With 2 new states recently joining 16 others in eliminating Medicaid insurance for male circumcision, possible ballot initiatives to ban male circumcision, and the long-awaited American Academy of Pediatrics male circumcision policy statement, there is a need to evaluate the medical risks and benefits of male circumcision, particularly in light of recent medical evidence.

Three randomized trials in Africa demonstrated that adult male circumcision decreases human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) acquisition in men by 51% to 60%,1 and the long-term follow-up of these study participants has shown that the protective efficacy of male circumcision increases with time from surgery. These findings are consistent with a large number of observational studies in Africa and in the United States that found male circumcision reduces the risk of HIV infection in men.1 Thus, there is substantial evidence that removal of the foreskin reduces the risk of male heterosexual HIV acquisition. However, the effect of male circumcision on reducing HIV acquisition among men who have sex with men is unclear. There may be protection against insertional but not against receptive anal intercourse, so men practicing both forms of sexual intercourse may have limited protection associated with male circumcision.

In addition to HIV, male circumcision has been shown to reduce the risk of other heterosexually acquired sexually transmitted infections (STIs). Two trials demonstrated that male circumcision reduces the risk of acquiring genital herpes by 28% to 34%, and the risk of developing genital ulceration by 47%.1 Additionally, the trials found that male circumcision reduces the risk of oncogenic high-risk human papillomavirus (HR-HPV) by 32% to 35%.1 While some consider male circumcision to be primarily a male issue, one trial also reported derivative benefits for female partners of circumcised men; the risk of HR-HPV for female partners was reduced by 28%, the risk of bacterial vaginosis was reduced by 40%, and the risk of trichomoniasis was reduced by 48%.1,2 It should be noted that no large-scale randomized controlled trial has assessed the benefit of neonatal male circumcision throughout several decades, which is when many of the potential health benefits would be realized. Such a trial is probably not feasible. However, observational data of men predominantly circumcised during childhood support the findings of the 3 randomized trials conducted in Africa1 and the long-term medical benefits of male circumcision.

One concern is that the trials of male circumcision conducted in Africa may not be applicable to the United States. Despite 3 decades of safe-sex education in the United States, STIs continue to cause substantial morbidity and mortality. It is estimated that more than 1 million people are living with HIV/AIDS, and more than 50 000 new infections occur annually. Additional estimates suggest that there are 3 million to 5 million annual cases of trichomoniasis in the United States, and the prevalence of bacterial vaginosis among women of reproductive age is approximately 30%. One of the most common STIs is HPV, which causes genital warts, and penile and cervical cancer. Observational studies in the United States show that male circumcision is associated with reduced risk of men acquiring heterosexual HIV and HR-HPV infection.1,3 Thus, STIs are a persistent problem in the United States, and male circumcision may provide individual and societal benefits.

The incidence of viral STIs in the United States is disproportionately higher among disadvantaged minority populations such as blacks and Hispanics, who have the lowest rates of male circumcision. For example, in Washington, DC, 7.1% of black males are living with HIV, and heterosexual exposure is the leading mode of transmission among these individuals.4 Medicaid, which disproportionately provides health insurance for black children, is decreasing coverage for male circumcision, making the procedure less accessible, especially for those at the highest risk for these infections.5 In contrast, Medicaid covers immunization against hepatitis B virus during the neonatal period even though it is difficult to predict who will be at high risk of STIs.

Using mathematical models and cost-effectiveness analyses, the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) and the World Health Organization adopted a policy advocating male circumcision in countries and regions with heterosexual HIV epidemics. In a cost-effectiveness analysis by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, neonatal male circumcision in the United States was projected to increase quality-adjusted life-years and estimated to be cost-saving due to reduced HIV infections and subsequent treatment costs.6 If protection from genital herpes, bacterial vaginosis, trichomoniasis, and penile and cervical cancer were considered in the analyses, the economic benefits most likely would be enhanced.

Opponents of male circumcision argue that the procedure constitutes genital mutilation performed with parental consent but not the infant's assent and recommend that male circumcision be delayed until 18 years of age when the man can provide individual informed consent to the procedure. However, parents provide consent for preventive procedures such as immunization including hepatitis B vaccination, acting in the best interests of their children. UNAIDS recommends providing information on risks and benefits of early infant neonatal male circumcision so parents and guardians can make informed decisions on behalf of their children with the best interests of the child as the primary consideration.7 Additionally, a ban on neonatal male circumcision denies religious freedoms to Jewish and Muslim parents, which would be potentially unconstitutional.

Neonatal male circumcision provides other potential benefits during childhood such as prevention of infant urinary tract infections, meatitis, balanitis, and phimosis,8 as well as protection from viral STIs. Approximately 50% of high school students report having sex prior to 18 years of age, so delaying male circumcision to age 18 years or older would deny children and adolescents these potential benefits. Neonatal male circumcision is a simple procedure and the complication rate is only between 0.2% and 0.6%8; the vast majority of complications are minor and easily treated. The complication rate of neonatal male circumcision is substantially lower than the complication rates of adult male circumcision (1.5%-3.8% during the trials), so delaying the procedure would only add to surgical risk.

Some who oppose male circumcision cite anecdotal reports that male circumcision can cause sexual dysfunction. The male circumcision trials evaluated sexual satisfaction in adult men and their female partners before and after the procedure and compared men randomized to male circumcision with uncircumcised controls. There were no significant differences in male sexual satisfaction or dysfunction among trial participants, and in one trial, circumcised men reported increased penile sensitivity and enhanced ease of reaching orgasm.9 In addition, 97% of female partners reported either no change or improved sexual satisfaction after their male partner was circumcised.10

The evidence for the long-term public health benefits of male circumcision has increased substantially during the past 5 years. If a vaccine were available that reduced HIV risk by 60%, genital herpes risk by 30%, and HR-HPV risk by 35%, the medical community would rally behind the immunization and it would be promoted as a game-changing public health intervention. Based on the medical evidence, banning infant male circumcision would deprive parents of the right to act on behalf of their children's health. Parents should be provided with information derived from evidence-based medicine about the risks and benefits of male circumcision so that they can make an informed choice for their children. It would be ethically questionable to deprive them of this choice. Medicaid and other insurance carriers should cover male circumcision costs if parents opt for the procedure, and the medical community, including the American Academy of Pediatrics and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, should recognize the health benefits of male circumcision in order to properly inform parents and physicians.


Treatment guidelines and population-based recommendations evolve from research vetted by the scientific community. Healthcare providers require practice guidelines resulting from rigorous review of the totality of evidence. Open discussion/debate among experts is fundamental and encouraged, but blatant disregard for scientific process can lead to confusion and public distrust. A recent example is the controversy among scientists, healthcare professionals and the public about dietary saturated fat (SFA) recommendations to lower risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD).

### Dietary recommendations for SFA from authoritative organisations

More than 60 years ago (in 1957), the American Heart Association (AHA) proposed that modifying dietary fat could reduce the incidence of coronary heart disease (CHD). This was based on research, including controlled feeding studies, and endpoint measures of blood lipids and blood pressure.1 In 1980, the first Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommended 'avoiding too much SFA'.2 For decades, research has substantiated this consistent dietary recommendation from authoritative organisations to decrease SFA to reduce CVD risk.3–6 Current dietary guidelines for SFA and evidence ratings are summarised in table 1. While the strong evidence to reduce SFA specifically targets decreasing low-density lipoprotein (LDL)-cholesterol, it is very much germane to CVD risk reduction.

View this table:

Table 1
Authoritative recommendations for saturated fat and evidence ratings

### Challenging practice guidelines and population-based recommendations: the SFA SAGA

In 2010, a meta-analysis of 21 prospective epidemiological studies totalling 347 747 subjects reported that higher intake of SFA was not associated with an increased risk of CHD, stroke or CVD.7 Aspects of this methodology were widely …


Author(s): Vargas, Marcos | Abstract: This paper will examine these issues based on a review of the existing literature and the analysis of a survey of forty-eight Los Angeles based API CBOs. The paper is organized into five sections. Section I provides an overview of API CBOs, describing their growth over the last two decades, the scope of services they provide and recent shifts in organizational service and constituency focus. Section II addresses efforts by CBOs under welfare reform to provide effective welfare-to-work and other related programs targeting API welfare recipients. Section III addresses efforts underway by CBOs with little or no experience in providing services targeting API welfare recipients. Section IV describes the collaborative efforts being undertaken by CBOs in assisting API welfare recipients and addressing the overall effects of welfare reform on the API community, including advocacy, planning and policy activities being undertaken collaboratively by CBOs in response to welfare reform. Section V discusses the strengths and limitations of CBOs in assisting API welfare recipients under welfare reform, concluding with a list of policy recommendations.


The biofuel project is an agro-industrial development and politically contested policy process where governments increasingly become global actors. European Union (EU) biofuels policy rests upon arguments about societal benefits of three main kinds – namely, environmental protection (especially greenhouse gas savings), energy security and rural development, especially in the global South. Each argument involves optimistic assumptions about what the putative benefits mean and how they can be fulfilled. After examining those assumptions, we compare them with experiences in three countries – Germany, Brazil and Mozambique – which have various links to each other and to the EU through biofuels. In those case studies, there are fundamental contradictions between EU policy assumptions and practices in the real world, involving frictional encounters among biofuel promoters as well as with people adversely affected. Such contradictions may intensify with the future rise of biofuels and so warrant systematic attention.


There exists relationship of mutual benefit and interaction between informatization¬ and the traditional industrial upgrading. Penetration of information technology can promote sustainable development of traditional industry, so as to carry out industrial structure upgrading. We should transform traditional manufacturing of Yantai by informatization and build up the new industry system which has international competitiveness. The key is to strengthen system innovation, information technology innovation, and dominant industries informatization and supply chain management informatization.


Previous findings of the association between low birth weight and subsequent health outcomes have led to the "developmental origins of health and disease hypothesis". Furthermore, modifiable and partly modifiable early life factors may also influence behaviors such as physical activity and sedentary behavior. The aim of the present review was to summarize the existing knowledge on early life determinants (birth weight, rapid infant weight gain, motor development and infant temperament) of childhood physical activity and sedentary time, and suggest opportunities for future research based on the Mother and Child Cohort Study (MoBa). Inconsistent results have been observed when relating birth weight to later physical activity, likely explained by differences in methodology when assessing physical activity between studies. There is limited data on whether rapid weight gain in early life predicts later physical activity and few studies have examined the association between birth weight and infant weight gain with subsequent sedentary time. Motor development may be a predictor for childhood physical activity, however methodological limitations preclude firm conclusions. The association between motor development and sedentary time has rarely been examined. Conflicting results have been reported for the association between infant temperament and subsequent physical activity and sedentary time in toddlers. Finally, it is unknown whether physical activity modifies the association between birth weight, postnatal weight gain, and later health outcomes in youth. Additional research in well-characterized birth cohorts can be used to generate new knowledge on possible early life determinants of children's and youth's physical activity and sedentary time which may inform evidence-based public health interventions.


RNA virus infection results in expression of type 1 IFNs, especially IFN-α/β, which play a crucial role in host antivirus responses. Type 1 IFNs are induced in a cell type-specific manner through TLR and RIG-I–like receptor pathways, both of which activate IFN regulatory factors (IRFs) and NF-κB transcription factors. Although NF-κB activation and association with the IFN-β promoter after RNA virus infection is well documented, our previous work showed that, surprisingly, NF-κB is not essential for IFN-β gene expression. Thus, the actual function of NF-κB in IFN-β expression and virus replication is not clear. In this study, we found Newcastle disease virus and vesicular stomatitis virus replication is enhanced in mouse embryonic fibroblasts (MEFs) lacking the NF-κB RelA subunit. Increased virus replication was traced to a specific requirement for RelA in early virus-induced IFN-β expression. At these time points, when IFN-β expression is ~100-fold less than peak levels, impaired IFN-β production delayed IFN-induced gene expression, resulting in increased virus replication in RelA−/− MEFs. Importantly, our results show that RelA requirement is crucial only when IRF3 activation is low. Thus, high levels of activated IRF3 expression are sufficient for induction of IFN-β in RelA−/− MEFs, transcriptional synergism with the coactivator CREB-binding protein, and rescue of susceptibility to virus. Together, these findings indicate that NF-κB RelA is not crucial for regulating overall IFN-β production, as previously believed; instead, RelA is specifically required only during a key early phase after virus infection, which substantially impacts the host response to virus infection.


We provide upper bounds of the expected Wasserstein distance between a probability measure and its empirical version, generalizing recent results for finite dimensional Euclidean spaces and bounded functional spaces. Such a generalization can cover Euclidean spaces with large dimensionality, with the optimal dependence on the dimensionality. Our method also covers the important case of Gaussian processes in separable Hilbert spaces, with rate-optimal upper bounds for functional data distributions whose coordinates decay geometrically or polynomially. Moreover, our bounds of the expected value can be combined with mean-concentration results to yield improved exponential tail probability bounds for the Wasserstein error of empirical measures under a Bernstein-type tail condition.


Objective. To investigate the prevalence of psoriatic arthritis (PsA) in Japanese patients with psoriasis. Methods. A multicenter, noninterventional, retrospective cross-sectional study was conducted at 3 tertiary care centers in Japan. PsA was diagnosed by rheumatologists based on clinical findings. Prevalence of PsA, clinical characteristics, comorbidities, and treatment patterns were examined. Results. PsA was identified in 431 of 3021 patients with psoriasis, with a mean prevalence of 14.3% (range, 8.8–20.4%). No large differences between these results and previous reports from Western countries were observed in arthritis distribution, skin disease type, or treatment selection. Conclusion. The prevalence of PsA in patients with psoriasis in Japan approaches 20% in some areas, similar to that observed in Western countries, and is higher than previously reported in Asia. Clinical features including age, sex, age at onset, and manifestation patterns were also similar to those reported in the West.


This paper describes implementation of simultaneous, high speed (5 kHz) stereo PIV, OH and fuel-PLIF in a pressurized (up to 5.2 atm), liquid fueled, swirl stabilized flame, representative of a gas turbine combustor. The experiments were performed to characterize the flowfield, qualitative heat release and fuel spray distributions, and flame dynamics. Acquiring high speed OH-PLIF in pressurized, liquid fuel systems is difficult due to the fuel's absorption and emission spectra strongly overlapping that of the OH fluorescence spectrum. To overcome the fuel emission polluting the OH signal, the OH and fuel fluorescence signals were partially separated by using two cameras with differing spectral filters and data acquisition timing, as the emission from OH and fuel differ both in spectral width and time. The first camera captured only fuel-PLIF, while the second captured fuelPLIF and OH-PLIF. The fuel-PLIF images were used to compute two intensity thresholds, separating each image into regions of no fuel, fuel only and an intermediate region. In the region of no fuel, OH was detected in the second camera. In the intermediate region there was a mix of fuel and OH. Instantaneous and time-averaged results are discussed showing the flow field, flame position and dynamics, and spray distribution from the fuel signal for two different multi-component liquid fuels (Jet-A and C-5), at two inlet temperatures of 450 and 570 K, and three pressure of 2.1, 3.5 and 5.2 bar. The flame shape in some cases is described as M-shaped, existing both inside and outside of the annular swirling jet produced by the nozzle, while in other cases no reaction is apparent on the inside. The spray penetration and distribution, and flame position are sensitive to the various conditions, while the flow field topology is qualitatively insensitive. Furthermore, elevated pressure as expected sharpens all spatial gradients in the data.


AIMS
Gallbladder polyps often have a benign nature. Current guidelines suggest surgical removal of polyps greater than 10 mm. However, the accuracy of the size criteria is limited because neoplasia can be found in gallbladder polyps less than 10 mm. The aim of this study was to evaluate the feasibility of real time elastography for gallbladder polyps and to demonstrate the elasticity properties of the polyps.

MATERIAL AND METHOD
Fifty-three polypoid lesions of the gallbladder were prospectively examined with real-time elastography. Of these patients, 52 had a diagnosis of benign gallbladder polyps and one patient was accepted as a gallbladder carcinoma due to its clinical and radiological findings. B-mode and real-time elastographic images were simultaneously presented as a two-panel image, and the elastogram was displayed in a color scale that ranged from red (greatest strain, softest component), to green (average strain, intermediate component), to blue (no strain, hardest component).

RESULTS
The mean size for benign gallbladder polyps was 7.2 +/- 3 mm (range, 5-21 mm). All benign gallbladder polyps on consecutive real-time elastographic images appeared as having a high-strain elastographic pattern. Only one patient who was accepted with gallbladder carcinoma had a gallbladder polyp with low elasticity properties.

CONCLUSIONS
Our study showed that real time elastography of gallbladder polyps is feasible. This novel approach may be useful for the characterization of polypoid lesions of the gallbladder.


This paper presents the evaluation method of the effect range from the package insert of medicine with text mining. Mostof the people who take the over the counter medicines cannot understand the medicinal effects. This is because they havelittle knowledge of the medicine. The ingredients of the over the counter medicines are made from prescription products. Theprescription product shows various laboratory findings to obtain authorization from the Ministry of Health, Labour andWelfare.The medical information is described in the package insert of the medicine, and anyone is available. It is possible to evaluate theeffect of the ingredient in the over the counter medicines, if we analyzed the medical information described in this package insertof the medicine with text mining method. This paper, we focus on both the antipyretic and the antitussive among lots of the overthe counter medicines and do intensive research with them. However, variability is observed in the results of the analysis. Weanalyze the effect of magnification of each experimental configuration. Since the size of this fluctuation range comes from theexperimental configuration. Therefore, we summarize the medication type and the experimental data of the medicine in eachexperimental configuration. As a result, we succeed in the effective range of medicine with text mining, if we extracted theexperimental configuration and analyzed above summarization.


We elaborate the need for a quality-controlled chemical speciation model for seawater and related natural waters, work which forms the major focus of SCOR Working Group 145. Model development is based on Pitzer equations for the seawater electrolyte and trace components. These equations can be used to calculate activities of dissolved ions and molecules and, in combination with thermodynamic equilibrium constants, chemical speciation. The major tasks to be addressed are ensuring internal consistency of the Pitzer model parameters (expressing the interactions between pairs and triplets of species, which ultimately determines the calculated activities), assessing uncertainties, and identifying important data gaps that should be addressed by new measurements. It is recognised that natural organic matter plays an important role in many aquatic ecosystems, and options for including this material in a Pitzer-based model are discussed. The process of model development begins with the core components which include the seawater electrolyte and the weak acids controlling pH. This core model can then be expanded by incorporating additional chemical components, changing the standard seawater composition and/or broadening the range of temperature and pressure, without compromising its validity. Seven important areas of application are identified: open ocean acidification; micro-nutrient biogeochemistry and geochemical tracers; micro-nutrient behaviour in laboratory studies; water quality in coastal and estuarine waters; cycling of nutrients and trace metals in pore waters; chemical equilibria in hydrothermal systems; brines and salt lakes.


OBJECTIVE
To evaluate the therapeutic effects of endovenous laser therapy (EVLT) and saphenous veins stripping in the treatment of great saphenous vein incompetence.

METHODS
Eighty cases (80 limbs) with great incompetent saphenous vein were randomly divided into 2 equal groups: EVLT group and stripping group. The patients in the EVLT group underwent EVLT and those in the stripping group underwent upper ligation and stripping of great saphenous vein. The duration of operation, blood losing, complications, pain grade, and hospitalization time were compared. All cases were followed up for 6 months and 12 months using Doppler sonography and air Plethysmography.

RESULTS
The blood losing (P < 0.01), hospitalization time (P < 0.05) and pain grade (P < 0.05) in the EVLT group were all significantly less than those in the stripping group, while the operation duration and complication were not significantly different between the two groups (P > 0.05). All patients in both groups got improvements of venous volume (P < 0.05), Venous Filling Index (P < 0.01), and residual Venous Fraction (P < 0.01), yet there were no statistical differences between the two groups (P > 0.05).

CONCLUSION
Endovenous laser therapy is a safe, effective, minimal invasive procedure for the patients with great saphenous vein incompetence. Its short-time efficiency is similar to that of the traditional upper ligation and laceration of greater saphenous vein.


This thesis is concerned with the fabrication of large area solution process hybrid photovoltaic (PV) devices using ZnO inorganic materials, incorporating inorganic nanoparticles in the photoactive layer. We investigate four different fabrication methodologies and architectures to directly relate to device performance to optical properties of the active layer. In the process, electronic properties associated with the interface of active layer/metal electrode with different forms of various thienothiophene polymers as the donor in the hybrid PV cells are examined. The results to support the promise of ZnO being an ideal component for hybrid PV systems and suggests ways to improve the performance of organic PV devices. The effects of spherical nanoparticle (NP) dimension and interfacial modification were investigated on the performance of the hybrid polymer:ZnO PV devices. Structures consisting of regioregular poly-3-hexylthiophene (rr-P3HT) polymer and the fullerene derivative [6,6]-phenyl C61 butyric acid methyl ester (PCBM) were compared in contact with different sizes of 20 nm, 200 nm, or 300 nm ZnO NPs. Hybrid solar cells were fabricated by embedding the combination of rr-P3HT with 20 nm or 50 nm ZnO NPs. The device performances relied on the ZnO NP size and its dispersion. The effects of the interfacial layers between the photovoltaic layer and metal cathodes on hybrid P3HT:ZnO NP PVs were also examined. Using the blend of rr-P3HT and ZnO formed via the solution process with diethylzinc precursor, the hybrid PV devices were fabricated and optimised. Factors determining the photovoltaic device performance of blends of rr-P3HT and ZnO nanostructures are reported. A decrease in the crystallinity of rr-P3HT upon the formation of ZnO (through hydrolysis) is observed through optical absorption spectroscopy. Increasing the humidity level for the ZnO formation leads to a decrease in the photoluminescence of the rr-P3HT:ZnO blend, together with improved photovoltaic device performance. This is attributed to a more efficient charge extraction due to a decrease in the effective radiative trap sites on the ZnO surface as a result of decreasing the ZnO surface area with increasing humidity level. The BCP, TiOx, and LiF interfacial layers between photoactive material and metal cathode allows the device performance to be enhanced in hybrid rr-P3HT:ZnO PV cells. The best device performance was obtained in hybrid rr-P3HT:ZnO PVs, with a TiOx interfacial layer. Photoelectron spectroscopy is used to investigate the role of titanium oxide as an interfacial layer. The inspection of chemical bonds through X-ray photoemission spectroscopy core peaks indicates that the inner structure of rr-P3HT:ZnO photo-active layer is preserved (i. e. there is no chemical interaction between the active layer and the TiOx layer), despite the deposition of the TiOx. Furthermore, the formation of dipoles is also observed at the interface which explains the band alignment between rr-P3HT:ZnO/TiOx/Al. This band alignment in turn explains the enhancement in power conversion efficiency from 1. 08% to 1. 22% upon incorporating the TiOx layer in rr-P3HT:ZnO photovoltaic cells. The various thienothiophene copolymers were used as a donor in the new architectures of hybrid PV cells with ZnO, which were fabricated and examined for device performance. The best device performance was obtained in a hybrid PV device using Poly(3,6-dialkylthieno[3,2-b]thiophene-co-bithiophene) (pATBT) donor and ZnO acceptor. Using this hybrid system, the effect of the side chain length of pATBT on the performance of hybrid polymer-metal oxide PVs is investigated. The pATBT attached with a dodecyl side chain (pATBT-C12) in hybrid PVs with ZnO was compared to pATBT with a hexadecyl side chain (pATBT-C16). Atomic force microscopic analysis reveals a smoother surface for the pATBT-C16 photoactive layer compared to the pATBT-C12. For hybrid PVs using pATBT-C16, the relative intensity of the external quantum efficiency (EQE) particularly increased by 39 % at a wavelength of 395 nm associated with the ZnO. Furthermore, the EQE spectrum shows a red shift for pATBT-C 16 indicating better structural ordering compared to hybrid PVs with pATBT-C12. As a result, the hybrid PV utilising pATBT-C16:ZnO blend layer is observed to display a better performance with a power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 1. 02 % compared to 0. 672 % of pATBT-C12:ZnO PV.


Obstacle crossing, such as stepping over a curb, becomes more challenging with natural aging and could lead to obstacle-related trips and falls. To reduce fall-risk, obstacle training programs using physical obstacles have been developed, but come with space and human resource constraints. These barriers could be removed by using a virtual obstacle crossing training program, but only if the learned gait characteristics transfer to a real environment. We examined whether virtual environment obstacle crossing behavior is transferred to crossing real environment obstacles. Forty participants (n = 20 younger adults andn = 20 older adults) completed two sessions of virtual environment obstacle crossing, which was preceded and followed by one session of real environment obstacle crossing. Participants learned to cross the virtual obstacle more safely and that change in behavior was transferred to the real environment via increased foot clearance and alterations in foot placement before and after the real environment obstacle. Further, while both age groups showed transfer to the real environment task, they differed on the limb in which their transfer effects applied. This suggests it is plausible to use virtual reality training to enhance gait characteristics in the context of obstacle avoidance, potentially leading to a novel way to reduce fall-risk.


Intraspecific latitudinal clines in the body size of terrestrial vertebrates, where members of the same species are larger at higher latitudes, are widely interpreted as evidence for natural selection and adaptation to local climate. These clines are predicted to shift in response to climate change. We used museum specimens to measure changes in the body size of eight passerine bird species from south-eastern Australia over approximately the last 100 years. Four species showed significant decreases in body size (1.8–3.6% of wing length) and a shift in latitudinal cline over that period, and a meta-analysis demonstrated a consistent trend across all eight species. Southern high-latitude populations now display the body sizes typical of more northern populations pre-1950, equivalent to a 7° shift in latitude. Using ptilochronology, we found no evidence that these morphological changes were a plastic response to changes in nutrition, a likely non-genetic mechanism for the pattern observed. Our results demonstrate a generalized response by eight avian species to some major environmental change over the last 100 years or so, probably global warming.


Impacting and compacting technology is widely applied for re-built old PCC pavement. However, underground pipe would be influenced by impacting machine to possibly occur fracture. A 3D finite element model was established by ADINA software to analyze distribution of additional stress and displacement upon pipe when machine traveled across different positions of slab. The results indicated that longitudinal compressive stress and vertical displacements at the corner of the slab were larger than those at the longitudinal middle fringe of the slab; the influenced depth of additional stress caused by impacting force was about 2.5m and additional stress decayed quickly with the increasing depth; the maximum soil pressure measured in field was smaller than that in numerical simulation.


Root Development is an extremely exciting new title in Blackwell Publishing's Annual Plant Reviews Series (Series Editor Profesor Jeremy Roberts). The book consists of contributions from author groups based at many of the World's formeost laboratories working in the root development area. The book's editor Tom Beeckman himself very well known and respected for his work in this area has drawn together an exceptional set of core cutting edge reviews of the subject providing a state of the art reference tool for all those researching in this area.


Background An estimated half of all pregnancies in the US are unplanned. In general, unplanned pregnancies are at higher risk for pregnancy loss and birth defects; an estimated 1/3 are electively terminated. Among women with rheumatic disease, the risks of unplanned pregnancy are even higher due to the frequent use of teratogenic medications and complications from active disease at conception. We sought to determine the frequency of unplanned pregnancy and the demographic differences between planned and unplanned pregnancies in a university-based pregnancy and rheumatology clinic. Methods At enrollment into a prospective rheumatology pregnancy cohort, each woman completed the London Measure of Unplanned Pregnancy (LMUP), a validated 6-question survey that assesses a womans intentions for conception. Demographic and historical rheumatologic data were collected. A higher LMUP score indicated a higher degree of pregnancy planning; a planned pregnancy has a score of 10–12. Results Eighty-two pregnant women completed the survey between January and December 2018. The majority of women were white (68%), well-educated (77% at least college educated), married (77%), and had private insurance (77%); the average age was 30.7. The most common diagnosis was SLE (26%), followed by RA (21%) and UCTD (18%). The median LMUP score was 11 with 71% of women having a planned pregnancy. Of the women with an unplanned pregnancy, only 37% reported contraceptive use, including progesterone-only pill (8%), IUD (4%), and barrier methods (25%). No differences in contraception use between women with and without SLE were observed. In comparison to women without SLE, those with SLE were more likely to have an unplanned pregnancy (25% without SLE vs 43% with SLE, p=0.2) The LMUP score was significantly lower for women with SLE (mean 10.3 non-SLE vs 9.0 SLE, p=0.07; median 12.0 non-SLE vs 10.0 SLE, p=0.01). Only 43% of women with SLE reported that they had intended to get pregnant, compared to 75% of non-SLE women (p=0.02) and 48% of women with SLE reported taking folic acid or a prenatal vitamin compared to 72% of non-SLE women (p=0.06) Conclusions Among this largely upper-middle and middle class population, most pregnancies were planned and most women took steps pre-pregnancy to prepare; this data may not reflect the typical rheumatology clinic. Among women with SLE, however, a higher proportion of pregnancies were unplanned. Our next steps will be to correlate pregnancy intention with outcomes and implement approaches to limit unplanned pregnancies among women with SLE. Funding Source(s): None


Lean Six Sigma (LSS) process analysis can be used to increase completeness of discharge summary reports used as a critical communication tool when a patient transitions between levels of care. The authors used the LSS methodology as an intervention to improve systems process. Over the course of the project, 8 required elements were analyzed in the discharge paperwork. The authors analyzed the discharge paperwork of patients (42 patients preintervention and 143 patients postintervention) of a comprehensive integrated inpatient rehabilitation program (CIIRP). Prior to this LSS project, 61.8% of required discharge elements were present. The intervention improved the completeness to 94.2% of the required elements. The percentage of charts that were 100% complete increased from 11.9% to 67.8%. LSS is a well-established process improvement methodology that can be used to make significant improvements in complex health care workflow issues. Specifically, the completeness of discharge documentation required for transition of care to CIIRP can be improved.


Background Sexually transmitted infections are widespread globally, especially among people aged 15–25. Chlamydia trachomatis is the most common sexually-acquired bacterial disease. This infection is not notified in Italy; prevalence data on population-based surveys are not available. Methods We conducted a prevalence survey among students aged 18 or older attending high schools in the Province of Brescia, Northern Italy. A total of 3134 adolescents were offered to enter the study; overall, 1886/3134 (60.2%) participated. Each consenting student answered to a socio-behavioural questionnaire and C. trachomatis and N. gonorrhoeae were searched on first void urine samples using VERSANT® CT/GC DNA 1.0 Assay (kPCR). We present preliminary data concerning 1311 enrolled individuals attending 16 schools. Results Overall, 63.8% (836/1311) were females and the median age was 18.4 years. Most students (91.7%) were born in Italy. 77.1% of the enrolled students declared to be sexually active (F > M, p < 0.001), with their first intercourse occurring at a median age of 16.0 years. About 57.0% of sexually active persons reported using condom during the last intercourse and only 26.5% (M > F, p = 0.017) admitted always using it. Females were found to become sexually active earlier, had more partners in the previous six months and less frequently used condoms. No case of N. gonorrhoeae infection was identified, while 8 males and 13 females were positive for C. trachomatis, with a prevalence rate among sexually active students of 2.4% (IC 95%:1.0–4.8) and 1.9% (IC 95%:1.0–3.3) respectively. The factors significantly associated with an increased risk of Chlamydial infection were the inconsistent condom use (p = 0.029) and a higher number of sexual partners during the previous six months (p = 0.013). Conclusion A lower than expected prevalence of C. trachomatis infection was observed among sexually active adolescents in Northern Italy. Study conducted with scientific and logistic support from Copan S.p.A. and Siemens Healthcare Diagnostic S.p.A.


Objectives: To describe the impact of effusion volume, viscosity, and purulence on the audiologic profiles of children with otitis media with effusion. Design: Fifty-one ears from children between the ages of 8 months and 11 years who had a diagnosis of otitis media with effusion and were scheduled for tympanostomy tube placement were recruited from medical clinics. The control group consisted of 17 ears from children between the ages of 10 months and 11 years without a recent history of otitis media and were recruited from a database of research volunteers. Participants received a comprehensive audiologic testing battery consisting of tympanometry, otoacoustic emissions, behavioral audiometric thresholds, and auditory brainstem response testing. For children with otitis media, this testing battery occurred 1 to 2 days before surgery. Middle ear effusions were characterized and collected on the day of surgery during tympanostomy tube placement from ears with otitis media with effusion. The comprehensive audiologic testing battery was completed postoperatively as well for most participants. Results: Effusion volume, categorized in each ear as clear, partial, or full, effected the audiologic results. Ears with full effusions had moderate hearing losses, few to no measurable otoacoustic emissions, and delayed Wave V latencies. Ears with partial effusions and clear ears both had slight to mild hearing losses and normal Wave V latencies, though ears with partial effusions had fewer measurable otoacoustic emissions than clear ears. Normal-hearing control ears with no recent history of otitis media with effusion demonstrated normal audiometric thresholds, present otoacoustic emissions, and normal Wave V latencies. Repeat postoperative testing demonstrated improvements in audiologic testing results for all of the otitis media with effusion volume groups, with no significant differences remaining between the three otitis media with effusion groups. However, significant differences between otitis media with effusion ears and normal-hearing control ears persisted postoperatively, with otitis media with effusion ears demonstrating significantly poorer audiometric thresholds and reduced otoacoustic emissions as compared to normal control ears. The effect of effusion viscosity and purulence could not be systematically evaluated because minimal variability in effusion viscosity and purulence was observed in our sample, with nearly all effusions being mucoid and nonpurulent. Conclusions: Effusion volume observed at the time of tympanostomy tube surgery was found to play a significant role in outcomes and responses on a range of audiologic tests that compose the standard clinical pediatric audiologic assessment battery. Full middle ear effusions were associated with a moderate hearing loss, and few to no measurable otoacoustic emissions were detected. Ears with a recent diagnosis of otitis media with effusion but clear at the time of tympanostomy tube placement had less hearing loss and a greater number of present otoacoustic emissions than ears with full or partial effusions but were still found to have poorer hearing sensitivity than the healthy control ears. Differences between ears with otitis media with effusion and healthy control ears persisted on postoperative assessments of otoacoustic emissions and audiometric thresholds, though there were no remaining effects of the presurgical effusion volume group.


The paper outlines the first results of a research project on NGOs and immigration in an urban southern Spanish context. Comparing two case studies carried out in the cities of Jerez de la Frontera and Granada, we analyze the different politics of toleration versus formalization implemented by the two municipal and police authorities on behalf of the "informal" and often "illegal" Senegalese tradesmen. The success and/or failure of these policies is contrasted with the attempts of two different kinds of NGOs to support the Senegalese tradesmen: on the one hand, philanthropically motivated NGOs formed by Spanish citizens engaged as volunteers and intermediaries between the tradesmen and the authorities, and, on the other hand, associations of Senegalese citizens legally residing in Spain acting as the spokesmen of their fellow countrymen. On the basis of these rather heterogeneous empirical data on strategies of "formalizing," "marginalizing," and abandoning the shadow economy, the processes of political and administrative intermediation are theoretically analyzed as an example of "intercultural translation" in conditions of extreme socioeconomic inequality.


Simulated economies suffer intrinsically from validation and comparison problems. The choice of a suitable indicator quantifying the distance between the model and the data is pivotal to model selection. However, how to validate and discriminate between models are still open problems calling for further investigation, especially in light of the increasing use of simulations in social sciences. In this paper I present a new information theoretic criterion to measure how close models' synthetic output replicates the properties of observable time series without the need to resort to any likelihood function or to impose stationarity requirements. This indicator is sufficiently general to be applied to any kind of model able to simulate or predict time series data, from simple univariate models such as Auto Regressive Moving Average (ARMA) and Markov processes to more complex objects including agent-based or dynamic stochastic general equilibrium models. More specifically, I use a simple function of the L-divergence computed at different block lengths in order to select the model that is better able to reproduce the distributions of time changes in the data. To evaluate the L-divergence, probabilities are estimated across frequencies including a correction for the systematic bias. Finally, using a known data generating process, I show how this indicator can be used to validate and discriminate between different univariate models providing a precise measure of the distance of each model from the data.


1. Atrial fibrillation was induced in dogs by single electrical shocks. Close bipolar direct electrograms were taken from various parts of the atrium; as many as 22 electrograms and a standard lead II electrocardiogram were recorded simultaneously. Initial phase and recovery phase of fibrillation were analyzed. 2. In the initial phase of atrial fibrillation, local firing consisting of rapid tachysystole of 996 to 3000 per minute was observed near the stimulating point in most experiments. Except for the leads showing local firing, the interval between beats at each recording point tended to be constant, and a time gap between two successive beats was observed. A propagation pattern could be plotted which seemed to start from the origin of local firing; some beats were conducted only locally, and others (every second, third or fourth discharge) were conducted widely. The cause of atrial fibrillation was considered to be local firing of one small area of the atrium, i.e., the unifocal theory of the origin of atrial fibrillation was supported. 3. During recovery from atrial fibrillation, features similar to those seen in the initial phase often appeared, although local firing disappeared. In some experiments, the atrium was separated electrically into a few groups of cells beating independently, and in others a "circus pathway" appeared to exist in the last beat. It seems that electrical separation of the atrium into many parts and circus movements, or multiple re-entry, may develop during the course of fibrillation, and that these phenomena perpetuate atrial fibrillation. 4. During the last beat of atrial fibrillation, the time required for all cells to depolarize was occasionally less than the duration of the normal sinus beat. A similar phenomenon was sometimes observed in the premature beats following atrial fibrillation.


Variational Quantum Algorithms (VQAs) are a promising application for near-term quantum processors, however the quality of their results is greatly limited by noise. For this reason, various error mitigation techniques have emerged to deal with noise that can be applied to these algorithms. Recent work introduced a technique for mitigating expectation values against correlated measurement errors that can be applied to measurements of 10s of qubits. We apply these techniques to VQAs and demonstrate its effectiveness in improving estimates to the cost function. Moreover, we use the data resulting from this technique to experimentally characterize measurement errors in terms of the device connectivity on devices of up to 20 qubits. These results should be useful for better understanding the near-term potential of VQAs as well as understanding the correlations in measurement errors on large, near-term devices.


The thermal-hydraulic system code APROS Version 5.09 [1] is being applied in the European project SCWR-FQT to evaluate the performance of the safety systems for a nuclear test facility operated with supercritical water. In order to validate the commercial code for predictions of transient phenomena, two adequate hydraulic experiments from literature have been simulated.The experiment of Fujii and Akagawa [2] investigated hydraulic shocks as they will occur in case a pipe, which is stationary passed through by water, is abruptly closed. A simple numerical model with adapted time and space nodalization was able to reproduce the observed physical phenomena, such as the magnitude of the initial pressure wave and reflection time, in detail.In a second experiment, a test series was performed by Becker et al. [3] and Mathisen [4] in order to examine the natural circulation in a closed loop for different heating rates and system pressures. For a stepwise power increase, the typical mass flow characteristic for boiling channels was recorded until the onset of flow oscillations. In further runs, the effect of different initial conditions on the flow stability was analyzed. This paper compares the numerical predictions with both experimental results. The numerical models could describe the physical phenomena with appropriate accuracy.Copyright © 2013 by ASME


Background and aim: Mid-facial defect is one of the most disfiguring and impairing defects. A design of prosthesis that is aesthetic and stable can be precious to a patient who has lost part of his face due to surgical excision. Prosthesis can restore the patients' self-esteem and confidence, which affects the patients and their life style. The aim of this case report is to describe a technique of mid-facial silicone prosthesis fabrication. Technique: To provide an aesthetic and stable facial prosthesis, the extra-oral prosthesis was fabricated using silicone material, while the intra-oral defect was restored with obturator prosthesis, and then both prostheses were connected and attached to each other using magnets. Discussion: This clinical report describes the rehabilitation of a large mid-facial defect with a two-piece prosthesis. The silicone facial prosthesis was made hollow and lighter by using an acrylic framework. Two acrylic channels were included within the facial prosthesis to provide the patient with clean and patent airways. Clinical relevance A sectional mid-facial prosthesis was made and retained in place by using magnets, which resulted in a significant improvement in the aesthetical and functional outcome without the need for plastic surgery. Silicone prostheses are reliable alternatives to surgery and should be considered in selected cases.


This article is based on a qualitative study dealing with the relations between teachers' health and work in a school belonging to the public network in the city of Vitoria, the capital of the State of Espirito Santo. Its aim is to map teachers' experiences of pleasure and suffering, and principally the strategies which they create to defend themselves from the harmful elements of the work environment and to produce health. It affirms the indissolubility between modes of work and modes of subjectivising and notes that the deterioration of the public system of education has produced its effects on the work of teachers, endangering their health and causing, frequently, their absence from their functions due to medical leave or even the abandoning of the profession. It seeks to give visibility to actions which suggest the need to recreate work even within adverse conditions.


In 2,6-diarylphenylSiR(2) cations, the 2,6-diarylphenyl (m-terphenyl) scaffold blocks incoming nucleophiles and stabilizes the positive charge at silicon by lateral ring interactions. Direct ortho-halogen and π-electron-rich face coordination to silicon has been seen. For a series of cations bearing 2,6-difluoro-2',6'-dimethyl-X(n)-substituted rings, the relative contribution of these two modes of stabilization has been assessed. Direct coordination from an aryl fluoride is found to be comparable to that from the mesityl π-face.


Ten species of Pleistocene mammals are represented in a collection of fossils from a placer mining site at Lost Chicken Creek. Among these are four extinct species, an extinct subspecies, two species now extinct in the region, and three species that still occupy the area. Bison crassicornis (large-horned bison), Equus (Asinus) lambei (Yukon wild ass), and Rangifer tarandus (caribou) remains are commonest. Equus (Asinus) cf. kiang (kiang-like wild ass) is recorded for the first time from Alaska.These mammals seem to have occupied a cool steppe-like grassland during late Wisconsin time. Bones of horse, wapiti, bison, and helmeted muskox (Symbos) have yielded radiocarbon dates between 27 000 and 10 000 years BP. The dated bison bone was modified by man, indicating that people were present, and probably hunting and butchering bison, in easternmost Alaska at the close of the Wisconsin glaciation.


ABSTRACT This study tracked the development of Hong Kong's assessment practices for English pronunciation over the past four decades, with reference to the nativeness and intelligibility principles in L2 pronunciation research and pedagogy. Specifically, it evaluated changes in assessors' comments on candidates' English pronunciation performance in school-exit public examinations between 1978 and 2018. Qualitative and quantitative content analyses were conducted on the examination report for each year to identify themes related to candidates' pronunciation 'problems', including 'word-based' features (word pronunciation, word stress, segmentals), 'discourse-based' features (suprasegmentals) and 'delivery' (clarity, fluency, loudness, naturalness, pacing). In the examination reports, candidates' problems with word-based features (particularly word pronunciation) received the most attention across the decades. Most of the comments in later reports were aligned with the intelligibility principle, particularly at the segmental level (e.g., missing consonants, simplification of consonant clusters, word pronunciation). These assessment practices were potentially influenced by the teaching methods recommended in the different ELT curricula over time (i.e., from an oral-structural to a communicative/task-based language teaching approach), and also by the assessors' judgements. The paper concludes by proposing a research agenda for the promotion of an evidence-based approach that can inform future assessment practices.


The review contains the present-day data on new neurophysiological and neurochemical mechanisms of learning and memory processes disturbances induced by such extreme factors as microwaves, hypoxia [correction of hyghproxia], motion sickness, electro-convulsive shock, etc. The main attention is concentrated on the role of some nootropic drugs in preventing the memory-impairing effect of all these extreme factors. The current concept of the mechanisms action of the nootropics in these extreme conditions is discussed.


Iranian-Israeli diplomatic relations, from the 1950s until the fall of the Shah in 1979, were part of the Israeli government's 'periphery doctrine': an effort to establish relationships with non-Arab states in the Middle East and to extend its commercial enterprises. For Israeli construction companies it opened up a new market. For architects it offered a prospect for transnational professional exchange: an opportunity to rectify modernism and make it more considerate of environmental conditions and socio-cultural needs. To explore this transnational architecture, the paper examines a housing project designed for the Iranian navy by an Israeli architect in the 1970s for three locations on the coast of the Persian Gulf. The analysis is threefold. It first discusses the project as part of Israeli-Iranian diplomatic relations, raising questions about the export of architectural knowledge as part of a bi-lateral exchange. It further examines it within the recent discourse on modernism outside the West, in relation to the Israeli architectural context of the time. Lastly, the project is discussed as a reflexive professional quest to better modernism. The analysis reveals that this project was not merely a knowledge exchange, but an attempt to contextualise Israeli architectural praxis in a different locale, thereby establishing a site-specific yet universal modernist place.


Context. The TRAPPIST-1 system hosts seven Earth-sized, temperate exoplanets orbiting an ultra-cool dwarf star. As such, it represents a remarkable setting to study the formation and evolution of terrestrial planets that formed in the same protoplanetary disk. While the sizes of the TRAPPIST-1 planets are all known to better than 5% precision, their densities have significant uncertainties (between 28% and 95%) because of poor constraints on the planet's masses. Aims.The goal of this paper is to improve our knowledge of the TRAPPIST-1 planetary masses and densities using transit-timing variations (TTV). The complexity of the TTV inversion problem is known to be particularly acute in multi-planetary systems (convergence issues, degeneracies and size of the parameter space), especially for resonant chain systems such as TRAPPIST-1. Methods. To overcome these challenges, we have used a novel method that employs a genetic algorithm coupled to a full N-body integrator that we applied to a set of 284 individual transit timings. This approach enables us to efficiently explore the parameter space and to derive reliable masses and densities from TTVs for all seven planets. Results. Our new masses result in a five- to eight-fold improvement on the planetary density uncertainties, with precisions ranging from 5% to 12%. These updated values provide new insights into the bulk structure of the TRAPPIST-1 planets. We find that TRAPPIST-1\,c and e likely have largely rocky interiors, while planets b, d, f, g, and h require envelopes of volatiles in the form of thick atmospheres, oceans, or ice, in most cases with water mass fractions less than 5%.


Efficient intracellular delivery of biomolecules is important for many different biological and biotechnological applications in living organisms, and is a prerequisite for certain types of fundamental and applied research. One major challenge is the delivery of unmodified, functional cargoes in a simple, time-efficient, and high-throughput manner. Herein, we present an efficient strategy that uses fusion peptides containing cell penetrating peptide, endosomal escape domain, and a sarcosine linker to introduce biomolecules, namely fluorescent protein and dextran, via macropinocytosis into the cells of various land plants and microalgae. Our peptide-mediated delivery system allows for high-throughput delivery of functional biomolecules within a few minutes to a few hours as well as open new possibilities for biology and biotechnology using difficult-to-transfect cell types.


Dozens of state legislatures have recently criminalized texting while driving. Unfortunately, these statutes are deeply flawed because they are under-inclusive, ambiguous, and impose punishments so light that they are unlikely to deter drivers. At the same time, by criminalizing texting while driving, legislatures have empowered police to conduct warrantless searches of drivers' cell phones under the Fourth Amendment's search incident to arrest and automobile exceptions. The disconnect is stark: For a crime that carries a $20 fine in some states, police are free to search a driver's text messages, emails, internet browsing history, facebook account, photos, and countless other applications without a warrant.
Because texting while driving is just as dangerous as drunk driving, it should be seriously punished with stiff fines, possible jail time, license suspensions, and interlock devices that block recidivists' phones from texting while driving. More severe punishment alone will not solve the problem however and it will do nothing to eliminate police authority to conduct warrantless cell phone searches. This article therefore proposes that legislatures adopt an exchange approach rarely utilized in the criminal justice system. Drivers stopped for texting while driving should be given the opportunity to immediately confess to texting while driving in exchange for avoiding a search of their phones. Allowing suspects to exchange a confession for a search will encourage them to plead guilty more often and more quickly, thus enhancing general deterrence. The exchange will also reduce invasive, warrantless cell phone searches that are currently authorized under the Fourth Amendment.


We present new radial velocities from Keck Observatory and both Newtonian and Keplerian solutions for the triple-planet system orbiting HD 37124. The orbital solution for this system has improved dramatically since the third planet was first reported in Vogt et al. with an ambiguous orbital period. The period ambiguity is resolved, and the outer two planets have an apparent period commensurability of 2:1. A dynamical analysis finds both resonant and non-resonant configurations consistent with the radial velocity data and constrains the mutual inclinations of the planets to be <∼30°. We discuss HD 37124 in the context of the other 19 exoplanetary systems with apparent period commensurabilities, which we summarize in a table. We show that roughly one in three well-characterized multiplanet systems has a apparent low-order period commensurability, which is more than would naïvely be expected if the periods of exoplanets in known multiplanet systems were drawn randomly from the observed distribution of planetary orbital periods.


New pharmaceutical substances are investigated for biodegradability and initial ecotoxicity during their development. For registration, a full state-of-the-art environmental risk assessment is developed based on chronic environmental effects and advanced environmental fate data, as required by the pertinent regulations. While not a regulatory requirement, Roche also investigates older pharmaceutical substances, normally at a simpler scale, in order to assess their environmental risks.


Abstract. The kinematic chain comprised by SLEs (scissor-like elements) has a wide range of motion, which provides a benefit for the mechanism design. A family of SLE-Pa (SLE-parallel) legs which consist of two identical SLE limbs are proposed in this paper. The mobility and kinematics are discussed for three kinds of SLE-Pa legs which are distinguished by the different positions of the middle links in legs. Through assembling these SLE-Pa legs, a novel 2-DOF planar translational mechanism is developed and its work space is studied. For the purpose of adding the recovery function, the elastic elements are installed for this mechanism. The stiffness synthesis of the mechanism is investigated for the various elastic elements and their positions. The approximation of the stiffness coefficient is also derived. Further, this kind of mechanism is applied for the design of the passive docking device. The docking procedure is simulated by Adams, and the prototype of one SLE-Pa leg is presented at the end.


Background: In amount of leukocyturia and erythrocyturia has been used to diagnose renal diseases for a long time. In addition the mentioned features are the ones among principal criteria to identify urinary syndrome. The aim of the research work was to define such the proper physiological regimen of kidneys functioning working that permits to meet stability of the conditions in kidneys and the blood cells preservation in urine for further improvement of the urinary syndrome diagnostic methodology. Methods and materials: There were examined 24 healthy volunteers at the age of 19–25 without clinical and laboratory signs of kidneys pathology. Research work was carried out in the monitoring from 9–11 on an empty stomach. The general investigation scheme included the emptying of the urinary bladder after that hydrosaline loading was carried out per os in volume of 0.5 % from the body mass. In an hour examinee the person under the test emptied his bladder and the volume of diuresis was measured precisely up to 1 ml. They used photometric method to find out creatinine concentration by Popper's methodology, also photometric method was used to find out protein concentration according to the reaction with sulfosalicylate acid on the spectrophotometer SF – 46 (Russia) and urine osmolality applying crioscopic method on osmometer, model 3D3 made by "Advanced Instrument Inc.� (USA). We have also carried out the four-serial investigation: with running water loading (1st group) and with natrium chloride solutions loading, 0.1 % (2nd group), with 0.25 % (3rd group) and with 0.5 % (4th group). The achieved results were up statistically applying the Student criteria. Results: The achieved data prove that the running water loading and the 0.1 %, 0.25 %, and 0.5 % natrium chloride solutions loading considerably rise diuretic level and diuresis amount per 1 min exceeds diurnal diuresis level 2 – 3 times with recount for 1 minute. On the whole it is excreted from 25 % up to 90 % of the drunk liquid volume. Withal, diuresis amounts don't differ greatly from each other with all types of loading. That is, the proposed by us volume of hydrosaline loading provides equal diuresis exceeding. Mechanism of diuresis increase differs greatly: with water loading kidneys are functioning in regimen of urine dissolving what is proved by decreasing of urine osmolality to the level which is typical of blood plasma and below. Urine osmolality of some tested volunteers was fluctuating between 120 – 200 mosmol/kg. There is no doubt that such a dynamic causes depression of kidneys' concentration ability due to supplying an organism with considerable amount of running water, osmolality of which is not more than 5 mosmol/kg. Conclusions: 1. Hydrosaline loading in 0.5 % volume of body mass with water and 0.1 %, 0.25 % and 0.5 % solutions of natrium chloride maintains diuresis speed keeping on the level of 2 – 3 ml per 1 min, but differs in urine osmolality amount. 2. After hydrosaline loading with 0.5 % solution of natrium chloride urine osmolality forms physiologically more optimum conditions and could be recommended for leukocyturia and erythrocyturia determination.


Abstract Kriging based on Gaussian random fields is widely used in reconstructing unknown functions. The kriging method has pointwise predictive distributions which are computationally simple. However, in many applications one would like to predict for a range of untried points simultaneously. In this work, we obtain some error bounds for the simple and universal kriging predictor under the uniform metric. It works for a scattered set of input points in an arbitrary dimension, and also covers the case where the covariance function of the Gaussian process is misspecified. These results lead to a better understanding of the rate of convergence of kriging under the Gaussian or the Matérn correlation functions, the relationship between space-filling designs and kriging models, and the robustness of the Matérn correlation functions. Supplementary materials for this article are available online.


Background Prostate cancer, a serious genetic disease, has known as the first widespread cancer in men, but the molecular changes required for the cancer progression has not fully understood. Availability of high-throughput gene expression data has led to the development of various computational methods, for identification of the critical genes, have involved in the cancer. Methods In this paper, we have shown the construction of co-expression networks, which have been using Y-chromosome genes, provided an alternative strategy for detecting of new candidate, might involve in prostate cancer. In our approach, we have constructed independent co-expression networks from normal and cancerous stages have been using a reverse engineering approach. Then we have highlighted crucial Y chromosome genes involved in the prostate cancer, by analyzing networks, based on party and date hubs. Results Our results have led to the detection of 19 critical genes, related to prostate cancer, which 12 of them have previously shown to be involved in this cancer. Also, essential Y chromosome genes have searched based on reconstruction of sub-networks which have led to the identification of 4 experimentally established as well as 4 new Y chromosome genes might be linked putatively to prostate cancer. Conclusion Correct inference of master genes, which mediate molecular, has changed during cancer progression would be one of the major challenges in cancer genomics. In this paper, we have shown the role of Y chromosome genes in finding of the prostate cancer susceptibility genes. Application of our approach to the prostate cancer has led to the establishment of the previous knowledge about this cancer as well as prediction of other new genes.


Cellular Wood Material (hereinafter CWM) middle layer of the Dendrolight has been developed in the beginning of this century as a wood material for minimization of internal stresses, because of the material structure and reduced swelling and shrinking impact to products in end use application. Some research has been conducted on the physical mechanical and physical chemical properties of CWM, while dimensional stability has not been well researched. The goal of this research is to perform an assessment of the CWM shrinkage and swelling impact on dimensional characteristics of the CWM multilayer composite materials. CWM swelling pressure in length, width, and height of the material were determined and compared to the relevant indicators of pine solid wood. The form stability or the impact of combination of the CWM with some facing materials wood particle board, medium density fibre board (hereinafter MDF), oriented strand board (hereinafter OSB), pine solid wood, gypsum plaster board used in wood products was investigated. The hypothesis that swelling pressure of CWM must be lower than that of pine solid wood was proved, it is 2.3 times lower in the radial direction and 3.9 times lower in tangential direction compared to pine solid wood. The CWM samples, manufactured for determining the form stability in wetting conditions deflected in the height direction by 4%, thus creating deflections also in the seams between separate lamellas of the CWM. Swelling pressure of the CWM is several times smaller than that of solid wood and can be further limited by creating complex wood and non-wood composite material panels using gluing technique.


BACKGROUND
Environmental factors may play an important role in the determination of physical activity behaviors.

METHODS
This study used the Child Development Supplement of the Panel Study of Income Dynamics to examine the association between the availability of objectively measured commercial physical activity-related instruction facilities and weekly physical activity participation among high school students outside of school physical education classes. A Negative Binomial count model was used to examine the number of days of vigorous physical activity (at least 30 minutes/day) per week and a Probit model was used to examine the probability of frequent (4 or more days/week) vigorous physical activity participation.

RESULTS
The results indicated that an additional instruction school per 10,000 capita per 10 square miles was associated with an 8-percent increase in the weekly number of days of vigorous physical activity participation and a 4 percentage point increase in the likelihood of frequent physical activity participation for female adolescents only. By income, associations were larger for low- versus high-income female youths.

CONCLUSION
Increased availability of local area physical activity-related instruction facilities may help to increase female high school students' physical activity levels, particularly among low-income female students.


In the present paper, we discuss an HIV (Human Immunodeficiency Virus) transmission model with health information campaign about HIV control policies. The reason behind the conception of this model is the idea to divide the human population that gains awareness of HIV, due to this campaign. We assume that HIV will not infect people who are aware about the dangers of HIV. We analyze the existence and local stability of the equilibrium points. We found that the disease-free equilibrium point will be locally asymptotically stable (LAS) if the basic reproduction number (R0) is less than one, and unstable otherwise. A forward bifurcation of the system is shown numerically, depending on the intervention parameters. Some numerical simulations for the autonomous system are given to see the evolution of the system, with respect to some scenarios that might appear in the field. To accommodate the limitation of budget issue for implementation in the field, the model is reconstructed as an optimal control problem with two control variables. Numerical simulations for optimal control problems are presented for five different scenarios. Numerical simulation results suggest that controlling strategies by providing health campaigns is better, if they precede an endemic prevention strategy than endemic reduction, since the cost needed for endemic reduction is five times higher, compared with the endemic prevention. Optimal intervention should also note the value of R0. Larger control levels are needed when R0 > 1 if compared with when R0 < 1. The results of numerical simulation also show that the lower the cost of the health campaign, the more health campaigns can be provided. Based on the numerical simulation calculations, the optimal intervention of health campaign can raise public awareness about HIV, in order to reduce the number of HIV-infected individuals.


The 'gig economy' is a relatively recent term coined to describe a range of working arrangements that have previously been denoted as precarious, flexible and contingent. These may include casual workers, temporary agency workers, those on zero-hours contracts and dependent contractors. This books seeks to get behind the contemporary buzz surrounding the term and provide some theoretical and empirical analysis of the gig work phenomenon. The book seeks to assess more critically some of the rhetorical claims made about gig work and to provide a balanced appraisal of the ramifications for individuals, employers and the economy and society in general of an increasingly insecure workforce. The regulatory framework, in particular, is examined and is shown to have lagged behind crucial developments in the gig economy, with many labour laws still historically rooted to the notion that a worker has to be an employee to be covered by employment rights. The authors show that in many respects there is nothing new about the gig economy and that its growth in recent years was in some sense predictable. Perhaps its real significance, they argue, is its potential as a business model to 'gig-ize' other business operations far beyond relatively low-skilled work. When combined with automation and digitalization, the gig economy presents us with an opportunity to re-evaluate our understanding of the nature of work.


Background: Since the start of the Sars-Cov-2 pandemic, which originated in December 2019 in Hubei Province in China, evidence of nursing staff displaying mental health (MH) symptoms and disorders began to rapidly emerge. Research from as early as February 2020 suggests MH conditions such as anxiety, depression and insomnia have been shown to be the most prevalent complaints amongst health professionals (Li et al., 2020). According to the World Health Organisation (WHO) (2020) on the 11th of March 2020 there were 114 countries affected by the virus, with 118,000 cases of the disease worldwide and 4,291 deaths globally. Aim: This narrative literature review aims to identify which Mental Health Disorders (MHDs) have been found to be most evident in nursing professionals during the COVID-19 pandemic and to establish the extent to which they are prevalent. Methods: A systematic literature search was conducted from the 1st of January 2020 until the 14th of October 2020 and the data collated from 11 databases (CINAHL, Embase, Medline, PsycInfo, PubMed, PsycArticles, Psychology & Behavioural Science Collection, Cochrane, ProQuest, Scopus and Google Scholar). A Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis (PRISMA) flow diagram was employed to depict the flow of information through the different phases of the narrative review, mapping the number of records identified, included and excluded, and the reasons for exclusions to demonstrate the process of establishing the final body of evidence analysed. A total of fifteen studies are included in the final synthesis for this secondary research which comprised studies of varying types and methodologies. Results: Anxiety dominated the majority of studies and demonstrated the highest percentage of nursing professionals affected by this disorder. Anxiety was found to be between 8.1% to 77.3% prevalent, with between 2.17% and 27.3% of the participants in the included studies deemed to suffer from a severe form of anxiety disorder. Depression was the second most dominant disorder in the participants, ranging from 26%-37.5% and moderate to severe depression was observed in 6.7% and 16.8% overall. A large proportion of studies demonstrated a significant prevalence of insomnia ranging from 28.75%-38.9%. A strong link between all three MHDs showed a similar pattern through all of the included studies in relation to nurse demographics and their working environment. Conclusion: As the pandemic continues, more research is required to be able to identify other potential MHDs, which may emerge, and to what extent they do so. Furthermore, interventions must be identified and implemented accordingly to reduce the number of nurse professionals dealing with MH issues, which result in longer-term conditions, such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).


The structural characteristics of corn stalks hemicelluloses during the active oxygen cooking process as a pretreatment of biomass conversion were investigated in this work. The hemicelluloses obtained from the corn stalks, pulp, and yellow liquor were evaluated by high-performance anion-exchange chromatography (HPAEC), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), gel permeation chromatography (GPC), and 1H-13C 2D hetero-nuclear single quantum coherence (HSQC) spectroscopy. Based on the sugar and GPC analysis, FT-IR, and NMR spectroscopy, it could be concluded that the hemicelluloses were composed of backbones of (1→4)-β-D-xylopyranose substituted α-L-arabinofuranose and 4-O-methyl-α-D-glucuronic acid. During the cooking process, the hemicelluloses with more side chains were removed from raw material. The backbones were significantly damaged as well. Additionally, the ester linkages in the raw material were completely broken after the cooking.


— Fluids are used for heat transfer in many engineering equipments. Water, ethylene glycol and propylene glycol are some of the common heat transfer fluids. Over the years, in an attempt to reduce the size of the equipment and/or efficiency of the process, various techniques have been employed to improve the heat transfer rate of these fluids. Surface modification, use of inserts and increased fluid velocity are some examples of heat transfer enhancement techniques. Addition of milli or micro sized particles to the heat transfer fluid is another way of improving heat transfer rate. Though this looks simple, this method has practical problems such as high pressure loss, clogging and erosion of the material of construction. These problems can be overcome by using nanofluids, which is a dispersion of nanosized particles in a base fluid. Nanoparticles increase the thermal conductivity of the base fluid manifold which in turn increases the heat transfer rate. In this work, the heat transfer enhancement using aluminium oxide nanofluid has been studied by computational fluid dynamic modeling of the nanofluid flow adopting the single phase approach.


The modelling of IoT applications utilising the resources of cloud and fog computing is not straightforward because they have to support various trigger-based events that make human life easier. The sequence of tasks, such as performing a service call, receiving a data packet in the form of a message sent by an IoT device, and managing actuators or executing a computational task on a virtual machine, are often associated with and composed of IoT workflows. The development and deployment of such IoT workflows and their management systems in real life, including communication and network operations, can be complicated due to high operation costs and access limitations. Therefore, simulation solutions are often applied for such purposes. In this paper, we introduce a novel simulator extension of the DISSECT-CF-Fog simulator that leverages the workflow scheduling and its execution capabilities to model real-life IoT use cases. We also show that state-of-the-art simulators typically omit the IoT factor in the case of the scientific workflow evaluation. Therefore, we present a scalability study focusing on scientific workflows and on the interoperability of scientific and IoT workflows in DISSECT-CF-Fog.


The minimum internal diameters of alpha-, beta-, and gamma-cyclodextrin were calculated by a space filling algorithm, MolShape, from the electron density maps created by semiempirical AM1 and PM3 calculations using Gaussian03. In addition, the minimum diameters of a series of dicationic bolaamphiphiles were calculated by MolShape as well. The calculated diameters of these hosts and guests allowed prognosis about the stabilities of the corresponding inclusion compounds. The experimental binding data, obtained by isothermal titration calorimetry (ITC), revealed indeed a very pronounced thickness recognition and correlate well with the calculated diameters.


Introduction: Malnutrition is thought to be one of the world's most genuine, yet minimum tended to medical issues and furthermore keeps on being noteworthy general medical problems all through the creating scene, especially in Southern Asia and Sub-Saharan African creating countries low dietary admission likewise the most imperative hazardous factor of lack of healthy sustenance, for example, essential insufficiency because of low levels in the eating routine and an auxiliary inadequacy because of any illness. Methodology: A quantitative descriptive cross-sectional study design was used to conduct the research. The collected data was analyzed using statistical package for social sciences version 23. Descriptive statistical and logistic regression was used to describe the variable. Results: Most of the respondents who eat fish and fish products in a week were 6% and respondent who eats fish and fish products in a month was 68.2% and only 25.8% respondents had not taken fish and fish products in their diet. Sources of income of the respondents were categorized. In which 13.2% of respondents source of income was farming, 2.6% respondents trade as a source of income, 43.7% of respondents had a monthly salary, and 40.4% of respondents had income on daily wages. Conclusion: Age, housing conditions, sources of drinking water, the habit of hand washing, consumption of fish and dairy products, consumption of fruits, getting fortified food and food insecurity were important factors to determine the nutritional status of women of reproductive age. These factors are associated with malnutrition.


The ILCOR Pediatric Task Force included expert reviewers from Africa, Asia, Australia, Asia, Europe, North America, and South America. These experts reviewed 45 topics related to pediatric resuscitation. Topics were selected from previous recommendations (the ECC Guidelines 20001,2), emerging science, and newly identified issues. Some well-established topics without controversies or new evidence (eg, adenosine for the treatment of supraventricular tachycardia [SVT]) are not included in this document. Evidence-based worksheets on some topics were prepared and discussed but are not included here because there was insufficient evidence (eg, fibrinolytics in cardiac arrest,W13 securing the endotracheal tube in children,W1 use of impedance threshold device in children,W2 sodium bicarbonate for prolonged resuscitation attemptsW34) or because no new evidence was found (eg, evaluation of capillary refill,W10 ventilation before naloxone,W18 delayed volume resuscitation in trauma,W17 use of hypertonic saline in shockW16). The following is a summary of the most important changes in recommendations for pediatric resuscitation since the last ILCOR review in 2000.1,2 The scientific evidence supporting these recommendations is summarized in this document:


Individual differences in personality, religiosity, and political dispositions often are explained in conjunction with one another. Though the religious and political may share common themes of meaning-making, group identity, and societal organization, personality also influences these orientations. Specifically, the Big Five traits (openness, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, emotional stability) and authoritarianism demonstrate consistent relationships with religious/ political beliefs and behaviors. Personality is often thought of as the first mover to develop with an individual before exposure to the other two domains, leading to a conceptual influence model of: personality → religiosity → politics. Using longitudinal studies and genetically informed samples, however, some scholars suggest that these dispositions influence one another and could develop concurrently within individuals. Examining the measured boundaries and relationships between the three domains suggests these dispositions comprise an individual's personhood, and the varied expression of traits, beliefs, and behaviors are somewhat dependent on culture and context.


In large-scale and high-speed digital systems, global synchronization has frequently been used to protect clocked I/O from data failure due to metastability. Synchronous design styles are widely used, easy to grasp and to implement, and also well supported by logic synthesis tools. There are many drawbacks with global synchronization. Most important is the relationship between physical size and maximum clock frequency, which will approach its limit as clock frequency and system size increase simultaneously. The purpose of this proposed Globally Updated Mesochronous (GUM) design style is to overcome those drawbacks by identifying all global signal links in the system and adding synchronization circuits to these. System level simplicity, inherited from synchronous design and its tool support, is retained. In this paper, the GUM design style is described, analyzed, and demonstrated. Experimental results from a large-scale high-speed system using three 0.8-/spl mu/m BiCMOS chips are given. The GUM design style is scaleable and suitable for future system-on-chip applications both on and among chips.


Two-dimensional Pb0.865La0.09Zr0.65Ti0.35O3 (PLZT) photonic crystals with hexagonal arrays of air holes on (001) Pt-sputtered magnesium oxide substrates were fabricated using a sol-gel process with resist molds. The PLZT photonic crystals have a thickness of 200 nm, and the period of hexagonal array and the radius of air holes were 400 or 450 nm and 135 or 165 nm, respectively. The PLZT photonic crystals were primarily orientated along the c-axis. The strain hysteresis loop of the photonic crystals suggested that the photonic crystals are ferroelectric. Several peaks within range of wavelength between 500 nm and 1000 nm appeared in the optical reflection spectra from the cleaved facet of the photonic crystals. The peaks have polarization dependence and the frequency bands of the each peak were close to that of photonic band gaps (PBGs) expected by the calculations.


The purpose of this study was to identify electroencephalography (EEG) features that correlate with P300-based brain–computer interface (P300 BCI) performance in people with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Twenty people with ALS used a P300 BCI spelling application in copy-spelling mode. Three types of EEG features were found to be good predictors of P300 BCI performance: (1) the root-mean-square amplitude and (2) the negative peak amplitude of the event-related potential to target stimuli (target ERP) at Fz, Cz, P3, Pz, and P4; and (3) EEG theta frequency (4.5–8 Hz) power at Fz, Cz, P3, Pz, P4, PO7, PO8 and Oz. A statistical prediction model that used a subset of these features accounted for >60% of the variance in copy-spelling performance (p < 0.001, mean R2 = 0.6175). The correlations reflected between-subject, rather than within-subject, effects. The results enhance understanding of performance differences among P300 BCI users. The predictors found in this study might help in: (1) identifying suitable candidates for long-term P300 BCI operation; (2) assessing performance online. Further work on within-subject effects needs to be done to establish whether P300 BCI user performance could be improved by optimizing one or more of these EEG features.


OBJECTIVES
The aim of this case series was to report arthroscopic findings and to evaluate clinical outcomes of dogs treated with an inverted V-shaped extracapsular stabilisation technique without additional external coaptation for medial shoulder instability.

MATERIAL AND METHODS
Medical records of dogs with medial shoulder instability that underwent arthroscopy and an inverted V-shaped extracapsular stabilisation technique were retrospectively reviewed. Extracapsular stabilisation was performed in all dogs using screws and spiked washers as anchor points for the coated polyester prosthetic ligament. No additional external coaptation was used in any dog. A minimum 18-month follow-up period was required for study inclusion. Complications and long-term outcomes were recorded.

RESULTS
The subscapularis tendon and medial glenohumeral ligament were the structures most commonly affected. All dogs had pathological cartilage fibrillations. Implants were successfully placed in all dogs. Implant loosening was recorded in two out of six dogs on recheck but no revision surgery was performed. Function at the time of last clinical follow-up (median, 28 months, range 18 to 33 months) was full in four out of six and acceptable in two out of six dogs.

CLINICAL SIGNIFICANCE
Surgical treatment of medial shoulder instability using the novel inverted V-shaped extracapsular stabilisation technique was successful. Potential complications such as implant loosening may occur. Despite the limited number of cases, the present study suggests that additional postoperative external coaptation may not be necessary for successful management of dogs with medial shoulder instability.


The oxidation behavior of Ge(001) and Ge(110) surfaces underneath the chemical vapor deposition (CVD)-grown graphene films has been investigated experimentally and interpreted on the basis of ab initio calculations. Freshly grown samples were exposed to air for more than 7 months and periodically monitored by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy, and Raman spectroscopy. The oxidation of Ge(110) started with incubation time of several days, during which the oxidation rate was supposedly exponential. After an ultrathin oxide grew, the oxidation continued with a slow but constant rate. No incubation was detected for Ge(001). The oxide thickness was initially proportional to the square root of time. After 2 weeks, the rate saturated at a value fivefold higher than that for Ge(110). We argue that after the initial phase, the oxidation is limited by the diffusion of oxidizing species through atomic-size openings at graphene domain boundaries and is influenced by the areal density and by the structural quality of the boundaries, whereby the latter determines the initial behavior. Prolonged exposure affected the surface topography and reduced the strain in graphene. In the last step, both the air-exposed samples were annealed in vacuum at 850 °C. This removed oxygen from the substrate and restored the samples to their initial state. These findings might constitute an important step toward further optimization of graphene grown on Ge.


An early event in the metastasis of epithelial ovarian carcinoma is shedding of cells from the primary tumor into the peritoneal cavity followed by diffuse i.p. seeding of secondary lesions. Anchorage-independent metastatic cells are present as both single cells and multicellular aggregates (MCA), the latter of which adhere to and disaggregate on human mesothelial cell monolayers, subsequently forming invasive foci. Although this unique metastatic mechanism presents a distinct set of therapeutic challenges, factors that regulate MCA formation and dissemination have not been extensively evaluated. Proteolytic activity is important at multiple stages in i.p. metastasis, catalyzing migration through the mesothelial monolayer and invasion of the collagen-rich submesothelial matrix to anchor secondary lesions, and acquisition of membrane type 1 matrix metalloproteinase (MT1-MMP; MMP-14) expression promotes a collagen-invasive phenotype in ovarian carcinoma. MT1-MMP is regulated posttranslationally through multiple mechanisms including phosphorylation of its cytoplasmic tail, and the current data using ovarian cancer cells expressing wild-type, phosphomimetic (T567E-MT1-MMP), and phosphodefective (T567A-MT1-MMP) MT1-MMP show that MT1-MMP promotes MCA formation. Confluent T567E-MT1-MMP-expressing cells exhibit rapid detachment kinetics, spontaneous release as cell-cell adherent sheets concomitant with MT1-MMP-catalyzed alpha(3) integrin ectodomain shedding, and robust MCA formation. Expansive growth within three-dimensional collagen gels is also MT1-MMP dependent, with T567E-MT1-MMP-expressing cells exhibiting multiple collagen invasive foci. Analysis of human ovarian tumors shows elevated MT1-MMP in metastases relative to paired primary tumors. These data suggest that MT1-MMP activity may be key to ovarian carcinoma metastatic success by promoting both formation and dissemination of MCAs.


This thesis is a study of Boreal's version of the Tristan legend. Its aim is a better understanding of the romance through an examination of the work itself and of those versions of the legend with which it is associated. Part One of the thesis begins with a survey of the manuscript and of the various editions and goes on to suggest the policy that might be adopted when a more reliable text is sought. (The three appendices are also concerned with textual problems.) There then follow - a review of Tristan scholarship and an appraisal of the relationship between the various representatives of the legend. Beroul's romance is seen as an independent derivative of a lost work and as an influence upon the Folie Tristan of Berne. In Part Two, each of the episodes in Beroul's work is examined. If an episode is also found in other versions, the parallel accounts are scrutinized and emphasis is laid upon those elements which are found to be quite peculiar to our romance. Those episodes in the romance which have no equivalent elsewhere are also examined and suggestions are made as to their possible provenance. At the same time, the structure of the romance is compared with that of other versions. Beroul emerges as a writer who has on occasion re-ordered inherited episodes, in order to present more clearly his own conception of the legend. In the Conclusion, the significance of the parallel versions is ascertained, before Beroul's own conception of the legend is determined. Beroul consistently presents Tristan and Iseut as guilty sinners, but who are yet never beyond redemption, and he draws on theological support in order to suggest that by the end of the romance they are set on the road to salvation.


Abstract The HIV-2 protease (PR2) is an important target for designing new drugs against the HIV-2 infection. In this study, we explored the structural backbone variability of all available PR2 structures complexed with various inhibitors using a structural alphabet approach. 77% of PR2 positions are structurally variable, meaning they exhibit different local conformations in PR2 structures. This variability was observed all along the structure, particularly in the elbow and flap regions. A part of these backbone changes observed between the 18 PR2 is induced by intrinsic flexibility, and ligand binding putatively induces others occurring in the binding pocket. These latter changes could be important for PR2 adaptation to diverse ligands and are accompanied by changes outside the binding pocket. In addition, the study of the link between structural variability of the pocket and PR2–ligand interactions allowed us to localize pocket regions important for ligand binding and catalytic function, regions important for ligand recognition that adjust their backbone in response to ligand binding and regions important for the pocket opening and closing that have large intrinsic flexibility. Finally, we suggested that differences in ligand effectiveness for PR2 could be partially explained by different backbone deformations induced by these ligands. To conclude, this study is the first characterization of the PR2 structural variability considering ligand diversity. It provides information about the recognition of PR2 to various ligands and its mechanisms to adapt its local conformation to bound ligands that could help understand the resistance of PR2 to its inhibitors, a major antiretroviral class. Communicated by Ramaswamy H. Sarma