On March 13, 2017, William Martin, director of the Drug Policy Program, testified before the Texas House Committee on Criminal Jurisprudence in favor of HB 81, which would reduce the penalty for possession of less than one ounce of marijuana from arrest and possible jail time to a civil fine. Martin's testimony also included findings from his issue brief "Marijuana Reform: Fears and Facts (Update)," co-authored with Katharine A. Neill, Alfred C. Glassell, III, Postdoctoral Fellow in Drug Policy, which highlights data supporting the assertion that ending marijuana prohibition benefits society in numerous and significant ways that outweigh potential negative impacts.


Thermoelectric materials have long been investigated for use in refrigeration. However, they currently occupy only niche markets because of their low efficiency. In his Perspective,
 Sales
 highlights recent advances toward more efficient thermoelectric materials that may find wider application in refrigeration and power generation if production costs can be reduced.


Abstract Goal: Evidence-based guidelines exist for the prevention and treatment of patients with cerebral ischemia. Despite these guidelines, there are gaps in clinical practice. Our study aimed to determine if a physician-directed, nurse-case-management program could reduce individual patient vascular risk factors. Methods: Patients hospitalized with atherosclerotic cerebral ischemia with ≥ 1 major uncontrolled risk factor for stroke (hypertension, tobacco use, dyslipidemia, diabetes) were eligible to enroll in our study. Patients were randomized to management by the nurse-prevention program or usual care. Patients in the usual-care group received their initial risk-factor assessment and a scheduled follow-up at 1 year. Patients in the usual-care group underwent further follow-up by primary care and/or neurology as recommended during their hospitalization or outpatient visit. Patients assigned to the prevention group received individualized education, motivational interviewing, and were aided in setting up their risk-factor modification goal plan. Additional education was tailored to each patient based on individualized risk factors. Prevention-group patients also underwent consultation with a registered dietitian and an exercise physiologist. The primary endpoint of the study was improvement of ≥ 1 major patient risk factor for occurrence of stroke to goal at 1 year. Results: At 1-year post-hospitalization, patients in the nurse-care-management group were 42% more likely to have met the primary endpoint (n = 18; 61% nurse-managed patients) compared with 33% (n = 18) of patients undergoing usual care (P = 0.09). There was no significant reduction in minor risk factors for either patient group. Patients in the prevention group had greater reductions in low-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels (−38 vs −4; P = 0.0083), changes in cardiovascular risk score (−5.2 vs 1.3; P = 0.0033), and had a greater reductions in systolic blood pressure (−12.2 vs −0.105; P = 0.07) than their usual-care counterparts (changes shown respectively). Patients in the prevention group were more likely to follow a prescribed diet than those in the usual-care group (50%) vs 7%, respectively; P = 0.0070) and maintain an exercise program (83% vs 33%, respectively; P = 0.0018). Summary: A physician-directed, nurse case-management system for patients post-hospitalization for cerebral ischemia is feasible and may help improve long-term control of major patient risk factors for stroke. A larger trial is needed to verify trends noted in our study.


A review was undertaken at Agronomy Division, Bangladesh Jute Research Institute (BJRI), Dhaka on jute weeds, their management, weeding cost and control measures through collecting secondary information in 2013. The sources of secondary data were BJRI annual reports, thesis, news letter, national and international journals and accessing internet in 2013. Results revealed that out of 129 species of both monocotyledonous and dicotyledonous jute weeds generally found in Bangladesh belonging to 99 genera or 39 families. Only 13 weed species like Cyperus rotundus, Echinochloa colonum, Cynodon dactylon, Physalis heterophylla, Paspallum distichum, Eleusine indica, Jussiaea repens, Euphorbia hirta, Euphorbia microphilla, Portulaca oleracea, Fimbristylis dochotama, Amaranthus spinosus and Phyllanthus niruri were found vigorous and common in both tossa and white jute field. Six location specific weeds like Panicum javanicum, Scirpus mucronatus, Setaria viridis, Amaranthus viridis, Paspalum commersonii and Alternanthera sessile in tossa and five like Digitaria sanguinalis, Echinochloa crusgalli, Panicum repens, Fimbristylis dochotama and Paspalum commersonii in white jute growing areas of Bangladesh observed vigorous. The hot and humid environment and wet soil in summer season of Bangladesh reported highly favourable for jute weed germination and growth. The cost of weeding alone comes to 30% to 40% or even more of the total cost of jute cultivation. Weeds competed with jute crops for water, light and mineral nutrients, which directly reduce the quality and quantity of fibre. Jute weeds indirectly reduce fibre yield by serving as alternate host for diseases and pests. The traditional methods for control were observed hand pulling, pressing by foot, weeding by khurpy or weeder or by racker. Among the chemical herbicides, Fenoxaprop-p-ethyl WCE (86.6%) and Quizalofop ethyl (79%) reported successful only for Echinochola colonum, Echinochloa crusgalli and Digitaria sanguinalis were found location specific. Farmers should know the major species of jute weeds and their cost effective and easiest control measures for achieving maximum benefit from jute production. Since the cost as well as availability of agricultural labour is being copped up as problem, more attention in the field of scientific methods of jute weed control and sequence of weed vis-a-vis cropping pattern is warranted.


Any transmission of behavior from one generation to the next via non-genetic means is a process of culture. Culture provides major advantages for survival in the biological world. This dissertation develops four methods that harness the mechanisms of culture to enhance the power of neuroevolution: culling overlarge litters, mate selection by complementary competence, phenotypic diversity maintenance, and teaching offspring to respond like an elder. The methods are efficient because they operate without requiring additional fitness evaluations, and because each method addresses a different aspect of neuroevolution, they also combine smoothly. The combined system balances diversity and selection pressure, and improves performance both in terms of learning speed and solution quality in sequential decision tasks.


New media networks differ from old media networks in the sense that for the press, TV, and radio, the formats are more established. To old media one sends a press release, a prepared sound bite, or an edited video can. One organizes a scripted event and invites journalists in the hopes that the story eventually told adheres to the prepared text and overall narrative. But what does one send to a network? Does one send information in the "old media" formats? What does a network do with a press release? Are certain formats routinely filed away or deleted, while others tend to circulate in networks, creating "new media network effects?" The work treats formats broadly and also makes distinctions between various kinds of new media networks–social networks, issue networks, and stranger networks. In a discussion of the formats circulated and network behaviors effected by the Association of Progressive Communications—a highly professionalized civil society network actor in the field of information and communications policy—the purpose of the article is to open up avenues of thought into how different formats operate in various types of networks, and in particular, whether formats may organize new media networks and, perhaps, social movements. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Complexity 10: 22–34, 2005This paper was submitted as part of the Special Issue: Understanding Complex Systems (Complexity, Vol. 10/No. 3 and No. 4)


The Direct Numerical Simulation (DNS) of the transition process in a supersonic boundary layer from the laminar to the turbulent state signican tly challenges existing numerical codes. High{order accurate methods are commonly used to improve the accuracy of simulations and thus reduce the number of required grid points. In this paper the development of a high{order code which is tailored towards stability and nonlinear transition simulations over a circular cone is discussed. A thoroughly conducted validation is presented. In particular, small amplitude disturbances are introduced to study the linear wave amplication (eigenbehavior). The results are compared to Linear Stability Theory (LST). Moreover, a three{dimensional stability diagram { in the downstream{frequency{azimuthal mode domain (Rx F k) { is extracted from these calculations and analyzed. Finally, the possible occurrence of oblique breakdown is highlighted by performing simulations with continuously forced nite{amplitude disturbances.


The Small Arms Survey occasional paper series presents new and substantial research findings by project staff and commissioned researchers on data, methodological, and conceptual issues related to small arms, or detailed country and regional case studies. The series is published periodically and is available in hard copy and on the project's Web site.


This guide provides sources of information on geology, soils, water, minerals and other resources in or near Centre County, Pennsylvania.


The internet of things concept has promoted research on human-interactive electronics for wearable devices and robotic applications. One interesting application is wallpaper to monitor a room environment and to act as an electronic message board. To demonstrate the potenital of electronic wallpaper (e-wallpaper), this study prepares a flexible nonvolatile floating gate random access memory (FGRAM) array integrated with a tactile touch sensor array as the message board. Additionally, a temperature sensor array is also laminated to monitor the room temperature. Besides the mechanical flexibility, the fundamental properties of flexible FGRAMs, including the tunneling dielectric thickness, program voltage, and program time dependencies, are characterized. Finally, e-wallpaper is demonstrated as a first proof-of-concept to show a possible platform for future macroscale flexible electronics.


Mitochondria from the embryos of brine shrimp (Artemia franciscana) do not undergo Ca2+-induced permeability transition in the presence of a profound Ca2+ uptake capacity. Furthermore, this crustacean is the only organism known to exhibit bongkrekate-insensitive mitochondrial adenine nucleotide exchange, prompting the conjecture that refractoriness to bongkrekate and absence of Ca2+-induced permeability transition are somehow related phenomena. Here we report that mitochondria isolated from two other crustaceans, brown shrimp (Crangon crangon) and common prawn (Palaemon serratus) exhibited bongkrekate-sensitive mitochondrial adenine nucleotide transport, but lacked a Ca2+-induced permeability transition. Ca2+ uptake capacity was robust in the absence of adenine nucleotides in both crustaceans, unaffected by either bongkrekate or cyclosporin A. Transmission electron microscopy images of Ca2+-loaded mitochondria showed needle-like formations of electron-dense material strikingly similar to those observed in mitochondria from the hepatopancreas of blue crab (Callinectes sapidus) and the embryos of Artemia franciscana. Alignment analysis of the partial coding sequences of the adenine nucleotide translocase (ANT) expressed in Crangon crangon and Palaemon serratus versus the complete sequence expressed in Artemia franciscana reappraised the possibility of the 208-214 amino acid region for conferring sensitivity to bongkrekate. However, our findings suggest that the ability to undergo Ca2+-induced mitochondrial permeability transition and the sensitivity of adenine nucleotide translocase to bongkrekate are not necessarily related phenomena.


The effect of acetylcholine (ACh) on the low threshold T-type Ca2+ conductance of relay cells in the cat lateral geniculate nucleus (LGN) was studied using in vitro thalamic slices. Results from both current-clamp and voltage-clamp experiments showed that the low threshold Ca2+ conductance was inhibited by ACh in most (82%) of the LGN neurons tested, even when the membrane potential was clamped to the control level. This inhibitory effect was independent of the changes in membrane potential by ACh. Therefore, ACh might exert a direct action on low threshold Ca2+ channels.


This paper identifies some of the obstacles that Mexican firms face in their efforts to start businesses using the Internet. In particular it addresses the issues of lack of financial resources, poor access to information infrastructure, and lack of consumer credit. The paper applies the resource-based theory of the firm, institutional economics, and Porter's national competitive advantage to argue that small firms and entrepreneurs that want to start a business in Mexico should do so by taking advantage of the resources available in other countries. In a sense they can transfer some of the resources and institutions they lack which, in the case of Mexico, come primarily from the United States.


On the strength of the status quo of Chinese land transfer, the changes of the county agricultural production factor market arising from land transfer from four aspects covering land market, agricultural capital market, agricultural labor market and agricultural science and technology. The impacts of land transfer on county agricultural industrialized development are analyzed: in the first place, the large amount of land required by the county agricultural scale production can be effective supplied; in the second place, a large number of labors required by the county agricultural industrialized production can be effectively fulfilled; in the third place, the innovation of science and technology provide motivation for adjusting the county agricultural industrial structure. On the basis of that, the countermeasures on promoting the county economic development are put forward: firstly, the land transfer market should be standard to ensure the sustainable and stable development of county agricultural industrialized development; secondly, the commercial value, variations and added value of the county agricultural products should be improved; thirdly, the input on the county agricultural capital should be ensured.


The planned efforts of development, that focus on public private partnership where the government agencies collaborate with civil society organizations are executed in the project mode. The large investments in area development and human development sectors initiated during the project can be sustained in long run, provided the project create spaces for participation through formation and promotion of grass root level organizations as well. When the chain of partnership in development is extended up to community Based Organisations, that includes the women, tribal and small / marginal farmers it ensures sustainable growth. Although there are various attempts of forming such groups, the numbers of good models that continue to operate on long run and bring the tribal marginal farmers, who were earlier living at subsistence level in the mainstream of development process are limited. The case study of Devpasli Mandli is one such example that has sustained the process of development in post project phase. This is being achieved through providing services that member value most such as - accessibility to timely and quality inputs that lead to agriculture production enhancement, developed linkages with market, operates as a link between government and people and ensures that the subsidy and other benefit of schemes reaches to tribal. It has also created a cadre of tribal men and women who actively manage the cooperative and other CBOs. All this has lead to a cumulative effect on directly and indirectly increasing net income of members and overall development of area. Key Words: Sustainable development, community based Organisation, mainstreaming of tribal families


In order to analyze the motion characteristics of turn-milling center, it's prototype is modeled and spiral motion is simulated and analyzed to get curves of displacement and velocity in forward kinematics and inverse kinematics. The rationality and applicability of mechanism design is verificated to provide the basis of fast optimized design of turn-milling center. So the method can forecast and improve before physical prototype manufacturing to ensure design feasibility and save development time.


Radioactive waste generated from the CREST reactor has been evaluated. Activation of blankets and shields used during a plant lifetime was evaluated by an activation calculation code taking into accounts of the distribution of neutron wall loading and the scenario of blanket replacement. Limits on surface dose limits define the feasibility of recycling by remote handling (RHR) and by hands-on operation (HOR). After 50 years for decay of activated components, surface dose rate of most of components exceeds 10 mSv/h and cannot be recycled. Some of shields are lower than 10 mSv/h and have a possibility of RHR. After 100 years, surface dose rate of all components is lower than 3 mSv/h, and RHR is feasible. Half of shields are lower than 0.01 mSv/h and have a possibility of HOR. After 125 years, dose rate of all components is lower than 1 mSv/h. RHR with a relatively simple shielding precaution may be feasible. In the cases of 150 years or later, little degradation of dose rate can be expected. Therefore, the used components should be managed within approximately 125 years by suitable methods.


For the irrigation district, irrigation water is the manual water supply for the farmland while reference crop evapotranspiration (ET 0 ) reflects water demand. Thus, the joint distribution of irrigation water and ET 0 can reveal water shortage risk under the condition of the manual water supply. In order to understand their relationships and overcome the drawbacks of different marginal distributions of hydrological variables, Archimedean copulas are introduced. Based on the data series of ET 0 and irrigation water in the Luhun irrigation district of China, the univariate marginal distributions of ET 0 and irrigation water are first selected. Then, with the Gumbel–Hougaard copula in the Archimedean copulas, the joint distribution of ET 0 and irrigation water is proposed. The results show that the best-fitting marginal distributions of ET 0 and irrigation water are generalized extreme values and normal distributions, respectively, but for their joint distribution, the Gumbel–Hougaard copula is the best-fitting one. The water shortage risks with different encounter situations of ET 0 and irrigation water are better revealed using the proposed copula-based joint distribution.


The ATP-sensitive K+ (KATP) channels, e.g. in heart and pancreatic beta-cells, open spontaneously in the absence of intracellular ATP (ATPi). Their unitary conductance is approximately 80 pS with 150 mM extracellular K+. These features are shared by the K+ channels composed of various sulfonylurea receptors (SURs) and Kir6.2, whereas SUR/Kir6.1 channels have a smaller conductance (approximately 35 pS) and do not open spontaneously in the absence of ATPi. To identify the structural elements in Kir6.0 subunits which determine these properties, we analyzed the properties of functional K+ channels composed of SUR2A, the cardiac type SUR, and various chimeras of Kir6.1 and Kir6.2 heterologously expressed in HEK (human embryonic kidney) 293T cells. The analyses indicate that the extracellular linker domain between the two putative membrane-spanning regions is responsible for the difference in the single channel conductance between SUR2A/Kir6.1 and SUR2A/Kir6.2 channels. The cytosolic N-terminal domain of Kir6.2 was mandatory for spontaneous channel opening in the absence of ATPi, although a part of C-terminus was also involved. These results implicate specific regions of Kir6.0 in the spontaneous opening and the single channel conductance.


The crystallization behaviour of ferroelectric P(VDF–TrFE) copolymer thin films on various substrates has been investigated. The substrates used include bare Si for a high energy surface, and fluorinated self-assembled monolayer deposited Si and elastomer PDMS for low energy surfaces. Low energy surfaces have been found to enhance the crystallization rate. Additionally, the elastic moduli of those thin films, having thicknesses ranging from ∼30 nm to ∼1 μm, have been determined by the buckling method. The moduli have been found to depend strongly on the films microstructure, and have shown a maximum at the crystallization temperatures of 120 °C–140 °C. The films annealed at these temperatures show more than a 5× increase in modulus than that of the room-temperature dried ones. The dependence of the modulus on the film microstructure has been found to be closely related to the change in film crystallinity. The measured moduli of P(VDF–TrFE) thin films can help with the design and practical implementation of emerging applications such as flexible nonvolatile memories and piezoelectric energy harvesting devices.


The geomorphic flood index (GFI) method provides a good representation of flood‐prone areas. However, the method does not account for floodwater transfers in undefined interbasins (UIBs), which represent intercluded small basins along the coastline likely to be flooded by adjacent major rivers. The present work addresses this shortcoming by complementing the GFI approach with an iterative procedure that considers UIBs and water transfers between basins. The methodology was tested on a coastal basin in southern Italy and the outcome was compared with a flood map obtained by a two‐dimensional hydraulic simulation. GFI performance as a morphological descriptor improved from 74% (standard method) to 94% with the addition of the iterative procedure. The proposed methodology, with the same parameterization, was applied on a second adjacent coastal basin obtaining improvements both in terms of true positive (from 56 to 79%) and false negative rates (from 44 to 21%). Finally, a sensitivity analysis to the flood return periods highlighted a strong influence on model parameterization for return periods below 20 years. This achievement represents a new development in the application of the GFI method, which can help stakeholders in a more time‐ and cost‐effective flood risk management in hazard‐prone areas.


Anyone who has experienced influenza or a bacterial infection knows what it means to be ill. Apart from feeling feverish, experiencing aching joints and muscles, you lose the desire to eat. Anorexia, defined as loss of appetite or persistent satiety leading to reduced energy intake, is a hallmark of acute inflammatory disease. The anorexia is part of the acute phase response, triggered as the result of activation of the innate immune system with concomitant release of inflammatory mediators, which interact with the central nervous system. A chronic condition, and a severe medical problem, that resembles inflammation-induced anorexia is cachexia. Cachexia, which is commonly associated with malignant cancer, is typified as a cytokine-associated metabolic derangement leading to weight loss, mediated by activation of the immune system. Paradoxically, weight loss in cancer patients is often associated with reduced food intake, indicating that the normal coupling of energy intake to body weight is disarranged. Accumulating evidence indicates that inflammation- and cancer-induced anorexia are associated with Toll-like receptor and cycloxygenase (Cox) activation. However, the nature of these pathways is far from understood, and a series of experiments addressing this issue was therefore undertaken. In paper I, we injected Morris hepatoma 7777 cells or vehicle into rats, and we analyzed the distribution pattern of the transcription factor Fos, an index of neuronal activity, in the brainstem. We found that the anorexia and weight loss in tumor-bearing rats were associated with extensive expression of Fos in the area postrema and the general visceral region of the nucleus of the solitary tract in the medulla oblongata, as well as in the external lateral pontine parabrachial nucleus, and that the magnitude of the Fos expression correlated positively with tumor weight and negatively with body weight development, respectively. The Fos expression occurred without any obvious signs of peripheral or central inflammation, and was not secondary to alterations in body weight or reduced food intake. Thus, in paper I, we found a tumor-elicited activation of three interconnected autonomic structures, which integrate and transmit afferent visceral and sensory information, and which are known to play vital roles for energy homeostasis. In paper II we evaluated the effects of tumor growth on feeding behaviour in mice as well as the role of Cox-1 and Cox-2, and prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) for the decreased appetite. We implanted mice with a MCG 101 tumor, which resulted in decreased meal frequency but not decreased meal size or meal duration. We found that indomethacin, a non-selective Cox-inhibitor, attenuated the anorexia as well as the tumor growth. When given acutely at manifest anorexia, Cox-inhibitors rescued the loss of appetite and prevented body weight loss without affecting tumor weight. Despite Cox-2 gene induction in the brain and Cox-2 protein induction in cells associated to the blood-brain barrier in tumor-bearing mice, a Cox-2 inhibitor had no impact on tumor-induced anorexia. By contrast, manipulating Cox-1 activity with a selective Cox-1 inhibitor delayed the onset of the anorexic response. Tumor growth was associated with large elevations in plasma PGE2, a response that was prevented by indomethacin. In contrast, however, PGE2 levels in liquor were largely unaffected, in line with tumor-bearing mice being afebrile. Neutralisation of peripheral PGE2 with anti-PGE2 antibodies did not temper the anorexia, and deletion of host mPGES-1 did not affect the anorexia or tumor growth. Furthermore, we found that tumor-bearing mice lacking EP4 receptors in the nervous system, created by Cre-LoxP-targeted mutagenesis, developed anorexia. The most important conclusions from paper II are that decreased meal frequency caused the anorexia, and that Cox-enzymes, most likely Cox-1, are critical for cancer-elicited anorexia and weight loss and that these changes occur independently of host mPGES-1, PGE2 and neuronal EP4 receptor signaling. In paper III, we investigated whether the inflammatory response critical for tumor-induced anorexia (paper II) was a result of innate immune signaling mechanisms. In paper IV, we also included measurements of food intake in mice injected with bacterial endotoxin, lipopolysaccharide (LPS; a Toll-like receptor 4 ligand), and aimed at identifying at which site(s) the activation of the innate immune system occurs during acute (LPS) as well as chronic (tumor) inflammation. To do so we examined the anorexic response in mice ubiquitously lacking (born without the gene in every cell) MyD88, the intracellular adaptor for Toll-like receptor and IL-1/18 receptor signalling, or lacking MyD88 in specific cell types. We found that a ubiquitous null deletion conferred complete resistance to LPS- and tumor-induced anorexia, as well as protected against weight loss. MyD88 knock-out mice, which had been subjected to whole-body irradiation to delete hematopoietic cells, and then transplanted with wild-type bone-marrow, developed anorexia when challenged with LPS. In line with this, mice lacking MyD88 in hematopoietic cells were largely protected against LPS-induced anorexia. Similarly, inactivation of MyD88 in hematopoietic cells attenuated the tumor-induced anorexia development and protected from body weight loss. In contrast, genetic disruption of MyD88 signaling in neural cells or cerebrovascular endothelial cells affected neither LPS- or tumor-induced anorexia, nor weight loss. Thus, the key findings in paper III and IV are that genetic inactivation of MyD88 protects mice from developing cancer- and LPS-induced anorexia, indicating that innate immune signaling mechanisms are critical for this response. The findings also identify hematopoietic cells, but not neural cells or cerebrovascular endothelial cells, as a critical nexus for inflammatory driven anorexia and weight loss associated with acute (LPS) and chronic (malignant) disease.


OBJECTIVES
To review available evidence from observational and intervention studies on oral contraceptives (OC), menopause hormone replacement therapy (HRT) and stroke.

METHODS
Qualitative literature review.

RESULTS
High dose OC were associated to elevated risk of stroke. However, the use of low oestrogen OC preparations by non-hypertensive women not at high baseline risk is not related to an appreciable risk of stroke. With reference to HRT, randomised clinical trials showed an excess risk of stroke among users of combined therapy.

CONCLUSIONS
In non-hypertensive women below age 35 stroke is not materially related to the use of low dose OC. HRT is associated to a moderate excess risk in randomised studies, and should therefore not be used for the prevention of stroke.


We use the clustering properties of Luminous Red Galaxies (LRGs) and the growth rate data provided by the various galaxy surveys in order to constrain the growth index γ) of the linear matter fluctuations. We perform a standard χ2-minimization procedure between theoretical expectations and data, followed by a joint likelihood analysis and we find a value of γ=0.56± 0.05, perfectly consistent with the expectations of the ΛCDM model, and Ωm0 =0.29± 0.01, in very good agreement with the latest Planck results. Our analysis provides significantly more stringent growth index constraints with respect to previous studies, as indicated by the fact that the corresponding uncertainty is only ∼ 0.09 γ. Finally, allowing γ to vary with redshift in two manners (Taylor expansion around z=0, and Taylor expansion around the scale factor), we find that the combined statistical analysis between our clustering and literature growth data alleviates the degeneracy and obtain more stringent constraints with respect to other recent studies.


Skin, the most significant protective organ in the body, may face serious problems, including cancer, infectious diseases, etc., requiring different drugs for the treatment. However, most of these drugs have poor chemical and physical stability, and insufficient penetration through the skin layers. In recent years, with the development of nanotechnology, it has been possible to load a variety of drugs into nanocarriers, to effectively targeted drug delivery. The unique structure of niosome, presents an effective novel drug delivery system with the ability to load both hydrophilic and lipophilic drugs, having many potential therapeutic applications including skin treatment. However, surveying and discussing these recent, rapidly growing reported studies along with their theoretical principals is required for the full understanding and exploring the great potential of this approach in skin diseases and cosmetic treatments. To this aim, emphasis has been given to the factors affecting the penetration of niosome into the skin and their laboratory measurements and dependency to the niosome composition. In sum, longer tail surfactants for storing hydrophobic drugs and intracellular passing and surfactants with a large head group for penetrating hydrophilic drugs are more suitable. Cholesterol and oleic acid are commonly used lipids to gain more stability and permeability, respectively. The ionic component in the niosome interrupts cellular connectivity, thus making it more permeable, but it may cause relative cell toxicity. Herbal oils have been used in the structure to make the nanoparticles elastic and allow them to pass through pores without changing the size of the particles.


maturation of the acanthocephalan Neoechinorhynchus rutili in its definitive host, the barbel (Barbus barbus), was studied in the Jihlava River (the Danube basin), Czech Republic. The parasite occurred in barbel throughout the year (overall prevalence 84% and intensity of infection 1-533 [mean 25] acanthocephalans per fish), but there were distinct seasonal fluctuations in prevalence and mean intensity values: prevalence attained 100% in February and March, whereas its lowest value was recorded in July; the lowest values of mean intensity occurred in July-August. Both prevalence and mean intensity values distinctly increased with the body length of hosts. The parasite exhibited a distinct annual maturation cycle when egg-producing females were present mainly in the spring and summer (May-July) and, at a lesser extent, also from December to April of the next year. The seasonal maturation of N. rutili appears to be induced principally by the temperature regimen in the locality. N. rutili cystacanths were recovered from larval Sialis lutaria (Megaloptera) (prevalence 6%).


It was the aim of the study to determine retrospectively cranio-caudal stifle instability following TTA (tibial tuberosity advancement) using fluoroscopic kinematography. Ten stifles (eight dogs, mean body weight 27.3 kg) with complete rupture of the cranial cruciate ligament and a mean follow-up of 12.8 weeks (5.4 - 28.4 weeks) after TTA underwent latero-lateral, uniplanar fluoroscopic kinematography while walking on a treadmill. Immediately before TTA, each stifle was explored arthroscopically and in the case of a longitudinal or bucket-handle tear of the caudal horn of the medial meniscus the unstable axial portion was resected. The high-speed fluoroscopic video sequences obtained were inspected visually for femoro-tibial translation (cranial drawer). The influence of postoperative patellar tendong angle (PTA), cage size and meniscal surgery on stifle stability was analyzed using logistic regression analysis. In three stifles, resection of unstable meniscal tissue was necessary. Fluoroscopically, nine out of ten stifles showed cranio-caudal instability. Three stifles were potentially overcorrected (post PTA < 90°), seven potentially undercorrected (post PTA > 90°). None of the three parameters analyzed had a significant influence on postoperative in vivo stability (p=0.0988). In conclusion, it appears that inadequate cranialization of the tibia tuberosity might be an expected result of the TTA procedure, as well as persistent cranio-caudal instability during walking. However, instability cannot solely be attributed to insufficient cranialization because three out of nine unstable stifles were sufficiently or even overcorrected (PTA ≤ 90°). Further in vivo studies are needed to resolve these conflicting findings.


Premature rupture of the membranes (PROM) occurs in a third of the childbirths preterm, this represents 8% of all pregnancies, with same morbidity and mortality in developing and developed countries, PROM is the more common cause of neonatal morbidity and mortality, making this obstetric complication a worldwide problem of health, since it contributes to the economic problem for the cost risen in medical attention for both, mothers and live birth. PROM is considered a mutifactorial entity. This study was carried out in the Hospital de Ginecologia y Obstetricia of the Centro Medico "La Raza" in Mexico City, where women entered in serial form with pregnancies from 27 to 34 weeks of gestation and spontaneous PROM, without any other pathology. 120 patients were included, with 26.8 +/- 5.9 year-old age. The gestational age with more frequency of PROM were from 30 to 33 weeks, 22.5% of the patients had 4 days with PROM, 6 of this cases arrived up to 13 days with this complication at delivery. 2.5% of the patients presented deciduitis, with adequated response to the use of antibiotics. When analyzing the hospital stay, a stay was observed from 4 to 7 days (5.26 +/- 1.96 M +/- SD), with a total cost for maternal stay of 2 millions 445,650 pesos. Those babies born had an average of 23 days of hospital stay and the total cot of the days of stay was 4 millions 963,978 pesos. Other costs were the attention of maternal and pediatrics specialty, the obstetric resolution of the pregnancy, obstetric ultrasonography and crystallographies. Thus, the total costs of the attention of this complication in these patients with PROM was of 10 millions 296,988 pesos. The international reference is the American dollar that was in 10 pesos for dollar to the moment of this study. The maternal morbidity is low to that described in previous studies, but in spite of the exhaustive efforts on the prevention, prediction, diagnosis and treatment, the premature rate due to PROM has not diminished, however the rate of neonatal survival has been increased and the morbidity has diminished.


A solution has been proposed that ensures oil drain from the discharge chamber to the pump inlet. The piston of a relief valve is controlled by a differential pressure resulting from Bernouilli effect. The start value of oil draining is to be controlled by the spring initial deflection and modification of the flow section in the outlet channel of the pump. By diminishing the spring force, 30% reduction of the flow rate has been achieved. It is difficult to get more because of stability reasons. A more effective method is to decrease the local flow section where a static pressure probe is placed. This way 36% reduction has been achieved and there is no reason to not to go further.


The results of cluster analysis are presented, the purpose of which was the verification of the base of industrial enterprises of the Republic of Bashkortostan to identify potential employers of graduates by 27.03.00 on the enlarged group of specialties and directions "Control in technical systems". The solution of the problem will allow to interact with potential graduates' consumers at the stage of developing higher education educational programs, which will ensure high-quality training of highly qualified personnel in accordance with the requests of enterprises and organizations of the region and, accordingly, further employment of graduates. The work analyzes the conditions for the formation of clusters, presents a sample of data for intellectual analysis, results of component and cluster analysis.


In this work, the authors have evaluated ten different ionization chambers for the relative dosimetry of kilovoltage x-ray beams in the energy range of 50-280 kVp. Percentage depth doses in water and relative detector response (in Solid Water and in air) were measured for each of the x-ray beams studied using a number of chambers. Measured depth dose data were compared with Monte Carlo calculated depth doses using the EGSnrc Monte Carlo package and the BEAMnrc user code. The accuracy of the phase space files generated by BEAMnrc was verified by calculating the half-value layer and comparing with the measured half-value layer of each x-ray beam. The results indicate that the Advanced Markus, Markus, NACP, and Roos parallel plate ionization chambers were suitable for the measurement of depth dose data in this beam quality range with an uncertainty of less than 3%, including in the regions close to the water surface. While the relative detector response of the Farmer and scanning thimble chambers exhibited a better energy response, they were not suitable for depth dose measurements in the first 5 mm below the water surface with differences of up to 12% in the surface dose measurement for the 50 kVp x-ray beam. These differences were due to dose artifacts generated by the chamber size and the dose gradient. However, at depths greater than 5 mm, the Farmer and thimble scanning chambers gave uncertainties of less than 3% for the depth dose measurements for all beam energies. The PTW PinPoint 31006 chamber was found to give varying dose differences of up to 8% depending on the x-ray beam energy; this was attributed to the steel central electrode. The authors recommend that one of the parallel plate ionization chambers investigated be used to determine depth dose data for kilovoltage x-ray beams in the energy range studied and give correct dose information close to the surface and at depth in the water phantom.


Abstract Field studies in support of the Winter Icing and Storms Project (WISP) were conducted in the Colorado Front Range area from 1 February to 31 March 1990(WISP90) and from 15 January to 5 April 1991 (WISP91). The main goals of the project are to study the processes leading to the formation and depletion of supercooled liquid water in winter storms and to improve forecasts of aircraft icing. During the two field seasons, 2 research aircraft, 4 Doppler radars, 49 Mesonet stations, 7 CLASS sounding systems, 3 microwave radiometers, and a number of other facilities were deployed in the Front Range area. A comprehensive dataset was obtained on 8 anticyclonic storms, 16 cyclonic storms, and 9 frontal passages. This paper describes the objectives of the experiment, the facilities employed, the goals and results of a forecasting exercise, and applied research aspects of WISP. Research highlights are presented for several studies under way to illustrate the types of analysis being pursued. The examples chose...


In this paper, we propose an approach for tracking an object of interest based on 3-D range data. We employ particle filtering and active contours to simultaneously estimate the global motion of the object and its local deformations. The proposed algorithm takes advantage of range information to deal with the challenging (but common) situation in which the tracked object disappears from the image domain entirely and reappears later. To cope with this problem, a method based on principle component analysis (PCA) of shape information is proposed. In the proposed method, if the target disappears out of frame, shape similarity energy is used to detect target candidates that match a template shape learned online from previously observed frames. Thus, we require no a priori knowledge of the target's shape. Experimental results show the practical applicability and robustness of the proposed algorithm in realistic tracking scenarios.


The highest changes of blood serum proteinogramm were observed within the first week after anti-typhus-paratyphus-tetanus vaccination in persons with haptoglobin of 2-2 type, especially in combination with NN and MN blood groups of MN system. The most intense increase of antibody titer to typhoid bacillus was observed in a month after the vaccination in persons with 2-2 type of haptoglobin. The combination of MN (Hp 2-2) blood group is more frequent in bronchial asthma patients than in the normal population.


accurate registration. analyse propose a valid approach for image registration using compression that works properly for different combinations of CT, MRI and PET images.


There have been much interest in analysis of stochastic differential equation with long memory, represented by fractional diffusion process, this property have been proved itself in financial mathematic as intrinsic character of financial time series, so finding an appropriate method for estimate and analyze stochastic differential equations with long memory is a very important contemporary topic, in this paper we suggest a method for a system of stochastic differential equations with long memory, also we use the Bayesian methodology to incorporate the advanced knowledge , in addition we apply renormalized integral known in literature as Wick-Itô-Skorohod to solve problem of arbitrage in stochastic models (which yield inefficient mathematical stochastic models for financial market), some of conventional methods like quasi maximum likelihood , Separable Integral-Matching for Ordinary Differential Equations, and multivariate Brownian method are used to be compared with the suggested method. The suggested method has been proved to be very accurate. The estimated model used to calculate the portfolio of assets quantities allocation.


In the developing nervous system, individual neurons must occupy appropriate positions within circuits. This requires that these neurons recognize and form connections with specific pre‐ and postsynaptic partners. Cellular recognition is also required for the spacing of cell bodies and the arborization of dendrites, factors that determine the inputs onto a given neuron. These issues are particularly evident in the retina, where different types of neurons are evenly spaced relative to other cells of the same type. This establishes a reiterated columnar circuitry resembling the insect retina. Establishing these mosaic patterns requires that cells of a given type (homotypic cells) be able to sense their neighbors. Therefore, both synaptic specificity and mosaic spacing require cellular identifiers. In synaptic specificity, recognition often occurs between different types of cells in a pre‐ and postsynaptic pairing. In mosaic spacing, recognition is often occurring between different cells of the same type, orhomotypic self‐recognition. Dendritic arborization can require recognition of different neurites of the same cell, or isoneuronal self‐recognition. The retina is an extremely amenable system for studying the molecular identifiers that drive these various forms of recognition. The different neuronal types in the retina are well defined, and the genetic tools for marking cell types are increasingly available. In this review we will summarize retinal anatomy and describe cell types in the retina and how they are defined. We will then describe the requirements of a recognition code and discuss newly emerging candidate molecular mechanisms for recognition that may meet these requirements. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Develop Neurobiol 71: 1258–1272, 2011


The aim of the work is to create and refine methods of algorithmic filter synthesis allowing for the designing of variable structure filters in cases when statistical characteristics of effective signal and interference – non-stationary stochastic processes – are unknown and the application of classic synthesis methods, e.g. Kalman-Busy method, is impossible. The paper presents the basics of an algorithmic variable structure filter synthesis, the essence of which is the formulation of the filter synthesis task in the form of searching optimization and its solution with application of simplex search methods. An example of algorithmic variable structure filter synthesis is presented. Parameters of a variable structure filter transfer function found by algorithmic method correspond to theoretical parameters calculated on the basis of statistical characteristics of input signals.


ABSTRACT Poplar leaf rust caused by Melampsora medusae f. sp. deltoidae is a widespread disease in North America, where epidemics occur within zones of sympatry and allopatry of telial hosts (Populus spp.) and aecial hosts (Larix spp.). To test the hypothesis that epidemics originate in the zone of sympatry where the rust can complete its life cycle, populations in sympatry and allopatry were analyzed with single-strand conformational polymorphism for codominant detection of alleles directly from uredinia. More alleles were detected in rust populations in the zone of host sympatry than in allopatry. Almost all alleles found in the zone of allopatry were a subset of the allelic diversity present in the zone of host sympatry. Distance analyses clustered populations according to geographic origin, but not sampling year or type of stand (plantation or natural stands). Large differences in allelic and genotypic frequency were observed between years in allopatry but not in sympatry, suggesting new colonizations in allopatric populations. Our results point to a dynamic and complex pattern of inoculum dissemination in polar leaf rust. The hypothesis most consistent with our results is that populations in sympatry represent a source of inoculum for epidemics, with some annual recolonization in allopatry, possibly via intermediate population jumps.


Usually, we begin the analysis of an image by partitioning it into several homogeneous regions; this is the image segmentation. The homogeneity can be defined by many properties such as gray level intensity, color, texture, etc. In many cases, the texture is the only available information. Texture analysis, as a result, has received considerable attention for the last two decades. A large number of approaches for texture classification and segmentation have been suggested. Commonly, two types of approaches are distinguished, adapted respectively to macro- and microtextures, namely, the structural and statistical approaches. As far as the latter is concerned, we can cite probabilistic methods based on texture modelling, statistical methods which characterize an image in terms of numerical attributes or features and new tools like neural networks, wavelets, multiresolution and multiscale approaches, and fuzzy modelling. A few methods also come from signal processing and seem to be promising: bidimensional autoregressive modelling and, time-frequency and time-scale representations. We focus on stochastic approaches and, specifically, on texture modelling by bidimensional autoregressive models (2D-AR models). We describe the AR model; we propose our method for choosing an adapted neighbourhood and evaluation. Then, our segmentation algorithm is presented with the classification criterion and the contextual information. Finally, we present experimental results showing the influence of the context and demonstrating the improvements brought by the adapted models and the multiscale approach.


ABSTRACT In light of public examples of false denials, it is unsurprising that people's beliefs about denials often are negative. However, inconsistent with such beliefs, denials often are sincere, and can facilitate trust repair. To illuminate this mismatch, we advance a framework based on Construal Level Theory, to explain how people may make a forecasting error when predicting their responses to denials. In two experimental studies, we reveal that people who actually received a denial after a possible transgression (a) were less suspicious, and experienced greater trust, and (b) displayed more trusting behavior than people who imagined this. These results suggest that people underestimate the effectiveness of denials in the reconciliation process.


and Summary.-A study has been made of some mathematical as-pects of the Thomas-Fermi equation. This is a preliminary report on the results obtained, including (1) convergence of relevant series, (2) existence of unbounded solutions, (3) existence of solutions having an arbitrary branch point, (4) determination of a class of solutions bounded for large values of the variable, and (5) determination of a class of solutions unbounded for small values.


Sudden unexpected death in epilepsy (SUDEP) is the most frequent epilepsy‐related cause of death and is characterized by an absence of any identifiable cause of death at post‐mortem, suggesting an underlying arrhythmogenic predisposition. This study sought to identify SUDEP cases in a review of post‐mortem records and to undertake genetic studies in key familial long QT syndrome (LQTS) genes. All autopsies performed from 1993‐2009 at a forensic centre in Sydney, Australia were reviewed and SUDEP cases identified. DNA was extracted from post‐mortem blood and the three most common LQTS genes, ie, KCNQ1, KCNH2 (HERG) and SCN5A, were amplified and analyzed. Sixty‐eight SUDEP cases were identified (mean age of 40 ± 16 years). Genetic analysis revealed 6 (13%) non‐synonymous (amino acid changing) variants in KCNH2 (n = 2) and SCN5A (n = 4), all previously reported in LQTS patients. Specifically, KCNH2 Arg176Trp and SCN5A Pro1090Leu were identified once in SUDEP cases and absent in control alleles. Both DNA variants have been previously identified in the pathogenesis of LQTS. The cause of SUDEP is currently unknown. Our results indicate that investigation of key ion channel genes should be pursued in the investigation of the relationship between epilepsy and sudden death.


Insulin resistance is associated with hypertension, obesity, dyslipidemia, and type 2 diabetes. It is well known that tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-alpha is one of the factors linked to obesity-induced insulin resistance; however, there have been no reports on the role of TNF-alpha in insulin resistance in nonobese insulin-resistant hypertensives. We tested the hypothesis that TNF-alpha affects insulin resistance in nonobese insulin-resistant hypertensive fructose-fed rats (FFR) and that a TNF-alpha--converting enzyme (TACE) inhibitor that blocks TNF-alpha secretion improves insulin resistance in FFR. Six-week-old male Sprague-Dawley rats were fed either standard chow (control) or fructose-rich chow (FFR) for 6 weeks. For the last two weeks of a six-week period of either diet, the rats were treated with a vehicle (control or FFR) or a TACE inhibitor (100 mg/kg/d of KB-R7785; FFR+TACE-I) in peritoneal injection. At the age of 12 weeks, insulin sensitivity was assessed in all conscious rats by the euglycemic hyperinsulinemic glucose clamp technique. While FFR had higher blood pressure than the control rats (P<0.01), the TACE inhibitor did not change blood pressure. Insulin sensitivity (M-value) was reduced in FFR compared with that in the control rats (16.7 +/- 1.1 mg/kg per min and 10.3 +/- 0.6 mg/kg per min in the control rats and FFR, respectively, P<0.001), and the TACE inhibitor improved insulin sensitivity to the level of the control rats (14.3 +/- 1.2 mg/kg per min in FFR+TACE-I, P<0.01). These data indicate that TNF-alpha plays a major role in insulin resistance in nonobese insulin-resistant models and also suggest that TACE would be a good target for controlling insulin resistance not only in obese models but also in nonobese insulin-resistant models.


The toddler's fracture is a distinct entity among tibial shaft fractures. It is defined as a minimally displaced or undisplaced spiral fracture, usually affecting the distal shaft of the tibia, with an intact fibula. They are often difficult to diagnose due to the absence of witnessed trauma and because initial radiographs may appear normal. Moreover, the presenting complaint (a non-weight bearing child) has a wide differential diagnosis. A detailed history and examination, together with additional imaging and other investigations, is crucial to diagnose a toddler's fracture. Analgesia and immobilisation are the mainstays of treatment, with follow-up in fracture clinic recommended. Inflicted injury (Note: this article will use the term inflicted injury which is also called non-accidental injury. In the field of safeguarding, there is a move away from using the term 'non-accidental injury' due to misinterpretation of the term as being less serious than 'abusive injury' and that in child protection reports the term can be easily misread or mistyped as 'accidental' injury) should always be considered when red flags for child abuse are present. In this article, we aim to cover the differential diagnoses for toddler's fracture including indicators that might suggest an inflicted injury.


Electrical activity in biological media can be described in a mathematical way, which is applicable to computer-based simulation. Biophysically mathematical descriptions provide important insights into the electrical and electrophysiological properties of cells, tissues, and organs. Examples of these descriptions are Maxwell's and Poisson's equations for electromagnetic and electric fields. Commonly, numerical techniques are applied to calculate electrical fields, e.g. the finite element method. Finite elements can be classified on the order of the underlying Interpolation. High-order finite elements provide enhanced geometric flexibility and can increase the accuracy of a solution. The aim of this work is the design of a framework for describing and solving high-order finite elements in the SCIRun/BioPSE software system, which allows geometric modeling, simulation, and visualization for solving bioelectric field problems. Currently, only low-order elements are supported. Our design for high-order elements concerns interpolation of geometry and physical fields. The design is illustrated by an implementation of one-dimensional elements with cubic interpolation of geometry and field variables.


Problem-based learning (PBL) is an instructional model that assumes the centrality of problems to learning. Research on PBL has focused on student learning, student roles, tutor roles, problem design, and technology use (Hung, Jonassen, & Liu, 2008), but little attention in the PBL literature has been paid to the nature of the problems that provide the focus for PBL. In this paper, we articulate a model for evaluating problem diffi culty. Problem diffi culty is defi ne in terms of complexity, including breadth of knowledge, attainment level, intricacy of procedures, relational complexity, and problem structuredness including intransparency, heterogeneity of interpretations, interdisciplinarity, dynamicity, or competing alternatives. Based on these characteristics, we identify four classes of problems and then describe three diff erent kinds of problems: decision-making, diagnosis-solution, and policy problems. We then examine the amenability of these classes and problem types as foci for PBL curricula. Finally, we challenge PBL researchers and designers to consider the issue of problem diffi culty in articulating PBL curricula.


Recent studies suggest that the utilization of oxidizable substrates by the brain may be regulated in part by transport across the plasma membrane. Dissociated brain cells obtained by mechanical disruption of rat brain were used to measure the uptake of 3-hydroxy[3-14C]butyrate. Total uptake revealed two mechanisms (diffusion and a carrier-mediated system). A Lineweaver-Burk plot of the latter component yielded an apparent Km of 1.47 mM and a maximal velocity (Vmax) of 5 nmol.min-1.mg protein-1. The rates of uptake were temperature dependent and were significantly higher at pH 6.2 than at pH 7.4 or 8.2. Preloading the cells and increasing the intracellular concentration of 3-hydroxybutyrate using 12.5 and 25 mM increased the rate of uptake 143 and 206%, respectively, indicative of an accelerative exchange mechanism. Uptake was inhibited approximately 50% by (in mM) 10 phenylpyruvate, 10 alpha-ketoisocaproate, 10 KCN, and 1.5 NaAsO2. Uptake was also decreased by (in mM) 5 lactate, 5 methyl malonic acid, 1 alpha-cyano-4-hydroxycinnamate, and 1 mersalyl. Dissociated brain cells from 14- to 16-day-old rats accumulated 3-hydroxybutyrate at a rate more than two-fold greater than cells from either younger (2-day-old) or older (28-day-old and adult) animals. These data are consistent with the proposal that 3-hydroxybutyrate is taken up by the brain by both diffusion and a carrier-mediated transport system, and they support the hypothesis that transport at the cellular level contributes to the regulation of substrate utilization by the brain.


The objective of this research is to analyze both efficiency and productivity of  Islamic Banking Industry in Indonesia, Malaysia and Pakistan . The technique that used in this research is Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) as for measuring efficiency and thus Malmquist Index (MI) as for measuring productivity. The result of this research found that Islamic Banking Industry in Indonesia is facing inefficiency that shown by five years average that is not reach 100% efficiency rate. Malaysia also experiences the problem of inefficiency but the condition is better compared to Indonesia. In five years, the efficiency rate of Malaysia Islamic Bank has not reach 100% efficiency rate. Pakistan among the closest country that could reach an efficient rate level for their Islamic banks. Pakistan close to reach 100% efficient rate within the last five years.  DOI: 10.15408/aiq.v9i2.5153


We describe a new planar processing chemistry that allows the synthesis and patterning of dynamically self-actuating gels of diverse form. The chemical reaction covalently incorporates a methacrylate-modified ruthenium trisbipyridine monomer within a poly acrylamide (PAAm) gel, modified to provide a flexible chemistry for UV-curable, self-oscillating Belousov–Zhabotinsky (BZ) gels. The photoinitiated polymerization offers significant advantages over previously reported BZ gel chemistries – fast polymerization rates, broad flexibility in the structural and functional attributes that impact the BZ reaction driven mechanics, and a facility for net shape fabrication via projection mode photo lithographic exposure. The facility of the synthetic method enabled an opportunity to broadly explore the structure/property and structure/rate correlations characterizing the dynamics of these gels and develop means to both control and predict the detailed features of the self-oscillating chemical waves they embed. The PAAm systems initiate under the control of transport-dominated influences weighted heavily by the diffusion/depletion of reagents present in the ambient contacting fluid medium. These initiating modes of oscillation are generally unstable temporally, showing shape- and property-sensitive conversions to oscillating modes controlled by the attributes of the gel-phase environment. The present work establishes the nature of these sensitivities, developing insights related to such features in patterned gel objects or films as composition, size, thickness, shape, degree of crosslinking, and gradient forms of structure within the gel. We observed in this work that, across a broad design-rule and compositional space, the PAAm based BZ gel systems exhibit contractions in dimension for regions in which the Ru catalyst is present in the +3 oxidation state (PNIPAAm BZ gels expand in this state). The chemomechanics of the PAAm system are further differentiated from those of PNIPAAm in the generally (and relatively) fast oscillatory rates it can sustain. This work suggests the dynamics in the PAAm gels do not reflect a simple osmotic force driven by differences in the solvation of Ru(II/III) centers. Computational modeling supports a mechanism in which the charge state of Ru centers mediate a differential degree of intra/inter-chain segmental interactions – dynamics that mediate a temporally varying degree of reversibly formed association crosslinks within the gel.


Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the fifth most common type of cancer worldwide. However, current therapeutic approaches for this epidemic disease are limited and its 5-year survival rate has not been improved in the past decades. Patient-derived xenograft (PDX) tumor models have become an excellent in vivo system for understanding of disease biology and drug discovery. In order to identify new therapeutic targets for HCC, whole-exome sequencing (WES) was performed on more than 60 HCC PDX models. Among them, four models exhibited point mutations in JAK1 (Janus Kinase) gene, which were confirmed by Sanger sequencing. To explore the transforming capability, these mutations were then introduced into 293T and Ba/F3 cells by transient transfection and retroviral infection, respectively. The results demonstrated that JAK1S703I mutation was able to activate JAK-STAT (Signal Transducer and Activator of Transcription) signaling pathway and drive cell proliferation in the absence of cytokine stimulation in vitro. Furthermore, a modest sensitivity to the treatment of a JAK1/2 inhibitor, Ruxolitinib, was observed in JAK1S703I mutant PDX model, but not in other mutant or wild type models. Pharmacodynamic analysis showed that phosphorylation of STAT3 in the Ruxolitinib-treated tumor tissues was significantly inhibited. Collectively, our results suggested that JAK1S703I is an activating mutation for JAK-STAT signaling pathway in vitro and in vivo. JAK-STAT pathway might represent a new therapeutic opportunity for HCC. Monotherapy using a more potent inhibitor and combinatory therapy may be further explored in JAK1S703I mutant PDX model. Citation Format: Shuqun Yang, Chonglin Luo, Qingyang Gu, Qiang Xu, Hongye Sun, Ziliang Qian, Yexiong Tan, Hao Wu, Yuxin Qin, Yuhong Shen, Xiaowei Xu, Shu-Hui Chen, Chi-Chung Chan, Hongyang Wang, Mao Mao, Douglas D. Fang. Activating JAK1-S703I mutation may predict the sensitivity of JAK-STAT inhibition in hepatocellular carcinoma patient-derived xenograft tumor models. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 106th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2015 Apr 18-22; Philadelphia, PA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2015;75(15 Suppl):Abstract nr 688. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2015-688


As many approaches and algorithms for biometric recognition techniques have been developed and proposed in the literature in details, the relationships among biometric features have not been studied yet. This study presents an analysis of existence of any relationship among biometric features like fingerprints and faces. A new and novel approach based on artificial neural networks was designed and introduced to generate faces from fingerprint images. Experimental results have shown that faces were recognised with high accuracy from only fingerprints. Although the proposed system was an initial work on this topic, the results were very encouraging and promising for the future studies even if any post-processing was not applied.


Objectives: To examine the role of technology when introduced into the specific setting of residential aged care and then analyse the associated changes to this complex socio-technical network of human and technology actors on the introduction of this technology using the rich lens of Actor Network Theory. Methods: An exploratory qualitative single case study was conducted. The specific focus being the implementation of a nursing information system in an aged care context, i.e. the transition from paper-based nursing documentation to electronic nursing documentation. A series of 19 semi structured interviews with facility managers, nursing coordinators, and the nursing and care staff were conducted. The collected data were analysed using standard qualitative techniques such as thematic analysis and a priori themes were developed from the application of Actor Network Theory. Results: A priori themes coupled with emergent themes served to highlight the impact of a disruptive technology solution into a complex context. Conclusion: An Actor Network Theory analysis enables a rich theoretical lens to be used to examine the introduction of a disruptive technology into a complex context. On such examination critical success factors were identified as well as key barriers. Moreover, people issues were found to be central to the success of such a solution.


Fat-suppressed three-dimensional coherent oscillatory state acquisition for the manipulation of image contrast (3D-COSMIC) is a sequence that is based on fast imaging employing steady state acquisition (FIESTA) of balanced steady-state free precession (balanced SSFP). Since the data acquisition of steady-state transition is filled up with the center of k-space, improvement in the contrast of the cartilage, which is a low T₂/T₁ value domain, is expected. This time we report on the usability in applying the above sequence to cartilage imaging of the knee joint and comparing and examining this sequence with the sequence in the past from the viewpoints of the contrast and scan time. As a result, compared with fat-suppressed three-dimensional spoiled gradient echo (3D-SPGR), the contrast of marrow and synovial fluid was equivalent to that of the cartilage, and imaging time was shorter than half of that with the cartilage. Compared with a fat-suppressed two-dimensional proton density weighted image (2D-PDWI), the contrast of the cartilage and synovial fluid was significantly improved, and spatial resolution was also excellent. As a short imaging time and a high resolution image pick-up are possible for fat-suppressed 3D-COSMIC, and it can describe minute damage of the cartilage since it depicts synovial fluid as high-level signals, I think this technique is useful.


Iron metabolism parameters were studied in pregnant women in time course of trimesters depending on the pregnancy character and in newborns and infants in relation to the antenatal period. The dynamic study of serum and erythrocytic ferritins has confirmed the expediency of iron therapy during pregnancy for prevention of iron deficiency in infants. Differences detected in the rate of using iron reserves by infants of the first year of life depending on the antenatal period character have necessitated an individual approach to preventive iron therapy.


Extra dimensions of space may be present in our universe. Their discovery would dramatically change our view of the cosmos and would prompt many questions. How do they hide? What is their shape? How many are there? How big are they? Do particles and forces feel their presence? This lecture will explain the concept of dimensions and show that current theoretical models predict the existence of extra spatial dimensions which could be in the discovery reach of present and near-term experiments. The manner by which these additional dimensions reveal their existence will be described. Searches for modifications of the gravitational force, astrophysical effects, and collider signatures already constrain the size of extra dimensions and will be summarized. Once new dimensions are discovered, the technology by which the above questions can be answered will be discussed.


Abstract We propose a method that utilizes the time dependence of P ‐wave displacement amplitudes to estimate the final magnitude ( M ) for earthquake early warning (EEW) before the arrival of the peak amplitude. A relation between M and P ‐wave displacement amplitude is employed for the method. Its value is set as a function of time from the P arrival, and is determined using a K‐NET dataset recorded in Japan from a scaling relation between M and the time dependence of P ‐wave displacement. A test to check the performance of the proposed equation demonstrates in a statistical sense that this technique enables us to estimate M more rapidly than conventional methods without loss of accuracy. We conclude that the approach proposed in this article effectively gains a longer lead time as well as reduces the blind zone for EEW.


Body shape is about proportion, and fashion style is all about dressing those proportions to look their very best. Figuring out the styles to suit a body shape can be a daunting task for many people. It is, therefore, essential to develop a framework for learning the compatibility of body shapes and clothing styles. Though fashion designers and fashion stylists have analyzed the correlation between human body shapes and fashion styles for a long time, this issue did not receive much attention in multimedia science. In this paper, we present a novel style recommender, on the basis of the user's body attributes. The rich amount of fashion styling knowledge from social big data is exploited for this purpose. We first construct a joint embedding of clothing styles and human body measurements with deep multimodal representation learning on a reference dataset that has been sorted to meet the fashion rules. We then discover the relevant semantic features by propagation and selection in clothing style and body shape graphs. Experiments demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed framework when compared with several baseline methods.


 Abstract —An optimal synthesis of a wideband Log-Periodic Dipole Array (LPDA) is introduced in the present study. The LPDA optimization is performed under several requirements concerning the standing wave ratio, the forward gain, the gain flatness, the front-to-back ratio and the side lobe level, over a wide frequency range. The LPDA geometry that complies with the above requirements is suitable for efficient multimedia content delivery. The optimization process is accomplished by applying a recently introduced method called Invasive Weed Optimization (IWO). The method has already been compared to other evolutionary methods and has shown superiority in solving complex non-linear problems in telecommunications and electromagnetics. In the present study, the IWO method has been chosen to optimize an LPDA for operation in the frequency range 800-3300 MHz. Due to its excellent performance, the LPDA can effectively be used for multimedia content reception over future mobile computing


Chinese New Rural Cooperative Medical Insurance System has been implemented for six years, but for various reasons, there is not too much empirical research on the efficiency of the NRCMS. This paper adopts DEA method and makes a comprehensive analysis on static efficiency and dynamic efficiency of the NRCMS, combining with panel data. The result shows that there exists large difference on efficiency of the NRCMS among provinces and efficiency in the main food producing areas is relatively low. At the same time, although all rural population have been involved in the NRCMS basically, benefit that farmers get from the NRCMS is disproportionate with government support and it is urgent to improve farmers' utilization of the NRCMS. At this time, it may be a good starting point to improve technologically or optimize the system itself.


Support vector machines (SVMs) are a family of machine learning methods, originally introduced for the problem of classification and later generalized to various other situations. They are based on principles of statistical learning theory and convex optimization, and are currently used in various domains of application, including bioinformatics, text categorization, and computer vision. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.


We study elliptic and triangular flow in the collisions of deuteron-gold nuclei at $\sqrt{s_{\rm NN}} = 200$ GeV at RHIC and of proton-lead nuclei at $\sqrt{s_{\rm NN}} = 5.02$ TeV at the LHC, utilizing (3+1)-dimensional ideal hydrodynamics for the dynamic evolution of the fireball and a Glauber-based Monte-Carlo energy deposition model for simulating the fluctuating initial conditions. Sizable values of elliptic and triangular flow are obtained for both colliding systems, and the results are consistent with PHENIX, ALICE, ATLAS and CMS measurements. For these studied centralities, we find that the elliptic flow in proton-lead collisions is smaller than deuteron-gold collisions, while the triangular flows are comparable in both colliding systems. Our results indicate that the observed collective anisotropic flow in deuteron-gold and proton-lead collisions may be obtained from relativistic hydrodynamic evolution of the fireball with initial state fluctuations.


SIR,-In your leading article "Polio vaccines and polioviruses" (25 June, p 1617) you rightly note some of the disadvantageous aspects of the oral live poliovirus vaccine (dissemination in the community, reversion to virulence, and occasional paralysis or death in vaccinees and contacts). l' I feel impelled to write to you because you imply, nevertheless, that a live virus vaccine is to be preferred to one made of inactivated or killed viruses because "immunity lasts longer." This statement is not correct so far as killed poliovirus vaccine is concerned, since it has been proved to establish durable immunity.; Moreover, it produces a herd effect and, properly used, can result not only in eradication of disease but in elimination of poliovirus from a population.' If a goal of poliomyelitis vaccination is "to eradicate disease and to control the spread of -and eventually to eliminate-the causative agents from the population"4 this goal can only be approximated but not obtained with the use of the live virus vaccine. Where the killed virus vaccine has been used such a result has been achieved (Finland, Sweden, and other countries). In a paper' that may not have come to your attention you will find a discussion of details, data, and mechanisms related to the control of poliomyelitis via the proper use of the killed virus vaccine. JONAS SALK


A 2D Monte Carlo simulation was done as an approach to get further insight of acceptor-doped ferroelectric material. By utilizing vector model allowing 14 directions of orientation for ferroelectric systems, Metropolis algorithm was applied on DIFFOUR Hamiltonian to obtain hysteresis profiles. Subjected to different concentration of acceptor dopants, power law scaling of hysteresis properties were obtained as functions of external parameters such as temperature, external field amplitude and frequency. The hysteresis loop shape and properties agreed well with those obtained experimentally.


Ig-like transcript 3 (ILT3) is an inhibitory receptor expressed by tolerogenic dendritic cells. When human CD8 + T cells are allostimulated in the presence of recombinant ILT3-Fc protein, they differentiate into antigenic specific T suppressor (Ts) cells that inhibit CD4 and CD8 T cell effector function both in vitro and in vivo. ILT3-Fc–induced CD8 + Ts cells express high amounts of BCL6 that are crucial to their function. Knockdown of BCL6 from unprimed human T cells prevents their differentiation into Ts cells, whereas ex vivo overexpression of BCL6 converts CD8 + T cells into Ts cells. NOD/SCID mice transplanted with human pancreatic islets and humanized by injection of human PBMCs tolerate the graft and develop BCL6 high CD8 + Ts cells when treated with ILT3-Fc before or after the onset of rejection. This indicates that ILT3-Fc acts through BCL6 and is a potent immunosuppressive agent for reversing the onset of allo- or possibly autoimmune attacks against pancreatic islets. The Journal of Immunology , 2010, 185: 5714–5722.


In a spatial competition setting there is usually a non-negative relationship between competition and quality. In this paper we offer a novel mechanism whereby competition leads to lower quality. This mechanism relies on two key assumptions, namely that the providers are motivated and risk-averse. We show that the negative relationship between competition and quality is robust to any given number of fims in the market and whether quality and price decisions are simultaneous or sequential. We also show that competition may improve social welfare despite the adverse effect on quality. Our proposed mechanism can help explain empirical findings of a negative effect of competition on quality in markets such as health care, long-term care, and higher education.


This research guide will help you to do research in dental hygiene or dental assisting, for classroom assignments, research papers, or to explore a career in dental hygiene or dental assisting..


This study assessed the seasonal variation in heavy metal contamination of stream water and sediments in the gold mining area of Atakunmosa West local Government, Osun State, Nigeria. Twelve villages of prominence in illegal gold mining were selected for the study covering dry and wet seasons of 2012. Stream water and sediment samples were randomly sampled for both seasons. Samples were analyzed with atomic absorption spectrometric method (AAS) and X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy (XRF) for Cd, Zn, Pb, Fe, Zn, Mn, Cu and As. The trend observed for the metals analyzed in the stream water for both seasons are Cu > Zn > Fe > Cd > Pb > As. In stream sediments, higher mean concentration values were generally recorded in the dry season than in wet season. Four metals (Cd, Pb, Cu and Fe) in stream waters and sediments were found to be higher than allowed limits both by the World Health Organisation (WHO, 2004) and the Nigerian standard for drinking water quality (NSDWQ, 2007) in some villages for both seasons, attesting to pollution of the environment resulting from the mining operations and this call for concern. Key words : Heavy metal, surface water, sediments, atomic absorption spectrometry (AAS), x-ray fluorescence spectroscopy (XRF), gold mining.


The radiative and microphysical properties of Saharan dust are believed to impact the Atlantic regional climate and tropical cyclones (TCs), but the detailed mechanism remains uncertain. In this study, atmosphere-only simulations are performed from 2002 to 2006 using the Community Atmospheric Model, version 5.1, with and without dust emission from the Sahara Desert. The Saharan dust exhibits noticeable impacts on the regional longwave and shortwave radiation, cloud formation, and the convective systems over West Africa and the tropical Atlantic. The African easterly jet and West African monsoon are modulated by dust, leading to northward shifts of the intertropical convergence zone and the TC genesis region. The dust events induce positive midlevel moisture and entropy deficit anomalies, enhancing the TC genesis. On the other hand, the increased vertical wind shear and decreased low-level vorticity and potential intensity by dust inhibit TC formation in the genesis region. The ventilation index shows a decrease in the intensification region and an increase in the genesis region by dust, corresponding to favorable and unfavorable TC activities, respectively. The comparison of nondust scenarios in 2005 and 2006 shows more favorable TC conditions in 2005 characterized by higher specific humidity and potential intensity, but lower ventilation index, wind shear, and entropy deficit. Those are attributable to the observed warmer sea surface temperature (SST) in 2005, in which dust effects can be embedded. Our results imply significant dust perturbations on the radiative budget, hydrological cycle, and large-scale environments relevant to TC activity over the Atlantic.


This review presents results of the recent calculations of collective plasma processes of radiation transport in the solar interior. The review introduces a remarkable number of previously neglected effects which are shown to reduce substantially the Rosseland opacity at the centre of the Sun (the decrease of opacity is approximately 10%, which is greater than the previously accepted possible errors in opacity). It is also shown that effects which were previously treated without taking into account the collective behaviour of plasma, change appreciably when the collective nature of the plasma is included. The analysis is based on modern concepts of plasma physics in which an essential role is played by photon scattering on ions and by the oscillations of ion electron shells in emission and bremsstrahlung absorption processes. The processes which contribute most to a decrease in opacity are: the broadening of the Raman resonance (due to both the Doppler effect and binary electron–ion collisions), frequency diffusion in radiation transfer processes, the processes of stimulated scattering and collective quantum corrections to the scattering. A list of collective plasma effects which influence photon transport in the dense central solar plasma is presented. The results of these new calculations could give a better agreement between the observed neutrino flux and theoretical predictions. New problems are discussed which can be of importance from the point of view of modern plasma physics for solar neutrinos production in different energy ranges.


The mechanical properties of various parts of the welding-line material are different, while they play very important role in the welding structures, such as the differences of the melted part and the temperature-affected part. In this paper, a non-contacting laser based technique, ISDG (Interference Strain Displacement Gauge) method, is applied to find out these property differences on very small specimen. The testing is very successful and the whole stress-strain curves in such small scale are obtained on different parts of the welding-line material. The soften phenomena of the temperature-affected part is observed by the comparison of the Young's modulus and yield stress between the melted part and the temperature-affected part.


ABSTRACT The supply of flow lines is often assumed to be unlimited or to follow certain distributions. However, this assumption may not always be realistic, as flow lines are usually an integral part of a supply chain where raw material is replenished based on some rule. We therefore include the limited supply into the optimization of buffer capacities in terms of an order policy. To integrate this type of supply into an optimization model, we exploit the flexibility of a sample-based optimization approach. We develop an efficient rule-based local search algorithm that employs new individual lower bounds in order to determine the optimal buffer capacities of a flow line. In addition to the efficiency of the proposed algorithm, the numerical study demonstrates that the order policy has a significant impact on the optimal buffer allocation.


The principles of separability and Kompetenz-Kompetenz were developed to favour the effectiveness of arbitration as a means of dispute settlement. This article seeks to demonstrate that in the modern day the beneficial effects of these principles have been ordained in statute in most arbitration law systems, but frequently such statutes also maintain reference to their being principles. It is contended in the article that the persistence of such principles is the source of multiple inconvenience. The article recommends that reference to the two principles as principles be excised from statute, and those of these principles' effects which are beneficial to arbitration be prescribed without more.


The recent success of therapies directly targeting the angiogenic mediator, vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), for the treatment of proliferative diabetic retinopathy has encouraged clinicians to extend the use of anti-VEGF therapies for the treatment of another ischemic retinal vascular disease, proliferative sickle cell retinopathy (PSR), the most common cause of irreversible blindness in patients with sickle cell disease. However, results from case reports evaluating anti-VEGF therapies for PSR have been mixed. This highlights the need to identify alternative therapeutic targets for the treatment of retinal neovascularization in sickle cell patients. In this regard, angiopoietin-like 4 (ANGPTL4) is a novel angiogenic factor regulated by the transcription factor, hypoxia-inducible factor 1, the master regulator of angiogenic mediators (including VEGF) in ischemic retinal disease. In an effort to identify alternative targets for the treatment of sickle cell retinopathy, we have explored the expression of ANGPTL4 in the eyes of patients with PSR. To this end, we examined expression and localization of ANGPTL4 by immunohistochemistry in autopsy eyes from patients with known PSR (n = 5 patients). Complementary studies were performed using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays in aqueous (n = 8; 7 patients, 2 samples from one eye of same patient) and vitreous (n = 3 patients) samples from a second group of patients with active PSR. We detected expression of ANGPTL4 in neovascular tissue and in the ischemic inner retina in PSR, but not control, eyes. We further observed elevated expression of ANGPTL4 in the aqueous and vitreous of PSR patients compared to controls. These results suggest that ANGPTL4 could contribute to the development of retinal neovascularization in sickle cell patients and could therefore be a therapeutic target for the treatment of PSR.


Cisplatin resistance is a major challenge in the treatment of cancer and develops through reduced drug accumulation and an increased ability to avoid drug-induced cell damage, cell shrinkage, and hence initiation of apoptosis. Uptake and release of the semiessential amino acid taurine contribute to cell volume homeostasis, and taurine has been reported to have antiapoptotic effects. Here we find that volume-sensitive taurine release in cisplatin-sensitive [wild-type (WT)] human ovarian cancer A2780 cells is reduced in the presence of the phospholipase A2 inhibitor bromenol lactone, the 5-lipoxygenase (5-LO) inhibitor ETH 615-139, and the cysteine leukotriene receptor 1 (CysLT1) antagonist zafirlukast and impaired by the anion channel blocker DIDS (4,4'-diisothiocyanatostilbene-2,2'-disulfonate). Comparing WT and cisplatin-resistant (RES) A2780 cells we also find that evasion of cisplatin-induced cell death in RES A2780 cells correlates with an increased accumulation of taurine, due to an increased taurine uptake and a concomitant impairment of the volume-sensitive taurine release pathway, as well an inability to reduce cell volume after osmotic cell swelling. Downregulation of volume-sensitive taurine release in RES A2780 cells correlates with reduced expression of the leucine-rich repeat-containing protein 8A (LRRC8A). Furthermore, acute (18 h) exposure to cisplatin (5-10 μM) increases taurine release and LRRC8A expression in WT A2780 cells whereas cisplatin has no effect on LRRC8A expression in RES A2780 cells. It is suggested that shift in LRRC8A activity can be used as biomarker for apoptotic progress and acquirement of drug resistance.


The beginning of the history of journalism in the Ottoman Empire is generally accepted to have occured with the publication of Takvim-i Vekayi, a journal of official character, in 1831. Actually, the first mass communication medium which can be called a newspaper is "Takvim". However, like social events, social phenomena do not emerge instantly either. They is always a preparatory stage involved. From this point of view, it is noted that actually Takvim was also the continuation link of a fairly long chain of events by Ottomans. We can in fact mention two important turning points experienced by the Ottomans prior to the emergence of this official gazette. Our study aims to reassess the emergence of journalism in the Ottoman Empire together with these aforementioned preliminary periods. Thus, in this manner, we hope that it will be possible to trace both the sort of conception the ultimate purpose with which Takvim-i Vekayi was published and how the foundations of private journalism were cast thereafter, with a much broader perspective.


On the basis of combining with lots of literatures information and formers' researches, utilize analytic hierarchy process method to make analytic research on aerobics teaching four kinds of methods: basic composition aerobics teaching method, integrated and decomposing model aerobics teaching method, collective and group practice combinative method, the game aerobics teaching method under the impacts of factors influence of the classroom, aerobics students' receiving degrees, aerobics teachers' teaching difficulty, aerobics popular degree in students. It gets that uses integrated and decomposing combinative aerobics teaching method can let teaching efficiency to arrive at optimum; secondly successively is the game aerobics teaching method, basic composition aerobics teaching method and collective and group practice combinative method. The model provides theoretical guidance for aerobics teaching research, it has profound significances in researching aerobics teaching.


New challenges to the safety of the food supply require new strategies for evaluating and managing food safety risks. Changes in pathogens, food preparation, distribution, and consumption, and population immunity have the potential to adversely affect human health. Risk assessment offers a framework for predicting the impact of changes and trends on the provision of safe food. Risk assessment models facilitate the evaluation of active or passive changes in how foods are produced, processed, distributed, and consumed.


Viruses which belong to the epizootic haemorrhagic disease (EHD), bluetongue and Eubenangee serogroups of orbiviruses exhibit low level cross-reactions in some serological tests. Although Pata virus cross-reacts at low levels with members of the EHD and bluetongue serogroups, it was assigned originally to the Eubenangee serogroup. RNA-RNA blot hybridization data, however, suggest that Pata virus is not a member of the Eubenangee serogroup. In this study, the genetic relatedness of the EHD serogroup viruses, bluetongue virus type 10 (BTV-10) and Pata virus was assessed by RNA-RNA blot hybridization and by gene reassortment experiments in vitro. The five members of the EHD serogroup examined were highly related by reciprocal RNA RNA blot hybridization. Genes 1, 3, 4 and 6 to 9 were highly conserved with three unique types of gene 2, four variant types of gene 5 and two variant types of gene 10. Geographical boundaries could not be correlated with sequence relatedness because viruses isolated from the same locality were distant relatives when compared with another virus isolated on a different continent. The significance of the unique and variant genes is discussed. The EHD isolates, BTV-10 and Pata virus exhibited distinct profiles on agarose and polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, and they are related distantly as shown by weak hybridization signals in blot hybridization. Gene 2 was a unique gene among the EHD isolates, BTV-10 and Pata virus. One BTV-10 gene hybridized more strongly to gene 9 of the EHD viruses than the other BTV-10 genes, and its role in encoding the cross-reactive antigen is discussed. Intra-serogroup gene reassortment in vitro was demonstrated in the six crosses among EHD serogroup members. In contrast, gene reassortment was not observed in inter-serogroup crosses between EHD 1 and BTV-10, BTV-10 and Pata virus, and between EHD 1 and Pata virus. Correlation of blot hybridization and gene reassortment indicated that viruses must share high sequence conservation in the majority of their genes before genetic interaction is likely. The usefulness of blot hybridization as an indicator of the likelihood of gene reassortment is discussed. These hybridization and gene reassortment data indicated that Pata virus is not a member of the bluetongue or EHD serogroups and that it should be assigned to the ungrouped set of orbiviruses. The hybridization and gene reassortment data suggest that members of the EHD serogroup, BTV-10 and Pata virus represent three distinct gene pools, and the role of reassortment in the generation of genetic diversity is discussed.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)


Larva, which has been in use and continuous development for almost a decade, has been extended in several ways and used in a wide range of scenarios, from industrial deployment to educational ones. In this paper we give an overview of the runtime verification tool Larva and its extensions and uses.


Beehives shading can be a strategy to minimize the heat stress suffered by bees in tropical regions such as the Northeastern Brazil. So, the objective of this study was to evaluate the influence of different beehives shading conditions on the development and quality of honey produced in Apis mellifera colonies. The experiment was carried out in an apiary owned by the Embrapa Meio-Norte, in Castelo do Piaui, Piaui State, Brazil. Bee colonies were placed under the shade provided by straw, polypropylene screen (80% shading), and trees, and under direct solar radiation, in a completely randomized design, with six replications. Data concerning beehives weight and breeding and feeding areas were analyzed by using the Kruskal-Wallis test. Honey samples collected from beehives were submitted to chemical analyses, in order to determine hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF), acidity, and diastase activities. It was observed that the artificial covers did not provide significant beneficial effects on the colonies development. Thermoregulation was impaired in the beehives kept under polypropylene screen and those directly exposed to the sun, in the dry season. The arboreal shading provided the faster development for the breeding area and the straw and arboreal shadings favored the maintenance of lower HMF levels in the honey.


Gout is a common crystal-induced arthropathy affecting mainly the joints of the appendicular skeleton; however, rarely this condition affects the axial skeleton as well. Spinal gout can cause radiculopathy, cord compression, canal stenosis and discitis. We describe a case of a 71-year-old woman where the initial presentation of destructive arthropathy and spinal masses secondary to axial gout was mistaken for a metastatic malignancy. Despite chronic polyarthropathy and bilateral subcutaneous gouty tophi, spinal gout was not considered a differential diagnosis during initial assessment. The patient was managed conservatively with pharmacological treatment resulting in improvement of her upper limb radiculopathy and systemic joint pain, although little improvement in mobility. Such extensive involvement is rare and the masses can mimic an underlying metastatic disease. Careful history and clinical examination recognising polyarthropathy and subcutaneous tophi can aid the clinician to make the right diagnosis and institute correct treatment. Delay in recognising gout as a differential diagnosis can lead to marked morbidity as illustrated in our case.