A number of Paediatric Rheumatology patients have methotrexate or biologics prescribed by the hospital, via a homecare company. When these patients are admitted to hospital, it was identified that these medicines were poorly recorded in the admission clerking or at the point of medicines reconciliation by pharmacy. This led to near misses across the region, for example, trimethoprim and methotrexate coadministered, severe infections and biologics and NSAID use with unknown concurrent methotrexate. With medicines reconciliation seen as a NICE priority,1 an audit was carried out to identify where this information is recorded and to identify strategies to minimise the risks identified. The Paediatric Rheumatology team have 54 patients who have subcutaneous methotrexate or biologics prescribed by the hospital consultants. The GPs of these patients were contacted by telephone, in a similar approach that would occur at the point of hospital admission. The GP practices were asked for a faxed copy of the medicines the patients were taking. If this record did not include the hospital prescribed medicine, the GP practice were specifically asked 'Do they have a record that this patient has medicines prescribed by a hospital?' It was also confirmed with the homecare company that these patients identified were still having deliveries of the hospital prescribed medicine, and also they had a valid hospital prescription. Following the initial request for a copy of a patient's medicines record from the GP, 54 records were received. Only one patient's record listed the hospital prescribed medicine as a note on the record faxed. On further questioning, there were 19 records where the GP receptionist stated the hospital prescribed medicine was listed on letters from the hospital and offered to fax copies to me. All 54 patients had received a delivery of medicines within the last 12 weeks, and had current valid prescriptions registered with the homecare company. After consideration with the multi-disciplinary team, patient education was deemed the cheapest and easiest way of introducing a risk minimisation strategy. This has involved the writing of a patient information leaflet and also a patient held monitoring booklet. The local medicines management team at the PCT were approached to see if there was a method of adding these medicines to the GP computer medicines list. This is hopefully being addressed in the longer term strategy of updating these systems. The issue has also been highlighted on a newsletter, which has been sent to the GPs of the patients identified in this audit. The issue has also been discussed with pharmacy colleagues in adult rheumatology. It was felt the same issue occurs in the adult population, but GPs were starting to take on this prescribing in primary care and also have better coding of the patient's condition on the summary care record.


Aim The size of the climatic niche of a species is a major factor determining its distribution and evolution. In particular, it has been proposed that niche width should be associated with the rate of species diversification. Here, we test whether species niche width affects the speciation and extinction rates of three main clades of vertebrates: amphibians, mammals and birds.

Location Global.

Methods We obtained the time-calibrated phylogenies, IUCN conservation status, species distribution maps and climatic data for 2340 species of amphibians, 4563 species of mammals and 9823 species of birds. We computed the niche width for each species as the mean annual temperature across the species range. We estimated speciation, extinction and transition rates associated with lineages with either narrow (specialist) or wide (generalist) niches using phylogeny-based birth–death models. We also tested if current conservation status was correlated with the niche width of species.

Results We found higher net diversification rates in specialist species than in generalist species. This result was explained by both higher speciation rates (for the three taxonomic groups) and lower extinction rates (for mammals and birds only) in specialist than in generalist species. In contrast, current specialist species tended to be more threatened than generalist species.

Main conclusions Our diversification analysis shows that the width of the climatic niche is strongly associated with diversification rates and may thus be a crucial factor for understanding the emergence of diversity patterns in vertebrates. The striking difference between our diversification results and current conservation status suggests that the current extinction process may be different from extinction rates estimated from the whole history of the group.


Designing and developing successful technology training programs for our library's users is no small undertaking but we can learn a great deal from other's successes and failures. D. Scott Brandt has created Internet training courses at the libraries of MIT and Purdue University and he has monitored closely the efforts of many others teaching technology in the library world. Brandt clearly demonstrates how to gather and analyze information on user needs, articulate the vision and mission of your training, create an infrastructure of administrative workflow, construct individual training courses, measure your training's effectiveness, and make revisions along the way. This practical guide emphasizes teaching the use of the Internet and the Web, taking you step-by-step through various possible approaches to designing an overall program and developing individual courses. A special section highlights the different successful approaches various kinds and sizes of libraries have adopted to teach technology to users of all ages and backgrounds. Whether you have elements of a training program already in place at your library or you are starting from scratch, this book is filled with tried-and-true methods and solid advice.


Objective. To assess differences in initial treatment and treatment response in male and female patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) in daily clinical practice. Methods. The proportion of patients with RA starting different antirheumatic treatments (disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs; DMARD) and the response to treatment were compared in the international, observational METEOR register. All visits from start of the first DMARD until the first DMARD switch or the end of followup were selected. The effect of sex on time to switch from first to second treatment was calculated using Cox regression. Linear mixed model analyses were performed to assess whether men and women responded differently to treatments, as measured by Disease Activity Score (DAS) or Health Assessment Questionnaire. Results. Women (n = 4393) more often started treatment with hydroxychloroquine, as monotherapy or in combination with methotrexate (MTX) or a glucocorticoid, and men (n = 1142) more often started treatment with MTX and/or sulfasalazine. Time to switch DMARD was shorter for women than for men. Women had a statistically significantly higher DAS over time than men (DAS improvement per year β −0.69, 95% CI −0.75 to −0.62 for men and −0.58, 95% CI −0.62 to −0.55 for women). Subanalyses per DMARD group showed for the conventional synthetic DMARD combination therapy a slightly greater decrease in DAS over time in men (−0.89, 95% CI −1.07 to −0.71) compared to women (−0.59, 95% CI −0.67 to −0.51), but these difference between the sexes were clinically negligible. Conclusion. This worldwide observational study suggests that in daily practice, men and women with RA are prescribed different initial treatments, but there were no differences in response to treatment between the sexes.


Abnormalities of platelet serotonin (5-HT) transporter, which are supposed to reflect similar dysfunctions in the central nervous system (CNS), have been reported in obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). Other platelet parameters altered in OCD are represented by phenolsulfotransferase (PST) activity, an enzyme involved in the catabolism of catecholic neuro-transmitters, and peripheral benzodiazepine receptors. Since no information is available on the behavior of these putative markers during antiobsessive treatments, the aim of the present study was to measure and compare 3H-imipramine (3H-IMI) binding, which labels the 5-HT transporter, PST activity, and 3H-PK 11,195 binding, which labels peripheral benzodiazepine receptors, in a group of 18 patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) before and after a treatment with fluvoxamine versus clomipramine. The results showed that at baseline the patients had a decreased number of 3H-IMI binding sites, which correlated negatively with the Y-BOCS total score, an increased PST activity and no difference in 3H-PK 11,195 binding, as compared with healthy volunteers. After eight weeks of treatment with either clomipramine or fluvoxamine, which was effective in all patients, the number of 3H-IMI binding sites increased significantly toward normal values, while the PST showed no change. These findings suggest that the reduction in 3H-IMI binding sites in OCD may be related to the severity of the illness and possibly to a positive response to serotonin re-uptake inhibitors, and might be considered as a state-dependent marker, whereas the PST activity would seem to be a trait of the illness.


This paper introduces a reflective methodology of the body as a resource for reflective practice based on an analysis of my personal response and experience of autobiographical narrative. It offers an approach in which the movements and markings of the body serve as important sites for collecting additional evidence of the daily practices that shape our lives. The paper extends and develops the notion of reassembling 'artifacts' from Watson and Wilcox (2000), in order to expand the possibilities for enlarging methods of reflection. Two forms of artifact are presented: visual illustration and movement vignette. Re-collecting and reading these artifacts, allows the personal history stored in the body, as well as the body's contemporaneous knowledge to become more accessible for examination, dialogue and reflection. In a dialectic relationship with narrative writing, an example is presented of this reflective model that mines one's impulses for motion and stillness, movement and marking. Drawing upon the researcher's larger concerns, the paper concludes with a critical discussion of autobiographical inquiry and sexuality, heterocentric value systems, and reflective practitioners' ability to exhume the 'taken for granted' oppressions suffered in the world.


What are the single most important variables in racquet performance? What racquet and string features combine to provide the most control, comfort, and feel? How can a player create maximum spin? This informative primer answers these and other elusive equipment and performance-related questions that perennially plague hackers and experts alike. A simplified, layperson's companion to the authors' previous work, The Physics and Technology of Tennis , this conveniently sized guide to selecting racquets and strings includes bite-sized explanations of the possible expectations of equipment choices.


This is the third of a trilogy of papers, from the PhD work of Fiala, supervised by Lomas, that brings an engineering approach to thermal comfort modelling. The first paper in 1999, appeared in the Journal of Applied Physiology and the second, in this RAE period, was 'Fiala D, Lomas KJ and Stohrer M, Computer prediction of human thermoregulatory and temperature responses to a wide range of environmental conditions, Int Journal of Biometeorology (Int Soc B), Vol 45, pp 143-159, (2001), ISSN 0020-7128'. Over 14 other journal and conference papers in this RAE period, with Fiala or Lomas, or both, as (co) authors, has brought the work to the attention of researchers in many fields of endeavour. There have been around 11 conference and seminar invitations.
The work was advanced via an EPSRC grant, Asymmetric radiant fields and human thermal comfort (GR/R03495/01), which was completed in 2004. The work was rated by referees as Internationally Leading for both its Research Quality and Scientific Impact. The recently completed EPSRC project, which applies the model to the design of window systems, Vacuum window design optimisation and thermal comfort implications (GR/S08633/01), was rated by referees as Tending to Internationally Leading for its Research Quality and its Scientific Impact.
The model has been used by many outside the buildings field, for example: NASA; Transsolar, Germany; Michigan Technical University; Technical University of Eindhoven; Thermo Analytics, Calvet, MI, USA; WL Gore (eg Goretex) UK; Technical University of Denmark; MTRE, Israel; the US Air Force Research Laboratories; and the World Meteorological Office that is using the model to develop a Universal Comfort Index for use in weather reporting (See also RA5 Esteem).
Stohrer (University of Applied Sciences, Stuttgart) provided financial support and some co-supervision of Fiala's PhD work.


In the paper entitled "Endocrine and metabolic emergencies in children: hypocalcemia, hypoglycemia, adrenal insufficiency, and metabolic acidosis including diabetic ketoacidosis"1) are some discrepancies with the literature.

First, on page 183, the author writes "Diabetic ketoacidosis usually occurred by absolute/relative insulin deficiency ...". Since the Nobel prize was awarded in 1977 to Rosalyn S Yalow for the development of new methods of biochemical analysis that make it possible to measure insulin concentration in human plasma, these methods have been used worldwide. In 1981, the monograph "Diabetic coma: ketoacidotic and hyperosmolar" was published2), and on page 67, Fig. 6.3 has the names of 12 authors who have reported sufficient amounts of plasmatic insulin in patients with diabetic ketoacidosis. In contrast, absolute deficiency of plasmatic insulin has been reported in diabetic patients with hyperglycemic hyperosmolar non ketotic syndrome3), as well as in diabetic patients on routine control without subjective complaints4). Where are published concrete reports on deficiency of plasmatic insulin in patients with diabetic ketoacidosis? What is the "safe level" of plasmatic insulin concentration that makes development of diabetic ketoacidosis impossible?

Second, on page 184, the author writes "... bicarbonate therapy may be unnecessary and may actually be harmfuI". However, on his page 183 he writes "Acidemia ... results in CNS dysfunction ... manifested as altered level of consciousness progressing to coma ... and even death …". This is explained with the inactivation of the glycolytic enzyme phosphofructokinase by low blood-pH and the ensuing impaired utilisation of glucose5). Therefore, increase of the low blood-pH after infusions of sodium bicarbonate is in comatose patients life-saving, lethality of coma with this treatment is zero /e g/6). Where are published reports on zero lethality of coma in diabetic ketoacidosis without alkalising solutions? Where are published results of the treatment recommended by the author?


We develop a numerical model based on the mild-slope equation of water wave propagation over complex bathymetrys, taking into account the combined effects of refraction, diffraction and reflection due to protection structures. The numerical method was developed using a split proposed version of the mild-slope equation in elliptical form and solved by an implicit method in a finite volume mesh, this technique easily allows the modeling of the wave transformations caused by the protection structures in coastal waters, where industrial and other economic activities take place. Study cases controlled have been made and the results match very well with the reference solution. The capability and utility of the model for coastal areas are illustrated by its application to the breakwater of the Laguna Verde Nuclear Power Plant (LVNPP) and the protection structure of the Nautical Marine named "Los Ayala".


The adverse effects of weather extremes produce widespread damage and cause severe alterations in the normal functioning of household agricultural production in Zambia. Extreme weather events such as floods and drought are expected to increase in intensity and frequency due to climate change. Coupled with high poverty levels and limited institutional capacity, the country is highly vulnerable to the impact of extreme events. We quantify the effects of economic diversification on agricultural productivity of poor farm households with a skew-normal regression approach while accounting for drought and flood shocks. Our analysis finds that economic diversification is a strategy to increase agricultural productivity and mitigate the adverse impact of droughts and floods on agricultural households. The results also support the country's policies to encourage hybrid maize production and to provide crop seeds and fertiliser to poor farmers. This paper provides a framework to plan and inform interventions to enhance household economic resilience to weather shocks through agricultural diversification in Zambia and other countries.


Motivation: Insufficient knowledge of general principles for accurate quantitative inference of biological properties from sequences is a major obstacle in the rationale design of proteins with predetermined activities. Due to this deficiency, protein engineering frequently relies on the use of computational approaches focused on the identification of quantitative structure–activity relationship (SAR) for each specific task. In the current article, a computational model was developed to define SAR for a major conformational antigenic epitope of the hepatitis C virus (HCV) non-structural protein 3 (NS3) in order to facilitate a rationale design of HCV antigens with improved diagnostically relevant properties. Results: We present an artificial neural network (ANN) model that connects changes in the antigenic properties and structure of HCV NS3 recombinant proteins representing all 6 HCV genotypes. The ANN performed quantitative predictions of the enzyme immunoassay (EIA) Signal/Cutoff (S/Co) profiles from sequence information alone with 89.8% accuracy. Amino acid positions and physicochemical factors strongly associated with the HCV NS3 antigenic properties were identified. The positions most significantly contributing to the model were mapped on the NS3 3D structure. The location of these positions validates the major associations found by the ANN model between antigenicity and structure of the HCV NS3 proteins. Availability: Matlab code is available at the following URL address: http://bio-ai.myeweb.net/box_widget.html Contact: firstname.lastname@example.com; firstname.lastname@example.com Supplementary information: Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.


Aim Slow recovery and disability after Achilles tendon rupture are major challenges. Platelet Rich Plasma (PRP) is an autologous supraphysiological concentration of platelets from whole blood that has demonstrated positive cellular and physiological effects on healing in the laboratory and is widely used in musculoskeletal treatments. However, evidence from adequately powered, robust clinical trials is lacking. We aimed to determine the clinical efficacy of PRP for treatment of acute Achilles tendon rupture. Methods 230 adults starting Achilles rupture non-surgical management within 12 days of injury were randomised to PRP injection or dry needle insertion to the rupture gap, under local anaesthetic. Participants were blinded to study treatment and received standardised rehabilitation. Blinded outcome assessments were at 4, 7, 13, and 24 weeks. The primary outcome was muscle-tendon function assessed by work performed during the heel-rise endurance test (HRET), measured with the Limb Symmetry Index (LSI) (0–100%; 100% denotes full recovery) at 24 weeks. Secondary outcomes were the Achilles Tendon Rupture Score (ATRS), quality of life (SF-12), pain and goal attainment. The trial was prospectively registered. Results Of 230 participants, 114 were allocated to PRP injection (103 received PRP), 116 were allocated to and received placebo. At 24 weeks, 201/230 (87%) completed the HRET and 214/230 (93%) completed patient reported outcomes. Participant characteristics between the groups were similar. There was no difference between groups at 24 weeks in LSI (mean difference = -4.373; 95% CI −11.217 to 2.471; p=0.195). There were no differences in the secondary outcomes and adverse event rates. Conclusion This trial design and standardised PRP preparation secure the first robust clinical trial evidence for PRP in managing Achilles tendon rupture, and suggest that PRP offers no patient benefit. The use of PRP in soft tissue injuries must be questionable unless supported by equally robust evidence indicating positive outcomes.


This paper examines the development of case law regarding protection of disabled people from discrimination in fields other than employment in Italy. The Italian legal system has two main anti-discrimination laws: the Decreto Legislativo 216/2003 and Law no. 67/2006. The Decreto Legislativo was enacted to implement the EU Framework Directive 2000/78. The EU Directive establishes a general framework on equal treatment in employment and occupation. Law 67/2006 was enacted to provide protection from discrimination for disabled people in all aspects of their lives not covered by the EU Directive.


This book aligns culture and politics by focusing on an art form that became a darling of the Cuban revolution: dance. This history of staged performance in ballet, modern dance, and folkloric dance analyzes how and why dance artists interacted with republican and, later, revolutionary politics. Drawing on written and visual archives, including intriguing exchanges between dancers and bureaucrats, it argues that Cuban dancers used their bodies and ephemeral, nonverbal choreography to support and critique political regimes and cultural biases. As esteemed artists, Cuban dancers exercised considerable power and influence. They often used their art to posit more radical notions of social justice than political leaders were able or willing to implement. After 1959, while generally promoting revolutionary projects like mass education and internationalist solidarity, they also took risks by challenging racial prejudice, gender norms, and censorship, all of which could affect dancers personally. On a broader level, the book shows that dance, too often overlooked in histories of Latin America and the Caribbean, provides fresh perspectives on what it means for people, and nations, to move through the world.


Helium droplets provide a cold and confined environment where atomic and/or molecular dopants can aggregate into clusters and nanoparticles. In particular, the sequential addition of different materials to helium droplets can lead to the formation of a wide range of nanoparticles, including core-shell nanoparticles, which can then be deposited onto a surface. Here we briefly discuss the fundamental properties of helium droplets and then address their implications for the formation of clusters and nanoparticles. Several key experiments on atomic and molecular clusters will be highlighted and new results obtained for nanoparticles formed in this way will be presented. Finally, the versatility, the limitations and new possibilities provided by superfluid helium droplets in nanoscience and nanotechnology will be addressed.


Regular aspirin use has been convincingly shown to reduce the risk of colorectal cancer. However, long-term use of aspirin leads to gastrotoxicity. Herein, we designed and synthesized a novel class of resveratrol-based aspirin prodrugs to simultaneously release aspirin and resveratrol to attenuate the side effects caused by aspirin. Prodrug RAH exerted enhanced anticancer activities which are better than a physical mixture of aspirin and resveratrol as well as each individually. Metabolism of RAH in mice showed that the majority of RAH is decomposed to release resveratrol and aspirin or salicylic acid either in the intestine or after absorption. Mechanistic studies demonstrate RAH inhibits cell cycle arrest through downregulation of cyclins and induces apoptosis by activation of caspase-3 in cancer cells. These findings highlighted the improved anticancer properties of resveratrol-based aspirin prodrugs. RAH may represent novel and safe alternatives of aspirin for the purpose of daily use in the future.


In order to place Oscar Wilde's interpretation of gender stereotypes and gender roles in a proper context, we should view it against the doctrine of the 'separation of spheres', which was prevalent in Victorian England. According to this doctrine, a woman was restricted within the confines of the domestic or private sphere, being attributed the roles of wife and mother. Women who conformed to the ideal wife and mother stereotype were also eulogized on stage, while those who departed from the norm were regarded as outcasts and were shut off from fashionable society. The 'fallen woman' motif is apparent in Wilde's society comedies. The characters that seem to embody this stereotype are Mrs. Erlynne in "Lady Windermere's Fan" and Mrs. Arbuthnot in "A Woman of No Importance." Each of them tries to hide a 'shameful secret': Mrs. Erlynne, the apparent homewrecker and seductress, wants to conceal her former abandonment of husband and child in favour of a lover who abandoned her later on; Mrs Arbuthnot, the stern woman and dutiful mother, tries to conceal the fact that she had been seduced by Lord Illingworth in her youth and had given birth to an illegitimate son. This study focuses on the two characters mentioned above in order to show the way in which Wilde exploited conventional gender roles and stereotypes, by playing the double game of conforming to and at the same time departing from expected conventions.


l-type ca2+ channels play a pivotal role in regulating cellular excitability and contractility in cardiac tissue. Ca2+ influx through these channels [L-type Ca2+ current (ICa,L)] contributes to the plateau phase of the ventricular action potential and initiates excitation-contraction coupling by activating Ca2+-release channels or ryanodine receptors in the sarcoplasmic reticulum (1). The resulting Ca2+-induced Ca2+ release leads to the intracellular Ca2+ transient, which activates the myofilaments. Control of this critical intracellular Ca2+ transient is afforded, in part, by the precise regulation of the triggering ICa,L by a variety of neurohormonal and second-messenger pathways, including prominently the β-adrenergic receptor (β-AR)/protein kinase A (PKA) signaling pathway (5).

L-type Ca2+ channels can also be the culprit in electrical instability and arrhythmogenesis. Studies using sheep and canine Purkinje fibers, in which the L-type Ca2+ channel activator Bay K 8644 was applied, demonstrated the importance of ICa,L in the initiation of early afterdepolarizations (EADs), particularly at slow pacing frequencies and with longer action potential durations (APD) (4). Reactivation of ICa,L has been implicated in EAD formation that can trigger the life-threatening ventricular arrhythmia torsades de pointes in congenital long QT (LQT) syndromes due to mutations in a variety of genes encoding ion channels and associated proteins, as well as in acquired LQT syndrome (7). Furthermore, increased activity of L-type Ca2+ channels may lead to Ca2+ overload in cardiac muscle, which results in another form of triggered activity from delayed afterdepolarizations (DADs). For example, in canine wedge preparations, pharmacological activation of L-type Ca2+ channels again using Bay K 8644 resulted in DADs and triggered arrhythmias (8).

The recent description of Timothy syndrome (TS), a multisystem disorder characterized by prolonged QT interval on ECG, ventricular arrhythmias, syndactly, and autism, has again implicated L-type Ca2+ channels in arrhythmogenesis. TS (LQT8) arises from autosomal dominant mutations within the L-type Ca2+ channel pore forming Cav1.2 subunit that lead to a marked loss of voltage-dependent inactivation (9, 10). Action potential modeling studies intuitively predicted that the maintained ICa,L would result in APD prolongation, consistent with the clinically observed QT prolongation (10). Furthermore, the increase in ICa,L was predicted to lead to DADs (9). However, the clinically observed arrhythmias typically occur in the setting of increased sympathetic tone, such as crying, and so the impact of β-AR signaling on the TS cardiac phenotype is of importance.

In this issue of the American Journal of Physiology-Heart and Circulatory Physiology, Sung and colleagues employ state-of-the-art computational modeling of the cardiac action potential in the presence of the Cav1.2 G406R TS mutation to evaluate the impact of β-AR stimulation on the induction of arrhythmias (11). The study uses a dynamic Luo-Rudy ventricular myocyte model, incorporating detailed properties of Cav1.2 channel gating and intracellular Ca2+ cycling, along with the one-dimensional multicellular strand, which accounts for the transmural heterogeneity of cardiac action potentials (3, 6). Because the equivalent G406R TS mutation is expressed in alternative exons 8A and 8 for TS1 and TS2 patients, respectively, which are differentially expressed (23% exon 8A and 77% exon 8 in heart), the authors tested different percentages of TS mutant Cav1.2 channels in their model. In agreement with the initial modeling studies, the authors demonstrated that, with increasing percentage of Cav1.2 TS mutant channels, APD and QT intervals were prolonged (3, 9, 10). In addition, as the percentage of TS channels was increased, Sung and colleagues began to observe the generation of DADs and DAD-triggered activity, consistent with some previous modeling and experimental studies (8, 9, 12). β-AR stimulation was shown to facilitate the generation of DADs, which occurred at lower percentages of TS Cav1.2 mutant channels and were detected more broadly in all cell types in the strand, endocardial, midmyocardial, and epicardial. The impact of β-AR stimulation on intracellular Ca2+ cycling was found to be particularly important in increasing the propensity to generate DADs. In addition, in this model, the authors also observed phase 2 EADs in midmyocardial cells, starting at 11.5% G406R Cav1.2 channels. This finding, along with increased transmural dispersion of repolarization, is consistent with the occurrence of torsades de pointes in affected patients. At 77% G406R Cav1.2 channels, pacing-induced phase 3 EADs led to triggered activity. However, the authors' choice to study 77% G406R TS Cav1.2 channels may have little clinical relevance, as TS arises from de novo mutations in Cav1.2 and is autosomal dominant in nature, so patients are heteryozygous for the mutant allele, and, in the case of TS2, this would mean one-half of 77% or 38.5% mutant Cav1.2 channels (9, 10). Whether 77% TS G406R Cav1.2 channels would be compatible with life is unclear, and perhaps the modeling data argue against it, given the dramatically prolonged APDs and supraphysiological Ca2+ transients predicted. Nevertheless, the modeling data provide novel information with relevant levels of TS Cav1.2 channels highlighting the importance of β-AR signaling in stimulating intracellular Ca2+ cycling for the genesis of DADs and DAD-triggered arrhythmias.

Importantly, Sung and colleagues used the model to make predictions on specific components that may be potential therapeutic targets for TS by testing the impact of altering a variety of currents. To suppress the inducibility of DAD-triggered activity in the presence of β-AR stimulation, the authors found that the most sensitive intervention was a reduction in ICa,L, followed by reduction in IUP, which represents SERCA-mediated uptake of Ca2+ into the sarcoplasmic reticulum. A reduction in IUP by 20% could totally suppress DAD inducibility, but it took a 40% or more reduction in Na/Ca exchanger current to have a similar effect and even a greater reduction in Ca2+ release current of the sarcoplasmic reticulum. Thus the authors conclude that, in addition to Ca2+ channel blockers and β-AR blockers, an intervention to reduce IUP could also have therapeutic utility, but no such intervention is currently available clinically.

Although computational models of cardiac electrophysiology continue to improve, many key limitations remain. For example, comprehensive descriptions of gating of a given ion channel may not be available, especially in the case of mutant channels. For example, the precise impact of TS mutations on the gating of Cav1.2 channels has not been resolved, with a recent study suggesting that, in addition to a loss of open-state, voltage-dependent inactivation, as utilized by the Sung et al. model, a pronounced slowing of deactivation occurs, which significantly increases Ca2+ influx during repolarization (13). Like all existing computational models for cardiac electrophysiology, the Sung et al. model does not recapitulate the three-dimensional nature of the heart, and rather it is limited to single cardiomyocytes or a one-dimensional strand. Thus questions remain regarding the relative importance of EADs, DADs, transmural dispersion of refractoriness, and other factors in their contribution to clinically relevant whole heart arrhythmias. Finally, the results and predictions are limited by the fact that this model is based on the properties of guinea pig ventricular myocytes rather than human cardiomyocytes, in part, because of limited accessibility of human cells for experimentally determining ionic conductances. However, the recent emergence of abundant sources of human cardiomyocytes from embryonic stem cells and induced pluripotent stem cells may provide critical human-specific data to populate computational models. Furthermore, induced pluripotent stem cells derived from patients with genetic diseases, including inherited arrhythmias, may help close the gap between computational models and human disease biology.

Perhaps the most important feature of the study by Sung et al. is the effort to integrate cellular signaling pathways into models of cardiac electrophysiology. Although the rationale is straightforward, the implementation is challenging, given the pleiotropic and sometimes undefined effects that activation of signaling pathways can have on multiple channels and transporters. Sung and colleagues made progress integrating the β-AR/PKA signaling cascade into their model, but even this valiant attempt does not address some of the complexities of the signaling pathways, such as the differential contribution of β-AR receptor subtypes, e.g., of β1-AR and β2-AR, to the observed behavior. This work also ignores the contribution of Ca2+/calmodulin-dependent kinase II signaling, which has been suggested to be essential in models of TS (2, 12). Certainly, other signaling pathways and second messengers will play a role in the ultimate disease phenotype. Nevertheless, this work sets the stage for more comprehensive models integrating cellular signaling with cardiac electrophysiology, which can lead to advances in the understanding of β-AR stimulation in other inherited arrhythmia syndromes and in arrhythmias in more complex diseases, such as heart failure.


Abstract In humans, many diseases are associated with alterations in gut microbiota, namely increases or decreases in the abundance of specific bacterial groups. One example is the genus Faecalibacterium. Numerous studies have underscored that low levels of Faecalibacterium are correlated with inflammatory conditions, with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) in the forefront. Its representation is also diminished in the case of several diseases, including colorectal cancer (CRC), dermatitis, and depression. Additionally, the relative presence of this genus is considered to reflect, at least in part, intestinal health status because Faecalibacterium is frequently present at reduced levels in individuals with gastrointestinal diseases or disorders. In this review, we first thoroughly describe updates to the taxonomy of Faecalibacterium, which has transformed a single-species taxon to a multispecies taxon over the last decade. We then explore the links discovered between Faecalibacterium abundance and various diseases since the first IBD-focused studies were published. Next, we examine current available strategies for modulating Faecalibacterium levels in the gut. Finally, we summarize the mechanisms underlying the beneficial effects that have been attributed to this genus. Together, epidemiological and experimental data strongly support the use of Faecalibacterium as a next-generation probiotic (NGP) or live biotherapeutic product (LBP).


Recently, the Average Bit Error Probability (ABEP) of Space Shift Keying (SSK) and Spatial Modulation (SM) over Nakagami-m fading has been computed as a single integral involving the Meijer-G function. Even though the frameworks are very accurate, the use of special functions hides some fundamental properties of the aforementioned new modulation schemes, e.g., coding and diversity gains. In this Letter, we exploit a notable limit involving the Meijer-G function near the singular point -1, and provide a simple, closed-form, and asymptotically tight upper-bound of the ABEP. The result is applicable to SM and SSK modulation, to correlated Nakagami-m fading, and to general Multiple-Input Multiple-Output (MIMO) wireless systems. As a case study, numerical examples showing the accuracy for SSK modulation are given, and it is proved that, unlike conventional modulations, the diversity gain is independent of the fading severity m.


Abstract : Planning for the development of products early in the lifetime of a software product line is critical to the success of that product line. Requirements for that development both affect and are affected by the product requirements. This technical report describes the addition of development requirements to product line analysis. It further describes the refinement of product and development responsibilities, and the relationships among them, by use of examples specifically targeted at the practitioner of product line analysis.


Evidence of exoplanets with orbits that are misaligned with the spin of the host star may suggest that not all bound planets were born in the protoplanetary disk of their current planetary system. Observations have shown that free-floating Jupiter-mass objects can exceed the number of stars in our galaxy, implying that capture scenarios may not be so rare. To address this issue, we construct a three-dimensional simulation of a three-body scattering between a free-floating planet and a star accompanied by a Jupiter-mass bound planet. We distinguish between three different possible scattering outcomes, where the free-floating planet may get captured after the interaction with the binary, remain unbound, or "kick-out" the bound planet and replace it. The simulation was performed for different masses of the free-floating planets and stars, as well as different impact parameters, inclination angles and approach velocities. The outcome statistics are used to construct an analytical approximation of the cross section for capturing a free-floating planet by fitting their dependence on the tested variables. The analytically approximated cross section is used to predict the capture rate for these kinds of objects, and to estimate that about 1\% of all stars are expected to experience a temporary capture of a free-floating planet during their lifetime. Finally, we propose additional physical processes that may increase the capture statistics and whose contribution should be considered in future simulations.


This article reports for the first time national trends in coronary heart disease (CHD) mortality by sex and age for the past 30 years, from 1979 to 2011. The analysis reveals significant heterogeneity in CHD mortality rates over time by sex and age. Older adults, especially men ≥55 years of age and women ≥65 years of age, have shown robust CHD mortality reductions over the past 2 decades with an acceleration over the past decade. In contrast, young adults <55 years old have shown sluggish improvements in the same time period; the gains in CHD mortality reduction have been especially weak for young women. These data suggest that attention should be given to the young population, especially women, whose cardiovascular risk profile may have worsened disproportionally in recent decades, which may potentially explain their less favorable trends in CHD mortality reduction. See p 997.


Every document collection has an underlying corpus structure, which seldom has a readily available, concise expression. Without an explicit corpus structure expression, it is difficult to build or use a database of arbitrary documents. Three basic steps are needed: (1) identily the corpus structure, (2) design the database, and (3) design the interface. This report describes these steps and presents tools developed to perform them


number of compounds and pharmaceutical agents, our own studies on the effects of paracetamol (acetaminophen) have indicated that the degree of interference caused by this drug is much greater than they suggest. Using serum and whole blood specimens to which varying amounts of the drug were added, we found that at a (therapeutic) paracetamol concentration of 25 mg 1 the interference was equivalent to 06 mmol'l (108 mg/100 ml) glucose. The effect was linear up to at least 300 mg/l paracetamol, when the glucose result displayed was falsely elevated by 7 2 mmol/l (129 7 mg/100 ml), and was found to be independent of the true glucose concentration of the sample-that is, the interference was not a percentage of the glucose level but an increment dependent only on the amount of paracetamol present. The same effect was noted with three different production batches of immobilised glucose oxidase membranes, and virtually identical results were obtained by a colleague using his own YSI glucose analyser. We have since studied blood specimens taken from patients following paracetamol ingestion, and have compared the results given by the instrument with those obtained by an alternative glucose method' not subject to paracetamol interference. These investigations indicated a similar degree of interference by paracetamol. We have contacted the manufacturers about this problem, through their British agents, and have been given an assurance that work is in progress to modify the immobilised glucose oxidase membranes used in the instrument to reduce paracetamol interference to an acceptable level. Meanwhile, we recommend caution in the use of the YSI analyser to measure blood glucose levels in patients suspected of paracetamol overdosage. J A FLEETWOOD SHEELAGH M A ROBINSON


Intersectionality is a theory examining how individuals' different identities intersect to create a new lived experience, often with compounded oppressions. This theory has recently been utilized in health research to help understand and find effective ways of addressing health disparities (Bowleg, 2012). However, while studies have theorized broadly about intersectionality theory in health research, it has seldom been used to specifically address health disparities in patients with End Stage Renal Disease (ESRD). This study conducted a systematic literature review of past research that has examined barriers to kidney transplantation among ESRD patients with intersectional identities, particularly concerning race and gender. The findings of this literature review found themes of race and gender interactions, lack of explicit use of the intersectionality framework, a focus on Black and White racial groups as well as cisgender individuals, and external validity limitations. In light of these themes, more large intersectional research studies concerning ESRD disparities involving diverse participants is recommended so that the literature base for intersectional identities can grow and lead to more targeted, efficient, and effective intervention programs.


Submitted 2020-06-30 | Accepted 2020-09-01 | Available 2020-12-01 https://doi.org/10.15414/afz.2020.23.mi-fpap.79-87 The present study assessed the effects of two initial stocking densities (low – LD, 4.23 kg m-3, moderate – MD, 8.05 kg m-3) on growth, health and fillet quality of largemouth bass (Micropterus salmoides), and on yield of lettuce (Lactuca sativa) and radicchio (Cichorium intybus group Rubifolium) produced in a low-tech recirculating aquaponic system. A total of 104 largemouth bass (initial body weight: 236 ± 38 g) were randomly stocked in eight 500 L tanks (four per stocking density) and monitored during a 70-day period. Vegetables yield was similar in LD and MD groups. Lettuce yield (6.33 kg m-2) was in line with typical values, whereas radicchio showed a negligible yield (1.34 kg m-2). Likewise, fish final weight (263 g, on average), specific growth rate (0.17% d-1), feed conversion ratio (2.72), and mortality (4.8%) did not differ between treatments. Fish morphometric indices, slaughter results and fillet quality were not affected by stocking density. In conclusion, the production of lettuce was successful in the tested system, whereas the production of radicchio did not achieve satisfactory results. Growth performances of the largemouth bass were poor and further investigations are required to optimize the rearing of this fish species in low-tech aquaponic systems. Keywords: largemouth bass, lettuce, radicchio, water quality, flesh quality References BAsMANN, B. et al. (2017). Stress and welfare of African catfish (Clarias gariepinus Burchell, 1822) in a coupled aquaponic system. Water, 9(7), 504. https://doi.org/10.3390/w9070504 BROWN, T. G. et al. (2009). Biological synopsis of largemouth bass (Micropterus salmoides). Canadian Manuscript Report of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences, 2884, v + 27 p. CHAVES-POZO, E. et al. (2019). An overview of the reproductive cycle of cultured specimens of a potential candidate for Mediterranean aquaculture, Umbrina cirrosa. Aquaculture, 505, 137–149. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aquaculture.2019.02.039 CHEN, Y. et al. (2020). Effects of dietary fish oil replacement by soybean oil and L-carnitine supplementation on growth performance, fatty acid composition, lipid metabolism and liver health of juvenile largemouth bass, Micropterus salmoides. Aquaculture, 516, 734596. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aquaculture.2019.734596 PANTANELLA, E. et al. (2012). Aquaponics vs. hydroponics: production and quality of lettuce crop. Acta Horticulturae, 927, 887-893. https://doi.org/10.17660/ActaHortic.2012.927.109 RAHMAN, M. M (2015). Role of common carp (Cyprinus carpio) in aquaculture production systems. Frontiers in Life Science, 8(4), 399–410. https://doi.org/10.1080/21553769.2015.1045629 RAKOCY, J. E. (2012). Aquaponics: integrating fish and plant culture. In: Tidwell J.H. (Ed), Aquaculture production systems. India: Wiley-Blackwell (pp. 343–386). https://doi.org/10.1002/9781118250105.ch14 SAS (Statistical Analysis System). 2013. SAS/STAT(R) 9.2 User's Guide, second ed. SAS Institute Inc., Cary, NC, USA. Retrieved May 10, 2020 from http://support.sas.com/documentation/cdl/en/statug/63033/HTML/default/viewer.htm#glm_toc.htm SOMERVILLE, C. et al. (2014). Small-scale aquaponic food production. Integrated fish and plant farming. Rome: FAO Fisheries and Aquaculture Technical Paper No. 589. Retrieved May 15, 2020 from http://www.fao.org/3/a-i4021e.pdf SUAREZ, M. D. et al. (2014). Influence of dietary lipids and culture density on rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) flesh composition and quality parameter. Aquaculture Engineering, 63, 16–24. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.aquaeng.2014.09.001 SUN, J.-L. et al. (2020). Interactive effect of thermal and hypoxia on largemouth bass (Micropterus salmoides) gill and liver: Aggravation of oxidative stress, inhibition of immunity and promotion of cell apoptosis. Fish & Shellfish Immunology, 98, 923–936. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fsi.2019.11.056 TIDWELL, J. H. et al. (2000). Species profile – Largemouth bass. Southern Regional Aquaculture Center 722. Retrieved May 20, 2020 from http://aquaculture.ca.uky.edu/aquaculture-publications/12 TIDWELL, J. H. et al. (2007). Effect of stocking density on growth and water quality for largemouth bass Micropterus salmoides growout in ponds. Journal of the World Aquaculture Society, 29, 79–83. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1749-7345.1998.tb00302.x TYSON, R. V. et al. (2004). Reconciling water quality parameters impacting nitrification in aquaponics: the pH levels. In: Proceedings of the Florida State Horticultural Society 117, 79–83. Retrieved May 20, 2020 from https://journals.flvc.org/fshs/article/view/858557_11 VITULE, J. R. S. et al. (2006). Introduction of the African catfish Clarias gariepinus (Burchell, 1822) into Southern Brazil. Biological Invasions, 8, 677–681. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10530-005-2535-8 WANG, Y. et al. (2019). Effect of stocking density on growth, serum biochemical parameters, digestive enzymes activity and antioxidant status of largemouth bass, Micropterus salmoides. Pakistan Journal of Zoology, 51(4), 1509–1517. http://dx.doi.org/10.17582/journal.pjz/2019.51.4.1509.1517 WATTS, C. et al. (2016). Evaluation of stocking density during second‐year growth of largemouth bass, Micropterus salmoides, raised indoors in a recirculating aquaculture system. Journal of the World Aquaculture Society, 47(4), 538–543. https://doi.org/10.1111/jwas.12315 YILDIZ, H. Y. et al. (2017). Fish welfare in aquaponic systems: its relation to water quality with an emphasis on feed and faeces—A review. Water, 9(1), 13. https://doi.org/10.3390/w9010013 YUAN, J. et al. (2019). Analysis of the growth performances, muscle quality, blood biochemistry and antioxidant status of Micropterus salmoides farmed in in-pond raceway systems versus usual-pond systems. Aquaculture, 511, 734241. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aquaculture.2019.734241


This paper presents a distributed dynamic object model that is aligned with the concept of design history in the context of design problem solving activities. A distributed object model is proposed as an enabling feature for distributed CAD (computer-aided design) allowing teams to work cooperatively, accessing and exchanging information at run time in a distributed engineering environment. The architecture of the proposed CAD environment allows for the artefact properties to be associated with any relevant aspect of the design process, including those related with the artefact specification, but also with the organisation hierarchy, planning and process workflow.


Mobile robots often operate in domains that are only incompletely known, for example, when they have to move from given start coordinates to given goal coordinates in unknown terrain. In this case, they need to be able to replan quickly as their knowledge of the terrain changes. Stentz' Focussed Dynamic A/sup */ (D/sup */) is a heuristic search method that repeatedly determines a shortest path from the current robot coordinates to the goal coordinates while the robot moves along the path. It is able to replan faster than planning from scratch since it modifies its previous search results locally. Consequently, it has been extensively used in mobile robotics. In this article, we introduce an alternative to D/sup */ that determines the same paths and thus moves the robot in the same way but is algorithmically different. D/sup */ Lite is simple, can be rigorously analyzed, extendible in multiple ways, and is at least as efficient as D/sup */. We believe that our results will make D/sup */-like replanning methods even more popular and enable robotics researchers to adapt them to additional applications.


The 2011 annual top brand survey, conducted by Sunday Times in South Africa, provided a representative cross-section of 33 brands from various categories in the general consumer space, and 13 in the business landscape.  The overall favourite brand in South Africa in that year was Koo, owned by Tiger Brands in South Africa. This brand, which has a relatively small advertising budget, was a surprise winner in the category that had been   dominated by brands such as Coca‑Cola and KFC. These brands spent far more on advertising to a lesser effect than Koo, a significantly smaller company. Koo had in fact spent R12 million on advertising versus Coke's R193 million, yet Koo's final ranking was the highest of all brands surveyed. The brand's relatively simple outdoor marketing as well as the Mama Koo Radio Hour, a daily radio show featuring the various dishes homemakers can cook using Koo products, helped bring the brand to all South Africans and eclipsed its larger American-based rivals. This article considers the Koo example as illustrative of the power of simple, traditional advertising in the multi-modal context.


Perhaps no event affected the lives of so many people and the history of so many nations as the French Revolution and subsequent roles played by Napoleon Bonapart. There was the Louisiana Purchase and the preliminaries to the War of 1812 in North America. In the Caribbean the Haitian independence movement which was precipitated by events in France set off a chain of events of farreaching consequence. For Spanish America the Napoleonic invasion and occupation of Spain had a catalytic affect for the independence-minded patriots who declared themselves independent "in the name of Spanish Prince Ferdinand." The invasion of Portugal and the flight of the Court to Brazil set that country reeling on its course toward nationhood. This study begins with the earliest actions in the French colony of Saint Dominigue after the outbreak of the French Revolution.


Eleven countries in Latin America and the Caribbean have pledged to reach net-zero emissions by around 2050. Changes in the food system are key to reach these carbon neutrality goals, as agriculture and resulting land-use changes are responsible for almost half of greenhouse gas emissions in the region. We quantify the effect of supply-side (e.g., yield improvements, silvopasture, agroforestry) and demand-side (e.g., reduction of waste and losses, changing diets) options to reduce emissions and transform the land use system in a net carbon sink by 2050 while improving nutrition for the growing population. We consider both direct agriculture emissions and the pressure that food production puts on land use changes, and track separately emissions that happen in the region and emissions linked to trade. Our findings confirm that cattle plays a preponderant role, emitting nearly 60% of greenhouse gas emissions from agriculture and land-use change. Reaching a net-negative emissions food system able to balance emissions from the rest of the economy will require ambitious and sustained improvements in yields and changes in diets to moderate the increasing demand for beef, continuously decrease the share of land dedicated to agriculture, and increase instead land dedicated to carbon sequestration and biodiversity preservation.


We examine why a probabilistic approach to modelling the various components of spatial language is the most practical for spatial algorithms in which they can be employed, and examine such models for prepositions such as `between' and `by'. We provide an example of such a probabilistic treatment by exploring a novel application of spatial models to the induction of the occupancy of an object in space given a description about it.


New information technology has reduced marginal production and distribution costs of information goods to negligible levels and promises to revolutionize many industries. Unpaid copies of digital products can be as good as paid first-generation copies, and their availability can undermine the ability of sellers to cover first-copy costs. As a result, unpaid distribution has emerged as a major issue facing the music and movie industries in the past few years. Using survey data on movie consumption by about 500 University of Pennsylvania college students, we ask whether unpaid consumption of movies displaces paid consumption. Employing a variety of cross-sectional and longitudinal empirical approaches, we find large and statistically significant evidence of displacement. In what we view as the most appropriate empirical specifications, we find that unpaid first consumption reduces paid consumption by about 1 unit. Unpaid second consumption has a smaller effect, about 0.20 units. These estimates indicate that unpaid consumption, which makes up 5.2 percent of movie viewing in our sample, reduced paid consumption in our sample by 3.5 percent.


Surface-localized rat RT1 alloantigens on isolated hepatocytes have been used to achieve partial purification of putative premalignant liver cells from rats undergoing chemically induced hepatocarcinogenesis. Genotypic mosaic rat livers were constructed by transplantation of carcinogen-altered F-344 (RT1Iv1) or WF (RT1u) donor liver cells into livers of WF X F-344 F1 host rats, whose liver cells bear alloantigens of both parental strains: WF and F-344, RT1u and RT1Iv1, respectively (J. M. Hunt et al., Cancer Res., 42: 227-236, 1982). Donor and host origin hepatocytes were thus distinguishable immunologically with anti-RT1u or anti-RT1Iv1 alloantisera. Donor rats were treated with diethylnitrosamine (200 mg/kg i.p.) followed by an experimental regimen of dietary 2-acetylaminofluorene and partial hepatectomy. Standard host rats received only the 2-acetylaminofluorene-partial hepatectomy regimen. At 10 to 21 days after transplantation, mosaic host rat livers typically contained 7% donor origin hepatocytes, 96% of which were positive histochemically for gamma-glutamyl transpeptidase. Host origin hepatocytes could be effectively purified by affinity chromatography ("panning") of isolated hepatocytes. To obtain donor origin hepatocytes, the putative progenitor cells of liver carcinomas in these mosaic livers, two approaches were used. Alloantibody-mediated rosette formation followed by sedimentation through Ficoll/metrizamide resulted in a 4- to 10-fold enrichment for donor origin hepatocytes isolated from mosaic livers. Similarly, a 5- to 11-fold enrichment for donor origin hepatocytes was achieved by specific alloantibody-mediated cytolysis of host hepatocytes with rabbit complement followed by purification of viable donor origin cells by sedimentation on metrizamide cushions. Hepatocellular carcinomas which developed in the genotypic mosaic host rat livers were excised 17 to 21 months after donor liver cell transplantation and passaged s.c. or i.m. in histocompatible rats. The transplantable tumors were typed for strain of origin by indirect immunofluorescence using rat alloantisera, and five of six tumors displayed antigenicity reflecting donor strain origin. We conclude, therefore, that the transplanted donor liver cell populations contain cellular precursors of hepatocellular carcinomas which may be isolable using combinations of the purification strategies described.


Background. A collaborative interprofessional research project that involved community members was beneficial to community development. Objective. To draw upon the experiences of academics relating to their involvement in an interprofessional community-based participatory research (CBPR) project. Methods. A Delphi study was applied as a self-reflective evaluation process to reach consensus on the lessons learnt from participation in a CBPR project. Round one of the Delphi employed closed-ended questions and the responses were analysed descriptively using Microsoft Excel (USA). The second round consisted mainly of open-ended questions and responses, and was analysed qualitatively. Ethical clearance was obtained from the University of the Western Cape research committee. Results. Based on round one of the Delphi study, it became evident that recognition of the community as a unit of identity, addressing health from physical, emotional and social perspectives and formation of long-term commitments were the CBPR principles most applied. Disseminating information to all partners and facilitation of the collaborative equitable involvement of all partners in all phases of the research were the principles least applied. Themes that emerged from the second round of the Delphi included the identification of clear objectives based on the needs of the community, a shift from identification of the needs of the community to the implementation of strategies, and the creation of capacity-building opportunities for all stakeholders. Conclusion. In a reflection on the research process, the interprofessional team of academics found that the basics of CBPR should be attended to first. A focus on clear objectives, implementation strategies and capacity building is important in CBPR.


Takagi-Sugeno (TS) fuzzy modeling and control techniques are applied to the classical nonlinear Ball and Beam problem. The nonlinear model is segmented to different local linear models. Local controllers are hence designed using LMI theory for achieving a robust control behavior for ball position. TS fuzzy modeling is applied to generate suitable fuzzy models, and the associated controllers. Using fuzzy if-then, a model knowledge based fuzzy control is then designed to regulate the original system response and behavior while relying on LMI-Lyapunov stability synthesis technique. That was achieved while interfacing the Ball and Beam system with fuzzy Gain Scheduling mechanism coding. For validating such control methodology, fuzzy control system has been synthesized and implemented practically. KeywordsTakagi-Sugeno (TS) Fuzzy Modeling, LMI, Lyapunov Stability, Nonlinear Dynamics.


An outbreak of respiratory illness due to Branhamella catarrhalis occurred in the intermediate care unit of a Veterans Administration hospital and involved patients and staff members. Four patients had pneumonia and four had bronchitis. Infected patients were placed in a cohort separated from noninfected patients and were treated. Pharyngeal culture was used to survey prevalence in staff and all other patients on the unit; three of 18 staff members and two of 19 asymptomatic patients were positive for B. catarrhalis. A case-control study showed that respiratory therapy, steroid use, and location within the unit were significant risk factors for B. catarrhalis infection or colonization. Strains from five patients and two staff members had identical bacterial restriction endonuclease digestion patterns with three different enzymes; these patterns were distinct from those of control strains. This study is the first to document an outbreak of B. catarrhalis infection confirmed with a typing system and thus establishes B. catarrhalis as a nosocomial pathogen.


The presence of different distribution channels in omni-channel retail makes the fulfillment process challenging. When consumers can buy online and pick up their purchased goods at a store, the stores are often visited by a vehicle that supplies the pick-up points (PUPs) and by a vehicle that replenishes the store's inventory. We study the benefit of exploiting any spare capacity in the vehicles replenishing store inventories to reduce online order fulfillment cost by transferring online orders to these vehicles at one or more of the stores visited. This involves choosing transfer locations and the set of stores whose online orders are transferred at these locations so as to minimize the online order fulfillment cost. We present a mixed integer linear programming model as well as an effective and efficient heuristic for solving this problem. An extensive computational study shows that significant benefits can be achieved by sharing capacity across the two channels.


A large penetration of renewable energy sources with volatile power generation imposes new challenges for efficient restoration of the power system after a blackout. Prolonged power outages are also characterized be uncertain load conditions due to cold load phenomena. To meet this challenge, this paper deals with the problem of how to restore a transmission system after a blackout under uncertain load conditions and volatile power generation. The main contribution is a approximate method which minimizes the expected dissipated power under random current injection and maximizes the short circuit power under random generator generator introduction. The method is demonstrated in a numerical example on the Nordic32 400 kV transmission system.


The brain temperature of trout (Salvelinus fontinalis) was altered by perfusion of the gills with warm or cool water. Neuronal activity was recorded with microelectrodes. Twelve neurons responded to an increase in temperature with increased activity, and five neurons responded to a decrease in temperature with an increase in activity.


This study was conducted to evaluate the effect of argan oil with the exposure of low frequency electromagnetic field (EMF) on open wound healing in mice. Eighteen male mice (20-40 g) were divided into three groups: phosphate buffer saline (PBS) as negative control, solcoseryl gel as positive control, and argan oil with the exposure of low frequency EMF, 1.2 mT (treatment group). Full thickness wounds (4 mm diameter) were induced on the shaved dorsal of the mouse. All mice were sacrificed on day 12 after the final treatment. Macroscopic observation, wound contraction rate, histopathology analysis and total protein content were examined in this study. Results showed that wounds treated with argan oil and exposed to low frequency EMF has a significant increase in wound contraction rate (p < 0.05) and total protein content (p < 0.05). Moreover, histopathological analysis on the wound tissues displayed complete re-epithelization with thick and dense collagen fibers in the argan oil with low frequency EMF exposure treated group. In conclusion, topical treatment of argan oil with low frequency EMF exposure yield a better healing progress and showed the ability to accelerate wound healing. DOI :  http://dx.doi.org./10.17576/JSKM-2018-07


Increasingly many wireless sensor network deployments are using harvested environmental energy to extend system lifetime. Because the temporal profiles of such energy sources exhibit great variability due to dynamic weather patterns, an important problem is designing an adaptive duty-cycling mechanism that allows sensor nodes to maintain their power supply at sufficient levels (energy neutral operation) by adapting to changing environmental conditions. Existing techniques to address this problem are minimally adaptive and assume a priori knowledge of the energy profile. While such approaches are reasonable in environments that exhibit low variance, we find that it is highly inefficient in more variable scenarios. We introduce a new technique for solving this problem based on results from adaptive control theory and show that we achieve better performance than previous approaches on a broader class of energy source data sets. Additionally, we include a tunable mechanism for reducing the variance of the node's duty cycle over time, which is an important feature in tasks such as event monitoring. We obtain reductions in variance as great as two-thirds without compromising task performance or ability to maintain energy neutral operation.


In this paper, a low-noise cascaded PLL is proposed where an integer-N digital bang-bang PLL is used to multiply a 50 MHz reference to an 800 MHz clock that is fed to a ΔΣ fractional-N PLL to generate 2.55-to-3 GHz output. In order to minimize the jitter of the 800 MHz clock, a reference injection scheme using dual-pulse ring oscillator is employed. Quantization noise from the delta-sigma modulator is suppressed without any noise cancellation techniques owing to the high operating frequency of the fractional-N PLL. Prototype implemented in 0.13 μm CMOS process achieves the worst-case RMS jitter of 356 fsrms over 100 Hz to 40 MHz integration bandwidth, while consuming 14.2 mW from a 1.2 V supply. The worst-case fractional spur measured over 7 different chips is -53.9 dBc and the reference spur is -84 dBc.


Abstract. The effectiveness of a 1.4 m wide grass hedge in reducing microbial transport following manure application was examined in this study. Beef cattle manure was applied to 0.75 m wide by 4.0 m long plots established on an Aksarben silty clay loam located in southeast Nebraska. Manure was added at rates required to meet none or the 1-, 2-, or 4-year nitrogen requirements for corn. The transport of phages, total coliforms, , and enterococci was measured for three 30 min simulated rainfall events, which were separated by approximately 24 h intervals. The narrow grass hedge reduced total counts of phages, , and enterococci from 10.8 to 9.01 log PFU ha-1, from 12.4 to 11.9 log CFU ha-1, and from 11.8 to 11.2 log CFU ha-1, respectively. For the plots that received manure, no significant differences in transport of phages or enterococci were found among the three manure application rates. Rainfall simulation run significantly affected measurements of phages, total coliforms, and enterococci, with measurements during the three runs varying from 8.91 to 10.5 log PFU ha-1, from 12.7 to 13.3 log CFU ha-1, and from 11.2 to 11.7 log CFU ha-1, respectively. Counts for phages, total coliforms, and enterococci were significantly less for the first than the second and third rainfall simulation runs. All four of the microbial constituents were significantly correlated to dissolved P, particulate P, total P, and total N. A narrow grass hedge placed on the contour significantly reduced microbial transport following variable applications of beef cattle manure. Keywords: Bacteria, Cattle manure, E. coli, Filter strips, Land application, Manure management, Manure runoff, Microbial, Microorganisms, Runoff.


Abstract Objective: This study's objective was to develop and test a smartphone app that supports learning and using coping skills for managing tinnitus. Design: The app's content was based on coping skills that are taught as a part of progressive tinnitus management (PTM). The study involved three phases: (1) develop a prototype app and conduct usability testing; (2) conduct two focus groups to obtain initial feedback from individuals representing potential users; and (3) conduct a field study to evaluate the app, with three successive groups of participants. Study Sample: Participants were adults with bothersome tinnitus. For Phase 2, two focus groups were attended by a total of 17 participants. Phase 3 involved three consecutive rounds of participants: five from the focus groups followed by two rounds with 10 participants each who had not seen the app previously. Results: In both the focus groups and field studies, participants responded favourably to the content. Certain features, however, were deemed too complex. Conclusion: Completion of this project resulted in the development and testing of the delivery of PTM coping skills via a smartphone app. This new approach has the potential to improve access to coping skills for those with bothersome tinnitus.


The tight correlation between the masses of central black holes and their host spheroids in nearby galaxies and active galactic nuclei (AGNs) suggests that black hole growth is closely related to their spheroid formation. Based on our previous work regarding such a joint evolutionary scheme and the consequential black hole-to-bulge mass correlation, we use the X-ray luminosity function of AGN and the cosmological evolution rate, which are from ROSAT X-ray surveys, to estimate the cosmic star formation history associated with the black hole growth. By the basic assumption that the major black hole growth occurs during the luminous AGN phase, the luminosity function of AGNs as a function of redshift traces not only the accretion history of the black holes but also the cosmic star formation history of the spheroids. Although the space density of the especially luminous quasars is very low, we show that the total amount of star formation associated with the massive black hole growth is almost the same as that of Lyman break galaxies detected by the current optical deep surveys. We thus argue that the optical deep surveys may miss about half of the net star formation in our universe. This is probably due in part to significant dust extinction, as well as the small field of view of previous optical surveys, which cannot sample such rare events with relatively short timescale. However, the far-infrared emission from the dust heated by ongoing star formation during the black hole growth could sufficiently account for the observed SCUBA number counts and would be the probable dominating energy source of the SCUBA population.


The gender agenda has featured substantially in creative works from Africa and particularly Kenya. Although film is considered a new form of creative expression in Africa, compared to the west, it has not been excluded in exploring gender issues. While the gender discussion has prominently featured adults, the Kenyan film has gone a step further and explored gender on a different level. Gender has been explored from the point of view of the child and employed the child character as a suitable medium. Kenyan filmmakers by employing the child character on the subject of gender seem to suggest that engendering of any member of the society begins in childhood and progresses into adulthood. This is a unique aspect about the Kenyan film yet has not been critically examined. This paper therefore examines the child character and the exploration of gender in Kenyan films about children to ascertain the significance of the child character in exploring gender issues in society. It focuses on three selected films that extensively explore the engendering of children namely: Subira, Malika and Becoming A Girl. The films mainly focus on the engendering of the girl child by the society and that this happens in childhood. They also employ the girl child as acharacter in exploring the issue of gender. Examination of the child character will be guided by the Sociological theory of film and the Formalist film theory. The structure of the paper is as follows: A background on the gender issue in creative works, theoretical perspectives on gender, analysis of Kenyan children's films on gender and conclusions on the use of the child character in exploring gender.


Due to significantly improved spectral resolution produced by hyperspectral sensors, the band-to-band correlation is generally very high and can be removed without loss of crucial information. Data compression is an effective means to eliminate such redundancy resulting from high interband correlation. In hyperspectral imagery, various information comes from different signal sources, which include man-made targets, natural backgrounds, unknown clutters, interferers, unidentified anomalies, etc. In many applications, whether or not a compression technique is effective is measured by the degree of information loss rather than information recovery. For example, compression of noise or interferers is highly desirable to image analysis and interpretation. In this paper, we present an unsupervised fully constrained least squares (UFCLS) linear spectral mixture analysis (LSMA)-based compression technique for hyperspectral target detection and classification. Unlike most compression techniques, which deal directly with grayscale images, the proposed compression approach generates and encodes the fractional abundance images of targets of interest present in an image scene to achieve data compression. Since the vital information used for image analysis is generally preserved and retained in these fractional abundance images, the loss of information may have little impact on image analysis. On some occasions, it even improves performance analysis. Airborne Visible/InfraRed Imaging Spectrometer (AVIRIS) and Hyperspectral Digital Imagery Collection Experiment (HYDICE) data are used for experiments to evaluate our proposed LSMA-based compression technique used for applications in hyperspectral detection and image classification. The classification results using the original data and the UFCLS-decompressed data are shown to be very close with no visible difference. But a compression ratio for the HYDICE data with water bands removed can achieve as high as 138:1 with peak SNR (PSNR) 33 dB, while a compression ratio of the AVIRIS scene also with water bands removed is 90:1 with PSNR 40 dB.


Energy consumption in the building sector accounts for more than one-third of energy consumption in Austria. Heating energy consumption has been decreasing due to defined heating energy indicators required by subsidy schemes, and since 2009 also by the revised building codes, as required by the EPBD. However, electricity consumption has been rising due to increasing cooling needs, in non-residential buildings as well as in residential buildings. Therefore, emphasis is not only necessary to reduce heating energy use, but also on encouraging sustainable methods of ensuring summer comfort, for example through facilitating integrated design. This brings architects and energy engineers together in the early planning stage to limit overheating in summer by architectural design, passive measures, and solar cooling. To promote this development, the Austrian klima:aktiv building standard has been developed. The standard sets requirements to be met for heating and cooling needs, user comfort, ecological construction materials, and material use. Buildings meeting all the requirements are awarded the klima:aktiv label, and in addition they meet the basic requirements to achieve the even more ambitious building certificate according to TQB (the Austrian national sustainable building certification scheme). The combined step-wise model was chosen to lower the barriers for companies to become familiar with environmentally conscious construction. This contribution provides an overview of the Austrian building sector and the policy instruments applied to decrease energy consumption for heating and cooling. It points out the implications on the construction sector by describing case study buildings with excellent environmental performance.


Background African-Caribbean and black African people living in the UK are reported to have a higher incidence of diagnosed psychosis compared with white British people. It has been argued that this may be a consequence of misdiagnosis. If this is true they might be less likely to show the patterns of structural brain abnormalities reported in white British patients. The aim of this study therefore was to investigate whether there are differences in the prevalence of structural brain abnormalities in white and black first-episode psychosis patients. Method We obtained dual-echo (proton density/T2-weighted) images from a sample of 75 first-episode psychosis patients and 68 healthy controls. We used high resolution magnetic resonance imaging and voxel-based methods of image analysis. Two separate analyses were conducted: (1) 34 white British patients were compared with 33 white British controls; (2) 41 African-Caribbean and black African patients were compared with 35 African-Caribbean and black African controls. Results White British patients and African-Caribbean/black African patients had ventricular enlargement and increased lenticular nucleus volume compared with their respective ethnic controls. The African-Caribbean/black African patients also showed reduced global grey matter and increased lingual gyrus grey-matter volume. The white British patients had no regional or global grey-matter loss compared with their normal ethnic counterparts but showed increased grey matter in the left superior temporal lobe and right parahippocampal gyrus. Conclusions We found no evidence in support of our hypothesis. Indeed, the finding of reduced global grey-matter volume in the African-Caribbean/black African patients but not in the white British patients was contrary to our prediction.


Collision modeling and control are important aspects of simulation of many human and robotic tasks. A scientific inquiry into a foot-ball collision is made in this paper from the perspective of dynamics, control, modeling, and simulation. As an extension of the Hertzian contact model, our generalized compliant collision model with nonlinear elasticity and damping is tested by a human lower limb kicking a soccer ball. The experiment-based elasticity is used to model the energy transfer of the foot-ball collision and overcome some problems caused by impulse impact modeling. The nonlinear damping in proportion to a restitution-related constant eliminates impact discontinuity. A robust sliding mode controller is developed to track the preplanned trajectory against modeling uncertainties and impact disturbances. The collision duration (about 0.014 s), the ball departure velocity (31.83 m/s), the average foot-ball collision force (about 975.5 N), and the ball peak deformation (about 0.079 m) obtained by simulation match the reported results. The observed three phases of the foot-ball collision are confirmed by our simulation, and the ldquofollow-throughrdquo phenomenon in sports is demonstrated.


The worldwide SARS-CoV-2 outbreak poses a serious challenge to human societies and economies. SARS-CoV-2 proteins orchestrate complex pathogenic mechanisms that underlie COVID-19 disease. Thus, understanding how viral polypeptides rewire host protein networks enables better-founded therapeutic research. In complement to existing proteomic studies, in this study we define the first proximal interaction network of SARS-CoV-2 proteins, at the whole proteome level in human cells. Applying a proximity-dependent biotinylation (BioID)-based approach greatly expanded the current knowledge by detecting interactions within poorly soluble compartments, transient, and/or of weak affinity in living cells. Our BioID study was complemented by a stringent filtering and uncovered 2,128 unique cellular targets (1,717 not previously associated with SARS-CoV-1 or 2 proteins) connected to the N- and C-ter BioID-tagged 28 SARS-CoV-2 proteins by a total of 5,415 (5,236 new) proximal interactions. In order to facilitate data exploitation, an innovative interactive 3D web interface was developed to allow customized analysis and exploration of the landscape of interactions (accessible at http://www.sars-cov-2-interactome.org/). Interestingly, 342 membrane proteins including interferon and interleukin pathways factors, were associated with specific viral proteins. We uncovered ORF7a and ORF7b protein proximal partners that could be related to anosmia and ageusia symptoms. Moreover, comparing proximal interactomes in basal and infection-mimicking conditions (poly(I:C) treatment) allowed us to detect novel links with major antiviral response pathway components, such as ORF9b with MAVS and ISG20; N with PKR and TARB2; NSP2 with RIG-I and STAT1; NSP16 with PARP9-DTX3L. Altogether, our study provides an unprecedented comprehensive resource for understanding how SARS-CoV-2 proteins orchestrate host proteome remodeling and innate immune response evasion, which can inform development of targeted therapeutic strategies.


During the 2016 growing season, research was conducted at three locations in the state of Louisiana to evaluate the impact of pre-bloom square loss on cotton lint yield and fiber quality. Two cotton varieties, Phytogen 499 WRF and Phytogen 222 WRF were chosen up which to imitate early season square loss due to tarnished plant bug, Lygus lineolaris (Palisot de Beauvois) and/or cotton fleahopper, Pseudatomoscelis seriatus (Reuter) feeding or unfavorable weather conditions. Thirty plants within each plot were selected and squares were counted. Squares were assigned numbers, and numbers were then randomized using a computerized number generator. To simulate intervals of minimum to maximum fruit loss, just prior to bloom, 0, 20, 40, 60, 80, and 100 percent squares were removed by hand. Throughout the growing season, weekly applications of insecticides were applied to keep plants insect free to avoid unwanted damage. At the end of the season, ten plants, within each plot, were plant mapped and each plot was hand harvested for lint yield and fiber quality analysis. Although there was evidence of potential yield compensation at each location, only the Alexandria and Winnsboro locations demonstrated definitive compensation. The St. Joseph location either did not compensate or had compensation masked by boll rot. The impact of pre-bloom square removal and compensation on fiber quality was minimal across locations. Although pre-bloom square loss had minimal impact on fiber quality, full season varieties appeared to be less affected than short season varieties. Based on this study, our recommendation to the cotton producers of Louisiana is to attempt to retain 80-90 percent of their pre-bloom squares to achieve the greatest possible yield with the least amount of negative impact.


The aim of the present study was to investigate the role of chemokine (C-X-C motif) ligand 8 (CXCL8) in the proliferation, invasiveness and metastasis of colon cancer and its role in the induction of epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) via activation of the phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K)/protein kinase B (Akt)/nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB) pathway. The plasmid vector containing CXCL8 cDNA was transfected into LoVo cells using Lipofectamine 2000 reagent. Real-time PCR and western blot analyses were performed to determine expression of CXCL8. MTT growth inhibition, scratch and Transwell invasion assays were conducted to assess cell proliferation, migration and invasiveness of the CXCL8-transfected LoVo cells. Western blot analyses were conducted to measure the levels of phosphorylation of protein in the PI3K/Akt/NF-κB pathway in the CXCL8-transfected LoVo cells. Expression levels of CXCL8 mRNA and protein were significantly increased in the CXCL8-transfected LoVo cells compared with levels in the control and empty-vector cells (P<0.05). Overexpression of CXCL8 increased proliferation of the LoVo cells and significant differences in cell viability were observed 48 h after transfection (P<0.05) and remained significant at 72 and 96 h. CXCL8-transfected LoVo cells had a significantly higher migration rate and doubled invasion. The CXCL8-transfected LoVo cells exhibited an EMT-like phenotype, compared with control and empty-vector cells, with decreased expression of E-cadherin accompanied by increased expression of N-cadherin, vimentin and α-SMA. Overexpression of CXCL8 activated the PI3K/Akt/NF-κB pathway by promoting the phosphorylation of PI3K, Akt and NF-κB. Subcutaneous tumors were generated by subcutaneous injection of LoVo parental cells or CXCL8-transfected LoVo cells in BALB/c nude mice. The tumor growth was more rapid in the CXCL8-transfected group than that noted in the parental cell group. In conclusion, overexpression of CXCL8 induced cell proliferation, migration and invasion of colon cancer LoVo cells. CXCL8 may act through induction of EMT via the PI3K/AKT/NF-κB signaling axis.


Soybean (Glycine max) was grown at ambient and enhanced carbon dioxide (CO2, + 250 mL L above ambient) with and without the presence of a C3 weed (lambsquarters, Chenopodium album L.) and a C4 weed (redroot pigweed, Amaranthus retrōexus L.), in order to evaluate the impact of rising atmospheric carbon dioxide concentration [CO2] on crop production losses due to weeds. Weeds of a given species were sown at a density of two per metre of row. A signi®cant reduction in soybean seed yield was observed with either weed species relative to the weed-free control at either [CO2]. However, for lambsquarters the reduction in soybean seed yield relative to the weed-free condition increased from 28 to 39% as CO2 increased, with a 65% increase in the average dry weight of lambsquarters at enhanced [CO2]. Conversely, for pigweed, soybean seed yield losses diminished with increasing [CO2] from 45 to 30%, with no change in the average dry weight of pigweed. In a weed-free environment, elevated [CO2] resulted in a signi®cant increase in vegetative dry weight and seed yield at maturity for soybean (33 and 24%, respectively) compared to the ambient CO2 condition. Interestingly, the presence of either weed negated the ability of soybean to respond either vegetatively or reproductively to enhanced [CO2]. Results from this experiment suggest: (i) that rising [CO2] could alter current yield losses associated with competition from weeds; and (ii) that weed control will be crucial in realizing any potential increase in economic yield of agronomic crops such as soybean as atmospheric [CO2] increases.


The propagation of high-frequency gravitational waves can be analyzed using the geometrical optics approximation. In the case of large but finite frequencies, the geometrical optics approximation is no longer accurate and polarization-dependent corrections at first order in wavelength modify the propagation of gravitational waves, via a spin-orbit coupling mechanism. We present a covariant derivation from first principles of effective ray equations describing the propagation of polarized gravitational waves, up to first-order terms in wavelength, on arbitrary spacetime backgrounds. The effective ray equations describe a gravitational spin Hall effect for gravitational waves and are of the same form as those describing the gravitational spin Hall effect of light, derived from Maxwell's equations.


The SST variability observed during the last century both at coastal and ocean locations will be analyzed in terms of upwelling and the thermohaline circulation intensity. Then, the differences in the variability of temperature and heat content between coastal and ocean locations will be analyzed for the upper 700 m from 1975 to 2006 providing information about the vertical structure of temperature changes. As far as we know a similar analysis has never been done before in this area, where only SST patterns had been considered. Changes in the water masses more relevant along the Atlantic continental shelf of the Iberian Peninsula (ENACW and MW) will be also analyzed from seventies on. For this purpose, trends in salinity and temperature corresponding to the ENACW and MW isopycnal will be analyzed to determine the rate of change of ENACW and MW. This analysis will allow knowing the influence of water masses in trends of Atlantic water vertical profiles. The study of ocean warming in this region will continue analyzing the existence of trends in the frequency of extreme hot days over the satellite era (1982-2011). More specifially, the differences between ocean and coastal trends will be analyzed both at seasonal and annual scale. Similar studies will be extended first to the Moroccan sub- region of the Canary Upwelling Ecosystem and then along the Benguela Current System. Both regions characterized by persistent upwelling through the year although with seasonal variations. In the Moroccan sub- region of the Canary Upwelling Ecosystem, regional differences in the SST warming rates between coast and ocean locations at the same latitude will be analyzed in terms of local forcing factors like wind and air temperature and remote forcing factors like atmospheric circulation patterns from 1982 to 2010. Finally, the differences in coastal and ocean SST trends will be studied along the Benguela Current System analyzing the key role played by the persistent coastal upwelling. New research, which will constitute a continuation of the analysis carried out in this manuscript, should be addressed to analyze the differences observed in temperature and salinity trends at coastal and ocean locations in other upwelling regions like the California Current System, Peru, the Somalia coast or the western coast of Australia taking into account remote (atmospheric modes, ocean circulations) and local (wind, upwelling) forcing factors.


UNLABELLED
To explore the expression of interleukin-5(IL-5) and interleukin-10(IL-10) and their relationship in asthma, we measured the cells in bronchial alveolar lavage fluid(BALF) of guinea pigs, and examined the expression of IL-5 mRNA and IL-10 mRNA of bronchial tissue by reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction(RT-PCR) in control group(Group C, n = 10), asthmatic group(Group A, n = 11) and dexamethasone treatment group(Group B, n = 10). The results showed that the eosinophil(EOS) percentage and the expression of IL-5 mRNA were significantly higher in Group A[(48.64 +/- 17.8)%, (106.91 +/- 20.09)% respectively] than that in Group C[(15.10 +/- 11.48)%, (62.60 +/- 13.84)%] and Group B[(28.4 +/- 10.32)%, (75.30 +/- 10.70)%]. In contrast, the IL-10 mRNA expression in Group A[(47.5 +/- 5.3)%] was obviously lower compared with that in Group C[(101.2 +/- 4.2)%] and Group B[(80.1 +/- 8.3)%]. The correlation between the expression level of IL-5 mRNA and percentage of EOS was positive(r = 0.924, P < 0.01), whereas the IL-5 mRNA was negatively correlated with IL-10 mRNA expression(r = -0.731, P < 0.01).

CONCLUSION
IL-5 and EOS might play a role in the pathogenesis of asthma, the inhibition of IL-10 mRNA expression may cause the increase of IL-5 expression in asthma. The beneficial effects of corticosteroid treatment in asthma may partly result from increasing IL-10 mRNA expression and inhibiting IL-5 mRNA expression.


Majority of the industries located in the Mangaluru Coastal region, discharge their waste directly or indirectly into the Arabian Sea through the west flowing rivers of the region and also, due to the addition of municipal and sewage wastes, the surface water quality and soil quality were affected and causing the Physicochemical characteristics to alter. 10 Surface water samples and six soil samples were collected from selected locations of the study area and analyzed for various parameters by adopting standard methods. High values of Hardness, BOD and COD were found in the surface waters near Baikampady industrial area. With respect to soil samples, high values of physico chemical parameters were found for the sample 2 compared to other samples and also most of samples were acidic in nature.


MEMS manufacturing requires accurate positioning and high reproducibility. Lasers can be utilised in accurate post-fabrication adjustment, allowing for manufacturing processes with relatively large tolerances. Laser micro forming (LμF) is a process for the precision adjustment, shaping or correction of distortion in micro-scale metallic components through the application of laser irradiation without the need for permanent dies or tools. The non-contact nature of the process is also useful in accessing specific micro-components within a device which may be highly sensitive to mechanical force. As such it has potential for widespread application in both the manufacturing and microelectronics industry. Presented in this work is a novel technique for thermal LμF involving picosecond duration pulses. A potential application in the micro-adjustment of MEMS scale components is also presented.MEMS manufacturing requires accurate positioning and high reproducibility. Lasers can be utilised in accurate post-fabrication adjustment, allowing for manufacturing processes with relatively large tolerances. Laser micro forming (LμF) is a process for the precision adjustment, shaping or correction of distortion in micro-scale metallic components through the application of laser irradiation without the need for permanent dies or tools. The non-contact nature of the process is also useful in accessing specific micro-components within a device which may be highly sensitive to mechanical force. As such it has potential for widespread application in both the manufacturing and microelectronics industry. Presented in this work is a novel technique for thermal LμF involving picosecond duration pulses. A potential application in the micro-adjustment of MEMS scale components is also presented.


In recent years, many buildings went up in flames one after another. It is thought-provoking. So the fire-proof property should be considered into one of the most important performance of the building thermal insulation materials. As a result, the study on the expanded perlite lightweight porous inorganic material heated up fast although its application still has some problems to be solved. In this paper, we take the expanded perlite as raw material to make thermal insulation board, and then study on the effect of volume weight on the coefficient of thermal conductivity and tensile strength. What is more important, we find that a new binding agent of Na2O-B2O3-SiO2 syetem sol contributes to improving its water resistance.


While automotive radars are widely used in most assisted and autonomous driving systems, only a few works were proposed to tackle the calibration problems of automotive radars with other perception sensors. One of the key calibration challenges of automotive planar radars with other sensors is the missing elevation angle in 3D space. In this paper, extrinsic calibration is accomplished based on the observation that the radar cross section (RCS) measurements have different value distributions across radar's vertical field of view. An approach to accurately and efficiently estimate the time delay between radars and LiDARs based on spatial-temporal relationships of calibration target positions is proposed. In addition, a localization method for calibration target detection and localization in pre-built maps is proposed to tackle insufficient LiDAR measurements on calibration targets. The experimental results show the feasibility and effectiveness of the proposed Radar-LiDAR extrinsic and temporal calibration approaches.