concepts in the visual domain.


We describe a novel six-wheeled "omnidirectional" autonomous robot platform based on the USU smart wheel mobility capability concept and a distributed, multiprocessor vetronics system. We also describe the multiresolution behavior-generation strategy that was developed for these systems. A task decomposition approach using a grammar of primitive maneuvers is the basis for mission and path planning for the ODV robots, and a feedback linearization control strategy is used for path tracking. Simulations and experiments show the effectiveness of the mission planning and control strategies. Our ongoing and future research considers the mobility advantages offered by the ODV platform over more conventional systems and looks for ways to more tightly integrate the mission and path planner functions with the vehicle-level control systems to develop intelligent, reactive behaviors.


The influence of atmospheric channel on the quality of laser transmission is a key problem in wireless optical communication. It is necessary to analyze the transmission characteristics of wireless optical communication signals under different weather conditions. Based on the measurement data of subcarrier 16PSK modulated communication system, the probability statistics of light intensity distribution and cyclic spectrum characteristics of 16PSK signal are compared and analyzed under four different weather conditions. The results show that subcarrier modulation can suppress the influence of atmospheric turbulence. The 16PSK signal has obvious cyclic stationary characteristics under four weather conditions, but snow days have the greatest influence on the distribution of light intensity and cyclic spectrum characteristics.


The discovery of interferons by Isaacs and Lindenmann 1 led, within a short time, to major revisions in concepts of cellular immunity and recovery of multicellular organisms from infection. More recent evidence suggests that the interferon system may play a role during infection by chlamydiae and certain protozoal parasites. There is only suggestive evidence to support the interesting possibility that the interferon system is also of functional significance in uninfected cells. In this communication we shall consider the implications of the interferon system as a host defense during infection and as a biological mechanism. Several reviews and other portions of this issue contain related information. 2-10 A more detailed treatment of this subject will be published including detailed references. 10 An Overview of the Interferon System. The interferon system is now thought to be divisible into several components. We will refer to interferon as a protein or proteins which are


sculptures in the marketplace to reinforce civic identity and impress the importance of honesty and fair dealings. It should be added that while the relationship between market society and marketplace is central to the professed aim of the book, it is not as consistent a guiding principle in the text as one might expect. The second part of the book sometimes reads as an extensive description of market attitudes, practices, and rules, with only occasional references to spatial and physical aspects. It is in these descriptive sections that it becomes apparent that the link with prominent academic debates on the role of institutions in market exchange is not strong. Romano does not engage with recent debates on issues such as the benefits and disadvantages of merchant guilds (see Sheilagh Ogilvie, Institutions and European Trade: Merchant Guilds, 1000–1800, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2011) or the willingness of cities to adapt trade institutions in reaction to changes in trade networks and the requirements of traders (see Oscar Gelderblom, Cities of Commerce: The Institutional Foundations of International Trade in the Low Countries, 1250–1650, Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 2013). The author is at his best when he sticks to the core of his argument: the interaction between market attitudes and the layout and physical appearance of the marketplace. Here Romano is convincing, building up his argument by using poetry, architecture, paintings, and sculptures in various Italian cities. Scholars interested in the cultural and social aspects of medieval markets and their spatial manifestations will find his book well worth reading.


Hundreds of laparoendoscopic single‐site surgery (LESS) and natural orifice transluminal endoscopic surgery (NOTES) cases have been reported in the literature across a broad span of urological procedures. Despite this, many hurdles to widespread adoption of these techniques exist, including technical challenges, such as decreased triangulation and unfamiliar viewing angles, and more philosophical issues, such as the necessity of demonstrating benefits of these techniques over conventional laparoscopy. Future research will seek to overcome these obstacles. This may be accomplished with further instrument development, including robotic instrumentation, as well as clinical studies evaluating outcomes of LESS/NOTES operations that may demonstrate advantages in these techniques.


Discourse structure and coherence relations are one of the main inferential challenges addressed by computational pragmatics. The present study focuses on discourse markers as key elements in guiding the inferences of the statements in natural language. Through a rule-based approach for the automatic identification, classification and annotation of the discourse markers in a multilingual parallel corpus (Arabic-Spanish-English), this research provides a valuable resource for the community. Two main aspects define the novelty of the present study. First, it offers a multilingual computational processing of discourse markers, grounded on a theoritical framework and implemented in a XML tagging scheme. The XML scheme represents a set of pragmatic and grammatical attributes, considered as basic features for the different kinds of discourse markers. Besides, the scheme provides a typology of discourse markers based on their discursive functions including hypothesis, co-argumentation, cause, consequence, concession, generalization, topicalization, reformulation, enumeration, synthesis, etc. Second, Arabic language is addressed from a computational pragmatic perspective where the identification, classification and annotation processes are carried out using the information provided from the tagging of Spanish discourse markers and the alignments.


This review describes recent advances in developing human nucleoside transporters (hNTs) as biomarkers to predict response to nucleoside analog drugs with clinical activity. Understanding processes that contribute to drug response or lack thereof will provide strategies to potentiate efficacy or avoid toxicities of nucleoside analog drugs. hNT abundance, evaluated by immunohistochemical methods, has shown promise as a predictive marker to assess clinical drug response that could be used to identify patients who would most likely benefit from nucleoside analog drug treatment.


In this paper, the effects of vibrations at high frequencies onto a freely falling two-body system in Schwarzschild spacetime are investigated. As reference motion of the same system without vibrations, a circular orbit around the central body is considered. The vibrations induce a perturbation on this motion, whose period is close to the orbital period, in agreement with the simpler situation of the Shirokov effect. In general relativity, the amplitude of the perturbation is dominated by high-velocity effects, which grow linearly in the radius r of the circular orbit, while the leading term surviving the Newtonian limit decays as 1/r. Thus, even for very large radii a significant difference between Newtonian physics and general relativity is found. We give an estimate of this effect for some molecular vibrations of a system orbiting around the Earth.


Changes in progenitor cell biology remain at the forefront of many theories of biologic aging, but there are limited studies evaluating this in humans. Aging has been associated with a progressive depletion of circulating progenitor cells, but age-related bone marrow-resident progenitor cell depletion has not been systematically determined in humans. Patients undergoing total hip replacement were consented, and bone marrow and peripheral progenitor cells were enumerated based on aldehyde dehydrogenase activity and CD34 and CD133 expression. Circulating progenitors demonstrated an age-dependent decline. In contrast, marrow-resident progenitor cell content demonstrated no age association with any progenitor cell subtype. In humans, aging is associated with depletion of circulating, but not marrow-resident, progenitors. This finding has impact on the mechanism(s) responsible for age-related changes in circulating stem cells and important implications for the use of autologous marrow for the treatment of age-related diseases.


Landscape metrics are generally calculated from complete land cover and land use maps. However, a relatively new approach has been to use sample data for the same purpose. The objective of the study was to review the literature on sampling methods for estimating landscape metrics. The advantages of using sampling include the possibility to derive metrics at low cost, the possibility of using existing survey data, and the possibility in some cases to attain improved accuracy through careful assessments at a limited number of sampling units rather than by crude assessments for all patches of a land cover map. Among the disadvantages are the estimation of some metrics with bias or that cannot be estimated at all, and to some extent handling of sample data requires practitioners to acquire new skills. In conclusion, sampling-based approaches for the estimation of landscape metrics appear promising. Interesting areas for further studies involve (1) the optimization of sample-based inventories with respect to landscape metric estimation, (2) comparisons of selected sampling-based approaches and "wall-to-wall" based approaches, where all relevant error sources and costs are included, and (3) further investigations of whether metrics can be redefined to better suit sample-based assessments without compromising interpretability.


The aim of this work was to assess and validate the construction technology proposed in the manual published by the Pontificia Universidad Católica del Perú (PUCP), Building Hygienic and Earthquake-Resistant Adobe Houses Using Geomesh Reinforcement. In order to validate the proposed technology, two full-scale adobe wall house models were built and subjected to dynamic tests on the PUCP's unidirectional shaking table. Geogrid was used as reinforcement for the adobe walls. One of the models was aligned with the direction of shaking, so that its longitudinal walls were subjected to in-plane forces and its transverse walls to out-of-plane forces. The other model was turned 45° with respect to the direction of shaking in order to have all the walls subjected to both in-plane and out-of-plane forces. The results of both tests were also compared to those obtained during previous tests of an unreinforced adobe model.


Metastatic bone disease is a common feature of many types of cancer and has a severe impact on the quality of life of patients. Hence, specific therapeutic strategies inhibiting tumor induced osteolysis are urgently needed. In this study, we aimed to interfere with integrin adhesion receptors, which are central players of the bone resorption process, including osteoclastogenesis as well as osteoclast/bone matrix interaction. For this purpose, we used a cyclic RGD peptide which blocks integrin aVâ3 and aVâ5-ligand binding. Our results revealed that the RGD peptide blocked osteoclast maturation in a dose-dependent manner. In detail, pre-osteoclasts treated with the RGD peptide exhibited reduced cell spreading, migration and adhesion on RGD-containing matrix proteins, such as osteopontin and fibrinogen, which are ligands of integrin aVâ3. The activation of the most upstream signal transduction molecules of the integrin receptor-initiated pathway, such as FAK and c-Src, were consistently blocked by the RGD peptide. First evidence has suggested that the RGD peptide might interfere with metastatic bone disease in vivo and the evidence presented herein describes the underlying mechanisms of the inhibitory effect of the RGD peptide on aV-integrin expressing pre-osteoclasts by blocking integrin ligand binding and interfering with osteoclast maturation and cell behavior. In conclusion, our findings suggest that using an RGD peptide to interfere with aV-integrins on osteoclasts may represent a novel therapeutic strategy in the treatment of malignant bone disease. Citation Format: Gerald Prager, Daniela Bianconi, Anastasia Chilla, Alexandra Dorda, Nisha Geetha, Matthias Unseld, Despoina Sykoutri, Marina Poettler, Kurt Redlich, Christoph Zielinski. Effects of an RGD peptide in osteoclast maturation and behavior as a therapeutic option for metastatic bone disease. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 106th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2015 Apr 18-22; Philadelphia, PA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2015;75(15 Suppl):Abstract nr 406. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2015-406


The terms "metallogenic epoch" and "metallogenic province" have been widely used for many years, but are so poorly defined that most of Earth's surface and geologic history has been designated a metallogenic feature of some sort. We propose defining metallogenic epoch and metallogenic province as those time intervals of Earth history and regions of Earth, respectively, which contain a significantly greater number of deposits or larger tonnage of a specific deposit type than would have resulted from average rates of mineralization that have occurred over Phanerozoic time. Here, we evaluate the application of this definition to porphyry copper deposits. Metallogenic epochs for porphyry copper deposits can be identified by comparison between a real-Earth age-frequency distribution based on ages of known deposits and a model age-frequency distribution that simulates the formation of porphyry copper deposits and their subsequent vertical uplift and/or subsidence (relative to the Earth's surface) after they form. The latter represents the age-frequency distribution that would be expected if rates of mineralization did not deviate from the Phanerozoic average, and is determined by least-squared minimization of differences between model and real-Earth age-frequency values. Metallogenic epochs are defined as (duration-normalized) time periods in which real-Earth numbers or sizes of deposits differ significantly from the model value of average numbers or sizes of deposits that have formed over the past ~545 m.y. of Earth history. Eight of the 80 Phanerozoic stages, constituting 5.5 percent of this time interval, meet this definition; these include the upper Eocene, Paleocene (all 3 stages), lower Triassic, middle Pennsylvanian, upper Silurian, and upper Ordovician. Metallogenically impoverished stages occurred during the Upper Cretaceous and the upper Oligocene. Time intervals of deposit enrichment (and scarcity) exhibit little correlation with records of widely known global geologic features or processes. At a more regional scale, however, mineralization along South and Central America slightly postdated times of enhanced production of East Pacific sea floor, and many Paleocene deposits underwent enhanced preservation beneath younger rocks. Metallogenic provinces appear to be recognizable through use of the power-law relationship between the duration-normalized spatial density of real-Earth deposits and the size of areas that host the deposits. Comparison of real-Earth spatial densities to a best-fit line to data for all areas containing deposits allows recognition of areas that have greater spatial densities. Our analysis suggests that variation in the distribution of porphyry copper deposits in both time and space are largely unpredictable at even epoch and regional scales of consideration, respectively, and indicate that the presence or absence of deposits in one time interval or region does not effectively predict the abundance of other deposits in other time intervals or geographic localities. This conclusion, however, does not preclude the importance of geologic controls on either deposits or metallogenic features. Rather, it strongly affirms the widely accepted fact that the distribution of ore deposits and metallogenic features is due to a large number of geologic factors and processes that vary from place to place and time to time. More rigorous definition of metallogenic epochs and provinces and more detailed geologic study at the local scale will lead to a better understanding of those processes that account for statistically anomalous concentrations of mineralization in both time and space.


The notion of a "survival" in culture, first proposed by E. B. Tylor in 1871, was used extensively for perhaps three decades, and then fell into disfavor, and came to be regarded by many anthropologists as unworthy of further consideration. Yet the concept of a survival is logically coherent and is strongly supported in sister disciplines such as linguistics. This paper maintains that – despite whatever excesses may have given it a bad name – the concept of a survival has a legitimate place in cultural anthropology. Beyond that, I maintain that Tylor missed what is surely the most dramatic example of a cultural survival that he might have used to make his case, namely the idea of the dragon, which has baffled anthropologists, folklorists, and others for generations, but which emerges from basic application of scientific method, as a survival of the rainbow serpent in post-animist societies. [Tylor's legacy, concept of survival, comparative method, rainbow, serpent, dragon]


Summary Introduction: In Iranian traditional medicine, Zataria multiflora Boiss (Lamiaceae family) is reputed due to its antiseptic effects. Objective: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the antibacterial and biofilm killing effects of Z. multiflora essential oil and main components against Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Methods: The main components of essential oil were identified by gas chromatography (GC) and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). The antibacterial properties of Z. multiflora oil and main components were determined by assessing the MIC and MBC values, and their inhibition percent of biofilm killing effects were determined by the evaluation of optical density. The role of each main component in these activities was determined according to the chemical profiles of essential oil. Results: Thymol (38.7%), carvacrol (30.6%), and p-cymene (8.3%) were main components of twenty five components of essential oil. Carvacrol had the higher role in antibacterial activity against P. aeruginosa, followed by thymol. P-cymene enhanced the antibacterial activities of thymol and carvacrol against P. aeruginosa. Carvacrol showed the weak role in biofilm killing effect. In spite of the low antibacterial activity of p-cymene against P. aeruginosa, it can enhance the antibacterial activity of thymol or carvacrol. Conclusion: Z. multiflora essential oil can be used for the management of P. aeruginosa infections. Determining the precise role of each components needs investigating in their behavior in different media.


Distance bounding has gained attention in the last decades due to the increasing need for security in applications, such as contactless payment and keyless access control. In such applications, it is important to verify if the two entities participating in a transaction are geographically close to each other. In other applications, it is critical to guarantee that the two entities are not too close, e.g., human and machines interacting in the same environment. A distance fraud is a known class of attacks in this context, and it has been shown that particular attacks within this class can be successfully applied to any distance estimation approach relying on round-trip time-of-flight measurements. In this paper we discuss the feasibility of detecting such attacks with signal strength estimations, an approach which was deemed unsuitable for distance bounding by previous related studies. We show that our method can detect attacks in case a dishonest prover does not respect the given bounds by using path-loss models available in the literature.


Fluctuating asymmetry is the stochastic, minor deviation from perfect symmetry in bilaterally symmetrical organisms. It reflects the limit of developmental precision. Such a precision can be influenced by various factors, both internal (genetic mutations, stochastic variation at every levels of development) and external (environmental influences). Fluctuating asymmetry has receive an extreme attention for the past few decades, that culminated in the 90s: it has been used as an estimator of heterozygosity, fitness, environmental stress, and widely applied to human biology, sociobiology and psychology before being more or less discredited in the early 2000s. The reasons for such an extreme popularity and then disgrace are discussed here. Far from suggesting to abandon the study of fluctuating asymmetry, we indicate some of the most promising research avenues. ‡.


Objective To examine the central cardiovascular action of urotensin II in conscious rats. Methods Intracerebroventricular (ICV) injections of urotensin II (1 and 10 nmol) were carried out in conscious Wistar rats. The effects of intravenous (i.v.) urotensin II (10 nmol) were also determined. Results The ICV injection of urotensin II at a dose of 1 nmol did not alter the arterial pressure or heart rate significantly, while 10 nmol urotensin II increased the arterial pressure and heart rate. The mean arterial pressure at 5 min of ICV urotensin II was 121 ± 4 mmHg, which was significantly higher than that obtained by ICV injection of artificial cerebrospinal fluid (107 ± 3 mmHg, P < 0.05). In addition, significant increases in heart rate were observed 5–15 min after ICV urotensin II. Pre-treatment with pentolinium (5 mg/kg, i.v.) significantly attenuated the increases in mean arterial pressure (20 ± 3 versus 8 ± 2 mmHg, P < 0.01) and heart rate (78 ± 18 versus 7 ± 5 beats/min, P < 0.05) induced by ICV urotensin II. On the other hand, i.v. injection of urotensin II (10 nmol) elicited a depressor response associated with tachycardia; mean arterial pressure 5 min after injection was significantly lower in the urotensin II-injected rats (89 ± 5 mmHg) than in the control rats (102 ± 2 mmHg, P < 0.05), and the heart rate was significantly higher in the former (402 ± 11 versus 360 ± 9 beats/min, respectively, P < 0.05). Conclusions Central urotensin II produces pressor and tachycardic responses through sympathetic activation, while peripheral urotensin II exerts a vasodilation-mediated depressor response in conscious rats.


The notion of teachers' professional development has shifted from simply short-term in-service training to every kind of informal experiences, professional meetings or mentoring activities that promote growth and development of the teachers in the profession. Concerning this fact in mind, it is supposed that the transnational education experiences of pre-service teachers might also serve for their professional developments. Although the available literature revealed that the transnational education or short term mobility experiences somehow contributed to the professional development of pre-service teachers, it seems that in-depth studies uniquely focused on the perceptions of EFL pre-service teachers on the contribution of transnational education experiences to their professional development is scarce in number. Thus, the present study intended to examine the perceptions of pre-service EFL teachers qualitatively regarding the contribution of short term mobility experiences to their professional development. The data of the present study is gathered through two-round e-mail interviews with available participants, who are 19 pre-service EFL teachers enrolling in a foreign language teacher education program of a state university in Turkey. The gathered data is analyzed through semantic level thematic analysis of recurrent patterns in their e-mails and the findings were presented in frequencies and percentages adapting a hermeneutic approach. As for the trustworthiness of the findings, the themes emerged from the content analysis of the data were verified by another expert in the field. The findings of the present study revealed that transnational education experiences of participants contributed to their professional development in terms of some aspects including active learning and understanding educational policies and practice in other contexts, using inclusive practices and practicing in a collaborative environment and getting coaching/expert support to a great amount.


In this paper I draw on ethnographic field research on experience of Slovak au pairs working in London in 2004 and 2005. I will discuss how participant observation with specific focus on material culture enables us to grasp experiences of migrants situated outside formal labour market. I will start with Saskia Sassen (2003) and her argument that economic processes situated in global cities both create demand for paid domestic workers and render both themselves and their work invisible. After showing how immigration rules and labour law make both au pairs and their work invisible, I will move into materiality of host households, focusing on (in)visibility of au pairs, their work and agency there. I will continue revealing how au pairs respond to exploitation and misrecognition of either their work or personalities in host households. In particular, I will look at their strategies related to materiality of household, revealing how au pairs accentuate their relationship to the host families through food consumption and usage of their rooms. Then I will argue that au pairs' work and awkward relationship with the host family results into au pairs' orientation to social relationships outside of host families' households and affects also the ways how they experience city. In particular, au pairs do not socialise much with their hosts but tend to spend the time with other Czech and Slovak migrants. Furthermore, the rhythm of domestic work bounds au pairs mainly to suburbia and peripheral quarters of London where they work.


An integrated Artificial Neural Network- Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO) is presented for analyzing global electricity consumption. To aim this purpose, following steps are done: STEP 1: in the first step, PSO is applied in order to determine world's oil, natural gas, coal and primary energy demand equations based on socio-economic indicators. World's population, Gross domestic product (GDP), oil trade movement and natural gas trade movement are used as socio-economic indicators in this study. For each socio-economic indicator, a feed-forward back propagation artificial neural network is trained and projected for future time domain. STEP 2: in the second step, global electricity consumption is projected based on the oil, natural gas, coal and primary energy consumption using PSO. global electricity consumption is forecasted up to year 2040.


It can be desirable to specify policies that require a system to achieve some outcome even if a certain number of failures occur. The temporal logic of robustness RoCTL* extends CTL* with operators from Deontic logic, and a novel operator referred to as "Robustly" (French, McCabe-Dansted & Reynolds 2007). It is known that RoCTL* can be translated into CTL*, but that the translation must be have at least a singly exponential blowup per nested Robustly operator (McCabe-Dansted, Pinchinat, French & Reynolds 2009). We now present a translation that has asymptotically a singly exponential blowup per nested Robustly operator, matching the known lower bound. This translation uses a combination of automata and LTL. This combination is useful not due to greater theoretical expressivity than LTL, but instead because RoCTL* is more naturally expressed combination of automaton and LTL operators than LTL operators alone; this combination allows us to avoid the need for a round trip from automata to LTL and back for each nested Robustly operator.


Performance of the IEEE 802.16 e power management is mainly affected by two operating parameters: the minimum sleep interval (T min) and the maximum sleep interval (T max), in sleep-mode operation. To enhance the performance, this letter proposes a new power saving mechanism, which adaptively controls these parameters by considering the request period of each initiation of awakening (Tint)- The numerical analysis and simulation results show that this mechanism can achieve better energy conservation with reasonable response delay of Medium Access Control (MAC) Service Data Units (SDUs) than the standard operation.


Corps, matiere et contact.Abstract — This paper addresses Alexander's theory of the sensible world, and of the most important sorts of change within it, such as alteration and blending. First, I overview the minimal requirements for an item to be considered a « body » according to Alexander. Then, I determine which factors explain the physical characteristics of the bodies and their mutual interactions (that is, their relations of activity and passivity with one another). I also examine why Alexander does not find the Stoic account of material bodies to be satisfactory and, I consider Alexander's strange construal of the Stoic body as a « stuff » composed either of matter, or of matter and qualities. The solution to these questions lies in the « anti-materialist » and « anti-reductionist » orientation of Alexander's physics : according to him, neither the constitution nor operation of bodies can be reduced to their minimal and necessary conditions (that are, respectively, matter and contact). Thus, his position is the exact opposite of the Stoic view : the essence of bodies and their changes can only be understood by reference to the incorporeal and intelligible principles that ultimately form the very factors responsible for the specific « coherence » of the sensible world (that is, of both its polarity and selectivity). Finally, I will examine a specific problem Alexander solves by emphasizing the non-corporeal causes of the natural world. And I will show that his position leads him to a special type of « naturalism », which was particularly exciting for the Neoplatonists and, later, highly consonant with the medieval approaches to accounting for the causes of sensible things. Because bodies are, for Alexander, more than mere bodies, his physics becomes not only the common point of reference for Plotinus and his followers in Late Antiquity and Middle Ages, but also an important point of departure for what we might call a metaphysical approach to the sensible world.


We have analysed the effect of RAD52 deletion in several aspects of the cell biology of Candida albicans. Cultures of rad52Δ strains exhibited slow growth and contained abundant cells with a filamentous morphology. Filamentation with polarization of actin patches was accompanied by the induction of the hypha‐specific genes (HSG) ECE1, HWP1 and HGC1. However, filament formation occurred in the absence of the transcription factors Efg1 and Cph1, even though disruption of EFG1 prevented expression of HSG. Therefore, expression of HSG genes accompanies but is dispensable for rad52Δ filamentation. However, deletion of adenylate cyclase severely impaired filamentation, this effect being largely reverted by the addition of exogenous cAMP. Filaments resembled elongated pseudohyphae, but some of them looked like true hyphae. Following depletion of Rad52, many cells arrested at the G2/M phase of the cell cycle with a single nucleus suggesting the early induction of the DNA‐damage checkpoint. Filaments formed later, preferentially from G2/M cells. The filamentation process was accompanied by the uncoupling of several landmark events of the cell cycle and was partially dependent on the action of the cell cycle modulator Swe1. Hyphae were still induced by serum, but a large number of rad52 cells myceliated in G2/M.


We have previously suggested that PKCα has a role in 12-O-Tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate (TPA)-mediated growth arrest and myogenic differentiation in human embryonal rhabdomyosarcoma cells (RD). Here, by monitoring the signalling pathways triggered by TPA, we demonstrate that PKCα mediates these effects by inducing transient activation of c-Jun N-terminal protein kinases (JNKs) and sustained activation of both p38 kinase and extracellular signal-regulated kinases (ERKs) (all referred to as MAPKs). Activation of MAPKs following ectopic expression of constitutively active PKCα, but not its dominant-negative form, is also demonstrated. We investigated the selective contribution of MAPKs to growth arrest and myogenic differentiation by monitoring the activation of MAPK pathways, as well as by dissecting MAPK pathways using MEK1/2 inhibitor (UO126), p38 inhibitor (SB203580) and JNK and p38 agonist (anisomycin) treatments. Growth-arresting signals are triggered either by transient and sustained JNK activation (by TPA and anisomycin, respectively) or by preventing both ERK and JNK activation (UO126) and are maintained, rather than induced, by p38. We therefore suggest a key role for JNK in controlling ERK-mediated mitogenic activity. Notably, sarcomeric myosin expression is induced by both TPA and UO126 but is abrogated by the p38 inhibitor. This finding indicates a pivotal role for p38 in controlling the myogenic program. Anisomycin persistently activates p38 and JNKs but prevents myosin expression induced by TPA. In accordance with this negative role, reactivation of JNKs by anisomycin, in UO126-pre-treated cells, also prevents myosin expression. This indicates that, unlike the transient JNK activation that occurs in the TPA-mediated myogenic process, long-lasting JNK activation supports the growth-arrest state but antagonises p38-mediated myosin expression. Lastly, our results with the MEK inhibitor suggest a key role of the ERK pathway in regulating myogenic-related morphology in differentiated RD cells.


This paper has proposed a new variance-based sorting initial pattern library algorithm for machine learning. First, we sort the training vector set based on vector variance; second, categorize it to several subsets with variance thresholds; last, select some number of pattern vectors from the subsets to form the initial pattern library. This new initial pattern library algorithm is tested by two unsupervised machine learning algorithms: self-organizing feature maps (SOM) algorithm and frequency sensitive self-organizing feature maps (FSOM) algorithm. Experimental results for image coding show that this new initial pattern library algorithm is better than the common random sampling algorithm.


The essay analyzes some occurrences of body in Leonardo da Vinci's autographs referring to mechanics and optics, to reach the goal of verifying how much the pertinence of lexical transfert lies inside ancient writings.


The resistivity, Hall coefficient, magnetoresistance and thermoelectric power of the sintered superconducting oxides RBa2Cu3O7- delta (R=Y, Gd, Sm, Nd and Dy) have been measured in the temperature range 80 to 300 K. It is observed that the superconducting transition temperature does not change upon replacing Y by rare earth ions. The resistivity and thermoelectric power increases with temperature increase in the normal state in all the samples. A correlation between the Hall coefficient and thermoelectric power, along with the assumption that the holes introduced in the top full band by the doping of oxygen atoms are the current carriers, reveals the effective mass of the carriers to be temperature dependent. The temperature variations of the resistivity, Hall coefficient and thermoelectric power have been explained well by the temperature-dependent effective mass of holes and hole-phonon scattering. The concentration, mobility, effective mass and Fermi energy of carriers have been calculated.


One essential interpolation constraint on subdivision surfaces is curve interpolation. Subdivision surfaces through predefined meshes of curves can now be generated using either variations of existing subdivision schemes or (in our case) polygonal complexes. This paper goes one step further; given a sequence of cross sectional curves (c/sub i/), each defined by a uniform cubic B-spline control polygon (cp/sub i/), we present a technique for generating a lofted subdivision surface through these curves. The advantages of using polygonal complexes coupled with subdivision surfaces are that curves do not have to be compatible and that it is possible to locally control the cross curvature of a given cross section.


ABSTRACT The retroviral vector systems that are in common use for gene therapy are designed to infect cells expressing either of two widely expressed phosphate transporter proteins, Pit1 or Pit2. Subgroup B feline leukemia viruses (FeLV-Bs) use the gibbon ape leukemia virus receptor, Pit1, as a receptor for entry. Our previous studies showed that some chimeric envelope proteins encoding portions of FeLV-B could also enter cells by using a related receptor protein, Pit2, which serves as the amphotropic murine leukemia virus receptor (S. Boomer, M. Eiden, C. C. Burns, and J. Overbaugh, J. Virol. 71:8116–8123, 1997). Here we show that an arginine at position 73 within variable region A (VRA) of the FeLV-B envelope surface unit (SU) is necessary for viral entry into cells via the human Pit2 receptor. However, C-terminal SU sequences have a dominant effect in determining human Pit2 entry, even though this portion of the protein is outside known receptor binding domains. This suggests that a combination of specific VRA sequences and C-terminal sequences may influence interactions between FeLV-B SU and the human Pit2 receptor. Binding studies suggest that the C-terminal sequences may affect a postbinding step in viral entry via the Pit2 receptor, although in all cases, binding of FeLV-B SU to human Pit2 was weak. In contrast, neither the arginine 73 nor specific C-terminal sequences are required for efficient binding or infection with Pit1. Taken together, these data suggest that different residues in SU may interact with these two receptors. The specific FeLV-Bs described here, which can enter cells using either human Pit receptor, may be useful as envelope pseudotypes for viruses used in gene therapy.


Stunting children are the result of chronic nutritional problems as a result of food quality, coupled with morbidity, infectious diseases and environmental problems. This study aims to determine the description of complementary feeding practice for stunting toddlers aged 13-24 months in Cipadang village. This study uses a qualitative approach conducted by conducting in-depth interviews and observations. The informants in this study were the main caregivers of toddlers's mother, family informants and health center nutrition workers. The results of the study showed that the parenting of breastfeeding complementary feeding was still less than the variation, portion and frequency of its giving. Mother or caregivers are encouraged to regularly come to the posyandu and ask cadres or health workers about the provision of good complementary feeding for stunting toddlers, especially in terms of portions, frequency and variation. In addition health workers must always provide assistance to stunting toddlers in order to get the optimal health degree.


Mesoporous monolithic (3D) boron nitride (BN) structures are synthesized using a template‐assisted polymer‐derived ceramic route. Polyborazylene is selected to impregnate monolithic activated carbon, which is used as template. After pyrolysis and template removal, this method supplies BN compounds with controlled crystallinity and tunable textural properties controlled by the temperature at which they have been annealed (from 1000 to 1450 °C). Monoliths with an interconnected mesoporous network, high specific surface areas from 584 to 728 m2 g−1, significant pore volumes from 0.75 to 0.93 cm3 g−1, and a relatively high compressive strength are generated. These highly porous compounds are used as nanoscaffolds to confine ammonia borane (AB). The composites provide an effective gravimetric hydrogen capacity of up to 8.1 wt %, based on AB measured at 100 °C; this value demonstrates the high potential of this system as a safe potential hydrogen storage material.


INTRODUCTION
Many studies, globally, have aimed at elucidating reasons to choose a career in dentistry. The most common motives found are reasonable working hours and aspiration to help. The aim of this study was to explore whether eventual past personal experience of orthodontic treatment and particularly the interpersonal skills of the treating orthodontist are of significance in this respect.

MATERIALS AND METHODS
An electronic questionnaire, consisting of multiple choice and descriptive questions about dental history and experiences in dental care, was sent to dental and, as controls, psychology students within the same Faculty of Medicine, University of Helsinki, Finland. The answers between the two groups were compared and differences tested statistically.

RESULTS
The questionnaire was answered by 143 (46.0%) dental students and 94 (17.6%) psychology students. Dental students, compared to psychology students, had more positive views of their dentition and dental treatment in general (P=0.000). Among participants, 47.9% of dental students and 57.4% of psychology students had received orthodontic treatment. Of those, dental students had perceived their orthodontic treatment as less painful (P=0.001) and less uncomfortable (P=0.000) than psychology students. Moreover, dental students reported more often experiences of orthodontist taking into account their situation in life during treatment (P=0.011), and gave more positive descriptions of the orthodontist's interpersonal skills (P=0.031).

CONCLUSIONS
Dental students, compared to psychology students, had statistically significantly more positive personal experiences related to dentistry and orthodontics, supporting our hypothesis that positive experiences with orthodontic treatment likely increases the probability of choosing dentistry as the future career.


Artist's houses that are opened to the public as museums shift from a private and everyday to a semi-public and institutional functioning. This transformation of an artist's house into a house-museum might appear as a mere legal issue or as a matter of making previously secluded rooms and collections accessible to the public. But this musealisation of an artist's house always involves a set of museological and architectural interventions as well. Not only need the house and its content to be displayed as historical documents through a careful mise-en-scene and through the addition of a sub-text of labels or explanatory panels that disclose the meaning of these historical documents; there is also a need for a logic and clear visitor's route in a house that was not intended for this. Often this already demands architectural design decisions, but it is mainly in the introduction of the supporting museum functions like the necessary office spaces and an entrance hall with reception desk, cloakroom and bathrooms that the musealisation comes down to an architectural design challenge. The proposed paper wants to discuss the artist's house museum from an architect's point of view, on the basis of a selection of artist's houses that were recently transformed into museums, such as the Atelier-Museum Luc Peire in Knokke (B) or the renovations of the Permeke and Rubens house museums. I want to propose the artist's house museum as an architectural typology by mapping its various typical architectural and spatial characteristics. The first crucial point of interest here is how the spatial division is articulated between the historic interiors, the exhibition spaces and the museum's service spaces outside of the visitor's circuit. A second architectural question is how the museum as an active institution can be given an architectural 'face' while respecting and presenting the house and its collections as historical documents; how can both the 'authentic' private atmosphere and the contemporary public museum be given shape, and is there a place for authorial design in this mediating exercise?


BACKGROUND
Ecologically based rodent pest management using biological control has never been evaluated for vole plagues in Europe, although it has been successfully tested in other systems. The authors report on the first large-scale replicated experiment to study the usefulness of nest-box installation for increasing the breeding density of common kestrels (Falco tinnunculus) and barn owls (Tyto alba) as a potential biological control of common vole (Microtus arvalis) abundance in agricultural habitats in north-western Spain.

RESULTS
The results show that: (1) population density of both predator species increased in response to both nest-site availability and vole density; (2) voles are a major prey for the common kestrels during the breeding period; (3) vole density during the increase phase of a population cycle may be reduced in crop fields near nest boxes.

CONCLUSION
The installation of nest boxes provides nesting sites for barn owls and kestrels. Kestrel populations increased faster than in areas without artificial nests, and the common vole was one of their main prey during the breeding season. The results suggest that local (field) effects could be found in terms of reduced vole density. If so, this could be an environmentally friendly and cheap vole control technique to be considered on a larger scale.


Assessed the psychological adjustment of 78 mothers of children and adolescents (7-17 years of age) with sickle cell disease. Support was provided for a transactional stress and coping model in delineating the processes associated with maternal adjustment. In particular, poor maternal adjustment was associated with use of palliative coping methods and high levels of stress related to daily hassles. Variables of the model accounted for 55% of the variance in maternal psychological distress.


Simple and general relations characterizing the behavior of infinite phased arrays of printed antenna elements are derived from a model based on infinite current sheets. The Green's function of an electric current source on a grounded dielectric slab is used in various limiting forms to treat arrays in free space, arrays above a ground plane, arrays on a semi-infinite substrate, and arrays on a grounded dielectric slab. Current sheets are selected, using the orthogonality properties of the Floquet modes of the infinite array Green's function, to excite only a few specific low-order Floquet modes. Results from this idealized model, in the form of reflection coefficient magnitudes and input resistance, are compared with rigorous moment method solutions for specific elements (dipoles and microstrip patches). It is shown how the dominant scanning characteristics of a printed phased array, such as reflection coefficient and input resistance trends, scan blindnesses, and grating lobe effects, are dictated more by factors such as element spacing and substrate parameters than by the particular element type itself.


Pleurisy refers to a pleural disease caused by pathogenic factors that stimulate the pleura associated with pleural inflammation and oxidative stress. Isoliquiritigenin (ISL), a flavonoid from the liquorice compound, possesses antioxidative and anti-inflammatory properties. In the current study, we investigated the protective effects of ISL on carrageenan-induced pleurisy and lung injury in mice. The mice were intraperitoneally injected with ISL (30 mg kg-1) twice (each time interval of 12 h), followed by exposure to Car 1 h after the second dose of ISL. Our results indicated that ISL treatment significantly alleviated carrageenan-induced histopathological damage and increased levels of inflammatory cell exudation, protein leakage, and pro-inflammatory mediators. Meanwhile, ISL inhibited reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation, MDA and MPO formation, and SOD and GSH depletion induced by carrageenan. In addition, it decreased the GSSG level and GSSG-to-GSH ratio. In terms of the mechanism, ISL inhibited NOX2 and NOX4 levels, caused the dissociation of KEAP-1 and Nrf2, and activated the downstream genes HO-1, NQO1, GCLC and GCLM, thus decreasing oxidative stress. In addition, ISL exerts protective effects against inflammation by suppressing the NOD-like receptor protein 3 (NLRP3)/NF-κB pathway and the high levels of iNOS and COX-2. In summary, our results reinforce the hypothesis that ISL exerts protective effects on carrageenan-induced pleurisy and lung injury in a manner that can be attributed to Nrf2-mediated antioxidative activities and NLRP3/NF-κB-mediated anti-inflammatory activities.


Infection with Chlamydia pneumoniae has been implicated as a potential risk factor for atherosclerosis. This study was designed to investigate the mechanisms of the anti-chlamydial activity of aspirin. A reporter gene assay for NF-kappa B activity, immunoblot analysis for cyclo-oxygenase (COX)-2 and radioimmunoassay for prostaglandin E(2) (PGE(2)) were performed. Following infection of HEp-2 cells with C. pneumoniae, NF-kappa B was activated, COX-2 was induced and PGE(2) was elevated. Aspirin inhibited NF-kappa B activation at a concentration of 0.1 mM, partially inhibited COX-2 induction and blocked PGE(2) synthesis completely. In addition, high doses of aspirin (1 and 2 mM) inhibited chlamydial growth in HEp-2 cells, decreasing the number and size of inclusion bodies; this effect could be overcome by adding tryptophan to the culture. Indomethacin also blocked the synthesis of PGE(2), but had no effect on COX-2 expression or chlamydial growth. These results indicate that aspirin not only has an anti-inflammatory activity through prevention of NF-kappa B activation but also has anti-chlamydial activity at high doses, possibly through depletion of tryptophan in HEp-2 cells.


We present a computational investigation of the dependence of material erosion on the incident ion angle at rough graphite and silicon carbide divertor surfaces. Ion angle distributions (IADs) for D plasmas at NSTX-U and DIII-D divertors were calculated by an equation-of-motion model that traces the ion trajectories in the sheath. Then, the effective sputtering yields and ion shadowed area fractions were calculated by a Monte Carlo micro-patterning and roughness code that applied the calculated IADs to surface topographic data that were obtained from optical confocal microscopy of rough graphite and SiC divertor surfaces from NSTX-U and DIII-D experiments. The calculations found that the effective sputtering yields, the sputtering pattern, and the shadowed area are determined by the detailed surface topology rather than the root mean square roughness RRMS, which represents deviations from a flat surface. The suppression of the effective sputtering yields for rough surfaces compared to the yield for a smooth surface was accounted for by the change of the mean local incident ion angle (LIIA) ⟨ θ′⟩. The mean surface inclination angle distribution (SIAD) ⟨ δ⟩ was found to be a useful parameter to estimate the LIIA from the calculated IADs. We report global empirical formulas for the mean LIIA and fraction of the area shadowed from the main ions for D plasmas for rough surfaces with B-field incident angles α = 85°–89° as a function of the mean SIAD ⟨ δ⟩. We propose the use of the mean LIIA ⟨ θ′⟩ to estimate the sputtering yield for rough surfaces from the angular dependence of the sputtering yield.


Тhe problems of valuation of ecosystem services in connection with the activation of economic activity of the Russian Federation in the Arctic zone are discussed. The types of negative impacts on the Arctic ecosystems and their assessment, investment risks existing in ecosystem services are considered. It is shown that the application of the methodology and apparatus of ecosystem services contributes to the adequate assessment and creation of a hierarchical classification of "usefulness" and "benefits" that society can get from the existence, use and nonuse of ecosystems. The concept of ecosystem services in relation to Arctic consists of three components: identification, monetization and ecological risk assessment. The example of the Arctic ecosystems shows that the susceptibility to assessment and the accuracy of the assessment can be quite different and is largely dependent on the type of service in the classification. The analysis of possible ecosystem services and their relationship with the quality of life of people in the Russian Arctic indicates significant investment risks.


Following a brief overview of the European Union's (EU) conflict management 'history', this article discusses the evolution of EU capabilities throughout the Union's involvement in the Western Balkans since the early 1990s. This is followed by a detailed case study of the EU intervention in Macedonia – Operation Concordia – and the contextual factors of that conflict, which shaped the outcomes of the EU's military efforts there. We conclude from this that the EU, alongside its partners in and beyond Macedonia, successfully prevented a likely civil war in the country in 2001, because the Union had a clearly defined set of interests, shared across institutions and member states, and interests that matched those of the main political players in Macedonia. This translated into sufficient political will to deploy sufficient military capabilities suited to the context of conflict management in Macedonia. However, we remain cautious as to whether the Union can muster similar levels of political will as well as the necessary capabilities to achieve the same elsewhere in the world.


Children have become integral parts of both organized military units and non-military units, with Africa considered to be at the epicentre of the child soldier phenomenon. An estimated 300,000 children are currently serving in both governmental armed forces and armed opposition groups, in direct contravention of international law. The recruitment and the use of children under the age of 15 years to participate actively in hostilities is prohibited according to customary international law.The Rome Statute identifies 'war crimes' as crimes which the International Criminal Court (ICC) has jurisdiction to prosecute. One of such crimes is 'Conscripting or enlisting children under the age of fifteen years into the national armed forces or using them to participate actively in hostilities'. The ICC is expected to be quite instrumental by bringing the violators of these children's rights to justice. This study aims to systematize the international legal framework in regards to child soldier recruitment. It will also highlight obstacles to the ICC in it's ambition to prosecute violators of such crimes. This study further aims to lay emphasis on the necessity for the balance of recognised rights of sovereign nations against the greater need for international justice. A specific look at two cases involving countries of the Great Lakes region of Africa currently in the investigative and trial phases before the ICC is given in the study; the situation in Uganda and in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.In advocating the need for a more functional prosecutorial framework for the ICC, this thesis attempts to suggest some enforcement mechanisms. The principal obstacles to the effectiveness of the ICC will always be Realpolitik and States' interests. It is argued that the structure of the ICC may be too weak, and that it lacks necessary jurisdiction or the ability to indict the perpetrators of international law. The jurisdiction of the Court is subjected to several preconditions, which considerably narrows down its ambit of functionality. The ICC should therefore advocate the need for an efficient national legal system and encourage national action and promote anti-impunity measures. The International Community, through the auspices of the ICC, must be given a clearer and more forceful mandate.


This report describes a new histologic method for determination of age at death, the latest in a series of studies that began with Kerley's pioneer presentation in 1965. The study population was collected from 328 documented individuals from an anatomy dissecting room in the United States, from two modern cemeteries in the Dominican Republic, and from autopsies performed in a Chilean hospital. Undecalcified thin sections 1.0 cm wide were made from specimens taken from the femoral midshaft directly opposite the linea aspera. Five 0.886 mm2 fields were located at the periosteal edge and photographed, mainly for purposes of defining the fields and providing a permanent record. Secondary osteons, type II osteons, osteon fragments, resorption spaces, and non-Haversian canals were recorded as number/mm2, and a 100-space grid was used to measure average percent of unremodeled, osteonal, and fragmental bone. Stepwise regression analysis of the measurements produced a series of regression equations for age estimation for females, males, and sexes combined. Most equations have a standard error of estimate of about 10 years, but the coefficients of determination (r2) range from 0.48 to 0.72. In practice, sex-specific equations gave better results than opposite-sex or nonspecific equations, mainly because males and females differed in the pattern of relations between osteons and osteon fragments with advancing age.


AIM OF STUDY
To assess the prevalence of markers of autoimmune destruction of pancreatic beta-cells in patients with non-insulin dependent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM).

SUBJECTS
127 hospitalized NIDDM patients subdivided to the following subgroups: non-obese with C-peptide < 0.3 nmol/l (NIDDM-(-)), non-obese with C-peptide > 0.3 nmol/l (NIDDM-(+)), obese with C-peptide < 0.3 nmol/l (NIDDM+(-)) and obese with C-peptide > 0.3 nmol/l (NIDDM2+). METHODS AND MEASURED PARAMETERS: Age, BMI, C-peptide, autoantibodies to glutamic acid decarboxylase (antiGAD-Ab), autoantibodies to islet cells (ICA), markers of specific cellular immunity CD4, CD8, CD19, CD4/CD8, CD4/CD45/RA+, CD4/CD45/RA-, NK (CD16+56), CD3/HLADR, organ specific/non-specific autoantibodies.

RESULTS
AntiGAD-Ab were positive in 5/15 (33.3%) NIDDM-(-), 1/32 (3.1%) NIDDM-(+), 2/9 (22.2%) NIDDM+(-) and in 3/71 (4.2%) NIDDM2+. The positivity of antiGAD-Ab in NIDDM-(-) and NIDDM+(-) was significantly higher (p < 0.05) than in NIDDM-(+) and NIDDM2+.

CONCLUSION
Some patients with manifestation of diabetes in older age initially classified and treated as having NIDDM may have in fact slowly evolving autoimmune insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (LADA). These patients can be identified by measurement of antiGAD-Ab or other markers (ICA, IA-2) of autoimmune destruction of pancreatic beta-cells (AID). Moreover, in some patients both AID and insulin resistance may coexist in parallel.


Objective: To explore the clinical value of MSCT and MRI findings in the diagnosing intraductal papillary mucinous carcinoma of the pancreas. Materials and Methods: Nine cases of intraductal papillary mucinous carcinoma of the pancreas underwent plain and contrast MSCT and among these 5 cases had plain and contrast MRI scanning. All cases were confirmed by surgical and pathology. The CT and MRI data were reviewed and analysed retrospectively and correlated with surgical and pathologic results. Results: Among the 9 cases, 5 cases were of the main duct type, showed obvious dilation of the main duct of the pancreas, most cases with mural nodules in the duct, which showed high density on CT and inhomogeneous long T1 nad long T2 signal on MRI, the main duct showed long T1 and long T2 signal. Three cases were of the branch-duct type, showed solitary or multiple cystic lesions with septum or nodules within the duct, CT showed high density, MRI showed long T1 long T2 signal. Two cases showed the lesion linked with the main duct. One case belonged to the mixed type showed solitary cystic lesion with nodules in the duct, together with dilation of the main duct, the lesion showed long T1 and long T2 signal. Six cases showed dilation of the main duct (4~45mm). Six cases showed atrophy of the pancreas, 3 cases with dilation of the duodenal papilla, 2 cases with irregular calcifications. After injection of contrast medium the intracystic septum was markedly enhanced and the mural nodules within the duct were mildly enhanced. Conclusion: Dynamic thin slice MSCT with MPR, CPR and MRI with MRCP have important value in diagnosing intraductal papillary mucinous carcinoma of the pancreas, small nodules can be showed clearly, and correlated well with pathologic findings. Connected with clinical signs, most cases can be distinguished from benign intraductal papillary mucinous neoplasms of the pancreas.


Role of disclinations and rotational modes of plastic deformation in fine-grained materials is discussed. First, we consider disclination models of generation and development of misorientation bands in severely deformed metals and alloys. The models predict the existence of the critical external shear stress, above which nucleation of misorientation bands takes place. The further analysis demonstrates two main regimes of misorientation band development: stable and unstable propagation, and allows to find another critical stress that controls the transition between these two regimes. We quote also some results of computer simulations of 2D dynamics of dislocations in the stress field of a dipole of partial wedge disclinations to elucidate the micromechanisms of misorientation band propagation. Second, theoretical models of grain boundary disclination motion in fine-grained materials are considered. This motion leads to changes in misorientations across the grain boundaries and may explain the rotation of grain crystalline lattice as a whole. It is demonstrated that motion of grain boundary disclinations may occur in fine-grained materials through emission of pairs of lattice dislocations into the adjacent grains or through climb of grain boundary dislocations. We also consider a model of crossover from grain boundary sliding to rotational deformation which is realized by the transformation of a pile-up of gliding grain boundary dislocations stopped by a triple junction of grain boundaries, into two walls of climbing grain boundary dislocations (treated as the dipoles of partial wedge disclinations). The conditions necessary for such a transformation are determined and discussed.


In the advent of the 21st century there can be no doubt that we have entered uncharted territory as we continue to employ diverse information and communication technologies (ICT) within healthcare. This is simply a matter of fact, at least for the Western world. But, as a question of value, what are the ethical and social ramifications of this healthcare trek? What assessments can we render on this murky, barely explored topography? A utopian answer is that ICT would deliver us to a technologic garden of healthcare delights. Here, health-related information and services abound and healthcare professionals and patients, under the protection of an electronic, global umbrella, operate in perfect harmony for the good of patients.


This study was planned to estimate the proportion of confirmed multi-drug resistance pulmonary tuberculosis (TB) cases out of the presumptive cases referred to DTC (District Tuberculosis Center) Jodhpur for diagnosis; to identify clinical and socio-demographic risk factors associated with the multidrug-resistant pulmonary TB and to assess the spatial distribution to find out clustering and pattern in the distribution of pulmonary TB with the help of Geographic Information System (GIS). In the Jodhpur district, 150 confirmed pulmonary multi-drug resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) cases, diagnosed by probe-based molecular drug susceptibility testing method and categorized as MDR in DTC's register (District Tuberculosis Center), were taken. Simultaneously, 300 control of confirmed non-MDR or drug-sensitive pulmonary TB patients were taken. Statistical analysis was done with logistic regression. In addition, for spatial analysis, secondary data from 2013-17 was analyzed using Global Moran's I and Getis and Ordi (Gi*) statistics. In 2012-18, a total of 12563 CBNAAT (Cartridge-based nucleic acid amplification test) were performed. 2898 (23%) showed M. TB positive but rifampicin sensitive, and 590 (4.7%) showed rifampicin resistant. Independent risk factors for MDR TB were ≤60 years age (AOR 3.0, CI 1.3-7.1); male gender (AOR 3.4, CI 1.8-6.7); overcrowding (AOR 1.6, CI 1.0-2.7); using chulha (smoke appliance) for cooking (AOR 2.5, CI 1.2-4.9), past TB treatment (AOR 5.7, CI 2.9-11.3) and past contact with MDR patient (AOR 10.7, CI 3.7-31.2). All four urban TUs (Tuberculosis Units) had the highest proportion of drug-resistant pulmonary TB. There was no statistically significant clustering, and the pattern of cases was primarily random. Most of the hotspots generated were present near the administrative boundaries of TUs, and the new ones mostly appeared in the area near the previous hotspots. A random pattern seen in cluster analysis supports the universal drug testing policy of India. Hotspot analysis helps cross administrative border initiatives with targeted active case finding and proper follow-up.


In this thesis, focus lays on converting a MATLAB model to Python. Models are used a lot by students and researchers at universities and they provide an unique way of calculating and reviewing data and results. However, at the Delft University of Technology, a lot of these models are written in MATLAB. MATLAB is a programming language which requires a expensive license. Many researchers in- and outside universities can't afford this licensewhich means that models are not available for everyone although lots of people would like to work hands on with these type of models. By making the first step in solving this problem, the WAM2-model originally created by R.J. van der Ent, is converted from MATLAB to Python. This conversion is done due to the fact that Python is open-source software which makes the model free to use for everyone. Also, MATLAB and Python syntax is generally the same which makes conversion even easier. Ultimately, theWAM2-model is converted to Python and ready to use by everyone. There are two versions in Python available, namely 1.0 and 2.0. 1.0 is the version with the same structure as the model in MATLAB. However, itwas found that the overall running time for version 1.0was much larger than the original model in MATLAB. This is due to Python executing notebooks inside of one masterscript notebook, which is not very fast with Python's data structure. To solve this problem, Python WAM2-model 2.0 is created. Version 2.0 makes more effective use of Python's data structure and this has led to running times almost twice as fast as the original model inMATLAB. Another benefit of conversion is that both model versions in Python are more user-friendly. Headers are possible in Python and by defining the data paths in the beginning of every masterscript, users don't have to go through every script to change directories. In the tracking of moisture, sometimes the first day requires data which is not available. To make the calculation possible, empty arrays are needed which are now automatically created in Python whereas inMATLAB, the user has to do this at his own expense. Ultimately, the plots created in Python are the same as inMATLAB.However, one additional plot is added, called the contourplot. With agreeing statements from the supervisors, these contourplots are more pleasing to the human eye and therefore they are included in the Python model. Next to converting the model, a readme has been made which can be found in Appendix B. This readme is a step by step guide, helping users by explaining lots of the Python syntax. This guide is therefore also included with the Python model. Using this converted model a precipitation shed is created for North Australia since previous research has shown an increasing rainfall pattern in this region. Different studies have tried to find the cause of this phenomenon. Most important seems to be the rise in sea surface temperature causing stronger monsoons, however also an increasing evaporation trend in Asia is mentioned. On the other hand different research has also shown some interesting effects caused by El Nino. To find answers to link these different studies an analysis is done covering two different periods. First the period 1980 – 1985 has been observed and afterwards this result is compared with the period 2010 – 2015. The sheds are created by tracking the atmospheric moisture backward from North Australia to its original source for both periods. The precipitation sheds provide answers for the increasing precipitation showing an increase in evaporation in the different source areas in the last decades. Also, an increasing precipitation trend in January is observed, which is in line with the stronger monsoons which might have been caused by the increase in sea surface temperature. Therefore fromthis research it can be stated that both local sea surface temperature and the atmospheric changes in Asia have a positive correlation with the increasing rainfall pattern in North Australia as was stated in earlier research. Also, it is found that El Nino is negatively correlated with the increase in precipitation. To conclude, North Australia is indeed dependent on both the atmospheric changes above the Asian continent and the changes of the temperature of the surrounding water bodies. This dependency seems definitely important, since research shows a correlation between rising sea surface temperature and precipitation in Australia of almost one. Also the increase in evaporation in Asia follows an almost linear trend which is in line with the increasing precipitation in North Australia. Therefore it can be stated that following this research it is believed that this might be the cause of the increasing rainfall trend above Northern Australia.


The viscosities of albite (NaAlSi3O8) melt under high pressures have been measured using an x-ray radiography falling sphere method with synchrotron radiation. This method has enabled us to determine the precise sinking velocity directly. Recent experiments of albite melt showed the presence of a viscosity minimum around 5 GPa (Poe et al1997 Science 276 1245, Mori et al2000 Earth Planet. Sci. Lett. 175 87). We present the results for albite melt up to 5.2 GPa at 1600 and 1700°C. The viscosity minimum is clearly observed to be around 4.5 GPa, and it might be explained not by the change of the compression mechanism in albite melt but by change of the phase itself.


We present dynamic algorithms with polylogarithmic update time for estimating the size of the maximum matching of a graph undergoing edge insertions and deletions with approximation ratio strictly better than $2$. Specifically, we obtain a $1+\frac{1}{\sqrt{2}}+\epsilon\approx 1.707+\epsilon$ approximation in bipartite graphs and a $1.973+\epsilon$ approximation in general graphs. We thus answer in the affirmative the major open question first posed in the influential work of Onak and Rubinfeld (STOC'10) and repeatedly asked in the dynamic graph algorithms literature. Our randomized algorithms also work against an adaptive adversary and guarantee worst-case polylog update time, both w.h.p. Our algorithms are based on simulating new two-pass streaming matching algorithms in the dynamic setting. Our key new idea is to invoke the recent sublinear-time matching algorithm of Behnezhad (FOCS'21) in a white-box manner to efficiently simulate the second pass of our streaming algorithms, while bypassing the well-known vertex-update barrier.


India's first epidemic of human plague in 28 years has broken out in two western states of the country, creating panic and sending health authorities scrambling to control its spread. The National Institute of Communicable Diseases (NICD) in New Delhi last week confirmed two outbreaks - one of bubonic plague in a region of Maharashtra state that was devastated by an earthquake last year, the other of pneumonic plague in the industrial town of Surat in Gujurat state. There were reports earlier this week, however, that the number of new cases in Surat was falling, although epidemiologists are uncertain whether the disease has been contained. Two patients in Delhi who had passed through Surat were being investigated for the disease after presenting with symptoms of plague.

Indian security forces have been sent into Surat to prevent people …


Pediatric chronic pain is common and can result in substantial long-term disability. Previous studies on acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) have shown promising results in improving functioning in affected children, but more research is still urgently needed. In the current clinical pilot study, we evaluated an ACT-based interdisciplinary outpatient intervention (14 sessions), including a parent support program (four sessions). Adolescents were referred to the clinic if they experienced disabling chronic pain. They were then randomized, along with their parents, to receive group (n = 12) or individual (n = 18) treatment. Adolescent pain interference, pain reactivity, depression, functional disability, pain intensity and psychological flexibility, along with parent anxiety, depression, pain reactivity and psychological flexibility were assessed using self-reported questionnaires. There were no significant differences in outcomes between individual and group treatment. Analyses illustrated significant (p < 0.01) improvements (medium to large effects) in pain interference, depression, pain reactivity and psychological flexibility post-treatment. Additionally, analyses showed significant (p < 0.01) improvements (large effects) in parent pain reactivity and psychological flexibility post-treatment. On all significant outcomes, clinically-significant changes were observed for 21%–63% of the adolescents across the different outcome measures and in 54%–76% of the parents. These results support previous findings and thus warrant the need for larger, randomized clinical trials evaluating the relative utility of individual and group treatment and the effects of parental interventions.


A conventional temperature sensing system employs a single transducer to convert temperature into an electrical signal. Such a system suffers from the limitation of the sensing range of the sensing device thereby affecting its accuracy and its capability. Therefore to make an accurate measurement in a typically abrupt temperature varying environment, a broad range high precision sensor is required. In this paper, an attempt is made to implement a wide spectrum temperature measurement system using auto-selected multi-sensor core in LabVIEW. This multi-sensor core can be composed of a set of different sensors having different capabilities to measure different temperatures ranges. These sensors are auto-selected by the program depending on the environment. This concept may be useful for space applications or it can also be useful for the monitoring of temperature and pressure in an oil/gas transportation or supply by means of underground/sea pipeline system or in a refinery plant. Further, this may also be applied for high precision temperature sensing in magnetic resonance imaging system applications. Keywords-broad spectrum temperature range measurement; multi-sensor core; LM-35; thermister; RTD; auto-select sensor; linearization; LabVIEW


Objective: to analyze the data available in the literature on the efficacy and safety of ixekizumab (IXE) and adalimumab (ADA) via their direct comparisons in the treatment of psoriatic arthritis (PsA).Patients and methods. The results of the SPIRIT H2H study were analyzed, the aim of which was to investigate the potential superiority of IXE to ADA for arthritis and skin manifestations in a group of patients with active PsA, stable plaque psoriasis with an inadequate response to synthetic disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (sDMARDs) who had not previously received biological agents (BAs).Design: a 52-week multicenter, randomized, parallel-group study. The patients were randomized 1:1 to open IXE or ADA administration groups for 52 weeks. This review presents the data obtained at 24-week follow-up.Of the 684 screened patients, 566 (82.7%) were included in the study; moreover, the distribution of the patients was equal between the ADA (n=283) and IXE (n=283) groups. At 6 months, 269 (95%) patients in the ADA group and 262 (93%) in the IXE one continued to participate in the study. Efficacy analysis was made based on the achievement of the primary endpoint that was considered to be related to the relative number of patients, who had simultaneously achieved improvements in the joints and skin according to the ACR50 and PASI100 criteria.Results and discussion. At 24 weeks, the proportion of patients who had simultaneously achieved ACR50 and PASI100 responses was significantly higher in the IXE group (36%) than in the ADA one (28%) (p=0.036). It was found that the IXE group was not inferior to the ADA one in terms of ACR50 response rates (in 51% (IXE) and 47% (ADA) patients) and was superior in achieving PASI100 response rates (in 60% (IXE) and 47% (ADA) patients) (p=0.001). The IXE group was recorded to have a higher response than the ADA group and in terms of other manifestations of the disease: the severity of skin and nail psoriasis, enthesitis, remission achievement, minimal and very low disease activity, and improved quality of life. Comparable effectiveness was noted for the effect of the drugs on dactylitis, as well as for the simultaneous achievement of remission and low disease activity in psoriatic arthritis according DAPSA. Serious adverse events (SAEs) were recorded in 8.5% (ADA) and 3.5% (IXE) patients.The safety and tolerability of both BAs corresponded to their previously presented safety profile. The findings were also confirmed at 52-week follow-up, presented at the Meetings of the American College of Rheumatology in November 2019 and the European League Against Rheumatism in June 2020, and published in the leading journals of rheumatology.Conclusion. The first randomized placebo-controlled study (SPIRIT H2H) directly comparing the two BAs with different mechanisms of action demonstrated the advantage of IXE over ADA in simultaneously reducing the activity of arthritis and psoriasis and showed their comparable efficacy comparable efficacy regarding joint symptoms. The use of IXE versus ADA was accompanied by the more frequent achievement of a combined endpoint related to the signs of joint and skin damages in patients with PSA, as well as by the quantitatively lower frequency of SAEs in patients with active PSA who had failed previous sDMARD therapy. The findings are of great importance for clinical practice from the point of view of the reasonable choice of a treatment strategy in these patients.


We have investigated the excision of a variety of modified bases from DNA by the Escherichia coli Fpg protein (formamidopyrimidine-DNA glycosylase) [Boiteux, S., O'Connor, T. R., Lederer, F., Gouyette, A., & Laval, J. (1990) J. Biol. Chem. 265, 3916-3922]. DNA used as a substrate was modified either by exposure to ionizing radiation or by photosensitization using visible light in the presence of methylene blue (MB). The technique of gas chromatography/mass spectrometry, which can unambiguously identify and quantitate pyrimidine- and purine-derived lesions in DNA, was used for analysis of hydrolyzed and derivatized DNA samples. Thirteen products resulting from pyrimidines and purines were detected in gamma-irradiated DNA, whereas only the formation of 2,6-diamino-4-hydroxy-5-formamidopyrimidine (FapyGua) and 8-hydroxyguanine (8-OH-Gua) was observed in visible light/MB-treated DNA. Analysis of gamma-irradiated DNA after incubation with the Fpg protein followed by precipitation revealed that the Fpg protein significantly excised 4,6-diamino-5-formamidopyrimidine (FapyAde), FapyGua, and 8-OH-Gua. The excision of a small but detectable amount of 8-hydroxyadenine was also observed. The detection of these products in the supernatant fractions of the same samples confirmed their excision by the enzyme. Nine pyrimidine-derived lesions were not excised. The Fpg protein also excised FapyGua and 8-OH-Gua from visible light/MB-treated DNA. The presence of these products in the supernatant fractions confirmed their excision.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)


ABSTRACT Li, Y.; Wang, Y.; Xu, S.; Hu, B., and Wang, Z.-L., 2017. Effects of mariculture and solar-salt production on sediment microbial community structure in a coastal wetland. Mariculture and solar-salt production are two pervasive anthropogenic activities in worldwide coastal areas; however, their effects on sediment microbial biomass, community composition, and diversity have received less attention. Here, this question was investigated using the phospholipid fatty acids (PLFAs) analysis and 16S rRNA gene sequencing in Bohai Rim, northern China. Both mariculture and salt production increased bacterial (+135% and +84%), fungal (+45% and +20%), and total PLFAs contents (+72% and +39%) compared with intertidal wetlands. Furthermore, mariculture and salt production shifted microbial PLFAs compositions. The ratio of fungi:bacteria-PLFAs decreased in mariculture ponds (−40%) and salt fields (−37%) relative to the undisturbed wetland, and the ratio of Gram-positive:Gram-negative bacteria decreased in the salt fields (−67%). Mariculture promoted the relative abundances of Firmicutes and Gemmatimonadetes, while salt production stimulated the relative abundances of Actinobacteria, Spirochaetes, Tenericutes, and Chlamydiae, as compared with the intertidal wetland. The changes in the microbial community composition were mainly attributed to sediment organic carbon, dissolved organic carbon, total nitrogen, and . The microbial and bacterial Shannon-Wiener indices, however, did not change under mariculture and salt production. In conclusion, mariculture and sea-salt production had a broad range of effects on sediment microbial biomass and community composition but had little effect on diversity.


This article describes the metrological characterisation of two prototypes that use the point clouds acquired by consumer 3D cameras for the measurement of the human hand geometrical parameters. The initial part of the work is focused on the general description of algorithms that allow for the derivation of dimensional parameters of the hand. Algorithms were tested on data acquired using Microsoft Kinect v2 and Intel RealSense D400 series sensors. The accuracy of the proposed measurement methods has been evaluated in different tests aiming to identify bias errors deriving from point-cloud inaccuracy and at the identification of the effect of the hand pressure and the wrist flexion/extension. Results evidenced an accuracy better than 1 mm in the identification of the hand's linear dimension and better than 20 cm3 for hand volume measurements. The relative uncertainty of linear dimensions, areas, and volumes was in the range of 1-10 %. Measurements performed with the Intel RealSense D400 were, on average, more repeatable than those performed with Microsoft Kinect. The uncertainty values limit the use of these devices to applications where the requested accuracy is larger than 5 % (volume measurements), 3 % (area measurements), and 1 mm (hands' linear dimensions and thickness).


Previously, we used contact receiving transducers in the scanning laser source (SLS) technique for imaging defects on a plate in order to achieve a high signal-to-noise (SN) ratio. Herein, we developed a fast non-contact defect imaging technique that employs the SLS technique for in-line product inspection. Leaky Lamb waves from a plate were detected with a sufficiently large SN ratio by using low-frequency air-coupled transducers. Spurious images caused by reflected waves in the plate were removed by synthesizing images from multiple receivers. Defect images were compared for different repetition frequencies of laser emission. Images were found to be distorted at high repetition frequencies (2/3kHz) owing to reverberations in the plate. [doi:10.2320/matertrans.I-M2014817]


Background: Proliferation of adipose tissue increases leptin secretion and decreases adiponectin concentration. Exercise is an intervention to control and reverse this process. Therefore, the present study aimed to determine the effect of 8-week high-intensity interval training on leptin, adiponectin, and the ratio of leptin to adiponectin in overweight adolescent boys.
Materials and Methods: The present quasi-experimental study was conducted on overweight adolescent boys (13-18 years old, mean body mass index 27.05±1.4 kg/m2). A total of 30 participants volunteered who were divided into three groups of 10 people including short-term (9 sessions of 30-second training with 150-second rest), long-term (4 sessions of 150-second training with 240-second rest), and control group. The training groups performed high-intensity running sprints 3 times per week for 8 weeks. Data were analyzed using two-way repeated-measures ANOVA (3 groups×2 measurement times) and Bonferroni test.
Results: Performed high-intensity interval training failed to affect leptin, weight, and body mass index but increased adiponectin and decreased the ratio of leptin to adiponectin (P = 0.042) and fat percentage. No difference was observed between the two types of interval training in changing the level of leptin, adiponectin, fat percentage, and body mass index.
Conclusion: High-intensity interval training increases metabolic benefits in overweight adolescents by increasing adiponectin and subsequently decreasing the leptin/adiponectin ratio. Low exercise, no calorie restriction, and other factors affecting puberty may influence the research results.


Nutraceuticals are products derived from food sources that are purported to provide extra health benefits, in addition to the basic nutritional value found in foods. Nutraceutical are a food or part of food that provides health benefits including the intervention and treatment of a disease. Nutraceuticals improve the health status of individuals by modulating the body functions. Different types of those nutraceuticals are available in general viz., proteins, vitamins, minerals, and other pure food compounds like., dietary supplement, herbals, nutrients, medical foods, functional foods. Nutraceuticals have attracted considerable interest due to their potential nutritional, safety and therapeutic effects.


Colorectal cancer is the third most diagnosed cancer in the world, but it has a higher mortality rate in men compared to women. However, we are not close to understanding how and why sex influences the outcome of the disease. This study focuses on mRNA expression profiles of colon cancer patients to look for molecular differences in the development of colon cancer between men and women. We used paired expression data (i.e., data collected in pairs of normal and cancer cells, by taking samples from the same individual), we identified differentially expressed genes (cancer vs normal) and computed co-expression and differential co-expression gene networks (men vs women). Doing so, we inferred the main changes and alterations happening in cancer tissues, and specifically how these changes were different among men and women. We found that the co-expression networks of women and men affected by colon cancer are quite different and we reported the genes that show the most differences in this comparison, checking if they could also be associated to sexual dimorphism or sexual hormones. Among these genes we found a interesting presence of genes associated to the Wnt signaling pathway which has been found to be regulated by estrogen and whose activation is strongly linked with colon cancer.


The Mobile Training Scheme (MTS) operated in Afghanistan in 1975-76. It had the same philosophy and method as that in Nepal but was implemented differently based on needs and development plans and especially the need to institutionalize the MTS. The training course was interdepartmental and took place at the Gulzar Training Centre near Kabul. The main features of the MTS are job analysis through role performance leading to realistic job description and developing indigenous teaching materials thus evolving a curriculum based on realities of the field situation. A policy and overseeing mechanism was established--the Interdepartmental Council composed of the heads of rural adult education and literacy cooperatives women and agricultural departments and a steering committee elected by the participants. The trainee trainers were drawn from these 5 sectors. The trainers class recommended a national training center at Gulzar the use of indigenous teaching materials better coordination between the village and district (woleswal) levels popular participation and most of all the need to institutionalize the MTS approach. It was agreed the Interdepartmental Council would continue as a monitoring system thus taking care of the need for acceptance by the policy makers. This continuation provided for the institutionalization of the MTS approach; the Council formed a program to take place after the MTS departed. The article includes a schematic projected model for implementation of the MTS program from training to post training and institutional arrangements to institutional reforms in policy.


BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE
Severe periodontal disease is prevalent among patients with schizophrenia and is caused by the side effect of their medication, poor dental hygiene and smoking. The objective of this study was to evaluate whether the rate of periodontal disease could be modulated by changing the salivary flow rate (SFR) because of the use of antipsychotic medications in patients with schizophrenia.

METHODS
Group A (n=33) included patients who used medications that may cause xerostomia, or dry mouth and Group B (n=20) included patients who used medications that may cause sialorrhea, an excessive secretion of saliva. The participants' periodontal status was assessed using the plaque index (PI), assessing bleeding on probing (BoP), probing pocket depth (PPD) and clinical attachment levels (CAL).

RESULTS
The mean of PI and BoP was significantly higher in Group A than in Group B (P<0.001), but the PPD, CAL and decayed, missing and filled teeth (DMFT) scores were not significantly different in the two groups according to the statistical results (P>0.05).

CONCLUSIONS
The researcher concluded that there is a high risk of periodontal disease among patients with schizophrenia, and there is an even higher risk of periodontal disease induced by medication that increased SFR. Preventive dental protocol should be increased during the dental health care of this disadvantaged patient group.


Primary malignant epithelioid hemangioendothelioma (MEH) of the thyroid is a rare neoplasia with only a few cases reported in the literature. We report a 75 year old man, who presented with a substernal goiter and compressive symptoms. Ultrasonographic evaluation revealed a hypoechogenic nodule in the left lobe, measuring 4.1 cm in maximum diameter, and associated gross calcifications. Fine needle aspiration yielded hemorrhagic material. A left thyroid lobectomy and isthmusectomy was performed. The surgical specimen contained a malignant epithelioid hemangioendothelioma measuring 6 x 4 x 3 cm that had infiltrated about 50% of the thyroidal parenchyma, and surrounded a necrotic nodule. Immunohistochemistry results corroborated the histopathological findings; staining was positive for AE1/AE3, CD31, CD34, factor VIII-related antigen, and Ki-67 expression. Because of the patient's comorbidities, surgical complementation was not undertaken and he has been undergoing conservative treatment.


The general objective of this study was to evaluate community pharmacists' participation in primary health care as well as to assess community pharmacists' knowledge of primary health care and determine their level of participation in health promotion, disease prevention and curative primary health care activities in Lagos, Nigera. A total of 120 community pharmacists were used for this study. Data was collected through the use of a self completion questionnaire given to community pharmacists in their premises and collected on the spot or after some time. Analysis was done through the use of Microsoft SPSS Version 10. This study revealed that most of the community pharmacists are aware of primary health care (95.8%), even though they do not know much of its history (26.6%). Participation in the different components of primary health care i.e. in health promotion, disease prevention and in curative primary health care services was very high. However, participation in immunization services was very low (14.1%) and many of them agreed that their participation in PHC could further be improved through continuous education and training in primary health care programmes (91.6%). Community pharmacists participate actively in primary health care activities in Lagos State, Nigeria. A large number of community pharmacists are aware of primary health care and have undergone training in primary health care activities mostly at the undergraduate level, though only a few have undergone refresher course in primary health care. The community pharmacists participate actively in health promotion mostly in the provision of drug information services, tobacco/alcohol cessation services as well as other health promotion services as well as in disease prevention activities. The community pharmacists also participate actively in disease treatment as a first contact health care provider.

 Key words: Community pharmacy, primary health care, community pharmacists, participation.