Synapsin I is a synaptic vesicle-associated protein involved in neurotransmitter release. The functions of this protein are apparently regulated by Ca2+/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase II (CaM kinase II). We reported evidence for CaM kinase II and a synapsin I-like protein present in mouse insulinoma MIN6 cells (Matsumoto, K., Fukunaga, K., Miyazaki, J., Shichiri, M., and Miyamoto, E. (1995) Endocrinology 136, 3784–3793). Phosphorylation of the synapsin I-like protein in these cells correlated with the activation of CaM kinase II and insulin secretion. In the present study, we screened the MIN6 cDNA library with the full-length cDNA probe of rat brain synapsin Ia and obtained seven positive clones; the largest one was then sequenced. The largest open reading frame deduced from the cDNA sequence of 3695 base pairs encoded a polypeptide of 670 amino acids, which exhibited significant sequence similarity to rat synapsin Ib. The cDNA contained the same sequence as the first exon of the mouse synapsin I gene. These results indicate that synapsin Ib is present in MIN6 cells. Synapsin I was expressed in normal rat islets, as determined by reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction analysis. Immunoblot analysis after subcellular fractionation of MIN6 cells demonstrated that synapsin Ib and δ subunit of CaM kinase II co-localized with insulin secretory granules. By analogy concerning regulation of neurotransmitter release, our results suggest that phosphorylation of synapsin I by CaM kinase II may induce the release of insulin from islet cells.


Abstract The purposes of study were: 1) To detect the family eating disorders in mexican patients with eating disorders and 2) In which ways this family antecedent affects its development in this pathology. The sample was formed by n= 44 women. The results showed that 40% reported family eating disorders antecedent. It also revealed that this group has the highest EAT-40 total, and in the factors: motivation to loose weight, avoidance of fattening food, constant concern about food, obsessions and compulsions, and compensatory behaviors, compared to the group that doesn't present family eating disorder antecedent. This discovery allows concluding that the magnitude of the symptomatology is bigger whit the presence oh this antecedent. Key words: Symptomatology, eating disorder, familiar antecedents. Resumen Los objetivos fueron: 1) detectar la presencia de antecedentes familiares de sintomatología alimentaria en una muestra de pacientes mexicanas con trastorno alimentario, y 2) de que forma influyen dichos antecedentes en la patología de este trastorno. La muestra estuvo formada por n = 44 mujeres. Los resultados mostraron que el 40% reportó antecedentes de trastorno alimentario en la familia. Fue en este mismo grupo que se detectó mayor puntaje en el total del EAT-40 así como en los factores: motivación para adelgazar, evitación de alimentos engordantes, preocupación por la comida, obsesiones y compulsiones, y conductas compensatorias, al compararlo con el grupo sin antecedentes. Palabras clave: Sintomatología, trastornos alimentarios, antecedentes familiares.


Aim This study was carried out in patients with neuropathic pain in order to assess the analgesic effects and changes in protein biomarkers after the administration of methylene blue (MB), a diaminophenothiazine with antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties, and with inhibitory effects on nitric oxide. Materials and methods Ten patients with chronic refractory neuropathic pain were randomized to receive either MB (10 mg/mL Methylthioninium chloride) 2 mg/kg (MB group) or MB 0.02 mg/kg (control group) infused over 60 minutes. Sensory function and pain (Numerical Rating Scale) were evaluated at baseline and at 60 minutes after the start of the infusion. The patients kept a pain diary during the next 24 hours and for the following 4 days. Plasma and urinary concentrations of 8-isoprostane-prostaglandin F2α (8-iso-PGF2α) and plasma protein biomarkers prior to and after the infusions were measured with radioimmunoassay and with proximity extension assay. Results A decrease of the Numerical Rating Scale at 60 minutes in comparison with baseline was observed in the MB (P=0.047) group. The decrease was significant between the MB and the control group on the day of and day after MB infusion (P=0.04 and P=0.008, respectively). There was no difference in systemic protein expressions between groups except for prolactin (PRL) (P=0.02). Three patients demonstrated diminished dynamic mechanical allodynia. Conclusion MB decreased the pain levels in patients with chronic therapy-resistant neuropathic pain on the first 2 days after administration. Known as an endocrine modulator on the anterior pituitary gland, MB infusion produced a decrease of PRL. The detailed role of PRL effects in chronic neuropathic pain remains undetermined.


This paper analyzes the potential to combine catastrophe risk modelling (CAT risk modeling) with economic analysis of vulnerability to poverty using the example of drought hazard impacts on the welfare of rural households in Ethiopia. The aim is to determine the potential for applying a derived set of damage (vulnerability) functions based on realized shocks and household expenditure/consumption outcomes, onto a forward-looking view of drought risk. The paper outlines the CAT risk modeling framework and the role of the vulnerability module, which describes the response of an affected exposure to a given hazard intensity. The need to explicitly account for different household characteristics that determine vulnerability within our model is considered, analogous to how a CAT risk model would differentiate damage functions for buildings by different classes of construction. Results for a regression model are presented, estimating ex-post drought impacts on consumption for heterogeneous household types (e.g. with cattle, safety-net access, illness). Next, the validity/generalizability of the derived functions are assessed, to infer applicability of the derived relationships within a CAT risk modelling framework. In particular, the analysis focuses on external validity: whether the relationships established in the dataset can be used for forecasting outside of the sample used for analysis. The model is stress-tested using statistical methods of resampling. This involves randomly splitting the data into "training" and "testing" datasets. The tests show consistency of results across the datasets. Finally, future plans are outlined with regard to developing a fuller catastrophe risk model to combine with the consumption results.


The planar lipid bilayer technique has a distinguished history in electrophysiology but is arguably the most technically difficult and time-consuming method in the field. Behind this is a lack of experimental consistency between laboratories, the challenges associated with painting unilamellar bilayers, and the reconstitution of ion channels into them. While there has be a trend towards automation of this technique, there remain many instances where manual bilayer formation and subsequent membrane protein insertion is both required and advantageous. We have developed a comprehensive method, which we have termed "wicking", that greatly simplifies many experimental aspects of the lipid bilayer system. Wicking allows one to manually insert ion channels into planar lipid bilayers in a matter of seconds, without the use of a magnetic stir bar or the addition of other chemicals to monitor or promote the fusion of proteoliposomes. We used the wicking method in conjunction with a standard membrane capacitance test and a simple method of proteoliposome preparation that generates a heterogeneous mixture of vesicle sizes. To determine the robustness of this technique, we selected two ion channels that have been well characterized in the literature: CLIC1 and α-hemolysin. When reconstituted using the wicking technique, CLIC1 showed biophysical characteristics congruent with published reports from other groups; and α-hemolysin demonstrated Type A and B events when threading single stranded DNA through the pore. We conclude that the wicking method gives the investigator a high degree of control over many aspects of the lipid bilayer system, while greatly reducing the time required for channel reconstitution.


Collecting bugs, drawing cartoons, writing plays, studying robotics these are just some of the hobbies that inspired the creation of video games such as Pokmon and The Legend of Zelda . Who are these men and women who helped launch the gaming industry from private computer labs to widely available popular entertainment? Read this book to find out who and what inspired your favorite video games!


Neonatal infections are an important cause of morbidity in neonatal intensive care units (NICUs). Prematurity or very low birth weight is an important predisposing factor for neonatal infection. In addition, preterm infants have a compromized immune system and they often require invasive procedures that provide a portal of entry. The epidemiology of sepsis since 1978 on our NICU showed a decrease in incidence of early-onset sepsis. Group B streptococci and, less frequent, Escherichia coli were the most important microorganisms during the years, causing early-onset sepsis. The incidence of late-onset sepsis caused by Coagulase Negative Staphylococci (CoNS) and S. aureus increased significantly over the years. The increase of the use of central venous and arterial catheters probably contributed to the increase in infections in neonates. In contrary to studies in the USA, infections due to gram-negative microorganisms and fungi or yeasts were rare on our unit (incidence <0.3%). The use of antibiotics is high on the NICU. We showed that 85 - 90% of all admitted infants was treated with antibiotics, whereas the incidence of proven early-, and late-onset sepsis was much lower (range 1.2-2.4% and 7.1-14%, respectively). However, a significant decrease in length of antibiotic treatment was noted over the period for the most frequently used antibiotics. The results of this study emphasize that correct identification of infants with sepsis is difficult and remains a major challenge in attempts to further reduce antibiotic use and postpone the emergence of antibiotic resistant microorganisms. Prevention of neonatal sepsis is a major challenge. The use of in-line filters in the intravenous administration (IV) sets in neonates was randomly studied. This study showed that in-line filters did not result in a significant decrease in nosocomial sepsis. However, a more continuous administration of intravenous medication (especially cardio-inotropics) and parenteral nutrition was guaranteed, while there was no difference in costs of materials. For the purpose of patient safety the use of in-line filters in all IV administration systems may be recommended in neonatal intensive care units. In a retrospective and a prospective study on percutaneously inserted central venous catheter (PCVC) -removal and its relationship with sepsis, we showed that besides indwelling PCVC as a risk factor for late-onset sepsis also removal of a PCVC is a risk factor. Administration of antibiotics targeted at the time of removal of the catheter significantly reduced the incidence of sepsis. Very important in the prevention of late-onset sepsis in neonates is the adherence to hygienic rules. In varies studies it is shown that it is very difficult for medical and nursing healthcare workers to adhere to hygienic rules and hand hygiene. Multimodal intervention programs have been proven to be effective in the adherence to hygienic rules. Our multimodal intervention program resulted in a significant increase in adherence to hygienic rules, from 23% to 50%. However, a result of 50% adherence is still too low and requires further improvement.


In this paper, a method for measuring properties of ceramic materials with relative dielectric constant value of 20-150 is proposed. It permits us to eliminate the operating TM/sub 01/spl delta//-mode degeneration due to its frequency coincidence with other modes, including ones of higher order. Both that fact and the possibility of precise calculation of an unloaded quality factor for a cavity permit one to execute the accurate measurements of loss tangent values as low as (1/spl divide/0, 5)/spl times/10/sup -4/, the error of dielectric constant measurement being equal to or less than 1%. The feasibility of precise measurement of the loaded Q-factor of a cavity by the readings of micrometric probe makes the use of frequency meters unnecessary.


A follow-up study of 410 patients operated for discogenic lumbar spine damages was conducted. Peculiarities of the disease clinical course and postoperative dynamics of basic symptoms studied during 1-7 years are presented. The principles of microsurgical reconstructive neurodecompression, including neural membrane reconstruction and surgery results, are demonstrated.


Risk management of which risk assessment is part, and safety regulations are common in the offshore oil and gas industry management system. The process of conducting risk assessment is mostly a challenge for operational personnel assigned to perform this function. The most significant problem is the decision to use the appropriate tool or technique in conducting risk assessment and evaluation. The safety regulatory authorities and standards agencies in various countries are making frantic effort to incorporate risk assessment into their laws to mainly help governments protect their environments as well as personnel's life. This paper present a tool or technique used for effective risk assessment, the UK safety regulation perspective which was at the back of the Lord Cullen recommendation after Piper Alpha incident and practical approach for risk assessment. The methodology used was the review of the risk assessment conducted on the Escravo gas facility. The process included the use quantitative risk assessment technique which involved the use of checklist for risk identification and risk matrix for ranking of risk, based on probabilistic approach.


Graphs labeled with complex-valued Gabor jets are one of the important data formats for face recognition and the classification of facial images into medically relevant classes like genetic syndromes. We here present an interpolation rule and an iterative algorithm for the reconstruction of images from these graphs. This is especially important if graphs have been manipulated for information processing. One such manipulation is averaging the graphs of a single syndrome, another one building a composite face from the features of various individuals. In reconstructions of averaged graphs of genetic syndromes, the patients' identities are suppressed, while the properties of the syndromes are emphasized. These reconstructions from average graphs have a much better quality than averaged images.


A new dulling system for the work rolls used to roughen the surface of cold‐rolled steel sheet has been developed. Such sheets are used in various products, such as outer panels of automobiles, and decorative outer plates of electric appliances. In this process, several pulsed laser beams generated by Q‐switched Nd:YAG lasers produce small craters with rims around them. This process includes a longitudinal scanning system within the laser processing head and a rotation system for the work roll; consequently, the surface of the dulled roll consists of innumerable small craters. The main features of the system consist of: (1) a special way of controlling RF power applied to the acousto‐optic modulator for the Q‐switching to change the peak power, pulse duration, and low level CW power to fit the dulling condition, (2) a method to combine two or more pulse beams to control the profile of dulling craters. Immediate advantages of this process are: (1) timesaving (very high repetition rate of pulses by Q‐switching), (2) stable operation (without a mechanical chopper which is usually used with a CO2 laser to make pulsed beam), and (3) cost‐saving. This newly developed system is effectively applied to the production of cold‐rolled steel sheets.


Summary
The nature of the covalent and non-covalent bonds which are responsible for the maintenance of the morphological integrity of the herpes simplex virus type 1 nucleocapsid was examined. Virus particles were treated at various temperatures with mercaptoethanol, guanidine, or lithium iodide under neutral and alkaline conditions. After treatment with mercaptoethanol or lithium iodide, the virus particles morphologically resembled collapsed amorphous structures composed of loosely bound fibrous strands, which no longer retained the capsomeric detail. Subsequent exposure of these treated preparations to alkaline conditions or high concentrations of guanidine was required to break the bonds that held the strands together. It was not possible under the conditions employed in this study to selectively break the intercapsomeric bonds and thus release free intact capsomeres.


Osteocytes are bone matrix-entombed cells that form an interconnected network of processes called the lacunar/canalicular system, which enables osteocytes to coordinate bone formation and resorption. Osteocytes indirectly regulate osteoblast and osteoclast activity on bone surfaces but also directly resorb and deposit their surrounding bone matrix through perilacunar/canalicular remodeling. However, the molecular mechanisms by which osteocytes control bone remodeling remain unclear. We previously reported that the transcriptional regulators Yes-associated protein (YAP) and Transcriptional co-activator with PDZ-motif (TAZ) promote bone acquisition in osteoblast-lineage cells. Here, we tested the hypothesis that YAP and TAZ regulate osteocyte-mediated bone remodeling by conditional ablation of both YAP and TAZ from mouse osteocytes using 8kb-DMP1-Cre. Osteocyte conditional YAP/TAZ deletion reduced bone mass and dysregulated matrix collagen content and organization, which together impaired bone mechanical properties. YAP/TAZ deletion reduced osteoblast number and activity and increased osteoclast activity. In addition, YAP/TAZ deletion directly impaired osteocyte lacunar/canalicular network remodeling, reducing canalicular density, length, and branching, but did not alter lacunar size or shape. Further, consistent with recent studies identifying TGF-β signaling as a key inducer of perilacunar/canalicular remodeling through expression of matrix-remodeling enzymes, YAP/TAZ deletion in vivo decreased osteocyte expression of matrix proteases Mmp13, Mmp14, and Cathepsin K. In vitro, pharmacologic inhibition of YAP/TAZ transcriptional activity in osteocyte-like cells abrogated TGF-β-induced protease gene expression. Together, these data show that YAP and TAZ act downstream of TGF-β in osteocytes to control bone matrix accrual, organization, and mechanical properties indirectly by coordinating osteoblast/osteoclast activity and directly by regulating perilacunar/canalicular remodeling.


The goal of this study is to analyze the current researches on empowerment in nursing management and to suggest a direction for future empowerment research. Total 106 articles including 74 thesis and 32 journals were selected from 'www. riss.kr', 'www.nl.go.kr', 'kiss.kstudy.com' and reviewed. The papers were classified by criteria such as methodologies, theoretical framework, empowerment measure tools, and other concepts related to empowerment and general characteristics. Although there have been a consistently increasing number of articles since 2000, most of the articles have some following problems; decreased number of participant, number of survey hospitals, lack of theoretical frameworks (62.1%), and incoherence among the theory definition and instrument. We found that other concepts related empowerment are job satisfaction (16.2%), organization commitment (14.9%), leadership (6.8%), turnover intention (5.9%), job stress (5.9%), and self-efficacy (5.9%). Based on the findings of this study the following are suggested: first, it is necessary that more qualitative and intervention-related experimental researches be carry out in that most of empowerment researches are being conducted mainly by survey. Second, more efforts need to make a measuring tool congruous with the implemented theory. Third, a measuring tool should be selected by the level of analysis such as an individual, a group, and an organization. Fourth, especially the personal variables related to empowerment need to be dealt with in the future study.


The aim of the present paper is to closely consider the notions of ''space'' and ''identity'' from two different perspectives of the human experience. We are most of all interested in the psychological realm to which we devote the major part. As such we intend to define a brain disorder known as schizophrenia in light of the duality of 'space and identity'. We consider aspects of the deterioration of these notions that interact to further accentuate the breakdown of the patient diagnosed with the disease. These notions can be altered by factors that are not essentially biological or psychological. We argue that technology does also interfere to rework these notions as such bringing about a less rigorous effect but, still, triggering a less balanced human experience to dwell. This does not entail the onset of schizophrenia. However, it may lay behind other psychological problems. These may share to some extent a fragmented character that turn out to reveal aspects of a schizophrenic nature.


Personal robots and robot technology (RT)-based assistive devices are expected to play a major role in our elderly-dominated society, with an active participation to joint works and community life with humans, as partner and as friends for us. In particular, these robots are expected to be fundamental for helping and assisting elderly and disabled people during their activities of daily living (ADLs). To achieve this result, personal robots should be capable of human-like emotion expressions; in addition, human-like bipedal walking is the best solution for the robots which should be active in the human living environment. Although several bipedal robots and several emotional expression robots have been developed in the recent years, until now there was no robot which integrated all these functions. Therefore we developed a new bipedal walking robot, named KOBIAN, which is also capable to express human-like emotions. In this paper, we present the design and the preliminary evaluation of the new emotional expression head.


Active participation of customers in the management of demand, and renewable energy supply, is a critical goal of the Smart Grid vision. However, this is a complex problem with numerous scenarios that are difficult to test in field projects. Rich and scalable simulations are required to develop effective strategies and policies that elicit desirable behavior from customers. We present a versatile agent-based "factored model" that enables rich simulation scenarios across distinct customer types and varying agent granularity. We formally characterize the decisions to be made by Smart Grid customers as a multiscale decision-making problem and show how our factored model representation handles several temporal and contextual decisions by introducing a novel "utility optimizing agent." We further contribute innovative algorithms for (i) statistical learning-based hierarchical Bayesian timeseries simulation, and (ii) adaptive capacity control using decision-theoretic approximation of multiattribute utility functions over multiple agents. Prominent among the approaches being studied to achieve active customer participation is one based on offering customers financial incentives through variable-price tariffs; we also contribute an effective solution to the problem of "customer herding" under such tariffs. We support our contributions with experimental results from simulations based on real-world data on an open Smart Grid simulation platform.


In this work, computer aided design software for the analysis and design of Power Transmission Screws, is presented. In designing the software, the relevant equations and models were assembled and carefully programmed using Microsoft Visual Basic.Net (an object oriented programming language). Also visual representation of the solution to problems of Power Transmission Screw was developed, in form of graphical solutions. The software was tested on a variety of bench mark problems. The solutions obtained were highly accurate, thus validating the performance of software.


It is believed that patients with decreased glomerular filtration rate have stronger association between serum uric acid levels and increased risk of cardіоvascular disease. However, it is unclear whether the presence of concomitant chronic kidney disease modifies the xanthine metabolism. The aim of this study was to examine xanthine metabolism violations in chronic heart failure (CHF) patients with concomitant chronic kidney disease (CKD), and evaluate its impact on uric acid levels and xanthine oxidase activity. The study population consisted of 112 patients, aged 72,5±0,98 years. The main group of patients consisted of 72 within CKD patients and the comparison group - of 40 non-CKD participants. We noted high and almost equal detection of xanthine metabolism violations in CHF patients with CKD as well as in non-CKD patients. This data indicate greater severity of the xanthine metabolism violations in patients with concomitant CKD.


The response of ΔE-E telescope in C12 ion beam at defined positions within the Bragg peak at different depths with 0.5mm step was studied using Geant4 Monte Carlo toolkit. The microdosimetric spectra derived from ΔE stage response using assumption that average chord is 1.8 μm along with simulated scatter plots for the same points. It was demonstrated that microdosimetric spectra is changing dramatically within 0.5 mm depth increments close to and at distal part of the BP that is impossible to observe with TEPC. Fragments (He4, He3, Li7, Be9, B11) and neutrons contributed to microdosimetric spectra and to YD have been analyzed for each position.


The paths animals take while moving through their environments affect their likelihood of encountering food and other resources; thus, models of foraging behavior abound. To collect movement data appropriate for comparison with these models, we used time-lapse photography to track movements of a small, hardy, and easy-to-obtain organism, Aquilonastra anomala sea stars. We recorded the sea stars in a tank over many hours, with and without a food cue. With food present, they covered less distance, as predicted by theory; this strategy would allow them to remain near food. We then compared the paths of the sea stars to three common models of animal movement: Brownian motion, Lévy walks, and correlated random walks; we found that the sea stars' movements most closely resembled a correlated random walk. Additionally, we compared the search performance of models of Brownian motion, a Lévy walk, and a correlated random walk to that of a model based on the sea stars' movements. We found that the behavior of the modeled sea star walk was similar to that of the modeled correlated random walk and the Brownian motion model, but that the sea star walk was slightly more likely than the other walks to find targets at intermediate distances. While organisms are unlikely to follow an idealized random walk in all details, our data suggest that comparing the effectiveness of an organism's paths to those from theory can give insight into the organism's actual movement strategy. Finally, automated optical tracking of invertebrates proved feasible, and A. anomala was revealed to be a tractable, 2D-movement study system.


This article quantifies the impact of Wal-Mart Supercenters on supermarkets' profitability via a two-stage dynamic entry game, using method of simulated moments and milk scanner data from Dallas/Fort Worth supermarkets. The empirical findings show that the entry of Wal-Mart Supercenters accounts for about an average 50% decrease in milk profit margins for incumbent supermarkets. Effects of scale are found to be more significant for Wal-Mart Supercenters than for incumbent supermarkets, granting Wal-Mart a competitive edge.


There is no one definition of case law, but rather a plurality of meanings. In this respect, after an analysis of Roman iurisprudentia and Anglo-Saxon case law, this work considers the Spanish legal system, as an example of a Continental jurisdiction.


Trypsinogen and other digestive zymogens are synthesised in the acinar cells of the exocrine pancreas. The serine protease inhibitor Kazal-type 1 (SPINK1), more commonly known as pancreatic secretory trypsin inhibitor (PSTI), is also synthesised in these cells. Because of its ability to inhibit approximately 20% of the potential trypsin activity within the pancreas, PSTI has long been thought to be one of the defensive mechanisms against a prematurely activated trypsin-driven digestive zymogen activation cascade leading to pancreatic autodigestion.1 Given that gain-of-function missense mutations in the cationic trypsinogen gene ( PRSS1 ) have been found to cause hereditary pancreatitis,2 3 SPINK1 was analysed by a candidate gene approach in 2000,4 5 and, since then, some 40 variants have been reported. In particular, 14 variants, all of which were exclusively found in chronic pancreatitis patients but not in controls, are clear or experimentally demonstrated loss-of-function mutations (table 1).5–17 These findings support the hypothesis that PSTI is a key negative regulator of prematurely activated trypsin within the pancreatic acinar cells.

View this table:

Table 1 Clear or experimentally demonstrated loss-of-function mutations in the SPINK1 gene

Two key questions, among others, have arisen from the association of SPINK1 variations with chronic pancreatitis. The first concerns the role of PSTI (ie, disease causing vs disease modifying) in the aetiology of the disease. We suggested that this question be discussed in the context of specific variations.6 Thus, mutations resulting in a complete functional loss of the involved alleles and that are found in cases with familial or hereditary pancreatitis—exemplified by the c.27delC mutation …


PURPOSE
Although the incorporation of research biopsies into clinical trials is increasing, limited information is available about how study protocols and informed consents integrate and describe their use.

METHODS
All therapeutic clinical trials in which image-guided research biopsies were performed from January 1, 2005, to October 1, 2010, were identified from an interventional radiology database. Data from study protocols and informed consents were extracted and analyzed. Procedural complications were recorded.

RESULTS
A total of 57 clinical trials were identified, of which 38 (67%) contained at least one mandatory biopsy. The analysis of the research biopsy tumor tissue was a study end point in 95% of trials. The primary indication for a research biopsy was for integral biomarker analysis in 32% and for correlative science in 68% of trials. A statistical analytic plan for the correlative science research biopsy tumor tissue was mentioned in 26%, described as exploratory in 51%, and not mentioned in 23% of trials. For studies with mandatory biopsies, biopsy was an eligibility criterion in 71% of trials, and a statistical justification for the research biopsy sample size was present in 50% of trials. A total of 745 research biopsies were performed on 576 patients. Overall and major complication rates were 5.2% (39 of 745 biopsies) and 0.8% (six of 745 biopsies), respectively. Complication rates for intrathoracic and abdominal/pelvic solid organ biopsies were 17.1% (36 of 211 biopsies) and 1.6% (three of 189 biopsies), respectively. Site-stratified research biopsy-related risks were discussed in five consents.

CONCLUSION
A better representation of the risks and benefits of research biopsies in study protocols and informed consents is needed.


Extracted text; It is suspected that prenatal hormones can affect maternal care, which has important implications for the neurological development of pups. To determine if the altered hormone levels affected maternal care, pregnant dams were exposed to sex hormones and maternal care behavior was quantified and analyzed. Pregnant dams were exposed to corn oil (solvent control), 50ug/kg of estradiol benzoate, or 8mg/kg dihydrotestosterone propionate from gestational day 15.5 to 17.5 which corresponds with a specific developmental window of neurological development. Maternal care during postnatal days 7 and 14 was recorded using JWatcher software and analyzed using R statistical software. No statistically significant differences were found among the treatment groups; however, there was an interesting variation seen in the results. There are many different possibilities for why I saw no significant effects. For example, I only dosed animals for three days. The variation in response to sex hormone exposure suggests that females respond differently to hormone exposure and this idea would be interesting to study further.


This paper reviews key constructs explored in this special issue of Chinese Journal of Applied Linguistics, including autonomy, agency and identity in foreign/second language education. We first explore and compare, in relatively greater depth, the complex meanings of the two similar concepts of autonomy and agency. In discussing autonomy, we start with an analysis of the meaning of capacity and control in Benson's (2011) broad definition of autonomy as a capacity to take control of one's own learning, and briefly look at related issues of learner agendas and affordances. Based on a close scrutiny of the concept of agency, we propose that autonomy and agency are best treated as distinct concepts in terms of the degree of effective control over the learning-teaching process. Following a close examination of the two similar concepts of autonomy and agency, we discuss the concept of identity and finally the interrelatedness among these major concepts of autonomy, agency, and identity in language education.


This study aims to suggest our comprehensive strategies and sectoral policies to cooperate with ASEAN member countries, with a particular focus on the ASEAN Socio-Cultural Community (ASCC). Since 2017, Korea has been striving to deepen its cooperative relationship with ASEAN to the level of its four traditional major partners ‒ the U.S., China, Japan and Russia ‒ through the New Southern Policy. ASEAN created three communities in 2015 – the ASEAN Political-Security Community (APSC), ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) and ASEAN Socio-Cultural Community (ASCC) – also providing a blueprint for each community. In line with ASEAN's people-oriented commitment to improve quality of life, the ASCC can play an important role in achieving ASEAN social integration and promoting sustainable development in the region. When considering ASEAN's needs for cooperation, relevant global agenda and Korea's recent policy stance toward ASEAN, the research areas in this report cover social infrastructure, culture and arts, and sustainable environment. Based on sectoral analysis on the ASCC, we suggest the basic directions and strategies of ASEAN-Korea cooperation.


Few studies have examined how Information Requirement Determination (IRD) is practiced in the Arab world. To lessen the gap, this empirical study reports on the perception of 19 IRD methods in Kuwait, an Arab country. Based on a sample of 87 software stakeholders, this study reports on the most known, widely used and highly valued IRD methods. Results show that Arab culture influences perception of IRD techniques in that: (i) the most used is the traditional technique (interview), followed by the formal analysis technique (DFD), and group elicitation technique (brainstorming); (ii) the most valued techniques from past projecst are external representation techniques (Decision trees), followed by unstructured elicitation techniques (goal oriented elicitation), and observation technique (prototyping); and (iii) the least known, used and valued techniques are UML, Ishikawa and cognitive technique (KJmethods). In addition, the study reveals some additional factors that affect IRD practices such as the existence of a correlation between past IS project problems and the usage of three techniques (QFD, DFD and role playing), the existence of a correlation between two techniques (prototyping and decision trees) and the statement "obtaining the right requirements is essential to successful system development". Other correlations were also found between some IRD techniques and specific used information system development methodologies. This paper discusses findings which are relevant to theory and practice.


Information and Communication Technology (ICT) has been estimated to consume 10% of the total energy consumption in industrial countries. According to the latest measurements, this amount is rapidly increasing by 6% annually. With the evolved new business model in which Service Providers (SPs) are separated from Infrastructure Providers (InPs), Virtualized Network Environments (VNEs) have been regarded as a promising technology for flexibly utilizing shared communication network resources. VNEs also play a fundamental role toward virtualizing data centers. In this thesis, we suggest different feasible solutions to optimize the energy consumption in a VNE. In this regard, first, we review the corresponding literature in regard to the architecture of a VNE, its performance modelling, several power models, and also existing energy-saving solutions for VNEs. We approach the objective of optimizing the energy consumption in a VNE by defining and solving two main problems. The first problem optimizes the energy consumption in a VNE during the off-peak period. This is feasible by reconfiguring the mapping of already embedded virtual networks for the off-peak time. This is planned in two smaller and simpler sub-problems with increasing the complexity and higher energy-saving levels. Our solutions enable the providers to adjust the level of the reconfiguration and accordingly control the possible traffic disruptions. In the second problem, we propose a novel energy-efficient embedding method that maps heterogeneous MapReduce-based virtual networks onto a heterogeneous data center physical network, energy-wise. We introduce a new incast problem that specifically may happen in Virtualized Data Centers (VDCs). The proposed embedding process also controls the incast queueing delay.


A 2-D metallic bowtie nanoantenna, consisting of two nearby metallic nanotriangles and containing a molecule within the gap, is studied for the enhancement of a single emitter's spontaneous emission. For simplicity, a transverse-magnetic model is used for simulation and a set of new surface integral equations is developed for the calculation. The process of spontaneous emission is simply divided into two stages: the first stage is the excitation of the emitter irradiated by an incident plane wave and the second is the emission of the excited emitter. For the latter, the excited emitter is modeled as an electric dipole to interact with the nanoantenna. The results show that a metallic bowtie nanoantenna behaves as a nanolens as well as a polarizer to provide a strong local electric field with a polarization parallel to the axis of the bowtie in the gap for the emitter's excitation, and its quantum yield exhibits a function of a low-pass filter as well as an orientizer for the emitter's emission.


A distributed 3D scene recognition system based on a multilevel representation of object models and signals is described. The solution to a recognition problem is obtained through a set of object-observation couples at the different abstraction levels. The various system modules exchange two kinds of information: (1) top-down messages, which are used to communicate to lower modules the predictions made on the basis of a priori knowledge on the application domain, (2) bottom-up messages, which are used to communicate to higher modules the evidence supporting possible local solutions. A local scheme for the combination of message flows is defined, and messages are interpreted by using a probabilistic network of estimators of random variables. The proposed model is suitable for addressing the problem of distributed geometric reasoning aimed at 3D road scene recognition by an autonomous vehicle. Recognition results include road detection and obstacle localization, together with a study of the relative computational load required by different modules of the system. The proposed approach is currently simulated on a workstation, while an effective implementation on board of an autonomous vehicle is under development in the contest of the CEC-EUREKA Prometheus project. >


The Douglas-Rachford algorithm is a popular iterative method for finding a zero of a sum of two maximal monotone operators defined on a Hilbert space. In this paper, we propose an extension of this algorithm including inertia parameters and develop parallel versions to deal with the case of a sum of an arbitrary number of maximal operators. Based on this algorithm, parallel proximal algorithms are proposed to minimize over a linear subspace of a Hilbert space the sum of a finite number of proper, lower semicontinuous convex functions composed with linear operators. It is shown that particular cases of these methods are the simultaneous direction method of multipliers proposed by Stetzer et al., the parallel proximal algorithm developed by Combettes and Pesquet, and a parallelized version of an algorithm proposed by Attouch and Soueycatt.


Street children are a real phenomenon in everyday life, especially in big cities. Many see a collection of school-age children who spend most of his time roaming the streets or in other public places to work in order to meet the needs of themselves and their families. Self-esteem is achieved by the main street is derived from their success in receiving education. With this education, we hope to increase self-esteem so that they can behave well according to the norms that exist in society and education can take advantage of one of them through skills training. This study aims to determine how self-esteem of street children who have gained skills. This research is a quantitative descriptive. Population in this research is that street children have been organized in the House Shelter Foundation SPMAA Surabaya, while the sample used is 60 street children who were taken by using Puposive Sampling. Data collection instruments used were self-esteem scale. Validity test taken by road to 30 children try out the streets. Based on the analysis of the 60 items showed that there are 11 items that otherwise fall, while the 49 valid items with a value table (table r) 0.361. Self esteem scale
validity indices ranged from 0.3647 to 0.5946. Analysis of the data used is by using the formula T-Score. The results of this study showed that street children who have the skills to have high self-esteem (55%) 33 children, with independence and responsibility of 61.67%, 58.33% performance, approaching new challenges 53.33%, tolerate frustration 50 %, and able to influence others 56.67%.


INTRODUCTION
Male testosterone deficiency is associated with bad sexual function and quality of life (QoL). The aim of this study was to determine whether a daily dose of 25 mg clomiphene citrate (CC) is effective in stimulating the endogenous testosterone production pathway and to address the applicability of this medication as a therapeutic option for symptomatic hypogonadism.

MATERIALS AND METHODS
This was a prospective study. Men with low sexual desire and testosterone levels (T) below 400 ng/dL were selected to receive CC. Blood samples were obtained to determine baseline measurements of serum T, estradiol, LH, lipid profile and fasting plasma glucose. Each patient was treated with a daily dose of 25 mg CC for at least 3 months. Patients were asked if they experienced any side effects related to the use of CC and if they experienced any improvement in their sexual profile. Paired samples T-test was utilized to analyze responses to therapy.

RESULTS
Our cohort consisted of 125 men with hypogonadism and low libido. Mean age was 62 years (± 11.1 years). Serum T levels ranged from 309 ng/dL (baseline, mean value) to 642 ng/dL (3 months after CC initiation, mean value) (p < 0.001). Serum cholesterol levels ranged from 197 to 186 mg/dL (p = 0.003). There were no statistically significant differences when comparing pre and post-treatment HDL-Cholesterol, triglycerides, fasting plasma glucose and prolactin. All men reported improvements in the post-treatment QoL scores. No serious adverse events were recorded.

CONCLUSIONS
The CC was effective in stimulating the endogenous production of testosterone. A lower level of total cholesterol was verified after three months of treatment. This medication should be considered as a therapeutic option for some patients with symptomatic male testosterone deficiency.


Land management in agroforestry systems requires species selection and proper silviculture. Selection of species and silvicultural treatments aimed at maintaining competition in obtaining a light, water and nutrients. Farmers choose the species based on the economical factor. This study aims to determine the composition of plant species in dry land agroforestry in Menoreh Hill, Kulon Progo District. Research done by survey method. Plot observation was divided into three level of light intensity: : a) early agroforestry (light intensity >50%), b) middle agroforestry, (light intensity 30-50%), c) further agroforestry (light intensity <30%). Four planting plots were made as repetition, so that there were 12 plots observation. Observations and measurements of vegetation are done with census (100%). The Result show five important value index in early Agroforestry,: sengon (77.84), coconut (50.04), and cacao (25.47), tree density was 482 trees/hectare and basal area 5.48 m2/ha, in middle agroforestry were: sengon (88.15), mahogany (49.51), and clove (45.03), with tree density was 595 trees/ha, and basal area was 6.70 m2/ha, further agroforestry were: clove (72.37%), sengon (50.61), and coconut (37.02), tree density was 650 trees/ha, basal area was 6.78 m2/ha. Keywords: Composition of plant species, dry land agroforestry, Menoreh Hill


A simple rapid and robust method for quantification of irinotecan in rat plasma has been established using liquid chromatography-electrospray ionization tandem mass
spectrometry (LC-ESI/MS/MS). Imipramine was used as an internal standard. Irinotecan and internal standard in plasma sample was extracted using simple liquid-liquid
extraction. The samples were injected in to a C18 reversed-phase column and mobile phase used was acetonitrile – 0.1% formic acid in water (90:10, %v/v) at a flow rate of 0.5 ml/min. using MS/MS in the selected reaction-monitoring (SRM) mode, Irinotecan and Imipramine were detected without any interference from rat plasma matrix. Irinotecan roduced a precursor ion ([M+H]+) at m/z 587.20 and a corresponding product ion at m/z 167.01 The internal standard produced a precursor ion ([M+H]+) at m/z 281.20 and a corresponding product ion at m/z 86.19. Detection of Irinotecan in rat
plasma by the LC-ESI/MS/MS method was accurate and precise with a quantitation limit of 10ng/ml. The proposed method was validated with linear range of 10 - 4000 ng/ml.
Reproducibility, recovery and stability of the method were evaluated. The method has been successfully applied to preclinical pharmacokinetic study of Irinotecan liposome


Neonatal hypoxia–ischemia (HI) is a common occurrence in preterm and low‐birth‐weight infants, and the incidence of low‐birth‐weight and preterm births is increasing. Characterization of brain injury after HI is of critical importance in developing new treatments that more accurately target the injury. After severe HI, neuronal cells undergo necrosis and secondary apoptosis of the surrounding cells as a result of neuroinflammation. We sought to characterize the biochemical pathways associated with cell death after HI. Bax, a cell death signaling protein, is activated after HI and translocates to the nucleus, endoplasmic reticulum, and mitochondria. The translocation patterns of Bax affect the resultant cell death phenotype (necrotic or apoptotic) observed. Although Bax is known to oligomerize once it is activated, less is known about the factors that control its translocation and oligomerization. We hypothesize that Bax kinase‐specific phosphorylation determines its oligomerization and intracellular localization. Using well‐established in vivo and in vitro models of neonatal HI, we characterized Bax oligomerization and multiorganelle translocation. We found that HI‐dependent phosphorylation of Bax determines its oligomerization status and multiorganelle localization, and, ultimately, the cell death phenotype observed. Understanding the mechanisms of Bax translocation will aid in the rational design of therapeutic strategies that decrease the trauma resulting from HI‐associated inflammation. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.


Early detection of COVID-19 is key in containing the pandemic. Disease detection and evaluation based on imaging is fast and cheap and therefore plays an important role in COVID-19 handling. COVID-19 is easier to detect in chest CT, however, it is expensive, non-portable, and difficult to dis-infect, making it unfit as a point-of-care (POC) modality. On the other hand, chest X-ray (CXR) and lung ultrasound (LUS) are widely used, yet, COVID-19 findings in these modalities are not always very clear. Here we train deep neural networks to significantly enhance the capability to detect, grade and monitor COVID-19 patients using CXRs and LUS. Collaborating with several hospitals in Israel we collect a large dataset of CXRs and use this dataset to train a neural network obtaining above 90% detection rate for COVID-19. In addition, in collaboration with ULTRa (Ultrasound Laboratory Trento, Italy) and hospitals in Italy we obtained POC ultrasound data with annotations of the severity of disease and trained a deep network for automatic severity grading.


Validity of Johne's disease programs and control protocols that rely on established cut points [e.g., specified sample-to-positive (S/P) ratios] for ELISA serological tests depends on interpreted results that are not susceptible to variable test accuracy. It was hypothesized that seasonal variability exists in serological response to Mycobacterium avium subsp. paratuberculosis (MAP) infection. Further, a reciprocal response may occur, resulting in greater risk of fecal shedding in subclinically infected animals. A testing regimen was invoked that included multiple testing of individual adult cows during the 4 seasons. Serum was collected on a cyclic, monthly basis from 3 randomly selected cohorts of dairy cows, and fecal samples were collected from the 20% of cows with the greatest ELISA test S/P ratios. Staggered, quarterly sampling was continued for 1 yr, and at the conclusion, serum was analyzed en masse. The ELISA outcome values (i.e., S/P ratio) were treated both as categorical and continuous variables. The potential lagged effects of temperature-related seasonality on S/P ratio, as well as the potential for a change in test result caused by temperature were assessed. Results for fecal culture were analyzed on a categorical scale and compared with the ELISA results to explore the possibility of reciprocal fecal shedding. No significant seasonal effects on either S/P ratios or the proportion of cows seropositive to MAP were observed. Furthermore, no evidence was found linking temperature-related seasonality to a reciprocal increase in the risk of fecal culture positivity for MAP.


To explore associations of exposure to ambient and indoor air particulate and bio-aerosol pollutants with cardiovascular and respiratory disease markers, we utilized seven repeated measurements from 48 elderly subjects participating in a 4-week home air filtration study. Microvascular function (MVF), lung function, blood leukocyte counts, monocyte adhesion molecule expression, C-reactive protein, Clara cell protein (CC16) and surfactant protein-D (SPD) were examined in relation to exposure preceding each measurement. Exposure assessment included 48-h urban background monitoring of PM10, PM2.5 and particle number concentration (PNC), weekly measurements of PM2.5 in living- and bedroom, 24-h measurements of indoor PNC three times, and bio-aerosol components in settled dust on a 2-week basis. Statistically significant inverse associations included: MVF with outdoor PNC; granulocyte counts with PM2.5; CD31 expression with dust fungi; SPD with dust endotoxin. Significant positive associations included: MVF with dust bacteria; monocyte expression of CD11 with PM2.5 in the bedroom and dust bacteria and endotoxin, CD31 expression with dust serine protease; serum CC16 with dust NAGase. Multiple comparisons demand cautious interpretation of results, which suggest that outdoor PNC have adverse effects on MVF, and outdoor and indoor PM2.5 and bio-aerosols are associated with markers of inflammation and lung cell integrity.


Based on the well established result of probability matching, we explore in this paper to what extent soccer bettors adjust their behavior taking into account the new relevant information provided by the market. We test empirically the existence of a learning process using the Quiniela bettors' performance, the Spanish soccer betting game, for the period 1970-2000. Empirical results suggest that there is a progressive improvement in the bettors' performance attributable to the learning process. The other remaining explanatory variables follow the expected behavior.


Histamine regulates functions via four receptors (HRH1, HRH2, HRH3, and HRH4). The d-myo-inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate (IP3)/Ca2+/protein kinase C (PKC)/mitogen-activated protein kinase pathway regulates cholangiocarcinoma growth. We evaluated the role of HRH3 in the regulation of cholangiocarcinoma growth. Expression of HRH3 in intrahepatic and extrahepatic cell lines, normal cholangiocytes, and human tissue arrays was measured. In Mz-ChA-1 cells stimulated with (R)-(α)-(−)-methylhistamine dihydrobromide (RAMH), we measured (a) cell growth, (b) IP3 and cyclic AMP levels, and (c) phosphorylation of PKC and mitogen-activated protein kinase isoforms. Localization of PKCα was visualized by immunofluorescence in cell smears and immunoblotting for PKCα in cytosol and membrane fractions. Following knockdown of PKCα, Mz-ChA-1 cells were stimulated with RAMH before evaluating cell growth and extracellular signal–regulated kinase (ERK)-1/2 phosphorylation. In vivo experiments were done in BALB/c nude mice. Mice were treated with saline or RAMH for 44 days and tumor volume was measured. Tumors were excised and evaluated for proliferation, apoptosis, and expression of PKCα, vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF)-A, VEGF-C, VEGF receptor 2, and VEGF receptor 3. HRH3 expression was found in all cells. RAMH inhibited the growth of cholangiocarcinoma cells. RAMH increased IP3 levels and PKCα phosphorylation and decreased ERK1/2 phosphorylation. RAMH induced a shift in the localization of PKCα expression from the cytosolic domain into the membrane region of Mz-ChA-1 cells. Silencing of PKCα prevented RAMH inhibition of Mz-ChA-1 cell growth and ablated RAMH effects on ERK1/2 phosphorylation. In vivo, RAMH decreased tumor growth and expression of VEGF and its receptors; PKCα expression was increased. RAMH inhibits cholangiocarcinoma growth by PKCα-dependent ERK1/2 dephosphorylation. Modulation of PKCα by histamine receptors may be important in regulating cholangiocarcinoma growth. (Mol Cancer Res 2009;7(10):1704–13)


TiO2 nanopowders were synthesized by non-hydrolytic sol−gel synthesis and solvothermal method. Effects of the type of alcohol on the properties of TiO2 nanopowders were investigated. XRD and FSEM were used to characterize TiO2 nanopowders. The results showed that TiO2 nanopowders with diameters of about 50nm and micro-spheres with diameters of about 400~500nm were obtained by non-hydrolytic sol−gel synthesis, when ethanol and isopropanol were used as oxygen donor and solvent, respectively. TiO2 prepared with ethanol by non-hydrolytic sol−gel synthesis and calcined at 700°C consisted only 3.8% rutile phase. After solvothermal synthesis, TiO2 nanopowders with diameters of about 50nm were obtained when ethanol and isopropanol were used as the oxygen donor. However, submicrometer spheres with uniform size distribution were obtained with 1-octanol.


Platelet activating factor (PAF) is produced by the rat renal papilla from a neutral lipid, alkylacetylglycerol. Renal release of another neutral lipid, antihypertensive neutral renomedullary lipid, and PAF might account for normalization of blood pressure after unclipping in Goldblatt hypertensive rats. We studied the potential storage and release of hypotensive substances by the rat renal papilla in vitro. Rat kidneys were snap-frozen in liquid N2-cooled freon immediately after removal and the total lipids were extracted from pooled dissected papillae and partially separated by thin layer chromatography on silica gel with a hexane: ether: acetic acid (40:60:1) solvent system. Lipids eluted from four, contiguous silica gel zones were assayed in anesthetized spontaneously hypertensive rats. No hypotensive activity was found in the thin layer chromatography lipid fraction co-migrating with palmitylacetylglycerol or in any other neutral lipid fraction. In contrast, the Krebs medium obtained after 30-min incubation of freshly minced papillary tissue induced dose-related hypotension and bradycardia. The hypotensive activity was equivalent to 48 +/- 9 ng prostaglandin E2 (PGE2)/mg wet papilla. Bradycardia induced by the incubation medium was correlated with decrements in blood pressure. In the same assays, nitroprusside caused tachycardia which was correlated with hypotension, and the bradycardia associated with PGE2-induced hypotension was significantly less than that induced by the incubation medium. The dose-related effects of the incubation medium were dramatically attenuated by indomethacin treatment of the papilla, suggesting that the hypotensive activity is dependent upon papillary cyclooxygenase activity. However, PGI2 elicited hypotension concomitant with tachycardia rather than bradycardia and PGE2 did not mimic the incubation medium-induced bradycardia. Therefore, the effects of the papillary incubation medium may be mediated by other cyclooxygenase metabolites. Production/release of hypotensive material by indomethacin-treated papillary tissue was potentiated by co-incubation with non-hypotensive quantities of PGE2, suggesting a potential role for PGE2 in the renal antihypertensive function. Increasing pressure on the papilla from 6 to 20 mmHg during incubation did not increase release of non-prostanoid hypotensive substance(s). These results suggest that the formation and release of cyclooxygenase metabolites accounts primarily for the hypotensive activity released from rat renal papillae in vitro, and that prostaglandins might play a permissive role in the release of other renomedullary hypotensive substances.


The mechanism for fine grinding using diamond tools is shown to depend on the properties of the glass, the acidity of the grinding fluid, as well as the chemical and mechanical properties of the abrasive bonding material. Knowledge of the mechanism is essential for the implementation of this technology for the deterministic fabrication of precision optical surfaces. We find that the fracture mechanism is preferred to plastic scratching for most applications.


Alongside Richard Haydocke's translation of Giovanni Paolo Lomazzo's treatise on painting (1598), the article examines concepts of color concerning cosmetics, painting and complexion as they relate to aesthetics, artistic and medical practice in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. Beginning with white and red as ideal colors of beauty in Agnolo Firenzuola's Discourse on the beauty of women (1541), the essay places color in relation to major issues in art, medicine and empiricism by discussing beauty as a quality of humoral theory and its colors as visual results of physiological processes. Challenging the relation of art and nature, gender and production, Lomazzo's account of complexion and Haydocke's additions on cosmetic practices and face-painting provide key passages that shed light on the relation of cosmetics colors, art writing and artistic practices at the convergence of the body, art and medicine in the context of the emerging English virtuosi around 1600.


In the next few years, electric cars will be one of the main vehicles in transportation system and are designed to meet the requirement of high efficiency and clean energy vehicles. Since the force to propel electric vehicles comes only from electric motor, the profile of tractive effort -speed of the vehicles is determined by the torque - speed profile of the motor. The torque - speed of the electric motor consists of constant torque and constant power region, but the driving pattern in urban area has often forced the electric motor into the constant torque operation area. In this paper, the dynamic response of the PMSM under constant torque operation of city electric car is presented. The mathematical and Matlab/Simulink model of PMSM are derived and constructed, the dynamic response of the motor for city electric car under start-go mode will be obtained from simulation results. The dynamic response of torque and speed are then analyzed.


: There is now overwhelming evidence that lung destruction resulting in emphysema is largely due to enzymatic action on pulmonary connective tissues, mainly elastin. These enzymes are probably derived from neutrophil polymorphonuclear leucocytes and alveolar macrophages. Arguments are advanced to show that release of these enzymes is related to cigarette smoking. This explanation for the pathogenesis of emphysema is compatible with the distribution of the disease within the lung noted in epidemiological studies. If this conclusion with regard to the role of cigarette smoking is correct it must follow that, apart from patients with alpha 1-antitrypsin deficiency, emphysems is a disease which could be almost entirely eliminated if the smoking habit was abandoned.


Importance Depressive disorders (DDs), anxiety disorders (ADs), obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) are common mental disorders in children and adolescents. Objective To examine the relative efficacy and safety of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors (SNRIs), and placebo for the treatment of DD, AD, OCD, and PTSD in children and adolescents. Data Sources PubMed, EMBASE, PsycINFO, Web of Science, and Cochrane Database from inception through August 7, 2016. Study Selection Published and unpublished randomized clinical trials of SSRIs or SNRIs in youths with DD, AD, OCD, or PTSD were included. Trials using other antidepressants (eg, tricyclic antidepressants, monoamine oxidase inhibitors) were excluded. Data Extraction and Synthesis Effect sizes, calculated as standardized mean differences (Hedges g) and risk ratios (RRs) for adverse events, were assessed in a random-effects model. Main Outcomes and Measures Primary outcomes, as defined by authors on preintervention and postintervention data, mean change data, and adverse event data, were extracted independently by multiple observers following PRISMA guidelines. Results Thirty-six trials were eligible, including 6778 participants (3484 [51.4%] female; mean [SD] age, 12.9 [5.1] years); 17 studies for DD, 10 for AD, 8 for OCD, and 1 for PTSD. Analysis showed that SSRIs and SNRIs were significantly more beneficial compared with placebo, yielding a small effect size (g = 0.32; 95% CI, 0.25-0.40; P < .001). Anxiety disorder (g = 0.56; 95% CI, 0.40-0.72; P < .001) showed significantly larger between-group effect sizes than DD (g = 0.20; 95% CI, 0.13-0.27; P < .001). This difference was driven primarily by the placebo response: patients with DD exhibited significantly larger placebo responses (g = 1.57; 95% CI, 1.36-1.78; P < .001) compared with those with AD (g = 1.03; 95% CI, 0.84-1.21; P < .001). The SSRIs produced a relatively large effect size for ADs (g = 0.71; 95% CI, 0.45-0.97; P < .001). Compared with participants receiving placebo, patients receiving an antidepressant reported significantly more treatment-emergent adverse events (RR, 1.07; 95% CI, 1.01-1.12; P = .01 or RR, 1.49; 95% CI, 1.22-1.82; P < .001, depending on the reporting method), severe adverse events (RR, 1.76; 95% CI, 1.34-2.32; P < .001), and study discontinuation due to adverse events (RR, 1.79; 95% CI, 1.38-2.32; P < .001). Conclusions and Relevance Compared with placebo, SSRIs and SNRIs are more beneficial than placebo in children and adolescents; however, the benefit is small and disorder specific, yielding a larger drug-placebo difference for AD than for other conditions. Response to placebo is large, especially in DD. Severe adverse events are significantly more common with SSRIs and SNRIs than placebo.


The role of intracellular signals in the regulation of atrial natriuretic peptide (ANP) release was studied using the isolated left and right atria from a rat. The atria were perfused with Tyrode's solution, equilibrated with 95% O2-5% CO2 at 37 degrees C with a constant flow of 0.5 ml/min. Addition of epinephrine (10(-6) M), an alpha- and beta-agonist, to the perfusate induced the biphasic release of ANP from the right atrium without effect on the left. The initial peak (19.2 +/- 2.6 pg.min-1.ml-1) occurs 2-4 min after the administration of epinephrine, which lasted 4-6 min and returned to base line (10.4 +/- 1.1 pg.min-1.mg-1). The second peak (16.5 +/- 2.0 pg.min-1.ml-1) appeared 30-35 min after epinephrine administration and was sustained for 100 min, at which time the experiment was terminated. The first peak was stimulated by isoproterenol (10(-6) M), a beta-agonist, and blunted by propranolol (10(-6) M), a beta-antagonist. The second peak appeared following methoxamine (10(-6) M), an alpha-agonist, and could be suppressed by phentolamine (10(-6) M), an alpha-antagonist. These studies indirectly suggest that the adenosine 3',5'-cyclic monophosphate system and the inositol triphosphate system are involved in ANP secretion, with the former responsible for the initial rapid release and the latter maintaining the secretion.


Network caches are the storage centers in the supply chain for content delivery - the digital equivalent of warehouses. Operated by access networks and other operators, they provide benefits to content publishers in the forms of bandwidth cost reduction, response time improvement, and handling of flash crowds. Yet, caching has not been fully embraced by publishers, since its use can interfere with site personalization strategies and/or collection of visitor information for business intelligence purposes. While recent work has focused on technological solutions to these issues, this paper provides the first study of the managerial issues related to the design and provisioning of incentive compatible caching services. Starting with a single class of caching service, we find conditions under which the profit maximizing cache operator should offer the service for free. This occurs when the access networks' bandwidth costs are high and a large fraction of content publishers value personalization and business intelligence. Yet, some publishers will still opt out of the service, i.e., cache-bust, as observed in practice. We next derive the conditions under which the profit-maximizing cache operator should provision two vertically differentiated service classes, namely premium and best-effort. Interestingly, caching service differentiation is different from traditional vertical differentiation models, in that the premium and best effort market segments do not abut. Thus, optimal prices for the two service classes can be set independently, and cannibalization does not occur. It is possible for the cache operator to continue to offer the best-effort service for free while charging for the premium service. Furthermore, consumers are better off because more content is cached and delivered faster to them. Finally, we find that declining bandwidth costs will put negative pressure on cache operator profits, unless consumer adoption of broadband connectivity and the availability of multimedia content provide the necessary increase in traffic volume for the caches.


One of the focus areas in the heavy-duty transport industry globally is de-carbonization of trucks, dozers, shovels, semi-trucks, buses, etc. Hydrogen fuel cells (FCs) technology is one considered solution for the industry due to its zero-emissions, its MW scalability and capacity to store large amounts of energy for long duration continuous power operation. Underground deep mines is another option for deployment and operation of hydrogen FCs. Benefits include lower emissions, improved health, comfort and safety, as well as reduced operating costs. Underground mining trucks, loaders and other machines have power ratings up to 750 kW, which proves difficult for battery and tethered electric energy. Hydrogen FCs have the ability to overcome these power and energy storage limitations. The risks and technologies associated with delivering, storing and using hydrogen underground first need to be investigated and proven safe. This work presents the design, construction and operation of a mining ventilation test facility (VTF) at the North-West University in South Africa that aims to quantify the risk of hydrogen in confined ventilated environments. Initial work has been conducted on measuring concentrations of hydrogen released in the temporary ventilation site and is discussed.


In this research, we studied the growth performance and tolerance of three biodiesel plants namely; Jatropha curcas, Moringa oleifera and Ricinus communis to water stress. Research conducted on the three different soils from Kaita, Jibiya and Mai'adua in the semi-desert environments of Katsina State, Nigeria. The findings revealed that pH, electrical conductivity, water holding capacity and moisture retention of the soils were less variable in the soils. Regarding the growth performance, J. Curcas has the highest number of germinating seeds from 45% to 65% without amendments and 80% to 85% soil under amendments. In M. oleifera was 35% to 40% and 65% to 80% while, R. communis has least counts ranging from 20% to 30% and 35% to 50% under two different conditions. Similarly, J. curcas has lesser time for seed germination in non-amended conditions, but under amendments, J. curcas and M. oleifera shown more or less similar time for seeds germination. In R. communis, was late but there was most significant decrease to about 41.53% after treatments. The growth rate from the growth parameters (length, number of leaves and biomass) indicated that M. oleifera has the highest rate reaching up to 42.19cm in length, 320 numbers of leaves and 38.03g biomass per plant. However, the growth rate in J. curcus was average by comparing the three species and found lowest in R. cummunis under both conditions. However, there was no significant increase in plants growth in amended soil as in jibia soil. The tolerance of plants to water stress varies with J. curcus having greater tolerance as it prolongs it's temporary taking up to 19 days before attaining permanent wilting in jibia soil. However, M. oleifera has an average tolerance in comparison, between the three, but early temporary and permanent wilting period in 1 to 3 days exhibits by R. communis portrays its disability to tolerate water stress in the environments. Key Words : Amendment, Biodiesel, Retention, Tolerance, Texture, Wilting


CNS tuberculosis has a broad spectrum of disease patterns and a high risk of complications and mortality. We present a case of a 36-year-old man who was diagnosed with neurotuberculosis with intracranial and spinal tuberculomas, meningitis, and spondylodiscitis. The patient was a known case of sarcoidosis and was being managed on corticosteroids. His presenting complaints were headache, low-grade fever, severe backache, lower limb weakness, and one episode of altered sensorium. The initial diagnosis was based on imaging findings, which were confirmed with positive cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) culture for Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Imaging and clinicopathological correlation enables early diagnosis and treatment and prevents permanent neurological sequelae.


Aim:The aim of this study is to compare and evaluate the effects of auxillary grooves on retention of complete cast crown on molars. Method: Thirty mounted teeth were divided randomly into three groups of 10 each and grooves are placed using NOF104R diamond point. In group A , no groove is placed – control, group B, one groove is placed proximally in the centre of mesial surface – Test group. In group C, two groove is placed proximally , each in centre of mesial surface and distal surface Test group. Castings were prepared luted and retention was checked using a Universal Testing machine Results were subjected to one way ANOVA and Student T Test. Results: Auxilary retentive features produces a significant increase in retention of complete cast crowns. Incorporation of two proximal grooves on the mesial and distal side produces the most retention as compared to one groove or conventional tooth preparation Conclusion: Retentive features produces a significant increase in retention of complete cast crowns


Recent years have seen a substantial change in how children who challenge gender norms (referred to in this article as ''Gender Independent'') are regarded by professionals, by their families and by the public at large. Pathologized and treated for decades as a mental illness, childhood gender non-conformity would seem to be imbued with new meaning, as evidenced by a growing number of public voices claiming gender variance as part of human diversity. Call it a paradigm shift: from disorder to diversity, from treatment to affirmation, from pathology to pride, from cure to community. This commentary article reflects on recent shifts in language, shifts in identity options, and shifts in the focus of intervention with gender non-conforming children. Drawing on existing research and public discourse, I consider what the field of human sexuality can learn from ''Gender Independence.''


ABSTRACT A sequence of thinly bedded limestones, dolomites, shales, and sandstones contains evaporitic beds in Counties Leitrim and Cavan, Republic of Ireland. This sequence constitutes the Aghagrania Formation (new name) of B2-P1c age (Upper Visean), with a type section east of Drumshanbo, County Leitrim. The evaporitic beds, which have not previously been recorded from this horizon or locality, are mostly unfossiliferous laminated limestones and dolomites with macrocells and with pseudomorphs after gypsum, anhydrite, and halite. This facies of the Aghagrania Formation also includes evaporitic breccias, and celestite and carbonate replacements of calcium sulphate. Blocks of gypsum in boulder clay, on the shore of Lough Allen, are probably derived from these beds. The evaporitic strata alternate with shales and limestones containing marine faunas, and with unfossiliferous sandstones. All the facies show evidence of shallow water deposition and were probably formed in an area of low relief subjected to transgressions and regressions of a shallow sea. The evaporitic beds may be compared t the dolomite and gypsum deposits of present day tidal flats and associated shallow lagoons. They also resemble certain other occurrences of ancient laminated dolomite and limestone beds which have been recently described and attributed to a tidal flat origin.


We introduce a mathematical model for the study of cooperative control problems for multiple autonomous air vehicles (AAVs) connected via a communication network. We propose a cooperative control strategy based on task-load balancing that seeks to ensure that no vehicle is underutilized and we show how to characterize task-load balancing as a stability property. Then, using Lyapunov stability analysis, we provide conditions under which task-load balancing is achieved even in the presence of communication delays. Finally, we investigate performance properties of the cooperative controller using Monte Carlo simulations. This shows the benefits of cooperation and the effects of network delays and communication topology on performance


Evaluation of the implementation of an e-portfolio within the work integrated learning (WIL) component of a foundation unit of the Bachelor of Nursing program at a regional Australian University was undertaken in 2010 as part of a teaching development grant. The findings have provided valuable insights about how to successfully embed the use of an e-portfolio into the curriculum. This process has also indicated that there are assumptions about information communication transfer (ICT) use and understanding among students that need to be addressed if e-portfolios are to become more utilitarian within this sector of the workforce. This evaluation indicated that ubiquitous use of digital technology by students is fallacious. Additionally, student comprehension regarding the introduction of software to enhance their learning experience was mixed.

The advent of e-portfolios has occurred in response to changing needs of learners and emerging technologies within the higher education sector. They are a function of the 'knowledge economy' with relevance across all industry sectors. e-Portfolios are recognised as increasing student skills and competencies in ICT and enhancing their workplace readiness. Development of these attributes is particularly relevant in professions where WIL is a component of the undergraduate experience. The use of e-portfolios represents a shift from institution-centric to student-centric control. This change requires the development of effective guidelines, policies and standards. This evaluation has enabled opportunities for reflection and has guided changes that will improve and continue to support students and staff while undertaking WIL.

Participants were asked to electronically complete surveys prior to and post use of the e-portfolio. Pre-implementation surveys reflected results from other studies that indicate students were familiar with social networking (82%). However, few students indicated they used file sharing sites (15%) or possessed their own website (8%). The lack of ubiquity about student ICT use provided insights into their perspective about access and use of learner support resources. Students indicated that the marking rubric and face-to-face tutorials were the most useful. They also reported that viewing and commenting on other students' blogs helped them feel connected to their peers while on WIL. Additionally, blogging assisted students to reflect and understand the role of a nurse. The evaluation of this process also captured the student e-portfolio experience.

Education institutions play an important role in guiding students on how to use e-portfolios effectively and responsibly; with control, access and standards for use being major challenges. Additionally, institutions are mandated to collaborate and support the provision of evidence-based best practice to guide the embedding of this technology within the curriculum. This presentation will provide insights into the learning and teaching capacity of the e-portfolio software to engage students undertaking WIL and implications of its use within undergraduate programs.


A full-length zebrafish cDNA clone and a partial mouse cDNA clone similar to chick DM-GRASP were isolated and analyzed. The nucleotide sequence of the full-length zebrafish clone shares 54% identity, and predicts 39% amino acid identity, with chick DM-GRASP. The partial mouse clone shares 76% nucleotide identity, and predicts 76% amino acid identity, with chick DM-GRASP. The predicted proteins encoded by both of these clones exhibit conserved structural domains that are characteristic of the chick protein. These features may identify them as a distinct subfamily within the immunoglobulin superfamily of cell adhesion molecules. Expression of the zebrafish DM-GRASP protein is similar to chick DM-GRASP and is principally restricted to a small subset of developing sensory and motor neurons during axonogenesis. Zebrafish DM-GRASP expression was temporally regulated and limited to specific axon domains. This regional expression correlated with fasciculated axon domains. These results suggest that the zebrafish and mouse cDNA clones represent the respective fish and mammalian homologs of chick DM-GRASP. The highly selective expression of zebrafish DM-GRASP suggests that it is involved in the selective fasciculation and guidance of axons along their normal pathways.


Core histones can be modified by aceylation and this modification has been correlated with the modulation of chromatin condensation and histone deposition. We have now studied the levels of acetylation of the core histones in rat brain cortical neurons from the middle of the period of neuronal proliferation through postnatal development and aging. The results show that the level of acetylation of H4 decreases with age. The kinetics of H4 deacetylation show a perinatal fast phase followed by a much slower phase that spans the rest of the period examined. H4 deacetylation is accounted for by the decrease of the monoacetylated species, the proportions of the more highly acetylated species remaining essentially constant. By contrast to histone H4, the overall levels of acetylation and the proportions of the different acetylated species of H2A, H2B and H3 remain unchanged throughout the period examined. Furthermore, the variants belonging to a given histone class always show the same level of acetylation. The fact that in neurons the level of monoacetylated H4 decreases during development and aging, in sharp contrast with the constancy of the levels of all other acetylated histone species, raises the possibility that in interphase chromatin monoacetylated H4 may have a central role in the modulation of chromatin structure. The results also suggest that the slow decrease of the proportion of monoacetylated H4 may imply a gradual loss of chromatin structural plasticity and thus lead to aging.


In order to achieve energy stability and sustainable development, it is necessary to secure the energy supply and improve efficiency of energy production and consumption at all levels. The increase of energy production from renewable sources will help deliver secure supply and can be one of the most attractive areas for foreign investment in the territory of Nis. Biomass, which is considered to be the greatest potential renewable source of energy in the city of Nis, has insufficiently been utilised. The authors of the paper highlight the importance of using biomass and consider the issues which arise from substituting conventional energies, such as securing the safety of energy supply, enhanced agricultural development and environment protection.


The aim of this research was to investigate the reactive ion etching (RIE) of gallium arsenide (GaAs) in mixtures of methane and hydrogen (CH ₄H₂) plasma and to evaluate thier advantages over chlorinated plasmas. This was performed in order to find the optimum etching conditions for GaAs such as, the best etch rate with greatest degree of anisotropy, the finest smooth side walls and the lowest surface roughness. The induced damage to GaAs due to RIE was investigated by current-voltage (I-V) and capacitance-voltage (C-V) measurements. From a study of the behaviour of the DC self bias voltage and an analysis of electrical characterization, a possible model of the mechanism of etching GaAs in methane and hydrogen mixtures was proposed. The main contributions of this research are as follows:

Etching of GaAs while maintaining the total flow rate of the gas mixture and its residence time in the chamber constant.

Studying the effect of the physical component of the etching
mechanism on GaAs by investigating the variation in the DC self bias voltage for all process parameters.

Analyzing the effect of process parameters on the deposition rate of carbon polymers on the surface of the inorganic mask during GaAs etching.

Investigating the effect of process parameters and carbon polymer deposition on SiO ₂mask erosion during GaAs etching.

Examining the electrical characteristics of highly doped p-GaAs following RIE in CH ₄/H₂ plasma and comparing with those of H ₂ etched samples.


Chronic pancreatitis, although relatively rare in the Western World, is common in certain tropical zones where staple crops such as cassava are rich in cyanogenic glycosides. This paper reviews the evidence for a cyanide connection, with reference to experimental studies using another plant nitrile, crambene; and then examines the hypothesis that chronic pancreatitis represents a manifestation of uncoordinated detoxification reactions between pancreatic cytochrome P450 mono-oxygenases and phase II conjugating enzymes, resulting in the irreversible consumption of glutathione in the acinar cell. The conclusion is that the central role of disrupted pancreatic glutathione status, as a result of 'xenobiotic stress', in the evolution of chronic pancreatitis cannot be overestimated. This position contrasts with that in acute pancreatitis, in which glutathione depletion has a pivotal role too, but occurs as a result of 'stress' from reactive oxygen species.


The goal of our studies is to find alloy compositions capable of high H capacity and reversible low temperature hydrogenation. In the present research work, specimens with nominal compositions Zr0.9Ti0.1Cr1.2V0.8 and Zr0.9Ti0.1Cr0.8V0.8Ni0.4 have been prepared by arc–melting under argon atmosphere. The microstructural properties of the samples were analyzed by XRD and SEM, while the corresponding microchemistry was determined by EDAX measurements. A two phase system was regularly obtained, with the main component being the hexagonal (C14) Laves phase. The presence of small amounts of Ni has been found to increase the alloy activity on hydrogen. Hydrogen activation was performed for both samples and charging-discharging properties were investigated in the temperature range between 20 oC and 100 oC by using a Sievert-type apparatus.


This technical report introduces a novel approach to enabling analytical processing of project data. The approach exploits source code repositories for information about project evolution. Furthermore this technical report proposes a new perspective on analyzing version control data. It takes up a process-centric viewpoint, addresses related analysis problems like collaboration of programmers and proposes metrics for them. The research has yielded an implementation of the approach, which comprises visualizations that assist in examining the evolution of software process.


s IPRED 2010 s43 inating best scientific practices.The PACER is conducting several projects focused on five key areas of research: (1) preparedness theory and practice; (2) response networks; (3) analysis, modeling, and simulation; (4) science, technology, and engineering; and (5) education. In particular, the education research area has been tasked with developing an infrastructure to train disaster experts, from today's scientists to tomorrow's leaders in academia, health care, and public service. Furthermore, PACER has established eight principals around which research projects focus: (1) understanding high impact chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear, or explosive events; (2) conducting inquiries that serve the goals of the Department of Homeland Security and the National Response Plan; (3) providing relevance to first responders at all levels; (4) engaging all levels of government, public and private sectors for a fully integrated approach; (5) leveraging the diverse resources of partners to augment efforts; (6) developing educational programs and concepts for broad dissemination to train future leaders, experts, and scholars; (7) engaging appropriate efforts to achieve sustainability; and (8) maintaining flexibility, given the potential changing threats and the need to be prepared for all hazards. This presentation will describe PACER's activities in furthering knowledge and understanding of high-consequence events and its ability to effectively deter and prepare for and respond to such events.


Suppression by T regulatory cells (Treg cells) is a major mechanism by which the immune system controls responses to self and nonharmful foreign proteins. Although there are many different types of Treg cells, the best characterized are those that constitutively express cell-surface IL-2R (cid:1) (CD25). We investigated whether altered T-cell–receptor (TCR)– mediated signaling in pure populations of ex vivo human CD4 (cid:2) CD25 (cid:2) Treg cells might underlie their unique phenotype, including hyporesponsiveness to TCR– mediated activation and lack of cytokine production. CD4 (cid:2) CD25 (cid:2) Treg cells displayed a consistent defect in phosphorylation of AKT at serine 473 and reduced phosphorylation of the AKT substrates FOXO and S6. Restoration of AKT activity via lentiviral-mediated expression of an inducibly active form of the kinase revealed that reduced activity of this pathway was necessary for the suppressive function of CD4 (cid:2) CD25 (cid:2) Treg cells. These data represent the first demonstration of a causal association between altered signaling and the function of CD4 (cid:2) CD25 (cid:2) Treg cells. Moreover, we have created the first system allowing inducible abrogation of suppression through manipu-lation of the suppressor cells. This system will be a powerful tool to further study the mechanism(s) of suppression by CD4 (cid:2)


1. The incorporation of [(14)C]valine and [(3)H]threonine has been studied in mucosa of goldfish acclimatized to different temperatures. 2. [(14)C]Valine was incorporated more rapidly than [(3)H]threonine at acclimatization temperatures below 15 degrees ; this distinction disappeared at higher temperatures. 3. The rate of amino acid incorporation rose as the environmental temperature was increased. 4. The number of valine residues in mucosal protein fell and the number of methionine residues rose as the acclimatization temperature was raised. 5. The concentration of free methionine was closely related to the amount in protein in goldfish mucosa; both increased at higher acclimatization temperatures. 6. An attempt is made to show that these changes are integrated with possible homoeostatic mechanisms in the goldfish intestine.


The vast majority of college students have been reared as researchers in an environment where boundaries for information have been clearly marked, i.e., that of books and paper text. Increasingly, however, they are called upon to perform tasks in an environment not clearly bounded, that of hyperspace. How do we learn to surf in this unfamiliar medium? What strategies do people use when surfing through the unbounded space of hyperlinks or the World Wide Web (WWW)? In order to effectively teach students new surfing skills we must be able to understand how neophyte web users form the cognitive neurological networks that result in a mental pathway, or cognitive map, that makes more navigable the route to further information as well as the information they set out to find. A markovian modeling of user's behavior is introduced and compared to a fuzzy cognitive map (FCM) that represents the opinions of experts on how users surf the web. Experts are divided on what causes users to fail their queries on the web. This paper shows that a viable FCM model can be developed and some limit-cycle equilibria are uncovered. A FCM limit cycle repeats a sequence of events and actions. Limit cycles can reveal cognitive and behavioral patterns of users on the web. An adaptive FCM is built to reflect its causal behavior in time. This change reflects the user's behavior as their knowledge of the web increases with time. The causal behavior learns from data. Users lean new patterns and reinforce old ones. Copyright c ©2002 Yang's Scientific Research Institute, LLC. All rights reserved. Received by the editors December 5, 2002 / final version received December 6, 2002.


Wampee (Clausena lansium Skeels) is native to southern China and Southeast Asia. Wampee trees are attractive, with grape-like fruits and a muscat taste and are popular in home gardens. Like other members of Rutaceae, wampee has long been suspected to have "yellow shoot" disease or Huanglongbing (HLB) and Diaphorina citri, the disease vector, was capable of a long-term survival on Wampee (2). The importance of wampee HLB is its potential to serve as a source of inoculum of the HLB pathogen, Candidatus Liberibacter spp., for sweet orange, mandarin, and other economically important citrus crops. Yet, the presence of Ca. Liberibacter spp. in wampee has not been confirmed with the 16S rDNA signature sequence that define this unculturable bacterium (1,3). In August of 2006, we identified two wampee trees showing "yellow shoots" symptoms (Fig. 1A) adjacent to a mandarin orchard with HLB in Luoding City, Guangdong Province, People's Republic of China. Symptomatic leaves ranged from mottling and to yellowing (Fig. 1B). Leaf samples were collected, and DNA was extracted using the CTAB (cetyltrimethylammoniumbromide) method (4). DNA samples were assayed by nested-PCR. The general bacterial 16S rDNA primer set fDl/rD1 (AGA GTT TGA TCC TGG CTC AG / AAG GAG GTG ATC CAG CC) (1) was used for the outer round amplification. The PCR reaction (25 μl) mixture contained:10 mM Tris-HCl, pH 8.3; 50 mM KCl; 1.5 mM MgCl2; 100 μM each dNTPs; 400 mM each primer, 1 U of Taq DNA polymerase and 1 μL of template DNA. Amplification was conducted with an initial denature at 96°C for 10 min, followed by 10 cycles consisting of: denaturing at 96°C for 30 s, annealing at 55°C for 30 s, and extension at 72°C for 30 s. Two μl of the amplicon were then used for inner round amplification using the same procedure but 35 PCR cycles with primer set OI1/OI2c (5' GCG CGT ATG CAA TAC GAG CGG CA 3' / 5' GCC TCG CGA CTT CGC AAC CCA T 3') specific for Ca. L. asiaticus (1,3). The amplified DNAs were resolved through agarose gel electrophoresis. As shown in Fig. 2, a 1.1 kb amplicon was obtained from symptomatic but not asymptomatic leaf samples. Non-nested PCR using primer set OI1/OI2c-only did not yield any detectable DNA bands from either symptomatic or asymptomatic leaves. XbaI digestion yielded two fragments of 520 bp and 640 bp, characteristic to Ca. L. asiaticus. PCR amplicons were further sequenced to be 1,095 bp and shared a > 98% similarity to sequences of Ca. L. asiaticus in the GenBank database. No DNA was amplified with primer set GB1/GB2 (AAG TCG AGC GAG TAC GCA AGT ACT / CCA ACT TAA TGA TGG CAA ATA TAG) specific to Ca. L. americanus (5). We note that nested-PCR is necessary for Ca. L. asiaticus detection in wampee, suggesting low bacterial titer in this host. We recommend that eradication of wampee trees surrounding citrus orchards should be part of the overall management of citrus HLB.


BACKGROUND
In the Collaborative Study on the Genetics of Asthma, 314 families with 2584 subjects were characterized for asthma and allergy.

OBJECTIVE
The purpose of this investigation was to examine clinical heterogeneity observed in asthma and allergic characteristics among 3 ethnic groups (African American, white, and Hispanic family members).

METHODS
Pulmonary function parameters and asthma associated phenotypes were compared among the ethnic groups.

RESULTS
In comparison with the other groups, African American sibling pairs had a significantly lower baseline FEV(1) percent of predicted (P =.0001) and a higher rate of skin test reactivity to cockroach allergen (P =.0001); Hispanic sibling pairs had significantly more skin reactivity overall (P =.001); and white sibling pairs had significantly lower total serum IgE (P <.05). In addition, there were significantly more relatives with asthma among the African American families than among the white and the Hispanic families (P =.001).

CONCLUSION
Although different environmental backgrounds should be considered, these clinical differences could be due to differences in genetic susceptibility among the ethnic groups, such as those suggested by our previous genome screen.


Anti‐privatisation debates dominate Indonesia's contemporary water discourse. This has culminated in attempts at invalidating the Water Law through a Judicial Review. Finally rejected by the Constitutional Court, the law remains in place, although polarised debate remains and prevents greater regulation across the sector. The polarised debate leads to hesitations in regulating private sector participation (PSP). As a result, there is a major lack of regulation of PSP in the water sector. This article examines two contexts – Jakarta, where a concession takes place and Bogor, where the service is run entirely by a publicly owned company. Customer rights, such as the right to be connected, to enjoy certain service levels, to compensation, to financial aid, to redress mechanisms, including the right to participation and transparency, barely exist in Jakarta but are adequately guaranteed in Bogor.