Adipose Tissue Dysfunction (ATD) has been proposed as the pathophysiological route by which obesity confers its associated increased risk for cardiovascular disease and is characterized by an increased secretion of pro-inflammatory cytokines and adipokines and reduced secretion of anti-inflammatory adipokines such as adiponectin from adipose tissue. A review of literature shows that a range of currently available (non-)pharmacological interventions such as weight loss and statins influence ATD. The recently proposed intervention of blood letting, aimed at a reduction in free iron induced inflammation, is partly based on the relation between body iron stores and ATD while the etiologic relation remains poorly understood. This relation was absent in patients with manifest vascular disease probably due to the inflammation associated with vascular disease. In vitro studies did show a potential causal relation between body iron stores and ATD via free iron-induced inflammation in preadipocytes. ATD has mainly been researched in the fasting state while subjects in the western world spend most of the day in the postprandial phase. We showed that in the postprandial phase ATD plays a contraintuitive, but modest anti-inflammatory role probably with the aim of limiting the mostly pro-inflammatory postprandial phase. ATD is linked with thyroid function to influence energy expenditure and intake based on available energy stores in the form of adipose tissue. In patients with manifest vascular disease this relation is shown by the association between thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) within the normal range (0.5-5.0 mU/L) and visceral adipose tissue thickness. Small changes in TSH in the normal range are associated with an increased risk for myocardial infarction in patients with manifest vascular disease per point increase in TSH (HR 1.33; 95%CI 1.03-1.73). The most important intervention available for improving cardiovascular risk in high-risk patients such as those with ATD is LDL-cholesterol lowering. To compare different LDL-cholesterol-lowering strategies (high-dose statin versus low-dose statin in combination with ezetimibe) we performed a multicenter cross-over trial comparing both lipid-lowering strategies on fasting and postprandial lipids and endothelial function as measured by Flow Mediated Dilatation (FMD) and EndoPAT in patients with metabolic syndrome. Strict attention was given to endothelial function test methodology as we also showed, using a meta-regression-based approach on available FMD-studies, that small alterations in methodology influence endothelial function test results. Both lipid-lowering strategies were associated with similar fasting LDL-cholesterol levels (1.79 mmol/L versus 1.81 mmol/L) and were associated with similar postprandial lipids, fasting and postprandial changes in endothelial function (change in FMD -0.34±0.21 vs. -0.43±0.20, p=0.766). ATD has complicated relations with other regulatory systems and organ systems such as iron-metabolism and thyroid function in patients with manifest vascular disease and metabolic syndrome. ATD has a modest contraintuitive anti-inflammatory role in the postprandial phase in which we place ourselves almost daylong. Interventions aimed at influencing ATD are already available while different lipid-lowering strategies designed for reducing the adipose tissue dysfunction associated cardiovascular risk are probably equally effective as witnessed by their similar effects on fasting and post fat-load endothelial function.


Abstract Extensive 3D seismic data from the Lower Congo Basin, offshore Angola, have been used to investi-gate the influence of salt-related structures on the location, geometry and evolution of deepwater depositional systems. Complex geometry of submarine channels, diapiric salt structures and pinch out structures have been created by the interaction between salt tectonics and submarine sediment gravity flow deposits. The interpreted result shows that the channels often follow complicated routes downslope, and have generally developed highly variable channel geometries. Around lateral pinch out the channels have particular geometry with predominantly laterally stacking patterns and common dis-organized sequence, with thickness averaging around 600m and width averaging in 200ms (twt), pre-dominantly with V shape geometry, while at the distal part is characterized by broader channel sys-tems, channels are relatively uniform in thickness and also lateral stacking in overall with organized and disorganized sequence, U shape geometry is predominant. The result also suggest that the channels are associated with levee system, with high sinuosity around 2.5 and these sinuosity are related with influence of salt tectonics. Salt tectonics is the main control of channel configuration with minor influ-ence by sediment supply. The results improve our ability to predict the channels geometry and recog-nize keys parameters and evolutionary trends.


In this paper, we propose a heuristic algorithm for rate-profile construction of Arikan's Polarization Assisted Convolutional (PAC) codes. This method can be used for any blocklength, rate and convolutional precoding polynomial. The proposed algorithm tries to create a rate-profile for which the corresponding PAC code is, in a sense, locally optimized for having maximum possible minimum distance.Simulation results show that PAC codes constructed with the proposed algorithm perform better in terms of frame erasure rate (FER) compared to the PAC codes constructed with rate profiling designs in existing literature for various list lengths. Further, by using a (64, 32) PAC code as an example, it is shown that the choice of convolutional precoding polynomial can have a significant impact on FER performance. Finally, we demonstrate that for a target FER of $\mathbf{10^{-5}}$, (128, 72) PAC codes constructed with our proposed algorithm is just 0.35 dB away from the information theoretic limit at this blocklength.


A new bainitic steel with a combination of exceptionally high yield strength and fracture toughness has been developed. This steel has been synthesized by austempering a medium carbon low alloy steel by a novel two-step austempering process. The influence of this two-step austempering on the microstructure and the mechanical properties of this new steel have been examined.


The influence of high energy density sources on morphological changes in steels was studied by a physical simulation. Strips of carbon steels were subjected to heat cycles including continuous rapid heating to temperatures between 400 and 1200°C and immediate water quenching. The heat cycles were carried out by passing a high intensity electrical current through trapezoidal specimens in a special device allowing to obtain heating rates up to 10000°/s with an excellent temperature control. Real-time temperature recordings were drawn so as to define some characteristic temperatures of continuous austenitization. The evolution of the morphology, initially composed of ferrite and martensite, was examined by means of light and electron (SEM and TEM) microscopy using standard techniques. The results of the examination were related to microhardness measurements. Three distinct stages of the morphological evolution were finally analyzed: - T > AC1 - Beginning of austenite formation in zones of as-tempered martensite, mostly at former austenite grain boundaries. - AC1 << T < AC3 - Development of irregular lath-shaped interface between the growing (austenite) and shrinking (ferrite) phases. - T > AC3 - Final massive transformation of supersaturated ferrite areas.


Reproductive investment of Aratus pisonii (Decapoda: Sesarmidae): differences among habitats and path analysis. Aratus pisonii is an abundant Neotropical mangrove crab that forages on fresh leaf tissue in the canopy and lives in a wide spectrum of habitats. It presents great plasticity in some aspects of its life history becoming an excellent subject for comparative studies. The purpose of this study was to investigate possible reproductive variations among populations of this crab in mangroves with different levels of structural develop- ment, and explore the direct and indirect effects of environmental variables on reproductive investment. The study was conducted during the rainy season of 2003 and 2004, in North Western Venezuela. Fecundity (number of eggs/female), dry weight of egg mass (PSH) and egg quality (C/N eggs ) were evaluated in five populations of this species, in mangroves under different environmental conditions (estuarine, marine, hypersaline) and diverse degrees of structural development (arboreal, arbustive, scrub). Reproductive output (Ro) was obtained by the ratio Ro=PSH/dry body weight (PSC); other estimations of Ro were tested: Ro1=PSH/carapace length (CL), Ro2=fecundity/CL. A path analysis was used to explore causal relationships between environmental and morphological variables and reproductive investment (PSH, fecundity). Fecundity ranged from 6 463±831 eggs (Mean±SE) in the hypersaline arbustive mangrove to a maximum of 24 584±2 393 eggs in estuarine arboreal mangrove, which presents the greatest structural development. The reproductive output of females showed sig- nificant differences among mangroves, with the highest values of Ro1, Ro2 in the estuarine mangrove females. The results of the path analysis indicated a multicausal effect of morphological and environmental variables; in particular, the salinity showed the greatest influence on fecundity and PSH. The condition of the estuarine mangrove forests with lower salinity and higher structural development involving higher quality of mangrove leaves and a wider range of potential resources, may explain the higher reproductive output of females observed in this habitat. Rev. Biol. Trop. 63 (2): 385-399. Epub 2015 June 01.


BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES
This study demonstrates how one family practice residency clinic characterized obstetric clinic patients and assessed obstetric care using birth certificate data (demographic characteristics and risk factors) and birth outcome indicators.

METHODS
We compared clinical characteristics and birth outcomes for 901 patients who were delivered by family physicians from the family practice residency clinic with a matched and unmatched group of patients who were delivered by other physicians in the county during 1990-1993.

RESULTS
The study clinic patients were at higher risk and had lower use of prenatal care. However, the outcomes of the study clinic patients were significantly better (fewer labor and delivery complications, procedures, Cesarean deliveries, abnormal conditions of newborn, low birth weight deliveries, and preterm birth) or no different from the comparison group of non-clinic patients.

CONCLUSIONS
The analysis of birth certificate data provided a favorable assessment of prenatal care provided by a family practice residency clinic. This type of analysis permits comparisons of birth outcomes with other local or regional providers, statewide providers, and the year 2000 national objectives established by the National Center for Health Statistics.


Spherical nucleic acids (SNAs) are a class of nanomaterials with a structure defined by a radial distribution of densely packed, short DNA or RNA sequences around a nanoparticle core. This structure allows SNAs to rapidly enter mammalian cells, protects the displayed oligonucleotides from nuclease degradation, and enables co-delivery of other drug cargoes. Here, we investigate the biodistribution of liposomal spherical nucleic acid (LSNA) conjugates, SNA architectures formed from liposome templates and DNA modified with hydrophobic end groups (tails). We compared linear DNA with two types of LSNAs that differ only by the affinity of the modified DNA sequence for the liposome template. We use single-stranded DNA (ssDNA) terminated with either a low-affinity cholesterol tail (CHOL-LSNA) or a high-affinity diacylglycerol lipid tail (DPPE-LSNA). Both LSNA formulations, independent of DNA conjugation, reduce the inflammatory cytokine response to intravenously administered DNA. The difference in the affinity for the liposome template significantly affects DNA biodistribution. DNA from CHOL-LSNAs accumulates in greater amounts in the lungs than DNA from DPPE-LSNAs. In contrast, DNA from DPPE-LSNAs exhibits greater accumulation in the kidneys. Flow cytometry and fluorescence microscopy of tissue sections indicate that different cell populations-immune and nonimmune-sequester the DNA depending upon the chemical makeup of the LSNA. Taken together, these data suggest that the chemical structure of the LSNAs represents an opportunity to direct the biodistribution of nucleic acids to major tissues outside of the liver.


As part of its 2040 Development Strategy, the Sultanate of Oman aims at industrial diversification. This shall allow the country to overcome its dependence on petroleum exports and to create employment for its fast-growing population. The development of a sustainable system of technical and vocational education and training (TVET) plays a key role for the advancement of an industrial sector that is currently locked into a low skill-low productivity vicious circle. Despite important socio-economic disparities, there are also substantial similarities in the social and cultural patterns of skills development in the countries of the Arab World. The case of Oman might therefore offer valuable insights in a regional perspective. 37/2021


The tumour suppressor gene PTEN plays an important somatic role in both hereditary and sporadic breast carcinogenesis. While the role of PTEN's lipid phosphatase activity, as a negative regulator of the cytoplasmic phosphatidylinositol-3-kinase/Akt pathway is well known, it is now well established that PTEN exists and functions in the nucleus. Multiple mechanisms of regulating PTEN's subcellular localization have been reported. However none are ubiquitous across multiple cancer cell lines and tissue types. We show here that adenosine triphosphate (ATP) regulates PTEN subcellular localization in a variety of different cancer cell lines, including those derived from breast, colon and thyroid carcinomas. Cells deficient in ATP show an increased level of nuclear PTEN protein. This increase in PTEN is reversed when cells are supplemented with ATP, ADP or AMP. In contrast, the addition of the non-hydrolyzable analogue ATPγS, did not reverse nuclear PTEN protein levels in all the cell types tested. To our knowledge, this is the first report that describes a regulation of PTEN subcellular localization that is not specific to one cell line or tissue type, but appears to be common across a variety of cell lineages.


The family is an essential pillar in building society, directing its individuals' activities, and regulating their social relationships. It is the basic part on which the social entity stands. The basic element to form the family is marriage, which is the base to bring forth children and grandsons. The raising of a family in Islam bases upon the teachings of prophet Mohammed (peace be upon him) in terms of selecting a wife of a descent origin …etc. This important construction encountered many hard conditions and obstacles, which aimed at undermining man through destroying the social and moral upbringing whose principles and bases were settled by Islam. Allah qualified companions, followers, clergymen, and Imams to carry the moralities of Islam, since Islam is the guide for a happy life. One of those religious men was Abu Hamid AL-Ghazali with his two books (The Revival of Religious Sciences) and (Attend! Boy). This research was chosen for the importance of social upbringing.The research aims at clarifying the features and characteristics of the social upbringing in the Islamic thought generally and in AL-Ghazali's thought specially. The researcher used the context analysis methodology and the historical methodology due to the nature of the research. The research contains three chapters: chapter one deals with the methodological side; chapter two contains two important points: the social upbringing in Islam, and family and marriage in Islam. The researcher tried to show the religious Islamic bases for the family system. chapter three is about the social upbringing for AL-Ghazali and his important views in this field. The abstract contains many findings like the process of social upbringing is continuous which does not end by the individual's maturity. The research shows the AL-Ghazali's methods to develop the social upbringing of the child. He insisted on the moral and religious side in preparing the comfortable and psychological circumstances to build a productive generation in the society starting by the parents (husband and wife) and ending with society, which contains the children. The research contains some recommendations like preparing the social circumstances by increasing the governmental support to all institutions, which participate in the social upbringing in order to have a generation that stands on strong bases and principles. The researcher calls for doing some social and analytical studies for the theories, which were brought over by the Islamic scientists and trying to apply the research results in the real life.


Design of wireless sensor network routing protocol is still a problem that should be solved quickly. Although there are many achievements in this field, they all focus on single one property of WSN( Wireless Sensor Network) such as delay, hop count, energy consumption and so on. Dealing with the distinctive features of wireless channel, a routing strategy named MHRR( Minimum Hop Routing algorithm with Reliability assurance) based on AODV is proposed. Firstly, this paper provides a method which preserves multiple optimum routes by broadcasting and responding data frame; secondly, a routing filter mechanism is proposed to enhance the reliability of the network. At last, the optimum route can be chosen by specific factor in different situations. Experiments show that MHRR strategy is competent to deal with dynamic and bandwidth constrained WSN in reliability and delay.


The main aims of this study were to explore and identify why traceability compliance was poor at the Homerton University Hospital NHS Trust and to implement a suitable model to improve it. This study was a multi-stage exploration of the various practices of staff involved in the blood transfusion chain, both at the Trust and in some other NHS Trusts in the United Kingdom. The study explored the reasons for the Trust's poor traceability of blood products, which eventually led to poor compliance. It identified the risk factors that led to poor traceability, explored why some wards had better compliance than others and evaluated the direct costs and benefits of wastage.

The principal aim of these activities was to be able to take an informed decision on the development of a new model to improve compliance.

A quantitative approach was adopted as it made it possible to measure the frequency of actions, and this data was used to answer the research questions. Data was collected using questionnaires, observations and an audit of information extracted from the laboratory's information management systems. A questionnaire was designed, piloted and sent to all ward managers at the Trust, and survey data was analysed using the SPSS statistical package. Some of the issues that were addressed and analysed included: staff training in blood product collection and administration; knowledge of staff members of the concept of traceability compliance; laboratory staff professionalism; ward staff responsibilities for traceability compliance; and ward staff attitudes and opinions about the traceability model.

To add rigour to the study, the survey was followed by structured observations at the blood collection point and the patient's bedside. This data was also analysed using descriptive statistics and the results showed that traceability compliance was poor in some areas of the Trust. Problems included: the absence of a trainer on the ward, lack of education, few transfusion episodes on the wards, variation in the method of returning labels to the transfusion department, and poor communication between frontline staff and the transfusion laboratory.

The study resulted in the implementation of new approaches to the transfusion chain in order to improve practice. These included: the appointment of a medical laboratory assistant to assist with traceability compliance; the appointment of a clinical transfusion nurse specialist to assist with training and ensure safe practice on wards; the provision of trainers and clinical supervision on particular wards; the development of a competence programme to assess staff involved in blood collection and distribution; the development of clinical guidelines; and the administration of an annual skills checks for staff involved in the transfusion chain.

Most of the recommendations have been implemented and put into practice. A formal audit will be conducted in the future to evaluate their success but to date, 65% of staff members have passed the annual skills' assessment and the traceability compliance of the Trust has remained at 100%.


Extracted text; Children with special needs participate in less physical activity than the typically developing child. Physical activity and participation within activities is essential for a child's physical, emotional, and mental health. Riding a bicycle is a typical childhood milestone that many children with special needs are unable to achieve. The American Business Clubs (AMBUCS), a non-profit organization, strives to create mobility and independence for those with disabilities. Through a local chapter of this organization, ENC Ambucs, funds are raised to provide AmTrykes, or specially adapted tricycles, to children with special needs in this region. The increased physical activity that is expected to come from the use of these therapeutic tricycles is projected to improve the children's health related quality of life. To date research has not investigated the effects of AmTrykes.
The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of AmTrykes on health-related quality of life (HRQOL), participation, function, and physical activity in children with special needs. We hypothesized that, after receiving an AmTryke, children would exhibit increased Sports and Physical Functioning and Global Functioning normative scores, on the PODCI, Psychosocial HRQOL, Physical HRQOL, and Total HRQOL, on the PedsQL-PR, and play time with other children, physical activity, feeling of independence, and health benefits, as measured by the APS-A. Reliable measures of HRQOL, participation, function, and physical activity were administered before and after receiving an AmTryke. The assessments that were utilized include the Pediatric Outcomes Questionnaire (PODCI), the Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory Parent Report (PedsQL-PR), and the AmTryke Parent Survey-Adapted (APS-A). Parents/guardians were asked to fill out the PODCI and the PedsQL-PR prior to receiving the AmTryke to be used as a pre-test assessment. Four weeks after the child was given their tricycle, the same assessments were sent via mail to the parents/guardians to be used as the post-assessment. The APS-A was sent out via an email link, to these new recipients and to all previous recipients of AmTrykes from ENC Ambucs. Six children, ranging in age from 4 to 18 (mean=8.2 years) received an AmTryke in February 2016 and were subjects for the pre/post assessments. In addition to these six children, 12 past bike recipients were surveyed using the APS-A. These 18 subjects were between the ages of 4 and 18 (mean=10.9 years). The Global Functioning Scale of the PODCI decreased significantly after the four week intervention period (pre=1.33, post=-8.67, p=0.04). Other PODCI and PedsQL-PR data were not significant. On the APS-A, 55.6% of parents reported an increase since receiving the AmTryke. An increase in physical activity was reported by 77.8% of parents, and 88.9% reported an increase in their child's sense of independence. Health benefits were noted by 72.2% of parents. The AmTryke appeared most beneficial for children who were unable to walk independently (n=7, a subset of the 18 respondents to the APS-A). Of those seven parents, 100% reported an increase in their child's sense of independence and an improvement in their child's mood.
 Use of an AmTryke appears to improve the quality of life, activities, and participation in children with special needs. In terms of their sense of independence and mood, children with special needs who are unable to walk alone may benefit more than others from the use of an AmTryke. Future studies will be important to increase the evidence that providing children with special needs with opportunities to participate in bike riding has many positive effects on their quality of life and their physical and psychosocial development.


Introduction: The aim of this study is to determine the hepatitis B serological profiles, vaccination status, and prevalence of needlestick injuries (NSI) among HCWs in a tertiary hospital in Istanbul, Turkey. Methodology: This study was conducted from February to March 2013 in Haseki Hospital. The study undertook randomly 333 volunteer HCWs working in different departments of the hospital with more than 6 months of job experience. A structured questionnaire was used to collect individual demographic parameters, history of occupational exposures and HBV vaccination coverage status. Blood samples of participating HCWs were collected for HBV profiling. Results: Among the volunteer 333 subjects, 101 (69.7%) were male. Their age ranged between 19 and 62 years (mean 35.9 years) and the duration of their employment between 1 and 41 years (mean 16.9 years). Ninety-eight (29.4%) of the interviewed health-care workers reported that they had experienced at least one needlestick injury during their working life. Occupation and duration of employment were significantly associated with needlestick injury (P<0.05). Of 268 HCWs had serological tests, only two (0.7%) were found to be HBsAg positive. Total of 60 individuals who tested for anti-HBc, 25 (41.7%) were found to be positive. There was no significant association between anti-HBc seropositivity and age, gender, occupation or duration of employment. In this study, 253 (76%) HCWs had completed their vaccination regimen. The highest rate of vaccination among doctors, followed by nurses and clinical staff. There was a significant association between occupation and vaccination status (P=0.002). Conclusion: The frequency of HBV infection in HCWs was lower and vaccination rates were higher in our study. However, they are at increased risk for acquiring HBV infection due to occupational exposure to potentially infectious body fluids. Hence, suitable education, vaccination and post vaccination assessment must be implemented.


Abstract Recent literature notes that national parliaments' growing relevance in European Union (EU) affairs might have led to the empowerment of legislative bureaucrats rather than elected politicians, an argument that we may label the "bureaucratisation thesis". This paper suggests that a delegation approach is most suitable for studying the democratic relevance of legislative bureaucracy in EU affairs. From a delegation perspective, however, parliamentary political-administrative relations are likely to work effectively instead of creating democratic deficits. According to this "delegation thesis", parliamentarians are likely to restrict the bureaucratic domain, refrain from delegating exclusive competences, delegate selectively to party group officials and, thus, constrain bureaucratic opportunities to influence policy to positive agenda-shaping. An exploratory analysis of agenda-setting in EU affairs in the German parliament provides tentative support for these arguments.


Many benthic invertebrates, especially insects (e.g., ephemeropterans and chironomids), oligochaetes and mollusks, burrow in and disrupt sediments accumulating in modern lakes and streams. However, the body-fossil record of most of the common nonmarine burrowers does not extend back before the Mesozoic, suggesting that aquatic sediments were not colonized by burrowers until or after the Permo-Triassic. Compilation of published descriptions of biogenic structures in Devonian through Triassic nonmarine rocks supports this suggestion. Benthic diversity generally decreases with decreasing salinity and in estuaries both abundance and species diversity are lowest where salinity fluctuations are greatest. Abundance and diversity increase with establishment of freshwater conditions. Given deposition in environments with similar trace-preservation potentials, trends similar to faunal trends of the present should be recognizable in Paleozoic marine to nonmarine transition ichnofaunas; bioturbation also should decrease with lower salinity. Within a Lower Pennsylvanian coal-bearing sequence in the northern Cumberland Plateau of Tennessee, sandstones and siltstones deposited under marine-dominated conditions are highly burrowed with a diverse ichnofauna; those deposited in a deltaic setting have zones with abundant traces; those deposited in coastal low-sinuousity fluvial environments have only scattered horizons with traces. Considering the apparent depauperate Pennsylvanian freshwater infauna, zones with extensive burrowing or diverse ichnofaunas within Pennsylvanian marine to nonmarine sequences probably indicate colonization after a marine or brackish water incursion rather than establishment of a freshwater infaunal community.--Modified journal abstract.


Background
Researches showed that cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator protein(CFTR) is a channel secreting anion and water, and it plays an important role in tear secreting.Traditional conception thought that CFTR pathway is cAMP-PKA -dependent without the participation of intracellular calcium.However, studies disclosed that elevating intracellular cAMP could not open the CFTR channel.So whether calcium signal is associated with CFTR-related corneal epithelial secretion is controversial.

Objective
This study was to investigate the association between CFTR secretion and intracellular calcium signaling in rabbit corneal epithelium.

Methods
Sixteen New Zealand white rabbits were randomized into odd number group and even number group by computer randomized number method.The corneas were obtained under the general anesthesia and placed in Ussing Chamber for the record of short cricuit current (Isc). The right eyes of rabbits in the odd number group were stimulated with ATP and served as ATP stimulating group.The left eyes were pretreated with CFTRinh-172 prior to ATP stimulation and served as CFTRinh-172 pretreated group.In the even number group, the left eyes of rabbits were pretreated with BMPTA/AM before ATP stimulation and served as BMPTA/AM pretreated group, and the right eyes of the rabbits were used to isolate and culture corneal epithelial cells by explant adherent method, the level of intracellular calcium were evaluated using Leica SP5 laser scan confocal microscope.

Results
The ATP-induced ΔIsc of corneal epithelium was (5.73±1.36), (1.30±0.95) and (2.47±0.55)μA/cm2 in the ATP stimulating group, CFTRinh-172pretreated group and BMPTA/AM pretreated group, respectively, and the ΔIsc was significantly reduced in the CFTRinh-172 pretreated group and BMPTA/AM pretreated group compared with ATP stimulating group (t=11.201, 5.508, both at P<0.001). The fluorescence intensity of intracellular calcium release after ATP stimulation was 3.25 folds more than that before ATP stimulation.

Conclusions
ATP promotes rapid short circuit current of corneal epithelium.CFTRinh-172depresses the ATP-induced corneal epithelium ΔIsc, and BMPTA/AM suppresses intracellular calcium release.It is suggested that intracellular calcium signaling secretion probably participates in the functional CFTR activity in rabbit corneal epithelium.

Key words:
Cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator/metabolism; Epithelial cells, corneal/drug effects; ATP; Cells, cultured; Short circuit current; Calcium signaling; Rabbits


Introduction: Lung surgery reduction is a known method which can improve the quality of life for certain COPD. Parts of the lung that are particularly damaged by emphysema are removed, allowing the remaining, relatively good lung to expand and work better. Clinical features: The work presents a patient with stage IV COPD admitted in our service after a severe decompensation. Comorbidities: severe obesity, chronic coronary ischemic disease and diabetes, left pneumotorax (secondary a giant bulla of emphysema) and infectious pneumonia. We maintained the antibiotherapy and we aplied an anterior pleurotomy on the left medioclavicular line. The evolution was initially good with suppression of the tracheotomy9s canule and of the pleurotomy9s tube in five days. Surgery: 48 hours after removing the chest tube, the pneumotorax recedived and we decided the surgery treatment. We performed the resection of the giant bulla and mechanical pleurodesis. After opening of the bulla we used a fold of visceral pleura to covering the cavity in separated points. The outcomes: The postoperator evolution was very good with spontan closure of the traheostomy and with ablation of the tube in a week.The respiratory test indicated a improved with 15%. Discussion Lung volume reduction surgery is indicated in selected cases, after surgery both lung functional tests and clinical performance of the patient beeing improved.


An examination of the early form of Russian Marxism espoused by M.N. Pokrovsky and other radical historians of his generation leads one to the conclusion that it lacked any dialectical component and could be more accurately described as "economic materialism". It profoundly affected the physiognomy of early works of Russian Marxist historiography of which those of Pokrovsky are typical examples. Since "economic materialism" could not produce any epistemological theory of its own, it readily adopted that supplied by the German school of neo-Kantian philosophers, especially Mach and Avenarius, and this is widely reflected in Pokrovsky's historical thought, in particular in his ideas on the relationship between history and politics. The theory of "economic materialism" also demanded that Pokrovsky should find economic motivation for all events in the Russian historical process, especially an economic explanation of the actions and policies of the Russian autocracy. This he supplied by means of his scheme of merchant capitalism, a scheme which he finally formulated shortly before the revolution in 1917. His ideas on Russian autocracy as expressing the interests of a merchant capitalist class, however, early brought him into conflict with the rival explanations of Russian history put forward by Plekhanov and Trotsky. Since Trotsky's view of Russian historical development lay at the root of his theory of Permanent Revolution, Pokrovsky in the mid-twenties found himself involved in the current campaign against Trotskyism in the Soviet Union, a circumstance which lent particular political importance to his polemic and it became widely held that his scheme of Russian history served as a theoretical basis for socialism in one country, and as such received the approval of Stalin. From 1925, however, various researches by Pokrovsky's pupils - N. Vanag and others - produced results which tended to confirm the version of Russian economic development put forward by Trotsky, and from 1926 to 1930, Pokrovsky himself became convinced of their correctness and went so far as to deny that the economic prerequisities for socialism existed in Russia though towards the end of his life he renounced this view and condemned it as a Trotskyist heresy. After Pokrovsky's death, Vanag's findings were universally condemned as being at odds with Stalin's doctrine of socialism in one country, but in 1934 Stalin suddenly adopted them as the new orthodoxy while obscuring their true authorship. As most of Pokrovsky's published works in 1934 were concerned with combating precisely such views, it became obvious that he too must be discredited. The offensive against the "Pokrovsky school" was consequently launched in the same year.


The high frequency intrinsic and effective permeability was calculated for spherical iron and barium particles in a nonmagnetic matrix (epoxy resin) by using the combination of Landau-Lifshitz-Gilbert equation and extended Bruggeman's effective medium theory with the consideration of the skin effect. It was found that the microwave properties of the composite were influenced by many parameters, such as damping parameter, volume fractions and size of magnetic components. The sandwich microwave absorber with reflection loss < −10 dB over the range of 6-22 GHz was achieved. The thickness of absorber is only 4.25 mm.


The vaccine L-16 strain of measles virus was studied in a continuous line of J-96 cells (clone L-41) by the electron microscope and fluorescent antibody techniques. Cytological studies revealed a direct correlation between the intensity of symplast formation and the infective virus dose. The fluorescent antibody technique established cytoplasmic localization of the specific virus antigen. The results of electron microscope examinations of ultrathin sections of J-97 culture revealed in the cell cytoplasm and intercellular space some structures morphologically similar to virus-like particles previously described.


MIT Lincoln Laboratory has developed a concept that could enable remote (10s of meters) detection of trace explosives' residues via a field-portable laser system. The technique relies upon laser-induced photodissociation of nitro-bearing explosives into vibrationally excited nitric oxide (NO) fragments. Subsequent optical probing of the first vibrationally excited state at 236 nm yields narrowband fluorescence at the shorter wavelength of 226 nm. With proper optical filtering, these photons provide a highly sensitive explosives signature that is not susceptible to interference from traditional optical clutter sources (e.g., red-shifted fluorescence). Quantitative measurements of trace residues of TNT have been performed demonstrating this technique using a breadboard system, which relies upon a pulsed optical parametric oscillator (OPO) based laser. Based on these results, performance projections for a fieldable system are made.


Thalassemia is one of the major inherited haematological disorders in the Southeast Asia region. This study explored the potential utility of red blood cell (RBC) parameters and reticulocyte cell population data (CPD) parameters in the differential diagnosis of α and β-thalassaemia traits as a rapid and cost-effective tool for screening of thalassemia traits. In this study, a total of 1597 subjects (1394 apparently healthy subjects, 155 subjects with α-thalassaemia trait, and 48 subjects with β-thalassaemia trait) were accrued. The parameters studied were the RBC parameters and reticulocyte CPD parameters derived from Unicel DxH800. A novel algorithm named αβ-algorithm was developed: (MN-LMALS-RET × RDW) − MCH) to discriminate α from β-thalassaemia trait with a cut-off value of 1742.5 [AUC = 0.966, sensitivity = 92%, specificity = 90%, 95% CI = 0.94–0.99]. Two prospective studies were carried: an in-house cohort to assess the specificity of this algorithm in 310 samples comprising various RBC disorders and in an interlaboratory cohort of 65 α-thalassemia trait, and 30 β-thalassaemia trait subjects to assess the reproducibility of the findings. We propose the αβ-algorithm to serve as a rapid, inexpensive surrogate evaluation tool of α and β-thalassaemia in the population screening of thalassemia traits in geographic regions with a high burden of these inherited blood disorders.


Abstract. This paper discusses the arising need for an objective, but feasible, reliable and valid method for assessing animal welfare on farms. Animal welfare has become especially important since the industrialisation of animal housing after the Second World War and as public awareness and concern has increased. Simultaneously, alienation of the public from agriculture has taken place, as the population has moved increasingly from rural areas to towns. This has led to a very emotional discussion concerning the welfare of farmed animals, and thus a need for not only a clear definition but also a way of objectively measuring it has arisen. It is probably best defined as a total of the different conceptions health, natural behaviour and positive affective state. In the last few years, different methods for an objective assessment have been developed; however, all of them still face great challenges in their practical implementation and acceptance. The most promising method is probably the Welfare Quality® (WQ) approach, especially as it concentrates on animal-based parameters. The development of the WQ protocols emphasised not only the different conceptions of animal welfare but also especially the feasibility, reliability and validity of the parameters to be included. One of the main challenges of these protocols remains, however, the final aggregation of the results to a welfare score. Furthermore, a thorough cost–benefit analysis has not been carried out so far. Even more importantly, only a few studies have addressed the general reliability and validity of the complete protocols, and those studies that have addressed these issues have also revealed challenges concerning the interobserver and test–retest reliability of some of the included parameters. As an example, this is discussed in detail for the "Welfare Quality® animal welfare assessment protocol for growing pigs". In conclusion, the WQ approach can be seen as promising, but it has also revealed that there are still a considerable number of challenges that need to be addressed in further studies on the WQ protocols in order to achieve constant improvement. These challenges should be borne in mind in the application of these protocols, which should not be simply referred to as a gold standard.


With an in vitro static system using HUVEC (human umbilical vein-derived endothelial cells) cultured on type I collagen gel, we investigated the transendothelial migration activities of I1-2 activated killer (LAK) cells. Our results indicate that in comparison with unstimulated T cells, LAK cells exhibit strong transendothelial migration activity, as well as increased adhesiveness to HUVEC. Pretreatment of HUVEC for 24 h with rINF-gamma, rTNF-alpha and rIL-1 beta enhanced the LAK cell migration. The increase in the percentage of migration of LAK cells was greater than that of the percentage of adhesion but significantly less than the increase in the percentage of migration of resting T cells. The results of blocking studies using mAb strongly suggest that the enhanced migration of LAK cell was probably attributed to nonspecifically increased binding to HUVEC and markedly enhanced chemokinetic activity that was dependent primarily on the LFA-1 molecule. Among LAK cells, there were considerable differences in the migration activities of the various phenotypes. CD8+T-LAK migrated preferentially to CD4+T-LAK. CD16+ NK-LAK showed increased adhesion but somewhat decreased migration activities. However, rINF-gamma treatment of HUVEC for 24 h promoted vigorous migration of CD16+ NK-LAK, which suggests that endothelium regulate the migration of LAK cells. Based on these observations, we proposed that LAK cells, if transferred into tumor feeding vessels, can migrate into tumor tissue in considerable numbers and efficiently make contact with individual tumor cells to produce preferable clinical effects.


In this paper, a numerical modeling of contact conical transducers is discussed in conjunction with wave propagation analyses by a finite difference method (FDM). Although transducers are the devices to convert electrical energy into mechanical energy and vice versa, attention in this paper is paid mostly to the study of characteristics and parameters of cones and wedges influencing their performance. Cones and wedges inserted between an ultrasonic transducer and the specimen provide the transducer with enhanced capability for point or line contact with the specimen. We study the effect of the dimensions, shape and aperture on the frequency response and the angle of incidence of the wave. Through the testing transducer modeling, some conclusions have been drawn from the analysis, which is useful to as the guideline and criteria for an optimum conical wedge design.


Laser focusing of atoms has emerged as a viable form of nanofabrication. Structures are formed by focusing chromium atoms as they deposit onto a surface. The focusing occurs in a standing-wave laser field in one or two dimensions, resulting in arrays spaced at exactly half the laser wavelength (λ/2 = 212·78 nm). Atomic force, scanning electron, and transmission electron microscopies are used to view the fabricated structures. Improvements in the technique, including narrowing of the linewidth and extension to two dimensions are discussed. Theoretical predictions for the shape of the deposited structures are also discussed.


Critical thinking is explicitly mentioned in many school and university curricula around the world including in the Indonesian education curriculum but it is rarely promoted inside the classrooms. Lack of agreement on its definition and clarity of instruction in the curriculum, the unfavourable culture and the teacher-centered teaching arguably prevent critical thinking to grow. Therefore, more research needs to be undertaken on students' understanding of and engagement in critical thinking in reading. To fll the gap, this study was conducted, which aimed to investigate Indonesian learners' critical thinking in reading. One research question was postulated, i.e., How critical are Indonesian EFL learners' thinking in reading? To answer the question, a mixed method approach was undertaken. The participants of this study were 55 semesters four students enrolled in two classes of Critical Reading and Writing II (CRW2) of the English Education Study Program, Sanata Dharma University, Yogyakarta in the even semester of 2014. The instruments employed were a Likert-scale questionnaire and students' reflections. Results from both quantitative and qualitative data analyses suggest that most of the students had sufficient declarative knowledge of critical thinking in reading. However, their procedural and conditional knowledge about critical thinking in reading were insufficient. Overall, students indicated some level of critical thinking in reading, but to become critical, they need to be in a learning environment where their critical thinking in reading could be regularly and intensively nurtured. The findings of the research are expected to inform English teachers, lecturers and researchers in Indonesia and other parts of the world about the importance of designing and carrying out the teaching-learning processes that can enhance learners' declarative, procedural and conditional knowledge about critical thinking in reading.


Classical cytogenetics has a low resolving power and allows analysis of dividing cells only. In fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH), a DNA fragment is stained with a fluorescent marker, after which this fragment is brought into contact with a patient's DNA. The stained fragment can bind to a corresponding fragment, revealing its presence or absence. Using FISH, every desired DNA sequence (from a whole chromosome to one gene) can be stained. In this way it is also possible to diagnose microdeletion syndromes, such as the Williams syndrome, the DiGeorge syndrome and submicroscopic chromosome anomalies that play a part in mental handicaps. FISH also allows analysis of non-dividing cells. In this way it is possible for instance rapidly to examine uncultured amniotic fluid cells for the commoner trisomies or to find foetal erythrocytes in a pregnant woman's blood. It is also possible to demonstrate tumour-specific breaking points. By application of FISH to microarrays it is possible to study a large number of genes simultaneously for the presence of a particular number of DNA sequences linked to a clinical abnormality.


Single-subject designs allow therapists to evaluate the effects of treatment on individual students, the effects of individualized occupational therapy services across a group of students, and the effects of a specific treatment procedure on a group of students. The purpose of this article is to provide information to enable therapists to use single-subject designs effectively in public school occupational therapy programs.


Last October surfboard company BASE abruptly closed its factory on the Gold Coast, with the direct loss of 30 jobs. Since then, nearby D'Arcy Surfboards has announced it is shedding workers and downsizing from a state-of-the art, purpose-built factory into a backyard workshop. Is the surfboard industry yet another victim of the high Australian dollar? Dominating conversation on the future of Australian manufacturing has been talk of exports and the high dollar. Australia cannot compete in a race to the bottom for cheap labour. Even if the dollar drops substantially, the more complicated truth is that there are deeper structural and human issues threatening the making of things in Australia.


Cable-Driven Parallel Robots (CDPRs) offer high payload capacities, large translational workspace and high dynamics performances. Their rotational workspace is generally far more limited, however, which can be resolved by using cable loops, as was shown in previous research. In the case of fully-constrained CDPRs, cable loops can induce unwanted torques on the moving-platform, causing it to tilt and move away from its intended position, which we call parasitic tilt. Hence, the orientation accuracy of such robots is usually limited. This paper deals with the design, modelling and prototyping of a planar CDPR with infinite rotations, without parasitic tilt and without an additional motor. This robot, which we call a Cable-Driven Parallel Crane (CDPC), is composed of a mobile platform (MP) with an embedded mechanism and a transmission module. The MP is linked with the frame by a parallelogram of three cables to constrain its orientation, including a cable loop, as well as a fourth cable. The two-degree-of-freedom (dof) motions of the moving-platform of the CDPC and the internal dof of its embedded mechanism are actuated by a total of three actuators, which are fixed to the frame. As a consequence, the overall system is fully-actuated, its total mass and inertia in motion is reduced and it is free of parasitic tilts.


Tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) is one of a group of plants that accumulate chalcones and flavanones. However, the molecular diversity of chalcones, flavanones, and their conjugate metabolites has not been investigated intensively. Here, we report the profiling of chalcones and flavanones in fruits of the dwarf tomato cultivar Micro-Tom using liquid chromatography Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometry (LC-FTICR-MS). We identified eriodictyol chalcone and eriodictyol aglycones, along with naringenin chalcone and naringenin aglycones. To our knowledge, this is the first report that demonstrates the presence of eriodictyol chalcone and eriodictyol in tomato. We detected 26 conjugate metabolites of chalcones and flavanones. Chemical information obtained simultaneously by LC-FTICR-MS, including m/z values, MS/MS spectra, UV absorption spectra, and retention times, facilitated the elucidation of molecular formulas and conjugate structures of the metabolites. Eriodictyol chalcone and eriodictyol conjugates had the same modification patterns seen in naringenin chalcone and naringenin conjugates. Chalcones and flavanones were much more abundant in tomato fruit peel than flesh. Accumulation profiles during ripening were classified into three groups. The first group included metabolites that showed the highest accumulation levels at the breaker stage, and then decreased during ripening. The second group included metabolites that accumulated to the highest levels at the turning stage, and then decreased at the red stage. The third group included metabolites that accumulated gradually during ripening, and showed the highest accumulation levels at the red stage. These accumulation profiles were mapped onto a putative modification pathway deduced from conjugate structures. Mapping revealed that the conjugate metabolites upstream of this pathway accumulated earlier, and those downstream accumulated later during ripening. This result demonstrated that chalcones and flavanones undergo sequential modification as ripening progresses.


One of the key ideas to make intelligent transportation systems work effectively is to deploy advanced communication and cooperative control technologies among vehicles and road infrastructures. In this spirit, we propose a consensus-based distributed speed advisory system that optimally determines a recommended common speed for a given area in order that the group emissions, or group battery consumptions, are minimized. Our algorithms achieve this in a privacy-aware manner; that is, individual vehicles do not reveal in-vehicle information to other vehicles or to infrastructure. A mobility simulator is used to illustrate the efficacy of the algorithm, and hardware-in-the-loop tests involving a real vehicle are given to illustrate user acceptability and ease of deployment.


Tablets with touch-screens, multi-touch interfaces and various sensors are becoming increasingly common. More and more schools are testing them with their pupils in the hope of bringing pedagogic benefits. Thanks to this new type of devices, new sets of interactions can be thought of. Yet, user reception has to be tested before any pedagogic benefits can be evaluated. In this paper, a set of interactions using multi-touch and sensors to manage rotation of solids is presented. It was largely accepted by a test group of learners aged 9 to 15.


As society moves at an ever-increasing pace, thanks in large part to technological advances that allow instantaneous communication, I often wonder, "Are we really more efficient?" Do smartphones, e-mail, text messaging and the like actually save time and add quality to our lives? Or do they sometimes work against us? These questions came to my mind recently when, after pouring over dozens of e-mails and sending my replies into cyberspace, I decided it was time for a break. I headed to the hospital cafe for some tea. As is my habit, I took the more "scenic" route, which allows me to pass by plants, artwork and floor-to-ceiling windows looking out onto a spacious courtyard. This path also puts me in the flow of the main hospital with all the comings and goings of a typical day. It lifts my spirits as I witness the variety of people who make up a busy academic health center – students, faculty, patients, staff and volunteers. On this particular day, I intentionally slowed my pace, pausing at the art exhibit, enjoying the sunlit halls and noting the seasonal changes of the courtyard trees. Along the way, I ran into a teaching colleague I had been intending to e-mail, a fellow committee member I needed to ask a question of, a student I had been wanting to connect with and a librarian helping me with a research paper. I even popped by the administration office to follow up on something in person, and, low and behold, it turned into a spontaneous mini-meeting with the director. These serendipitous interactions occurred one after another and took only a few moments each, but they were remarkably productive. The experience was quite different from the one-way e-mail texts I had previously been immersed in. Not that e-mail lacks any utility, but a face-to-face dialogue, with its unique dynamics and rich exchange of ideas, is almost always greater than the sum of a string of electronic monologues. As I began the path back to my office, I could not help but reflect on the elegance of what had just happened. My meandering had resulted in the completion of an incredible amount of follow-up work as well as resolution of several pressing issues. And it all seemed so much more personable and humane than sitting in my subterranean office churning out e-mails. The entire experience gave me pause. It is so easy to become entrenched in our day-to-day work – seeing patients, stealing time for e-mail and desk work, and coming up for air only after several hours – that we forget that the rest of the world even exists. What a pleasant reminder my meandering journey afforded me – that person-to-person contact and communication possess unique dimensions that can yield more productive and efficient outcomes than we might imagine. I smile now when I head out for my tea breaks, intentionally adding a few more here and there, taking my usual route and looking forward to the spontaneous meetings and interactions that may come.


The HIPPO pathway plays a critical role in contact inhibition, a pathway that is commonly dysregulated in many human cancers (including liver, colon, ovarian, and lung). The signaling pathway culminates in the intranuclear interaction of the transcriptional co-activator YAP and the transcription factor TEAD. This is representative of a number of cancer driving pathways that have proven nearly impossible to drug, as they are mediated by intracellular protein-protein interactions. High throughput screening campaigns with small molecule libraries have failed to provide specific, high affinity binders capable of disrupting larger protein-protein interfaces (such as YAP-TEAD), while at the same time, antibodies cannot penetrate the cell membrane to access cytosolic and nuclear targets. Optides are small disulfide-knotted peptides (knottins) that are large enough to interfere with protein-protein interactions, but small enough to access compartments beyond the reach of antibodies. Examples include the calcines, activators of sarcoplasmic reticulum ryanodine receptors, and BLZ-100, a knottin-fluorophore conjugate that is capable of accumulating in a wide range of tumor types. Using the computational design software Rosetta, we created a library of Optides designed to interact with TEAD in locations that overlap YAP binding. Mammalian surface display screening against soluble TEAD yielded a candidate (Hit1) that binds TEAD with nanomolar affinity and inhibits YAP binding. Affinity maturation, using site saturation mutagenesis, produced an improved sub-nanomolar variant (IV1) with potent YAP inhibition. This variant was also found to be highly resistant to reduction and proteolysis, crucial for a disulfide-knotted peptide with a cytosolic target in the proteinase-rich tumor milieu. With this highly potent YAP inhibitor, efforts are now focused on cell penetration and biodistribution with the long-term goal of advancing a clinical development candidate. Citation Format: Zachary R. Crook, Philip Bradley, Gregory Sevilla, Della Friend, Chris King, Andrew Mhyre, Roland Strong, David Baker, James M. Olson. A high-affinity Optide (optimized peptide) inhibitor of the Hippo pathway's YAP-TEAD interaction [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2017; 2017 Apr 1-5; Washington, DC. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2017;77(13 Suppl):Abstract nr 5573. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2017-5573


This study uses the case of EURO 2012 European Soccer Cup in Ukraine to examine the importance of sporting mega-events to host countries. The paper explores the economic, political, and psychological impacts of mega-event hosting. The study's main objective is to avoid the inefficiencies of a traditional supply-oriented approach to measuring the impacts of sporting mega-events. Instead of a traditional economic analysis, interviews were conducted with potential travelers. Interviewees with and without prior knowledge of EURO 2012 were asked about their attitudes towards traveling to the Ukraine. They were then read a few brief facts about Ukraine hosting EURO 2012, and interviewees were again questioned about their likelihood of traveling to the Ukraine. This study provides a new method for estimating the impact of hosting a mega-event on people's intentions to visit the host country.


Mushrooms have been grown commercially on many different substrates for years, usually agricultural by-products such as straw or stover. Increased popularity for specialty mushrooms with consumers has led to increased production and great demand for economic substrates. Oyster mushrooms are easier to grow relative to other types of mushrooms and their production has increased dramatically in recent years. This study examines the economic feasibility of using soybean hulls as a primary substrate for oyster mushrooms, replacing traditional wheat straw. The study uses a cost-benefit analysis to determine an optimal substrate based on yield and the number of crops harvested per year. The study shows that soybean hulls, combined with corn gluten or soybean meal increases yield 4.5 times, which more than offsets for higher costs for soybean hulls. The use of soybean substrate also allows a producer to raise about four more crops per year, which in turn uses fixed resources more efficiently and increases profitability.


Solar-powered embedded systems are challenged by variations and uncertainties in energy availability due to seasonal changes and weather conditions. Such systems need to deploy various schemes to adapt their energy consumption in order to achieve energy sustainability. We target solar-powered real-time systems with adaptive QoS model. A holistic middleware framework for energy management that orchestrates DVFS and application QoS in solar-powered real-time systems is proposed. Extensive experiments are carried out to show the effectiveness and the robustness of our technique on two case studies on a solar-powered smart camera system. Simulation results show an improvement of 19%-50% in terms of total QoS compared to a DVFS framework with fixed QoS model for real time embedded systems.


The GC content of bacterial genomes ranges from 16% to 75% and wide ranges of genomic GC content are observed within many bacterial phyla, including both Gram negative and Gram positive phyla. Thus, divergent genomic GC content has evolved repeatedly in widely separated bacterial taxa. Since genomic GC content influences codon usage, we examined codon usage patterns and predicted protein amino acid content as a function of genomic GC content within eight different phyla or classes of bacteria. We found that similar patterns of codon usage and protein amino acid content have evolved independently in all eight groups of bacteria. For example, in each group, use of amino acids encoded by GC-rich codons increased by approximately 1% for each 10% increase in genomic GC content, while the use of amino acids encoded by AT-rich codons decreased by a similar amount. This consistency within every phylum and class studied led us to conclude that GC content appears to be the primary determinant of the codon and amino acid usage patterns observed in bacterial genomes. These results also indicate that selection for translational efficiency of highly expressed genes is constrained by the genomic parameters associated with the GC content of the host genome.


Vapor condensation is a crucial phenomenon governing the efficiency of many processes. In particular, dropwise condensation on hydrophobic thin films (≈100 nm‐thick) has the potential to achieve remarkable heat transfer. However, the lack of durability of these thin films has limited applications for a century. Although degradation due to steam condensation has been described as "blistering," no satisfactory insight exists capable of elucidating the driving force for film delamination. Here, it is shown that nanoscale pinholes in hydrophobic films are the source of blister formation. By creating artificial pinholes via nanoindentation on thin (30 to 500 nm‐thick) fluorinated hydrophobic films, it is demostrated that water blisters can be initiated at the pinholes during condensation. It is experimentally demonstrated that vapor is transferred to the blister through the nanoscale pinhole, and the driving force for delamination is capillary pressure generated at the pinhole by the pinned liquid–vapor interface. The techniques and insights presented here will inform future work on polymeric thin film and enable their durable design for a variety of applications.


The problem of appearance-based mapping and navigation in outdoor environments is far from trivial. In this paper, an appearance-based topological map, covering a large, mixed indoor and outdoor environment, is built incrementally by using panoramic images. The map is based on image similarity, so that the resulting segmentation of the world corresponds closely to the human concept of a place. Using high-resolution images and the epipolar constraint, the resulting map is shown to be very suitable for localization, even when the environment has undergone seasonal changes.


There is evidence that age matters in politics. In this paper we study whether implementation of affirmative action policies on gender can generate additional effects on an alternative dimension of representation, namely, the age of politicians. We consider an Italian law which introduced gender quotas in candidate lists for local elections in 1993, and was abolished in 1995. As not all municipalities went through elections during this period, we can identify two groups of municipalities and use a Difference in differences estimation to analyze the effect of gender quotas on the age of elected politicians. We find that gender quotas are associated with election of politicians that are younger by more than one year. The effect occurs mainly due to the reduction in age of elected male politicians and is consistent with the optimizing behavior of parties or of voters. JEL-Code: D720, J450.


In the relatively mature Western Canadian Sedimentary Basin, the primary objective of the geophysics discipline is transitioning from the traditional interpretation of reservoir morphology to include reservoir characterization through the determination of rock and fluid properties. Increasing competition, eroding rates of return, and a decreased tolerance for risk have driven operators to strive to gain as much robust information from their data as possible. Between 2011 and 2015, Laricina Energy, a privately held bitumen extraction company, acquired both PP/PS 3D and 4D timelapse seismic data over its producing areas. Prestack joint/simultaneous PP/PS inversion, combined with multi attribute analysis allowed for the investigation of both the static and dynamic reservoir. An inability to reconcile the PSTM inversion data to the laterally changing geology of the lower reservoir (and therefore velocities determined during PSTM) warranted processing the data to PSDM. Ongoing results demonstrate that combining geologic data with compelling analysis products from optimally acquired seismic data can be used to gain meaningful insight as to the physical conditions of both the reservoir and its fluids. As this information is obtained through the life cycle of an E&P project, continual integration and utilization will result in decisions having a higher NPV and could result in more favourable economic results.


A new genus and species of Cumacea, Marmacuma samimei gen. et sp. nov., belonging to the family Nannastacidae is described based on the carapace from the core samples taken from several sites in the Sea of Marmara. The new genus differs from others in the family by the ornamentation of its carapace and strong serration on the lower edge. This is the first cumacean species which is detected from the Tarantian (0.126-0.0117 Ma; Upper Pleistocene) sediments of the Sea of Marmara, Turkey.


Steganography hides various data within different file types, which ensures secure communication. In recent years, the science of steganography has gained importance, due to the increase of large data on the internet and the safe transmission of these data. The main objective is to hide a large amount of data into the cover image in secure and incomprehensible manner. In this article, the two-bit least significant substitution (LSB) method is used to hide data on the colored cover images. In experimental studies, two-bit LSB substitution algorithm was performed in the form of LSB R2G2, LSB R2B2 and LSB G2B2 methods. In the classical LSB substitution method, the data are hidden in sequence, while the data are hidden by the shuffling algorithm at the proposed study. In this way, the security of hidden data is provided.


Gp91 phox /NADPH oxidase (NOX) 2 is the main catalytic component of NOX, which mediates the phagocytic killing of ingested pathogens via the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS). However, Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) is relatively resistant to the microbicidal effects of ROS. Thus, the exact roles of NOX2 in the innate immune control against Mtb infection are not fully resolved. In this study, we show that NOX2 is essential for TLR2-dependent inflammatory responses and 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D 3 (1,25D 3 )-mediated antimicrobial activity against Mtb via cathelicidin expression. NOX2-null macrophages prominently abrogated Mtb-induced ROS production and inflammatory signaling activation in a TLR2-dependent manner. Mtb triggered a phys-ical association between NOX2 and TLR2. In addition, the knockdown of NOX2 inhibited 1,25D 3 -triggered antimicrobial activity against viable Mtb through the modulation of cathelicidin expression in human macrophages. Treatment of NOX2 knocked down cells with cathelicidin restored the 1,25D 3 -induced antimicrobial effect, suggesting that the NOX2-dependent induction of cathelicidin in macrophages is part of a defensive strategy against Mtb. Furthermore, cathelicidin expression was required for the Mtb-induced release of ROS and the production of proinflammatory cytokines/chemokines, indicating a positive circuit of in-flammation in response to Mtb. Our data collectively demonstrate a novel regulatory mechanism for TLR2-dependent innate responses to Mtb involving crosstalk between NOX2


An acidic polysaccharide (SGP-2), with a molecular weight of 1880 kDa, was purified from the defatted whole-plant of Sarcandra glabra (Thunb.) Nakai. SGP-2 is mainly composed of glucose, galactose, mannose, arabinose and galacturonic acid in a molar ratio of 12.19 : 8.68 : 6.03 : 1.00 : 15.24. The primary structure analysis reveals that SGP-2 consists of 1,4-linked α-D-galacturonic acid, methyl-esterified 1,4-linked α-D-galacturonic acid, 1,5-linked α-L-arabinose, 1,4-linked α-D-mannose, 1,6-linked β-D-glucose and 1,3-linked β-D-galactose with branch chains of 1,4,6-linked β-D-glucose, 1,3,6-linked α-D-mannose and 1,4,6-linked α-D-galactose. The results of a cell viability assay and colony formation assay indicate that SGP-2 has a potent anti-proliferation activity on human osteosarcoma MG-63 cells. SGP-2 increases the proportion of apoptotic cells and activates caspase-3. In addition, the anti-proliferation effect induced by SGP-2 is blocked by the pan-caspase inhibitor. Moreover, SGP-2 inhibits the migratory capacity of MG-63 cells accompanied with the inhibition of receptor for advanced glycation end-products (RAGE) and nuclear factor-kappa B (NF-κB). Taken together, these results suggest that SGP-2 has anti-cancer potential in the treatment of human osteosarcoma.


Characteristic-sorted portfolios are the workhorses of modern empirical finance, deployed widely to evaluate anomalies and construct asset pricing models. We propose a new method for their estimation that is simple to compute, makes no ex-ante assumption on the nature of the relationship between the characteristic and returns, and does not require ad hoc selections of percentile breakpoints or portfolio weighting schemes. Characteristic portfolio weights are implied directly from data, through maximizing a Mean–Variance objective function with mean and variance estimated non-parametrically from the cross-section of assets. To illustrate the method, we evaluate the size, value and momentum anomalies and find overwhelming empirical evidence of the outperformance of our methodology compared to standard methods for constructing characteristic-sorted portfolios.


Why? Because data consistently show that only a small percentage of people diagnosed with this chronic condition are adequately controlled. Despite the fact that this is an obvious opportunity for improvement, few organizations have launched DM efforts specifically targeting hypertension, primarily because of the difficulty inherent in predicting ROI. However, DMA reviews two approaches that are getting notable results.


The work described in this thesis addresses two questions relating to benefits of dietary omega-3 fatty acids (n-3 LCPUFA). Accretion of research knowledge indicates that adequate n-3 LCPUFA intakes may be instrumental in maintaining good health throughout life, including in the optimisation of cardiovascular health. Sources of n-3 LCPUFA traditionally include fish oils but concern regarding long-term sustainability of fish stocks has led to investigation of alternative sources. Krill oil, obtained from the crustacean Euphausia superba, contains n-3 fatty acids as phospholipids and triglycerides, astaxanthin and related carotenoid pigments, and has been proposed as a more effective alternative than triglyceride oils.

Some foods rich in n-3-LCPUFA, including prawns, also contain cholesterol; concern regarding possible adverse health effects of such dietary cholesterol has led to public health advice to limit intake of these potentially beneficial foodstuffs.

These questions are addressed in two food intake studies in male volunteers by monitoring markers of cardiovascular health, food intake and biochemical markers of compliance. Firstly, prawns and a white fish control were compared for effects on lipoprotein profiles and other markers. Dietary supplementation with 225 g prawns daily for 4 weeks was associated with a decrease in ApoB of 7.8mg/dL compared an increase (+2.4 mg/dL) for the white fish control. Participants with BMI > 25 kg/m2 also showed a reduction in plasma TAG (0.17 mmol/L) compared with baseline following prawn intake; those receiving the control showed an increase in plasma TAG (0.30 mmol/L), a decrease in HDL-C, and increases in VLDL-C and sdLDL-C. No overall adverse effect was found for prawns compared with processed white fish.

Secondly, effects were compared of fish oil and krill oil on cardiometabolic profiles of a cohort of men with metabolic syndrome, using anthropometric measurements, biochemical markers of cardiovascular health and assessments of food intake. Krill oil and fish oil at the doses used showed no overall difference in effect on MetS markers after 6 weeks; correlations between magnitude of reduction and baseline measurement were observed in both groups for TAG, fasting glucose, NEFA and sdLDL after 3 weeks on both supplements, and for glucose and cholesterol after 6 weeks of fish oil.

Comparison of analytical methods was also undertaken during both studies; use of a point-of-care system using capillary blood correlated well with plasma biochemistry using venous blood, while the Hirano method for sdLDL measurement correlated favourably with more labour-intensive centrifugation techniques. Limitations of the methods used are discussed, and proposals put forward for future work, including improving compliance through the use of newly emerging technologies such as metabolomics.


ABSTRACT This study uses data based on a random sample of correctional officers from eight different correctional facilities in the Northeast, to analyze strain, distress, and substance use through the lens of General Strain Theory (GST). This paper specifically seeks to establish correctional officers as a necessary component of mass incarceration research by explaining how their environment can lead to maladaptive behaviors. This is done by elaborating on how the environment of corrections institutions fosters various levels of distress in its employees, thereby leading to detrimental behavioral alterations such as substance use. Results indicate that higher levels of workplace strain either lead to substance use, or facilitate greater substance use, however this relationship is attenuated by occupational distress. This study shows that the very structure of the incarceration institution places workplace strain on employees which indirectly cause detrimental behavior augmentations.


"A representative sample of just over one thousand marriages solemnized in England and Wales in 1979 is used to analyse the distribution of the distances between the partners' addresses at marriage....according to various social and demographic variables also derived from the same source. Comparison with other surveys suggests that marriages in which both partners give the same address are likely to be those of couples who cohabit before marriage. Partners who work in unskilled manual occupations, or who marry with a civil ceremony, or who have been married before, appear more likely than the average to cohabit. Of the marriages where different addresses are given, about one-half bring together partners living within 5 km of each other." It is found that "there is a strong relationship between high social class and increased marital distance, and also between greater marital distance and older ages up to about age 40. Longer-range marriages show clear evidence of geographical orientation, the effect being more pronounced at longer distances. This is attributed to variations in population density over the country and geographical constraints on settlement patterns."


Oral allergy syndrome to soy milk is classified as a phenotype of pollen‐food allergy syndrome (PFAS). As causative antigens, Gly m 4 (Bet v 1 homolog, 17 kD) and oleosin (23 kD), have been reported. In this study, we report two cases of PFAS to soy milk. Both cases showed positive reactions to soy milk in skin prick tests (SPT) and to Gly m 4 in specific serum immunoglobulin (Ig)E antibody. When we measured specific serum IgE antibody of soy‐related proteins using a new laboratory testing method, microarray analysis, both cases showed a positive reaction for Bet v 1. One case was weakly positive for a soybean protein, β‐conglycinin. Other results for reactivity to soy, peanut, cross‐reactive carbohydrate determinants and profilin were negative. Based on these results, we diagnosed the two cases as PFAS to Gly m 4. We also performed protein microarray analysis and found it useful as a screening test for immediate allergy, such as PFAS.


Workflow management systems (WfMSs) have been used to support various types of business processes for more than a decade now. In workflows for e-commerce and Web service applications, suppliers and customers define a binding agreement or contract between the two parties, specifying Quality of Service (QoS) items such as products or services to be delivered, deadlines, quality of products, and cost of services. The management of QoS metrics directly impacts the success of organizations participating in e-commerce. Therefore, when services or products are created or managed using workflows, the underlying workflow system must accept the specifications and be able to estimate, monitor, and control the QoS rendered to customers. In this paper, we present a predictive QoS model that makes it possible to compute the quality of service for workflows automatically based on atomic task QoS attributes. To this end, we present a model that specifies QoS and describe an algorithm and a simulation system in order to compute, analyze and monitor workflow QoS metrics.


As a new teaching mode, online courses have become one of the most important teaching methods in higher education. At present, there are still some shortcomings in online course live broadcast teaching platform including insufficient hardware support, low flexibility and weak interactivity. Meanwhile, during the entire online course teaching process, teachers do not know the overall learning effect of students in real time to determine the next teaching plan. This study presented a real-time interactive technology to enhance the interactive of the entire online course broadcast teaching platform. At the same time, it combined a monitoring method for online course terminals, servers and learning process to demonstrate students' learning effect in the whole online course learning process, and finally built the online course broadcast teaching platform. The practice test in teaching shows that the online course broadcast teaching platform can improve the teaching effect among students, which is of great significance for the improvement of teaching quality.


The balance between dynamic and stable actin filaments is essential for the regulation of cellular functions including the determination of cell shape and polarity, cell migration, and cytokinesis. Proteins that regulate polymerization at the filament ends and filament stability confer specificity to actin filament structure and cellular function. The dynamics of the barbed, fast-growing end of the filament are controlled in space and time by both positive and negative regulators of actin polymerization. Capping proteins inhibit the addition and loss of subunits, whereas other proteins, including formins, bind at the barbed end and allow filament growth. In this work, we show that tropomyosin regulates dynamics at the barbed end. Tropomyosin binds to constructs of FRL1 and mDia2 that contain the FH2 domain and modulates formin-dependent capping of the barbed end by relieving inhibition of elongation by FRL1-FH1FH2, mDia1-FH2, and mDia2-FH2 in an isoform-dependent fashion. In this role, tropomyosin functions as an activator of formin. Tropomyosin also inhibits the binding of FRL1-FH1FH2 to the sides of actin filaments independent of the isoform. In contrast, tropomyosin does not affect the ability of capping protein to block the barbed end. We suggest that tropomyosin and formin act together to ensure the formation of unbranched actin filaments, protected from severing, that could be capped in stable cellular structures. This role, in addition to its cooperative control of myosin function, establishes tropomyosin as a universal regulator of the multifaceted actin cytoskeleton.


The article investigates the intuition that both scientific realism and scientific antirealism are turning into degenerating research programs. The evolution of realism in reaction to pessimistic (meta)induction has certainly led to its increased sophistication as it has given rise to various versions of selective realism. However, many current discussions seem either too focused on semantic niceties or are turning into endless quarrels over case-study refutations of particular forms of realism. The point of finding a better understanding of the relations of scientific knowledge to the world seems to get lost in the process. Magnus, Callender, and Saatsi are among those who see the problem. Although drawing on different observations, they agree that the source of the problem is the wholesale approach according to which it is possible to resolve the realism debate in one move, by finding a single universal method of interpreting any scientific theory. Instead, they call for a more modest approach, based on case-by-case analyses. Particularly promising is Saatsi's idea of exemplar realism, according to which realism should be an attitude motivating detailed case studies rather than a specific account of science in general.


Unit commitment problem is associated with satisfying load demand and minimizing the total operating cost of the generating unit without violation of unit and system constraints. The solution of unit commitment should be reliable which has adequate spinning reserve in order to anticipate the uncertainty issue. This research proposes a method to handle two uncertainty issues, i.e. unit unavailability and load forecast uncertainty. The unit commitment problem is solved by genetic algorithm with priority list approach. The evaluation of spinning reserve capacity is based on probabilistic criterion by incorporating two reliability indices, i.e. loss of load probability (LOLP) and expected unserved energy (EUE). The effectiveness of the proposed method is tested using IEEE Reliability Test System-1996. The simulation results show that the proposed method is capable for solving unit commitment problem at total operational cost of $ 722186.93 and risk index at 0.347% (while EUE 0.01%, LOLP 1% and standard deviation (SD) 5%). The simulation results also demonstrate that several solution of the method have slightly lower cost up to 0.43% than those obtained in benchmark which the solution based on Simulated Annealing method.


ABSTRACT The current study conducted in Pakistan aimed to test if parental stimulation practices modify the effect of general child health status on early developmental risks in hospitalized children. Development was assessed using the Survey of Well-being of Young Children. Child health status was a global rating on a Likert scale. Parental engagement was categorized based on the number of activities with their children (low ≤ 3, high > 3). A total of 231 children were assessed. Children with poor health status were reported to be 1.9 (95% Confidence Intervals [CI] 1.4–2.8, p = 0.000) times at risk of developmental delay by parents who had lower engagement and about 3 times (3.63 for mothers CI 1.79–7.37, p = 0.003; 2.96 for fathers CI 1.17–7.49, p = 0.027) significantly at risk of behaviour–emotional concerns by parents with higher engagement. The authors conclude that parental engagement and developmental screening can be incorporated as part of in-patient paediatric assessment.


Given the guidelines for management and administration of the Brazilian Policy for Solid Waste, as well as the need for a broad view of the problematics regarding municipal solid waste, this article proposed a qualitative methodology of regional analysis of municipal solid waste, based on an index used as a planning tool. An overview of the municipal solid waste generated in the state of Sao Paulo was presented, since it was the area under study. Data for waste generation, population and human development were used for the method development. Measurement spreadsheets and geographic information system were used as tools. An adequacy index of municipal solid waste management (IMSWM) was generated based on weight attribution for variables of population, municipal solid waste generation, selective collection, collection of waste from healthcare services, and participation in municipal consortia. An equation for estimating the generation of municipal solid waste based on the population of the state of Sao Paulo was obtained, with R²=0.9977. The adequacy index of municipal solid waste management did not show a spatial trend, though it was possible to identify municipalities with greater problems regarding the municipal solid waste management. An analysis of regional landfills was carried out. Most of those from the state of Sao Paulo are located close to larger municipalities. There is a need of increasing the amount of regional landfills closer to smaller municipalities in the Western part of the state. The methodology of adequacy index of municipal solid waste management seemed adequate for a regional analysis of the waste problematics. It can be adapted to other study areas, in different regions, in several administrative divisions. No correlation between data generation and human development was found.


This study described the complexity of service need co-occurrence among foster care-involved families and identified prevalent patterns of needs to inform future evidence-based service planning research. We utilized state administrative child maltreatment records, and restricted data to cases where the child entered foster care in 2019 and the caseworker indicated the presence of at least one need from the Family Assessment of Needs and Strengths (FANS; n = 1631). We extracted all unique combinations of needs (i.e., needs profiles), and we used association rule mining to identify patterns within these profiles. A total of 780 unique needs profiles emerged among the 1631 cases, which we condensed into 78 patterns. Although the variability and complexity of needs profiles makes evidence-based service planning difficult, the present analysis mapped prevalent needs patterns to guide future research intended to assist caseworkers in this task. Identification of maltreatment determinants among families involved in foster care, and future research into the needs within different needs patterns that might undermine treatment effectiveness, may result in a better balance between parsimonious service plans and a full consideration of co-occurring service needs.


Detection of the direction of a fault on a transmission line is essential to the proper performance of a power system. It would be desirable to develop a high speed and accurate approach to determine the fault direction for different power system conditions. To classify forward and backward faults on a given line, a neural network's abilities in pattern recognition and classification could be considered as a solution. To demonstrate the applicability of this solution, neural network technique is employed and a novel Elman recurrent network is designed and trained. Details of the design procedure and the results of performance studies with the proposed network are given and analysed in the paper. System simulation studies show that the proposed approach is able to detect the direction of a fault on a transmission line rapidly and correctly. It is suitable to realize a very fast transmission line directional comparison protection scheme.


This paper presents a historical and qualitative study to examine the rise of the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) as a force in international politics and its impacts on the dynamics of violent extremism threat in Indonesia. The rise of ISIS was a turning point from the nascent progressive shift toward democratization in the Arab world represented by the "Arab Spring," and its influence has spread beyond Syria and Iraq to threaten regional and global security. Like in other countries in the Islamic world, Indonesian society and politics have been significantly affected by the activities of ISIS. In addition to describing the origin of ISIS and spread of its ideology, this paper examines the responses from Indonesian extremist and mainstream community to ISIS' agenda. It argues that the conflicting responses primarily revolves around the notion of whether ISIS actually has qualities of a functional state. The role of moderate Islamic mass organisations such as Nahdlatul Ulama and Muhammadiyah has also proven to be important in resisting the spread of ISIS' ideology in Indonesia.


A method of calculating the maximum-likelihood clustering for the unsupervised estimation of polynomial models for the data in images of smooth surfaces or for range data for such surfaces is presented. An image or a depth map of a region of smooth 3-D surface is modeled as a polynomial plus white noise. A region of physically meaningful textured-image such as the image of foliage, grass, or road in outdoor scenes or conductor or lintburn on a thick-film substrate is modeled as a colored Gaussian-Markov random field (MRF) with a polynomial mean-value function. Unsupervised-model parameter-estimation is accomplished by determining the segmentation and model parameter values that maximize the likelihood of the data or a more general Bayesian performance functional. Agglomerative clustering is used for this purpose. >


Background-Control over nursing practice is participatory process through which nurses have input and engage in decision making about practice policies and issues, as well as personnel issues affecting nurses. It is influenced by various internal and external factors. Staff nurses describe Control Over Nursing Practice (CONP) as a professional nursing function made up of a variety of activities and outcomes. CONP has been identified as an important work environment attribute to ensure patient safety and has been more strongly predictive of nurses' perceptions of the effectiveness of patient care than empowerment. Patients are more satisfied thru their nursing care when nurses have control over their practice. Aim-The aim of this study was to explore the perception of nurses for their level of control over nursing Practice . Methods-A cross-sectional descriptive research design was used for this study. Quota sampling technique was used to recruit nurses working in one of the biggest MOH hospitals in Saudi Arabia. Participants were asked to complete the Control over Nursing Practice (CONP) Scale. Results- A total of 465 nurses (364 staff nurses and 101 nurse managers) perceived their control over nursing practice (CONP) moderately (5.27±1.10). The majority of nurses (79%) expressed that it is highly important to have a CONP, and (78%) they like to have CONP in their work setting. 46.9% of the participants selected charge nurses/head nurses as the most influential group related to their CONP. Conclusion- This study concludes that the control over nursing practice is an important function that the nurses are expected to do in their clinical practice, however, most of the nurses participated in this study consider that CONP is importance and they like to have control over their practice, unfortunately, they are not practicing it feasibly in their work setting.


This paper uses the Hopf bifurcation theorem to predict the limit cycles of ballooning strings observed in many textile manufacturing processes. The steady state and linearized solutions of the nonlinear governing equations are reviewed. The nonlinear dynamic equations are discretized and projected to a finite dimensional linear normal mode space, resulting in a set of nonlinearly coupled but linearly uncoupled ordinary differential equations. The first two equations, corresponding to the lowest normal mode, are analyzed using the Hopf bifurcation theorem. The first Lyapunov coefficient is calculated to prove the existence of stable limit cycles for double loop balloons with small string length. The bifurcation theorem, however, fails to apply to the large string length Hopf bifurcation point because the first Lyapunov coefficient is indeterminable. Numerical simulation of the nonlinear two-dimensional equations agrees with experimental results quantitatively for small string length and qualitatively for large string length.