The inclusion behavior of hydroxypropyl b-cyclodextrin and natural b-cyclodextrin was studied toward ketoprofen, in order to develop a new oral dosage form with enhanced dissolution rate and bioavailability, and to study the oral pharmacokinetics of ketoprofen in humans, following cyclodextrin complexation. Drug-cyclodextrin solid systems were prepared by kneading, co-evaporation, and freeze-drying. The formation of inclusion complexes with b-cyclodextrin and hydroxypropyl b-cyclodextrin in the solid state, were confirmed by differential scanning calorimetry, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, powder X-ray diffractometry, scanning electron microscopy studies, and comparative studies on the in vitro dissolution and in vivo absorption of ketoprofen in humans volunteers, were carried out. The initial dissolution rate of ketoprofen in the inclusion complexes was 15 fold higher, than that of plain drug powder. The maximal plasma concentration of ketoprofen after the oral administration of inclusion complexes to human volunteers increased about 1.5 fold (7.15 vs 4.65 mg/ml), and there was no significant increase in area under concentration-time curve, AUC0-5 (10.35 vs. 9.35 mg. hr/ml), compared to those of ketoprofen powder alone.


In this thesis the results of a Computational Organic Chemistry Ph.D. work course ranging from organometallic to metal-free and enzymatic catalysis is discussed. Various energetic and mechanistic aspects of organic reactions in catalysis are the key-issues which are addressed. A multidisciplinary approach allowed the development of several research projects in collaboration with experimental groups and combined experimental-theoretical works were carried out. Notes and comments concerning the theoretical models used and the experimental work carried out by the research groups who cooperated with us, are reported.
The thesis comprises four main sections. The first section provides basic information on the computational methods used in the present work. In the subsequent sections (Part II, Part III and Part IV) we focus on different aspects of organic catalysis.
In Part II the results of computational studies on the mechanism of various metal-catalyzed reactions are presented. In particular we describe organic reactions catalyzed by Gold(I) complexes. We consider some synthetically important processes in organic chemistry. The purpose of these studies was to discover some general rules to rationalize the role of gold complexes in different classes of organic reactions. Furthermore, at the end of this section we describe a mechanistic investigation of an example of organo-catalysis, thus not involving metal complexes.
In Part III we focus on an emerging and promising area of "metal-free" catalysis, based on carbon nanostructures such as graphite, graphene, graphene oxide, fullerenes and carbon nanotubes (CNTs). This "metal-free" catalysis is usually denoted as Carbocatalysis. The energy contributions that may influence the course of a reaction inside a CNT, have been elucidated by means of computational methods.
In Part IV the computational approach is used to elucidate the mechanism of an enzymatic reaction. We describe the results obtained in the study of tyrosine O-sulfonation catalyzed by human Tyrosylprotein Sulfotransferases-2.


Theoretical meta-analyses play an important role in the recent establishment of public relations research. It is vital to the 'discipline' to conduct critical as-is-analyses of existing theoretical efforts, elaborate the central lines of discussion and analyze the specific potentials and challenges of different theoretical applications. The work presented here aims to make a modest contribution to this current effort. Its focus lies in various attempts to fructify Habermasian concepts for the field of public relations research, which have received only scant attention and, on the whole, have not been subject to a comprehensive analysis so far.
This work shows in how far the Theory of Communicative Action as well as the Structural Transformation of the Public Sphere may serve as a basis for theoretical and empirical endeavors in the field of public relations. In so doing, we present possible applications clustered in different analytical perspectives and discuss their individual and general challenges, contradictions and limitations. In confronting the presented applications with Habermas' critical understanding of public relations, we show that particularly the meso-level applications prove to be in conflict with their theoretical and philosophical underpinnings. Furthermore we subject two core aspects of the previous discussion, namely Habermas' program of moral justification and his differentiation of lifeworld and system, to some further considerations. Here we show how the increasingly popular focus on the natural environment in public relations ethics, as well as development of lifeworld-based networks into strategic organizations, may cause significant challenges for applications of Habermas' theory in the field of public relations research.


In this retrospective study we morphometrically evaluated the density of small blood vessels (microvessel density; MVD) in laryngeal squamous cell carcinomas (SCC) in order to find out if the vascular density provides relevant information on the biology and prognosis of this tumor type. In addition, we investigated the composition of the endothelial basement membrane (BM) to analyze qualitatively the role of the major BM components during tumor-associated angiogenesis. For the immunohistochemical staining of the blood vessels we used the endothelial cell marker CD31 and the BM was analyzed by immunostaining for the major components collagen-IV, laminin-1 and perlecan. Beneath the normal mucosa a mean of 18 vessels/0.41 mm2 was found. Invasive carcinomas showed a significant increase in blood vessel density to 36.3 vessels /0.41 mm2 regardless of the degree of tumor cell differentiation. Interestingly, the highest vascular density was found beneath dysplastic, but non-invasive epithelia (45.5 vessels/0.41 mm2), particularly when associated with a strong lymphoplasmacytic cell infiltration. Statistical analysis revealed a highly significant correlation between MVD and the lymphoplasmacytic infiltrate. However, we did not find any significant correlation between MVD and other clinical/biological parameters. Qualitative analysis of the endothelial BM revealed an "earliest" occurrence of laminin-1 in the obviously newly formed vessels, while collagen IV and perlecan occur at more pronounced stages of vessel formation. There was, however, no prognostically relevant information available from endothelial BM analysis. In summary, at present we do not consider the MVD in SCC of the larynx to be a prognostic factor for the individual outcome of the patient.


There has been mixed success in applying semantic component analysis (LSA, PLSA, discrete PCA, etc.) to information retrieval. Previous experiments have shown that high-fidelity language models do not imply good quality retrieval. Here we combine link analysis with discrete PCA (a semantic component method) to develop an auxiliary score for information retrieval that is used in post-filtering documents retrieved via regular Tf.Idf methods. For this, we use a topic-specific version of link analysis based on topics developed automatically via discrete PCA methods. To evaluate the resultant topic and link based scoring, a demonstration has been built using the Wikipedia, the public domain encyclopedia on the web.


The island of Samos occupies a key position between the central Aegean and western Anatolia during the third millennium BC. A recent study of the substantial pottery assemblages from the pivotal site of Heraion has defined a rich stratigraphy covering the entire Early Bronze Age (EBA). Currently the only known EBA site on Samos, Heraion has provided the opportunity to undertake a holistic ceramic study with the aim of defining and characterizing local pottery production and, by extension, determining for the first time a secure provenance of suspected imported vessels, through the application of an integrated typological/morphological, macroscopic and microscopic (ceramic petrography) analytical methodology. This diachronic ceramic study, alongside a comparative fabric study of pottery of known origin from a number of contemporary sites, shows clear evidence for the exchange/importation of specific vessel shapes and, in the case of the collared jars, presumably their contents. This enables the reconstruction of patterns of interaction during the later phases of EB II, when there was a particular acceleration in the movement of goods. The present paper draws on a distinctive ceramic class (blue and red schist/phyllite fabrics/wares) and vessel types (transport jars with incised/slashed handles and beaked jugs with a two‐stage neck profile) particular to the EB II late period and discusses them in relation to already published or analysed data from selected Cycladic and Anatolian sites.


The aim of this study was to find cheap, solid substrate material for sulphate reducing bacteria (SRB) to be used in permeable reactive barrier (PRB) and infiltration beds to treat acidic, nickel-, copper- and iron-rich mine drainage. Laboratory experiments were carried out to examine the reactivity and utilisation of different substrate materials. The materials of interest were peat, sawdust, cucumber compost and cellulose. Limestone, phosphorus and nitrogen were added to the mixture to create optimum growth conditions for SRB. Based on a batch tests, cucumber compost was chosen to be examined in larger-scale column tests. Results from the column tests were promising. Nickel (43 mg L-1), copper (24 mg L-1) and iron (95 mg L-1) were precipitated almost completely and the concentration of sulphate was decreased approximately 20 %. pH values increased from 2.7 to 8. Based on laboratory tests results it appears that cucumber compost was suitable substrate material for SRB in PRBs and infiltration beds treating AMD.


The thermal stability of four different commercial citrus peel extracts was tested and improved by an encapsulation process with β-cyclodextrins in a spray-dryer. All extracts after the encapsulation process maintained a good antioxidant capacity, with an apparent loss in total phenolic compounds of around 20–25%. In addition, all samples showed good antimicrobial activity (MIC 5–0.625 mg/mL) against Staphylococcus aureus, which was maintained after the encapsulation process (MIC 5–1.25 mg/mL). Based on the antioxidant and antimicrobial activity results, the best-encapsulated citrus extract was selected for incorporation into a polylactic acid/polyhydroxy butyrate (PLA/PHB) film. The latter was then produced on an industrial scale by cast extrusion and was found to be suitable for food contact as it showed overall migration values in different food simulants lower than the legislative limit of 10 mg of non-volatile substances per 1 dm2 of surface area. The UHPLC-HRMS analysis, performed to evaluate the migration of the active compounds, revealed about 13.41% release in food simulant A and 11.02% in food simulant B. Antimicrobial analysis conducted directly on the film showed a growth inhibition activity towards Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus equal to 30 and 60%, respectively.


In the Spring of 1989, the Tomas Rivera Center, with the support of the Rockefeller Foundation, provided funding for the PRP on the Economy of the Urban Ethnic Enclave. Under the direction of Professor Jorge Chapa from the LBJ School of Public Affairs and Professor Gilberto Cardenas from the Sociology Department, the PRP strived to determine the correlates of the economic prospects for urban enclaves of the city of San Antonio. In addition to Dr. Romo, Leo Gomez and Belinda De La Rosa from the Tomas Rivera Center have been instrumental in the completion of this PRP.


Fluency in reading is crucial for comprehension of the written word. Traditionally we concentrate on fluency once a child is a proficient reader. However, fluency is a skill that can be successfully addressed with beginning readers. This article presents practical strategies to help beginning readers become fluent readers. Of course, these strategies are effective with proficient readers, however, the earlier we begin to use them, the sooner children will internalize the concept of fluency and practice it. These strategies are also effective with second language learners.


FA-FGD mortar and concrete were manufactured and tested the main performances. With WFA-FGD taking 80~85% of the total composite binder by mass, mortar used in buildings was provided with good workability, enough mechanical properties specified for masonry in China, low drying shrinkage and strong sulfate corrosion, which was suitable for plastering or coating inside and outside walls. With LFA-FGD more than 30% in proportion, middle-strength concrete showed satisfactory workability with no segregation, no bleeding and low slump loss, stable strength development and low brittleness, about 60% of the domestic standard limit of wear mass loss in the specified test, good impermeability as well as excellent cracking resistance.


The synthesis of the macrolactone 23 is described. The synthesis features a diastereoselective hydroboration of the chiral alkene 17 followed by a Suzuki cross-coupling reaction with the benzoate 5. The resulting seco acid 21 was converted to the macrolactone 23 by a Mitsunobu lactonization using immobilized triphenylphosphine. The stereogenic centers in the alkene 17 were established by a Noyori reduction of the β-keto ester 8 and an Evans aldol reaction. The synthesis illustrates the conversion of a syn aldol product to the corresponding anti product by inversion of the methyl-bearing center.


In Asian populations, diabetes mellitus is increasing and has become an important health problem in recent decades. Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is one of the most important complications and the most common cause of death in diabetic patients. Among the risk factors of CVD, elevated low-density lipoprotein cholesterol has been a major concern. Studies suggested that serum triglyceride may also play a role in predicting CVD in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus, but the association is still debated. In this review, we summarized published studies focusing on the relationship between serum triglyceride and CVD disease in Asian diabetic patients. Ten studies conducted in six different Asian countries (three from Hong Kong, two from Taiwan, tow from Japan, one from Indonesia, one from South India, and one from South Korea) were summarized and discussed. CVD was subdivided into coronary heart disease, stroke, and peripheral arterial disease. Of the ten studies analyzed, one focused on CVD, five on coronary heart disease, three on stroke, three on peripheral arterial disease, and one on mortality from CVD. Studies from Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Japan suggested that triglyceride is a significant and independent risk factor for coronary heart disease, but not a significant risk factor for stroke (studies conducted in Japan and South Korea) or peripheral arterial disease (studies conducted in Taiwan, Indonesia, and South India). Although serum triglyceride may be a significant risk factor for coronary heart disease in Asian diabetic patients, clinical trials evaluating whether lowering triglycerides using fibrates can reduce the risk of coronary heart disease in these patients need to be initiated.


In a series of clinical studies regenerative procedures for periodontal disease treatment were evaluated. A reproducibility study of probing measurements using a manual periodontal probe and 3 pressure-sensitive probes showed that measurements obtained using the manual probe were the most repeatable. This probe was therefore selected for treatment evaluation. The outcome following surgical treatment of intraosseous periodontal defects with and without EDTA root conditioning did not show any significant clinical advantage of EDTA application. Guided tissue regeneration at intraosseous periodontal defects, using a bioabsorbable membrane, did not result in predictably more probing attachment gain nor probing bone gain than conventional flap therapy. Radiographic analysis confirmed these results. Regenerative techniques may also be applied in conjunction with endosseous implant treatment. Bioabsorbable membranes were applied covering exposed fixture threads at peri-implant dehiscence and fenestration defects at the time of fixture installation. Following six months of healing, surgical re-entry demonstrated a significant reduction in the number of exposed fixture threads. Clinical and radiographic conditions were evaluated approximately 2 years following incorporation of fixed reconstructions at these fixtures. Radiographs revealed significantly less marginal bone at membrane treated fixtures than at control fixtures. This was evident from abutment connection radiographs indicating that optimal bone regeneration was not achieved at all defects. However, no significant difference in the rate of radiographic bone loss following loading between control and membrane treated fixtures was observed. All fixtures were clinically stable and peri-implant tissues healthy. The results of these studies demonstrate that clinical attachment gain and bone gain is possible but not predictable following EDTA root surface conditioning and guided tissue regeneration using a bioabsorbable membrane. Guided bone regeneration, using a bioabsorbable membrane, applied at the time of titanium fixture installation resulted in predictable bone regeneration. (Less)


Aim Metoprolol (a CYP2D6 substrate) is often co‐prescribed with paroxetine/fluoxetine (a CYP2D6 inhibitor) because the clinical relevance of this drug–drug interaction (DDI) is still unclear. This review aimed to systematically evaluate the available evidence and quantify the clinical impact of the DDI. Method Pubmed, Web of Science, Cochrane Library and Embase were searched for studies reporting on the effect of the DDI among adults published until April 2018. Data on pharmacokinetics, pharmacodynamics and clinical outcomes from experimental, observational and case report studies were retrieved. The protocol of this study was registered in PROSPERO (CRD42018093087). Results We found nine eligible articles that consisted of four experimental and two observational studies as well as three case reports. Experimental studies reported that paroxetine increased the AUC of metoprolol three to five times, and significantly decreased systolic blood pressure and heart rate of patients. Case reports concerned bradycardia and atrioventricular block due to the DDI. Results from observational studies were conflicting. A cohort study indicated that the DDI was significantly associated with the incidence of early discontinuation of metoprolol as an indicator of the emergence of metoprolol‐related side effects. In a case–control study, the DDI was not significantly associated with bradycardia. Conclusion Despite the contradictory conclusions from the current literature, the majority of studies suggest that the DDI can lead to adverse clinical consequences. Since alternative antidepressants and beta‐blockers with comparable efficacy are available, such DDIs can be avoided. Nonetheless, if prescribing the combination is unavoidable, a dose adjustment or close monitoring of the metoprolol‐related side effects is necessary.


Nonceliac gluten sensitivity (NCGS) refers to a clinical phenotype in which patients experience intestinal and extraintestinal symptoms related to ingesting a gluten-containing diet after a diagnosis of celiac disease (CD) or wheat allergy has been excluded. CD, an autoimmune disease characterized by villous atrophy triggered by the ingestion of gluten, has increased in prevalence in recent decades, although the majority of patients remain undiagnosed. There is now an increasing public awareness of NCGS and growing interest in the health effects of gluten among health professionals and the lay public. Several randomized controlled trials have explored NCGS but have left many questions unanswered surrounding the pathophysiology, biomarkers, and established diagnostic approach to patients with this condition. Future studies are necessary to establish biomarkers and to elucidate the pathophysiology of this condition because at present, NCGS likely comprises a heterogeneous patient population. In this review, we outline the clinical trials of NCGS as well as the approach to patients with possible NCGS as recommended by an international expert panel. Because maintaining a gluten-free diet has important health, social, and economic consequences, it is necessary for medical professionals to provide practical and evidence-based advice to patients with this condition.


During the assessment process diachronically conceived in the initial, dynamic, and final stages, data recording is often performed by instrumental measurement using the goniometer. In Romania, the logistics equipment - hardware and software - has a very low or even absent incidence in the conceptual and applicative design of kinetic rehabilitation programmes. Some disadvantages of universal goniometry are revealed by relatively accurate measurements, given that the testing instrument may provide erroneous data when the specific rules are not followed. Moreover, the tester's interpretation of angular values may vary; therefore, in order to objectify and validate the specific assessment and evaluation, we propose a precise angular motion measurement device called Kinesimeter, assisted by specific Labview software designed at the Human Movement Science Discipline of "George Emil Palade" University of Medicine, Pharmacy, Science and Technology of Târgu Mureș. Our purpose was to compare the results and interpret the differences arising from the use of two specific assessment methods for the shoulder range of motion. Thus, the values recorded by two physiotherapists using the manual goniometer were compared with the values recorded with the Kinesimeter. In order to validate the results, we calculated statistical parameters such as correlation and significance. We strongly believe that the proposed hardware and software device for measuring, controlling, and analysing shoulder movements can become a modern performing tool needed by each rehabilitation institution, having a dual role - investigative and monitoring of a rehabilitation programme - both extremely important, additional to current measurements with the goniometer.


Phylogenetic reconstructions provide a means of inferring the branching relationships among members of multigene families that have diversified via successive rounds of gene duplication and divergence. Such reconstructions can illuminate the pathways by which particular expression patterns and protein functions evolved. For example, phylogenetic analyses can reveal cases in which similar expression patterns or functional properties evolved independently in different lineages, either through convergence, parallelism, or evolutionary reversals. The purpose of this article is to provide a robust phylogenetic framework for interpreting experimental data and for generating hypotheses about the functional evolution of globin proteins in chordate animals. To do this, we present a consensus phylogeny of the chordate globin gene superfamily. We document the relative roles of gene duplication and whole‐genome duplication in fueling the functional diversification of vertebrate globins, and we unravel patterns of shared ancestry among globin genes from representatives of the three chordate subphyla (Craniata, Urochordata, and Cephalochordata). Our results demonstrate the value of integrating phylogenetic analyses with genomic analyses of conserved synteny to infer the duplicative origins and evolutionary histories of globin genes. We also discuss a number of case studies that illustrate the importance of phylogenetic information when making inferences about the evolution of globin gene expression and protein function. Finally, we discuss why the globin gene superfamily presents special challenges for phylogenetic analysis, and we describe methodological approaches that can be used to meet those challenges. © 2011 IUBMB IUBMB Life, 63(5): 313–322, 2011


This paper examines the global sustainability regulation in agricultural trade by conducting an in-depth assessment of the economics of coffee-producing regions in Lampung Province, Indonesia. A negative campaign blaming illegal coffee producers for the loss of tigers in the Bukit Barisan Selatan (BBS) National Park in the province further complicates the issue, as the current coffee supply chain could not guarantee the workability of price transparency and asymmetric structures of coffee markets, to name a few. In this region, community initiatives have been developed to foster forest conservation by adopting coffee multi-strata practices under the agroforestry system and community-based forestry management in the buffer zone outside the BBS National Park. Based on research findings, buyer-driven regulation of environmental practices in the coffee industry, which characterize most global initiatives, have somehow restructured the supply chain in producing regions. Recent global sustainability standards require adequate organizational capacity of coffee-farmer groups and rural cooperatives involved in the supply chain. The paper recommends policy integration between bottom-up initiatives at farm level or institutional changes at supply-chain organizations, and top-down sustainability standards set by the private sector and non-government organizations.


Realized habitats of North Sea herring for two larval and two juvenile stages were estimated over the past 30 years, using abundances from surveys tied to modelled estimates of temperature and salinity. Newly hatched larvae (NHL) were found mainly in water masses of 9–11°C, pre-metamorphosis larvae (PML) around 5–6°C, juveniles aged 0 in summer around 13–14°C, and juveniles aged 1 in winter around 4–5°C. The median salinity in which the NHL were distributed was 34.4–35.0 and 33.7–33.9, respectively, for PML and juveniles. Interannual variations in temperature and geographic variables in the North Sea were compared with the time-series of realized habitats. The realized temperature habitats of the NHL did not change over time, but the habitat of juveniles in summer may be associated with higher temperatures. Juveniles aged 1 in winter are found in waters colder than the average for the North Sea, a result also reflected in their geographic shift east into shallower water. The results suggest that juveniles could be limited by temperature, but may also track changes in food or predator distribution, and/or internal population dynamics. Time-series analysis of realized salinity habitats was not possible with the available data because of differences between model outputs


The article is based on analysis of the results of continuous cohort study of 79 patients. All patients underwent endoscopic examination of the upper parts of the gastrointestinal tract and parietal impedancometry mucosa in the descending part of the duodenum. The aim of the study was to determine the effectiveness of endoscopy and the parietal impedancometry mucosa of the duodenum in patients with suspected development of postcholecystectomy syndrome. In the result of the analysis revealed that the overall structure of endoscopic changes in patients with gallstone disease and after cholecystectomy is the most common signs of chronic pancreatitis. The highest values of the impedance of the mucosa in patients with gallstones.


Large-scale automatic speech recognition model has achieved impressive performance. However, huge computational resources and massive amount of data are required to train an ASR model. Knowledge distillation is a prevalent model compression method which transfers the knowledge from large model to small model. To improve the efficiency of knowledge distillation for end-to-end speech recognition especially in the low-resource setting, a Mixup-based Knowledge Distillation (MKD) method is proposed which combines Mixup, a data-agnostic data augmentation method, with softmax-level knowledge distillation. A loss-level mixture is presented to address the problem caused by the non-linearity of label in the KL-divergence when adopting Mixup to the teacher–student framework. It is mathematically shown that optimizing the mixture of loss function is equivalent to optimize an upper bound of the original knowledge distillation loss. The proposed MKD takes the advantage of Mixup and brings robustness to the model even with a small amount of training data. The experiments on Aishell-1 show that MKD obtains a 15.6% and 3.3% relative improvement on two student models with different parameter scales compared with the existing methods. Experiments on data efficiency demonstrate MKD achieves similar results with only half of the original dataset.


Deep brain stimulation (DBS) shows promises in the treatment of refractory epilepsy. Due to the complex causes of epilepsy, the mechanisms of DBS are still unclear. Depolarization block caused by the persistent excitation of neurons may be one of the possible mechanisms. To test the hypothesis, 4-aminopyridine (4-AP) was injected in rat hippocampal CA1 region in-vivo to induce epileptiform activity. Sinusoidal stimulation trains were applied to the afferent pathway (Schaffer collaterals) of CA1 region to suppress the epileptiform spikes. Results show that 2-min long trains of sinusoidal stimulation (50 Hz) decreased the firing rate of population spikes (PS) and decreased the PS amplitudes significantly. In addition, small positive sharp waves replaced PS activity during the periods of stimulation. A lower frequency sinusoidal stimulation (10 Hz) failed to decrease the firing rate of PS, but decreased the PS amplitudes significantly. These results suggest that stimulation trains of sinusoidal waves could suppress epileptiform spikes. Presumably, the stimulation with a high enough frequency might excite the downstream neurons persistently and elevate the membrane potentials continuously, thereby cause depolarization blocks in the neurons. The findings of the study provide insights in revealing the mechanisms of DBS, and have important implications to the clinical treatment of epilepsy.


Patients with peripheral arterial disease (PAD) and intermittent claudication often have coronary artery disease (CAD) and other comorbid medical problems. There is a paucity of information on the impact of coexistent medical conditions on exercise capacity and functional status in patients with PAD. This study examined the impact of CAD, diabetes, cigarette smoking, prior peripheral surgical revascularization and other medical conditions on claudication pain times and peak oxygen capacity (VO2) during maximal effort treadmill testing in 119 male outpatient volunteers (ankle-brachial index (ABI) of 0.65 ± 0.2, mean ± SEM) with a history of Fontaine Stage II PAD. Smoking status was significantly related to ambulatory function. Current smokers had a lower peak VO2 expressed in l/min than either former or never smokers (ANCOVA adjusted for age, p = 0.003). However, after adjustment for body weight, there was only a trend for a difference in peak VO2 between current (13.2 ± 0.5 ml/kg per min), former (14.2 ± 0.4 ml/kg per min) and never (15.4 ± 1.0 ml/kg per min) smokers (ANCOVA, p= 0.10). Current smokers had a shorter time to onset of claudication pain (p = 0.023) and shorter maximal claudication pain times (p = 0.029) than former or never smokers (p = 0.023). The ABI 1 min after cessation of exercise was also lower in smokers compared to former and never smokers (p = 0.018). There were no significant differences in functional performance measures or time to recovery from maximal claudication pain when patients were categorized on the presence or absence of CAD, diabetes, peripheral revascularization, arthritis, hypertension or dyslipidemia. Therefore, smoking adversely affected exercise capacity in these PAD patients, whereas the presence of CAD, diabetes and other medical problems had a relatively minor impact on exercise capacity. In conclusion, the relatively minor impact of comorbid medical conditions on walking ability in patients with PAD reflects the overwhelming limitation in ambulatory function due to the claudication pain.


Pseudomonas aeruginosa frequently acts as an opportunistic pathogen of mucosal surfaces; yet, despite causing aggressive prostatitis in some men, its role as a pathogen in the prostate has not been investigated. Consequently, we developed a Ps. aeruginosa infection model in the rat prostate by instilling wild-type (WT) Ps. aeruginosa strain PAO1 into the rat prostate. It was found that Ps. aeruginosa produced acute and chronic infections in this mucosal tissue as determined by bacterial colonization, gross morphology, tissue damage and inflammatory markers. WT strain PAO1 and its isogenic mutant PAO-JP2, in which both the lasI and rhlI quorum-sensing signal systems have been silenced, were compared during both acute and chronic prostate infections. In acute infections, bacterial numbers and inflammatory markers were comparable between WT PA01 and PAO-JP2; however, considerably less tissue damage occurred in infections with PAO-JP2. Chronic infections with PAO-JP2 resulted in reduced bacterial colonization, tissue damage and inflammation as compared to WT PAO1 infections. Therefore, the quorum-sensing lasI and rhlI genes in Ps. aeruginosa affect acute prostate infections, but play a considerably more important role in maintaining chronic infections. We have thus developed a highly reproducible model for the study of Ps. aeruginosa virulence in the prostate.


A simple, inexpensive spectrofluorometric ultramicroassay for determining the plasma lipid peroxidation index is described. Plasma is incubated for 60 minutes at 95 degrees C in a thiobarbituric acetate buffer medium (pH 3,5) with butylhydroxytoluene and Fe . The chromogen is then extracted in butanol 1-pyridine and quantified by spectrofluorometry (exc.: 532 nm; em: 553 nm). The mean value of the plasma thiobarbituric lipid peroxidation index determined by this method in 101 healthy non-smokers (age 39.1 +/- 8.7 years) was found to be 1.61 +/- 0.72.


ABSTRACT Metalinguistic knowledge is regarded as an important factor in the development of writing. However, little attention has been paid to the metalinguistic knowledge of L2 writers in non-anglophone contexts. This study investigates L1-Turkish-speaking, first-year university students' metalinguistic knowledge of the lexical phrases they use in their own academic writing, in English at an English-medium university. Stimulated recall protocols were carried out with 10 participants at both the beginning of the first semester and the end of the second semester of their first year at university. The results show that the participants' self-reported metalinguistic understanding of lexical phrases tended to shift from low- and medium-level awareness to high-level awareness, although variability was found within the group. This study also provides evidence for a moderate negative correlation between the levels of metalinguistic knowledge and frequencies of lexical phrases in L2 writers' essays. The participants' metalinguistic understanding of lexical phrases seems to be shaped by their prior learning experiences and their conceptualisations of lexical phrases. This qualitative perspective provides new understandings into lexical phrases in academic writing, which would not be gained through only examining L2 writers' texts. The findings have implications for teaching English and academic writing in English-medium instruction contexts.


Java Specification Request (JSR) 292, which was realized with Java 7, defines a new java bytecode called invokedynamic, which can be used to call methods by name, without determining statically where the implementation of the called method is to be found. This mechanism eases the implementation of highly dynamic languages for the Java Virtual Machine.
 In this work we explain how we extended the Soot framework for static analysis and transformation of Java programs to properly handle invokedynamic bytecodes. Our implementation required changes on all levels of Soot, as all intermediate representations needed to be adapted appropriately. We comment on the design decisions taken and how users can use our implementation to statically process or generate invokedynamic instructions.
 Our support has been integrated into Soot release 2.5.0 and is thus already available for everyone to use.


A vehicle's performance depends greatly on the operating conditions, such as journey type, driving behavior etc. Driving patterns vary with geographical location and traffic conditions. In today's global economy where automobile industries are concerned with both local and international markets, it becomes necessary to investigate vehicle performance for driving cycles of different countries and develop vehicle designs which are appropriate to the consumer's market. This paper concentrates on the issues related to designing hybrid electric vehicles. A method of optimizing the size of the principal hardware components of hybrid vehicles such as, electric motors, internal combustion engines, transmissions and energy storage devices based on the demands of different drive cycles is discussed in the paper. Driving cycles of five major countries around the globe were used for investigation: the ECE 15 used by United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UN/ECE), the Japanese 10-15 mode, China's Beijing11, Australian urban drive cycle and finally, the United States EPA75. The 'V-ELPH 2.01' EV-HEV computer simulation package developed at Texas A&M University was used for simulation testing.


Homeobox (HOX) A10 is essential for fertility as demonstrated in transgenic mice, specifically affecting implantation and decidualization. Its role in human decidualization, however, remains unknown. In this study, we used gene silencing followed by microarray analysis to decipher the role of HOXA10 during decidualization of human endometrial stromal cells (HESCs). HOXA10 was knocked down using siRNA oligonucleotide transfection and cells were treated with estradiol, medroxyprogesterone acetate and dibutyryl cAMP (H + cAMP) to induce decidualization. Genes significantly regulated were identified using the Affymetrix microarray chip. With this method, 2361 transcripts were significantly altered by 1.5-fold or higher (P < 0.05) with H + cAMP treatment only. Of these genes, 258 were significantly up-regulated by HOXA10 knockdown and 236 transcripts were significantly down-regulated by more than 1.5-fold, totaling 494 genes that were regulated by HOXA10 during decidualization. Data analysis using the Ingenuity System revealed that many of the genes regulated by HOXA10 knockdown during H + cAMP treatment were associated with cell cycle. Real-time PCR was used to confirm that HOXA10 knockdown decreased expression of the cell cycle genes CDC2 and CCNB2. In addition, a higher percentage of cells were arrested in the G2/M phase. Next, we observed that cell proliferation as measured by BrdU incorporation was decreased upon HOXA10 knockdown and H + cAMP treatment. Apoptosis, on the other hand, as measured by Annexin V staining was not influenced by siHOXA10 in decidualizing cells. Together, these data demonstrate that during decidualization of HESC, HOXA10 is actively involved in promoting cell proliferation through the regulation of hundreds of genes.


SUMMARY
Objective: The aim of the study was to develop a Spanish adaptation of the Irrational Food Beliefs Scale (IFBS). This is important due not only to the scarcity and limitations of existing instruments in Spanish, but also to the potential of the IFBS in terms of studying the difficulties some people face in achieving healthy weight control.
Methods: Subjects were 323 secondary-level and high-school students (12-20 years; 152 females, 171 males). In addition to the IFBS, we determined the body mass index and analysed the following variables: influence of the aesthetic body shape model, perceived stress, coping strategies, self-esteem and variables from the Eating Disorders Inventory-2.
Results: The factor analysis yielded two factors corresponding to irrational and rational beliefs about food. The internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha coefficient) of the IFBS as a whole and of the irrational and rational sub-scales was 0.863, 0.881 and 0.779, respectively. The analysis of correlations with the abovementioned variables showed an adequate construct validity.
Discussion: The Spanish version of the IFBS fulfils the psychometric requirements for a measure of irrational/rational food beliefs and shows adequate internal consistency and construct validity.


What made SARS such a threat to human health turned out to be surprisingly simple. Thirty months after the causative agent was found to be a novel coronavirus and 2 years after the disease had been stamped out, scientists determined that what gave the agent the ability to sicken humans came down to two key amino acid changes. The findings are part of a legacy of an unprecedented scientific effort. The SARS outbreak came and went, but as soon as it emerged, dozens of labs around the world jumped into the fray. Their efforts and the work spawned are continuing to increase our understanding of how zoonotic diseases emerge and spread and how they might be contained, if not prevented.


DNA methylation of cytosine residues constitutes a prominent epigenetic modification of the chromatin fiber which is locked in a transcriptionally inactive conformation leading to gene silencing. Plant developmental processes, as differentiation and proliferation, are accompanied by chromatin remodeling and epigenetic reprogramming. Despite the increasing knowledge gained on the epigenetic mechanisms controlling plant developmental processes, the knowledge of the DNA methylation regulation during relevant developmental programs in flowering plants, such as gametogenesis or embryogenesis, is very limited. The analysis of global DNA methylation levels has been frequently conducted by high performance capillary electrophoresis, and more recently also by ELISA-based assays, which provided quantitative data of whole organs and tissues. Nevertheless, to investigate the DNA methylation dynamics during plant development in different cell types of the same organ, the analysis of spatial and temporal pattern of nuclear distribution of 5-methyl-deoxy-cytidine (5mdC) constitutes a potent approach. In this work, immunolocalization of 5mdC on sections and subsequent confocal laser microscopy analysis have been applied for in situ cellular analysis of a variety of plant cells, tissues and organs with different characteristics, e.g. hardness, heterogeneity, cell accessibility, tissue compactness, etc.; the results demonstrated the versatility and feasibility of the approach for different plant samples, and revealed defined DNA methylation nuclear patterns associated with differentiation and proliferation events of various plant cell types and developmental programs. Quantification of 5mdC immunofluorescence intensity by image analysis software also permitted to estimate differences in global DNA methylation levels among different cells types of the same organ during development.


Recently, elongase of very long chain fatty acids‐3 (ELOVL3) was demonstrated to play a pivotal role in physiology and biochemistry of the ocular surface by maintaining a proper balance in the lipid composition of meibum. The goal of this study was to further investigate the effects of ELOVL3 ablation in homozygous Elovl3‐knockout mice (E3hom) in comparison with age and sex matched wild‐type controls (E3wt). Slit lamp examination of the ocular surface of mice, and histological examination of their ocular tissues, highlighted a severe negative impact of Elovl3 inactivating mutation on the Meibomian glands (MG) and conjunctiva of mice. MG transcriptomes of the E3hom and E3wt mice were assessed and revealed a range of up‐ and downregulated genes related to lipid biosynthesis, inflammation, and stress response, compared with E3wt mice. Heat stage polarized light microscopy was used to assess melting characteristics of normal and abnormal meibum. The loss of Elovl3 led to a 8°C drop in the melting temperature of meibum in E3hom mice, and increased its fluidity. Also noted were the excessive accumulation of lipid material and tears around the eye and severe ocular inflammation, among other abnormalities.


Justice and Toleration: The Problem of Hobbism in Early Locke This article treats about the influence of Hobbes on the early writings of John Locke, Two Tracts on Government (1660 and 1662). These Tracts don't have a particular importance in understanding Locke's work, but they are important for understanding the spirit of the time and the intellectual development of the author of the Second Treatise (1690). In the Two Tracts, Locke defends a conservative position in the matter of government's role in regulating the religious policy. Locke was a puritan, but he was part of that direction of Puritanism which remained attached to the Church of England and, therefore, he was critique of the anarchical spirit of radical and sectarian Protestants. Therefore, he defended the thesis that religious feelings should be subordinated to the reasons of State, as defined by the political authority. For a better understanding of the issues of the Two Tracts, we first analyze the political context in which they were written, and the main theories of that time in matter of politics and religion, especially Hobbes's. Then, we show that the main argument of Locke in Two Tracts could be considered as hobbist, the "hobbism" being, in that time, the use of a Hobbesian view even in the refutation of Hobbes.


The huge increases in debt-GDP ratios following the 2007–2009 global financial crisis, which are unprecedented except in times of war, has focused attention on the viability of the fiscal positions of EU countries and the US, how to assess this and the likely future evolution of these positions. This paper proposes an indicator of the fiscal stance which computes the fiscal adjustment required to reach a specific debt-GDP targeted given the forecasts of future deficit and interest rates obtained from an unrestricted (recursively-estimated) VAR model. The index is easy to compute and can be decomposed to disclose the different contribution of revenue, expenditure, nominal yields, inflation and growth to the fiscal stance. For this reason it provides a transparent and detailed measure of the fiscal stance, particularly suitable for multi-country surveillance. As a result, the index improves on the tax-gap indicators widely used by governments and international agencies, and is far more informative than formal econometric tests of fiscal sustainability. The time series of the indicator for individual EU countries and the US show that their fiscal position has fluctuated considerably over the last 40 years, and has particularly deteriorated since 2007. The index predicts that the adjustment required to restore pre-crisis debt-GDP levels are higher for high debt countries like Greece, Italy and Portugal. They become more severe the shorter is the time horizon for the adjustment. As a large degree of uncertainty surrounds the assessment of the fiscal stance in the medium and long run, we argue that policy makers should inform their policy based on the worst case scenario predicted by the indicator.


Despite recent successes in hand pose estimation, there yet remain challenges on RGB-based 3D hand pose estimation (HPE) under hand-object interaction (HOI) scenarios where severe occlusions and cluttered backgrounds exhibit. Recent RGB HOI benchmarks have been collected either in real or synthetic domain, however, the size of datasets is far from enough to deal with diverse objects combined with hand poses, and 3D pose annotations of real samples are lacking, especially for occluded cases. In this work, we propose a novel end-to-end trainable pipeline that adapts the hand-object domain to the single hand-only domain, while learning for HPE. The domain adaption occurs in image space via 2D pixel-level guidance by Generative Adversarial Network (GAN) and 3D mesh guidance by mesh renderer (MR). Via the domain adaption in image space, not only 3D HPE accuracy is improved, but also HOI input images are translated to segmented and de-occluded hand-only images. The proposed method takes advantages of both the guidances: GAN accurately aligns hands, while MR effectively fills in occluded pixels. The experiments using Dexter-Object, Ego-Dexter and HO3D datasets show that our method significantly outperforms state-of-the-arts trained by hand-only data and is comparable to those supervised by HOI data. Note our method is trained primarily by hand-only images with pose labels, and HOI images without pose labels.


I met Lon a week after he had been told that he would be dying in short order. He had Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, bulbar type. Rather than broadcasting its intentions by weakening the limbs before overtaking his ability to speak, swallow, and breathe, this less common subtype had robbed Lon of these functions straightaway. Lon seemed to have little patience for the process of dying; he asked me every day how much time he had left. And every day I told him that I didn't know.


This article is written on the basis of dissertation material for the scientific degree of candidate of psychological sciences (PhD), on the basis of handwritten material. The topic of the dissertation is "Social and psychological correction of suicidal conditions in persons of mature age". Theoretical-methodological analysis of approaches to the problem of the suicidal condition in adults, was carried out in a modern, scientific environment. It is substantiated that the suicidal condition means temporary, situational or internally-conditioned disintegration of a personality which arises when one sees it as impossible to overcome obstacles in achievement of vital goals by using methods formed on the basis of previous life experience. It is indicative that the suicidal condition can be manifested by signs of decrease and inflexibility of social integration that leads to violations in interpersonal, social and professional spheres of the personality. The analysis as conducted allowed identifying characteristic features of suicidal conditions at the current stage of development of social and economic relations and identifying characteristic features of such conditions that indicate suicidal intentions. An important point is that in order to determine the real suicide risk in adults, it is necessary to take into account not only factors that contribute to suicide, but also predictors that deter suicidal states and act as protective factors against suicide. On the basis of the research carried out in the dissertation material marks the connection of actual abilities of the person and ways of processing the conflict, which can lead to the formation and manifestation of behavioral reactions, in consequence of which there can be irreversible consequences in the form of suicide. As a result, the article analyzes the topic of the actual abilities of the person, which help cope with the oppressive situation, seemingly unsolvable. Special attention in the article is paid to the fact that due to actual abilities it is possible to form new views on the conflict leading to suicidal thoughts and to form a new vision of an "intolerable" conflict situation. The characteristic features of the PPT method being conflict-centered are highlighted and described; by applying a positive interpretation of the symptom arising from a highly stressful situation, it becomes possible to change the human condition from "intractable" to "solvable" and deactivate the intensity of suicidal thoughts, consequently lowering the risks and probability of suicidal thoughts to be carried out. Despair and the desire to end one's life recede, which gives hope for a change in the life situation, through newly developed skills. The principle of hope, is extremely important and is one of the fundamental concepts of PPT. In the article it is traced that through the use of situational encouragement and goal enlargement it becomes possible to identify the individuality and uniqueness of a given person, to clarify the life prospects of the future that will inevitably lead to the discovery of creative potentials inherent in this person, which were displaced or suppressed by situations of acute (macro) or chronic (micro) stress and trauma, resulting in "tunnel thinking", which created a sense of "hopelessness" and no way out of the current situation On the basis of the study, it was found that the use of the PPT method in work with suicidal people, gives great prospects for changes in the cognitive abilities of the personality, its perception and reaction to stressful situations, as well as the acquisition of new meanings of life and other ideas about its quality.


BACKGROUND
Linoleic acid has been implicated in the pathogenesis of acute pancreatitis. However, molecular mechanisms underlying adverse effects of large-dose linoleic acid remain unclear. Current study aimed to explore the impact of high-dose linoleic acid on the activation of Janus kinase 2 (JAK2)-signal transducers and activators of transcription 3 (STAT3) pathway, cytokine production, and lipogenesis in pancreatic exocrine cells.

METHODS
MTT assay was used to detect the viability of AR42J rat pancreatic exocrine cells, and lactate dehydrogenase assay was utilized to detect cytotoxicity. Concentrations of interleukin (IL)-6 and tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α were detected by ELISA, and protein expression of JAK2, p-JAK2, STAT3, p- STAT3, and fatty acid synthase (FAS) was examined by Western Blot. The impact of highdose linoleic acid on JAK2-STAT3 pathway was also examined when JAK2 was inhibited by AG490, and STAT3 expression was interrupted by siRNA.

RESULTS
The cell viability of AR42J rat pancreatic exocrine cells was inhibited, and cytotoxicity was increased by high-dose linoleic acid. JAK2 and STAT3 proteins in pancreatic exocrine cells were activated by high-dose linoleic acid via phosphorylation and nuclear localization of phosphorylated STAT3. Moreover, the expression of downstream proteins in JAK2-STAT3 pathway (IL-6, TNF-α and FAS) was up-regulated by high-dose linoleic acid. The increased levels of IL-6 and TNF-α caused by high-dose linoleic acid were attenuated by JAK2 inhibitor AG490. p-JAK2 protein was up-regulated, whereas p-STAT3, STAT3 and FAS proteins were down-regulated by high-dose linoleic acid in the presence of STAT3-siRNA.

CONCLUSION
The cytotoxicity was increased and JAK2-STAT3 signaling pathway was activated by high-dose linoleic acid through cytokine production and lipogenesis in rat pancreatic exocrine cells.


A two-course bonded technique that has evolved from the continuing national and local interest in bridge deck durability was used in June 1974 to construct six bridge decks in Virginia. During the construction, which was the first phase of a five-year study on the construction, condition and performance of two-course decks, detailed observations were made of the activities used to construct the six two-course decks and two conventional single-lift decks, and data concerning the several concretes utilized in the construction of the decks were recorded. Based on comparisons of two-course and single-lift construction techniques the following conclusions are made. An overlay should be placed not sooner than two days after a base layer is placed. Light sandblasting of the base layer removes laitance that might adversely affect the bond between the base layer and overlay. A bonding layer of cement slurry should be broomed onto the base layer not further than 10 feet (3 meters) nor longer than 15 minutes ahead of the overlay placements. The same depth of clear concrete cover above the top reinforcing steel resulted from the two-course construction as from the single-lift technique. Using conventional equipment selected by the constructor, the construction activities proceeded in an orderly and satisfactory manner and coefficients of variation for the time intervals required to install the base layers and the overlays are comparable to values representing excellent control for single-lift construction. Although a 7-cu yd (5.4 cu m) truckload of concrete was screeded over 3-1/2 times as much surface area for an overlay as for a conventional single-lift deck, the average duration per truckload between the initial depositing and the completion of the screeding activity on the wearing surface was approximately the same in both the two-course and single- lift techniques. Not including texturing and curing activities, the average man-hours required to install was 33% greater than for conventional single-lift decks, but in terms of project days required for construction the two-course and single-lift techniques are equivalent. The total additional cost of the two-course technique is approximately 5% of the cost of the bridge superstructure. Three overlay concretes were selected for use as wearing courses on the two-course concrete decks on the basis of their protective qualities. A broad range of handling characteristics is represented by these concretes, which included a latex modified concrete, a high quality PCC, and a wire fiber reinforced concrete. The differences in these wearing course concretes did not significantly affect the placement activities, other than the batching, during their respective installations. In general the decks constructed by the two-course techniques are equivalent to those resulting from conventional single-lift construction, however these successfully installed special wearing course concretes offer improved potential for deck performance.


The postion of the thoracic duct and its relationship to the spine was examined during the course of 100 autopsies on subjects aged 48 to 95 years. Four variants in its position and two variants in shape were found, with a percentage incidence of left-sided 36%, mid-line 20%, oblique 17%, rightsided 6%, bowed 14%, angulated 7M. The midline, oblique and right-sided positions are variants related to age or consitution, left-sided postion is regarded as related to age. The variations in shape are regarded as pathological changes due to displacement of the aorta.


Electronic Music Distribution is in need of robust and automatically extracted music descriptors. An important attribute of a piece of polyphonic music is what is commonly referred to as "the way it sounds". While there has been a large quantity of research done to model the timbre of individual instruments, little work has been done to analyze "real world" timbre mixtures such as the ones found in popular music. In this paper, we present our research about such "polyphonic timbres". We describe an effective way to model the textures found in a given music signal, and show that such timbre models provide new solutions to many issues traditionally encountered in music signal processing and music information retrieval. Notably, we describe their applications for music similarity, segmentation and pattern induction.


The Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development sponsored a 2-day workshop to assess the body of evidence on pregnancy in women with physical disabilities, identify gaps in knowledge, and formulate recommendations for further research. A multidisciplinary group of experts discussed available data on pregnancy outcomes among women with varying physically disabling conditions, medical and psychosocial risks for mothers and children, and barriers to prenatal care and parenting for women with physical disabilities. Existing evidence is limited by a preponderance of retrospective single-site studies of small sample sizes. For most women, pregnancy outcomes are favorable. However, increased rates of certain adverse outcomes, such as low birth weight (related to preterm birth or growth restriction) and cesarean delivery, have been reported in women with spinal cord injuries, rheumatoid arthritis, multiple sclerosis, or other conditions. Common morbidities across conditions may include urinary tract infections, decreased mobility and independence, skin ulceration, respiratory compromise, interpersonal abuse, stress, and mood disorders. Socioeconomic, physical, and attitudinal barriers to antenatal care and independent parenting can be problematic. Current evidence, although limited, indicates that most women with physical disabilities will have good pregnancy outcomes; however, some data suggest that rates of a range of complications may be more common among women with physical disabilities, depending on the nature and severity of the underlying condition. Many questions remain unanswered. Establishment of a systematic and comprehensive registry of pregnancy course and outcomes among women with physical disabilities is of high priority for addressing persistent gaps in knowledge.


Traditionally TCP bandwidth sharing has been investigated mainly by stochastic approaches due to its seemingly chaotic nature. Even though of great generality, the theories deal mainly with expectation values, which is prone to misinterpretation with respect to the Quality-of-Experience (QoE). We disassemble TCP operating conditions into dominating scenarios and show that bandwidth sharing alone follows mostly deterministic rules. From the analysis we derive significant root causes of well-known TCP aspects like unequal sharing, burstiness of losses, global synchronization, and on buffer sizing. We base our model on a detailed analysis of bandwidth sharing experiments with subsequent mathematical reproduction.


: Monthly withdrawal of a total of 1.25--2.0 ml of blood from young, mature, inbred Fischer 344 rats produced no noticeable effects on common hematologic parameters, but it did cause a decrease in the rate of body weight gain. The difference in body weight between rats bled and not bled was evident 3 weeks after the study began, and the difference persisted throughout the 23-week study.


Video Compression has played an important role in Multimedia data storage and transmission. Video compression techniques remove spatial as well as temporal redundancy using intra-frame and inter-frame coding respectively. A large level of compression can be achieved through inter-frame coding. In this paper, performance of four matching criterion in the temporal coding of video signal, which are Minimum Mean Absolute Error, Vector Matching Criterion, Smooth Constrained - Mean Absolute Error, and proposed algorithm using new pixel values are compared on hardware design using VHDL. Three step search algorithm has been used for searching the matching block as a block matching technique, because three step search algorithm is very simple and efficient search algorithm, which provides near optimum results only in three steps. For the various videos it has been experimentally observed that the minimum average error per pixel, and minimum search points per block reduces upto 0 per pixel and 13.31 per block respectively using proposed criterion and the values for the same parameters and same set of frames are very high using other criterion.


OBJECTIVE
To assess the synergistic effects of gene polymorphisms of the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system (RAAS) on essential hypertension (EH) in Kazakhs in Xinjiang.

METHODS
A cross-sectional case-control association study was conducted in 52 1 hypertensive and 623 normotensive subjects of Kazakh ethnicity on eight common single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) interspersed over five genes of the RAAS. SNPs were genotyped by polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism. Interactions among the SNPs were analyzed by the multifactor dimensionality reduction method (MDR).

RESULTS
In single-locus analysis, subjects with AGT -6G, ACE D, and CYP11B2 -344C had increased susceptibility to EH (OR: 1.249; 1.425; 1.201). When subgrouped by sex, males with the t allele of REN Taq I had decreased risk for EH (OR: 0.529), and those with AGT -6G and CYP11B2 -344 C had increased risk for EH (OR: 1.498; 1.449). In females, carrying ACE D increased the risk for EH. (OR: 1.327). In six AGT haplotypes, H1 was protective, while H3 increased susceptibility to EH (OR: 0.683; 2.025). Interaction analysis by MDR showed that there was a strong synergistic effect between ACE I/D and CY11B2 (T-344C) and a moderate interaction between both ACE I/D and CY11B2 T-344C and AGT A-6G.

CONCLUSIONS
There was a strong synergistic effect between ACE I/D and CY11B2 T-344C and a moderate effect between both ACE I/D and CY11B2 T-344C and AGT A-6G. AGT -6G, ACE D, and CY11B2 -344C increased susceptibility to EH. REN Taq I, AGT -6G, CY11B2 -344 C and ACE D were associated with male and female EH, respectively. H1 and H3 of AGT were protective and risk haplotypes, respectively.


A genomic library of Mucor circinelloides ATCC 1216b has been constructed in Lambda Fix II vector. The library has an average insert site of 10 kb and covers the genome 12 times. The M. circinelloides gene encoding glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (gpd) was isolated from this library by hybridization of the recombinant phage clones with a gpd-specific gene probe generated by PCR reaction. The complete nucleotide sequence encodes a putative polypeptide chain of 339 amino acids interrupted by 3 introns. The predicted amino acid sequence of this gene shows a high degree of sequence similarity to the GPD proteins from other filamentous fungi. The promoter region, containing a consensus TATA and CAAT box and a 298 nucleotid long termination region were also determined.


The objective of this paper was to investigate whether sedentary leisure time was associated with increased regular consumption of unhealthy foods, independently of socio-demographic indicators and family context. The analysis included 59,809 students from the Brazilian National School-Based Adolescent Health Survey (PeNSE) in 2009. The response variable was sedentary leisure time, defined as watching more than two hours of TV daily. The target explanatory variables were regular consumption of soft drinks, sweets, cookies, and processed meat. Odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence limits (95%CI) were obtained by multiple logistic regression. Prevalence of sedentary leisure time was 65%. Regular consumption of unhealthy foods was statistically higher among students reporting sedentary leisure time, before and after adjusting for sex, age, skin color, school administration (public versus private), household assets index, and household composition. The results indicate the need for integrated interventions to promote healthy leisure-time activities and healthy eating habits among young people.


Narcissistic Personality Disorder (NPD) is a personality disorder that involves a long-term pattern of abnormal behavior characterized by exaggerated feelings of selfimportance, an excessive need for admiration, and a lack of understanding of others' feelings. Sadism is an additional factor observed in the most severe type of NPD, malignant narcissism. At the psychological level NPD is usually diagnosed or studied using some type of self-report diagnostic instrument. While there is not a large body of research on the neuroscience of NPD, there are consistencies pointing to abnormalities in certain brain areas, especially the insular cortex, that are associated with features of NPD, especially lack of empathy. The origins of NPD remain unknown, however biological, psychological and social factors all play important roles in the etiology of this disorder. Further clinical and neuroscience studies of empathy disorders, especially NPD and malignant narcissism, are necessary in order to better understand the environmental factors that contribute to this disorder.


With the close combination of knowledge management and process quality management, man, as the member of 5M1E, is especially important to the fluctuation effect on product quality. How to improve the comprehensive quality of employees is the core strategy for enterprise to realize the total quality management. Therefore, this study took bearing manufacturing process as an example, expounded the theoretical framework and technological implementation method of system of quality knowledge learning and the system realization interface was given finally.


The use of recycled water for agriculture is a long-term water strategy in California.
 A study in the 1980s in Monterey County showed recycled water increased soil salinity
 but not to a level unacceptable for agriculture. Most growers in the northern Salinas
 Valley have been using it since 1998, and yet providers of the water and many growers
 are concerned that the sustained use of recycled water might cause deterioration of
 the soil. An ongoing study, initiated in 2000, compares the changes in soil salinity
 between a field receiving only well water and eight fields that receive recycled water.
 In 13 years of data, the average soil salinity parameters at each site were highly
 correlated with the average water quality values of the recycled water. Soil salinity
 did increase, though not deleteriously. Of most concern was the accumulation of chloride
 at four of the sites, to levels above the critical threshold values for chloride-sensitive
 crops.


Introduction : F lexor tendon injuries remain one of the most difficult hand injuries to manage post-operatively. Early active mobilisation protocols are considered 'best practice' internationally but have not been well researched in the developing country context. The feasibility of such research, and use of these protocols, need to be determined by considering the potential for improved functional outcomes for patients, together with various contextual and resource challenges. Purpose : To explore aspects of feasibility related to the recruitment-, consent-, and retention rates in consideration of a future definitive Randomised Control Trail. In addition, preliminary results of an early active therapy protocol compared to an early passive therapy protocol were reported on, together with patient satisfaction and demographics. Methods : A parallel randomised pilot trial design was used. Thirty-one participants were recruited into one of two therapy groups (active or passive). Fourteen of these participants completed their therapy and eight-week assessments including: Total Active Motion, grip strength, the Michigan Hand Questionnaire and the Smith Hand Function Evaluation. 95% Confidence intervals examined feasibility data. Non-parametric data analysis was done primarily using medians and ranges. Results : Feasibility results of 37% recruitment rate, 97% consent rate and 45% retention rate, did not meet the criteria for success, deeming a trial in the present design, not feasible. Discussion : Due to the dearth of research from public health clinical settings in developing countries, this study contributes rich contextual data, but the challenges discussed need to be addressed before further research will achieve success. Keywords : Feasibility studies, recruitment-, consent-, and retention rates, early active rehabilitation, activity and participation


ABSTRACT Secretory proteins produced by salivary glands are stored in granules and released into saliva. Rodent salivary glands are a reliable experimental model because they are morphologically and functionally similar to those of humans. To determine if the effects of microgravity on secretory proteins are increased on extended flights, their expression in mouse parotid glands, morphological, immunocytochemical, and biochemical/molecular methods were employed. Acinar cells of STS-135 (13 day) and Bion-M1 (30 day) flight animals showed an increase of autophagy and apoptosis, while duct cells contained vacuoles with endocytosed proteins. In STS-135, decreases were seen in the regulatory subunit of type II protein kinase A (RII) by Western blotting, and demilune cell and parotid protein (DCPP) and α-amylase (p<0.01) by immunogold labeling, while proline-rich proteins (PRPs, p<0.001) and parotid secretory protein (PSP, p<0.05) were increased. These results suggest microgravity effects on secretion are function-dependent. Microarray analyses showed significant changes in the expression of a number of genes, including components of the cyclic-3',5',-adenosine monophosphate (cyclic AMP) signaling pathway. Compared to habitat ground controls, mice from both flights exhibited altered expression of cyclic AMP-specific phosphodiesterases, adenylate cyclase isoforms, and several A-kinase anchoring proteins. Bion-M1 flight mice showed increases in gene expression for lysozyme and amylase, a decrease in PRPs, and RII expression was unchanged from control values. Secretory protein expression is altered by travel in space, representing a reversible adjustment to microgravity conditions. Ultimately, the goal is to develop a test kit using saliva — an easily obtained body fluid — to assess the physiologic effects of travel in space.


Frequently organized by NIST, Speaker Recognition evaluations (SRE) show high accuracy rates. This demonstrates that this field of research is mature. The latest progresses came from the proposition of low dimensional i-vectors representation and new classifiers such as Probabilistic Linear Discriminant Analysis (PLDA) or Cosine Distance classifier. In this paper, we study some variants of Boltzmann Machines (BM). BM is used in image processing but still unexplored in Speaker Verification (SR). Given two utterances, the SR task consists to decide whether they come from the same speaker or not. Based on this definition, we can illustrate SR as two-classes (same vs. different speakers classes) classification problem. Our first attempt of using BM is to model each class with one generative Restricted Boltzmann Machine (RBM) with symmetric Log-Likelihood Ratio on both models as decision score. This new approach achieved an Equal Error Rate (EER) of 7% and a minimum Detection Cost Function (DCF) of 0.035 on the female content of the NIST SRE 2008. The objective of this research is mainly to explore a new paradigm i.e. BM without necessarily obtaining better performance than the state-of-the-art system.


OBJECTIVES
To develop instruments that measure the severity of infantile hemangiomas (Hemangioma Severity Scale [HSS]) and the complications of infantile hemangiomas for longitudinal use (Hemangioma Dynamic Complication Scale [HDCS]).

DESIGN
Instrument development and reliability study.

SETTING
Academic research.

PARTICIPANTS
The HSS and the HDCS were developed through the collaborative effort of members of the Hemangioma Investigator Group Research Core, an expert multi-institutional research group. After development of the scales, 13 pediatric dermatologists used the HSS to score 20 different hemangiomas. In addition, 12 pediatric dermatologists used the HDCS to score hemangioma-related complications for 24 clinical scenarios. Interrater and intrarater reliability was measured for both scales.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES
Interrater and intrarater reliability.

RESULTS
For the HSS, interrater reliability and intrarater reliability exceeded 99%. Similarly, the HDCS had a high rate of interrater agreement; for individual items, agreement among raters was 67% to 100%, with most clinical scenarios demonstrating greater than 90% agreement. Intrarater reliability was excellent for all individual items of the HDCS.

CONCLUSION
The HSS and the HDCS are reliable scales that can be used to measure the severity of infantile hemangiomas, including the severity of complications for longitudinal use.


The mechanisms controlling desorption rates from soils and sediments were investigated by measuring TCE desorption kinetics from model solids, sediments, and soil under unsaturated conditions at 100% relative humidity. A new experimental methodology enabled measurement of desorption rates over more than 7 orders of magnitude and revealed that intraparticle pores of molecular dimensions may be responsible for the slow release of sorbed contaminants. Desorption kinetics proceeded on two distinct time scales, and all solids had both a fast and slowly released fraction. The amount of slow desorbing TCE was found to depend on the initial vapor concentration, but not in direct proportion. At TCE vapor concentrations near saturation, the fast fraction comprised the majority of the sorbed TCE and required less than 10 min for desorption, whereas the slow desorbing fraction was released over periods of months to years. Although model solids with uniform pore and particle sizes were used, a pore diffusion model was not adequate to describe both the fast and slow desorbing fractions. The measured physical properties of the solids were not useful for making a priori predictions and, in comparisons among the solids, did not correlate with the amount and the rate of slowly released TCE.more » The Freundlich isotherm exponents correlated with the fraction of slowly released TCE, but isotherm nonlinearity was not sufficient to account for the dual rate behavior. 27 refs., 18 figs., 5 tabs.« less


Using an external view of the head, the ability to direct a proton radiotherapy beam at an intracerebral lesion is described, using a biostereometric (BSM) technique. The positions of markers, recognizable on computed tomography (CT) or magnetic resonance (MR) images, at known locations on the skin of a patient's head are related to the site of the lesion seen on the images. The markers' positions are determined by a BSM device, incorporating six video cameras coupled to a computer. A transformation from a coordinate system, defined by the CT or MR images, to another coordinate system, that of the BSM device, allows the proton beam to be directed towards the lesion. Markers used in this work were solid steel spheres for CT and plastic spheres containing oil for MR images.


Upgrading strategies for new broadband services that take advantage of B-ISDN architectures are investigated for the time frame of ATM applications. A new concept of super-multimedia services is introduced, which makes efficient use of super-multichannel and super-high-definition features of future broadband services keeping compatibilities with existing services. After defining super-multimedia services, upgradable B-ISDN architectures are discussed for accommodating such new broadband services. Then three phase upgrading of super-multimedia services that is suitable for B-ISDN architectures is investigated. Finally, an example of upgrading strategy that incorporate multi-window type terminals is shown to exhibit good compatibility with existing broadband services and also to adapt the recent trend of service personalization. The possibility of providing super-multimedia services at almost the same cost as existing standard TV services is also discussed.<<ETX>>


Abstract Changes in prolactin (PRL)-, growth hormone (GH)- and PRL/GH-containing cells in the anterior pituitary of pre- and postnatal male and female rats were determined using immunocytochemistry with double fluorescent antibodies. The pituitary glands from a fetus on Day 20 of gestation and pups on Days 0, 1, 4, 7, 12, and 20 of the postnatal period with sex distinction were monodispersed and subjected to immunocytochemistry. Following immunostaining, the three types of cells described above were counted (i.e., only PRL-, only GH-, and both PRL and GH-positive cells in a visual field of microscope). Anterior pituitaries and blood were obtained from pups on Days 0, 1, 4, 7, 12, and 20 after birth and pooled with sex distinction, and bioactive PRL levels in the anterior pituitary and serum were measured using an Nb2 rat lymphoma cell bioassay. Double fluorescent-labeled immunocytochemistry was able to distinguish reliably between PRL-, GH-, and PRL/GH-containing cells. The PRL cells increased rapidly after parturition to 4 days of age and after 12 days of age in both genders. The latter increase was involved in the remarkable increase of PRL/GH-containing cells, which were first found at term and remained at low levels until 12 days of age. The weight and PRL level of the anterior pituitary increased in both sexes throughout the lactational stage, but the levels in female rats at 20 days of age were significantly greater than those of male rats. Serum PRL concentration remained at low levels except on Day 0. The present results demonstrate that the development of PRL-containing cells in postnatal rats during the lactational period is activated with two distinct stages, at term to Day 4 and after Day 12, and the development in the latter stage is involved with sexual dimorphism.


The development and yield of plants is directly related to the effects of salinity. There are several reports in scientific studies of significant reduction in the growth and production of tomato in soils with high electrical conductivity. The correction or recovery of salinized soils, although technically possible, is a slow and very expensive process, making it necessary to develop new technologies. The objective of this study is to evaluate the production of tomato (Solanum lycopersicon L.) seedlings using seeds pelleted with a homeopathic preparation of Natrum muriaticum (Nat-m) submitted to saline stress. The treatments consisted of the pelletization of tomato seeds with six dynamizations of Nat-m (3cH, 5cH, 7cH, 9cH, 11cH and 13cH). Coated or uncoated seeds (controls) were placed in phenolic foam blocks, kept in plastic trays previously moistened with 50 mM NaCl saline solution (2.922 g.L-1 of NaCl, electrical conductivity = 4.5 dSm-1) and nutrient solution (0.15 dS.m-1) at half the ionic strength, containing 4, 1, 2, 1, 0.5 and 0.5 mmol.L-1 of N, P, K, Ca, Mg and S, and 17.5, 9.5, 10.5, 2, 0.45 and 0.35 mmol.L-1 of Fe, Mn, Zn, Cu and Mo, respectively. The variables evaluated were germination percentage, germination speed index, shoot length, leaf area, number of leaves, root volume, root dry matter, and shoot dry matter. The treatments pelleted seeds/talc Nat-m 5cH and pelleted seeds/talc Nat-m 7cH increased all variables evaluated. They differed statistically from the controls, with a positive response for the development of tomato seedlings under disequilibrium conditions.


Race is a prominent category in medicine. Epidemiologists describe how rates of morbidity and mortality vary with race, and doctors consider the race of their patients when deciding whether to test them for sickle‐cell anemia or what drug to use to treat their hypertension. At the same time, critics of racial classification say that race is not real but only an illusion or that race is scientifically meaningless. In this paper, I explain how race is used in medicine as a proxy for genes that encode drug metabolizing enzymes and how a proper understanding of race calls into doubt the practice of treating race as a marker of any medically relevant genetic trait.


A biomass inventory and bioenergy assessment for Washington State was completed, producing this final report as well as a web accessible computer database complete with GIS maps on a Visual Basic platform (http://www.pacificbiomass.org). The goal of the study was to inventory Washington's bioresources as a first essential step for all related planning efforts to implement the state Beyond Waste strategy for reduction of organic residuals in solid waste. This inventory also represents a first step toward a sustainable energy policy and vision within the state since information on type and geographic distribution of biomass was perceived as critical for feasibility analysis and project prioritization. This project geographically identified, categorized, and mapped 45 potential sources in Washington at a county level. The categories included field residues, animal manures, forestry residues, food packing/processing waste, and municipal wastes. The biomass inventory was then converted to potential energy production using anaerobic digestion and simple combustion as representative conversion technologies. A five-step method was used for inventorying and determining the biomass and potential electrical energy from Washington's biomass. First, agriculture, processing and municipal statistics and databases along with personal interviews with agriculture and solid waste processing leaders led to the development of a biomass inventory. Second, the resulting biomass was standardized to represent total dry matter. Third, woody or straw-like materials with a high lignocellulosic content were evaluated for potential energy production using combustion as a conversion technology. Heat value coefficients were determined for each individual woody or straw-like material and used to calculate the potential electrical energy and power using 20% conversion efficiency. Fourth, the wet biomass, represented largely by the animal manures and processing wastes, was evaluated for potential electrical energy production using anaerobic digestion as its representative conversion technology. In this process, the dry biomass was converted to available volatile solids and ultimately potential methane production using laboratory determined coefficients for each of the biomass types. From the methane production levels, estimates of electrical energy and power production were developed using 30% conversion efficiency. Lastly, the biomass and bioenergy databases at state and county levels across the varying categories were mapped on GIS and made web-accessible through a Visual Basic directory. The results of this study show that Washington State has an annual production of over 16.9 million tons of underutilized dry equivalent biomass, which is capable of producing, via assumed combustion and anaerobic digestion, over 15.5 billion kWh of electrical energy or 1,769 MW of electrical power. This power total, assuming complete utilization of the inventoried biomass, is equivalent to just about 50% of Washington State's annual residential electrical consumption (EIA, 2003). Washington is blessed with a vast and diverse, annually renewable biomass that is predominantly dispersed lignocellulosic waste (forestry, field straws and yard waste). These materials present technical and economic challenges in collection and processing. However, about 15 percent of the available biomass is in the form of more readily biodegradable and concentrated waste streams coming from the municipal solid, animal manure and food processing wastes. Mapping of the biomass showed regional areas of concentration with the highest concentrated areas being regions where forestry and municipal or forestry and agriculture intersect, such as the Puget Sound/Cascade and Yakima regions. The abundance, diversity and distribution of these organic resources should begin to catalyze thinking about the development of renewable fuels and energy strategies within our state. Coincidentally, the distributed nature of the resource aligns geographically with areas of the state where development of new business opportunities and jobs is of vital interest. Distributed production also possesses substantial other benefits such as decreased dependence on outside supply, price elasticity, market independence and local control all which make development of these resources a vital interest of the state.


In this study the influence of an American parent on the Management Controls Systems (MCSs) in a Dutch subsidiary is explored. MCSs refer to all systems, rules, practices, values and other activities management puts in place in order to direct employee behavior. Different individual MCS components have been investigated solely, but this study explores MCSs by a fairly new approach: MCSs as a whole package. Also the comparison between MCSs in Dutch companies and Dutch subsidiaries of American parents is new. The MCS packages are evaluated on their applied configurations with MCS components and the tightness of applied MCS components.
Research suggests that American companies tend to apply MCSs which are more oriented on hard controls and Dutch companies apply MCSs which are more oriented on soft controls. There are also indications that American companies apply tighter controls than Dutch companies do. This has led to the following two hypotheses:
H1: Dutch subsidiaries with a US parent use a configuration of MCSs which is more oriented on hard controls and Dutch companies with a Dutch parent use a configuration of MCSs which is more oriented on soft controls.
H2: Dutch subsidiaries with a US parent use a configuration of MCSs which applies tighter controls than Dutch companies with a Dutch parent do.
These hypotheses are investigated by conducting interviews with a member of top management of four companies; two Dutch companies and two Dutch subsidiaries with an American parent. It were structured interviews for which I translated an extensive questionnaire of Malmi and Sandelin (see Annex 1). The interviews were audiotaped and transcribed verbatim. Subsequently an analysis was performed to check which MCS components are applied in both groups of companies and its importance in their configurations, and the extent of tightness of applied MCS components is determined.
The findings show that Dutch subsidiaries with an American parent attach indeed more importance to the hard controls in their package of MCSs and the Dutch companies attach more importance to the soft controls in their MCS package. Regarding the tightness of applied controls the findings show that at least Dutch subsidiaries with an American parent apply tight controls, but because of ambiguous results within the two Dutch companies, it became not clear whether these are also applied tighter than in Dutch companies.
The main contribution of the findings in this study is that national culture has a clear impact on the package of MCSs within a company, and subsidiaries seem to adjust their package of MCSs in the direction of the national culture of the parent from the moment of acquisition. The main implication is that one can realize that there are probably differences in the package of MCSs when it concerns distinct 'national cultures', and what these differences comprise, already before an acquisition. Companies can in this way acquaint oneself of expected upcoming changes in the package of MCSs already before the acquisition. Also in all other possible business relations including cross national cultures, it can be wise to take advantage of knowledge of existing differences in the packages of MCSs in both companies. In companies in which the package of MCSs does not prove to be effective, this research can be used as a support in the search, adaptation or application of other or tighter MCSs which fit better with the company, taking into account the 'national culture' of both parent company and subsidiary. Future research should focus on increasing the sample size to test the findings in this study.


The aim of this paper is to evaluate accessibility, usability, and usefulness of digital library plus (dl+) from the faculty members' perspective. A questionnaire was prepared, and sent to the email address of all participants who had registered in digital library plus. Data analysis shows that only a few number of faculty members are interested to register in digital library and use it. Most of the subjects intended to use e-journals. They believe that journal structures are easy for using. Digital library plus is almost one of the digital library for researchers, educators, graduators, and postgraduate students of Iran in English language. As it is, in its beginning most of the faulty members are not familiar with this phenomenon. In fact digital library evaluation has various aspects but this paper focuses on usability, accessibility, and usefulness of digital library. This paper provides insights into evaluation of digital library plus from the users' perspective.

 Key words: Digital library plus, digital library evaluation, faculty members.


Background: Dichlorodiphenyldichloroethylene (DDE) and other organochlorines suppress immunity biomarkers in animals and humans. Our aim was to study the association between prenatal levels of DDE and lower respiratory tract infection in infants independently from polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and other organochlorines. Methods: Maternal levels of p′p′-DDE, dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (p′p-DDT), PCB congeners 28, 118, 138, 153, and 180, hexachlorobenzene, and &bgr;-hexachlorocyclohexane were measured in first trimester serum of 584 pregnant women from a general population-based cohort in Sabadell (Catalonia, Spain). Mothers reported lower respiratory tract infection in interviewer-led questionnaires administered at infant age 6 and 14 months. Results: Thirteen percent of babies had recurrent lower respiratory tract infection during the first 14 months of life. Among the organochlorines, DDE showed the highest levels (median = 112 ng/g lipid); dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane was not detectable. The median total PCB level was 85 ng/g. DDE was the only organochlorine that showed an association with recurrent lower respiratory tract infection (at levels >83 ng/g, the first tertile, relative risk = 2.40 [95% confidence interval = 1.19-4.83]), lower respiratory tract infection at 6 months (1.68 [1.06-2.66]), and lower respiratory tract infection at 14 months (1.52 [1.05-2.21]). Adjusting for PCBs, hexachlorobenzene or &bgr;-hexachlorocyclohexane did not confound the association. Conclusions: Immunologic suppression by DDE as observed in experimental studies could explain the relation between DDE and lower respiratory tract infection, independently of PCBs. Exposure to DDE during prenatal life could be critical for the development of the immune and respiratory systems.


Share repurchases, rather than dividend payments, are increasingly becoming the globally favoured payout method. This has prompted a renewed interest in the field, and raises questions about the actual motivation for share repurchases and whether companies are now repurchasing shares in preference to investing in future growth. This study set out to ascertain whether South African company payout behaviour mirrors global company behaviour. Comprehensive data on share repurchases are, however, not compiled by South African financial data sources or by the Johannesburg Stock Exchange Ltd. In preparation for this study, the authors thus compiled the first comprehensive share repurchase database for companies in selected JSE-listed sectors for the first 11 years (i.e. 1999 to 2009) since share repurchases were first allowed in this country. Share repurchases were found to be a popular payout method, especially in the more recent periods covered in the study. Payout value was dominated by a few companies paying dividends every year and regularly repurchasing shares. Aspects unique to the South African regulatory environment, however, resulted in the South African share repurchase experience not fully mirroring current global practice. The main constraint in the South African share repurchase environment is that comprehensive, actual-time-based share repurchase data are not available. Recommendations are made on how to align the South African regulatory environment with global best practice. Regulatory changes, as well as continued research in the field, will equip stakeholders to make informed decisions.


BACKGROUND
In adult population, stretch-shortening cycle exercise (plyometric exercise) is often used to improve leg muscle power and vertical jump performance. In children, limited information regarding this type of exercise is available. The purpose of this study was to examine the effectiveness of plyometric training and maintenance training on physical performances in prepubescent soccer players.

METHODS
Twenty boys aged 12-13 years was divided in two groups (10 in each): jump group (JG) and control group (CG). JG trained 3 days/week during 10 weeks, and performed various plyometric exercises including jumping, hurdling and skipping. The subsequent reduced training period lasted 8 weeks. However, all subjects continued their soccer training. Maximal cycling power (Pmax) was calculated using a force-velocity cycling test. Jumping power was assessed by using the following tests: countermovement jump (CMJ), squat jump (SJ), drop jump (DJ), multiple 5 bounds (MB5) and repeated rebound jump for 15 seconds (RRJ15). Running velocities included: 20, 30 and 40 m (V20, V30, V40 m). Body fat percentage (BF percent) and lean leg volume were estimated by anthropometry.

RESULTS
Before training, except for BF percent, all baseline anthropometric characteristics were similar between JG and CG. After the training programme, Pmax (p<0.01), CMJ (p<0.01), SJ (p<0.05), MB5 (p<0.01), RRJ15 (p<0.01) and V20 m (p<0.05), performances increased in the JG. During this period no significant performance increase was obtained in the CG. After the 8-week of reduced training, except Pmax (p<0.05) for CG, any increase was observed in both groups.

CONCLUSIONS
These results demonstrate that short-term plyometric training programmes increase athletic performances in prepubescent boys. These improvements were maintained after a period of reduced training.


The paper focuses on variation across institutional and individual scientific blogs, i.e., blogs that are managed by journals, magazines or associations involved in the dissemination of scientific information and blogs that are managed by individual researchers. Using comparable corpora of posts from different scientific disciplines, look in particular at markers of dialogicity, i.e., the representation of participants (markers of self-reference, reader-reference, as well as representation of the scientific community and markers of attribution), markers of communicative action (organizational units and metastatements), and evaluative dialogue (evaluative lexis and dialogic contraction or expansion). Concordance analysis of keywords and key-phrases (as calculated by Wordsmith Tools 8.0) shows that blogs managed by individual scientists emphasize personal voice and interpersonal elements, while institutional blogs are comparatively more informational. Dialogicity markers are shown to contribute to defining how bloggers manage subjective and intersubjective positioning and construct their credibility, thus defining the nature of their relation to the audience and ultimately the functions of blogging.