Altough the action of the standard chemotherapeutic agent for the treatment of advanced colorectal cancer (5-fluorouracil or 5-FU) was improved significantly by combining it with leucovorin (LV), the improved response rate was associated with significant side-effects in approximately thirty percent of patients. In Fluoropyrimidines in cancer therapy, leading cancer researchers update and review the mechanisms of action and the therapeutic selectivity and efficacy of 5-FU, with and without LV and its prodrugs, in the treatment of colorectal cancer. Among the combination agents considered are Orzel (UFT/LV), 5-FU/eniluracil (5-FU/EU), capecitabine (Xeloda), S-1, and a variety ofthymidylate synthase inhibitors. The authors discuss the potential advantages and disadvantages of these varied drugs and their mode of administration. Based on the historical results with these agents when used alone, they also present a rationale for their results when used in combination with other agents. Authoritative and integrative, Fluoropyrimidines in cancer therapy summarizes the latest preclinical and clinical experiences using fluoropyrimidines to treat colorectal cancer, delineates the underlying mechanisms and choices for therapy, describes the ongoing search to identify ever more effective and selective agents with novel mechanisms of action, and details the development of new mechanism-based combination therapies.


The objective of this research was to characterize head impacts with a validated mouthpiece sensor in competitive youth female soccer players during a single season with a validated mouthpiece sensor. Participants included 14 youth female soccer athletes across 2 club-level teams at different age levels (team 1, ages 12-13 y; team 2, ages 14-15 y). Head impact and time-synchronized video data were collected for 66 practices and games. Video data were reviewed to characterize the type and frequency of contact experienced by each athlete. A total of 2216 contact scenarios were observed; heading the ball (n = 681, 30.7%) was most common. Other observed contact scenarios included collisions, dives, falls, and unintentional ball contact. Team 1 experienced a higher rate of headers per player per hour of play than team 2, while team 2 experienced a higher rate of collisions and dives. A total of 935 video-verified contact scenarios were concurrent with recorded head kinematics. While headers resulted in a maximum linear acceleration of 56.1g, the less frequent head-to-head collisions (n = 6) resulted in a maximum of 113.5g. The results of this study improve the understanding of head impact exposure in youth female soccer players and inform head impact exposure reduction in youth soccer.


Whilst there has been a sustained interest in ethnic migrants developing composite cultural identities in emerged multi-cultural contexts, considerations of identity transitions among mainstream consumers (i.e. the non-migrant, locally born majority in a given marketplace) have been so far limited to the local–global culture dichotomy. This paper argues that, in multi-cultural marketplaces, mainstream consumers are exposed to a diverse range of local, global and foreign cultural meanings and may deploy these meanings for identity construal in a more complex manner. The paper offers a conceptual framework of consumer multiculturation that (a) includes foreign cultures as other discrete influences in multi-cultural marketplaces; (b) constructs a more coherent conception of how, through interaction with foreign, global and local cultures, mainstream consumers' identities may diversify beyond local/global/glocal alternatives and (c) considers the impact of these transitions on consumers' perceptions, expectations of and behavioral responses to culture-based brand meanings.


How many equivalence classes of geodesic rays does a graph contain? How many bounded automorphisms does a planar graph have? Neimayer and Watkins studied these two questions and answered them for a certain class of graphs.
 Using the concept of excess of a vertex, the class of graphs that Neimayer and Watkins studied are extended to include graphs with positive excess at each vertex. The results of this paper show that there are an uncountable number of geodesic fibers for graphs in this extended class and that for any graph in this extended class the only bounded automorphism is the identity automorphism.


This paper aims at identifying the adherences of the propositions of Autonomous Vehicles (AVs) over Traditional Vehicles (TradVs) by using the theoretical models of the blue ocean's strategy four-action framework and value curve (Kim & Mauborgne, 2005) and disruptive innovation (Christensen, 1997). Specifically, it aims at drawing new value curves for AVs over TradVs when considering AVs as a service and as a product. As for methodology, this study is classified as qualitative, empirical and descriptive with data collection via open questionnaires with AVs specialists in France, Belgium and Brazil and analyzed by content analysis (Bardin, 2010). The results point to the arrival of a " new " vehicle concept that includes: different ownership forms; free time for users (no driving required); " infotainment " ; social integration of elder and handicapped people; in all, factors that will cause the extinction of some markets and creation of others. The AVs' value curves present different characteristics when compared to TradVs', in a sense that the main elements to be reduced are: human intervention; ownership; related services and accidents. The elements to be eliminated (in higher automation levels) are: car components like steering-wheel and pedals; rear-view mirrors; driver's license need; driver's liability as well as the fact that driving sensations and driver's control over the vehicle tend to disappear. It is also discussed about the vehicle's business environment and related services that might fade away, such as: car dealerships, driving schools and gas stations. On the other hand, aspects such as: comfort, relaxation, driving fluidity and timing efficiency will be raised as well as there will be seen the creation of a new use of the time, reconfiguration of the design and the mobility for other audiences.


A new method is proposed to measure the shielding effectiveness (SE) of an electrically large enclosure. Traditionally, the SE measurement requires at least two (in an anechoic chamber) or three antennas (in a reverberation chamber). In this paper, only one antenna is needed in the whole measurement procedure. There is no requirement to use a reference antenna. It is interesting to note that if the aperture of the enclosure under test (EUT) can be covered (by using a conductive sheet or aluminum foil), the SE can be measured quickly by comparing the Q factor or the decay time of the covered and uncovered EUT. Measurements have been conducted to evaluate and verify the proposed method. The results are compared with those obtained using the nested reverberation chamber method; limitations of the proposed method are also discussed and identified. It is found that when the EUT is well shielded, the uncertainty of the proposed method could be relatively large. Nevertheless, the proposed method does offer a new simple and efficient approach to measure the SE of an electrically large enclosure.


We consider the on-line predictive version of the standard problem of linear regression; the goal is to predict each consecutive response given the corresponding explanatory variables and all the previous observations. The standard treatment of prediction in linear regression analysis has two drawbacks: (1) the classical prediction intervals guarantee that the probability of error is equal to the nominal significance level $\varepsilon$, but this property per se does not imply that the long-run frequency of error is close to $\varepsilon$; (2) it is not suitable for prediction of complex systems as it assumes that the number of observations exceeds the number of parameters. We state a general result showing that in the on-line protocol the frequency of error for the classical prediction intervals does equal the nominal significance level, up to statistical fluctuations. We also describe alternative regression models in which informative prediction intervals can be found before the number of observations exceeds the number of parameters. One of these models, which only assumes that the observations are independent and identically distributed, is popular in machine learning but greatly underused in the statistical theory of regression.


Burn is a traumatic injury that causes immunological, endocrine, inflammatory, many metabolic responses and emotional stress which can affect dietary, micronutrients and antioxidants intake, which in turn have effects on recovery outcomes. To investigate the role of the nutrition and dietary intake on the progression of the different stages of the healing process among burned patients in Gaza strip. One hundred burned adult patients (36males and 64 females) were enrolled in this cross-sectional clinic-based study at Médecins Sans Frontières/ France clinics in Gaza Strip. Pretested interview questionnaires, Food Frequency Questionnaires, 24 hour dietary recall, anthropometric measures, and biochemical tests were used to assess dietary, health, and healing score among burned patients. This study reported positive association between Magnesium (χ2=8.700, p=0.013), Copper (χ2=60.916, p=<0.0001), and Vitamin C (χ2=91.684, p=<0.0001)) with healing score. The results reported that the protein and energy intake were significantly lower (< 0.001) than the recommendations for both components, which might explain the higher prevalence of moderate healing (65%) among the participants. The adequacy of micronutrients such as Magnesium, Copper, and Vitamin C might be associated with positive wound healing outcomes. Consumption of healthy food is very important for healing process among burned patients. There is a real need for planned and well-balanced meals for burned patients.


Background : Phytochemicals are secondary metabolites of plants that are produced for their defense against environmental stresses, such as polyphenols, which are considered to play a major role in protection against ultraviolet (UV) light-induced oxidative damage, as well as anti-fungal and anti-microbial activities. In addition, there is a great body of evidence showing that phytochemicals exhibit a wide array of physiological activities in humans. Accumulated data show that the bioavailability of most, if not all, phytochemicals is quite poor and their substantial biotransformation after ingestion has also been noted. Thus, they are characterized as non-nutritive xenobiotics in animals, and the question of why phytochemicals, which are produced for plant self-defense, have beneficial effects in humans is quite intriguing. Meanwhile, stress-induced denaturing of cellular proteins greatly affects their tertiary structure and critically disrupts their biological functions, occasionally leading to aggregation for the onset of some pathology. Many recent studies have indicated that protein quality control (PQC) systems play key roles in counteracting 'proteo-stress', which is comprised of several processes, including protein refolding by heat shock proteins (HSPs) and degradation of abnormal proteins by the ubiquitin-proteasome system as well as autophagy. Objective : Phytochemicals are xenobiotics, thus their biochemical interactions with animal proteins are considered to occur in a non-specific manner, which raises the possibility that some phytochemicals cause proteo-stress for activating PQC systems. Because their status is thought to be a critical determinant of homeostasis, the physiological functions of phytochemicals may be partially mediated through those unique systems. The present study was thus undertaken to address this possibility.  Methods and Results : We focused on zerumbone (ZER), an electrophilic sesquiterpene present in Zingiber zerumbet Smith (shampoo ginger). This agent has been reported to exhibit various bioactivities, including anti-inflammation and cancer prevention[1,2]. Treatment of Hepa1c1c7 mouse hepatoma cells with ZER resulted in marked up-regulation of multiple HSPs, such as HSP40 and HSP70. Furthermore, oral administration to the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans and SD rats increased the expressions of some HSPs[3]. Interestingly, ZER also increased proteasome activity in Hepa1c1c7 cells, which was accompanied with up-regulation of 5, a major proteasome functional protein. In addition, the agent notably up-regulated the expressions of several pro-autophagic markers, including p62 and microtubule-associated protein 1 light-chain 3 (LC3)-II[4]. Experiments with biotin-labeled ZER as well as a specific antibody against ZER-adduct proteins revealed that it binds numerous cellular proteins in a non-specific manner. Along a similar line, incubation with ZER led to formations of p62-conjugated proteins and aggresomes. Together, these results suggest that ZER causes proteo-stress for potentiating the integrity of PQC systems. In support of this notion, ZER-bound proteins have been suggested to be partially recognized by HSP90, leading to dissociation of heat shok factor 1 (HSF1) from HSP90 for inducing multiple HSP genes. Next we speculated that mild chemical stress by ZER may exert beneficial effects, since ZER-bound proteins were time-dependently degraded, suggesting that defense capacity was amplified to a great level as compared with the non-treated condition. As expected, ZER conferred thermoresistance to Caenorhabditis elegans (C. elegans) and suppressed the proteo-toxicity of 4-hydroxy-2-nonenal, a potent electrophile produced through a lipid peroxidation process, in a p62-dependent manner. We then screened a number of nutrients and phytochemicals for their HSP70 inducibility, and found that certain phytochemicals, such as curcumin, phenethyl isothiocyanate, ursolic acid, and lycopene, were significantly active, whereas most nutrients were virtually inactive. These results may be associated with the fact that phytochemicals, but not nutrients, are foreign chemicals to animals, as noted above. Conclusion : Up-regulation of antioxidant and xenobiotics metabolizing enzymes has been reported to be an adaptive response in animals exposed to phytochemicals. Our present results imply that the process also increases the capacity to counteract proteo-stresses through activation of PQC systems. This putative phenomenon, representing the concept of hormesis[5], may be associated with mechanisms underlying the physiological functions of phytochemicals. Therefore, chronic ingestion of this class of chemicals may result in 'chemical training', in which self-defense systems are continuously activated for adaptation to phytochemical-driven stresses. Key words : heat shock proteins, ubiquitin-proteasome system, autophagy, C. elegans


IRIS H. W. ENGSTRAND, Spanish scientists in the New World. The eighteenth-century expeditions, Seattle and London, University of Washington Press, 1981, 8vo, pp. xiv, 220, illus., £17.50. Changes of policy, the Napoleonic conflict, and the collapse of the Spanish Empire meant that the massive amount of documentation and other materials arising from the Spanish expeditions to the New World during the eighteenth century was widely dispersed and that it remained largely unpublished until our own century. Undeserved obscurity has therefore been the lot until recently of many of these extraordinarily wide-ranging expeditions. The present account, meticulous in its scholarship, and impressive in its graphic understanding of the place of detail within the whole, does much to rectify two previous omissions. It recounts the story of the Royal Scientific Expedition to New Spain (1785-1800), and of the Malaspina Expedition (1784-94) to South America, Mexico, Alaska, the Pacific Northwest, and California. An account of the latter has hardly yet appeared in print. Concentration on these two interconnected expeditions has enabled the author to include a remarkable amount of material, including reports on the medicinal value of the flora, descriptive material on the fauna, on ethnography, geography, cartography, and, of course, much on botany, a prime concern of expeditions of this period. Contacts and co-operation between contemporary Spanish expeditions are made clear for the first time; and many historians will be grateful for an account of the hitherto little-known Mopox expedition in Cuba. Much human detail emerges, not least the embittered relationships between some expeditionaries. Or, more largely, the heroic adventures of Theodor Haenke which surpass those of Munchhausen, in joining the Malaspina Expedition in Chile in 1790 after missing his ship in Cadiz. Not less interesting are the accounts of expeditionary ideals upheld by the second Viceroy Revillagigedo in New Spain, of ideals given passage by a cumbersome if ultimately efficacious imperial bureaucracy, and of the same ideals thwarted and even crushed by the narrow vision and exiguous purse of Carlos IV. It is fortunate indeed that the balance of justice to these largely ill-treated and unsung scientists, illustrators, geographers, cartographers, and ethnographers, should have been redressed so ably in a production which it is impossible to fault. The writing is detailed, graphic, sympathetic, well referenced, but not without irony; the illustrations and maps are well chosen for variety and excellence (those in colour demonstrate the high quality of scientific illustration at this period), the appendices expand appropriately on the main text (particularly the invaluable list of books for the use of the Expedition in New Spain); and the bibliography of manuscript sources demonstrates the wide dispersal of the relevant documents and illustrations and the energy and devotion which has gone into their research. The index is excellent. In brief, both author and publishers are to be congratulated on an excellent product. Not only good scholarship, but a marvellous read. Robin Price Wellcome Institute


Abstract
This essay uses qualitative elements to examine characteristics of inspirational teachers through the eyes of teacher candidate autobiographical essays. Based on narratives written by 35 college students, three teacher educators examined the responses through several lenses, including: the characteristics the inspirational  teachers had in common,  and the impact the teachers had on the students.   Seven emerging themes indicate that truly inspirational teachers go beyond the normal call of their duties, sometimes in intangible ways. Also indicated is the notion that knowledge and instructional strategies are not sufficient for making a teacher inspirational. Implications for teacher education are discussed.


SMEs constitute a very large part of the economy in every country and they play an important role in economic growth and social development. SMEs are frequent targets of cybersecurity attacks similar to large enterprises. However, unlike large enterprises, SMEs mostly have limited capabilities regarding cybersecurity practices. Given the increasing cybersecurity risks and the large impact that the risks may bring to the SMEs, assessing and improving the cybersecurity capabilities is crucial for SMEs for sustainability. This research aims to provide an approach for SMEs for assessing and improving their cybersecurity capabilities by integrating key elements from existing industry standards.


The South Georgian shag (Phalacrocorax georgianus) shows a remarkable diving ability comparable to that of penguins, yet nothing is known of the physiology of these birds. In this study, heart rates and abdominal temperatures were recorded continuously in four free-ranging South Georgian shags using an implanted data-logger. A timedepth recorder was also attached to the back of the implanted birds to record their diving behaviour. The diving behaviour of the birds was essentially similar to that reported in other studies, with maximum dive durations for individual birds ranging between 140 and 287 s, and maximum depths between 35 and 101 m. The birds, while at the nest, had a heart rate of 104.0±13.1 beats min-1 (mean ± s.e.m.) and an abdominal temperature of 39.1±0.2 °C. During flights of 221±29 s, heart rate and abdominal temperature rose to 309.5±18.0 beats min-1 and 40.1±0.3 °C, respectively. The mean heart rate during diving, at 103.7±13.7 beats min-1, was not significantly different from the resting values, but the minimum heart rate during a dive was significantly lower at 64.8±5.8 beats min-1. The minimum heart rate during a dive was negatively correlated with both dive duration and dive depth. Abdominal temperature fell progressively during a diving bout, with a mean temperature at the end of a bout of 35.1±1.7 °C. The minimum heart rate during diving is at a sub-resting level, which suggests that the South Georgian shag responds to submersion with the 'classic' dive response of bradycardia and the associated peripheral vasoconstriction and utilisation of anaerobic metabolism. However, the reduction in abdominal temperature may reflect a reduction in the overall metabolic rate of the animal such that the bird can remain aerobic while submerged.


Using two population-based surveys of Ontarians, we examined the proportions of smokers who smoke 'light' and 'mild' cigarettes (L/M). We compared L/M smokers to regular cigarette smokers regarding demographic, health knowledge, and smoking characteristics and examined their healthrelated perceptions of L/M and reasons for smoking them. Use of these cigarettes increased from 71% in 1996 to 83% in 2000. Those who smoked L/M were more likely to be female, to be less addicted, and to be more advanced toward quitting. In 1996, one in five believed that smoking L/M lowers the risk of cancer and heart disease. In 1996 and 2000, respectively, 44% and 27% smoked L/M to reduce health risks, 41% and 40% smoked them as a step toward quitting, and 41% in both years said they would be more likely to quit if they learned L/M could provide the same tar and nicotine as regular cigarettes. These data provide empirical support for banning 'light' and 'mild' on cigarette packaging.


Batch SPD processes have a limited scope for being used on an industrial scale. More feasible are continuous processes among which the new SPD process of Incremental ECAP (IECAP) is an attractive option. In this paper, a double-billet version of I-ECAP, which doubles process productivity, is presented. The concept of the process is first checked using the finite element (FE) method. FE simulation results are the basis for the design of an experimental rig. Trials of nanostructuring of 10x10x200 Al 1070 billets are carried out with the forces on the reciprocating die and the feeder measured. Metallurgical samples after 4 and 8 passes of I-ECAP (route BC) are investigated using TEM. Tensile properties after 8 passes are established. All these results show that the new SPD process of I-ECAP gives the results comparable to those obtained by a classical batch ECAP with the added capability of dealing with much longer (possibly infinite) billets.


Treatment with ginsenosides, major active ingredients of Panax ginseng, produces a variety of pharmacological or physiological responses with effects on the central and peripheral nervous systems. Recent reports showed that ginsenoside Rg2 inhibits nicotinic acetylcholine receptor-mediated Na+ influx and channel activity. In the present study, we investigated the effect of ginsenoside Rg2 on human 5-hydroxytryptamine3A (5-HT3A) receptor channel activity, which is also one of the ligand-gated ion channel families. The 5-HT3A receptor was expressed in Xenopus oocytes, and the current was measured using the two-electrode voltage clamp technique. The ginsenoside Rg2 itself had no effect on the oocytes that were injected with H2O as well as on the oocytes that were injected with the 5-HT3A receptor cRNA. In the oocytes that were injected with the 5-HT3A receptor cRNA, the pretreatment of ginsenoside Rg2 inhibited the 5-HT-induced inward peak current (I5-HT) The inhibitory effect of ginsenoside Rg2 on I5-HT was dose dependent and reversible. The half-inhibitory concentrations (IC50) of ginsenoside Rg2 was 22.3 +/- 4.6 microM. The inhibition of I5-HT by ginsenoside Rg2 was non-competitive and voltage-independent. These results indicate that ginsenoside Rg2 might regulate the 5-HT3A receptors that are expressed in Xenopus oocytes. Further, this regulation on the ligand-gated ion channel activity by ginsenosides might be one of the pharmacological actions of Panax ginseng.


Geological evidence demonstrates that recurrent great earthquakes have been generated at the Cascadia subduction zone, off the west coast of North America, throughout the Holocene. Such major earthquakes and associated tsunamis would have had devastating impacts on Native villages along this coastline. Native oral traditions of such disasters, along with earthquake figures in myth and ceremony, are examined for evidence of the nature of such past geological events and the impact they had on human populations.


Flexible forming using plasma arc (FFUPA) is a newly developed method of sheet metal forming. It makes the forming by means of thermal stress and thermal strain without mould and die, and is recognized as a promising forming method in developing new products. But the forming effect of FFUPA is determined by many factors, which compose a highly nonlinear system due to their complicated interact. As a result, it is difficult to predict the forming results and choose the processing parameters in FFUPA. In this paper, BP neural network is applied to solve this problem. After introducing the mechanism of FFUPA and analyzing the influence of processing parameters on the forming result, BP neural network is established, which include an input layer, an output layer and a hidden layer. When inputs and outputs are properly chosen, the BP neural network can be used to predict the forming results and to select the forming parameters. To verify the validity of this network, the results obtained by the BP neural network are compared to those obtained by experiments, and the results show that the former is close to the later, which indicates it is feasible to apply BP neural network in determining the processing parameters and forecasting the bending effects in FFUPA.


CONTEXT
Studies have shown patterns of abnormal dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) functional connectivity with other brain areas in schizophrenia and association of these patterns with a putative susceptibility gene (ZNF804A). However, whether these patterns are trait phenomena linked to genetic risk for illness is unclear.

OBJECTIVE
To test the hypotheses that altered DLPFC connectivity is (1) a familial, likely heritable feature of genetic risk for schizophrenia, (2) a novel intermediate phenotype independent of altered DLPFC engagement, and (3) selectively modulated by a polymorphism in ZNF804A.

DESIGN
Cross-sectional case-control study using blood oxygen level-dependent functional magnetic resonance imaging during a working memory task and genotyping of rs1344706 in ZNF804A.

SETTING
Research center.

PARTICIPANTS
A total of 402 subjects (153 cognitively normal controls, 171 healthy siblings of patients with schizophrenia, and 78 patients).

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES
Task-independent and task-dependent physiologic coupling between the DLPFC and other brain "target" regions investigated with (1) seeded connectivity and (2) psychophysiological interaction analysis.

RESULTS
Siblings and patients showed greater DLPFC "inefficiency" than controls. Abnormal DLPFC functional coupling with the hippocampus and, to a lesser degree, the rest of the prefrontal cortex, was observed in patients and siblings when compared with controls using both connectivity analyses. Prefrontal activation and connectivity measures within siblings did not correlate, implying that they were independent phenomena. The ZNF804A genotype significantly modulated DLPFC coupling with the hippocampus and prefrontal cortex but not DLPFC activity in the control group. Similarly, ZNF804A genotype modulated right DLPFC-hippocampal formation coupling in siblings and patients.

CONCLUSIONS
Coupling between the DLPFC and hippocampus is compromised in siblings of patients with schizophrenia and is independent of DLPFC engagement. The selective association with a single-nucleotide polymorphism in ZNF804A suggests that this intermediate phenotype proxies a distinct neural system mechanism related to genetic risk for schizophrenia and the biology of this gene.


Pancreatic cancer is still associated with a poor prognosis and remains the fourth leading cause of cancer related mortality. Overall, long-term survival is about 5 %. However, when pancreatic cancer can be resected, five-year survival rates increase to approximately 25 %. Pancreatic surgery is technically challenging and has significantly changed over the past decades with regard to technical aspects as well as perioperative care. Standardized resections can be carried out with low morbidity and a mortality below 5 % in high volume institutions. Furthermore, there is growing evidence that also more extended resections including multivisceral approaches, vessel reconstructions or surgery for tumor recurrence can be carried out safely with favorable outcomes. In addition, about 20 percent of all primarily locally irresectable tumors may profit from neoadjuvant radiochemotherapy. The impact of adjuvant chemotherapy has increased over recent years, leading to improved long-term survival. Thus, pancreatic cancer should be treated in an interdisciplinary team at a pancreatic cancer center. Cystic pancreatic tumors (e. g. IPMNs) are diagnosed more and more frequently over the past decade. Often, these tumors are diagnosed in premalignant or early invasive stages. While the outcome of late tumor stages of cystic and ductal pancreatic carcinomas is identical to ductal adenocarcinomas, the long-term outcome of prophylactic resection of premalignant or resection of early tumor stages of cystic tumors is excellent. Thus, early surgical treatment must be considered in cystic pancreatic tumors.


Flowering plants have evolved to be a predominant life form on earth. A common principle of flowering plants and probably one of the main reasons for their evolutionary success is the rapid development of an embryo next to a supporting tissue called the endosperm. The embryo and the endosperm are protected by surrounding maternal tissues, the integuments, and the trinity of integuments, embryo and endosperm comprise the plant seed. For proper seed development, these three structures have to develop in a highly controlled and co-ordinated manner, representing a paradigm for cell-cell communication during development. Communication pathways between the endosperm and the seed coat are now beginning to be unravelled. Moreover, recently isolated mutants affecting plant reproduction have allowed a genetic dissection of seed development, and revealed that the embryo plays a previously unrecognized yet important role in co-ordinating seed development.


A reconfigurable intelligent surface (RIS) can shape the radio propagation by passively changing the directions of impinging electromagnetic waves. The optimal control of the RIS requires perfect channel state information (CSI) of all the links connecting the base station (BS) and the mobile station (MS) via the RIS. Thereby the channel (parameter) estimation at the BS/MS and the related message feedback mechanism are needed. In this paper, we adopt a two-stage channel estimation scheme for the RIS-aided millimeter wave (mmWave) MIMO channels using an iterative reweighted method to sequentially estimate the channel parameters. We evaluate the average spectrum efficiency (SE) and the RIS beamforming gain of the proposed scheme and demonstrate that it achieves high-resolution estimation with the average SE comparable to that with perfect CSI.


Featuring a foreword by Guy Kawasaki, Presentation Zen will help presenters see the process in a way that is different, simpler, more visual, more natural, more effective, and ultimately far more meaningful. Presentations are generally poor because their creators have learned bad habits and lack awareness and knowledge about what makes for a great presentation (and what does not). This book aims to help people break out of the rut of making typical PowerPoint presentations. This book provides an equal dose of inspiration and education. The content focuses on helping readers become (1) more aware, (2) more knowledgeable, and (3) more inspired. Presentation Zen is a provocative mix of illumination, education, and guidance. What may seem like common sense regarding presentations is not common practice. Presentation Zen is an approach to presentations that is appropriate for our age, an age in which design thinking, storytelling and so-called right-brain thinking are crucial. Those who are talented communicators and skilled in design and storytelling are increasingly in demand. Balancing the principles of design, the tenets of Zen simplicity, multimedia and cognitive learning theory, along with practical advice from the field, the book is a visual and instructional tour d'force.


Research methods courses aim to equip students with the knowledge and skills required for research yet seldom include practical aspects of assessment. This reflective practitioner report describes and evaluates an innovative approach to teaching and assessing advanced qualitative research methods to final-year psychology undergraduate students. An active-learning approach involving auto-photography was developed and implemented as the assessment requirements for a qualitative component of an advanced research methods module. The authors suggest that this student-centred active-learning exercise is a useful and successful strategy to promote the construction of knowledge.


[1] Field studies have shown that mineral dust particles can act as ice nuclei in cirrus clouds. Here, we present a laboratory investigation of heterogeneous ice nucleation on surrogates of mineral dust particles, in particular pure Arizona test dust (ATD) particles, and ATD particles coated with sulfuric acid. The experiments have been performed using a new apparatus in which ice formation on the particles is determined by optical microscopy at temperatures between 197 and 260 K and relative humidities up to water saturation. The experiments reveal that pure and sulfuric acid coated ATD particles nucleate ice at considerably lower relative humidities than required for homogeneous ice nucleation in liquid aerosols. Nucleation occurred over a broad relative humidity range indicating that the different minerals contained in ATD have different ice nucleation thresholds. No significant difference in the ice nucleation ability of pure and H2SO4 coated ATD particles was observed. Below 240 K, ice nucleated on ATD particles apparently by deposition nucleation. Preactivation of ATD particles, that is, a reduction in supersaturation, required for heterogeneous ice nucleation after a previous ice nucleation event on the same particle, has been observed for temperatures as low as 200 K. Differences of 10–30% in the onset RHice values were obtained for particles with or without preactivation. The results indicate that pure and sulfuric acid coated mineral dust particles may act as efficient ice nuclei in the atmosphere. Preactivation of the particles should be considered when modeling long-range transport of mineral dust particles and their impact on cloud formation.


A fine hot-wire is used both as a heating element and a temperature sensor in transient hot-wire method. The
traditional sensor system is unnecessarily big so that it takes large fluid volume to measure the thermal
conductivity. To dramatically reduce this fluid volume, a new sensor fabrication and a data processing method
are proposed in this article. Contrast to the conventional and most popular two wire sensor, the new sensor
system is made up of divided multiple long and short wires. Through validation experiments, it is found that the
measured thermal conductivities of the glycerin are exactly same each other between the conventional and
proposed new method. Also some technical considerations in arranging the multiple wires are briefly discussed.


We propose and implement a procedure to dynamically hedge climate change risk. We extract innovations from climate news series that we construct through textual analysis of newspapers. We then use a mimicking portfolio approach to build climate change hedge portfolios. We discipline the exercise by using third-party ESG scores of firms to model their climate risk exposures. We show that this approach yields parsimonious and industry-balanced portfolios that perform well in hedging innovations in climate news both in sample and out of sample. We discuss multiple directions for future research on financial approaches to managing climate risk.


This study applies a qualitative comparative analysis (QCA) design to examine how configurations of quantitative and qualitative aspects of media coverage associate with changes on the policy agenda. We analyze media coverage of sixteen focusing events related to Dutch immigration policies—an intractable policy controversy that is regularly under media scrutiny. In addition to the quantity of media attention, we take into account whether dominant framing in media coverage is contesting the current policy frame and whether the framing in the media is consonant. Our analysis indicates that frame contestation is a necessary condition for media effects. Quantity of media attention and frame consonance are relevant indicators of changes on the policy agenda only when the majority of media coverage is contesting the current policy frame. Furthermore, we found that in the case of intractable policy controversies, media framing can create specific dynamics, such as "David versus Goliath" dynamics where human-interest framing of a single case challenges current policy, or "negotiation dynamics" where competing managerialist frames negotiate policy solutions. An integration of framing and agenda-setting literatures helps develop a better understanding of the occurrence of media effects on the policy agenda and how this effect takes shape in the case of intractable policy controversies.


Introduction: Since the emergence of normal occlusion concept, selecting an appropriate treatment plan with or without tooth extraction has been a controversial subject. Nowadays, both methods can be successfully used for treatment of patients. However, some clinicians still believe that non-extraction orthodontic treatments have fewer complications. The purpose of this study was to evaluate dental arch dimensional changes following non-extraction orthodontic treatment. Materials &Methods: A total of 200 pre- and post-treatment diagnostic dental casts belonging to 100 patients (non-ext treated by 0.18 roth system) who met the inclusion criteria for this study were collected from the archives of Shahid Beheshti Dental School. Sampling was nonrandomized. A digital caliper with the accuracy of 0.1 mm was used for the measurement of variables such as inter-canine width , inter-premolar width and inter-molar width. Results: Non-extraction orthodontic treatment increased all the variables, except for the mandibular inter-canine width and incisor-canine distance. Conclusion: Non-extraction orthodontic treatment causes a significant increase in almost all


The paper proposes a new gradient vector flow (GVF) snake based on the discrete cosine transform (DCT) for object boundary detection. In order to develop the DCT GVF snake, for each pixel in the spatial domain, we compute the two dimensional DCT in its local neighborhood. A contrast measure derived from the local DCT coefficients is used to compute the gradient vector flow field, which is employed as the external force to drive the snake to the object edges. The advantage of the DCT GVF snake lies in its robustness to multiplicative noise. The DCT GVF snake is applied to object boundary detection in images with multiplicative noise. Experiments show the boundary detection result obtained by the DCT GVF snake is more accurate than that obtained by the original GVF snake.


Concurrent programming is gaining significant prominence in the software industry, especially due to the advent of multi-core architectures. In this report, we present the results of a survey deployed inside Microsoft in January 2007 to assess the state of the practice of concurrency at Microsoft. Our survey polled 10% of the Microsoft technical staff and collected data for each of the three major business units, namely Microsoft platforms and services division, mobile and embedded devices division and Microsoft business division. Our major findings indicate that the use of concurrency is widespread at Microsoft. Of our 684 respondents, over 60% of our respondent population had to deal with concurrency issues frequently (on a monthly basis). The most popular platforms for concurrent programming inside Microsoft are Win32 and CLR (Common Language Runtime), which are equally popular. Also, multi-threading and message-passing forms of concurrency appear to be equally pervasive. Concurrency bugs take on average several days to detect, reproduce, debug and fix. Most of these bugs are of high severity. Most engineers feel concurrency issues will be more of an issue going forward, and would welcome additional help in terms of language support, libraries, tools, processes and training.


With the aim of assessing four forms of therapy with adjustment-disordered outpatients, we randomly assigned 70 subjects to the following treatments: supportive psychotherapy (psychoanalytically oriented), viloxazine (an antidepressant), lormetazepam (a benzodiazepine), and S-adenosylmethionine (a methyl donor with antidepressive properties). A further group of 15 subjects received a placebo, orally administered. The trial lasted 4 wk. None of the treatments had clearly superior effects over others on scores on the Zung Self-rating Depression Scale. All produced a significant improvement. However, groups given S-adenosylmethionine and supportive psychotherapy had the highest mean scores.


ATC data exchange is taking on increasing importance in both operational and experimental contexts. The starting point of our work was dealing with different data formats between a variety of software. The problem of data exchange in simulation is complicated by the fact that in some experiments, real traffic is merged with simulated traffic, or simulation scenarios may change at a given time. This requires that the storage system be able to unambiguously distinguish between simulation parts. We present a distributed ATC database system that can be used to retrieve and process data that are spatio-temporal. The ability to specify areas of interest by means of a unified descriptor, the UEL (uniform event locator), allows the design of versatile ATM systems. Furthermore, since part of the project was the coding of a differential geometry library, many functions may be used for flight mechanics applications.


Abstract.-In the Pacuare River Watershed incosta Rica, farm size, ownership, and production data were collected and spatially referenced through global positioning surveys and farmer assessments of property boundaries in relation to cadastral maps and air photographs. Using GIs based spatial overlays, this data were integrated with previously collected land use and land degradation data. The resulting integrated database allowed for land use and degradation data to be classified by alternative farm sizes in order to assess the individual needs and relative priority of a soil conservation program for different farms. In spite of limited funding and many technical and data constraints in Central America, such GIs based methodologies linking farms and people to bio-physical based land use and degradation is seen as a feasible and cost effective approach to plan and implement soil conservation and other types of natural resource management projects.


This report is the first deliverable from the Learning From Close Call Events project being undertaken by the University of Huddersfield as part of the Strategic Partnership with RSSB. The Close Call database is maintained by RSSB, detailing safety‐related incidents from the railway which had
the potential to, but did not, lead to accidents. The object of the project is to use computer-based methods to extract safety learning from the unstructured data in the Close Call database. This work reports the proof-of-principle for computer-based extraction of safety lessons from the Close
Call database; it demonstrates a functioning process for computer-based information extraction and demonstrates its successful use in two case studies.


Tissue factor (TF) is a membrane-bound glycoprotein that functions as a cofactor for coagulation factor VIIa (VIIa) and initiates blood coagulation at sites of vascular injury. On the basis of sequence alignments, TF was predicted to be a member of the cytokine receptor superfamily. Utilizing the structural information available for the cytokine receptor superfamily, we have used site-directed mutagenesis to identify the binding site on TF for VIIa. The predicted loop regions in TF were systematically replaced with the homologous loops from the gamma-interferon receptor (gamma-IFN-R), the protein most related to TF in the superfamily of cytokine receptors. Six discontinuous regions (residues 16-20, 40-46, 60-69, 101-111, 129-151, 193-207) were identified that are required for interaction with VIIa and enhancement of activity. Individual substitution of 68 residues within these loops with alanine revealed eight residues (K20, D44, W45, K46, Q110, R135, F140, V207) that are required for cofactor activity. These residues fall into two groups, those that are required only for interactions with VIIa (K46, Q110, R135, F140, V207) and those that are also required to induce the conformational change in VIIa required for enhanced activity (K20, D44, W45). The discontinuous regions of TF required for interactions with VIIa form a single binding surface for VIIa that is analogous to the interface defined by the crystal structure of the complex between growth hormone and its receptor.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)


MAIN OBJECTIVE: There is a continuing debate whether motor abnormalities associated with gastro-oesophageal reflux disease (GORD) are primary phenomena or occur as a consequence of repeated injury caused by inflammation. To get new insights into mechanisms involved, patients were studied before and three years after effective and durable reflux control induced by two types of fundoplications. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Thirty three consecutive patients with chronic GORD entered the trial. All patients had a clinical history of GORD assessed symptomatically, endoscopically, and by use of 24 hour pH-metry. Eighteen were randomised to a 180 degrees semifundoplication (Toupet) and 15 to a total fundic wrap (Nissen-Rossetti). Manometry was done preoperatively, six months, and three years after the operation assessing motor function in defined areas of the tubular oesophagus and lower oesophageal sphincter. RESULTS: All patients had a proper control of GORD both when objectively and clinically assessed. Postoperatively, the resting tone of the lower oesophageal sphincter was significantly higher in the Nissen-Rossetti group (p < 0.05), and the intra-abdominal portion of the lower oesophageal sphincter was of identical length in the two groups. A significant increase in peristaltic amplitude in the middle and distal third of the oesophagus was recorded at long term follow up compared with the preoperative findings (p < 0.05), but there was no corresponding effect on propagation speed and duration of contraction. However, an increase in peristaltic amplitude and, as a tentative consequence, a significant decrease (p < 0.05) in the frequency of primary peristalsis was found only in patients operated on with a total fundic wrap. CONCLUSION: Despite adequate and durable reflux control after fundoplication in patients with chronic GORD, no change was found in oesophageal motor function with time. The higher contraction amplitude and decreased frequency of failed primary peristalsis seen in patients having a total fundic wrap were thus most likely due to a mechanical outflow obstruction in the gastro-oesophageal junction. These results could therefore be interpreted in favour of the hypothesis that GORD is pathogenetically linked to a primary defect in oesophageal motor function.


The aim of this study is to propose a histogram shifting-based reversible data hiding scheme for anatomical magnetic resonance images (MRI) of human brain. In this study, a human brain MRI dataset was employed for experimental purposes, which were obtained from the Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative (ADNI) open dataset. In experimental design, only healthy subjects are included in order to avoid any bias due to morphological brain abnormalities. The dataset contained three-dimensional 16-bit-depth T1-weighted brain MRIs of 25 healthy people. The proposed data hiding scheme for an MRI volume started with an atlas-based partitioning procedure to segment the volume into several region-of- interests, called as chunks in this paper. Then, the well-known histogram-shifting method was applied with some modifications to each chunk, separately. Finally, the total capacity of chunks in bit-per-voxel (BPV) and the stego-image quality in peak signal-to-noise ratio (PSNR) were calculated. The average PSNR and BPV values of the cohort were reported in several experimental conditions including different segmentation regions and several numbers of peak-zero bin-pairs per chunk. The main contribution of this study is the modifications on the traditional histogram-shifting-based reversible data hiding scheme that are considering the characteristics of the T1- weighted MRI data. Furthermore, the distinguishing feature of this study is that, on contrary to similar studies in the literature, this study employed three-dimensional MRI scans of real cohort. The experimental results of this study revealed the applicability of data hiding schemas on neuroimaging data.


In this paper, we study the sensitivity of CNN outputs with respect to image transformations and noise in the area of fine-grained recognition. In particular, we answer the following questions (1) how sensitive are CNNs with respect to image transformations encountered during wild image capture?; (2) how can we predict CNN sensitivity?; and (3) can we increase the robustness of CNNs with respect to image degradations? To answer the first question, we provide an extensive empirical sensitivity analysis of commonly used CNN architectures (AlexNet, VGG19, GoogleNet) across various types of image degradations. This allows for predicting CNN performance for new domains comprised by images of lower quality or captured from a different viewpoint. We also show how the sensitivity of CNN outputs can be predicted for single images. Furthermore, we demonstrate that input layer dropout or pre-filtering during test time only reduces CNN sensitivity for high levels of degradation.
Experiments for fine-grained recognition tasks reveal that VGG19 is more robust to severe image degradations than AlexNet and GoogleNet. However, small intensity noise can lead to dramatic changes in CNN performance even for VGG19.


The Mozambican government has introduced reforms of basic education, notably the introduction of interdisciplinarity, learner-centredness and new teaching pedagogies. This is a case study of how these curriculum reforms have been implemented at Marrere Teachers' Training College. We conducted interviews with lecturers, observed their teaching practices, and studied student results to assess teaching outcomes. The study is grounded in the literatures on educational change and globalization. The problems of policy and practice have focused attention on bottom-up and top-down research, and hybrid approaches. The study of globalization has highlighted the relationship between curriculum change and the world economy. There is a paucity of research on how these developments have affected underdeveloped countries. We found that practical issues influence implementation. Lecturers did not understand the meaning of interdisciplinarity. They could, however, articulate the meaning of learnercentredness. Lesson observations showed they did not implement it. Against the backdrop of these inter-related factors, f inal year students performed poorly in examinations. These analyses show the complexities of the moving from policy to practice, and the global to the local.


Analysis of assemblages of AMS radiocarbon determinations of Rattus exulans bone gelatin samples collected in the south Pacific (New Zealand and Norfolk Island) shows that results from both archaeological and natural sites have an inverse correlation of radiocarbon age with sequence of processing, particularly in 1GNS data Consideration of potential causes of this variation, including differential dietary effects and sample degradation, provides no general explanation It is hypothesized that laboratory processing of rat bone samples improved with experience Taken into account, this proposition brings rat bone gelatin radiocarbon ages into line with prevailing archaeological and palaeoenvironmental opinion about ages of human colonisation and the concurrent introduction of Rattus exulans to the southern islands of Polynesia about 800 B P Problems remain in the radiocarbon dating of rat bone, however, and the reliability of determinations is currently uncertain


Background: Male breast cancer (MaBC) accounts for Methods: Subtyping of the 64 MaBCs included in this study was performed by means of immunohistochemistry using the definitions described in the latest St. Gallen's consensus report. DNA extracted from microdissected tumor and adjacent normal tissue were subjected to massively parallel targeting sequencing of all exons of 273 genes most frequently mutated in FBCs or directly related to DNA repair. Somatic mutations were defined using a combination of MuTect, SomaticSniper, MutationSeq and Haplotype Caller. Selected mutations were validated with Sequenom MassARRAY. CNAs were identified using Varscan2 and GISTIC2.0. Pathway and network analysis of mutations/CNAs was performed using Ingenuity Pathway Analysis and HOTNET. The genomic landscape of MaBCs was compared with that of FBCs of the same subtype analyzed as part of The Cancer Genome Atlas project. Results: All MaBCs were ER-positive and HER2-negative. Using the St. Gallen's criteria, 37.5% and 62.5% were classified as luminal A-like or luminal B-like, respectively. The genes most frequently mutated in MaBCs were PIK3CA, GATA3, FLG and PLEC, with PIK3CA being the only significantly mutated gene as defined by MutSigCV (q=0.003). CNA analysis revealed recurrent gains of 1q and 8q and loss of 16q. GISTIC2.0 identified significantly recurrent high-level amplifications in 1q25.3, 8p11 (FGFR1, ZNF703), 8q24.3 (DEPTOR), 17q23 (PPM1D) and 15q26 (IGF1R) and deletions in 11q22 (ATM) and 21q22.12 (RUNX1). HOTNET analysis of the genes mutated and/or targeted by gene amplifications in MaBCs revealed significantly altered subnetworks involving genes related to DNA repair, PI3K and FGF signaling pathways. The most frequently mutated genes in luminal A-like MaBCs were PIK3CA and MLL3, while those of luminal B-like MaBCs were PIK3CA and GATA3. MLL3 and GATA3 mutations were only found in luminal A-like MaBCs (p=0.039) and luminal B-like MaBCs (p=0.048), respectively. Although the mutational landscapes of MaBCs and luminal FBCs were qualitatively similar, PIK3CA and TP53 were less frequently mutated in MaBCs (p Conclusions: MaBCs are preferentially of luminal subtype and are characterized by recurrent mutations in PIK3CA, GATA3, FLG and PLEC. Genetic alterations in MaBCs often target DNA repair and FGF signaling pathways. The known drivers of luminal FBCs appear to be less frequently altered in MaBCs. Given these important differences between MaBCs and FBCs, caution should be exercised in the extrapolation of biologic and clinical implications from studies in FBCs to the management of MaBCs. Citation Format: Salvatore Piscuoglio, Melissa Murray, Charlotte KY Ng, Elena Guerini Rocco, Luciano G Martelotto, Francois-Clement Bidard, Carey A Eberle, Nicola Fusco, Rita A Sakr, Leticia De Mattos-Arruda, Raymond Lim, Timour Baslan, James Hicks, Tari A King, Edi Brogi, Larry Norton, Britta Weigelt, Clifford A Hudis, Jorge S Reis-Filho. The genomic landscape of male breast cancers [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the Thirty-Seventh Annual CTRC-AACR San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium: 2014 Dec 9-13; San Antonio, TX. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2015;75(9 Suppl):Abstract nr S6-06.


The Global Health Disparities CD-ROM Project reaffirmed the value of professional associations partnering with academic institutions to build capacity of the USA public health education workforce to meet the challenges of primary prevention services. The Society for Public Health Education (SOPHE) partnered with the California State University, Chico to produce a CD-ROM that would advocate for global populations that are affected by health disparities while providing primary resources for public health educators to use in programming and professional development. The CD-ROM development process is discussed.


With various experiments studying heavy-ion collisions a demand exists in the hadron physics community for theoretical predictions of hadronic properties at temperatures and densities far from equilibrium.
In this work we will study the $J/\psi$ vector meson at finite temperatures surrounded by light quark matter.
We will apply a chiral unitary approach to account for coupled channels, most importantly channels with open charm.
The in-medium solution accounts for the change in self-energy that the $J/\psi$ acquires from interacting with the surrounding light quark matter, most notably pions and rho mesons.
The results are preliminary and clearly show the importance of using dressed charmed mesons.
Ultimately, the solutions to the corresponding Lippmann-Schwinger Equations are used to calculate observables such as the spectral function of the $J/\psi$.


Researchers in sonography, as well as other areas, often wish to measure the strength of relationship or association between two variables. For example, one may wish to determine if, on the average, total cholesterol level increases as age increases for adult American men. However, there are a very large number of measures or coefficients (i.e., a number that indicates the strength of the relationship between two variables) from which to choose. It is not infrequent to find a researcher selecting an incorrect coefficient to measure a given association, thereby possibly rendering a false or misleading conclusion. The choice of the proper measure of association is based on, among other things, the characteristics of each of the two variables involved. This article enumerates every case that can be encountered by the researcher and provides an appropriate measure of association that can be used.


Human sural nerve fascicles from healthy volunteers and patients with inherited hypertrophic neuropathy (HMSN-I and HMSN-III, respectively) and with Friedreich ataxia (FA) were transplanted into nude and T-cell-suppressed mouse nerve to determine whether transplanted Schwann cells would express the histologic and myelination abnormalities characteristic of these disorders. Sections above, at, and below the transplant were evaluated by phase and transmission electronmicroscope (TEM) morphometric analysis at times up to 3 months after transplant. The characteristic structure of the human perineurium and of the onion-bulb formation was maintained, indicating that human Schwann and perineurial cells survive transplantation and express themselves. Myelination in human nerve xenografts was delayed as compared to distal mouse nerve myelination, which may reflect genetic characteristics, delayed vascularization, or physical size of the transplant. A variable number of fibers regrew outside the fascicle, creating a problem in data interpretation, since differences may exist in populations of fibers to be compared in control and disease xenografts and in xenografts and distal mouse nerve. Although xenograft myelination began earlier in controls than in HMSN-III, the difference in myelination at 3 months was not significantly different, nor was there a significant difference in onset or degree of myelination in controls, HMSN-I, and FA nerve xenografts at intervals up to 3 months. Lack of significant differences, especially for HMSN-III and control nerves, may be attributed to small numbers and insufficient time after transplant. A study of more xenografts, harvested after longer periods of time, will thus be needed before concluding that Schwann cells play no major role in the hypomyelination of HMSN-III. Present evidence does not favor a major role of Schwann cells in the segmental demyelination of HMSN I and FA.


In noisy and reverberant environments, the problem of acoustic source localisation and tracking (ASLT) using an array of microphones presents a number of challenging difficulties. One of the main issues when considering real-world situations involving human speakers is the temporally discontinuous nature of speech signals: the presence of silence gaps in the speech can easily misguide the tracking algorithm, even in practical environments with low to moderate noise and reverberation levels. A natural extension of currently available sound source tracking algorithms is the integration of a voice activity detection (VAD) scheme. We describe a new ASLT algorithm based on a particle filtering (PF) approach, where VAD measurements are fused within the statistical framework of the PF implementation. Tracking accuracy results for the proposed method is presented on the basis of synthetic audio samples generated with the image method, whereas performance results obtained with a real-time implementation of the algorithm, and using real audio data recorded in a reverberant room, are published elsewhere. Compared to a previously proposed PF algorithm, the experimental results demonstrate the improved robustness of the method described in this work when tracking sources emitting real-world speech signals, which typically involve significant silence gaps between utterances.


The elasticity of concrete and mortar is assessed by means of cylinder and prism compression tests, and beam bending tests. A comparison between the elastic moduli measured in the different tests shows that higher moduli are measured in the smaller beams and prisms than in the larger cylinders. A statistical weakest link' theory may qualitatively assist in explaining the results, and it is proposed that specimen size effects are important in stiffness measurements. Beams show better stress-strain linearity under load than do cylinders. A relationship is derived for the flexural tensile stresses and strains in a plain beam, and shwn to be similar to previous relationships for compression. It appears that transverse strain gradients exercise a greater crack-modifying effect on concrete in tension than in compression. (Author/TRRL)


BACKGROUND
With the advent of newborn hearing screening programs, the need to verify the fit of hearing aids in young infants has increased. The recording of cortical auditory evoked potentials (CAEPs) for this purpose is quite feasible, but rapid developmental changes that affect response morphology and the presence of electrophysiological noise can make subjective response detection challenging.

PURPOSE
The purpose of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of an automated statistic versus experienced examiners in detecting the presence of infant CAEPs when stimuli were present and reporting the absence of CAEPs when no stimuli were present.

RESEARCH DESIGN
A repeated-measures design was used where infant-generated CAEPs were interpreted by examiners and an automated statistic.

STUDY SAMPLE
There were nine male and five female infants (mean age, 12 mo; SD, 3.4) who completed behavioral and electrophysiological testing using speech-based stimuli.

DATA COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS
In total, 87 infant CAEPs were recorded to three sensation levels, 10, 20 and 30 dB relative to the behavioral thresholds and to nonstimulus trials. Three examiners were presented with these responses: (1) "in series," where waveforms were presented in order of decreasing stimulus presentation levels, and (2) "nonseries," where waveforms were randomized completely and presented as independent waveforms. The examiners were given no information about the stimulus levels and were asked to determine whether responses to auditory stimulation could be observed and their degree of certainty in making their decision. Data from the CAEP responses were also converted to multiple dependent variables and analyzed using Hotelling's T(2). Results from both methods of response detection were analyzed using a repeated measures ANOVA (analysis of variance) and parameters of signal detection theory known as d-prime (d') and the area under the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve.

RESULTS
Results showed that as the stimulus level increased, the sensitivity index, d', increased for both methods of response detection, but neither reached the maximum possible d' value with a sensation level of 30 dB. The examiners with the greatest experience and Hotelling's T(2) were equally sensitive in differentiating the CAEP from noise.

CONCLUSIONS
Hotelling's T(2) appears to detect CAEPs from normal hearing infants at a rate equal to that of an experienced examiner. A clinical instrument that applies Hotelling's T(2) on-line, so that the likelihood of response detection can be assessed objectively, should be of particular benefit to the novice or less experienced examiner.


Tumorigenesis is controlled by the sequestration of an autophagy machinery component to the cytoskeleton. Autophagy controls cellular homeostasis by degrading long-lived proteins, protein aggregates, and defective organelles. It also suppresses tumorigenesis by limiting inflammation, eliminating toxic unfolded proteins, and removing damaged mitochondria that produce reactive oxygen species (which damage DNA). Loss of these protective events could promote cancer initiation (1, 2). Support for the tumor suppressive function of autophagy emerged from the findings that the gene encoding the essential autophagic protein Beclin 1 functions as a haplo-insufficient tumor suppressor in mice and humans (3–6). However, a comprehensive mechanistic view of how autophagy is turned off during tumor development and, more specifically, whether the tumor-suppressive activity of Beclin 1 results from its canonical autophagic function, was still missing. On page 956 in this issue, Wang et al. (7) establish a connection between Beclin 1 and the Akt signaling pathway, which controls a large spectrum of cellular functions associated with cancer ranging from cell proliferation and survival to angiogenesis and metabolism. The finding underscores the importance of autophagy in tumor suppression (8)


There are high numbers of remote villages that still need electrification in some countries. Extension of the central electrical power network to these villages is not viable owing to the high costs and power losses involved. Isolated power systems such as rural microgrids based on renewables could be a potential solution. Photovoltaics (PV) technology is particularly suited for countries like India due to factors such as the available solar resource, the modularity of the technology and low technology costs. It was identified that unlike larger isolated power systems, rural microgrids have a low energy demand as the loads are mainly residential and street lighting. Hence, these microgrids could be of a single-phase configuration. At present, the typical procedure followed by planners of rural networks does not consider the importance of PV source siting and optimisation of network structure. An improved design procedure is introduced in this work based on the use of centres of moments for central PV system sizing, simulated annealing for network structure optimisation and load flow based parametric analysis for confirming the PV microgrid structure before detailed software-based PV design. Case studies of two remote villages are used to inform and illustrate the design procedure.


The observation of the strengths and profiles of the hydrogen Balmer absorption series is an established technique for determining the effective temperature and surface gravity of hot H-rich white dwarf stars. In principle, the Lyman series lines should be equally useful but, lying in the far-ultraviolet (FUV), are only accessible from space. Nevertheless, there are situations (for example, where the optical white dwarf spectrum is highly contaminated by the presence of a companion) in which use of the Lyman series may be essential. Therefore, it is important to establish whether or not the Lyman lines provide an equally valid means of measurement. We have already made a first attempt to study this problem, comparing Lyman line measurements from a variety of FUV instruments with ground-based Balmer line studies. Within the measurement uncertainties, we found the results from each line series to be broadly in agreement. However, we noted a number of potential systematic effects that could bias either measurement. With the availability of the Far Ultraviolet Spectroscopic Explorer (FUSE) data archive and observations from our own Guest Observer programmes, we now have an opportunity to examine the use of the Lyman series in more detail from observations of 16 DA white dwarfs. Here we have data produced by a single instrument and processed with a uniform data reduction pipeline, eliminating some of the possible systematic differences between observations of the same or different stars. We have also examined the scatter in values derived from multiple observations of the same star, which is significant. The new results partially reproduce the earlier study, showing that Balmer and Lyman line determined temperatures are in good agreement up to ∼50 000 K. However, above this value there is an increasing systematic difference between the Lyman and Balmer line results, the former yielding the higher temperature. At the moment, there is no clear explanation of this effect but we think that it is most likely associated with deficiencies in the detailed physics incorporated into the stellar model atmosphere calculations. Even so, the data do demonstrate that, for temperatures below 50 000 K, the Lyman lines give reliable results. Furthermore, for the hotter stars, a useful empirical calibration of the relationship between the Lyman and Balmer measurements has been obtained, which can be applied to other FUSE observations.


Diverse cargo molecules (i.e., receptors and ligand/receptor complexes) are taken into the cell by clathrin-mediated endocytosis (CME) utilizing a core machinery consisting of cargo-specific adaptors, clathrin and the GTPase dynamin. Numerous endocytic accessory proteins are also required, but their differential roles and functional hierarchy during CME are not yet understood. Here, we used a combination of quantitative live-cell imaging by total internal reflection fluorescence microscopy (TIR-FM), and decomposition of the lifetime distributions of clathrin-coated pits (CCPs) to measure independent aspects of CCP dynamics, including the turnover of abortive and productive CCP species and their relative contributions. Capitalizing on the sensitivity of this assay, we have examined the effects of specific siRNA-mediated depletion of endocytic accessory proteins on CME progression. Of the 12 endocytic accessory proteins examined, we observed seven qualitatively different phenotypes upon protein depletion. From this data we derive a temporal hierarchy of protein function during early steps of CME. Our results support the idea that a subset of accessory proteins, which mediate coat assembly, membrane curvature, and cargo selection, can provide input into an endocytic restriction point/checkpoint mechanism that monitors CCP maturation.


Lipid storage, particularly in the abdominal cavity, is a major concern in poultry breeding because it affects the net meat yield. The major contributors to lipid storage in the abdominal cavity are hepatic fatty acid synthesis and VLDL secretion. These factors are strongly correlated with the body fatness in the chicken. The aim of our study was to determine if a traditional food supplement, the extract from fig tree leaves (fig tree leaf extract (FTE)), can be used to decrease hepatic triglyceride (TG) content and secretion of TG and cholesterol (TC) from the liver. Livers from 8-week-old roosters (n = 24) with high abdominal fat pad ratios were extracted, sliced, and cultured with increasing concentrations of FTE, insulin and both of them. While insulin significantly increased TG secretion (0.190 - 0.013 mmol/l), TG content (0.523 - 0.093 mmol/l) and TC secretion (1.727 - 0.412 mmol/l) above the basal levels (P < 0.001), when FTE was added these effects were drastically reduced to the basal levels in a concentration- dependent manner (P < 0.001). Furthermore, we showed that in response to 1.7, 2.5 and 3.3 µl of FTE/ml of media hepatic TG content and TG secretion values from the liver significantly decreased in a concentration-dependent manner when compared to the control (P < 0.001). Our results suggest that Ficus carica leaf extract could be a beneficial supplement to modulate TG and TC secretion from the poultry liver.


(25R)-3β-Hydroxy-5α-spirostan-12-one (hecogenin) and 11α-hydroxypregn-4-ene-3,20-dione (11α-hydroxyprogesterone) were used as starting materials for the synthesis of a series of 11- and 12-substituted derivatives of 5ξ-pregnanolone (3α-hydroxy-5α-pregnan-20-one and 3α-hydroxy-5β-pregnan-20-one), the principal neurosteroid acting via γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA). These analogues were designed to study the structural requirements of the corresponding GABAA receptor. Their biological activity was measured by in vitro test with [(3)H]flunitrazepam as radioligand in which allopregnanolone and its active analogues stimulated the binding to the GABAA receptor. Analysis of the SAR data suggests dependence of the flunitrazepam binding activity on the hydrophobic-hydrophilic balance of the groups at the C-ring edge rather than on specific interactions between them and the receptor.


This report is based on a review of the various investigations attempting to determine the etiology of Crohn's disease. It has paid special attention to three main possible etiologic mechanisms, reported in the literature up to the time of this review; namely, immunologic, unknown transmissible agents or known such as L-forms, protoplasts, or spheroplasts, viral or infectious RNA and/or DNA, and a combination of the preceding causative possibilities. It has discussed the unrewarding immunological mechanisms, the failure to confirm the various investigations suggesting a transmissible agent and/or the speculations concerning the possible combination of factors. It also has included the remarks of Sacchar and Auslander, who stated that four important pieces were missing to allow acceptance of transmissible agent as the cause of Crohn's disease. This review has demonstrated that up to the present time the etiology of Crohn's disease has remained a puzzle and concluded that further investigations are necessary to resolve the etiology of Crohn's disease with the suggestion that evidence for an infectious agent will require experiments that satisfy Koch's postulates.


Stress stimulates several adaptive hormonal responses. Prominent among these responses are the secretion of catecholamines from the adrenal medulla, corticosteroids from the adrenal cortex, and adrenocorticotropin from the anterior pituitary. A number of complex interactions are involved in the regulation of these hormones. Glucocorticoids regulate catecholamine biosynthesis in the adrenal medulla and catecholamines stimulate adrenocorticotropin release from the anterior pituitary. In addition, other hormones, including corticotropin-releasing factor, vasoactive intestinal peptide, and arginine vasopressin stimulate while the corticosteroids and somatostatin inhibit adrenocorticotropin secretion. Together these agents appear to determine the complex physiologic responses to a variety of stressors.


Based on idealized non-steady state transient heat conduction model, the thermal conductivities of apple samples were determined at various moisture contents by using a specifically designed apparatus. The apparatus is rapidly, simply, accurately and only has relatively small sample requirement. Experimental data of thermal conductivities of apples showed a tendency of linear increase with the increase of moisture content of apple sample at the same temperature. An empirical correlation model for the thermal conductivity of apple as a function of moisture content was obtained. The developed model can be used to predict the thermal conductivity of apple satisfactorily in the entire range of moisture content. The results can be better contributed to the food engineering application.


The internal and all over structure of multi-temperature sensitive core-shell microgels was studied in this work. The particles consist of chemically cross linked networks of two temperature-sensitive polymers, poly-N-isopropylacrylamide (PNIPAM) and poly-N-isopropropylmethacrylamide (PNIPMAM), which exhibit lower critical solution temperatures (LCST) at 34 and 44 °C in aqueous solution. The particles were prepared in a two-step seed-and-feed polymerization to obtain a core-shell morphology, which allows a spatial separation of the two polymers with sensitivity to different quantities of the environmental stimulus temperature. The influence of shell thickness, i.e., the shell/core mass composition, and the cross linker content of the shell on the overall structure of PNIPAM core-PNIMAM shell microgels were investigated by means of dynamic light scattering (DLS). It was found that the particle size decreased in two distinct transitions upon heating at temperatures according to the core and shell component, respectively. The core transition at 34 °C became less pronounced for higher cross linked and thicker shells. Small-angle neutron scattering (SANS) was used in order to explore the internal structure. A new core-shell form factor model was developed and employed to fit the obtained data. Real space information on the particle structure was obtained from an analytical expression of the form factor calculating radial density profiles. The structure of the core-shell microgels was evaluated at temperatures above, between and below the LCSTs of the two polymers. At high temperatures the radial density distribution is well described by a two-box profile with narrow interface at the particle surface and at the core-shell interface where both networks interpenetrate. Decreasing the temperature below the shell LCST revealed a highly swollen shell, a broadened core-shell interface and increased dimensions of the core. The core expansion was explained by lateral stretching forces exerted to the core from the swollen shell. Thicker shells developed stronger forces and thus led to more expanded cores. At a temperature below the core LCST both core and shell were highly swollen, however, the swelling of the core was restricted. The cross linked shell polymer close to the core-shell interface was stretched to a maximum extend and prevented further swelling of the core. An inverse PNIPMAM core-PNIPAM shell microgel was investigated for comparison. Already DLS indicated a mutual influence of core and swelling as the particle sizes observed for the core-shell particle were smaller than for the parent core at temperatures between the LCSTs. The form factor model demanded for modifications to allow an asymmetric shape of the interface between core and shell. The analysis of data taken at 39°C validated the core compression by the collapsed shell and further revealed an inhomogeneous swelling of the core due to loosely cross linked chains in the periphery which did not interpenetrate with the shell network. The calorimetric properties of the core-shell microgel series with varied shell/core mass ratios were examined by means of differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and compared the structural information obtained from SANS. Two thermal transitions were found a temperatures correlated with the LCSTs of the components. A shift of the core transition towards higher temperatures was observed with increased shell masses and could be explained by a "chemo-mechanical" model. The forces which are exerted from the swollen shell to the core partially compensate the thermodynamic shrinking force of the core and thus the transition temperature is increased. In case of a very high shell mass a third thermal transition was observed between the LCST. The very thick shell led to a significant expansion of the core and the third transition corresponds to reorganized hydrogen bonds which are formed by the stretching of polymer chains close to the core-shell interface. The transition heats of the PNIPMAM shells were much smaller than compared to a pure PNIPMAM microgel. The comparison with SANS results revealed a restricted swelling in the confined geometry of a shell and could explain the lower heats.


Optimal (minimum cost) binary prefix-free codes for infinite sources with geometrically distributed frequencies, e.g., P = {p(1 − p)}i=0, 0 < p < 1, were first (implicitly) suggested by Golomb over thirty years ago in the context of run-length encodings. Ten years later Gallager and Van Voorhis exhibited such optimal codes for all values of p. Just recently Merhav, Seroussi and Weinberger extended this further to find optimal binary prefix-free codes for two-sided geometric distributions. These codes were derived by cleverly "guessing" optimal codes for finite sources, validating these guesses by using the sibling property of Huffman encoding, and then showing that the finite codes converge in a very specific sense to an optimal infinite one. In this paper we describe the first algorithmic approach to constructing optimal prefix-free infinite codes. Our approach is to define an infinite weighted graph with the property that the least cost infinite path in the graph corresponds to the optimal code. We then show that even though the graph is infinite, the leastcost infinite path has a repetitive structure and that it is therefore possible to not only find this path but to find it relatively efficiently. This approach will work for even more complicated generalizations of geometric sources where solutions can't be guessed as well as in extensions of Huffman-coding for which the Huffman algorithm no longer works, e.g., non-uniform cost encoding alphabet characters and/or other restrictions on the codewords. We illustrate our approach by deriving an algorithm for constructing optimal prefix free codes with a geometric source for the telegraph channel. We also implement our algorithm and show what the constructed codes look like in this case. This work was supported by Hong Kong CERG grants HKUST6162/00E, HKUST6082/01E and HKUST6206/02E


Abstract: The food was used as a complementary flavor sauces include snacks bulb. Dressing materials according to SNI 01-7388-2009 must comply with the requirements of the parameter Staphylococcus aureus, MPN (Most probable number) Coliform, TPC (total plate count) and molds. This study aims to determine the percentage of tomato sauce snacks bulb in the area around the intersection of four Banjarbaru who do not qualify SNI 01-7388-2009 of parameters MPN Coliform and Staphylococcus aureus. The results showed MPN Coliform tomato sauce ranges from 0-240 and Staphylococcus aureus 5 x 101 to 6.5 x 103. Concluded percentage tomato sauce snacks bulb that does not qualify SNI 01-7388-2009 parameter is 60% MPN Coliform and Staphylococcus aureus 80%. Suggestions to determine the value of TPC (total plate count) and molds and other chemical parameters of tomato sauce.


Conventional programming languages nowadays still rely on sequential Models of Computation (MoC). However, the hardware makes more and more use of parallelism to increase the performance, e.g. an increasing number of cores. Nevertheless, programming languages, that still rely on sequential MoCs are not well suited to completely utilise this hardware. Dataflow programming languages like RVC-CAL that rely on Dataflow Process Networks (DPNs) as MoC are more appropriate for this purpose. DPNs explicitly require the programmer to specify different processes that can be executed concurrently. One of the most popular compilers for RVC-CAL is the Open RVC-CAL Compiler (ORCC). ORCC converts RVC-CAL code to various backends, preferably C. But the generated C code only uses the multithreading mechanism of the Operating System. However, using OpenCL, a standard for the programming of heterogeneous systems, or SYCL, an abstraction layer for OpenCL offers a much more fine-grained parallelism and, therefore, can further increase the performance. This thesis provides a framework to convert RVC-CAL code to SYCL or OpenCL based implementations. This approach relies on the parallel execution of as many actions as possible within the actors. In comparison to other approaches, this framework does not entirely rely on synchronous dataflow. The execution of nonsynchronous actors can also be parallelised. The primary goal of this framework is to increase the performance by exploiting parallelism. This performance evaluation shows that for OpenCL based implementations performance gains up to 35% are achievable. For SYCL based implementations no performance gains are observable. Besides the performance, this framework also provides the ability to utilise OpenCL platforms other than the CPU, e.g. GPUs, and it enables a performance comparison of SYCL and OpenCL.


Consider a committee or society attempting to order the alternatives (X_1, X_2, X_3) by use of majority rule. Each individual is assumed to have a strong ordering (called a profile) on the alternatives. "Indifference" is not a property of the profiles. The committee is said to "prefer" X_i to X_j, denoted X_iCX_j if X_i is preferred to X_j on a majority of the individual profiles. It is well known that if certain individual profiles are chosen, the resulting "social ordering" may be cyclical, i.e., X_iCX_j, X_jCX_k, X_kCX_i. Such a result is called a "cycle."


Multi-view object detection is a fundamental problem in computer vision. Current approaches generally require an explicit partition between different views with or without sharing descriptors. We present a novel boosting based learning approach which automatically learns a multi-view detector without using intra-class sub-categorization based on prior knowledge. To avoid multiplying the false alarm rate by the number of classifiers, which happens on the classical approach where one classifier per view is considered, we build a single cascade of weak classifiers which contains an implicit hierarchical structure. In details, a partition of positive samples is automatically computed in order to build an adequate weak classifier based on one specific descriptor per subset. By adapting iteratively the number of descriptors at each stage, the so-defined hierarchical structure enables both a precise modelling and an efficient sharing of descriptors between views. Experimental results demonstrate the relevance and efficiency of this new approach.


We consider the problem of constructing pseudorandom generators for read-once circuits. We give an explicit construction of a pseudorandom generator for the class of read-once constant depth circuits with unbounded fan-in AND, OR, NOT and generalized modulo m gates, where m is an arbitrary fixed constant. The seed length of our generator is poly-logarithmic in the number of variables and the error.


Background and Hypothesis: Type 2 diabetes (T2D) is prevalent in the United States. T2D patients are at risk for impaired fracture healing due to decreased angiogenesis, which is required for successful bone regeneration. Bone morphogenetic protein-2 (BMP-2) is often used to help orthopedic surgeons with bone healing in difficult cases. Here, we begin characterizing the mechanism by which T2D alters bone healing with or without BMP-2 treatment. We hypothesize that T2D impairs fracture healing by decreasing angiogenesis and endothelial cell function.
Project Methods: Using Tie2-CreER;Td-Tomato mice (Tie2CreERT+), we established a high fat diet (HFD)-induced T2D mouse model to compare with control low fat diet (LFD)-fed mice. Mice underwent testing to confirm the T2D-like metabolic phenotype, underwent a femoral critical-size defect surgery that was treated with either saline or BMP-2, and were then assessed biweekly by X-ray imaging over the course of 12 weeks. Finally, bone marrow-derived endothelial cells were collected from these mice to assess changes in endothelial colony and tube formation in vitro.
Results: Results showed that the HFD mice acquired the T2D metabolic phenotype. Fracture healing was impaired in the HFD mice, even with BMP-2 treatment. The isolation of BMECs was confirmed by visualization of fluorescent Tie2+ cells. Unexpectedly, in vitro tube formation assays indicated that HFD improved vessel-like formation properties. BMP-2 treatment appeared to improve some vessel-like formation properties compared to control treatment.
Conclusion and Potential Impact: This study is ongoing. Further data will need to be collected to better characterize differences in bone healing and angiogenesis in the healing femurs. Still, these data reveal the mechanisms by which T2D impairs bone healing and demonstrate the important difference between examining endothelial cells in vitro vs. in vivo. Future investigations will examine if thrombopoietin, which our group has previously shown to improve both fracture healing and angiogenesis, may be a more effective treatment than BMP-2 in this model.


This article discusses the case of Alexander Cruden who published several pamphlets protesting against his wrongful confinement as a madman, in the mid eighteenth century. While Cruden seems to have been badly treated, his textual identification of himself with Alexander the Great and the biblical Joseph, together with his lavish praise of the Duke of Cumberland, make his over-riding claim to sanity suspect. The point of the article is to consider the tenuous position in society of the 'cured', or the released 'madman', and the extent to which re-absorption seems virtually impossible. The article was described as an 'extremely interesting and well-written study' by the anonymous reader for Lumen. It is based on a paper originally given at a conference of the Canadian Society for Eighteenth-Century Studies in Toronto. Ingram has been an invited speaker at a subsequent conference in Winnipeg (2007).


Abstract The first single-crystal structure refinement of aschamalmite (Pb6Bi2S9) from Susa Valley (Piedmont, Italy) is reported. The mineral is monoclinic, C2/m, a = 13.719(1) Å, b = 4.132(1) Å, c = 31.419(3) Å, β = 90.94(1)°, V = 1 780.8(4) Å3, Z = 4. The Pb6Bi2S9 compound crystallizes also in an orthorhombic form as heyrovskyite (Cmcm) and our study is focused on understanding the reason leading to a change in symmetry. The aschamalmite structure forms because of ordering between Pb and Bi on the margins of the two octahedral layers that are symmetrically equivalent in heyrovskyite. The two alternate set of octahedral slabs are not related by a crystallographic mirror plane and the symmetry decreases to monoclinic. The cation ordering couples opposite sequences of Pb and Bi octahedra at the margins of slabs. In particular, the succession [Me4A]Bi-[Me5A]Pb-[Me4A]Bi-[Me5A]Pb faced to the series[Me4B]Pb-[Me5B]Bi-[Me4B]Pb-[Me5B]Bi occurs in about 70% of the unit-cells of the crystal, while the contrary sequence ([Me4A]Pb-[Me5A]Bi-[Me4A]Pb-[Me5A]Bi faced to [Me4B]Bi-[Me5B]Pb-[Me4B]Bi-[Me5B]Pb) occurs in the remaining unit-cells. The marginal octahedra have ideal populations (a.p.f.u.): [Me4A]1.40Bi+0.60Pb, [Me4B]1.40Pb+0.60Bi, [Me5A]1.40Pb+0.60Bi,[Me5B]1.40Bi+0.60Pb, in agreement with our structure-refinement results. The probable site populations for pure heyrovskyite have been proposed, as well as the reasons that prevent the formation of a completely ordered monoclinic phase.


The effects of hepatocyte volume on the secretion of triacylglycerol were studied in order to test the suggestion that increases in the portal concentrations of osmolyte amino acids and metal ions during the prandial/early-absorptive phase may be involved in mediating the acute changes in glycerolipid metabolism observed in vivo [Zammit (1995) Biochem Soc. Trans. 23, 506-511]. Incubation of isolated rat hepatocytes with hypo-osmotic medium or in the presence of glutamine (in the presence or absence of leucine), conditions which gave an increase in cell water content of between 8 and 27%, resulted in a decrease in the rate of [14C]triacylglycerol (TAG) secretion when [14C]palmitate was used as substrate. The inhibition was proportional to the increase in cell water content. At low exogenous palmitate concentration (0.05 mM), the inhibition of [14C]TAG secretion was accompanied by a marked shift in the incorporation of label from TAG to phospholipid. In the presence of 0.5 mM palmitate this effect was attenuated, and in the presence of 1 mM palmitate it was abolished. Increased cell volume associated with incubation of hepatocytes with glutamine (in the presence or absence of leucine) also resulted in a decrease in the fraction of newly labelled TAG that was secreted into the medium. Decreased cell volume, achieved by incubation of hepatocytes with hyperosmotic medium (sufficient to decrease cell water content by approx. 9%) decreased overall [14C]TAG secretion, but did not affect the amount of label that was incorporated into phospholipid as a fraction of that incorporated into total glycerolipids. Cell shrinkage, however, diminished the fraction of newly labelled [14C]TAG that was secreted. When intracellular TAG was prelabelled with [3H]glycerol, it was found that cell shrinkage markedly inhibited (preformed) [3H]TAG secretion, whereas cell swelling did not affect this route of TAG secretion. The data are discussed in terms of the possible action of changes in cell hydration at the different loci at which hepatocyte TAG secretion is controlled, with reference to previous observations that both insulin and glucagon are able to inhibit TAG secretion in cultured rat hepatocytes and HepG2 cells.


ABSTRACT Detached crab apple flowers were used as an experimental model to investigate the effect of relative humidity (RH), free moisture, and water potential Psi(w) on the interaction between Erwinia amylovora and pomaceous flowers. Flowers were maintained at 24 degrees C with the cut pedicel submerged in a sucrose solution. The bacterium multiplied on inoculated flower stigmas at between approximately 55 and 100% RH but not in the floral cup (hypanthium) until the RH was higher than 80%. To study the effect of free moisture, stigma-inoculated flowers were kept wet for different periods. Flowers became diseased only with wetting, and incidence was high (77%) even when water application was immediately followed by a 52-min drying period. In other experiments with hypanthium-inoculated flowers, RH or sucrose concentration in holding vials was varied to affect Psi(w) of flower nectar and ovary tissue. Population size of E. amylovora in the hypanthium increased with nectar Psi(w) following a sigmoidal curve (R(2) = 0.99). Disease incidence and severity, however, were more closely related to ovary Psi(w) (R(2) = 0.85 and 0.91, respectively) than to bacterial population size (R(2) = 0.25 and 0.67, respectively) as fitted to the quadratic equation. Maximum disease incidence and severity occurred at an ovary Psi(w) above -2.0 MPa, and disease severity continued to increase above -1.0 MPa. These results were confirmed with detached flowers of Delicious apple and d'Anjou pear. A practical implication is that disease might be partly managed in arid climates by limiting soil irrigation water during bloom and early fruit set.


We consider the role played by school leaders in improving pupil attainment, going beyond previous studies by exploring the leadership roles of deputy and assistant heads and classroom-based teachers with additional leadership responsibilities. Using panel data for state-funded secondary schools in England for the period 2010/11-2015/16 we find academy schools typically employ more staff in leadership roles than community schools. Increases in the number of staff in leadership roles below headship level are associated, at least to some extent, with improved school performance in Single Academy Trusts, but this is not the case for schools that are part of Multi Academy Trusts. Our findings suggest that the potential benefits of distributing leadership within schools may only be realised when leaders have sufficient autonomy.


A desmoplastic fibroma of bone arose in the fibula of a 17-year-old boy with fibrous dysplasia. This may be the second case of this rare histopathologic association reported in the literature. Benign bone tumors have not previously been subjected to cytogenetic analysis. Analysis of this case revealed a primary abnormal clone trisomic for both chromosomes 3 and 5 and two subclones, one trisomic for chromosome 3 and one trisomic for chromosome 5. This case may also present the first description of nonrandom karyotypic abnormalities in a benign neoplasm of bone.


: We present a 45 years old male with dermatomyositis refractory to eight months of standard treatment who responded to plasma exchange. The efficacy of the procedure is estimated from clinical follow-up (increase in strength) and serum creatine-kinase activity (decrease from 3,380 to 44 u/ml.) after five sessions of plasma exchange. The therapeutic indications for PE are reviewed in dermatological diseases with emphasis on cases where the response to steroids or cytotoxic drugs is inadequate.