This study was conducted to assess the relation between threonine (Thr) oxidation rate and threonine efficiency on rat and chicken fed with graded levels of protein and threonine. The increase in threonine content from 0.28 to 0.72% in a diet containing 12.0% crude protein (CP) caused a gradual increase in threonine dehydrogenase (TDG) activity in rat liver. Similar, but more pronounced results were observed after 18.0% CP in the diet. Both protein levels in combination with the highest level of threonine supplementation increased liver TDG activity significantly, indicating enhanced threonine catabolism. Parameters of efficiency of threonine utilization calculated from parallel nitrogen balance studies decreased significantly and indicated threonine oversupply after a maximum of threonine supplementation. At the lower levels of threonine addition the efficiency of threonine utilization was not significantly changed. In the chicken liver up to 0.60% true digestible threonine (dThr) in the 18.5% CP diet produced no effect on the TDG activity. However, TDG activity in the liver was elevated by the diet containing 22.5% CP (0.60% dThr) and the efficiency of threonine utilization decreased, indicating the end of threonine limiting range. In conclusion, the in vitro TDG activity in the liver of rat and growing chicken has an indicator function for the dietary supply of threonine.


Escherichia coli endonuclease VIII (Endo VIII) is a DNA glycosylase with substrate specificity for a wide range of oxidatively damaged pyrimidine bases. Endo VIII catalyzes hydrolysis of the N-glycosidic bond and β, δ-elimination of 3′- and 5′-phosphate groups of an apurinic/apyrimidinic site. Single mutants of Endo VIII L70S, L70W, Y71W, F121W, F230W, and P253W were analyzed here with the aim to elucidate the kinetic mechanism of protein conformational adjustment during damaged-nucleotide recognition and catalytic-complex formation. F121W substitution leads to a slight reduction of DNA binding and catalytic activity. F230W substitution slows the rate of the δ-elimination reaction indicating that interaction of Phe230 with a 5′-phosphate group proceeds in the latest catalytic step. P253W Endo VIII has the same activity as the wild type (WT) enzyme. Y71W substitution slightly reduces the catalytic activity due to the effect on the later steps of catalytic-complex formation. Both L70S and L70W substitutions significantly decrease the catalytic activity, indicating that Leu70 plays an important role in the course of enzyme-DNA catalytic complex formation. Our data suggest that Leu70 forms contacts with DNA earlier than Tyr71 does. Therefore, most likely, Leu70 plays the role of a DNA lesion "sensor", which is used by Endo VIII for recognition of a DNA damage site.


Pollution of the environment and food with toxic heavy metals is being intensified in Bangladesh with industrial development. Consumption of foods and water contaminated with heavy metals imposes threat to human health. Aiming to find a solution to this problem, the present study focuses on probiotic Lactobacillus spp. with potential to remove heavy metals from environment as well as human body. A total of three Lactobacillus spp were isolated from curd samples and were identified based on their morphological and biochemical properties. These isolates were tolerant to low pH and bile salt which aids in their application in human gut. All isolates could tolerate 600 ppm chromium, 400 ppm lead, 400 ppm copper and 400 ppm zinc. The heavy metal tolerant Lactobacillus spp were also multi drug resistant and showed 100% resistance to Azithromycin, Cloxacillin, Gentamicin, Vancomycin, Streptomycin, Nalidixic acid, Trimethoprim-Sulfamethoxazole and Penicillin, while 100% sensitivity was observed to Imipenem.
Bangladesh J Microbiol, Volume 34 Number 1 June 2017, pp 43-46


Land degradation in the Philippine uplands is severe and widespread. Most upland areas are steep, and intense rainfall on soils disturbed by intensive agriculture can produce high rates of soil loss. This has serious implications for the economic welfare of a growing upland population with few feasible livelihood alternatives. Hedgerow intercropping can greatly reduce soil loss from annual cropping systems and has been considered an appropriate technology for soil conservation research and extension in the Philippine uplands. However, adoption of hedgerow intercropping has been sporadic and transient, rarely continuing once external support has been withdrawn. The objective of this paper is to investigate the economic incentives for farmers in the Philippine uplands to adopt hedgerow intercropping relative to traditional open-field maize farming. Cost-benefit analysis is used to compare the economic viability of hedgerow intercropping, as it has been promoted to upland farmers, with the viability of traditional methods of open-field farming. The APSIM and SCUAF models were used to predict the effect of soil erosion on maize yields from open-field farming and hedgerow intercropping. The results indicate that there have been strong economic incentives for farmers with limited planning horizons to reject hedgerow intercropping because the benefits of sustained yields are not realized rapidly enough to compensate for high establishment costs. Alternative forms of hedgerow intercropping such as natural vegetation and grass strips reduce establishment and maintenance costs and are therefore more economically attractive to farmers than hedgerow intercropping with shrub legumes. The long-term economic viability of hedgerow intercropping depends on the economic setting and the potential for hedgerow intercropping to sustain maize production relative to traditional open-field farming.


In a series of studies related to the kinetics of penetration in living cells Osterhout and his coworkers I have used artificial cell models, consisting of a non-aqueous phase (guaiacol or guaiacol with p-cresol), representing the protoplasmic surface, in contact with aqueous phases, representing the cell sap and the external solution. In this connection the distribution of electrolytes between guaiacol and water, is particularly interesting. The electrical conductivities of sodium and potassium guaiacolate solutions in guaiacol have been discussed in the previous paper. 2 I t was shown that these salts are weak electrolytes in such solutions, and that their ionization constants can be computed from the conductivity measurements by taking into account the effect of interionic forces on the mobilities and activities of the ions. This paper will deal with the partition of these salts between water and guaiacol, and will provide an independent means for computing these ionization constants. Starting from the assumptions that the salts are weak electrolytes in the guaiacol phase and strong electrolytes in the aqueous phase, and using the interionic attraction theory of Debye and Hiickel, it is shown that the variation of the distribution coefficients with concentration can be explained. Furthermore, the ionization constants previously obtained from conductivity measure-


There is currently interest in using novel modulation formats for high bit-rate datacoms systems. 4-level modulation is an attractive method of halving the line-rate required for 40Gb/s systems. This 20GBaud line rate enables reduced bandwidth direct modulation of semiconductor lasers, thus reducing laser chirp, increasing transmission distances and also enabling simplified drive electronics to be used. In this experiment the 4-level signal is generated by electrically combining 2 de-correlated 20Gb/s data streams of differing amplitude from a pattern generator and then used to modulate a DFB laser. The directly modulated source is a DFB laser, emitting at 1310nm with a 3dB frequency response of 20GHz. This laser also has a very linear modulation response, with a spurious free dynamic range of over 100dBHz2/3 at 25°C and over 90 dBHz2/3 at 85°C. This highly linear behaviour is necessary to allow direct 4-level modulation source even at high temperature. The 40Gb/s 4-level signal is then transmitted along standard fibre and detected with an electrical receiver. In order to overcome the attenuation limited transmission distance of 20km a semiconductor optical amplifier, with a saturation power of 11dBm and fibre to fibre gain of 20dB, is used. The addition of an SOA enables transmission distances of 40km to be achieved with transmission penalties of as low as 2.6dB, even with the laser operating at 70°C. The robustness of the 4-level modulation is compared to NRZ and the impairments to both signals upon optical amplification are examined.


Fabry disease is an X-linked lysosomal storage disorder caused by alpha-galactosidase A deficiency. The genetic defect leads to progressive intracellular accumulation of Gl3 in various tissues, including heart, kidney, vascular endothelium and the nervous system. Cardiac involvement is frequent and since renal transplantation therapy became standard most Fabry patients die due to cardiac reasons. Left ventricular hypertrophy is the morphological hallmark of the disease. Hypertrophy can be accompanied by various other cardiac findings, which can be visualized using echocardiography. Especially the left ventricular geometry and the regional myocardial function can show major alterations during disease progression. This review provides echocardiographic guidance in Fabry disease and highlights possible alterations of the hearts components visualizable with echocardiography. The main findings are summarized in the Take home message sections.


Research shows that concern about the effect of taxes on economic growth and development is supposed to be noticed, because it is beneficial for the reasonable effective system design of property tax reform and the economic development in china. But today, there are few works that examine the impact of property tax on economy in China. Using the provincial data from 2001 to 2012 in china, this paper adopts AK model in the theory of endogenous economic growth and tax elasticity index to examine the economic effects, reveals the root of the influence as well as the industry influence from the current three main ideas of property tax reform. The result shows that the improvement of the property tax rate will not only give people negative effect which is greater than enterprise, but also keeps decreasing effect on enterprise investment. The root of economic impact is still derived from capital investment in the traditional factors of production. The consolidated tax will reduce the third industrial tax burden and increase the second industrial tax burden, especially influence on education, information, computer and software industry.


The presentation order in supervised categorization learning can influence the category representation. For example, the order can bias a rule-based approach focusing the identification of relevant features or an exemplar-based approach focusing the similarity of category members. In a blocked design stimuli can either be presented in a way that relevant features over stimuli become obvious or that two succeeding stimuli share as many common features as possible (cf. Mathy & Feldman, 2016). In an empirical study with 21 participants we investigated both orders for the 5-4 category structure (Medin & Schaffer, 1978) and assessed categorization behavior and self-reports in the first trials. Results suggest that the answer behavior and selfreports during the first trials can be influenced by the presentation order. However, in both groups feature-based and similaritybased explanations were reported. Additionally, the similarity-based group named more feature-based rules including irrelevant features.


The nonlinear simulation of interfacial instabilities in miscible displacements in porous media often requires sophisticated numerical algorithms as well as very fine spatial and temporal resolutions. In this study, Hartley transform based pseudo-spectral method is used to simulate time evolution of thermoviscous fingers in rectilinear geometry. The problem is formulated using continuity equation, Darcy's law, and volume-averaged forms of convection-diffusion equation for mass and energy balance. The numerical code is validated against established results for isothermal displacements. The effects of exponential dependence of viscosity on concentration and temperature, Lewis number, and porosity on the stability of the thermo-viscous flow are examined. It has been generally observed that at practical values of porosity and Lewis number, the thermal front always lags behind the fluid front and the instability is dominated by the viscosity variation due to concentration.


The Sex-determining Region Y ( Sry in mammals but SRY in humans [4] ) is a gene found on Y chromosomes that leads to the development of male phenotypes, such as testes [5] . The Sry gene, located on the short branch of the Y chromosome, initiates male embryonic development in the XY sex determination [6] system. The Sry gene follows the central dogma of molecular biology; the DNA encoding the gene is transcribed into messenger RNA, which then produces a single Sry protein. The Sry protein is also called the testis-determining factor (TDF), a protein that initiates male development in humans [4] , placental mammals, and marsupials. The Sry protein is a transcription factor that can bind to regions of testis-specific DNA, bending specific DNA and activating or enhancing its abilities to promote testis formation, marking the first step towards male, rather than female, development in the embryo. Y


Side chain engineering has been used widely to expand the functionality and enhance the solubility of conjugated polymers, promoting their utility in various applications. Herein, we report the synthesis of an adenine-functionalized, thiophene-based alternating copolymer via direct arylation polymerization. This nucleobase-modified, alkyl thiophene-based alternating copolymer was accessed by copolymerization of a Boc-protected, adenine functionalized thiophene monomer 9-(6-(2,5-dibromothiophen-3-yl)hexyl)-9H-purine-6-amine (TAd), with 3,3′,3′′,4′-tetrahexyl-2,2′:5′,2′′-terthiophene, (tT4h). Quantitative post-polymerization deprotection of Boc groups results in the adenine bearing alternating copolymer (TAd-tT4h), which is soluble in common organic solvents due to steric hindrance-induced flexibility of the tT4h comonomer, allowing structure–property relationships to be established. In comparison to the unfunctionalized analogue, interchain hydrogen bonding through the adenine functionality enhances the packing of the copolymer, resulting in a ∼70 °C increase in the glass transition temperature. Furthermore, the improved solubility of the copolymer and capacity for strong metal ion binding by the nucleobase leads to dramatic fluorescence quenching (>90%) upon addition of Cu2+ ions, which is also reflected in a high Stern–Volmer constant of 1.28 × 104 M−1. The fluorescence emission is recovered almost completely after washing the copolymer solution with EDTA-disodium salt aqueous solution. These findings demonstrate the viability of synthesizing soluble, fully conjugated copolymers with nucleobase functionality via direct arylation polymerization, as well as the influence of the hydrogen bonding nucleobase on thermal, optical, and metal-ion sensing properties.


Blind quantum computation (BQC) allows a client, who only possesses relatively poor quantum devices, to delegate universal quantum computation to a server, who has a fully fledged quantum computer, in such a way that the server cannot know the client's input, quantum algorithm, and output. In the existing verification schemes of BQC, any suspicious deviation on the trap qubits is rejected, and hence the acceptance rate of the output decreases exponentially in the number of trap qubits even under not malicious server's deviation or quantum channel noise. This degrades the practicability of the verifiable BQC protocol. To avoid this, we here propose a remote blind single-qubit preparation protocol, where the client performs only Pauli X- and Z-basis measurements to prepare the random states required for the FK protocol. While the quantum server can prepare any malicious state for the client, we show that any client's information is blind for the server and that any server's deviation is independent on the state send by the client, which is necessary to guarantee blindness and verifiability of the proposed protocol. Since only $X$ and $Z$-basis measurements are employed, the client can reduce the error by using only classical processing with the CSS (Calderbank-Shor-Steane) codes. This allows almost classical client to amplify the acceptance rate even under server's deviation or quantum channel noise, as long as they are correctable.


The verbal protocol method is used extensively in computer usability studies. This study was designed to test the feasibility of using the verbal protocol method as a means of conducting field research on the online catalogue. Ten undergraduate students conducted their own research on DRA's Infogate. As they searched, they talked aloud about what keys they were pressing, what was happening on the screen, and their reactions. Transcripts of sessions were analyzed. A total of 65 different problems or comments were noted during search sessions, with 11 problems or comments noted in three or more sessions. This supports the hypothesis that the verbal protocol method is a valuable means of identifying common problems for users. It is suggested that the verbal protocol method offers great potential as a research tool in librarianship, for example in the area of interface design.


BACKGROUND
Patients suffering from body dysmorphic disorder (bdd) are preoccupied with a slight or imagined defect in appearance.

AIM
First of all, to review the literature on the prevalence of bdd in cosmetic surgery and thereafter to review the literature on psychiatric comorbidity and the outcome of surgical interventions.

METHOD
We based our search strategy on Embase, Medline and PubMed, using the search terms 'body dysmorphic disorder', 'cosmetic surgery', 'prevalence', 'comorbidity' and 'outcome'. Our search covered English and Dutch literature published after the introduction of bdd in dsm-iii-r and before 1 November, 2013. A study of the relevant articles enabled us to access additional articles mentioned in these texts.

RESULTS
Our initial search strategy turned out to be too narrow. It was therefore broadened to include 'body dysmorphic disorder', 'cosmetic surgery', and 'prevalence'. Eventually we included 23 original articles. In 11 of these the prevalence of bdd varied from 3.2 to 53.6%. Twelve articles on psychiatric comorbidity revealed predominantly mood and anxiety disorders on axis I and cluster C personality disorders on axis II. Only two studies reported on the outcome of cosmetic surgery performed on bdd patients; surgical interventions, however, seemed to result in new preoccupations with the prolongation of psychiatric comorbidity.

CONCLUSION
bdd is a common psychiatric disorder that can sometimes lead to cosmetic surgery. However, pre-operative screening of bdd patients is vital so that efficient psychiatric treatment can be initiated and patients are not subjected to surgical interventions which may be ineffective or even harmful.


The effect of Al content on the castability, tensile and creep properties of Mg-xAl-Zn alloy was investigated. The molten Mg-(3~11)Al-Zn alloys of 700°C were poured into the mould designed to estimate castability. Tensile and creep tests were performed for the alloys. The results show that the castability increased with higher Al content. Creep resistance decreased while tensile strength improved with increasing Al amount. Our microstructure study revealed that morphology of Mg17Al12 is the main factor determining the tensile and creep properties of as cast Mg-xAl-Zn alloys. The final purpose of this study is to develop the heat resistant Mg alloys to be applied in transportation systems such as automobile. Further research will be conductedon the effect of heat treatment and additional alloying elements on the microstructure and properties of Mg-xAl alloys.


Behind -the-meter photovoltaic (PV) systems, especially when combined with storage units, are becoming an attractive solution for individual prosumers to decrease electricity costs and reduce the dependence from the utility grid. The technology costs of PV and batteries are expected to continue to decrease during the next decade, while utility energy costs and feed-in remuneration will face regulatory changes. In these scenarios of intense variations of technology and operation costs, multi-period investment approaches become relevant, by allowing for an optimal schedule of the investments throughout the years. In this paper, we propose a multi-period optimal investment model for behind-the-meter PV and storage considering multi-year variations of technology and energy costs.


Citrus Greening Disease is a deadly bacterial disease that affects all citrus varieties. It is rated by most national and international research institutions as the most destructive disease in citrus and to date has led to drastic reductions in production in Asia and Africa and now threatens citrus industries in the western hemisphere. Citrus Greening has been known internationally from its first description in China, as Huanglongbing (HLB), translated as "yellow shoot disease". The disease was confirmed in the Americas in Brazil in 2004. Since then, its presence has been verified in several other major citrus producing countries including: Florida / United States (2005), Cuba (2007), Mexico, Jamaica and Belize (2009). The economic cost implications of HLB have been estimated to far exceed other citrus diseases that have affected the industry in previous years. This study focused on two aspects of the Belize citrus industry: (i) the socioeconomic impact of the disease and (ii) the producers' response to the disease. The convenient sampling technique was used to enumerate stakeholders across the value chain to ascertain their experiences with the impact of the disease on the industry up to December 2011. The risk attitude and risk perception of primary (fruit) producers in the industry was evaluated by using a psychometric test. The results of the study found that the demise of the citrus industry would have negative socioeconomic impact on Belize specifically, citrus producers, agriculture workers, rural citrus producing communities and stakeholders within the citrus industry value chain. Analysis of the logistic regression focused on the significance of three variables: risk attitude (ra), risk perception (rp), and a combination of the two (risk attitude and risk perception) (rarp) on the behavioural outcome of farmers (whether to remain or exit the citrus industry). The results indicated that the variable (φ) (farmers risk perception) has a p-value of 0.030. Farmers risk perception was the only variable with a p-value below the chosen level of significance (0.05). Hence, only risk perception influenced the behavioural outcome. Despite this threat, an estimated 76% of the farmers were willing to remain in the citrus industry and deal with the challenges presented by HLB. The results also show that 49% of the farmers enumerated were risk-seeking and 66% had employed some form of management for the disease. Overall, HLB was perceived by primary stakeholders as the disease which poses the greatest risk to the citrus industry of Belize.


The study was entitled "The use of serial image media to improve the ability to retell storytelling content to third grade students of SDN Malabar 01 in the academic year 2020/2021".Aimed at knowing the increase in student interest and learning achievement in Indonesian language learning material Picture Series in class III SDN Malabar 01, Wanareja District.The object of the research was the third grade students of SDN Malabar 01, Wanareja sub-district, Cilacap district, with a total of 19 students. The procedure for implementing learning improvement with classroom action research is divided into three cycles. This research is focused on problems related to student interest and achievement through Thinkpair and share methods. Data obtained using observation, and test. The criteria for the success of this study can be seen from the increased interest and achievement of student learning outcomes from cycle I to cycle II and cycle II to cycle III.


Repeated cycles of oxidative injury by allylamine in vivo induce a proliferative rat vascular (aortic) smooth muscle cell (vSMC) phenotype characterized by matrix-dependent enhancement of mitogenic sensitivity, changes in cell surface integrin expression, and osteopontin (opn) overexpression. Here, we show that constitutive and mitogen-stimulated NF-κB DNA binding activity is enhanced in allylamine vSMCs. Matrix-specific changes in cellular Rel protein expression were observed in allylamine vSMCs. The NF-κB DNA binding element located at −1943 in the 5′-UTR strongly inhibited opn promoter activity in allylamine vSMCs, and this response was regulated by the extracellular matrix. Constitutive increases in opn promoter activity were only seen when allylamine cells were seeded on a fibronectin substrate, and this response was independent of the NF-κB DNA binding sequence within the regulatory region. Thus, NF-κB functions as a critical regulator of the allylamine-induced proliferative phenotype in vSMCs.


The interaction between exercise and nutrition is important for bodybuilders. The intake of food during post-exercise recovery is necessary for hypertrophy to occur. Therefore, the current survey was performed to assess information regarding the meal planning and use of such supplements among elite bodybuilders in Taiwan. Method Thirty-four (26 male and 8 female) bodybuilders completed a questionnaire which conducted to examine the source of information, meal planning and usage of nutritional supplements. Result All the bodybuilders ingest protein and carbohydrate following exercise to attain a positive protein balance and maximise their skeletal muscle adaptive response. The prevalence of supplement use was 65% and nine different products were used. Female athletes were more likely to take supplements for their health or because of an inadequate diet, while male reported taking supplements to improve strength and power, and for weight and muscle gain. Females were more likely to take calcium, multivitamins and essence of chicken. And males had significant intake for Siberian ginseng, amino acids, glutamine, weight gainers and whey protein. The most frequently used supplements overall were sports drinks (88%), creatine (74%), whey protein (65%), energy drinks (53%), vitamin C (57%), vitamin B complex (62%) and multivitamin (44%). Before using a product, 72% sought information, usually from the media and internet, a store nutritionist, coaches, friends and fellow bodybuilders. However, many did not know where to obtain reliable information and 82% were also unaware that supplementation can have adverse effects. Conclusion Although the supplement use is common among the bodybuilders in Taiwan, many do not have accurate information about these products. Hence, there is an urgent need to provide athletes nutritional education and scientifically sound guidance by leading sport organisations is required.


This paper examines the role of alternative assumptions on savings and expectations for the fixwage traverse with strong forward biased technological change. After briefly outlining the model, some peculiarities of the adjustment path under the Hicksian Q-Assumption are investigated. Subsequently, the consequences of several savings functions consistent with the assumption of static expectations are explored. With all but one of these assumptions the possibility of permanent technological unemployment emerges. Additionally, the assumption of adaptive expectations is introduced, in which case technological unemployment throughout the early phase prevails. Furthermore, oscillating growth rates emerge, indicating the possibility of technologically caused business cycles. JEL: O31, O33


Machines, from artificially intelligent digital assistants to embodied robots, are becoming more pervasive in everyday life. Drawing on feminist science and technology studies (STS) perspectives, we demonstrate how machine designers are not just crafting neutral objects, but relationships between machines and humans that are entangled in human social issues such as gender and power dynamics. Thus, in order to create a more ethical and just future, the dominant assumptions currently underpinning the design of these human-machine relations must be challenged and reoriented toward relations of justice and inclusivity. This paper contributes the "social machine" as a model for technology designers who seek to recognize the importance, diversity and complexity of the social in their work, and to engage with the agential power of machines. In our model, the social machine is imagined as a potentially equitable relationship partner that has agency and as an "other" that is distinct from, yet related to, humans, objects, and animals. We critically examine and contrast our model with tendencies in robotics that consider robots as tools, human companions, animals or creatures, and/or slaves. In doing so, we demonstrate ingrained dominant assumptions about human-machine relations and reveal the challenges of radical thinking in the social machine design space. Finally, we present two design challenges based on non-anthropomorphic figuration and mutuality, and call for experimentation, unlearning dominant tendencies, and reimagining of sociotechnical futures.


I describe the application of new methods for reverse genetic analyses in Drosophila melanogaster to genes expressed in the nervous system. The methods can be devided into two classes: tools for molecular analysis and tools for genetic analysis. The first set of methods is designed to facilitate rapid, large-scale molecular analysis of cDNA clones. This set of tools begins with a family of bacteriophage λ cDNA cloning vectors and E. coli host cell strains that allow automatic plasmid subcloning by in vivo site-specific recombination. A high density filter hybridization and diagnostic PCR assay technique applied to size-selected libraries then substantially simplifies the isolation of full-length cDNA clones in these vectors. Next, a transposon γδ-facilitated DNA sequencing procedure minimizes the labor required to isolate a nested set of initiation sites for chain termination sequencing of each strand of a cloned DNA segment. I also describe the characterization of 250 cDNA clones isolated from adult heads on the basis of gross expression patterns in the embryonic ventral nerve cord and larval fat body. The second set of procedures facilitates the isolation of mutations in the chromosomal genes that correspond to isolated cDNA clones. I describe three such experiments. A plasmid rescue and hybridization strategy allowed the isolation of PlacW elements inserted adjacent to 4 cloned genes in an array of nearly 700. Modifications of this procedure to take advantage of P-element local transposition allowed the isolation and characterization of an apparent null mutation in the receptor-linked protein tyrosine phosphatase gene DPTP99A. In a pilot study, I demonstrate the feasibility of isolating chemically induced mutations that remove targeted restriction enzyme cleavage sites with a PCR-based assay. In addition, I describe the serendipitous isolation of a PlacW-induced mutation, encumbered, that affects the morphogenesis of imaginal wing discs as well as adult longevity, activity, and fertility.


The approach of solubilizing biomacromolecules in organic phase or realizing their fluids in absence of water is a big progress to further integrate them into technological systems and processes. In this thesis we introduced a two-step method that relies on a water-soluble surfactant, 4-(hexyloxy)anilinium (ANI), to precipitate DNA and cyclodextrin from the aqueous solution, then solubilize them in the organic phase, where ANI can be subsequently exchanged against different amines. In this way, functional amine lipids, like terthiophene and pyrene containing conjugated π-systems were introduced onto DNA to form a multichromophoric light harvesting system. Cyclodextrin complexed with tris[2-(2-methoxyethoxy)ethyl]amine resulted in ionic liquid at room temperature. To extend the scope from primary, secondary and tertiary amine lipids, to quaternary ammonium compounds that can be electrostatically bound to DNA, a new exchange method was developed. Through complexing the negatively charged counterion, acetylacetonate, with tetrakis(decyl)ammonium and (polyethyleneglycol)-trimethylammonium (TMA-PEG), quaternary ammonium compounds were exchanged against ANI that was complexed to DNA in organic phase. The study of resistance to ion displacement in buffers with high ionic strength indicated that the quaternary amine PEG–DNA complexes are more vulnerable than the primary amine PEG–DNA complexes. It is anticipated that the novel methods introduced in this thesis have an impact on DNA used in technical applications and the area of biomedicine.


ABSTRACT C-X-C chemokine receptor (CXCR)3 and its interferon(IFN)γ-dependent chemokines (CXCL10, CXCL9, CXCL11) are implicated in the immune-pathogenesis of autoimmune thyroiditis (AT), Graves disease (GD) and Graves Ophthalmopathy (GO). In tissue, recruited Th1 lymphocytes produce IFNγ, enhancing the tissue secretion of IFNγ-inducible chemokines, initiating and perpetuating the autoimmune process. Patients with AT (with hypothyroidism), and with GO and GD, particularly in the active phase, have high IFNγ-inducible chemokines. Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor (PPAR)γ or -α agonists and methimazole exert an immune-modulation on CXCR3 chemokines in AT, GD and GO. Other studies are ongoing to evaluate new molecules acting as antagonists of CXCR3, or blocking CXCL10, in Hashimoto thyroiditis (HT), GD and GO. Recently, novel molecules targeting the various agents involved in the pathogenesis of GO, such as rituximab, have been proposed as an alternative to corticosteroids. However, randomized and controlled studies are needed to generalize these interesting results.


Summary This paper presents a new hybrid approach of Neural Network (NN) along with Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO), hereafter called NN–PSO, to resolve the short–term load forecasting (STLF) tasks with improved generalization technique for the Regional Power Control Center of Saudi Electricity Company, Western Operation Area (SEC-WOA), The strength of this powerful technique lies in its ability to forecast accurately on weekdays, as well as, on weekends and holidays. In this research paper, first prediction is made by NN and then PSO is applied to optimize the prediction and thus improve its accuracy. NN is an effective mathematical tool for mapping complex relationships. It is also successful for doing forecasting, categorization, classification, and so forth. On the other hand, PSO is a novel random optimization method based on swarm intelligence, which has been found to be powerful in solving nonlinear optimization problems. It has better balance of local and global searching abilities and can handle huge multidimensional optimization problems efficiently with hundreds of thousands of constraints. PSO is applied to optimize the weighting factors of NN. To combine with NN, Particle Swarm Optimization has been proposed here to attain better performances. To evaluate the proposed NN-PSO algorithm it is applied on the real data set of SEC-WOA for the year 2003. The test results show that the proposed NN-PSO performs better and consistent with respect to only NN for most of the cases in load forecasting.


Now retroreflective materials are used widely in traffic field. Their quality influences road construction significantly. Effective evaluating of it is becoming a very important work. There are two methods chiefly: measurement set and handle instrument. Measurement set depends on the basic optical transducer. It has higher precision and lower error by comparing with handle instrument. Retroreflective materials as retroreflecive sheeting and raised pavement markers can be tested by choosing the two methods in accordance with different measuring conditions. But as for retroreflective materials of horizontal coatings, using handle instrument is common. So we make a detailed research on measurement set of them. By performing verification experiment, this measurement set is stable and the results are satisfied.


This study examined the economic impact of a wintering barn facility on a dairy farm in the Tararua District, relative to its ability to reduce nitrogen leaching, as a means of achieving Horizon's proposed nitrogen discharge limit. The analysis showed that the provision of a wintering facility had a significant impact in reducing nitrogen leaching, down to just above the required limit. The economic cost of this was significant, in the absence of improved payouts or the farmer intensifying the system to cover the cost of the facility. If the farm was intensified in order to cover the cost of the wintering facility, the level of nitrogen leaching rose accordingly. The study therefore indicates that the provision of a wintering barn as a means of reducing nitrogen leaching is problematic – while it can reduce leaching rates its economic viability is very dependent on payout levels and supplementary feed costs, and intensifying the system to improve the economic viability results in increased leaching rates well above the proposed limits.


Woven jacquard textile piece. This was one of three pieces (Self Assembly #1, #2 and #3) and an accompanying digital file (illustrating the process of the project/pieces) purchased by the Crafts Council for their permanent collection.

The Nobel Project was funded by the Medical Research Council, clincal Sciences Unit . It involved 5 textile/fashion designers who were paired up with Science Nobel Laureates, the brief being to understand the science and produce a body of work that would communicate the scientists achievements through textiles to the general public.


This article provides an explanation of the duties and responsibilities owed by forensic practitioners (and other expert witnesses) when preparing for and presenting evidence in criminal proceedings. It is written in the shadow of reports by the National Academy of Sciences (US), the National Institute of Standards and Technology (US), the Scottish Fingerprint Inquiry and a recent publication entitled 'How to cross-examine forensic scientists: A guide for Lawyers'. The article examines potential responses to questions focused on the need for scientific research, validation, uncertainties, limitations and error, contextual bias and the way expert opinions are expressed in reports and oral testimony. Responses and the discussion is developed around thematics such as disclosure, transparency, epistemic modesty and impartiality derived from modern admissibility and procedure rules, codes of conduct, ethical and professional responsibilities and employment contracts. The article explains why forensic practitioners must respond to the rules and expectations of adversarial legal institutions. Simultaneously, in line with accusatorial principles, it suggests that forensic practitioners employed by the state ought to conduct themselves as model forensic scientists.


The alloys required for fossil fuel power systems are transitioning from stainless steels that operate below 600oC to nickel-based alloys that can operate up to 760oC in advanced ultra-super critical steam turbines. This transition brings with it major metallurgical as well as economic challenges related to alloy design, melt processing, and fabrication of these large size components. The alloys, in general, must maintain creep resistance over 100,000 hours of service life while at the same time maintaining resistance to severe steam oxidation and general oxidation. A need exists for nickel-based alloys that are not only highly alloyed, but are also impervious to phase instabilities during initial processing and service. The potential exists for severe segregation when casting large ingots. This possibility must be dealt with during thermo-mechanical processing to obtain the wrought structures that can be inspected to design defect levels. This paper will detail these challenges as they have been addressed in smaller aerospace turbines and discuss strategies to overcome these problems. New computational modeling tools will play a critical role in engineering solutions for alloy design, solidification, forging, and heat treatment. Since any solution also needs to be economically viable, the paper also discusses processing cost issues in terms of the process yields and operational strategies. The use of powder metallurgy will also be reviewed as a cost effective alternative to alloys that have traditionally been cast-wrought processed.


Tremendous progress has been made in sequential processing with the recent advances in recurrent neural networks. However, recurrent architectures face the challenge of exploding/vanishing gradients during training, and require significant computational resources to execute back-propagation through time. Moreover, large models are typically needed for executing complex sequential tasks. To address these challenges, we propose a novel neuron model that has cosine activation with a time varying component for sequential processing. The proposed neuron provides an efficient building block for projecting sequential inputs into spectral domain, which helps to retain long-term dependencies with minimal extra model parameters and computation. A new type of recurrent network architecture, named Oscillatory Fourier Neural Network, based on the proposed neuron is presented and applied to various types of sequential tasks. We demonstrate that recurrent neural network with the proposed neuron model is mathematically equivalent to a simplified form of discrete Fourier transform applied onto periodical activation. In particular, the computationally intensive back-propagation through time in training is eliminated, leading to faster training while achieving the state of the art inference accuracy in a diverse group of sequential tasks. For instance, applying the proposed model to sentiment analysis on IMDB review dataset reaches 89.4% test accuracy within 5 epochs, accompanied by over 35x reduction in the model size compared to LSTM. The proposed novel RNN architecture is well poised for intelligent sequential processing in resource constrained hardware.


This paper provides a household-level perspective on the rise of global saving and wealth since the 1980s. We calculate asset-specific saving flows and capital gains across the wealth distribution for the G3 economies – the U.S., Europe, and China. In the past four decades, global saving inequality has risen sharply. The share of household saving flows coming from the richest 10% of household increased by 60% while saving of middle class households has fallen sharply. The most important source for the surge in top-10% saving was the secular rise of global corporate saving whose ultimate owners the rich households are. Housing capital gains have supported wealth growth for middle-class households despite falling saving and rising debt. Without meaningful capital gains in risky assets, the wealth share of the bottom half of the population declined substantially in most G3 economies. JEL Classification: D31, E21, E44, N32


The invention relates to crystalline salts of the compound (E)-7-[4-(4-fluorophenyl)-6-isopropyl-2-[methyl(methylsulfonyl)amino]pyrimidin-5-yl]-(3R,5S)-3,5-dihydroxyhept-6-enoic acid, as well as processes for their manufacture, pharmaceutical compositions containing them, and their uses.


Every married couple hopes that their home life will be created as a family that is confident and full of love. This article will discuss the role of the Office of Religious Affairs (KUA) in creating happy families. This research is library research which is analyzed by qualitative descriptive. The approach used is a sociological legal approach. The results showed that the Office of Religious Affairs (KUA) made efforts to foster happy families through religious education in the family, religious education in the community, religious education through educational institutions, bridal brokering courses, family counseling, fostering adolescents of marriage age, empowering family economies and improving nutrition. family.


Questions of access to hospital services figure centrally in rural-health policy debates, yet few analyses exist that measure the importance of changes in hospital access in rural areas of the US. Of the studies that measure changes in access to hospital services over time in the literature, none use economic theory as the framework for the analysis. This paper proposes an economic approach based upon revealed preferences to measuring access to hospital services and quantifies the value of changes in hospital access over the period 1980 to 1999 for residents in rural counties in the US. Welfare measures are constructed for the years 1980 and 1999 for rural residents in all the rural counties of the US. On average the lowest levels of hospital access are found in the counties of the West, while Eastern US counties have better access to hospitals in comparison. The changes in hospital-consumer welfare indicate that over the period 1980 to 1999, access to hospital services has declined for rural US residents.


Pheochromocytomas and paragangliomas are neuroendocrine tumors which arise from adrenal medulla, and sympathetic or parasympathetic nerves, respectively. Hereditary cases afflicted by both or either pheochromocytomas and paragangliomas have been reported: these are called hereditary pheochromocytoma/paraganglioma syndromes (HPPS). Many cases of HPPS are caused by mutations of one of the succinate dehydrogenase (SDH) genes; mainly SDHB and SDHD that encode subunits for the mitochondrial respiratory chain complex II. In this study, we investigated mutations of SDH genes in six HPPS patients from four Japanese pedigrees using peripheral blood lymphocytes (from one patient with pheochromocytoma and five patients with neck paraganglioma) and tumor tissues (from two patients with paraganglioma). Results showed that all of these pedigrees harbor germline mutations in one of the SDH genes. In two pedigrees, a novel IVS2-2A>C mutation in SDHB, at the acceptor-site in intron 2, was found, and the tumor RNA of the patient clearly showed frameshift caused by exon skipping. Each of the remaining two pedigrees harbors a reported missense mutation, R242H in SDHB or G106D in SDHD. Importantly, all these mutations are heterozygous in constitutional DNAs, and two-hit mutations were evident in tumor DNAs. We thus conclude that the newly identified IVS2-2A>C mutation in SDHB is responsible for HPPS. The novel mutation revealed by our study may contribute to improvement of clinical management for patients with HPPS.


Hemophilia is a bleeding disorder with X-linked inheritance. Current prenatal diagnostic methods for hemophilia are invasive and pose a risk to the fetus. Cell-free fetal DNA analysis in maternal plasma provides a noninvasive mean of assess-ing fetal sex in such pregnancies. How-ever, the disease status of male fetuses remains unknown if mutation-specific confirmatory analysis is not performed. Here we have developed a noninvasive test to diagnose whether the fetus has inherited a causative mutation for hemophilia from its mother. The strategy is based on a relative mutation dosage approach, which we have previously established for determining the mutational status of fetuses for autosomal disease mutations. In this study, the relative mutation dosage method is used to deduce whether a fetus has inherited a hemophilia mutation on chromosome X by detecting whether the concentration of the mutant or wild-type allele is overrepresented in the plasma of heterozygous women carrying male fetuses. We correctly detected fetal genotypes for hemophilia mutations in all of the 12 studied maternal plasma samples obtained from at-risk pregnancies from as early as the 11th week of gestation. This development would make the decision to undertake prenatal testing less traumatic and safer for at-risk families. ( Blood . 2011;117(13): 3684-3691)


In this study, the decomposition of phosphogypsum at different atmospheres of pure CO, N2 and 10% of CO were investigated to gain knowledge about the thermal decomposition of phosphogypsum. It was found that the starting decomposition temperature is 820°C in pure CO, the temperatures are 1080°C for N2 and 890°C for 10% of CO, respectively. Quantitative XRD method was applied to determine the amounts of CaSO4, CaO and CaS in the residues. The results indicate that CaS was mainly formed during Phosphogypsum decomposition in pure CO. In N2 CaO is the main residue from reactions, accompanying a small amount of CaS, and there are CaO and CaS in the decomposed productions, in 10% of CO. Moreover, The Starink,Kissinger and Flynn-Wall-Ozawa methods were used to calculate the kinetic parameters, respectively. The results have shown that the activation energy is in the range of 290.84-317.34 kJ/mol for in pure CO, 335.98-360.90 kJ/mol for 10% CO, 476.39 kJ/mol for N2.


Objectives Clinical trials are currently investigating the safety and efficacy of long-acting injectable (LAI) agents as HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP). Using National HIV Behavioral Surveillance data, we assessed the self-reported willingness of men who have sex with men (MSM) to use LAI PrEP and their preference for LAI versus daily oral PrEP. Methods In 2014, venue-based sampling was used to recruit MSM aged ≥18 years in Washington, DC. Participants completed an interviewer-administered survey followed by voluntary HIV testing. This analysis included MSM who self-reported negative/unknown HIV status at study entry. Correlates of being "very likely" to use LAI PrEP and preferring it to daily oral PrEP were identified using multivariable logistic regression. Results Of 314 participants who self-reported negative/unknown HIV status, 50% were <30 years old, 41% were non-Hispanic Black, 37% were non-Hispanic White, and 14% were Hispanic. If LAI PrEP were offered for free or covered by health insurance, 62% were very likely, 25% were somewhat likely, and 12% were unlikely to use it. Regarding preferred PrEP modality, 67% chose LAI PrEP, 24% chose oral PrEP, and 9% chose neither. Correlates of being very likely versus somewhat likely/unlikely to use LAI PrEP included age <30 years (aOR 1.64; 95% CI 1.00–2.68), reporting ≥6 (vs. 1) sex partners in the last year (aOR 2.60; 95% CI 1.22–5.53), previous oral PrEP use (aOR 3.67; 95% CI 1.20–11.24), and being newly identified as HIV-infected during study testing (aOR 4.83; 95% CI 1.03–22.67). Black (vs. White) men (aOR 0.48; 95% CI 0.24–0.96) and men with an income of <$20,000 (vs. ≥$75,000; aOR 0.37; 95% CI 0.15–0.93) were less likely to prefer LAI to oral PrEP. Conclusions If LAI PrEP were found to be efficacious, its addition to the HIV prevention toolkit could facilitate more complete PrEP coverage among MSM at risk for HIV.


ABSTRACT: A tire's torsional dynamics couple the responses of wheel/hub inertia to that of the ring/belt inertia. Depending on the effective stiffness, damping, and mass distribution of the tire, the ensuing deflections between the wheel and the ring can cause significant errors in the estimation of the tire's longitudinal slip from wheel speed measurements. However, this remains the established approach for constructing anti-lock braking system (ABS) control algorithms. Under aggressive braking events, the errors introduced by torsional dynamics may significantly affect the ABS algorithm and result in less than optimal braking performance. This article investigates the interaction of tire torsional dynamics and ABS control using a comprehensive system model that incorporates sidewall flexibility, transient and hysteretic tread-ground friction effects, and the dominant dynamics of a hydraulic braking system. It considers a wheel/hub acceleration-based ABS controller that mimics the working steps of a comm...


Turbine manufacturers place limits on the service life of gas turbine (GT) rotors/discs based on either the number of hours of operation or the number of start-stop cycles. A significant number of gas turbine rotors are either condemned or slated for replacement during a future outage. Some turbines experience premature cracking which results in the replacement of select rotor components. Examples of such cases are GE Frame 7EA compressor disc cracking, Frame 7FA/9FA turbine disc air-feed slot and post cracking, and Frame 6001B turbine disc rabbet cracking Many Alstom 11N and Siemens W-501 rotors and discs are also replaced based on design life limitations. This experience prompted EPRI, sponsored by gas turbine owners to conduct projects in this area. Under this program, TurboMet International and AccTTech,LLC conducted metallurgical evaluation of cracked discs to understand the crack initiation and propagation mechanisms, detailed structural engineering analysis to understand the root cause of cracking and developed solutions; and to provide recommendations to turbine owners to mitigate such failures. Condition and remaining life analysis of several turbine models was conducted using rigorous engineering analysis to provide objective technical recommendations to turbine users to safely extend the life of the rotors. This collective experience has result in guidelines for safe reinspection intervals to mitigate future risk. In order to obtain pertinent material properties needed for such detailed engineering analysis, retired rotors and discs were obtained from both compressor and turbine sections. Nondestructive examinations (NDE) and materials testing were conducted to assess component condition and mechanical properties such as tensile, fracture toughness, crack growth, creep, low-cycle fatigue, etc. This paper provides an overview of an integrated rotor condition and life assessment approach including several examples of component evaluations.Copyright © 2012 by ASME


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In response to the global quest for a sustainable and environmentally friendly source of energy, most scientists' discretion is solar energy, especially solar thermal. However, successful deployment of solar thermal technologies such as solar-assisted process heating (SAPH) systems in medium- to large-scale industries is still in quandary due to their inefficacy in raising ample temperatures. Cascaded SAPH system, which is essentially a series combination of two same or different types of thermal collectors, may provide a worthwhile solution to this problem. In this article, performance assessment and comparison of two cascaded SAPH systems have been presented: photovoltaic thermal (PVT) cascaded with flat-plate collector (PVT-FPC) and PVT coupled with heat pipe evacuated tube collector (PVT-HPETC). Simulation models have been presented for individual FPC, HPETC, and PVT as well as PVT cascaded with FPC and HPETC systems in TRNSYS and validated through outdoor experimentation. Both the first and the second laws of thermodynamics have been employed to reveal veritable performance of the systems. Results show that PVT-HPETC delivers better performance with 1625 W thermal energy, 81.59% energy efficiency, and 13.22% exergy efficiency. It cuts 1.37 kg of CO2 on an hourly basis. Cascaded systems can be effective in sustaining industrial process heat requirements.


PURPOSE/OBJECTIVES
To identify and describe communication behaviors used by hospice nurses when eliciting and addressing concerns of patients with cancer and their caregivers.

DESIGN
Secondary analysis.

SETTING
Home hospice in Salt Lake City, UT.

SAMPLE
Audio recordings from seven patient and caregiver dyads and five hospice nurses.

METHODS
Audio recordings were coded using the Roter Interaction Analysis System for patient and caregiver concern statements indicating negative affect and distress and the surrounding nurse communication behaviors. Concern content was categorized using domains developed by the National Consensus Project for Quality Palliative Care.

MAIN RESEARCH VARIABLES
Patient and caregiver concern statements and nurse communication behaviors.

FINDINGS
180 patient and caregiver speaking turns containing concerns were identified across 31 hospice visits. Patients and caregivers expressed at least one concern in the vast majority of visits. The most prevalent distress areas reflected psychological and physical issues. Nurses used proportionally more positive emotion statements before patient and caregiver concerns, compared to the visit overall. Nurses asked proportionally more physical questions after concern statements. Nurses also used more emotional responses before and after patient and caregiver concerns, relative to the entire visit.

CONCLUSIONS
Patients with cancer and caregivers frequently talk about distressing issues. Hospice nurses use specific communication behaviors to elicit and address those issues.

IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING
Home hospice provides a venue to examine nurse communication behaviors used to elicit and respond to patient and caregiver distress. These strategies could be taught to nurses who encounter patient distress less frequently or are less comfortable with emotional conversations.


The red palm weevil, Rhynchophorus ferrugineus, is of great concern worldwide, especially in the Middle East, where dates are a strategic crop. Despite their ecological hazard, insecticides remain the most effective means of control. A bioinsecticide of bacterial origin, spinosad is effective against several pests, and its efficacy against male R. ferrugineus was assessed in the present study. The antioxidative responses of key enzymes including catalase (CAT), superoxide dismutase (SOD), and glutathione-S-transferase (GST) to spinosad were investigated in the midgut and testes, and the effects of this insecticide on the cell ultrastructure of the midgut, Malpighian tubules, and testes were also determined. The lethal concentration 50 of spinosad was measured at 58.8 ppm, and the insecticide inhibited the activities of CAT, SOD, and GST in the midgut. However, no significant changes in the activities of these enzymes were observed in the testes. Spinosad treatment resulted in concentration-dependent changes in the cellular organelles of the midgut, Malpighian tubules, and testes of R. ferrugineus, and some of these effects were similar to those exerted by other xenobiotics. However, specific changes were observed as a result of spinosad treatment, including an increase in the number and size of concretions in Malpighian tubule cells and the occasional absence of the central pair of microtubules in the axonemes of sperm tails. This study introduces spinosad for potential use as an insecticide within an integrated control program against male red palm weevils. Additionally, the study provides biochemical and ultrastructural evidence for use in the development of bioindicators.


Purpose
The purpose of this study is to address one-dimensional, unsteady heat conduction in a large plane wall exchanging heat convection with a nearby fluid under "small time" conditions.

Design/methodology/approach
The Transversal Method of Lines (TMOL) was used to reformulate the unsteady, one-dimensional heat conduction equation in the space coordinate and time into a transformed "quasi-steady", one-dimensional heat conduction equation in the space coordinate housing the time as an embedded parameter. The resulting ordinary differential equation of second order with heat convection boundary conditions is solved analytically with the method of undetermined coefficients.

Findings
Semi-analytical TMOL dimensionless temperature profiles of compact form with/without regressed terms are obtained for the whole spectrum of Biot number (0 < Bi < ∞) in the "small time" sub-domain. In addition, a new "large time" sub-domain is redefined, that is, setting a smaller critical dimensionless time or critical Fourier number τcr = 0.18.

Originality/value
The computed dimensionless center, surface and mean temperature profiles in the large plane wall accounting for all Biot number (0 < Bi < ∞) in the "small time" sub-domain τ < τcr = 0.18 exhibit excellent quality while carrying reasonable relative errors for engineering applications. The exemplary level of accuracy indicates that the traditional evaluation of the center, surface and mean temperatures with the standard infinite series retaining a large number of terms is no longer necessary.


We examine relationships between species richness (S), rarity (R) and average taxonomic distinctness (Delta(+)) from analysis of a comprehensive dataset for benthic marine algae (including Cyanophyta). This comprises 2894 species from 66 sites across the Indian Ocean. Ranked values for the sites, determined according to the 3 metrics, show significant positive correlation (p <= 0.01); Mauritius, India and Aldabra emerge as biodiversity 'hotspots', while Indonesia (Nias Island), Maldives (Male Atoll) and the Gulf of Aden are 'coldspots'. Concordance between metrics was unexpected, given their disparity in robustness to sampling rigour and particularly since Delta(+) is conceptually unrelated to S and R. Lack of significant latitudinal correlations was also evident except for Delta(+), which increased towards temperate waters in the southern hemisphere. This contrasts with the variable patterns observed with longitude, for which significant correlations (negative, i.e. towards the west) were prevalent only for S (algae overall and separate categories except Phaeophyta), evident for R (Cyanophyta only) and absent for Delta(+). Hence, use of one floral category as a surrogate for biodiversity in another is not guaranteed. Aquatic biodiversity patterns are complex, in accordance with recent findings derived mainly from faunal datasets. Relationships between different metrics can depend on both the group(s) selected and the environmental or geographical factor(s) examined. Our study is based on analysis of extensive but low resolution (presence/absence) data (Silva et al. 1996) collected from sites of variable size that were not sampled evenly. We address these constraints, but acknowledge the possibility that some patterns may prove to be artefacts, pending analysis of data from recent and ongoing studies. However, we do not expect this to significantly affect our overall conclusions.


Ganoderma lucidum is one of the most important medicinal fungi, but the lack of basic study on the fungus has hindered the further development of its value. To investigate the roles of the redox system in G. lucidum, acetic acid (HAc) was applied as a reactive oxygen species (ROS) stress inducer, and hydrogen-rich water (HRW) was used to relieve the ROS stress in this study. Our results demonstrate that the treatment of 5% HRW significantly decreased the ROS content, maintained biomass and polar growth morphology of mycelium, and decreased secondary metabolism under HAc-induced oxidative stress. Furthermore, the roles of HRW were largely dependent on restoring the glutathione system under HAc stress in G. lucidum. To provide further evidence, we used two glutathione peroxidase (GPX)-defective strains, the gpxi strain, the mercaptosuccinic acid (MS, a GPX inhibitor)-treated wide-type (WT) strain, and gpx overexpression strains for further research. The results show that HRW was unable to relieve the HAc-induced ROS overproduction, decreased biomass, mycelium morphology change and increased secondary metabolism biosynthesis in the absence of GPX function. The gpx overexpression strains exhibited resistance to HAc-induced oxidative stress. Thus, we propose that HRW regulates morphology, growth and secondary metabolism via glutathione peroxidase under HAc stress in the fungus G. lucidum. Furthermore, our research also provides a method to study the ROS system in other fungi.


We consider the problem of 2-way interval join, where we want to find all pairs of overlapping intervals, i.e., intervals that share at least one point in common. We present lower and upper bounds on the replication rate for this problem when it is implemented in MapReduce. We study three cases, where intervals in the input are: (i) unit-length and equally-spaced, (ii) variable-length and equally-spaced, and (iii) equally-spaced with specific distribution of the various lengths. Our algorithms offer intuition as how to build algorithms for other cases, especially when we have some statistical knowledge about the distribution of the lengths of the intervals. E.g., if mostly large intervals interact with small intervals and not within themselves, then we believe our techniques can be extended to achieve better replication rate.


An improved transverse Ising model is proposed by taking the depolarization field effect into account.Within the framework of mean-field theory we investigate the behavior of the ferroelectric thin film. Our results show that the influence of the depolarization field is to flatten the spontaneous polarization profile and make the films more homogeneous, which is consistent with Ginzburg-Landau theory. This fact shows that this model can be taken as an effective model to deal with the ferroelectric film and can be further extended to refer to quantum effect. The competition between quantum effect and depolarization field induces some interesting phenomena on ferroelectric thin films.


Examination of visual induced potentials on reversible chess-pattern in 46 children with bilateral congenital zonular cataracts before and after surgical intervention has revealed correlation between these potentials and degree of lens opacification. After cataract extraction, positive dynamics of the potentials was observed in case of slightly opacified lenses and was absent in intensive lens opacification. The authors consider it reasonable to use visual induced potentials for prognosticating visual results after surgical treatment of bilateral congenital zonular cataracts, this being of particular importance for early surgical interventions.


The two main questions this dissertation is concerned with are (i) How does perceptual sensitivity develop along a dimension that contrasts two unknown speech sounds, and (ii) Does perceptual development vary with the learner's age? With respect to the first question, two hypotheses were tested. One of these, acquired distinctiveness, states that listeners initially have difficulty perceiving differences along a dimension that contrasts speech sounds that are non-phonemic in their native language. As a result of learning, perceptual sensitivity to speech sounds that are categorized differently increases. Acquired similarity, on the other hand, assumes that listeners are initially good at perceiving differences along a dimension that contrasts speech sounds that are non-phonemic in their native language. As a result of learning, perceptual sensitivity to speech sounds that are categorized together decreases. It was expected that school-aged children as well as adults would learn to perceive nonnative phoneme contrasts through acquired distinctiveness. The main methodology of this research was a pretest-training-posttest design in which listeners from different age groups were tested on their perceptual development of nonnative phoneme contrasts. Listeners were trained on speech continua from five different speakers, thus introducing inter-speaker variation. They were tested on a phoneme continuum from a sixth speaker to address language learning instead of the learning of a single speech continuum. Moreover, posttests were run one day after the last training session, and not directly after training, in order to address effects of linguistic learning rather than phonological priming. If training resulted in robust category formation, perceptual sensitivity along the test speaker's phoneme continuum was expected to change. With respect to the question of how perception develops, it was found that perceptual sensitivity along a relevant acoustic dimension changes through acquired distinctiveness. Earlier research suggested that learning occurs through acquired distinctiveness, but no prior attempt was made to provide direct evidence for this learning strategy with respect to the development of phoneme contrasts. The increases in perceptual sensitivity near the learned phoneme boundaries remained small, however, and did not - with short-term training - develop into native-like discrimination peaks. In response to the second question it was shown that 12-year-old children and adults learn to perceive nonnative phoneme contrasts in similar ways. The relatively small effect of short-term training on perceptual sensitivity that was found in several experiments within this study contrasts with the claim that short-term training can change phonemic perception in learners. Whereas the conclusions in this study were based on a comparison of both classification and discrimination experiments, the earlier conclusion was drawn on the basis of classification results only. That less complete design may have resulted in an overestimation of the learner's L2 proficiency. Only with long-term training, native-like peaks in perceptual sensitivity seemed obtainable. Short-term training is likely to improve listeners' performance, but it is likely that the category representations established in learners during such training differ from the phoneme representations of native listeners.


Welcome to the Volume 4 (2019) Issue 2 edition of the Journal of African Real Estate Research (JARER). So far, JARER has been providing valuable resources supporting academics and professional researchers throughout the African continent. The journal continues to offer an exciting platform for the dissemination of scholarships and the different types of applied research within the real estate sector in Africa. JARER reflects one of the objectives of the African Real Estate Society (AfRES) to promote research and education among property professionals and academics across the continent. We have undergone some recent changes at JARER with the reconstitution of the Editorial Board to bring in greater diversity to the journal. This issue represents the final issue with the existing Editorial Board, and I would like to take this opportunity to show my gratitude to the hard work and dedication that it has demonstrated in ensuring the success of JARER to date. The achievements we have accomplished could not have been down without them. Thank you.


The roles of larval supply, selection of habitat, availability of space, larval physiological condition, and early post-settlement mortality in determining vertical distribution patterns of the barnacle Semibalanus balanoides (L.) were simultaneously examined in Passamaquoddy Bay, New Brunswick, Canada. Pump samples and settlement surveys showed that about 60% of planktonic cyprids were collected from 1.5 to 4.0 m depth, while over 90% of newly settled cyprids colonized low intertidal levels. Selection of habitat by cyprids and patterns of settlement were studied using precolonized planks that had been previously placed to obtain various periphyton gradients. These planks precolonized at the low, mid-, and high intertidal levels and placed in different orientations, induced variations in the distribution of newly settled cyprids. For example, vertical planks turned upside down had fewer settlers at low intertidal levels compared to surfaces maintained in the same orientation at the same level. When placed horizontally at the same level, sections precolonized at the low intertidal level collected more larvae than sections initially placed at the high and mid-intertidal levels. We used the triacylglycerol/cholesterol ratio (TAG/CHOL) as a measure of physiological condition in planktonic and newly settled cyprids, and newly metamorphosed spat. The TAG/CHOL ratio in planktonic cyprids decreased over the sampling period, but there was no variability with position in the water column. For newly settled cyprids and newly metamorphosed spat, the TAG/CHOL ratio increased with decreasing intertidal level. Quadrats freed of conspecific adults were colonized by more cyprids than were uncleared controls. Early post-settlement mortality was greater in uncleared than in cleared quadrats, but this effect varied with intertidal level. Early post-settlement mortality increased with increasing intertidal level in cleared quadrats, while it did not significantly vary in uncleared controls. The present study shows that the vertical distribution of S, balanoides on the shore results from a complex relationship involving larval supply, selection of habitat, availability of space, and early post-settlement mortality. We also present the first evidence of correlations between larval physiological condition and early vertical distribution in S. balanoides.


This article provides a brief account of key developments in agricultural applications of biotechnology in Latin American and Caribbean (LAC) countries; it also focuses on the potential of developing value-added products from the biological diversity harbored in the region. Most agricultural biotechnologies involve tissue culture and DNA-based markers for germplasm conservation, production of disease-free planting material, and assistance to genetic improvement. More recently, LAC countries such as Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Honduras, Mexico, and Uruguay have commercially grown transgenic crops. Advanced biotechnologies, such as genetic sequencing and microarray genomics, are differentially utilized in some LAC countries, with Brazil being at the forefront, for characterization, mapping, and trait screening for important crops and pathogens. There is great potential for the integration of these technologies with chemical analyses in bioprospecting biodiversity. Implementation of effective regulatory frameworks for access, genetic resource benefit sharing, and biosafety need urgent attention in most countries.


Large explosive volcanic eruptions can have severe consequences for life, property and climate. In the most extreme cases this can cause catastrophes on a global scale. Extreme value statistics can be used to evaluate the magnitude-frequency relationship of large magnitude explosive events, and also to assess how the quality of the volcanic record affects these results. Applying extreme value statistics to databases of explosive
volcanic eruptions with a Volcanic Explosivity Index (VEI) of 4 or greater in the last 2000 and 10,000 years has yielded results that suggest the ability to constrain
magnitude-frequency relationships for very large events is limited due to underrecording of the data which increases with age. Further analysis shows that this is dependent
on both timing and the size of a given eruption; larger eruptions are more likely to be found in the historical or geological records. Analysis of the 10,000 year dataset
predicted that a magnitude 8.0 eruption has a 40% chance of being recorded prior to 1 AD, and a magnitude 6.0 eruption only a 20% chance. However, as the repose period
between events will increase with the size of the eruptions, the return periods of the largest and most devastating explosive eruptions are likely to exceed 10,000 years.
In order to build on previous results, the eruption database has been expanded to include data extending back to greater than 1,000,000 years, with the aim of again using extreme value statistics to determine global frequency of large magnitude explosive eruptions. As predicted by earlier results, the record of volcanism decreases dramatically back through time, particularly beyond 100,000 years and the statistical model
can be applied to take account of underrecording to quantify its effects. An updated magnitude-frequency relationship for large explosive eruptions is presented.


County governments are a crucial component of the fabric of American democracy. Yet there has been almost no previous research on the policy effects of the partisan composition of county governments. Most counties in the United States have small legislatures, usually called commissions or councils, that set their budgets and other policies. In this study, we examine whether counties with Democratic legislators spend more than counties with Republican ones. We assemble an original data set of 10,708 elections in approximately 298 medium and large counties over the past 25 years. Based on a regression discontinuity design, we find that electing a Democratic legislator rather than a Republican one leads the average county to increase spending by about 5%. Overall, our findings contribute to a growing literature on the policy consequences of partisan control of state and local government. They show that the partisan selection of county legislators has important policy effects in county governments.


Practical Applications Summary In Liabilities Matter: Improving Target Date Glidepath Construction through Liability Adaptive Asset Allocation, from the Summer 2019 issue of The Journal of Retirement, author Michael W. Crook (of UBS Global Wealth Management in New York, NY) calls into question the rationale behind the most popular investment funds in today's employee defined-contribution (DC) plans. Target date funds (TDFs)—which, for example, are held by 75% of participants in DC plans managed by Vanguard—use a preset schedule called a glidepath to reallocate assets from equities to fixed-income securities as a participant's retirement date approaches. The author finds that this approach does not work as well as the liability-driven investment (LDI) strategy used by pension plans. LDI is more responsive to the needs of participants because it focuses not on participants' retirement dates, but on how close they are to having enough money on which to retire. It reallocates assets to fixed-income securities as a participant's plan balance approaches the amount needed to fund all retirement expenses. The author finds that LDI produces better outcomes, is easier to explain to clients, and makes it easier for financial advisors to provide customized financial planning and total wealth management for their clients.


This study aims to examine how teachers in elementary school reason about and effectively implements special needs education. A qualitative study was made by interviewing four elementary teachers about their own role in dealing with pupils in difficulty. The material was then analyzed using content analysis. The result section is presented by the study's issue and then been analyzed against the background research. In the analysis it follows that the teachers believe among other things that there is too little time and resources to meet pupils in difficulty, the time and resources in schools is essential when it comes to meet students' needs. A large part of the difficulties of implementing such work is in the school's structural terms.


Water quality is the most important aspect to ensure success in various aspects of life, for example in the shrimp ponds. On a shrimp pond, water conditions are very vital because it has a very strict threshold. Unstable water conditions will affect growth and condition of shrimps, eat passion of shrimps, until their ability to survive greatly affect the survival of the shrimps. The percentage of farmers harvesting shrimps if the water did not have good conditions then the farmers will suffer significant losses if yields were not as expected, began from the amount of shrimp that was reduced due to death or the quality of the shrimp were judged from the size of the shrimp. So the authors wanted to do research on how to maintain the quality of the water in shrimp pond so that the water quality is maintained. To overcome this, we need to monitor water conditions based on the level of salinity and turbidity of water in order to stay in good condition. In this case, the researchers used fuzzy logic to monitor the amount of water quality and water volume. In this study only conducted water quality monitoring process but to do water changes to a certain condition still conducted manually. As well as the programming language used as the NI LabVIEW graphical programming with the application form to see monitoring of water quality so that water conditions are well preserved.


This paper presents a monitoring health station system for vital signs called "Heart monitor". Heart Monitor is a system which can measure the heart rates and body temperatures of patients and then record them in cloud services. The cloud services can then be accessed in real-time by the medical staff to monitor the patients' health at any given location and time. This system is connected to a mobile phone which sends an alarm if the heart rate values become abnormal. After 5 abnormal readings it will automatically call the doctor or the person whose number is included in the system. The system is tested and compered to an ECG device. The results show an excellent accuracy of 97.4%.


The study explores critical factors that impact the Business Model of Biopharmaceutical firms and assess how ESG pillars can aid in Business Model innovation. Semi-structured personal interviews were conducted in face to face meetings with experienced industry professionals from cross-functional domains to attain diverse insights. The objective was to explore the relevance of ESG factors and their interplay, during Business Model Innovation from the perspective of experts in the Biopharmaceutical industry. Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) – a structured approach is applied to understand the criticality of various factors in sustainable business models. The study revealed that special emphasis should be laid on the Business Model and Governance Pillar – for re-designing innovative and sustainable business models. Social and Environment factors, although important, were rated lower on priority as such issues are usually focused upon by organizations at a higher level of maturity, after the basic hygiene factors are met. Some of the factors which were prioritized for Business Model innovation are Patient Health and Safety, Ethical marketing and advertising, Waste/ Effluent Management, Employee Health, Safety and Wellness, Patient value propositions, Building strategic resources and competencies, Product Quality & Safety and Business ethics and competitive behavior. Integrated reporting is another value-added dimension that was stressed by the respondents, to have a seamless and transparent communication channel established with all stakeholders. Aligning business metrics with ESG metrics is the focal point of this study, and the impact of each pillar on Biopharma Business Models was evaluated by industry experts. Integration of ESG parameters for Business Model Innovation is the new mantra for forward looking companies, and this study would help frame strategies for the Biopharma industry for sustainable value creation. The impact created by Business Model Innovation at an industry level will help create value for the society at large (who are the key beneficiaries of Biopharma products and services), and such studies would help add to the knowledge base.


We consider two transmitter-receiver pairs (links) operating on protected and shared frequency bands. Each link has a frequency band to use exclusively without any interference from the other link. A frequency band is shared between the two links. We study the power allocation problem of the two transmitters in the available bands using models from microeconomic theory. We model the setting as a competitive market in which the links are the consumers and transmission power are goods which can be bought by the consumers at specific prices. We assume there exists an authority, the arbitrator, which determines the prices of the goods and forwards them to the consumers. The Walrasian equilibrium in this model is Pareto optimal and corresponds to the prices that equate the demand to the supply of goods. We show that the Walrasian equilibrium always exists in our setting. We provide sufficient conditions for the uniqueness of the Walrasian equilibrium and also for the global stability of the price adjustment process to reach the equilibrium.


The organizational structure of the national economy, its internal levels (macro, meso and micro) has been analyzed in the article. The problems of the content of the concept of "economy", segmented it into material and social components, have been identified. Attention has been focused on the negative aspects of the globalization of the world economy, based on the main provisions of the neoclassical paradigm. It has been noted, that to ensure the socio-economic integrity of the national economy, it is necessary to transform the generic state of society into a centrally-organized. According to the authors, to implement the transformation of the socio-economic space into an integrated socioeconomic system, it is necessary to coordinate three hierarchically subordinate levels: macro, meso, and microeconomic agents. The macroeconomic agent forms subject relations between all hierarchical levels, which require a high level of government: it cannot be a command economy, since this strategy of economic development paralyzes competition and free enterprise, but there can be no purely market economy, because the "invisible hand of the market" unable to ensure sustainable harmonious development of the economy without government intervention. It has been concluded about the need for an integrated nature of management of the Russian economy and the tasks for improving the system of management of the Russian economy have been determined. It is emphasized, that at the present stage, the greatest attention should be paid to the issues of improving the management of the mesostructure of the Russian economy – the development of industries and regions, since at the moment this level of the economy is paid fragmentary attention. The analysis has been carried out using general scientific methods: the method of abstraction, historical research methods; formalization method, reconstruction method; based on a systematic approach using the method of forecasting.


This paper compares area-average and unloading compliance crack-growth values with experimental crack-front shapes recorded at various stages of crack growth during fracture tests conducted on 2024-T351 aluminum alloy plate. Crack-front shapes were determined by fracturing the specimen up to a predetermined amount of crack growth and fatigue cycling the specimen for about 4000 cycles at a high stress ratio to mark the crack-front location. For each shape, the area-average and unloading compliance crack lengths were determined. Boundary collocation results provide an approximation to the δ5 unloading compliance crack length. The crack tunneling results show that the area-average technique produces crack-length measurements more representative of the straight-front finite element analyses than optical based surface measurements. The δ5 technique is significantly more sensitive to tunneling than the CMOD technique and is easier to apply than the area-average technique.


A single-subject, exploratory case study design was used to investigate the effects of a partner instruction program implemented with a caregiver of an adult augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) user with Rubenstein Taybi Syndrome (RTS). This study investigated the caregiver's implementation of an instructional protocol to facilitate the following: (a) a 6 step conversation; (b) comments (i.e., That's cool or Oh no!). Partner instruction was divided into three phases: Phase 1: instruction in operational competence; Phase 2: instruction in social and linguistic competence; Phase 3: maintenance and generalization. Following instruction, the caregiver demonstrated a consistent 100% rate of accuracy for facilitating the AAC user's 6-step conversation. Caregiver facilitation of comments resulted in 80%-100% accuracy. The AAC user demonstrated 100% accuracy for a 6-step conversation and 80% -100% accuracy for comments. Generalization occurred to the participants' natural environment. Results suggest that partner instruction is an effective and efficient means of improving caregiver and AAC user communicative competence.


"Abstract: Since 3D printing technology has been available as early as in the early 19th century, the present article start from the question why this radical and probably disruptive technology has been observed as only incremental innovation for so long time. In answering this question, we assume that this incrementalization of the supposed key to the next industrial revolution occurred due to circumstances that complicated and complexed the observation, with the most important of which being that 3D printers do not print on the medium, but rather print the medium, which emerges as form. In this article, this paradox is unfolded in the form of a form-theoretical theory statement on the inherently paradox nature of observation, subsequent to which 3D printing can be observed as both form and medium. In exploring this paradox, we will show that suppliers of 3D printing solutions currently try to sell 3D printing as form, whereas demanders observe 3D printing as medium. In focussing the latter side of the distinction, we finally suggest that the key to successful 3D printing business models will be in solutions that relate observations of the technological multifunctionality of 3D printing to a social multifunctionality lens. [...]" Steffen Roth


Liquid phase catalytic hydroxylation of benzene and toluene by Fe-containing metal-organic framework (Fe-BTC; BTC = 1,3,5-benzenetricarboxylate) using 30% hydrogen peroxide as an oxidant exhibits good activity and high product selectivity under mild reaction conditions. The effects of temperature, time, substrate/ hydrogen peroxide mole ratio and solvent on catalytic performance are investigated. The catalyst can be reused four times without significant loss of catalytic performance. The hot filtration experiments suggest that hydroxylation reaction occurs on the Fe sites in the MOF matrix. The crystallinity and structure of Fe-BTC remain unchanged during the catalysis reaction, as confirmed by comparison of XRD, FTIR and SEM of the fresh and reused catalyst.


This work demonstrates the use of silver nanoparticles as a simple electrochemical biolabel to induce 10(6) signal enhancement. We propose it mechanism of measuring the silver nanoparticles oil a specific screen-printed planar carbon electrode, without the requirement for the harsh oxidant or toxic reagents described in prior-art for gold sol methods. The possible measurement process was validated with orthogonal techniques such as UV/Vis spectroscopy. dynamic light scattering and by anodic stripping voltammetry (ASV). The findings Were utilized to develop a novel electrochemical sandwich immunoassay where the analyte concentration is directly proportional to ASV oxidation peak of silver. This technique in the future is envisaged to form the foundation of a generic Point of Care platform. The assay was applied to cardiac marker: myoglobin with detection limit of 3 ng/mL.


I exploit a large natural experiment in Australia that saw the House of Representatives expand from 125 districts to 148 districts. This required substantial changes to electoral boundaries, which, for the first time, were determined by a body that was not subject to ministerial discretion. As a result of these changes to electoral boundaries, many postal areas moved from being in relative safe districts to relatively marginal districts. I examine the effect of these exogenous changes to the marginality of postal areas on median and mean incomes in subsequent years. I find no consistent relationship between changes in marginality and incomes in subsequent years. As such, there is no evidence that politicians systematically allocate income-affecting discretionary resources to marginal districts to increase their representation in Parliament, or to safe districts to 'reward the base'.


Background: Charcoal hemoperfusion is a very effective extracorporeal treatment in cases of drug overdose. The volume of distribution of a drug is the most important factor in limiting the efficacy of the treatment. Typically, drugs with a small volume of distribution are more efficiently removed by this treatment. In contrast, the effect of the plasma protein binding properties of drugs on their removal is not well understood, but it is clear that this binding percentage is an additional factor that affects the treatment. Objective: To clarify the role of protein binding of a drug on the effectiveness of charcoal hemoperfusion and to define a guideline for this treatment based on the percentage of drug binding. Study Design and Methods: Twelve patients with drug overdoses involving 20 different (a total of 32) drugs were hemoperfused using a charcoal column at Japanese Red Cross Kumamoto Hospital in 2000. Immediately after the beginning of the treatment, the plasma concentrations of the drugs in the blood entering (A) and leaving (V) the charcoal column were determined. The extraction efficiency, (A-V)/A, of each drug was then calculated. Results: The efficacy of drug removal through adsorption to activated charcoal was found to be dependent on the binding affinity which is related to the protein binding percentage. The relationship between the extraction efficiencies of a charcoal column and the plasma protein binding percentages of the drug(s) showed that drugs that were bound at levels of 90–95%, or less, were effectively removed from the blood. Conclusions: Charcoal hemoperfusion can effectively remove drugs with a protein binding percentage as high as 95%. In addition to the volume of distribution, the plasma protein binding percentage of the drug can be used as a determinant for clearance by hemoperfusion especially in cases of a drug that binds tightly to a protein.


The possibilities of the analysis of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) are explained from the aspect of a clearly arranged representation, partly in tabular form, concerning the following details: --the relation of the findings of CSF, in particular the cytological results, to the course of disease, --the special cytological methods for determination of cells in CSF, --cytomorphological characteristics of malignancy in regard of activated cells inflammatory reactions, --the assessment of the results of qualitative analyses of proteins and the differentiation of an intrathecal production of immunoglobulins opposite to the impairment of the barriers, --the damage of parameters of CSF by artificial factors. In case of the determination of distinct CSF syndromes results a special diagnostical consequence before all for exsudative, immunoreactive and inflammatory disorders, vascular disease and tumors of the nervous system.


More than thirty years ago, I proposed a theory about sweet and bitter molecules' recognition by protein helical structures. Unfortunately the papers could not go to public platform until now. The sweet and bitter taste theory is updated and presented in separated papers1,2. The sweet taste theory conveys that sweet molecules are recognized by receptor protein helical structures and the recognition process is a dynamic action, in which the sweet receptor protein helix has a torsion-spring-like oscillation between helical structures of 3.6 and 3 amino acids per turn. To help this kind of oscillation, there are two kinds of hydrogen donor and hydrogen acceptor DH-B entities for both receptor and sweet molecules: H-bond or non-H-bond. The distances between DH and B could be up to ~ 8.5 Å. The receptor H-bond type DH-B entities are the NH-O pairs forming H-bonds in protein helices; the receptor non-H-bond type DH-B entities are the ones from two pairs of NH-Os forming H-bonds which are about one turn away. To facilitate this kind of movement, the interaction of DH-Bs of a sweet molecule with those of sweet receptor, through a pair of complementary hydrogen bonds, must have hydrogen bond complementarities, which means Hbond type of ligands' DH-Bs reacts on non-H-bond type of receptor's O-NHs, and vice versa. As the oscillation may have different extent, it translates to sweet intensity. As recognition sites are only associated with a small fraction – helix structure of whole sweet receptor, multiple binding sites or multiple receptors are well expected.


An NH -ISFET sensor based on PVC membrane technology with improved long-term stability has been developed. As a new approach, the plasticizer (tetra-n-undecyl) 3,3′,4,4′ -benzhydroltetracarboxylate (ETH2112) was used in membrane preparation. Its lipophilic nature provides a restricted diffusion of the membrane components to the external solution and improves membrane adhesion to the gate area of the ISFET. The good performance of this plasticizer was confirmed by comparison with usual plasticizers applied in standard ISE technology. Moreover, the durability and stability of the sensor were enhanced by the application of a graphite-epoxy layer as an internal reference between the gate area and the PVC membrane. This composite layer permits the reduction of the optical sensitivity and improves the adherence of the PVC membrane to the ISFET surface. Furthermore, this composite layer acts as a plug, preventing the entrance of water upon the encapsulant-chip interface, thus protecting electrical connections from moisture. As a result, an NH -ISFET with a long-term stability of three months and a sensitivity of −58.7 ± 2.3 mV decade−1 in a linear range of 10−5 −0.1 mol dm−3 has been developed. The application of this sensor to a continuous-flow system has confirmed the feasibility of the technological approach proposed.