Among the diffuse parenchymal lung diseases (DPLDs), the group of idiopathic interstitial pneumonias (IIPs) as defined by the 2002 American Thoracic Society (ATS)/European Respiratory Society international multidisciplinary consensus classification (1) continues to raise questions and controversy. For example, there is debate as to the precise relationship between two of the more common IIPs: idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) and nonspecific interstitial pneumonia (NSIP) (2, 3). It is well recognized that usual interstitial pneumonia (UIP; associated with IPF) and NSIP have distinct histopathological patterns, which may occur in the absence of known risk factors (i.e., idiopathic) or in association with a variety of clinical syndromes such as connective tissue diseases or hypersensitivity pneumonitis. The evidence and rationale to classify idiopathic NSIP (previously designated as a ''provisional diagnosis'' [1]) as a distinct clinical entity was reevaluated by a recent ATS project (4). A review of 305 previously reported cases of idiopathic NSIP identified 67 cases of definite or probable idiopathic NSIP (mean age of 52 yr) for further in-depth evaluation. Interestingly, this cohort included a high proportion of patients from Asian countries (46%), female sex (67%), and never-smokers (69%). The authors concluded that idiopathic NSIP has sufficiently distinctive clinical, radiographic, and histologic features to remain a separate clinical entity; this diagnosis carries a good overall prognosis, with 80% 5-year and 73% 10-year survival rate (4). Although considering NSIP a distinct entity may be clinically useful for determining prognosis and responsiveness to immunosuppressive therapy, other studies suggest that idiopathic NSIP represents a continuum that may, in some cases, progress to a clinical syndrome indistinguishable from IPF. A retrospective study of patients with histologically confirmed NSIP (n 5 23) or UIP (n 5 25) revealed that 5 of 18 patients who initially presented with high-resolution computed tomography (HRCT) suggestive of NSIP developed radiographic features typically associated with UIP, including subpleural honeycombing, when followed over a 34 to 155-month period (5). These findings suggest that a subset of patients with idiopathic NSIP may develop clinicalradiographic-pathological features of UIP/IPF. Currently available tools cannot predict which patients with NSIP are likely to progress to IPF. The relationship between NSIP and UIP becomes even more instructive when one considers nonidiopathic or familial cases of interstitial pneumonia (6, 7). Both histopathological patterns are seen in context of specific drug exposures or connective tissue diseases (6, 7). Previous studies in familial interstitial pneumonia associated with surfactant protein-C mutations revealed younger patients with NSIP and older members of the same family with UIP (6, 7). Arakawa and colleagues (8) reported that faint ground glass opacities on HRCT at the earliest stage of interstitial pneumonia in silica dust–exposed workers eventually develop into honeycomb lung over a median of 12 years. Hypersensitivity pneumonitis (HP) is another example of a disease process that can give rise to radiographic/histopathologic patterns of NSIP or UIP. In fact, a significant proportion (5 to 10%) of IPF patients may represent misdiagnosed chronic HP patients. HRCT features that favor a diagnosis of HP are the presence of lobular hyperinflation and centrilobular micronodules especially in the absence of honeycombing and presence of ground glass opacities (9). Reticulation and honeycombing on HRCT representing fibrotic changes, which correlates with decreased survival, may be present to varying extent (10). Despite the lack of understanding of the pathogenesis and natural history of idiopathic cases, there is growing consensus that the diagnosis of IIPs should be made following a multidisciplinary iterative discussion among clinicians, radiologists, and pathologists (1, 11, 12). The guidelines on interstitial lung disease published by the British Thoracic Society in collaboration with the Thoracic Society of Australia and New Zealand and the Irish Thoracic Society reinforce this multidisciplinary approach to diagnosis (13). Diagnostic accuracy, however, still depends on the criteria used and on the expertise of the experts involved. An interesting exercise examining diagnostic accuracy was conducted by the Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis International Group Exploring NAC I Annual (IFIGENIA) study group (14). In this trial, an international group of 36 sites in six European countries compared the effect of treatment with prednisone and azathioprine in combination with N-acetylcysteine versus placebo in a randomized double-blind study (15). In this study, HRCTs for every patient as well as available surgical lung biopsies were reviewed by dedicated radiology and pathology committees consisting of three experts each (14). A total of 87.2% of IPF diagnoses were confirmed, whereas only a minority (12.8%) of original-center diagnoses of IPF were rejected by one or both of the expert committees. These results are reassuring because they indicate that, at least in referral centers participating in clinical trials of IPF, a high level of diagnostic accuracy is possible. However, interobserver agreement between the experts, as measured by weighted k scores, was less favorable; an interobserver agreement of k 5 0.40 was reported for 179 HRCT scans and a weighted k 5 0.30 for 82 surgical lung biopsies (14). Taken together, these data indicate that radiographic and histopathologic criteria are subject to interpretation, even from expert readers, thus reinforcing the value of a multidisciplinary interactive approach to diagnosis. These (Received in original form January 5, 2009; accepted in final form January 6, 2009)


The aim of this thesis was to examine the cell signaling and regulation of smooth muscle in different smooth muscle tissues and under pathophysiological conditions. The thesis is based on 4 papers and the experimental work is based on in vitro studies in mouse. In Paper I we addressed the question if key characteristics of fast and slow smooth muscle types could be identified, based on contractile, cell signaling and metabolic properties. We examined 4 different smooth muscle mouse tissues (aorta, muscular arteries, intestine, urinary bladder) with a large span in contractile kinetics (Vmax, maximal shortening velocity) based on SM-B expression ("fast" inserted myosin heavy chain). A quantitative PCR (qPCR) and Western blot approach was used to examine expression of key components in the contractile, metabolic and cell signaling pathways. A large variability between different smooth muscle tissues was found regarding contractile, cell signaling and metabolism. The reported main characteristics of fast and slow smooth muscle can serve as a basis for future studies of smooth muscle properties. In Paper II we addressed the question if the two main Ca-sensitizing pathways: RhoARhokinase and protein kinase C (PKC) are altered in response to hypertrophic growth in the urinary bladder. We used a mouse model, partial urinary outlet obstruction, to induce hypertrophic growth of the smooth muscle. It mimics the over active bladder syndrome (OAB) in man, a pathophysiological condition affecting the urinary bladder with sudden and frequent urges to urinate, nocturia and urge incontinence. To examine if active force was altered, we used in vitro force recordings and direct nerve stimulation in open organ baths. Western blot analysis was used to determine if the relative protein expression of components mediating signaling in the RhoA-Rhokinase and PKC pathways. Direct nerve stimulation showed an increased cholinergic response in the hypertrophic smooth muscle, with a lower purinergic and increased nerve independent component. The hypertrophic smooth muscle also had an increased sensitivity to cholinergic stimulation and increased Rho dependent Ca sensitivity that correlated with a lower phosphatase (MYPT1) expression and higher expression of both RhoGDI and RhoA. Based on these results and the profiling of the cell signaling in Paper I, it seems likely that hypertrophic growth of the urinary bladder induces transition from a fast smooth muscle type towards a slow smooth muscle type. In Paper III we addressed the question if nonmuscle myosin (NMM) can be upregulated in response to hypertrophic growth in the urinary bladder and be involved in a PKC-induced contractile component observed in the hypertrophying urinary bladder. We examined the relative expression of NMM with Western blot and immunohistochemistry. Active force was analyzed using in vitro force recordings in open organ baths. In addition to smooth muscle myosin (SMM), the smooth muscle can express NMM, able to support a contraction with slow kinetics. However, in the urinary bladder NMM is only expressed during fetal life and downregulated shortly after birth. Western blot analysis showed an increased NMM expression in the hypertrophic smooth muscle compared to control. Immunohistochemistry showed an increased expression of NMM in the suburothelium, the smooth muscle layer and the serosa, for the hypertrophic urinary bladder compared to the control bladder. Direct activation of protein kinase C (PKC) with PDBu gave a prominent contraction that was independent of Rhokinase. Blebbistatin is an inhibitor of nonmuscle myosin, with higher affinity for NMM than for SMM. The PKC induced contraction was almost completely abolished by blebbistatin, indicating that NMM is involved in this unique contractile component in hypertrophic urinary bladder. Smooth muscle from the hypertrophying urinary bladder can thus develop a unique PKC activated contractile component based on nonmuscle myosin, mainly localized to the serosa. However, this contractile component is not a major part of the normal muscarinic contraction, instead it may contribute to wall stiffness and be activated by other (unknown) upstream pathways. In Paper IV we addressed the question if smooth muscle contraction is sensitive to metabolic inhibition and if there is a difference in sensitivity to metabolic block between fast and slow smooth muscle types, due to their different metabolic properties determined in Paper I. The mechanisms of metabolic control of smooth muscle are poorly understood. We approached this question by introducing a partial metabolic blocker (rotenone) of complex I in the mitochondria, resembling e.g. ischemic conditions due to atherosclerotic changes or ageing. To confirm that rotenone slows down the mitochondrial respiration, we measured oxygen consumption in the relaxed smooth muscle tissue and found about 50% inhibition by rotenone. We measured active force using in vitro force recordings in open organ bath, in the presence of blockers and activators to target membrane channels and cellular component that potentially might be affected by the metabolic stress induced by rotenone. Active force of the fast (urinary bladder) was more sensitive to rotenone than that of the slow smooth muscle (aorta), which correlates well with the metabolic profiling in Paper I. AMP-kinase, a metabolic sensor, is activated by metabolic stress (increased ADP:ATP and/or AMP:ATP ratios) and initiates a range of energy-saving processes in the cell. AICAR (AMPK activator) partially attenuated the rotenone effects on contraction, whereas dorsomorphin (AMPK blocker) dramatically increases the inhibitory effect of rotenone. Thus, AMPkinase appears to have a protective action during metabolic stress induced by rotenone in the smooth muscle. In summary, this thesis demonstrates a large variability between fast and slow smooth muscle tissues regarding contractile properties, signaling and metabolism. Smooth muscle has an impressive ability to adapt during pathophysiological stress, e.g. in the urinary bladder. In the hypertrophic bladder muscle cell signaling is affected, increasing both the nerve induced cholinergic component and Rho-mediated Ca sensitivity. In addition, hypertrophic smooth muscle can also develop a unique contractile component dependent on nonmuscle myosin that is activated by PKC. Partial metabolic block inhibits active force in the smooth muscle and can partially be prevented by AMPkinase. Compared to the slow smooth muscle, the fast smooth muscle is more sensitive to metabolic stress induced by rotenone. LIST OF SCIENTIFIC PAPERS I. Boberg L, Szekeres FLM, Arner A. Signaling and metabolic properties of fast and slow smooth muscle types from mice. Pflugers Arch. 2018 470:681-691 II. Boberg L, Poljakovic M, Rahman A, Eccles R, Arner A. Role of Rho-kinase and protein kinase C during contraction of hypertrophic detrusor in mice with partial urinary bladder outlet obstruction. BJU Int. 2012 109:132-40 III. Boberg L, Rahman A, Poljakovic M, Arner A. Protein kinase C activation of a blebbistatin sensitive contractile component in the wall of hypertrophying mouse urinary bladder. Neurourol Urodyn. 2015 34:196-202 IV. Boberg L and Arner A. Metabolic regulation of contraction in fast and slow smooth muscle from mice. Manuscript, 2018


OBJECTIVE
Patients with central precocious puberty (CPP) may have increased serum leptin levels; however, it is not well known whether this increase differs between patients with and without obesity. Our objectives were to describe the changes in serum leptin in girls with CPP in the first 12 months after diagnosis based on body mass index (BMI) and to explore whether serum leptin level at CPP diagnosis is related to BMI z-score (BMIz) after a 1-year follow-up.

METHODS
A prospective cohort study was performed. We included 42 girls with idiopathic CPP in Tanner stages II and III. Anthropometric measurements were performed, and serum leptin was measured at study initiation and after 12 months. Patients were stratified according to BMI category (30 with a BMI in the <94th percentile and 12 with a BMI in the >95th percentile). Study variables were compared. Correlations among leptin, BMIz, and body fat were assessed.

RESULTS
Leptin increased gradually during the first year of treatment. In girls with a BMI in the <94th percentile at diagnosis, body fat percentage increased gradually during the first year of follow-up.

CONCLUSION
Girls with a BMI in the <94th percentile have a greater risk of weight increase. Leptin level >10.5 ng/dL at diagnosis is a risk factor for weight gain after 1 year.

ABBREVIATIONS
BMI = body mass index BMIz = BMI z-score CPP = central precocious puberty GnRHa = gonadotropin-releasing hormone analogue.


Indonesian primary school children are taught to memorize science facts and learn only routine skills. School science lessons focus on low-order thinking as required on the frequent district formative tests and a national year six examination. Because of this emphasis on testing, students show little interest in asking questions about everyday scientific observations. The Ministry of Education and Culture, concerned about this trend, initiated a teacher professior..1 development project to try to change teachers' and educatc.ra' behavior in the teaching and learning process in order to raise the level of student understanding. This initiative, the . Active Learning and Professional Support (ALPS) project, is described and reviewed in this paper. The ALPS project is perceived as three interrelated dimensions of change: learning processes and school development, school development and continuing professional support for teachers, and new patterns for inservice training. This project has provided teachers with skills necessary to involve children to speculate about phenomena, classify materials, observe carefully, use simple measuring equipment, infer, carry out experiments, interpret data, and control variables. Impact of ALPS implementation and associated problems are also discussed in this paper. (JRH) *********************************************************************** Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made from the original document. *********************************************************************** k7-1 New Ways of Science Teaching: The Active and Professional Support Project by Ella Yulaelawati Graduate School of Education, University of Queensland QLD 4072 -PERMISSION TO REPRODUCE THIS MATERIAL HAS BE GRANTED Y TO THE EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES INFORMATION CENTER IERICr U S DEPARTMENT Of EDUCATION 011.c 01 Educal.onal RotalUth end improvement EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES INFORMATION CENTER IERICI t' Ttms document nit* been reproduced es rece,sed 11015 tht Ninth 0, orpenashon


ABSTRACT This paper studies incentive-based subsidy to transit systems to improve performance. It derives a formula for optimal effort that equalizes marginal cost and marginal benefit and derives some principles from it among which is that the larger the value of a transit system's performance criterion the larger the effort it will exert to improve it. Next, using a constrained cost minimization approach it derives a nonlinear cost function that includes optimal effort and estimates it using an unbalanced panel data of single mode U.S. bus transit systems. The results show that optimal effort is the equivalent of seven full-time employees (15,243 labor hours) per year and in real terms it results in 0.6% cost saving (US$198,331) and US$836,796 in incentive subsidy per observation. The implications of these findings are examined.


This paper introduces a methodological approach for identifying the resilience of interconnected EU critical infrastructures to climate change. The proposed approach tries to establish a consequence-based modelling framework for assessing climate-dependent causal relationships between CI operation and response to climate impacts with an aim to minimise disruptions to service flows under diverse conditions. The proposed study provides a description of the virtual city's forest fire and smoke reference scenario with their optional damages to the electricity transmission and distribution network.


The invention discloses a tin dioxide/carbon composite material, which contains nanometer tin dioxide and carbon, wherein the carbon is carbon fiber, and the nanometer tin dioxide is coated on the surface of the carbon fiber. A method for preparing the nanometer tin dioxide/carbon composite material comprises the following steps that: the carbon fiber with oxidized surface contacts an alkaline solution and then contacts tin tetrachloride under alkaline conditions. The method adopts a low-temperature condition to treat the tin dioxide/carbon fiber composite material, thereby effectively avoiding the adverse effect on carbon materials and tin dioxide nano-particles caused by high-temperature treatment. The method has the advantages of simple and convenient process, no pollution of solvents, convenient operation, and low cost. An effective constituent, namely the nanometer tin dioxide of photocatalysis is adhered to the carbon fiber with micron size, so the composite material is easy to recover.


Content caching has emerged as a promising technique to reduce the backhaul multimedia traffic rising due to the proliferation of mobile devices. To address the bottleneck issue arising as a result of sparse wireless resources, the current literature is mainly focused on designing centralized or decentralized coded caching schemes. In this paper, we present a hybrid coded caching approach in a cellular network considering mobile users, where both downlink transmission from the base-station (BS) and device-to-device (D2D) communications are permitted. The proposed method comprises of two phases in content delivery. In the first phase, coded packets are delivered using decentralized coded caching which provides concurrent transmissions through spatial reuse. The BS broadcasts the remaining files using the centralized coded caching paradigm in the second phase in order to compensate for the diminishing returns in D2D communications as time progresses. We analytically derive and analyze the optimal switching point for which the network performance improves in terms of throughput and response time delay under two random user mobility models. Validated by simulation results, our hybrid strategy significantly reduces the finishing time as compared to existing schemes.


In this paper we would like to present a possible operating way to survey and model a very complex architecture, integrating different kinds of instrumentation and modeling methods. In particular we would like to convoy the attention on a possible measure and data elaboration procedure that allows collecting and post-elaborating data in a short time in order to both extract classical architectural products, such as sections and profiles, and to build complete and accurate 3D models. The necessity is to structure multi-data source procedure buds inside a five years project (still in progress) with the goal to survey and three-dimensionally model the Main Spire of Milan Cathedral. It is a very complex "object" and, for this reason, it can be considered a very challanging and useful test field for the new 3D survey technologies and, in particular, for the various "real-based" modeling methodologies. In the paper are described the survey workflow and the relative elaboration steps, focusing on the problems and justifying the key choices.


This chapter elucidates the concepts of mentalization and double awareness. Mentalization refers to the ability to reflect on and describe one's own mental state and that of others and to connect feelings, thoughts, and beliefs to behaviours. This capacity varies amongst individuals and may fluctuate, based on the affective state, the relational context, and the nature of the conversation. Though it is often considered to be an individual capacity, we have argued that mentalization is a relational construct that is co-produced within therapeutic conversations. A mentalization-based therapy, such as CALM, can help patients to "think about their thinking," and to consider multiple and alternate ways of viewing their situation. Mentalization may be supported by gentle invitations to patients to consider multiple perspectives and to expand the possibilities for living while facing the end of life, a capacity that we have termed "double awareness." Using detailed conversation analysis, this chapter illustrates the process by which therapists encourage mentalization in CALM therapy.


Objective: To determine nursing student capacity emerging during health promotion leadership training. Method: In this participatory action research, subjects were 60 2 nd and 3 rd year nursing students from the Police Nursing College voluntarily joining the training.During the 3 plan-act-observe-reflect cycles, 3 groups of 20 students each, with a faculty member as a counselor, worked as a team to create health promotion program (1 program per team) for a nearby community. Data were collected by means of observation, tape recording and SWOT analysis, between March 2009 and July 2010. Content analysis and theme setting was conducted using Atlast/ti TM program to determine capacity developing components which were later compared with Pender's theory of health promotion and Bjaras's concept of capacity development. A spider-web mapping technique was used to construct the resulting model. Results: Four components of capacity development to be health promotion leader were found; namely 1) teamwork capacity, 2) teaching health promotion skill, 3) being voluntary to health promotion and 4) knowledge, attitude and practice in health behavior. This model was supported by exogenous factors including supports from advisor, academic institute, and relating organization, and community cooperation. Conclusion: A 4-main components model of capacity development in nursing students was revealed during health promotion leadership training. Development of nursing student's capacity to lead the future health promotion campaign should be encouraged. Keywords: capacity development, health promotion, leadership, nursing student


With the epidemiological setting produced by the COVID-19 pandemic, information technologies have increased in importance in education and have become even more significant, forcing unanticipated and fundamental adjustments in work organization. To guarantee that students continue to study, these developments in educational institutions have led to the growing usage of remote learning. This study investigates the factors that either support or constrain students' perceptions of their perceived efficacy and skill development in a remote learning environment during the second COVID-19 lockdown, in Portugal. Between March 1 and March 15, 2021, 258 students (higher school) who were enrolled in remote learning responded to a web-based cross-sectional survey. The results of a regression analysis revealed several conditioning factors for this learning mode that could impact on students' efficacy and soft skills development: technology issues, learning conditions (e.g., autonomy, study materials) and demotivation were all significant factors. Given the current and future generations of students, the results of this study provide clues for managers and teachers of higher education establishments to develop digital strategies to provide innovative, attractive, and motivating learning environments.


Experimental and theoretical studies of high-frequency excitations in solids by γ-resonance spectroscopy are reviewed. Both the resonance-type and non-resonance-type alterations in Mossbauer spectra that are produced by high-frequency ac fields are elucidated. A considerable part of the review is devoted to problems of modulation of γ radiation by ultrasonic vibrations. Various mechanisms of exciting sound by a radiofrequency field are studied, in particular, magnetostriction in ferromagnets. A new effect found by γ–resonance spectroscopy is discussed: collapse of the hyperfine structure upon fast remagnetization of a ferromagnet. A number of new nonlinear resonance phenomena are discussed that amount to combining the Mossbauer effect with the methods of radiospectroscopy (NMR, EPR, etc.). The possibility is discussed of applying these phenomena for studying the properties of solids.


Early diagnosis is very important for fasciolosis and Candidiasis in prevention and control. Two productive species, namely F. hepatica and Candida Albicans of the disease in terms of together morphological similarities in some of the features of a great but the differences. In this study, the presence or absence of similarity between genes raw of Antique excretory - secretory and somatic two species of the parasite and Fungi to Elisa test was evaluated. Crude antigens of both species (including excretory - secretory and SCC) developed and to use in the cold oc -20 were kept. In the preparing the antiserum, antigens with the increasing the dose 0 / 5-2 / 5 in the five times with intervals of seven days, two rabbits were injected. Ten days after the last injection, blood and serum samples after separation, in cold 20 ° C were kept. Reaction of Crude antigen the antiserum any species with the self antiserum (homologous) and as well as antiserum other species (heterologous) evaluated by ELISA and ELISA values were recorded. When the reaction with the antiserum-antigen ELISA values of any other species in comparison with control samples showed that with the antiserum antigen any kind other species show that a strong reaction. Meaning that of antigenic cross-reactivity in ELISA two species is similar and there. However, antigens of F. hepatica and Candida Albicans with the antiserum a stronger reaction than the antiserum were found Despite the similarity between many of antigenic material of two species, some of these substances are different. F. hepatica and Candida Albicans antigenic differences between the materials is not enough to prevent cross-reaction between the two species and more research is geared in ELISA for the detection, isolation and purification of antigenic materials of any recommended.


Jean de Martelaere, From Western Planetary Hegemony to Globalization : Concerning an Hypothesis about the Stratified Development of Capitalism The « globalization » of the capitalist system, so apparent at the present time, is less a contemporary development than the result of the long evolution of a particular mode cf production. Behind the ideological changes and debates that must be confronted when accounting for the transition between the feudal and capitalist modes of production, any study of the globalization of capitalism must be rooted in an analysis of productive relations.


Metallothionein is a multi-functional induced protein,which exists in almost all organisms.In the paper,the advances in the structure,classification,and functional characteristics of metallothionein were briefly introduced,as well as methods for determination.Besides,some scientific problems in the research were listed,and the probable applications of metallothionein were prospected.


Case Summary Clozapine is a second-generation antipsychotic used for treatment-resistant schizophrenia [1]. Reasons for its efficacy in treatment resistance cases is postulated to be its predilection for blocking D4 dopamine and 5HT2A/2C receptors as compared to D2 [2]. This also explains why extrapyramidal side effects, common with other antipsychotics are uncommon with clozapine. When other non-serious side effects result from treatment with clozapine, their effective management is necessary to improve treatment adherence [3]. This makes handling of side effects an important aspect in management of treatment-resistant schizophrenia.


Objective To investigate the early changes in hemorheological parameters and thromboxane A2( TXA2) and prostacyclin( PGI2) levels among patients with severe acute pancreatitis( SAP). Methods Thirty-two SAP patients hospitalized from January 2012 to September 2013 were selected as SAP group; 30 healthy controls were selected as normal control( NC) group. Venous blood was collected after admission and before treatment. The hemorheological parameters and plasma levels of TXA2and PGI2were determined,and TXA2/PGI2ratio was calculated. Comparison between groups was made by t test. Results Compared with the NC group,the SAP group had a significantly lower erythrocyte deformation index( t = 2. 185,P 0. 05),significantly higher whole blood viscosities at high-,middle-,and low- shear rates and plasma viscosity( t = 2. 820,2. 755,2. 700,and 3. 622,P 0. 05),significantly higher whole blood reduced viscosities at high- and low- shear rates( t = 3. 391 and 2. 018,P 0. 05),a significantly higher hematocrit( t = 2. 980,P 0. 05),a significantly higher erythrocyte rigidity index( t = 2. 209,P 0. 05),a significantly higher erythrocyte aggregation index( t = 2. 004,P 0. 05),a significantly higher whole blood relative index at high shear rate( t = 2. 630,P 0. 05),a significantly higher whole blood relative index at low shear rate( t = 2. 440,P 0. 05),a significantly higher TXA2level( t = 3. 256,P 0. 05),a significantly higher PGI2level( t =2. 589,P 0. 05),and a significantly higher TXA2/PGI2ratio( t = 2. 640,P 0. 05). Conclusion Hemorheological disorders and increased activity of vascular endothelial cells appear in the early stage in SAP.


ABSTRACTMagnetic corn straw (MCS) was prepared by glutaraldehyde cross-linking, and the resulting MCS was chemically modified with glutamic acid to synthesize glutamic acid-modified MCS (GMCS). GMCS was investigated by scanning electron microscopy, Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy, and potentiometric titration. The results reveal that nano-Fe3O4 was stably cross-linked with the corn straw, and the carboxyl on the MCS surface was modified. GMCS was used for the adsorption of methylene blue (MB). Several factors affecting MB adsorption on MCS and GMCS, namely, pH, contact time, initial MB concentration, and reaction temperature were investigated. The adsorption capability of GMCS for MB was observed to be superior to that of MCS. The maximum adsorption capacity of GMCS for MB (196.46 mg g−1) was attained with an initial MB concentration of 300 mg L−1 at pH 6.0 and 60°C for a contact time of 60 min. The adsorption process followed the pseudo-second-order kinetic model and the Langmuir isotherm equatio...


Measuring systems using fringe projection provide the possibility of very accurate touchless measurements. For the measurement of small objects compact devices are possible. However, in the case of very close distances between the optical system and the measuring object there is a considerable influence of the measuring distance to the lens distortion. This will lead to considerable measuring errors if neglected. In typical cases of our measuring systems the amount of the distortion may change by a factor greater than two in the range of a distance difference of a few centimetres. Results of the distance dependence will be given for the lenses of two devices.


Atomically thin transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) is ideal two-dimensional system and possesses valley degrees of freedom inherently, making monolayer (1L) TMDs an excellent platform to explore new physics and applications. The exploits of the valley degrees of freedom require the understanding and control of valley depolarization process. Recently we reported momentum-dependent long-range electron-hole (e-h) interactions screened by naturally doped 2D electrons play an important role in the valley de-polarization process of exciton [1]. Here we report that intentional carrier doping could control the valley depolarization process by fine-tuning of Coulomb screening.


The growing prevalence of bacterial antibiotic resistance has led to a rediscovery of the antimicrobial properties of honey. This study investigated the antibacterial activity in aerobic and anaerobic conditions, the effect on bacterial antibiotic sensitivity, and the composition of four medical-grade honeys Medihoney®, Comvita® Antibacterial Wound GelTM, Revamil® gel, and SurgihoneyTMRO®. A broth assay was used to assess the antibacterial activity of the honeys against Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa in aerobic and anaerobic conditions. A disk diffusion test was used to investigate the effect of exposure to a subinhibitory concentration of the honeys to the sensitivity of bacteria to a range of antibiotics. The composition of each honey was characterised by measuring: sugar content, pH, hydrogen peroxide activity, total polyphenolic content and antioxidant capacity. The honeys differed widely in antibacterial activity. Medihoney® was the most effective reducing the growth of both bacteria to < 1 compared to 9 log10 cfu/mL in the growth controls at all tested concentrations. Revamil® gel was the least active of the honeys only having a negligible effect on bacterial growth at the 25% honey concentration. All honeys were equally or more active in anaerobic conditions than in aerobic conditions. The polyphenolic content may influence the activity of honey. Various honey-antibiotic combinations were identified that enhanced antibiotic sensitivity in bacteria. More research is needed to clarify the role of polyphenols in honey activity and further explore the potential synergies between the honeys and antibiotics.


Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to investigate how open, mediatised conflict in geographical indications (GIs) can provide the basis for differentiation strategies for heritage producers based on both functional and symbolic benefits.

Design/methodology/approach
Longitudinal case study based on multiple data sources, which reconstructs the history of the Bitto GIs and the conflict between the Protected Designation of Origin Bitto Consortium and a small number of heritage Bitto producers.

Findings
The paper highlights how the mediatised narration of conflict can contribute to raise consumer awareness, differentiate products and result in symbolic value creation.

Research limitations/implications
Extreme case study design purposively chosen as characterised by conditions likely to accentuate conflict.

Practical implications
The paper develops a conceptual framework that permits to identify the potential for conflict inside GIs. It also contributes to a better understanding of the image of products protected by GIs and the role played by heritage producers. It also offers practical advice on two promotional tools, namely, trade fair participations and experiential showcases.

Social implications
The paper offers practical advice on the safeguarding of small producers localised in cultural epicentres inside GIs.

Originality/value
The authors introduce the notions, such as competitive wars and secession, that contribute to a better understanding of centripetal/centrifugal forces inside GIs. The authors also propose a better understanding of image creation of GIs, grounded in cultural work in marketing and consumer research.


Abstract Analysis of travel writing was adopted as an assessment tool for teaching cross-cultural issues in a tourism degree. A research program was instigated to answer two questions: how does analyzing travel writing contribute to student learning in a tourism subject and how could the analysis task be improved to enhance learning? Class discussion, a survey and content analysis were used to investigate these questions. Incorporating an analysis of travel writing into a theoretical tourism subject was an effective way to enhance student learning. It helped students link the theoretical content of the subject and "real life" and the travel writers' descriptions of interactions between cultures helped them learn about other cultures and cross-cultural issues.


Taking Tencent coverage of London Olympic Games for Example,the characteristics of Network coverage on London Olympic Games was discussed.Some strategies were implemented,including "the all-star group of broadcasting","original content planning and integration of packaging","wireless strategy" and "Media Alliance".Pointing out that Network coverage on London Olympic Games presented some new trends,the "content is king" was replaced by "product is king",the Law of "professionalism" and "de-specialization" increasingly prominent,payying more attention to the channel structures,reported"sociability" highlights,etc.Besides,the problems in Network coverage on London Olympic Games was pointed that there are the departure tendency of the law of "professional" and "de-professional" is still evident,the Olympic copyright crisis triggered by the rise of the "social report" as well as Olympic reported cross-media joint"breadth is enough but lack of depth".


A 51-year-old man, former smoker (20 pack-years), with hemorrhoidal disease, irritable bowel syndrome, pulmonary emphysema and a mechanical prosthetic aortic valve under warfarin, presented for post-polypectomy surveillance colonoscopy. He complained of frequent tenesmus, diarrhea (2–3 liquid dejections in the morning), bloating and abdominal discomfort. Several polypoid grape-like submucosal masses were identified in a 10-cm segment of the descendent colon (Fig. 1a, b). Since the lesions were easily indented with gentle pressure and had a bluish hue, pneumatosis cystoids intestinalis (PCI) was suspected. Biopsy of one of these masses caused immediate deflation, confirming the diagnosis. Histopathological evaluation showed normal crypt architecture and a congestive edematous lamina propria with minimal inflammatory infiltrate suggesting reactive changes (Fig. 2). The patient had no history of abdominal trauma and no pharmacological (alpha-glucosidase inhibitors, steroids) or infectious (Clostridioides difficile, tuberculosis, human immunodeficiency infection) causes. Over a long-term follow-up of 12 years, the mild symptoms were managed conservatively with loperamide, spasmolytics and probiotics, which showed an improvement. In this period, two surveillance colonoscopies were performed showing the same unchanged endoscopic findings described above. Recently, due to surveillance of an ascending aortic aneurysm, a contrasted chest computed tomography (CT) identified a small pneumoperitoneum in the left subphrenic region. Abdominal CT extension showed more free peritoneal air in the left hypochondrium and air bubbles adjacent to the lumen of the bowel, some of them being subserosal (Fig. 3a, b). The prevalence of PCI is 0.03% in the general population and its pathogenesis is poorly understood [1]. PCI is characterized by the presence of gas, forming multilocu-


A new method combining symplectic difference schemes with symplectic geometrical theory for solving a scattering field of complex objects was presented.Symplectic geometrical theory,symplectic difference schemes and explicit symplectic difference schemes were also introduced.The symplectic method has the conservation property and accuracy for long time simulations.An application example was given for solving scattering field of caustic region for a two-dimension elliptical antenna with the presented method.Numerical results show the efficiency of the method.


Commentary on: Pestinger M, Stiel S, Elsner F, et al. The desire to hasten death: using Grounded Theory for a better understanding "When perception of time tends to be a slippery slope". Palliat Med 2015;29:711–19.[OpenUrl][1][CrossRef][2][PubMed][3]

Despite tremendous advancements in palliative and hospice care over the past several decades, some patients facing their own mortality express a desire for an assisted death. Pestinger and colleagues explore the motivations of patients who express a desire …

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Targeted drug delivery systems protect healthy tissue in the patient's body while carrying the therapeutic agent to the diseased tissue. For cancer therapy, the enhanced permeability and retention (EPR) effect takes advantage of porosity of the tumor blood vessels and negligible lymphatic drainage. Nanoparticle drug carriers will accumulate in tumors without external intervention. The general problem is how best to release the drug once it has reached the targeted area. Here we show a model micellar drug delivery system that is stable and secure at a normal blood pH of 7.4, but disperses and releases its substrate as the pH drops below 7.0. The micelle is formed from the ionic surfactant, 10-undecenoate, with the hydrophobic tetrabutylammonium counterion. The pH-dependent structure and function differ markedly from other micellar solutions and suggests a key role of the counterion in both stability and solubilization power of the micelle. Our results indicate that tetrabutylammonium counterions can bring about the pH-mediated release of therapeutic agents from micellar drug delivery systems.


The 49th Conference of the European High Pressure Research Group (EHPRG) was held in Budapest (Hungary) from 28 August to 2 September 2011. This issue of High Pressure Research hosts the proceedings of this meeting. Like most of the EHPRG conferences held previously, the 2011 conference covered a broad scientific domain, including theoretical physics, chemistry, geosciences and special emphasis was put on technical aspects and on applications in material sciences, food technology, bioscience and biotechnology. The number of participants of the EHPRG meeting in 2011 exceeded 200. All the European countries were represented and a number of participants from Japan, USA, Thailand, Brazil, Israel, India, Canada, Iran, Argentina and Australia were also present. The four biggest delegations came from France, Spain, Japan and Germany. The number and distribution of the participants proved the vitality of this field of research in the world, particularly in Europe. Four plenary and 27 oral sessions were organized, for the latter two or three were running in parallel. The decision on granting the EHPRG Award was taken by the president and secretary of the EHPRG and it was given to Miriam Marqués (MALTA-Consolider Team, Spain, and University of Edinburgh and CSEC, UK) for her work 'Electride behavior of the alkali metals under pressure'. Besides the award lecture, 4 plenary, 23 invited, 79 oral lectures and 112 posters were presented. As the organizer of the conference I wish to acknowledge first of all the members of the scientific advisory committee who helped the organization to maintain the high quality of the presentations and for suggesting excellent plenary and invited speakers. I also wish to acknowledge and thank the work performed by chairpersons of the various sessions and the valuable contributions of all the referees of the papers collected and published here for their work in maintaining the high quality of the journal High Pressure Research. Finally, I would like to thank all the lecturers and participants, whose contributions created the conditions for fruitful and stimulating discussions.


This paper analyses some distributed virtual systems and distributed virtual lab in existence, and puts forward a model of the distributed virtual experiment that has good performance in the real-time-transporting data and the synchronization of the time and space. Then it gives the mechanism of cooperation in the system.


Employees' information security policy ISP violations are a major problem that plagues organizations worldwide, particularly in the banking/financial sector. Research shows that employees use neutralization techniques to rationalize their ISP violating behaviors; it is therefore important to understand what leads to and influences these neutralization techniques. The authors' study draws upon social exchange theory to develop a set of factors that drive employees' neutralization of ISP violations. The model specifies previously untested relationships between job satisfaction, organizational commitment, role conflict, role ambiguity, and neutralization techniques. Using a sample of Malaysian banking employees, the authors found a positive relationship between role conflict and neutralization of ISP violations, whereas organizational commitment was negatively related to neutralization in this context. The authors' findings offer fresh insights for scholars and practitioners in dealing with the problem of employees' intentional ISP violations while extending the reach of neutralization theory beyond North American and European cultures.


Real-time video encoding demands intense computational effort resulting in large power dissipation and energy consumption. Therefore, energy efficiency becomes mandatory especially for energy-constrained systems such as battery-powered mobile devices. In this context, approximate computing arose as a promising approach to improve energy efficiency. This work presents an analysis of the SAD distortion metric using approximate subtractors in interpicture prediction considering the VVC reference encoder. The approximate 10-bit sub tractors were evaluated considering four levels of imprecision (in number of approximate bits). The results achieved show the potential in the adoption of approximate subtractors both in coding efficiency and in power reduction. The SAD architecture can achieve a power reduction of 16.45% when compared to SAD using RCA subtractor, while not degrading the compression efficiency (less than 0.1% BD-Rate increase).


Spain during the 19th and 20th centuries has been a country of emigration. We are interested in Argentina as country into which flowed a lot of Spanish manual labour seeking employment in industry. These workers were more o less qualified, and they came mostly from the Spanish regions, and from the various social classes. Each of these stamped the development of America with its own particular characteristics.


In this chapter, the authors highlight the emerging discipline of network sciences and the evolution and adaptation of human networks. The change is considered in the context of a shifting economic landscape and the importance of knowledge in the twenty-first-century knowledge economy. The chapter offers a fundamental definition of networks and explores the shifting geography of networks. Specifically, the authors explore door-to-door, place-to-place, and person-to-person network geographies. The authors model economic systems as networks and explain the role of human, structural, and relational capital as nodes, messages, and links in networks.


Spatial processing withadaptive antenna arrayhas shownrealpromise forsubstantial capacity enhancement in wireless communications. We propose inthispaperasimple methodtoevaluate theprobability oferrorinDS-CDMA receivers usinga beamformer. We useda beamformer with adaptive antennaarraysfollowed by a RAKE receiver. Adaptive arraycanreducetheinterference onlywhenthe directions ofarrivals (DOAs)oftheinterferers aremisaligned withtheDOAsoftheuserofinterest. Theevaluation ofbit errorrateiscounted differently according tothebeampattern andcanprovide goodagreements withsimulation results. I. INTRODUCTION T heeverincreasing demandformobile communication capacity hasmotivated theneedsfornewtechnologies, suchasspacedivision multiple access, toimprove spectrum utilization. Oneapproach thathasshownreal promise forsubstantial capacity enhancement istheuseof spatial processing withadaptive antenna arrays (1). Antenna arrays canbethought ofasspatial filters inthesense that they canbeusedtoformabeamtoward thedesired user while spatially rejecting theinterferers outside thebeam. Whileadaptive antennas improve theperformance ofCDMA communications inspace domain, aRAKE receiver attempts thesamegoal though temporal operations. Inprinciple, a2D- RAKE receiver allows constructive combination ofmulti- pathsignals received by an arrayofantennas while minimizing theMAI'scontribution, thusproviding the average error probability forK userswithDOAsuniformly distributed within a symmetric support aroundthearray broadside hasbeenderived forchipandphase asynchronous CDMA system (6). Inthis paper, themulti-access interference andthearray gain hasbeenmodeled toevaluate theaverage probability oferror inDS-CDMAreceivers withadaptive antenna arrays. The errorprobability hastobemanipulated inorder totake differences intoaccountwhenthedirections ofarrival (DOAs) oftheinterferers arealigned ornotwiththeDOA of theuserofinterest. Interferers arepartitioned into twoclasses according tothe beampattern, in-beam andout-beam interferers. Eachuser belonging to oneclassiscounted differently forthe evaluation of theerrorprobability. In-beam/out-beam partitioning oftheusersneedsa simplified modelofthe angular gain ofthespatial filter.


SUMMARY

Some Fl progeny of crosses between resistant and susceptible cultivars of potato contain resistance to Heterodera rostochiensis pathotype E (British notation) supplementary to that conferred by genes H1 and H2. This resistance in hybrid K2/6 was equal to that of its parent D40 and could be incorporated in a useful resistant cultivar.


This Study aimed to identify the role of teaching bridges program in developing educational process from the point of view of public school principals in Ajloun governorate, the researcher used the Descriptive approaches, study Sample consisted from (100) Female and male principals, chosen in an intentional stratified manner, to collect data Questioner used, which consisted (25) paragraph, the result of SPSS analysis shown that the degree of orate the role of teaching bridges program in developing educational process from the point of view of public school principals in Ajloun governorate was High with average (3.92 out of 5) , The finding also showed there is no statistically significant differences at (α≤0.05) refers to principal sex (male and female) in addition there weren't statistically significant differences between the principals years of experience. According to the result a set of recommendation and suggestion to activate the Teaching Bridge to improve the in Ajloun Governorate schools and all of Kingdom and Arab countries.


The rapid increase in web usage has led to dramatically increased loads on the network infrastructure and on individual web servers. To ameliorate these mounting burdens, there has been much recent...


Although the US offshore areas hold only 17.5% of the nation's proven hydrocarbon reserves (13.2% of total oil reserves and 20.7% of gas), the offshore share of potential reserves is larger, containing 30% of total potential reserves (34% of oil and 28% gas). Of the offshore proven reserves, gas dominates in the Gulf of Mexico and in Alaska while oil prevails along the West Coast. This mix could change, however, as offshore exploration accelerates to make up for continuing declines in proven reserves. The Gulf is the most active offshore area, followed by California and Alaska. Nevertheless, offshore activity still remains marginal relative to total US drilling; for every 100 wells drilled in 1983, less than 2 were offshore.


transfer device comprising an active partition (4) movable (membrane (5)), a working chamber (6) delimited by the membrane (5) or fluid connections (7, 8), means (10) for move the active partition (4) in the direction of the introduction of liquid in the working chamber (6) through the first fluid connection (7), a biasing means (15) of said active wall (4). The installation (1) has no moving parts cooperating with the biasing means (15) resiliently (15) and / or said active wall (4) to move it during the introduction of the liquid.


The axion-like particle (ALP)-photon mixing in the magnetic field around $\gamma$-ray sources or along the line-of-sight could induce oscillation between photons and ALPs, which then causes irregularities in the $\gamma$-ray spectra. In this work we try to search for such spectral irregularities in the spectrum of PKS $2155-304$ using 8.6 years of the Fermi Large Area Telescope (Fermi-LAT) data. No significant evidence for the presence of ALP-photon oscillation is obtained, and the parameter space of ALPs is constrained. The exclusion region sensitively depends on the poorly known magnetic field of host galaxy cluster of PKS $2155-304$. If the magnetic field is as high as $\sim 10~{\rm \mu G}$, the "hole"-like parameter region allowed in Ref.~\cite{Fermi} can be ruled out.


With more than 8000 deaths in eight years, a Maoist insurgency,
 reinforced by ethnic cleavages, has resulted in substantial levels of political violence in
 Nepal. With fresh district-level data, and drawing on theoretical insights from both the
 conflict and human rights literatures, research that has relied primarily on cross-national
 comparisons, we develop and test hypotheses using a sub-national research design. We find
 support for "opportunistic" strategic interaction between government and opposition. Opportunity
 is conceived geographically, politically, and internationally, and our findings contribute new
 evidence for the importance of geography but also of democracy in their effects on the levels of
 violence used by both government and opposition.


Two seasons (2005/06 and 2006/07) of field experiments which aimed to study the suitability of new and established husked oat varieties, variety mixtures and a husked oat population for organic systems were established at two sites in the west and east of the UK. The ground cover and leaf area indices of the varieties had significant effects on final yields in the 2005/06. Mixtures generally yielded similarly to the means of component varieties but the mixtures in 2005/06 and 2006/07 had 25 % and 18 % less disease, respectively, than the average of the component varieties at one site.


Tuber disks from four cultivars of Solanum tuberosum L. were cultured on a Murashige and Skoog medium supplemented with B5 vitamins, 3.0 % sucrose, 0.7 % phytagar and ratios of indole-3actyl-aspartic acid (lAAa) and zeatin riboside (ZR). No shoots were regenerated from Red LaSoda. Russet Burbank, Desiree, and LaBelle tuber disks produced shoots over a range of lAAa and ZR ratios. The greatest number of shoots was regenerated from Russet Burbank at 1pM lAAa and 8pM ZR. Different potato cultivars were also tested for their responses to A g ro b a c te r iu m infections. Growth stage of the bacterial cultures and exposure duration of tuber disks to bacteria did not have a significant effect. However, significant differences among the cultivars in their responses to infection from A. rhizogenes and A. tumefaciens strains were observed. When effects of lytic peptides SB-37 and Shiva-1 on growth of plant pathogenic fungi were tested, a complete inhibition was observed at 10-3 m, whereas, a mild stimulation of growth was noted at 10-5 M. The effect of SB-37 on tobacco-cell suspensions was also tested. Cell growth was inhibited at 10-3 m and some what arrested at 10-4 M. At 10-6 M and 10-7 M SB-37 growth of the cells was stimulated. Leaf disks from transgenic and nontransgenic tobacco (N icotiana tabacum L.) plants were exposed to a disarmed A. tum efaciens containing genes in a binary vector arrangement with one set of constructs for antibacterial (lytic) peptides and with another set of constructs for high essential amino acids (HEAA) II. Positive beta-glucuronidase (GUS) activity indicated that transfor mation had been obtained for both transgenic and nontransgenic plants. Although GUS positive plants were obtained with A . tum efaciens carrying HEAA II, transgenic plants were not exposed to this vector. Kanamycin resistant shoots regenerated from Russet Burbank tuber disks infected with binary A. tumefaciens vectors carrying antibacterial and HEAA II genes were also obtained.


To assess the value of serum anti-peptide arginine-deiminase enzyme 4(PADI4) antibodies in the diagnosis of RA, we analyzed the serum anti- PADI4 antibody levels in rheumatoid arthritis(RA) group,other rheumatic group,and the healthy control group.Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay(ELISA) was used to detect anti-PADI4 antibody levels,and illustrated that he prevalence of anti-PADI4 antibody in RA patients(47%) was significantly higher than in other rheumatic diseases and healthy controls(P0.05). By analyzing the associations of the antibody with DAS28 score,anti-CCP antibodies,anti-keratin antibodies(AKA),and rheumatoid factor(RF),our group found that anti-PADI4 antibodies diagnostic sensitivity and specificity to RA were 43%and 92%respectively,and there was no association between anti-PADI4 antibodies and DAS28 score or anti-CCP antibodies(r=-0.025,P=0.82;r=-0.058, P=0.60).The positive rate for anti-PADI4 antibodies in RF-negative,AKA-negative,and anti-CCP antibodies-negative RA patients was 50%,43%,and 60%,respectively.The results suggest that anti-PADI4 antibodies has high diagnostic value in RA,especially in RF-negative,AKA-negative,and anti-CCP antibodies-negative RA,due to PADI4 may be a pathogenic antigen for RA and play an important role in RA pathogenesis and pathological processes.


Commentary Injury or dysfunction of GABAergic interneuron networks accompanies many types of epilepsy. One major scientific challenge in the field of neuroscience is to delineate the contributions of specific populations of GABAergic interneurons to cognition and neurological disorders. Local-circuit GABAergic inhibitory interneurons in the hippocampus and cerebral cortex regulate the timing and patterning of neural activity, and orchestrate the slow rhythmic oscillations within hippocampal–entorhinal cortex networks that mediate experiencedependent memory formation. Disruption of GABAergic interneurons' roles in generating patterned activity may be partly responsible for learning disorders and cognitive impairments in autism and schizophrenia. Recent efforts to delineate these functional roles in the normal brain and in neurologic disease have employed genetic methods to eliminate different functional types of GABAergic interneurons during development (1), and genetic silencing or "reversible silencing" using optogenetics to control the firing of specific populations in GABAergic interneurons. Now, botulinum neurotoxin and saporin-based toxins have been added to the molecular arsenal for probing GABAergic interneuron functions and regionspecific roles in epilepsy (2, 3). Saporin, from the seeds of Saponaria officinalis, is a longlasting eukaryotic ribosomal toxin that is resistant to proteolysis and denaturation. The prediction that saporin-mediated inactivation of ribosomes could be used to selectively target GABAergic interneurons in a region-specific manner was tested in a recent study by Antonucci and colleagues. By cross-linking saporin to antibodies against the C-terminus of vesicular gamma-amino-butyric acid transporter (VGAT), they selectively targeted inhibitory synapses. VGAT is found ubiquitously in GABAergic and glycinergic neurons, where it localizes to presynaptic vesicles in synaptic terminals and plays a role in accumulating GABA into synaptic vesicles (4). During vesicular fusion events when GABA is released into the synaptic cleft, the C-terminus of VGAT is transiently exposed at the surface of the presynaptic ending before the membrane undergoes endocytosis (5). Hypothesizing that the transient extracellular presence of VGAT's C-terminus might provide a GABAergic neuron-specific target for saporin toxin, the scientists conjugated saporin to anti-VGAT-C antibodies, and designated the immunotoxin particles "SAVAs". In a multi-lab effort led by Tibor Harkany in Sweden, Michela Matteoli in Italy, and Wolfgang Hartig in Cracking Down on Inhibition: Selective Removal of GABAergic Interneurons From Hippocampal Networks.


The paper assesses the association among agronomic traits and their relation with grain yield, protein and oil contents to determine those traits that can be used during selection of soybean genotypes for high seed yield. Data for this study was obtained from a field study conducted in 2006 over two locations using 49 genotypes. Protein content was determined using micro Kjeldhal method whereas oil content was determined using Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy. Genetic and phenotypic correlations were calculated followed by path coefficient analysis to partition the correlation coefficients of traits with yield/plant into direct and indirect effects . The genotypic and phenotypic correlation coefficient estimation indicated that seed yield was strongly associated with seeds/plant, pods/plant, seeds/pod, days to maturity and grain filling period. Protein content was strongly correlated with plant height, branches/plant, and days to maturity indicating consideration of these traits during selection for protein. Oil content was not associated with any character except protein content, which has got strong negative association (-0.93). Path coefficient analysis revealed that number of seeds/pod was more important than other traits, hence can be used as number one criterion for indirect selection.


Current welfare policy discussions emphasize the potential role of marriage and two‐parent family formation in alleviating poverty and improving child well‐being. However, the marriage and family formation goals of the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program were adopted within the context of unprecedented state flexibility in program design. This context prompted the need to understand state and local implementation of such goals. Using longitudinal data that track TANF implementation in 17 states, this study analyzes the policy choices that states made under TANF concerning marriage and family formation. Although states vary considerably in the implementation of family formation provisions, important patterns emerge in the strategies that states employ to meet these goals and in the degree to which they use the TANF program to do so.


The ultimate objective of hybrid miniemulsion polymerization is to produce a water-based crosslinkable coating through in situ grafting of a free radical growing acrylic polymer with an unsaturated resin. Certain authors have reported low grafting while others have reported higher. This article explores the factors that influence the grafting tendencies of these systems. Methacrylates such as methyl methacrylate (MMA) have a sterically hindered radical center that lowers its reactivity toward unsaturated resin. This steric hindrance from the methyl group forces grafting of this type of monomer to occur by abstraction of a hydrogen allylic to a resinous double bond. This chain transfer produces a relatively inactive radical on the resin that reduces the grafting efficiency. The transfer process also inherently produces some degree of terminated PMMA polymer within the particle. Grafting occurs in this type of system through termination of living PMMA chains with that radical produced on the resin. For relatively water-soluble monomers such as MMA, grafting efficiency is further lessened by homogeneous nucleation resulting from the monomer hydrophilicity. These newly created particles cannot contain alkyd due to its hydrophobicity and thus inability to transport across the aqueous phase, and hence cannot produce grafted polymer. Nonetheless, degree of grafting of nearly 50% was observed in these systems. For hybrid systems involving an acrylate monomer such as butyl acrylate (BA), virtually complete grafting with alkyd was observed. This is due to the uninhibited BA radical center allowing the molecule to add directly through a resin double bond. This process offers the possibility for complete grafting. Homogeneous nucleation is not involved in this system due to the insolubility of BA in the aqueous phase. Resin double bond content and degree of conjugation also play an integral role in the grafting process. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 87: 1825–1836, 2003


The potential of granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF) to mobilize CD4 cells and/or CD34 cells for use in gene therapy or to support antiretroviral therapy was examined. Ten human immunodeficiency virus-infected patients were treated with G-CSF (300 microg/day) for 5 days. Numbers of CD4 and CD34 cells were measured. To examine the numbers of naive and memory type CD4 cells, CD4 cell coexpression of CD45RA and CD45RO was measured. Functionality of mobilized CD4 cells was examined by use of the proliferation assay and interleukin-2 ELISA. The number of CD34 cells increased from 1.50 to 20.01/microL (P < .002). The CD4 cell count increased from 236 to 452/microL (P < .002). The CD45RA/CD45RO ratio increased from 0.50 to 0.57 (P < .03). Mobilized CD4 cells were functionally intact. In conclusion, G-CSF induced increases in numbers of CD34 cells and CD4 cells in HIV-infected patients. Furthermore, the fraction of naive CD4 cells increased. These findings have implications for the design of immunotherapy or gene therapy protocols.


HIGHLIGHTS
The D-value for machinery mold at 55°C was determined to be 0.99 min. Differences in thermoresistance was minimal between cultures of varying ages. A >5-log reduction was achieved by pressure treatments of 300 MPa for 90 s.


Reconstructing the diets of pinnipeds by visually identifying prey remains recovered in faecal samples is challenging because of differences in digestion and passage rates of hard parts. Analysing the soft‐matrix of faecal material using DNA‐based techniques is an alternative means to identify prey species consumed, but published techniques are largely nonquantitative, which limits their usefulness for some applications. We further developed and validated a real‐time PCR technique using species‐specific mitochondrial DNA primers to quantify the proportion of prey in the diets of Steller sea lions (Eumetopias jubatus), a pinniped species thought to be facing significant diet related challenges in the North Pacific. We first demonstrated that the proportions of prey tissue DNA in mixtures of DNA isolated from four prey species could be estimated within a margin of ∼12% of the percent in the mix. These prey species included herring Clupea palasii, eulachon Thaleichthyes pacificus, squid Loligo opalescens and rosethorn rockfish Sebastes helvomaculatus. We then applied real‐time PCR to DNA extracted from faecal samples obtained from Steller sea lions in captivity that were fed 11 different combinations of herring, eulachon, squid and Pacific ocean perch rockfish (Sebastes alutus), ranging from 7% to 75% contributions per meal (by wet weight). The difference between the average percentage estimated by real‐time PCR and the percentage of prey consumed was generally < 12% for all diets fed. Our findings indicate that real‐time PCR of faecal DNA can detect the approximate relative quantity of prey consumed for complex diets and prey species, including cephalopods and fish.


The minimalist approach of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (1982) ("UNCLOS"), a 163 member multilateral treaty sometimes known as the 'constitution of the oceans,' and in relevant respects, reflective of customary international law of the sea, allows for strong anti-immigration territorial sovereignty arguments in contravention of its rescue provisions. Because of the perceived need to tighten border security, and the actions of some European States to close borders entirely, it is necessary to reassert the binding nature of these rescue provisions in their traditional construction, as defined by their historical origins, to prevent wrongful infringement of the customary law of the sea's duty to rescue.


The repair of large bone defects requires major tissue filling which can not be assumed by a physiological process. Bone replacement assays do not lead to optimal bone healing. Mesenchymal Stem Cells (MSC) are multipotent cells that give rise to osteoblastic progenitors. An autologous usage of MSC may be a good option to bone graft as far as osteoblastic differentiation can be favor. Our goal was to identify genes involved in the commitment toward the osteogenic pathway. We performed transcriptomic analyses of dexamethasone-induced or non-induced MSC of human or murine origin. We showed that the co-transcription factor FHL2 induces MSC osteoblastic differentiation, and increases their osteogenic potential. Indeed, overexpression or silencing of FHL2 lead respectively to an increased or reduced expression of osteoblastic markers and in vitro/in vivo osteogenesis. We observed that FHL2 potentiates Wntfs effect by interacting with β-catenin and faciliting its nuclear translocation, which stimulates the transcription of TEC/LEF-dependent genes like Runx2. We also showed that an overexpression of integrin alphaS (ITGA5) markedly stimulates MSC osteoblastic differentiation and in vitro/in vivo osteogenesis. This anabolic effect involves ERK1/2 and PI3K pathways and the transcriptional activity of Runx2. An activation of ITGA5 by a specific antibody or an agonist peptide leads to the induction of osteoblastic markers expression and osteogenic potential of MSC. In summary, our data allowed the identification of new candidate genes which can favor the human MSC differentiation and in vitro or in vivo osteogenesis. This suggests new potential therapeutic options to stimulate bone repair.


Much study is required on how human behaviour affects resource consumption. Not only are Human Factors Engineers well equipped to study how to shape human behaviour, but contributors to conservation literature have asked for their involvement in the domain of energy conservation. This study took a novel, systematic, human-factors approach to providing feedback on energy consumption by testing the effects of providing three levels of feedback on conservation performance. The results showed that providing physical, functional, and task-based information aided performance more than physical information alone, but no more than providing physical and functional information together. More research is required to determine if physical and task information alone could achieve the same result, if study results would differ when two opposing task goals were given, and if the varying levels of feedback have a greater effect on novices.


How can organisations 'manage for integrity'?1 Two differing approaches have been called the compliance strategy and the integrity strategy. While the first seeks to instil compliance with externally imposed standards, the integrity strategy seeks to teach ethical decision-making and values as well, so that 'ethical thinking and awareness…[are]…part of every manager's mental equipment'. In this paper the Dutch consultant philosopher Hans Bolten reports on how Socratic dialogue has helped managers develop ethical capacities and responsibility. Drawing on research with dialogue members he concludes that organisations that care about ethics cannot rely on abstract moral codes and rules. He argues that they need Socratic dialogue as an instrument if their managers are to shape moral guidelines they both agree upon and can apply in practice. And he shows how dialogue can foster in managers the readiness to give an account of their actions, a readiness implicit in the idea of moral action itself. Thus Socratic dialogue can help create a culture in which morally accountable action is the rule, not the exception, and in which the responsibility to give an account of one's actions has its rightful place.2


Background: Heroin dependency is a globally problem. Objective: To explain the efficacy of low dose of clonidine, tizanidine and ibuprofen (NSAID) in the treatment of heroin dependency. Method: To evaluate a single case Results: Combination of clonidine 0.4 mg, tizanidine 8 mg and ibuprofen 800 mg per day is very effective in the management of heroin withdrawal symptoms and craving. Discussion: Our findings indicate that low dose of clonidine, tizanidine and ibuprofen (NSAID) is beneficial in the treatment of heroin dependency. This is a positive result. Conclusion: To the author's knowledge positive effects of combination of clonidine, tizanidine and ibuprofen in these situations have not been published yet, and this finding is an important addition to the literature.


Education quality improvement is key to higher education.There is a long way to go to improve the present situation.There are some problems in higher education,such as the opposition between the evaluation practice and the actual result.The paper puts forward some suggestion on improving the relation between education quality and education evaluation.


The separation of commercially available polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) by fast gas chromatography (fast GC) has been studied. Aroclor 1254 was separated by using two column types: DB-1 and SPB-608. The fast GC used a split–splitless injector to introduce the sample, followed by a cold trap at –90 °C to focus the sample. Rapid heating was used to introduce the sample into the short chromatographic column to decrease band broadening. Hydrogen was the carrier gas at velocities of 100 to 125 cm s–1. Analyses were performed by using an electron capture detector (ECD). Separation was achieved with both columns in less than 6 min. With the greatly shortened run times, reproducibility can be tested quickly and consequently with low cost.


The invention relates to a process for the production of photomasks. In this case, a film of a photoresist as used for the patterning of semiconductor substrates is applied to a substrate coated with chromium quartz glass substrate, for example a CARL resist. The photoresist layer is described with a focused electron beam, annealed and then developed. The now patterned resist is treated with an amplification and thus increased in etching resistance to an oxygen plasma. In etching the exposed portions of the chromium introduced into the photoresist silicon is converted into silicon dioxide which forms a protective layer on the chromium layer. This can be transferred to the chromium layer which registered with the electron structure loss.


In trying to answer the question in the title of my talk, I have argued on ground of naturalness that leptonic CP violation is very likely to exist both in the form of the Kobayashi-Maskawa type and the Majorana type phases. The latter part of the argument has to be backed up by a general argument by Yanagida which states that neutrinos must be Majorana particles because our universe is asymmetric with respect to baryon number. The argument is reviewed. Since the naturalness argument raises the possibility of naturally small theta_{13} and theta_{23} - pi/4, I discuss possible experimental methods for probing into these two small quantities. They include recent proposal of the resonant nu_e-bar absorption reaction enhanced by the M"ossbauer effect which may allow extremely high sensitivity for not only theta_{13} but also Delta m^2_{31}. The issue of how to resolve the theta_{23} octant degeneracy is briefly discussed with emphasis on the atmospheric neutrino observation and the reactor-accelerator combined methods.


Nempy is a python package for modelling the dispatch procedure of the Australian National Electricity Market (NEM). Electricity markets are a way of coordinating the supply of electricity by private firms. The NEM is a gross pool spot market that operates on 5 min dispatch basis (Australian Energy Market Operator, 2020). Described simply, this means all generators wishing to sell electricity must bid into the market every 5 minutes, market clearing proceeds by calculating the cheapest combination of generator operating levels to meet forecast demand at the end of the 5 minute dispatch interval. The price of electricity is set as the marginal cost of generation, which, under a simple market formulation, would be the cost of the next generation bid to be dispatched if demand for electricity were to increase. Real-world formulations require significant additional adjustment in order to manage the technical complexity of securely and reliably operating an electricity grid. For example, in the case of the NEM additional markets for ancillary services have been introduced. One set of ancillary markets that have been integrated into the market dispatch procedure are the Frequency Control Ancillary Services (FCAS) markets. In these markets generators compete to provide the ability to rapidly change generation levels in order to control the grid frequency. Nempy is flexible in that it allows for the formulation of very simple market models, for the formulation of market models of near realworld complexity, and at the various levels of intermediate complexity. Simple models can be constructed using just generator bids and electricity demand, so called bid stack models. More complete models can be constructed by using the inbuilt features to create multiple market regions, ramp rate limits, loss factors, FCAS markets, FCAS trapezium constraints, dynamic interconnector loss models, generic constraints and fast start dispatch inflexibility profiles. Outputs include market clearing prices, generator and scheduled load dispatch targets, FCAS enablement levels, unit FCAS availability levels, interconnector flows, interconnector losses and region net inflows. Nempy is written in Python 3, and uses a relatively small number of first-order dependencies; pandas (McKinney, 2010; The pandas development team, 2020), Numpy (Harris et al., 2020), MIP-Python (Santos & Toffolo, 2021), xmltodict (Blech, 2021), and Requests (Python Software Foundation, 2021).


Objective:To evaluate the clinical efficacy and safety of remifentanil combined propfol in infant anesthesia for minorsurgeries.Methods:48 infants undergoing minor surgeryies with were randomly divided into four groups,12 patients each group.The A group from 4-7 year old and Aa group from 8-12 year old were anesthetized by remifentanil combined with propfol.The B group from 4-7 year old and Bb group from 8-12 year old were anesthetized by remifentanil combined with ketamine.Anesthesia was maintained with 0.2 μg·kg-1·min-1 remifentanil combined with 4 mg·kg-1·min-1 propfol micropump infusion in group A and Aa,but in group B and Bb with 3 mg·kg-1·min-1 ketamine micro pump infusion.Hemodynamic parameters were observed continuously.Recovery time and anesthesia effects (evaluated by surgeon) were also analyzed.Results:SP,DP,HR and RR decreased after anesthesia,but all was in normal range.The RR and the time of analepsia and consciousness recovery of group A and Aa significantly decreased than group B and Bb (P0.05).The incidence rate of body action in operation and restlessness after operation of group A and Aa significantly decreased than group B and Bb (P0.05).Conclusion:Remifentanil combined with propfol in infant anaesthesia for minor surgeries,has the advantages such as stable vital signs during operation,rapid awake and low rate of adreuse reactions.


Journal of Environmental Science and Engineering, a monthly professional academic journal, covers all sorts of researches on environmental management and assessment, environmental monitoring, atmospheric environment, aquatic environment and municipal solid waste, etc.


Americans would like things to be better. According to public opinion surveys in recent years, everyone would like their child to have improved life chances at birth. They would prefer it if their wife or daughter had the same odds of surviving maternity as women in other advanced countries. They would appreciate full medical coverage at lower cost, longer life expectancy, better public services, and less crime.


Bag-of-Words is widely used to describe images for image classification. However, this approach is limited because the spatial relation over visual words is not well exploited and also it is difficult to generate a single comprehensive vocabulary. In this paper, we propose novel effective schemes to handle these two issues. First, we propose a structure propagation technique to build more reasonable co-occurrence matrices of visual words to exploit the spatial information, which assigns a higher weight to the co-occurrence over two patches that lie in the same object part. Second, we build the multiple-histogram representation over hierarchical vocabularies to avoid the ambiguity of single vocabulary, and particularly present a learning approach to combine the multiple histograms to integrate both within-vocabulary and cross-vocabulary information. We evaluate our proposed method using the Princeton sports event dataset. Compared to the state-of-the-art results, our proposed approach has shown promising results.


Anyone who enjoyed Patrick Deeley's assured first collection, Intimate Strangers, will find here more of the same, continuing particularly some of the concerns in the first part of that book.
The Stylized City offers selections from four earlier collections by John F. Deane, with revisions, and twenty nine new poems.
The flowering Tree is a good selection of twentieth-century poems in Irish with translations into English, given a generous introduction by declan Kiberd.
The Irish poems "of Faith and Doubt" gathered in The Cold Heaven are drawn from the last 170 years or so, but the nineteenth century is thinly represented - too much faith and not enough doubt, in public utterance at least.


A way to use super-capacitor as energy storage element to achieve regenerative braking energy recovery is presented, and the average model for the control circuit of the super-capacitor regenerative braking system is established based on fully analysis of the dynamic model of DC/DC full-bridge converter. The self-tuning fuzzy PID controller with the super-capacitor in charging/discharging states is designed according to the non-linear characteristics of the DC/DC converter. The simulation test shows that the self-tuning fuzzy PID controlled super-capacitor regenerative braking system is more effective than the gain PID control in increasing the driving current of the electric vehicle, improving its starting and accelerating performance, extending its driving range, particularly in improving its performance in responsive time and robustness.


Energy transport, in general, is governed by scattered and ballistic phonons in thin dielectric films. Ballistic phonon contributions become important when the film thickness is reduced. In the present study the influence of temperature disturbance on phonon transport characteristics in thin diamond films are examined. The time-dependent Boltzmann equation is incorporated for phonon transport in a two-dimensional diamond film. In order to assess ballistic phonon contribution to transport characteristics, a frequency-dependent solution is adopted in the analysis. Temperature pulsation at one edge of the film is considered to examine the film response to the temperature disturbance for various film thicknesses. It is found that ripples are formed on the equivalent equilibrium temperature curve, which is more pronounced in the near region of the high temperature edge. Ballistic phonons contribute significantly to the temperature rippling, and the phase shift is observed between the temperature ripples and the pulsation frequency of temperature at the film edge.


By exploiting the electrostatic interaction between positively charged 3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene cation radicals and negatively charged sulfonated graphene (SG) sheets, we prepared a poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene)-sulfonated graphene (SG-PEDOT) composite film by a one-step electrochemical process. The composite was further decorated with gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) and employed as an electrode material for the detection of L-cysteine (Cys). The SG-PEDOT composite film is shown to provide a rough surface for the electrodeposition of AuNPs and to improve substrate accessibility and interaction with Cys. Moreover, the AuNPs-decorated composite exhibits better electrocatalytic performance than that of a SG-PEDOT composite only. Under optimum experimental conditions, the amperometric current of the sensor is linearly related to the concentration of Cys in the 0.1 to 382 µM range, and the detection limit is 0.02 µM (at S/N=3). The modified electrode displays favorable selectivity, good stability and high reproducibility. The method was successfully applied to the detection of Cys in spiked human urine.


The authors present the concept, the components, and the programming environment of a multipurpose associative processor based on a microprogrammable cascadable slice-processor architecture. This processor can be applied in control applications, especially in real-time automotive control applications. The processor executes the instructions of a program in a sequential manner. However, the powerful associative instructions allow a parallel manipulation of stored data sets. Particular attention is given to the associative processor environment with its software development tools and languages. These software tools support an optimal specification of applications, which are defined on different abstraction levels.<<ETX>>


We investigate the Affleck-Dine mechanism when multiple flat directions simultaneously have large values. We consider in detail the case when both the LH u and the H u H d flat directions are operative with a nonrenormalizable superpotential. In the case where Hubble induced A terms are present for these two flat directions, their initial values are determined completely by the potential and there are no ambiguities in how they are mixed. Moreover, CP is violated even when the Hubble parameter is large due to the Hubble induced A term and a cross coupling of the F term, so that the lepton asymmetry is generated just after the end of inflation. As a result, compared with the case of a single flat direction, the resultant lepton-to-entropy ratio is enhanced by a factor of H osc /m 3/2 , where H osc is the Hubble parameter at the onset of oscillation of the flat direction and m 3/2 is the gravitino mass. However, when the Hubble induced A terms do not exist, there remains indefiniteness of initial phases and CP is violated spontaneously by the phase difference between the initial phases and the points of the minima of the hidden-sector induced A terms. Therefore, CP violation is not effective until the onset of the oscillation of the scalar fields around the origin and there is a suppression factor from thermal effects as in the case of a single flat direction. In this case, the amplitude of baryon isocurvature perturbations imposes constraints on the model parameters.


The invention discloses a method for preparing high-titanium iron by step-by-step metal thermal reduction, which comprises an aluminum thermal reduction smelting step and a reinforced reduction refining step, wherein the raw materials include rutile or high-titanium slag, aluminum powder, iron ore concentrate, slag forming agent and KClO3 in a mass ratio of 1.0: 0.37-0.50: 0.05-0.10: 0.15-0.25: 0.20-0.25, and the smelting temperature is 1,900 to 2,200 DEG C; the reinforced reduction refining time in the second step is 10 to 30 minutes, and after the refining is finished, a high-titanium iron alloy is obtained by cooling, ingot formation and impurity removal; and the composite reducing agent is calcium-magnesium alloy. The method has the advantages of wide raw material source and low production cost; the step-by-step reduction operations are adopted in the method, the reduction smelting of the first step is performed under the condition that the aluminum is insufficient, and the calcium-magnesium alloy composite reducing agent is adopted in the deoxidization refining of the second step, so the Al residue in the high-titanium iron alloy is remarkably reduced, and oxygen is effectively removed; and the transfer of high-temperature melt is realized by casting, and the metal slag separation process is reinforced.


the essential elements of voltage-controlled amplifier (VCA) and rms-level detector (RMS). Since writing this note, THAT has introduced several new models of Analog Engines, as well as new VCAs. With minor modifications, these newer ICs are generally applicable to the designs shown herein, and may offer advantages in performance, cost, power consumption, etc., depending on the design requirements. As well, a standalone RMS is available to complement our standalone VCAs. We encourage readers to consider the following alternatives in addition to the 4301: • Low supply voltage and power consumption: 4320 • Low cost, supply voltage, and power consumption: 4315 • Low cost and power consumption: 4305 • High-performance (VCA only): 2180-series, 2181-series • Dual (VCA only): 2162 • RMS (standalone): 2252 For more information about making these substitutions, please contact THAT Corporation's technical support group at email@example.com. The "One Knob Squeezer" THAT Corporation Design Note 125


1. Introduction 2. What Performance Matters Most: Performance Optimization Retools Work Analysis 3. How Portfolio Diversification Can Retool Talent Scenarios 4. How Consumer Research Can Retool Talent Supply Strategies 5. How Inventory Optimization Reveals Strategic Talent Shortages and Surpluses 6. Retooling The Talent Lifecycle With Workforce Logistics 7. Retooled HR ! From Risk-Minimizing Administrator to a Risk-Optimizing Partner


An energy-efficient sensor deployment algorithm is developed in this paper for improving coverage in a network of mobile sensors with nonidentical sensing ranges. The proposed strategy iteratively computes the desirable position of each sensor in the field based on existing coverage holes. These holes are obtained using an additively weighted Voronoi (AW- Voronoi) diagram. The sensors move in their AW- Voronoi regions such that the coverage holes in the network become as small as possible. Simulation results demonstrate the efficacy of the proposed strategy and its superiority to existing algorithms which utilize multiplicatively weighted Voronoi and Voronoi-Laguree diagrams.


We study the possibility of discovering neutral scalar Higgs bosons in the U(1)-extended supersymmetric standard model (USSM) at the CERN Large Hadron Collider (LHC), by examining their productions via the exotic-quark loop in the gluon-fusion process at leading order. It is possible in some parameter region that the neutral scalar Higgs bosons may have stronger couplings with the exotic quarks than with top quarks. In this case, the exotic quarks may contribute more actively than top quarks in production of the neutral scalar Higgs bosons in the gluon-fusion process. We find that there is indeed some parameter region in the USSM that support our speculations.


ABSTRACT Leonardo da Vinci probably did not consider the possibility of realizing images with real movement. Many centuries later, however, the author's father, Luciano Emmer, had the idea of reinterpreting the images of the famous artist and scientist using the technique of cinema.


The abrupt changes in the linear expansion and dilatometric measurements of poly-(ethylene terephthalate) near 70°C indicate that the transition may be first order. DTA and DSC data show the normal heat capacity change at 70°C, while annealing for for 30 min. at 110°C induces further molecular order. Rapid quenching of PET after heating to 120°C yields an amorphous sample and measurement by depolarized light transmission as the sample is reheated shows rapid crystallization occurring near 80°C. With the occurrence of shrinkage near 68°C and apparent recrystallization at slow heating rates by depolarized light analyses, further support is added to the first-order character of this phase transition. Isothermal annealing for short times at temperatures between 50°C and 80°C produces further increases in molecular order. Cyclic and linear PET oligomers do not contribute to the occurrence of the 70°C transition.


SUMMARY In this paper, we report an ordered selfassembly of protein with super long-acting performance as therapeutic agents, which is featured by spherical semicrystalline different from the traditional ones reported. The formation involved co-homogeneous nucleation of therapeutic protein and subsequently growth into three-dimensional structure guided by a polycationic short peptide. The dependence of release behaviors in vitro and in vivo on the cocrystallization ratio provides a therapeutically useful way, yet that is structurally innocuous enough to preserve the pharmacological activity of the parent molecule. To the best of our knowledge, this research provides the first trial to formulate the protein into spherical ordered self-assemblies and apply them for therapeutic use. INTRODUCTION It is a challenging and important project to prolong the in vivo half life of protein and peptide drugs by physicochemical methods without new molecular entities generation. Among the possible strategies to achieve the goal, such as biodegradable polymer depots and polyethylene glycol conjugates, the selfassembly aggregates of biomacromolecules provide us a promising alternative for controllable delivery of therapeutic proteins. Compared with their soluble or amorphous forms, the ordered self-assemblies can protect the physical, chemical and biological integrity of therapeutic proteins in the lattice structure during processing, upon storage and after drug release. Depending on progress parameters, such as seeding concentration, temperature, pH and so on, the protein self-assemblies may possess varied dissolution characteristics which make the possibility of variable release of the therapeutic agents for an effective duration without any other carrier materials used. Thus the biomacromolecules based ordered selfassemblies may offer the comparable delivery efficacy and should not present any safety issues raised by the common capsulation vehicles from synthetic or native materials. Moreover, the simplicity and mildness of the self-assembly process indicate the potential labor and cost advantages over the conventional delivery systems. EXPERIMENTAL METHODS The conditions with various self-assemblies of rhIFN obtained were identified by a batch crystallization method. A polycationic peptide was co-assembled for manipulating release behaviors. The prepared spherical selfassemblies of rhIFN were characterized by morphology, particle size, X-ray diffraction, circular dichroism and biological potency evaluations. Moreover, their dissolution in vitro and plasma pharmacokinetics in vivo were investigated. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION The spherical self-assemblies of rhIFN with high yield of 80-85% were obtained at 4°C after 48h seeding. Optical microscopy with crossed polarizer revealed that there exist "Maltesecross" patterns in the spherical self-assemblies as feature of ordered crystalline structures. Figure 1. Typical optical microscopic images of rhIFN spherical ordered self-assemblies with (A,1.7 molar ratio) and without (B) protamine viewed between crossed polarizers. Scale bar in


The invention belongs to the technical field of medicines and relates to a pharmaceutical composition for treatment of gastric cancer and application of the pharmaceutical composition for treatment of gastric cancer. The pharmaceutical composition for treatment of gastric cancer is provided to overcome technical defects of strong side effects and poor efficacies of existing medicines for treating gastric cancer and is composed of lenvatinib and rhein. The two medicinal active components have a remarkable synergistic effect on inhibition of in-vivo proliferation of human gastric cancer MGC-803.


Lakum (Cayratia trifolia ) is a wild plant which is classified into the Family Vitaceae. The use of lakum (C. trifolia) by ethnic Malays in Sungai Kunyit, Mempawah Regency has not been documented. This research aims to find out parts of the plant used, form and way of using lakum (C. trifolia) by ethnic Malays in Sungai Kunyit Subidstrict. The research was conducted in Sungai Kunyit for seven months from May to November 2015. Data were collected using interviews. The respondents or informants were determined using a purposive sampling technique. The total number of respondents was 33. There are three parts of lakum (C. trifolia) commonly used by Ethnic Malays, i.e. leaf (PPV = 0.185), stem (PPV = 0.032), and fruit (PPV = 0.782). Ethnic Malays often use the leaves as medicinal herb for swelling, ulcer and headache (IUV = 0.304), and the fruit is often used as seasoning (IUV = 0.52). the stems are only used as ropes (IUV = 1). The ways ethnic Malays in Sungai Kunyit use lakum (C. trifolia) are by boiling and mashing it. It is also used without processing.