This paper presents a new method for efficient and exact collision-checking of linear motions of 3-D rigid bodies. 3-D rigid bodies have 6-D configuration spaces (three degrees of freedom for position and three for orientation), and constitute an important subclass of motion planning problems. Our method can be used with any collision-checker that is capable of performing linear transformations and distance computations on 3-D geometry. As previous work has shown, computing the distance between the rigid body in some configuration and the workspace obstacles immediately determines the collision-status of surrounding configurations. Using a recursive procedure one can then determine exactly whether an entire motion of the rigid body is collision-free. In this paper, we will show that by performing an optimally selected linear transformation on the workspace, the collision-status of rigid body motions can be determined using significantly fewer (costly) distance computations. Since collision-checking is often the computational bottleneck in sampling-based motion planning, our approach allows for significant performance improvements of algorithms such as PRM and RRT when planning for 3-D rigid bodies. We demonstrate the benefit of our approach when used in combination with RRT to construct a planning tree in an illustrative benchmark motion planning scenario.


Necator americanus Glutathione-S-Transferase-1 (Na-GST-1) plays a role in the digestion of host hemoglobin by adult N. americanus hookworms. Vaccination of laboratory animals with recombinant Na-GST-1 is associated with significant protection from challenge infection. Recombinant Na-GST-1 was expressed in Pichia pastoris and adsorbed to aluminum hydroxide adjuvant (Alhydrogel) according to current Good Manufacturing Practice. Two Phase 1 trials were conducted in 142 healthy adult volunteers in the United States and Brazil, first in hookworm-naïve individuals and then in residents of a N. americanus endemic area in Brazil. Volunteers received one of three doses of recombinant Na-GST-1 (10, 30, or 100 μg) adjuvanted with Alhydrogel, adjuvanted with Alhydrogel and co-administered with an aqueous formulation of Glucopyranosyl Lipid A (GLA-AF), or the hepatitis B vaccine. Vaccinations were administered via intramuscular injection on days 0, 56, and 112. Na-GST-1/Alhydrogel was well tolerated in both hookworm-naïve and hookworm-exposed adults, with the most common adverse events being mild to moderate injection site pain and tenderness, and mild headache and nausea; no vaccine-related severe or serious adverse events were observed. Antigen-specific IgG antibodies were induced in a dose-dependent fashion, with increasing levels observed after each vaccination in both trials. The addition of GLA-AF to Na-GST-1/Alhydrogel did not result in significant increases in specific IgG responses. In both the US and Brazil studies, the predominant IgG subclass induced against Na-GST-1 was IgG1, with lesser amounts of IgG3. Vaccination of both hookworm-naïve and hookworm-exposed adults with recombinant Na-GST-1 was safe, well tolerated, and resulted in significant antigen-specific IgG responses. Based on these results, this vaccine will be advanced into clinical trials in children and eventual efficacy studies. Trial registration ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT01261130 for the Brazil trial and NCT01385189 for the US trial)


The interview was recorded at Beirut, Lebanon
, on March 18, 1998
. The Interviewer was Jean Krasno. Lieutenant-Colonel Aldo Guaccio began his career in 1971 as an army aviation pilot and became the commanding officer of several battalions of tanks and helicopters. In 1995, he was assigned to the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL). In this role he served as the commanding officer of Italair, the Italian squadron working for UNIFIL. After serving in this capacity for one year, Lieutenant-Colonel Guaccio was appointed as a senior UNIFIL representative in Beirut. In this role he represented UNIFIL in Beirut and served as a liaison officer with all United Nations agencies in Beirut, the Lebanese government and the Lebanese army.
Serving as the senior UNIFIL representative in Beirut at the time of this interview, on 18 March 1998, Lieutenant-Colonel Guaccio discussed the operations of UNIFIL. He shared his observations of the Mission's contributions to the Lebanese community, the idea of self-defence and how that related to UNIFIL's peacekeeping, and of UNIFIL's overall success thus far.


We develop a model for nucleation of islands in vapor-liquid-solid nanowires with either vertical or truncated corner facets. Under the assumption of two-dimensional geometry of the growing island, it is shown that the earlier energetic condition for the truncated edge at the growth interface is modified by chemical potential. Therefore, the islands may nucleate at the trijunction during growth even if the truncation is preferred at the no growth conditions on surface energetic grounds. This conclusion may be used as the first step for understanding the peculiar oscillatory behavior of the growth interface and the related crystal phases of III-V nanowires.


Rhodopsin is the best characterized member of the large, pharmaceutically important, family of G-protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs), and serves as a prototype for understanding GPCR activation. In this thesis, we aim at understanding the activation mechanism of rhodopsin. To this aim, we first performed an in-depth analysis of the conformational motions of rhodopsin predicted by two elastic network models, Gaussian Network Model (GNM) and Anisotropic Network Model (ANM). We compared these motions with the extensive amount of experimental data, and developed a model for rhodopsin activation. We tested the model with Meta II fluorescence decay rates measured to characterize the deactivation of rhodopsin mutants. We find that our results correctly predict 93% of the experimentally observed effects in 119 rhodopsin mutants for which the decay rates and misfolding data were measured, including a systematic analysis of Cys->Ser replacements. Next, in order to incorporate atomic details and the effects of membrane and water molecules into our model, we developed a new protocol named ANM-restrained molecular dynamics (MD). In this protocol, we used multiple ANM modes as restraints to guide MD simulations. By using this protocol, we were able to sample biologically relevant, large scale motions of the protein that are otherwise not accessible to the conventional timescales MD simulations. Furthermore, we explored the evolution of the multiple ANM global modes with realistic deformations favored by a detailed atomic force field in the presence of the explicit environment. Remarkably, with this method, we identify a highly hinge site, which does not change with several rounds of applying normal modes as restraints. This hinge site includes residues that are directly affected by the isomerization of retinal, as well as those stabilizing the resulting all-trans conformation of the chromophore. The CP ends of the helices H3, H4, H5, and H6 and the connecting loops are found to enjoy an enhanced mobility facilitated by this hinge site. Several new interactions are observed to contribute to the mechanism of signal propagation from the retinal binding pocket to the G-protein binding sites in the CP domain.


The parametric tests often require that the population distributions be normal or approximately so. Statistical methods that do not require the knowledge of the population distribution or its parameters are called nonparametric tests. In this article, first we review some industrial applications of fuzzy parametric tests. Then we present some new algorithms for fuzzy nonparametric tests, namely a fuzzy sign test and a fuzzy Wilcoxon signed‐ranks test. Later, we further give fuzzy parametric tests, fuzzy nonparametric tests, and their numerical applications, and also provide a comparison study on crisp and fuzzy nonparametric tests. When the data are vague, the result of the fuzzy nonparametric tests may be different from that of the crisp nonparametric tests. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Int J Int Syst 19: 1069–1087, 2004.


[1] The Adriatic Sea is regularly subjected to strong Bora wind events from the northeast during winter. The events have a strong effect on the oceanography in the Adriatic, driving basin-scale gyres that determine the transport of biogeochemical material and extracting large amounts of heat. The Bora is known to have multiple surface wind jets linked to the surrounding orography and have been the focus of many studies, but it has not been possible to describe the detailed spatial structure of these jets by in situ observations. Using high-resolution spaceborne RADARSAT-1 synthetic aperture radar (SAR) images collected during an active Bora period (23 January–16 February 2003), we created a series of high-resolution (300 m) maps of the wind field. The obtained winds show reasonable agreement with several in situ wind observations, with an RMS wind speed error of 3.6 m/s, slightly higher than the 2–3 m/s errors reported in previous studies. These SAR images reveal the spatial structure of the Bora wind in unprecedented detail, showing several new features. In the Senj region of Croatia, several images show rhythmic structure with wavelengths of 2–3 km that may reflect Bora pulsation seen at fixed locations by previous investigators. Along the Italian coast, several images show a wide (20–30 km) band of northwesterly winds that abruptly change to the northeasterly Bora winds further offshore. Meteorological model results suggest that these northwesterly winds are consistent with those of a barrier jet forming along the Italian Apennine mountain chain.


Preserved specimens in natural science collections have lifespans of many decades and often, several hundreds of years. Specimens must be unambiguously identifiable and traceable in the face of changes in physical location, changes in organisation of the collection to which they belong, and changes in classification. When digitizing museum collections, a clear link must be maintained between the physical specimen itself and the information digitally representing that specimen in cyberspace. The idea of a Natural Science Identifier (NSId) as a neutral, unique, universal and stable long-term persistent identifier (PID) of a 'Digital Specimen' is central to museums' ambitions for widening access. An NSId allows easy identification and referencing of specific Digital Specimens, regardless of type, location, owner or user. It provides a digital doorway to physical specimens through which services for arranging loans and visits can be accessed, as well as opening the door to innovative services for manipulating specimens' information directly; for work reliant upon discovery of related third-party information; and for demanding 3D modelling and visualization of specimens. Because the work takes place within e-Infrastructures/Cyberspace, new possibilities for analysing hundreds of thousands of specimens simultaneously are opened by exploiting large-scale cloud computing capacity and deep mining/machine learning, for example.
 There are several established identifier mechanisms that could be used as a basis for NSId, but some variant of Handles is most appropriate over the very long-term because of their neutrality, resistance to change and sustainability. Adopted uses of the Handle system include identification of journal articles and datasets in education and research (using Digital Object Identifiers); film and television programme assets in the entertainment sector; financial derivatives; and for international shipping and construction.
 Aside from being stable and sustained over time, an essential requirement of a global PID mechanism is independence from the museums/institutions assigning identifiers. NSIds are opaque insofar as no information can or should be inferred solely by inspecting the identifier. Stakeholders change, collections move, and organisations evolve, merge or disappear. Even designations and descriptions of specimens and collections can change. Information should only be revealed when the identifier is resolved via a neutral index.
 One can debate the most appropriate instantiation of the Handle system but this is not useful. Relevance, ease of use and added-value of the supporting 'NSId Registry' (NSIdR) – the index of the different kinds of natural science object and their relations – are the decisive factors. This can be seen from the example of the Entertainment Identifier Registry (EIDR) founded by the major motion picture studios to create a reliable way to identify and track film and TV content distribution. Focus on the object model, promotional branding and value perception in the target user segment are the critical factors for success. Providing such a registry, seamlessly coupled to work practices and language of the professionals addresses the last mile challenge (Koureas et al. 2016).
 From specimens, class characteristics, storage containers and collections, to specific identifications, images, naming, literature references and more, the NSIdR's triple-hierarchy object model, rooted in OBO Foundry's Biological Collections Ontology, is the key to persistently identifying, relating and indexing the entire range of collection objects of interest to scientists and others working in the bio and geo realms. The NSIdR 'knowledge graph', interoperable with other identifier schemes, supports novel first- and third-party value-add services such as arranging loans and visits, curation and annotation, and machine-learning for relationship discovery and pattern exploration.


Flat-Coated Retriever dogs are predisposed to the development of histiocytic sarcoma (HS), a poorly differentiated, highly malignant neoplasm. The authors have previously documented a significant lymphocytic infiltrate in such tumors. The objective of this study was to examine the presence and expression of regulatory T cells in HS tumor samples. Forty tumors were included in this study. All tumors were immunolabeled for CD3, CD79a, CD25, CD45RA, and FOXP3. The proportion of positive cells was compared between tumors presenting as a localized primary soft tissue mass (soft tissue origin HS) and disseminated HS affecting viscera, especially the spleen (splenic origin HS). By immunohistochemistry, 95% of infiltrating T cells were positive for Foxp3 in all sections, suggesting the presence of regulatory T cells. The proportion of cells positive for FOXP3 was higher in the tumors arising in soft tissues, whereas the proportion of CD45RA-positive cells was higher in the splenic origin HS. Canine HS has an aggressive clinical behavior and is uniformly fatal. The difference in the proportion of tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes positive for these 2 markers in the 2 locations may represent differences in tumor microenvironment between the 2 sites.


BACKGROUND
Recruitment bias is possible in population studies of semen quality because few men volunteer. We examine differences between Australian couples with natural conceptions who agreed or declined to participate in such a study.

METHODS
Women pregnant between 16 and 32 weeks gestation participating in a retrospective time to pregnancy (TTP) study were each requested to recruit their eligible (on the basis of age, place of his birth and of his mother's birth) male partner to complete additional questionnaires, have a physical examination and provide blood and two semen samples.

RESULTS
From 2061 women who completed the TTP questionnaire (response rate, 98%) there were 928 eligible male partners of whom 225 (24%) were responders. There were significant socio-demographic and self-reported exposure differences between responders and non-responders in particular, female professional occupation, knowledge of the fertile phase, pelvic inflammatory disease, non-smoker at time of conception and wine consumption per week were more frequent in the responders. There was no evidence of a bias for the subfertile being more likely to volunteer for the study. Mean TTP for planned pregnancies for responders and non-responders were 3.3 and 3.8 cycles (P = 0.319), respectively, and the cycle specific pregnancy rates were not significantly different after covariate adjustment by Cox regression.

CONCLUSIONS
The present study confirms that participation rates are low in studies of semen quality. Although the expected higher participation of subfertile couples was not confirmed, there remains considerable potential for bias and other problems that could invalidate this type of study.


A variety of energy resources has been identified as being flexible in their electric energy consumption or generation. This energetic flexibility can be used for various purposes such as minimizing energy procurement costs or providing ancillary services to power grids. To fully leverage the flexibility available from distributed small-scale resources, their flexibility must be quantified and aggregated. This paper introduces a generic and scalable approach for flexible energy systems to quantitatively describe and price their flexibility based on zonotopic sets. The description allows aggregators to efficiently aggregate the flexibility of large numbers of systems and to make control and market decisions on the aggregate level. In addition, an algorithm is presented that distributes aggregate-level control decisions among the individual systems of the population in an economically fair and computationally efficient way. The algorithm is applied to the problem of disaggregating reference schedules resulting from day-ahead energy markets.


Ionic liquids have attracted wide attention
lately and their potential applications in different
areas have been explored. Most of the current
researches on ionic liquids are concentrated on
investigating what can be done by ionic liquids and
why they work the way they do. The latter provide the
insight into the molecular factors that determine their
properties ranging from quantitative thermodynamic
and physical data and qualitative tends that guide in
searching the best ionic liquids for particular
purpose.
Many of the applications rely upon the
interaction of ionic liquids with other components.
Ionic liquids exhibit nanoscale phase segregation into
polar and nonpolar- regions. The nanoscale selforganisation
is the result of interplay between
Coulomb and van der Waals interactions which leads
to the formation of high charge density permeated
non-polar regions. This characteristic determines how
different molecular solutes interact with certain
domain of the ionic liquids and distinct local
environment. However, the complexities of the nature
and size of cation-anion interactions and
intermolecular forces in liquids phase give rise to
controversies. This review discusses the current
development in understanding molecular structure,
cation- anion interaction, intermolecular forces and
their effects of solvation. This work is mainly
concentrated on imidazolium based ionic liquids.
Keywords: Solute–Solvent Interaction, Imidazolium based
Ionic Liqui


Author(s): Kofoed, Eric Matthew | Advisor(s): Vance, Russell E | Abstract: The innate immune system of mammals encodes several families of immune detector proteins that monitor the cytosol for signs of pathogen invasion. One important but poorly understood family of cytosolic immunosurveillance proteins is the NLR (nucleotide binding domain, leucine-rich repeat containing) proteins. Work presented here demonstrates that one subfamily of NLRs, the NAIPs (NLR family, Apoptosis Inhibitory Proteins), are activated by specific interaction with bacterial ligands, such as flagellin. NAIP activation leads to assembly of a large multiprotein complex called the inflammasome, which initiates innate immune responses by activation of the Caspase-1 protease. NAIPs therefore appear to detect pathogen molecules via a simple and direct receptor-ligand mechanism. Interestingly, other NLR family members appear to detect pathogens indirectly, perhaps by responding to host cell `stress' caused by the pathogen. Thus, the NLR family may have evolved surprisingly diverse mechanisms for detecting pathogens. Susceptibility to the intracellular bacterial pathogen Legionella pneumophila was mapped to a discrete genetic locus in the mouse containing multiple tandem gene paralogues constituting the NAIP gene array over ten years ago, but functional understanding of the NAIP array, and in particular whether different genes in the array perform diverse or redundant functions in host defense remains enigmatic. Here we show that NAIP proteins monitor the cytoplasm of host innate immune cells for the presence of bacterial flagellin, and the inner-rod proteins of bacterial type III secretion systems. Specific interaction of NAIP5 and NAIP6 with bacterial flagellin, and NAIP2 with inner-rod proteins (from a variety of pathogenic bacteria) promotes inflammasome assembly and activation. The `orphan' receptor NAIP1 appears to detect a narrow subset of inner-rod proteins, but the structural basis for this selectivity and its functional importance are unknown. Finally, we have mapped the ligand-specificity determining region of the NAIPs to a ~200 amino acid region of the LRR domain that spans seven structural repeats that exhibit a high degree of polymorphism among the NAIP paralogues. Whether the region is sufficient for binding specific ligands is an open question. We have used structural modeling and polymorphism mapping of the NAIP LRR domains to identify putative ligand-binding residues that may be under selective pressure from bacterial pathogens. Thus, the NAIP gene array has evolved to recognize functionally constrained molecules of pathogenic bacteria, and represents an exquisite mechanism of host defense.


The occurrence of Phytophthora species in Alnus glutinosa stands in the Karacabey and Igneada floodplain forests was investigated. Twenty‐seven soil samples taken from the rhizosphere of declining trees (without bark symptoms) were baited for Phytophthora. In total, 311 Phytophthora isolates were obtained following culturing on selective medium. On the basis of the morphological characteristics and the ITS sequences of the rDNA, Phytophthora plurivora accounted for 83% of the rhizosphere isolates. In addition to P. plurivora, P. gonapodyides (9%), P. chlamydospora (3.8%), P. lacustris (2.5%) and P. aff. cactorum (2%) were isolated from the surveyed areas. No P. × alni was detected in the present work. This paper is the first to report the isolation of P. plurivora and P. aff. cactorum from the rhizosphere of Alnus species in Turkey.


We report the results of a theoretical study of AlnNn, GanNn, and InnNn (with n = 4, 5, 6) clusters, focusing on their structural properties, stability, and electronic structure. For AlnNn clusters, the metal-nitrogen bond is found to dominate the lowest energy configurations, with a transition from planar to bulklike three-dimensional structures, as the cluster size increases from Al4N4 to Al6N6. However, for GanNn and InnNn clusters, the lowest energy configurations are mostly planar, and they are dominated either by N3- or N2 subunits. It strongly suggests that N-segregation may occur during quantum dot or thin film deposition processes, due to the low atomic coordination and abundance of dangling bonds.


ABSTRACT: A study of two watersheds in Central Pennsylvania, an undisturbed, forested (reference) one and a partially disturbed (agricultural and residential) one, was used to analyze how agriculture and residential development of the riparian corridor affected species richness, abundance, and the structure of guilds of the bird community. Bird species richness and abundance generally decreased with distance from the stream in the disturbed ivatershed, but remained relatively constant through the reference watershed. At disturbed sites most neotropical migrant birds with specific habitat requirements were recorded only during migration. Although an impoverished bird community can exist in the vicinity of the riparian bank immediately adjacent to the water with 25 m (82 ft) in width on each bank is present. Presence of narrow 2 m (7 ft) bands of woody vegetation along the stream channel and fence rows seemed to be important in maintaining portions of the bird community in disturbed areas. Land owners and resource managers should be aware of responses by the avian community to small, incremental changes in land use, and try to protect existing stream corridors or restore native vegetation in riparian areas.


a significant proportion of the human population suffers from some form of skin disorder, whether it be from burn injury or inherited skin anomalies. the ideal treatment for skin disorders would be to regrow skin tissue from stem cells residing in the individual patient's skin. locating these adult stem cells and elucidating the molecules involved in orchestrating the production of new skin cells are important steps in devising more-efficient methods of skin production and wound healing via the ex vivo expansion of patient keratinocytes in culture. this review focuses on the structure of the skin, the identification of skin stem cells, and the role of notch, wnt and hedgehog signalling cascades in regulating the fate of epidermal stem cells.


The Elikah River section spanning the Lopingian (Late Permian) to the Griesbachian (Early Triassic) time interval in the Central Alborz Mountains (north Iran) was sampled for ostracod analysis. We report 79 species distributed among 38 genera. Four new species are described: Acratia? pervagata Forel sp. nov., Microcheilinella alborzella Forel sp. nov., Basslerella superarella Crasquin sp. nov. and Cavellina nesenensis Crasquin sp. nov. The ontogeny of 13 species is described and sexual dimorphism in the genus Microcheilinella is here undoubtedly recognized for the first time. Six species show precocious sexual dimorphism of their carapace as early as A‐5 juvenile. The Lilliput effect is for the first time recorded and quantified for two species. Rare long‐time span Palaeocopida species, known throughout the entire Permian, document relatively long‐term evolution, including the size and growth rate modifications associated with the earlier appearance of carapace sexual dimorphism through time. These patterns might be related to the Guadalupian–Lopingian events and/or to climatic modifications occurring during the Permian interval.


New Mg-based glass-forming compositions have been designed based upon the convergence of two existing predictive models; (1) a liquidus model developed by Cheney and Vecchio, and (2) an elastic strain model proposed by Miracle and Senkov. According to these models, alloys compositionally located near a deep eutectic, while simultaneously containing a topology that induces significant elastic strain in a developing crystalline lattice, exhibit experimentally good glass-forming ability. In light of this, the Mg-Cu-Y (MCY), Mg-Cu-Zn (MCZ) and Mg-Zn-Sm (MZS) systems were investigated as it appeared that these systems have optimised values for both liquidus profiles and elastic strains across broad compositional ranges. Three additional mathematical criteria used to evaluate other factors thought to influence glass-forming ability including concentration dependence, reduced melting temperature, and the electronegativity difference for these systems have also been examined.


The COVID‐19 pandemic has had an enormous impact on almost all aspects of human society and endeavor; the natural world and its conservation have not been spared. Through a process of expert consultation, we identified and categorized, into 19 themes and 70 subthemes, the ways in which biodiversity and its conservation have been or could be affected by the pandemic globally. Nearly 60% of the effects have been broadly negative. Subsequently, we created a compendium of all themes and subthemes, each with explanatory text, and in August 2020 a diverse group of experienced conservationists with expertise from across sectors and geographies assessed each subtheme for its likely impact on biodiversity conservation globally. The 9 subthemes ranked highest all have a negative impact. These were, in rank order, governments sidelining the environment during their economic recovery, reduced wildlife‐based tourism income, increased habitat destruction, reduced government funding, increased plastic and other solid waste pollution, weakening of nature‐friendly regulations and their enforcement, increased illegal harvest of wild animals, reduced philanthropy, and threats to survival of conservation organizations. In combination, these impacts present a worrying future of increased threats to biodiversity conservation but reduced capacity to counter them. The highest ranking positive impact, at 10, was the beneficial impact of wildlife‐trade restrictions. More optimistically, among impacts ranked 11‐20, 6 were positive and 4 were negative. We hope our assessment will draw attention to the impacts of the pandemic and, thus, improve the conservation community's ability to respond to such threats in the future.


Breast cancer is considered to be the most frequently diagnosed malignancy in women worldwide. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) play key roles in the regulation of tumor properties based on their capacity to regulate the expression of tumor-related genes. However, the involvement of miR-196b-5p in breast cancer development is largely unknown. Here, we showed that the expression levels of miR-196b-5p were significantly down-regulated in breast cancer samples and cell lines compared to the matched normal tissues and breast epithelial cell line, respectively. Notably, the expression of miR-196b-5p was negatively associated with lymph node metastasis and the progression of clinical stage in patients with breast cancer. MiR-196b-5p over-expression significantly inhibited the proliferation and migration of MDA-MB-231 and MDA-MB-468 cells in breast cancer. Furthermore, combining bioinformatics prediction and biochemical analyses, we showed that COL1A1 (collagen type I alpha 1 chain) was a direct downstream target gene of miR-196b-5p. Furthermore, overexpression of COL1A1 partly abrogated miR-196b-5p-mediated inhibition of proliferation and migration in MDA-MB-231 and MDA-MB-468 cells. Our data collectively indicate that miR-196b5p inhibits cell growth and metastasis in breast cancer through down-regulating COL1A1, supporting the targeting of the new miR-196b-5p/COL1A1 axis as a promising effective therapeutic approach for breast cancer.


: Two patients with the syndrome of inappropriate secretion of antidiuretic hormone were studied in a metabolic ward during treatment with 1.2 g demeclocycline daily. In both patients, demeclocycline treatment led to increased renal water excretion with consequent correction of hyponatremia and hypo-osmolality. Three episodes of reversible deterioration in glomerular filtration rate developed in these patients. Each episode was accompanied by clinical evidence of extracellular fluid volume contraction, and on each occasion there was an inappropriate natriuresis with daily urinary sodium excretion remaining above 50 mEq. Although demeclocycline effectively reverses the electrolyte abnormalities of this syndrome, the potentially dangerous side effects that may develop exclude the routine usage of the drug.


Positive education, or teaching the skills of well-being through direct instruction and the curriculum, aims to teach children the skills to build resilience, capitalize on strengths and systematically build the pillars for a flourishing life. Positive education can succeed amidst a supportive school environment and well-equipped teachers that inculcate the right values and character. Given that school-going children spend more than fifty percent of their time in school, it is thus imperative that teachers be trained with the skills of well-being. This paper provides an introduction to positive psychology (the foundation for positive education), describes the need for positive education in Singapore schools and proposes a workshop to equip secondary/high-school teachers with the skills and knowledge of resilience, character strengths and a flourishing life – the elements of which are summarized as PERMA (positive emotions, engagement, relationships, meaning & achievement) (Seligman, 2011).


Purpose: Children and families with a foreign background and limited Swedish proficiency have to communicate through interpreters in childhood cancer care centers in Sweden. Interpreter-mediated events deal with many difficulties that potentially hinder the transfer of information. The purpose of our study was to explore interpreters' experiences of interpreting between health care staff and limited Swedish proficiency patients/families in childhood cancer care. Design: Using purposive samples, we interviewed 11 interpreters individually. The interviews were analyzed using qualitative content analysis. Findings: Analyses of the data resulted in the main theme of creating a meeting point of understanding, constructed from 3 subthemes: balancing between cultures, bridging the gaps of knowledge, and balancing between compassion and professionalism. Discussion: Our result shows that in order to create a sustainable meeting point of understanding, it is necessary to explain both the context and cultural differences. These results suggest that the responsibility for information transfer lies with both the health care profession and the interpreters. Tools have to be developed for both parties to contribute to creating the meeting point of understanding.


We survey results and techniques in the topological study of simplicial complexes of (di-, multi-, hyper-)graphs whose node degrees are bounded from above. These complexes have arisen is a variety of contexts in the literature. The most wellknown examples are the matching complex and the chessboard complex. The topics covered here include computation of Betti numbers, representations of the symmetric group on rational homology, torsion in integral homology, homotopy properties, and connections with other fields.


There are variety of surgical methods in treating trigeminal neuralgia. They can all be devided in two large groups: less invasive procedures and decopmressive procedures in the region of pontocerebelar angle. Peripheral neurectomy, exeresis or avulsion of peripheral branches of trigeminal nerv are methods for elderly patients with serious cardiopulmonal disturbances. We performed avulsion of peripheral branches at 58 patients, all older than 60 years. In 32 patients we did avulsion of only one of three branches of trigeminal nerv, while in 26 patients the combined avulsion of two branches was performed. There were no postoperative complications.


In this paper, we present a new method for the control of soft robots with elastic behavior, piloted by several actuators. The central contribution of this work is the use of the Finite Element Method (FEM), computed in real-time, in the control algorithm. The FEM based simulation computes the nonlinear deformations of the robots at interactive rates. The model is completed by Lagrange multipliers at the actuation zones and at the end-effector position. A reduced compliance matrix is built in order to deal with the necessary inversion of the model. Then, an iterative algorithm uses this compliance matrix to find the contribution of the actuators (force and/or position) that will deform the structure so that the terminal end of the robot follows a given position. Additional constraints, like rigid or deformable obstacles, or the internal characteristics of the actuators are integrated in the control algorithm. We illustrate our method using simulated examples of both serial and parallel structures and we validate it on a real 3D soft robot made of silicone.


2 Abstract: This Paper focus on the well-organized routing of data in the middle of dissimilar areas in delay tolerant networks (DTN).In the current algorithm selects widely held places that nodes visit repeatedly as landmarks and splits the complete DTN area into subareas signified by landmarks. The number of node transfers between two landmarks is computed to represent the forwarding capability between them, relyupon which routing tables are created on each and every landmark to route the packet routing. However, there is more number of landmarks for a single path, throughput depends upon the traffic, the only static path is available, and no mobility nodes can be used. To overcome this problem, we suggest an Ad-hoc On Demand Distance Vector (AODV) routing technique in DTN flow algorithm to enhance node to node communication and for effective throughput is proposed. This technique can be used on all mobility nodes and efficient throughput can be obtained by the utilization of all nodes. The number of landmarks and the total cost is limited. Overall performance will be multiplied by increasing the N range of dynamic methods.


NPM-ALK chimeric transcripts, encoded by the t(2;5), lead to an aberrant expression of ALK by CD30+ systemic lymphomas. To determine if t(2;5) is involved in cutaneous lymphoproliferative disorders, we studied 37 CD30+ cutaneous lymphoproliferations, 27 mycosis fungoides (MF), and 16 benign inflammatory disorders (BID). NPM-ALK transcripts were detected by nested reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) in 1 of 11 lymphomatoid papulosis (LyP), 7 of 15 CD30+ primary cutaneous T-cell lymphoma (CTCL), 3 of 11 CD30+ secondary cutaneous lymphoma, 6 of 27 MF, and 1 of 16 BID. However, the expression of NPM-ALK transcripts was not associated with ALK1 immunoreactivity in MF, LyP, or BID cases. Only 1 CD30+ primary CTCL and 3 CD30+ secondary cutaneous lymphoma were ALK1 immunoreactive. The ALK1+ cases were also characterized by amplification of tumor-specific genomic breakpoints on derivative chromosome 5. These cases, except for 1 secondary cutaneous lymphoma, were also characterized by reciprocal breakpoints on derivative chromosome 2, leading to the expression of reciprocal ALK-NPM transcripts. Amplification of chromosomal breakpoints on both derivative chromosomes could represent an alternative to conventional cytogenetics for the diagnosis of t(2;5) and seems to be more reliable than the detection of cryptic NPM-ALK transcripts by nested RT-PCR.


One of the main problems in machine learning is the investigation of the relationships between features in different datasets. In this case, using different classifiers can be more appropriate for different regions. Many efforts have been spent in looking for the best classifier and in fine tuning of the parameters. This requires knowledge of the domain and good expertise in fine tuning of the various classifiers. We propose a technique of voting with neural networks that does not require knowledge of the domain and avoids for a specific research of hyper-parameters values, because neural networks topology and the hyperparameters are generated at random from a uniform distribution. The output of each neural network can be considered as a ranking over the probabilities that each sample belongs to a class, so the output of each neural network is a preference over the classes. We aggregate these preferences via different voting rules and we provide an empirical evaluation of the approach.


One of the most fundamental questions in the control of gene expression in mammals is how the patterns of epigenetic modifications of DNA are generated, recognized, and erased. This includes covalent cytosine methylation of DNA and its associated oxidation states. An array of AdoMet-dependent methyltransferases, Fe(II)- and α-ketoglutarate-dependent dioxygenases, base excision glycosylases, and sequence-specific transcription factors is responsible for changing, maintaining, and interpreting the modification status of specific regions of chromatin. This review focuses on recent developments in characterizing the functional and structural links between the modification status of two DNA bases 5-methylcytosine and thymine (5-methyluracil).


While the history of nutrition support dates to the ancient world, modern home parenteral and enteral nutrition (HPEN) has been available since the 1960s. Home enteral nutrition is primarily for patients in whom there is a reduction in oral intake below the amount needed to maintain nutrition or hydration (i.e., oral failure), whereas home parenteral nutrition is used for patients when oral-enteral nutrition is temporarily or permanently impossible or absorption insufficient to maintain nutrition or hydration (i.e., intestinal failure). The development of home delivery of these therapies has revolutionized the field of clinical nutrition. The use of HPEN appears to be increasing on a global scale, and because of this, it is important for healthcare providers to understand all that HPEN entails to provide safe, efficacious, and cost-effective support to the HPEN patient. In this article, we provide a comprehensive review of the indications, patient requirements, monitoring, complications, and overall process of managing these therapies at home. Whereas some of the information in this article may be applicable to the pediatric patient, the focus is on the adult population.


Abstract. In the last decade, ground-based interferometry has proven to be a powerful technique for continuous deformation monitoring of landslides, glaciers, volcanoes, or manmade structures, among others. However, several limitations need to be addressed in order to improve the performances of the technique, especially for long-term monitoring. These limitations include the reduction of measurable points with an increase in the period of observation, the ambiguous nature of the phase measurements, and the influence of the atmospheric phase component. In this paper, a new procedure to process the amplitude component of ground-based synthetic aperture radar (GB-SAR) data acquired in discontinuous mode is compared and validated. The use of geometric features of the amplitude images combined with a matching technique will allow the estimation of the displacements over specific targets. Experimental results obtained during 19 months, in eight different campaigns carried out in the active landslide of Vallcebre (eastern Pyrenees, Spain), were analysed. During the observed period, from February 2010 to September 2011, displacements up to 80 cm were measured. The comparison with other surveying technique shows that the precision of the method is below 1 cm.


The microbiological transformation of flavanone and isoflavanone was explored using a group of 80 microorganisms in the initial screening. Ten metabolites of flavanone were isolated and identified as 4'-hydroxyflavanone [3], 3',4'-dihydroxyflavanone [4], 3-hydroxyflavone [2], flavone [5], 2'-hydroxydihydrochalcone [7], 2',4-dihydroxydihydrochalcone [6], 2',3,4-trihydroxydihydrochalcone [8], 2',5'-dihydroxydihydrochalcone [9], 4'-hydroxyflavan-4 alpha-ol [11], and 2'-hydroxydibenzoylmethane [10]. The isoflavanone metabolites were identified as isoflavone [15], 2-hydroxyisoflavanone [16], 4'-hydroxyisoflavanone [13], 6,4'-dihydroxyisoflavanone [17], and 3',4'-dihydroxyisoflavone [14]. The structures of the metabolites were established using spectroscopic techniques including ir, ms, uv, 1H-nmr, and 13C-nmr spectroscopy. Production of 4'-hydroxyflavanone, 3',4'-dihydroxyflavanone, and 2',4-dihydroxydihydrochalcone by 13 microorganisms was assayed using reversed-phase hplc.


Hypertension has been suggested to exert pro-inflammatory actions through increased expression of several mediators, including chemokines. Chemokines are involved in inflammatory and autoimmune disorders, and in the formation of atherosclerotic lesions through promotion of inflammatory cell migration. The aim of this study is to evaluate the influence of high blood pressure on circulating levels of the prototype chemokines C-X-C motif ligand (CXCL)10 and C-C motif ligand (CCL)2 in 140 patients with essential hypertension not affected by thyroid disorders or overt autoimmune or inflammatory diseases, and 140 gender- and age-matched healthy controls. Mean CXCL10 and CCL2 levels were significantly higher in hypertensive patients than in controls. Among hypertensive patients, chemokines levels were higher in those with systo-diastolic hypertension compared to those with isolated systolic hypertension. In a multiple linear regression model using CXCL10 or CCL2 as dependent variables and age, body mass index, glycemia, serum creatinine, high-density-lipoprotein (HDL) and low-density-lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol, triglycerides, and systolic or diastolic blood pressure values as covariates, only systolic or diastolic blood pressure values were significantly related to CXCL10 or CCL2 levels. In conclusion, this study demonstrates increased circulating levels of the prototype chemokines CXCL10 and CCL2 in patients with hypertension.


BACKGROUND
The benefits of plasma as an adjunct to the treatment of haemorrhagic shock are well established; however, the mechanism by which plasma modulates the endotheliopathy of trauma remains unclear. Our recent data demonstrated a novel role of microRNA-19b in post-haemorrhagic shock endothelial dysfunction via targeting of syndecan-1. Additionally, fibrinogen, as a key component of plasma or an isolated haemostatic protein, protects the endothelium by stabilizing syndecan-1. We therefore hypothesized that fibrinogen would inhibit microRNA-19b to mitigate the endotheliopathy of trauma in a murine model of haemorrhagic shock.

MATERIALS AND METHODS
C57BL/6J mice were subjected to haemorrhagic shock (mean arterial pressure 35±5 mmHg for 90 minutes) followed by resuscitation with lactated Ringer's, fresh frozen plasma, fibrinogen or no resuscitation. MicroRNA-19b and syndecan-1 mRNA were measured in lung tissue by qRT-PCR. Lungs were stained for histopathologic injury, and broncheoalveolar lavage was collected for protein as a permeability indicator.

RESULTS
Pulmonary microRNA-19b was increased after haemorrhagic shock and lactated Ringers, but reduced to sham levels by plasma and fibrinogen. Conversely, pulmonary syndecan-1 mRNA was downregulated by haemorrhagic shock and lactated Ringers, but returned to sham levels by plasma and fibrinogen. Plasma and fibrinogen-based resuscitation reduced lung injury compared to haemorrhagic shock and lactated Ringers while fibrinogen also reduced broncheoalveolar lavage protein.

DISCUSSION
We have demonstrated a novel mechanism by which fibrinogen, a key component of plasma and haemostatic agent, inhibits miR-19b, possibly by mitigating the endotheliopathy of trauma. Complete demonstration of the mechanism of fibrinogen inhibition of endotheliopathy via microRNA, however, remains to be elucidated. These findings support the early and empiric use of fibrinogen in post-haemorrhagic shock resuscitation.


A critical task in microbiome data analysis is to explore the association between a scalar response of interest and a large number of microbial taxa that are summarized as compositional data at different taxonomic levels. Motivated by fine-mapping of the microbiome, we propose a two-step compositional knockoff filter (CKF) to provide the effective finite-sample false discovery rate (FDR) control in high-dimensional linear log-contrast regression analysis of microbiome compositional data. In the first step, we employ the compositional screening procedure to remove insignificant microbial taxa while retaining the essential sum-to-zero constraint. In the second step, we extend the knockoff filter to identify the significant microbial taxa in the constrained sparse regression model for compositional data. Thereby, a subset of the microbes is selected from the high-dimensional microbial taxa as related to the response under a pre-specified FDR threshold. We study the asymptotic properties of the proposed two-step procedure including both sure screening and effective false discovery control. We demonstrate the finite-sample properties in simulation studies, which show the gain in the empirical power while controlling the nominal FDR. We also illustrate the usefulness of the proposed method with application to an inflammatory bowel disease dataset to identify microbial taxa that influence host gene expressions.


Due to the rapid development in electronics and radio communication systems, modern technologies are implemented to improve the safety and security of workplaces in order to save field service engineers lives and their health. In this thesis, an automated safety suit was implemented with integrated sensors for monitoring the safety of field service engineers. The basic idea of the prototype is to ensure safety for the field service engineers who are working in adverse environmental conditions. This safety suit includes embedded devices which can communicate with mobile devices and by means of that provides aid for the people working in several fields such as confined spaces, high altitudes etc.In this prototype, a different type of sensors are proposed for monitoring environmental and health conditions like temperature, CO gas levels, relative humidity, body temperature and heartbeat. A mobile application is proposed to monitor and control the automated safety suit, which also identifies the environmental changes and provide prompt alerts to the user. Keeping the usage of automated safety suit in mind, the system is designed in a user friendly manner and all the key elements are considered and implemented accordingly for the requirements of service engineers who are working in confined spaces and hazardous places.


Provider-initiated, 'routine' HIV testing of pregnant women seeking antenatal care-- wherein women are tested unless they explicitly refuse-- is promoted by international organizations as an effort to curb mother-to-child transmission. Utilizing qualitative data from Malawi, we offer an account of the perceptions that surround-- and surely impact-- a pregnant woman's decision to take an HIV test. We argue that idealized social relations, characterized by equality, rationality, and non-coercion between clients and providers, are presumed to be disseminated with routine testing programs. We find, however, that these stylized relations do not fit neatly in Malawi, and consequently, may lead to paradoxical outcomes for public health. We show that rural Malawians do not perceive HIV testing as a choice, but rather as compulsory and the only way by which to receive antenatal care. This study illustrates considerable dissonance between global expectations and local realities of the delivery of routine testing programs.


This thesis is devoted to spectroscopic studies of molecular hydrogen adsorbed on metal surfaces. Hydrogen is the simplest molecule available and is a very valuable model adsorbate. From a spectroscopic point of view there are also three easily accessible molecular isotopes, H2, HD and D2, with widely different masses. Hydrogen adsorption proceeds along radically different routes on surfaces of noble metals, like copper, and transition metals, like nickel and palladium. A room-temperature gas will only interact weakly with a copper surface and physisorb at a low surface temperature. The attractive interaction is due to van der Waals forces, which bind the molecule to the surface. These forces also polarize the molecule and the vibrational motion in the physisorption potential well becomes dipole active as is demonstrated by electron energy-loss measurements for the H2-Cu(100) system. A good quantitative estimate of the strongly nonlinear dipole moment function can be obtained from a van der Waals model. Photons can also induce transitions among the well states and direct infrared photodesorption becomes feasible. On the stepped Cu(510) surface, the hydrogen molecules are more strongly bound but also exhibit larger dipole activity resulting in a substantial photodesorption rate. This desorption, which is induced by background blackbody radiation, occurs via a direct transition from the vibrational groundstate to continuum translational states. On Cu(100), physisorbed H2 displays rotational excitations weakly perturbed by the orientational dependence of the molecule-surface interaction. The crossection for electron impact excitation of the rotation is close to the gas phase value. In general hydrogen molecules dissociate on nickel and palladium surfaces and end up as chemisorbed atoms. Once the surface is saturated with atomic hydrogen the molecule-surface interaction is in most cases weak. The stepped Ni(510) and Pd(510) surfaces turn out to be more active, however, and hydrogen molecules eventually chemisorb at the step sites. The molecules have a substantially weakened internal bond and these adsorption states may act as precursors for additional dissociative adsorption, in particular for palladium which is known to dissolve hydrogen into the bulk.


Benign pigmented lesions and tattoos are often very responsive to laser treatment. The chromophore in most cases is melanin, although other endogenous and exogenous pigments can be targeted. The chromophore and its distribution in the skin, as well as the underlying biological processes, all help determine the best laser, if any, for a given pigmented lesion. Epidermal lesions respond well to shorter wavelengths (up to 755 nm), whereas for deeper lesions, 694 nm or longer are typically used. The 1,064-nm Nd:YAG laser is best for treating darker skinned individuals. Multicolored tattoos may need several wavelengths to best target individual ink colors.


The integrated Water Resources Development Project of Gravatai River Basin was prepared by the National Drainage Works Department (DNOS) and the German Agency for Technical Cooperation (GTZ). An attempt was made to use the capacity available in other departments and specialized institutes.

The objective is to provide information for the departments involved in water resources management so as to enable them to establish specific terms for each hydrographic basin to complement the Federal, state and municipal laws.

The basin problems were considered in this work including all aspects related to water resources development.

With these suggestions the specialized department would be able to define their plans for the future taking into account factors that are not within their field of competence, but which should be taken into account in other fields of work .

Conclusions were presented as to flow regulation, flood protection, domestic and industrial wastewater, water supply, irrigation, environmental conservation and navigation.


Utilizing the well-focused femtosecond laser with extreme high pulse intensity, we built a two-photon microfabrication and data storage system, which was introduced through several functional parts. Based on this homemade system, several three-dimensional microstructures were fabricated by two-photon polymerization, and three-dimensional data storage of six-layers was achieved by two-photon excitation with a photochromic material.


GBrowse is a mature web-based genome browser that is suitable for deployment on both public and private web sites. It supports most of genome browser features, including qualitative and quantitative (wiggle) tracks, track uploading, track sharing, interactive track configuration, semantic zooming and limited smooth track panning. As of version 2.0, GBrowse supports next-generation sequencing (NGS) data by providing for the direct display of SAM and BAM sequence alignment files. SAM/BAM tracks provide semantic zooming and support both local and remote data sources. This article provides step-by-step instructions for configuring GBrowse to display NGS data.


The Square Kilometre Array (SKA) will be the most sensitive radio telescope in the world. This unprecedented sensitivity will be achieved by combining and analyzing signals from 262,144 antennas and 350 dishes at a raw datarate of petabits per second. The processing pipeline to create useful astronomical data will require hundreds of peta-operations per second, at a very limited power budget. We analyze the compute, memory and bandwidth requirements for the key algorithms used in the SKA. By studying their implementation on existing platforms, we show that most algorithms have properties that map inefficiently on current hardware, such as a low compute–bandwidth ratio and complex arithmetic. In addition, we estimate the power breakdown on CPUs and GPUs, analyze the cache behavior on CPUs, and discuss possible improvements. This work is complemented with an analysis of supercomputer trends, which demonstrates that current efforts to use commercial off-the-shelf accelerators results in a two to three times smaller improvement in compute capabilities and power efficiency than custom built machines. We conclude that waiting for new technology to arrive will not give us the instruments currently planned in 2018: one or two orders of magnitude better power efficiency and compute capabilities are required. Novel hardware and system architectures, to match the needs and features of this unique project, must be developed.


BACKGROUND
The current trend in patient care is towards a more humanized and higher-quality healthcare. The objective of the present study was to evaluate the results of implementing a programme of healthcare with a reference nurse who welcomes the patient at hospital admission, visits regularly during hospital stay, and resolves doubts and problems.

METHODS
Quasi-experimental study (149 cases and 454 non-tutored controls) in patients admitted for scheduled trauma surgery at the Virgen de las Nieves University Hospital, Granada. Sociodemographic and clinical data were gathered at admission. At 15 days after discharge, patients were administered with an interviewer-administered Zung score and an ad hoc questionnaire on satisfaction with different healthcare aspects during hospital stay and understanding of information received. Bivariate analyses and linear and multivariate logistic regression analyses were performed with a study of confounding variables.

RESULTS
For the outcome variable anxiety level non-tutored patients had a B coefficient of 2.64 (p<0,01) in the multivariate linear regression analysis controlling for the other variables in the final model: sex, presence of informal career, professional activity, days of hospital stay and understanding of health information. For the outcome variable inadequate understanding information non-tutored patients showed an odds ratio of 3.48 in the multivariate analysis controlling for educational level and presence of informal career. Satisfaction with he friendliness of health care personnel and with the hospital setting did not significantly difference, although the percentage of dissatisfied patients was higher in the non-tutored group: 15% vs 11% (p= 0.34) and 18% vs 12 % (p= 0.11) respectively.

CONCLUSIONS
The implemented continued care programme proved effective for these patients, increasing their understanding of information received and reducing anxiety levels.


Recording studies with variable head-to-disk spacings have been carried out on a static test stand with a nanometer scale position accuracy. The head-to-disk spacing control was achieved through selective deposition of either supporting pads on the air bearing surface of commercial sliders or additional nonmagnetic layers (in this study, Cr) on commercial post-sputtering disks or the combination of these two. The additional supporting pads not only helped us solve the stiction problem but also allowed us to study the effect of head-to-disk spacing on the readout performance in a contact fashion. A series of read/write experiments have been carried out to study how the half-amplitude pulse width (PW50) parameter is dependent on the head-to-disk spacing by varying the height of the supporting pads or the thickness of the additional nonmagnetic layers or both using a commercial giant magnetoresistance head. It was found that some of the theoretical equations are able to predict the dependence of PW50 on the ...


The Oak Ridges Moraine aquifer feeds the headwaters of major rivers in the Greater Toronto Area and is an important source of domestic water supply. Recognizing the rapid rate of urban growth in the region, there is a concern that changing land use along the moraine must be strictly controlled if groundwater is to be adequately protected. To date, efforts to incorporate groundwater protection into the land use planning process have been hampered by an inadequate quantitative hydrogeological understanding of the aquifer system. Focusing on the Duffins Creek watershed, comprehensive hydrogeological studies including a numerical flow model now provide a quantitative insight into the hydrogeologic function of the moraine. These studies demonstrate that 60% of the entire basin groundwater discharge to streams occurs along the south flank of the moraine, and 60% of this headwater discharge occurs below the 275 m above sea level contour, one of the commonly accepted planning boundaries of the moraine. The remaining discharge is contributed by aquifers within and underlying deposits that extend to the south of the moraine. While 75–80% of the watershed discharge to streams is received from the uppermost aquifer, 20–25% is contributed by deeper aquifers underlying the extensive Northern–Newmarket till aquitard. This work shows that the moraine sediments represent just one component of a regional flow system that extends beyond the morphological boundary of the moraine. This has important implications for groundwater protection, as it demonstrates the need for management strategies that incorporate the regional groundwater flow system and not the moraine in isolation.


One of the problems with Si(001)/3C-SiC templates is that they involve highly defective interfaces due to the presence of misfit dislocations, voids and planar defects that degrade the SiC layer quality. A way to accommodate the high lattice mismatch between these materials and reduce the voids density is to carbonize the Si substrate before the epitaxial growth. In this contribution an alternative way to reduce planar defects density is presented by analyzing the relationship between planar defects and voids. Planar view and cross section transmission electron microscopy micrographs show a diminution of planar defects in the regions surrounding the voids. Due to the lower elastic energy over the voids and/or to a lateral growth in these regions, the generation of planar defects is partially deactivated, improving locally the crystalline quality of the SiC layer. The introduction of such cavities can be thus seen as a new parameter of Si/SiC templates design.


There is increasing interest in the possible existence of large eddies or "Rossby waves" in Sun's convection zone and photosphere. It is shown that many flows of this type, driven by an equator-pole temperature diffrence, act as hydromagnetic dynamos to produce magnetic fields that periodically reverse. The periods and field amplitudes agree with solar phenomena within an order of magnitude.


This paper looks at whether we can bring art psychotherapy theory to understanding the role of art in a new context; the medical pain consultation, as part of an experimental arts in health research project. The project studied the introduction of a set of art images into chronic pain consultations, to help patients and doctors communicate complex experiences of pain. The paper draws on different theoretical approaches from art psychotherapy, to provide ways to understand the meanings of an art object introduced between two people. Triangular relating, symbolisation and transactional uses of the image are explored (Isserow 2008, 2013, Schaverien 1991,1995, 2000). The image is also considered within a social frame and from an intersubjective viewpoint (Tipple 2003, 2011, Skaife 2008).

The images were artistic depictions of pain, previously co-created by other pain patients with an artist as a communication resource. Videos of consultations where doctors and patients used these images were studied. The paper takes case examples of features observed in a thematic analysis and uses art psychotherapy theories to explore them further. Suggested implications are that using images in this setting may allow negotiation of unconscious dynamics between clinician and patient and have potential to aid communication and empower patients, suggesting avenues for future research. The potentials and limitations of bringing theory to this context are considered. The research took place within a multidisciplinary team.


SUPRAPUBIC aspiration of the bladder has proved to be a safe and rapid means for collection of urine from infants and children.1By avoiding urethral and perineal contamination, specimens so obtained are especially suitable for bactriologic diagnosis when rapid identification of urinary tract infection is desirable. Although an obvious potential risk, we are not aware that aspiration of a viscus other than the urinary bladder has been previously reported as a result of this procedure. Our purpose is to present three infants in whom attempted suprapubic aspiration of urine resulted in perforation of the bowel in two, and of a large cystic duplication of the vagina in a third. Report of Cases Case 1.—A 3-month-old white boy was admitted for evaluation of lethargy, constipation, and abdominal distention of two days' duration. On physical examination his weight was 5.3 kg (12 lb 15 ounces), temperature was 103 F (39.6 C)


Phorbol esters such as phorbol 12, 13-dibutyrate (PdBu; 40 to 200 nmol/L) or 12-O-tetradecanoyl phorbol 13-acetate (20 to 80 nmol/L) added to aspirinized platelet-rich plasma (PRP) 5 to 15 seconds prior to various platelet stimuli (epinephrine, ADP, prostaglandin endoperoxide analog U44069, collagen, PAF, or vasopressin) potentiate the rate and extent of aggregation and ATP secretion induced by those agonists. Platelet aggregation, but not secretion, is potentiated at low concentrations of agonists; platelet secretion is potentiated at higher concentrations of the platelet stimuli. Potentiation of platelet responses was also observed when the preincubation time with PdBu was extended to 12 minutes and also occurred in washed platelets. The potentiating effect of phorbol esters is not mediated by formation of arachidonate metabolites or by released ADP. The sensitizing effect of PdBu on platelet aggregation induced by epinephrine is unique, since in contrast to the other platelet stimuli it is also found at maximal concentrations of epinephrine and does not diminish with prolonged preincubation of platelets with PdBu. Activation of protein kinase C ranges from 20% to 80% over control after 1 to 10 minutes of platelet pretreatment with PdBu but dramatically increases after subsequent addition of a stimulus such as vasopressin. In contrast, agonist-induced myosin light chain phosphorylation is reduced after platelet pretreatment with PdBu. The results indicate that protein kinase C activation enhances platelet aggregation and dense granule secretion triggered by physiologic stimuli, although it desensitizes agonist-induced myosin light chain phosphorylation.


Empirical research on the family cites the tendency for couples to relocate for husbands' careers as evidence against the gender-neutrality of household economic decisions. For these studies, occupational segregation is a concern because occupations are not random by sex and mobility is not random by occupation. I find the tendency for households to relocate for husbands' careers is better-explained by the segregation of women into geographically-dispersed occupations rather than by the direct prioritization of men's careers. Among never-married workers, women relocate for work less-often than men and the gender effect disappears after accounting for occupational segregation. While most two-earner families feature husbands in geographically-clustered jobs involving frequent relocation for work, families are no-less-likely to relocate for work when it belongs to the wife. I conclude future research in household mobility should treat occupational segregation occurring prior to marriage rather than gender bias within married couples as the primary explanation for the prioritization of husbands' careers in household mobility decisions.


Serum gonadotropin concentrations and ovarian response in ewes treated with analogs to luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone/follicle s timulating hormone-releasing hormone (LH-RH/FSH-RH) are reported. In Ex periment 1, 32 ewes received either .5, 5, 50 or 500 mcg of des Gly10-LH-RH ethylamide or LH-RH/FSH-RH. Peak LH concentration was signi ficantly higher (p less than .01) in ewes treated with .5 mcg analog than in ewes treated with .5 mcg LH-RH/FSH-RH and there was a greater number (p less than .05) of ovulations in the ewes treated with analog than in ewes treated with LH-RH/FSH-RH. In Experiment 2, 10 ewes were treated either with 500 mcg anlog or saline. All were artificially inse minated 12 hours postinjection. A greater number of ovulations (p less than .05) occurred in ewes treated with the analog than in those treated with saline, but none of the ewes conceived. In Experiment 3, 70 ewes r eceived either the analogs D-ALa6 des Gly10-FH-RH ethylamide, D-leu6 des Gly10-LH-RH-ethylamide or LH-RH/FSH-RH. An increase (p less than .05) in total LH, mean peak LH and duration of the LH release in ewes treated with either .5, 5, 50 mcg D-Ala6 and D-Leu6 analog was seen as compared to ewes which received corresponding doses of LH-RH/FSH-RH. The analogs were 9, 4 and 3 times more potent in total LH releasing ability when compared to LH-RH/FSH-RH at the .5, 4 and 50 mcg doses, respectively. These data indicate that the maximal pituitary response was obtained with 50 mcg of the D-Ala6 or D-Leu6 analog but that 500 mcg of LH-RH/FSH-RH was required before maximal LH release was attained.


As social media is widely adopted in collaborative learning, which places teams in a virtual environment, it is critical for teams to identify and leverage the knowledge of their members. Yet little is known about how social media influences teams to coordinate their knowledge and collaborate effectively. In this research, we explore the roles of two kinds of social media activity – information processing and social connection in teamwork – by applying communication and transactive memory systems (TMSs) as the mechanisms of explicit and implicit coordination respectively. We test this model using partial least squares (PLS) method by treating team as the unit of analysis. Drawing on the data from a study that involves 40 teams of graduate students performing a complex research report over eight weeks, we find that both TMSs and communication can significantly improve teamwork outcomes, and communication can help teams to better coordinate implicitly. With regard to social media activities, the results reveal that both information processing and social connection can enhance the level of TMSs; however, only social connection is positively related to communication. Unfortunately, information processing cannot significantly strengthen communication quality. The possible reasons are discussed and some theoretical and practical implications are also put forward.


In this paper, we investigate the effect of packet size selection on the performance of media access control (MAC) protocols for underwater wireless sensor networks, namely, carrier sense multiple access (CSMA) and the distance-aware collision avoidance protocol (DACAP). Our comparative analysis, conducted via ns-2 simulations, considers scenarios with varying, nonzero bit error rate (BER) and interference. We investigate metrics such as throughput efficiency (the ratio between the delivered bit rate and the offered bit rate), end-to-end packet latency, measured "per meter" to allow for different sizes of deployment areas, and the energy consumed to correctly deliver an information bit to the network collection point. Our results show the dependence of these metrics on the packet size, indicating the existence of an optimum. The optimum packet size is found to depend on the protocol characteristics, the bit rate, and the BER. For each protocol and scenario considered, we determine the packet size that optimizes throughput performance, and we show its effect on the normalized packet latency and on energy consumption.


Purpose
This study aims to focus on providing a computerized classification testing (CCT) system that can easily be embedded as a self-assessment feature into the existing legacy environment of a higher education institution, empowering students with self-assessments to monitor their learning progress and following strict data protection regulations. The purpose of this study is to investigate the use of two different versions (without dashboard vs with dashboard) of the CCT system during the course of a semester; to examine changes in the intended use and perceived usefulness of two different versions (without dashboard vs with dashboard) of the CCT system; and to compare the self-reported confidence levels of two different versions (without dashboard vs with dashboard) of the CCT system.

Design/methodology/approach
A total of N = 194 students from a higher education institution in the area of economic and business education participated in the study. The participants were provided access to the CCT system as an opportunity to self-assess their domain knowledge in five areas throughout the semester. An algorithm was implemented to classify learners into master and nonmaster. A total of nine metrics were implemented for classifying the performance of learners. Instruments for collecting co-variates included the study interest questionnaire (Cronbach's a = 0. 90), the achievement motivation inventory (Cronbach's a = 0. 94), measures focusing on perceived usefulness and demographic data.

Findings
The findings indicate that the students used the CCT system intensively throughout the semester. Students in a cohort with a dashboard available interacted more with the CCT system than students in a cohort without a dashboard. Further, findings showed that students with a dashboard available reported significantly higher confidence levels in the CCT system than participants without a dashboard.

Originality/value
The design of digitally supported learning environments requires valid formative (self-)assessment data to better support the current needs of the learner. While the findings of the current study are limited concerning one study cohort and a limited number of self-assessment areas, the CCT system is being further developed for seamless integration of self-assessment and related feedback to further reveal unforeseen opportunities for future student cohorts.


In accordance with the new agenda adopted by the General Assembly of the UN, methodological and practical approaches to sustainable regional development were prepared in the Republic of Belarus. They were developed during 2015-2016 in the context of international technical help project "The Support of Regional and Local Development in Belarus" financed by the European Union. The main goal is to promote consistent changes in the management of regional and local development based on the strategies for sustainable regional development. The mentioned approaches are a body of principles, methods, methodic, directions, which provide economic efficiency, social justice and ecological security on the republican, regional and local levels through consensus, coherence of interests and coordination of central and local governments, as well as population, business structures, civil society institutions. These approaches considered, there were developed six strategies for sustainable development in the regions of the Republic of Belarus. However, the absence of legal and institutional basis complicates the practical implementation of the mentioned findings. Additionally, the advantages of inclusive management and information technologies while providing public services are not accounted for fully. We suppose that during further planning of sustainable development specific attention should be paid to its key aspects, the specifics of the Belarusian legal system and the broad information campaign. It is relevant in Belarus to develop a set of measures to implement sustainable regional development strategies, which also include access to basic electronic public services to all the sections of the population. It is also important to note that European migration processes influence the Republic of Belarus, therefore for the purpose of promoting ordered, safe and legal mobility we should return to the question of developing multiple nationality institute. Keywords: sustainable development, digital public services, digital divide, multiple nationality, local government, Republic of Belarus


The Cosmetic Ingredient Review Expert Panel (Panel) reviewed the safety of 4 ammonium hectorite compounds used in cosmetics: disteardimonium hectorite, dihydrogenated tallow benzylmonium hectorite, stearalkonium hectorite, and quaternium-18 hectorite. These ingredients function in cosmetics mainly as nonsurfactant suspending agents. The Panel reviewed available animal and human data and concluded that these ammonium hectorite compounds were safe as cosmetic ingredients in the practices of use and concentration as given in this safety assessment.


Introduction: Flavonoids have a variety of functions, such as antioxidant activity, and are expected to have a disease prevention effect. In order to verify the disease risk reduction effect of flavonoids, we carried out a crossover trial in seven adult men of normal or light overweight who ingested flavonoid-rich meals, with a diverse combination of basic foodstuffs, and low-flavonoid meals and compared blood disease-related inflammatory markers. Methods: On the first two days of the study, seven male volunteers were provided with low-flavonoid meals (flavonoid content below the detection limit of HPLC: less than 0.24 mg/meal) three times a day as a washout. For the next seven days, they were fed flavonoid-rich meals (46.9 ± 8.1 mg/meal) or low-flavonoid meals. Blood samples were collected from all the volunteers before breakfast on the third day, after the washout and before breakfast on the tenth day. The test was consisted of one cycle from the first day to the tenth day, and the participants carried out two cycles. Flavonoid concentrations in plasma and gene expression of inflammatory cytokine (interleukin 1 beta, interleukin 6, interleukin 18, and tumor necrosis factor-α) in whole blood cells were compared before and after the intervention. Gene expression in whole blood cells was measured using real time RT-PCR. Results: We found a significant increase in plasma flavonoid concentration (quercetin, kaempferol, daidzein, and genistein) upon intervention with flavonoid-rich meals ( p < 0.05). In addition, the inflammatory cytokine gene expression was reduced in the subjects with a body mass index of more than, but not less than, 25 kg/m 2 compared with that observed after the intake of low-flavonoid meals. Conclusion: These results suggest that flavonoid-rich meals have an anti-inflammatory effect in obese persons who are likely to have chronic inflammation. Keywords: Flavonoids, inflammatory cytokines, flavonoid-rich meal, human study


This study investigated young children's emergent literacy practices, digital literacy skills, and their developing capacities to collaborate effectively, when supported by a literacy-learning iPad app, Aniland, in a preschool setting. I used a preschooler literacy app called Aniland, which I created with the Anilab team members and with which children can choose their own animal characters, read books, and play games. I also conducted optional, semi-structured interviews with teachers and parents. This study involved 29 children aged 3-4 years old, in a private preschool in Manhattan, New York, over a period of 10 weeks. With an ethnographic sensibility, I oversaw weekly interactions of 10-15 minutes between the children, as they used their iPads, to enrich my understanding of the cognitive and behavioural changes relevant to learning outcomes. In addition, to understand whether digital content may affect participants' offline learning, I observed the children's literacy activities in the classroom two or three times per week. I also conducted optional, semi-structured interviews with teachers and parents. For the data analysis, I applied a coding protocol to analyse the children's learning outcomes in three dimensions: cognitive processing, social processing, and communication style adapted from the 'analytical framework of peer group interaction'. The main findings of my study were as follows: (1) Children exhibited some improvements in literacy, including in graphemes, phonological awareness, phonemeto-grapheme correspondence, and orthographic knowledge, as they performed better over the observed time at selecting correct answers in the activity room; (2) children showed changes in social skills from dominance to collaboration and also showed instances of competition, tutoring, problem-solving, etc. over the observed time; and (3) children showed some connections between online and offline learning through extended play and conversations applying contents of the app in the classroom and, further, at home.


An Observing System Simulation Experiment (OSSE) was designed and developed to assess the potential benefit of the Infrared Sounding on the Meteosat Third Generation (MTG-IRS) geostationary meteorological satellite system to regional forecasts. In the proposed OSSE framework, two different models, namely, the MM5 and WRF models, were used in a nature run and data assimilation experiments, respectively, to reduce the identical twin problem. The 5-day nature run, which included three convective storms that occurred during the period from 11 to 16 June 2002 over US Great Plains, was generated using MM5 with a 4 km. The simulated "conventional" observations and MTG-IRS retrieved temperature and humidity profiles, produced from the nature run, were then assimilated into the WRF model. Calibration experiments showed that assimilating real or simulated "conventional" observations yielded similar error statistics in analyses and forecasts, indicating that the developed OSSE system worked well. On average, the MTG-IRS retrieved profiles had positive impact on the analyses and forecasts. The analyses reduced the errors not only in the temperature and the humidity fields but in the horizontal wind fields as well. The forecast skills of these variables were improved up to 12 hours. The 18 h precipitation forecast accuracy was also increased.


Understanding the evolution of bipedal locomotion in humans is of paramount importance to paleoanthropologists. Such endeavor requires well-preserved dynamic evidence of fossil human locomotion we are short of. Physical models of modern human locomotion predict individuals would perform voluntary step length adjustment as a function of slope gradient in order to minimize the energetic costof locomotion while maintaining balance and reasonably comfortable gait. The famous Roccamonfina volcano "Devil's trails", which are Middle Pleistocene Homo fossilized trackways, provide unique opportunity to validate such predictions for fossil human individuals. We studied the best-preserved Roccamonfina Devil's trail to ascertain the dynamic behavior of the individual who left the trackway. We found Roccamonfina's individual moved in a way which is dynamically equivalent to modern humans, adjusting gait as to minimize energy expenditure. We derived body mass and stature estimates for such individual, which fit perfectly with previously published figures for Middle Pleistocene hominins outside Africa.


Context. The Sérsic law (SL) offers a versatile, widely used functional form for the structural characterization of galaxies near and far. Whereas fitting this three-parameter function to galaxies with a genuine SL luminosity distribution (e.g., several local early-type galaxies–ETGs) yields a robust determination of the Sérsic exponent η and effective surface brightness μeff, this is not necessarily the case for galaxies whose surface brightness profiles (SBPs) appreciably deviate, either in their centers or over an extended radius interval, from the SL (e.g., ETGs with a "depleted" core and nucleated dwarf ellipticals, or most late-type galaxies-LTGs). In this general case of "imperfect" SL profiles, the best-fitting solution may significantly depend on the radius (or surface brightness) interval fit, the photometric passbands considered and the specifics of the fitting procedure (photometric uncertainties of SBP data points or image pixels, and corrections for point spread function (PSF) convolution effects). Such uncertainties may then affect, in a non-easily predictable manner, automated structural studies of large heterogeneous galaxy samples and introduce a scatter, if not a bias, in galaxy scaling relations and their evolution across redshift (z).
Aims. Our goal is to devise a fitting concept that permits a robust determination of the equivalent SL model for the general case of galaxies with imperfect SL profiles.
Methods. The distinctive feature of the concept proposed here (iFIT) is that the fit is not constrained through standard χ2 minimization between an observed SBP and the SL model of it, but instead through the search for the best match between the observationally determined and theoretically expected radial variation of the mean surface brightness and light growth curve. This approach ensures quick convergence to a unique solution for both perfect and imperfect Sérsic profiles, even shallow and resolution-degraded SBPs. iFIT allows for correction of PSF convolution effects, offering the user the option of choosing between a Moffat, Gaussian, or user-supplied PSF. iFIT, which is a standalone FORTRAN code, can be applied to any SBP that is provided in ASCII format and it has the capability of convenient graphical storage of its output. The iFIT distribution package is supplemented with an auxiliary SBP derivation tool in python.
Results. iFIT has been extensively tested on synthetic data with a Sérsic index 0.3 ≤ η ≤ 4.2 and an effective radius 1 ≤ Reff  (″)≤20. Applied to non PSF-convolved data, iFIT can infer the Sérsic exponent η with an absolute error of ≤ 0.2 even for shallow SBPs. As for PSF-degraded data, iFIT can recover the input SL model parameters with a satisfactorily accuracy almost over the entire considered parameter space as long as FWHM(PSF) ≤ Reff. This study also includes examples of applications of iFIT to ETGs and local low-mass starburst galaxies. These tests confirm that iFIT shows little sensitivity on PSF corrections and SBP limiting surface brightness, and that subtraction of the best-fitting SL model in two different bands generally yields a good match to the observed radial color profile.
Conclusions. It is pointed out that the publicly available iFIT offers an efficient tool for the non-supervised structural characterization of large galaxy samples, as those expected to become available with Euclid and LSST.


The atmosphere of a turkey confinement house on a large Minnesota farm was examined over the course of a year in order to determine levels of airborne contaminants and to evaluate the hazard potential posed by the contaminants to farm workers. Air concentrations of total and respirable dust, ammonia, carbon monoxide, hydrogen sulfide, nitrogen dioxide, methane, and Aspergillus (a fungal respiratory disease agent) were evaluated. Inter- and intra-seasonal variations in confinement house contaminant concentrations were observed. The highest concentrations of dust, ammonia and Aspergillus occurred during the winter months when dust levels averaged 9.3 mg/m3 and ammonia levels averaged 35 parts per million (ppm). Aspergillus levels were lower than expected, never exceeding 73 colony forming units per cubic meter (cfu/m3). Ammonia levels were found to be particularly high during tilling of the confinement house when concentrations greater than 100 ppm were reached. Concentrations of carbon monoxide, hydrogen sulfide, nitrogen dioxide and methane were below detectable levels.


Corrugated structures have been of great interest and importance in many applications. Recently, aperiodic waveguide gratings have played a significant role in distributed feedback (DFB) lasers and in integrated optical devices. The operating characteristics of such structures (periodic and aperiodic cases) have been investigated and discussed intensively during the past two decades. Most of the studies in this field have been carried out using either approximate analytical techniques or simple numerical methods in the analysis for sinusoidal gratings or other types of gratings with small groove depth (or tooth height), in which the reflection coefficients are very small and the radiation losses can be ignored in the calculation. With the help of the latest lithography and etching techniques, the fabrication of rectangular gratings with large groove depth can be realised for many applications. Deep rectangular gratings contribute high, broad, and flat frequency responses at the centre stopband, and have a compact size suitable for on-line and on-chip implementation. However, simple approximate methods are no longer valid in the analysis because the depth of these gratings is too large. The difficulties in the analysis of such a deep rectangular grating follow from the fact that the method which is used in the analysis not only is required to treat each mode produced by every step-junction of the grating with accuracy but also demands that the algorithm of the method be not too cumbersome when applied to an aperiodic grating with a great number of periods and multiple phase shifts. According to the author's knowledge, such a proper method for deep rectangular aperiodic gratings has still not been fully seen in the literature. In this thesis, a mode-matching procedure and a transfer matrix approach are used and modified to analyse waveguides with rectangular gratings with large groove depth. A systematic investigation has been carried out for several discontinuous structures, including single step discontinuities, double-step discontinuities, periodic gratings, and aperiodic gratings with single and multiple phase shifts. In addition, comparisons of our results and those of existing methods are presented. It is shown that the method proposed in this thesis, having minimal approximation in the formulation and using a simple matrix algorithm, is suitable for the analysis of deep rectangular gratings and also for computer processing. Furthermore, applications of deep linearly chirped grating filters, including dispersion compensation and chirped pulse compression in the femtosecond regime, will be discussed, and very good performances are demonstrated.


The scope of women's health research is vast. Within the discipline of nursing, the scope of women's health research includes health variables studied within social and biophysical health contexts and as they are shaped by developmental stages. The unit of analysis in these studies is the woman, whether she is studied as an individual or as part of a population of women. Similar application of this framework, which is intended to chart the boundaries within which systematic study of women's health can occur, may suggest areas in which there is currently a deficit of empirical and theoretical work and may prompt nurse investigators to explore new questions.


The physical and chemical properties of carboxy- and ester-terminated alkanethiolate self-assembled monolayers (SAMs) on a gold (Au) substrate (Au(111)), which were prepared in a one-pot reaction, were investigated by means of infrared reflection absorption spectroscopy (IRAS) and hyperthermal-deposition experiments with Cr(benzene)2 ions. IRAS spectra showed that the vibrational modes of hydrogen-bonded COOH and CH2 wagging are sensitive to the flatness and cleanness of Au substrates for COOH-SAM and COOMe-/COOEt-SAM, respectively. The intensities of CH2 wagging modes are temperature dependent, which is relevant to the alkyl chain ordering in the highly ordered SAM. The terminal groups of the highly ordered SAM are dissociated by hyperthermal collision events of gas-phase-synthesized Cr(benzene)2 sandwich complex ions, and the adsorption properties of deposited Cr(benzene)2 are discussed in relation to IRAS and temperature-programmed desorption (TPD) measurements.


This is the continuation of an earlier work where Gödel-type metrics were defined and used for producing new solutions in various dimensions. Here, a simplifying technical assumption is relaxed which, among other things, basically amounts to introducing a dilaton field to the models considered. It is explicitly shown that the conformally transformed Gödel-type metrics can be used in solving a rather general class of Einstein–Maxwell-dilaton-3-form field theories in D ⩾ 6 dimensions. All field equations can be reduced to a simple 'Maxwell equation' in the relevant (D − 1)-dimensional Riemannian background due to a neat construction that relates the matter fields. These tools are then used in obtaining exact solutions to the bosonic parts of various supergravity theories. It is shown that there is a wide range of suitable backgrounds that can be used in producing solutions. For the specific case of (D − 1)-dimensional trivially flat Riemannian backgrounds, the D-dimensional generalizations of the well-known Majumdar–Papapetrou metrics of general relativity arise naturally.


This review article focuses on providing updated information about targeting the nasal mucosa for drug delivery. The oral route is most desirable and convenient route for drug administration and tablets, capsules are the most favored dosage forms. However, although the oral route remains the most popular for systemic drug administration, low oral bioavailability of some compounds has prompted the search of more effective routes for their systemic delivery. The anatomy and physiology of the nasal region have been discussed, followed by a discussion of the factors and barriers affecting the drug absorption, strategies to improve the drug absorption, various excipients employed in nasal formulations, different types of nasal formulations and applications of nasal delivery.  Nasal route is alternative to parenteral therapy and also useful for long term therapy. Nasal mucosa is highly vascularized and most permeable giving rapid absorption and onset of action. Nasal route is noninvasive, widely used for the local treatment may also be used for systemic therapy as drug directly goes in systemic circulation. Nasal route gives good absorption of small molecules, than that of large molecules can be increased by absorption promoters. Therefore, the aim of this review article is to discuss the various pharmaceutical dosage forms that have the potential to be utilised for local or systemic drug administration. It is intuitively expected that this review will help to understand and further to develop suitable intra-nasal formulations to achieve specific therapeutic objectives.


The majority of studies that characterize lymphokines utilize in vitro activation of lymphocytes. In an attempt to identify and characterize lymphokines released from tissue sites, we have cannulated sheep lymphatic vessels and collected lymph that drains a site of in vivo antigen challenge. Lymph draining directly from a site of intradermal antigen challenge (afferent lymph) and lymph draining an antigen-stimulated lymph node (efferent lymph) were assayed for lymphokine activity by the ability of cell-free lymph fluid to stimulate the proliferation of sheep Con A-blasts. Afferent and efferent lymph, both collected at 24 and 48 hr following in vivo antigen challenge, with either ovalbumin or PPD in primed animals, stimulates the proliferation of sheep Con A-blast cells. This in vivo-derived lymphokine activity and in vitro-generated sheep Con A supernatant has an active component with properties similar to interleukin-2 (IL-2) that has been described in several other species. The IL-2-like material is precipitated by 40-80% ammonium sulphate saturation, has a molecular weight (MW) of 20,000 MW as judged by gel filtration chromatography, and is eluted from an anion-exchange HPLC column with 125 mM NaCl. HPLC ion-exchange fractionation of the 20,000 MW material from lymph fluid shows differences between afferent and efferent lymph material. The fractionation of afferent material is similar to that of in vitro generated Con A supernatant material with a single peak of activity eluted by 125 mM NaCl. In contrast, the 20,000 MW material from efferent lymph elutes with peaks of activity at 125 and 300 mM NaCl.


This study investigated the awareness and use of Online Public Access Catalogue (OPAC) by students of Obafemi Awolowo University, Nigeria. A questionnaire was distributed to 800 students at various faculties and in different levels of studies in August 2012. Five hundred and twenty copies of the questionnaire was retrieved and used for the study. The study revealed that 68.7 % of the respondents were aware of the OPAC services; students who were aware of the library OPAC and did not use it to access library resources were statistically significant (x 2 =82.073; df =2; α = 0.001); 23.8% of the respondents used OPAC independently; only 3.2% of the respondents accessed library resources from their hostels, 0.2% access it from homes. Similarly, majority of the respondents lacked information searching skills while lack of awareness, irregular power supply, network failure and inadequacy of computer terminals designated for the use of OPAC were among the problems identified as factors inhibiting the use of library OPAC. Therefore, the study concludes that majority of the students used manual catalogues to access library resources due to lack of awareness, skills to use OPAC and problems encountered during usage. Hence, students have not been making effective and efficient use of the library OPAC. Therefore, we recommend that the Library should create more awareness and effective education for students at various levels to ensure maximum utilization of