CERN Document Server

We describe a large class of chemical reaction networks, those endowed with a subtle structural property called concordance. We show that the class of concordant networks coincides precisely with the class of networks which, when taken with any weakly monotonic kinetics, invariably give rise to kinetic systems that are injective --- a quality that, among other things, precludes the possibility of switch-like transitions between distinct positive steady states. We also provide persistence characteristics of concordant networks, instability implications of discordance, and consequences of stronger variants of concordance. Some of our results are in the spirit of recent ones by Banaji and Craciun, but here we do not require that every species suffer a degradation reaction. This is especially important in studying biochemical networks, for which it is rare to have all species degrade.

Science.gov (United States)

In neurodegenerative conditions such as Alzheimer's and prion disease it has been shown that host genetic background can have a significant effect on susceptibility. Indeed, human genome-wide association studies (GWAS) have implicated several candidate genes. Understanding such genetic susceptibility is relevant to risks of developing variant CJD (vCJD) in populations exposed to bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) and understanding mechanisms of neurodegeneration. In mice, aspects of prion disease susceptibility can be modelled by examining the incubation period following experimental inoculation. Quantitative trait linkage studies have already identified multiple candidate genes; however, it is also possible to take an individual candidate gene approach. Rarb and Stmn2 were selected as candidates based on the known association with vCJD. Because of the increasing overlap described between prion and Alzheimer's diseases we also chose Clu, ...

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Variant alleles of the mannose binding lectin (MBL) gene are associated with increased susceptibility to infection and polymorphisms of tumour necrosis factor and lymphotoxin alpha genes (TNF, LTA)...Full Text Available

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BackgroundVariant Creutzfeldt–Jakob disease (vCJD) is a prion disease thought to be acquired by the consumption of prion-contaminated beef products. To date, over 200 cases...Full Text Available

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Structural variants which cause changes in copy numbers constitute an important component of genomic variability. They account for 0.7% of genomic differences in two individual genomes, of which...Full Text Available

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Udgivelsesdato: March

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The authors report an effort to determine the basis for the altered migration of seven inherited albumin variants detected by one-dimensional electrophoresis in population surveys involving tribal Amerindians and Japanese children. An amino acid substitution has thus far been determined for four of the variants. The randomness in the albumin polypeptide of these and the other sixteen independently ascertained amino acid substitutions of albumin and proalbumin thus far established was analyzed; the clustering of eight of these at two positions in the six-amino acid propeptide sequence seems noteworthy. By comparison with other proteins studied by electrophoresis, albumin exhibits average variability. It is a paradox that individuals who, for genetic reasons, lack albumin exhibit no obvious ill effects; yet, electrophoretic variants of albumin are no more numerous than are variants of proteins, the ...

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A review is made of some recent developments in the application of the Bohr Hamiltonian to transitional nulcei. The primary concern is to understand the advantages and limitations inherent to the basic model and its many variants. (author).

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... which may have embedded remote terminals, and (4 ... model the time-variant or stochastic aspects of ... on such system parameters as queue size, time ...

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A single Klebsiella pneumoniae strain isolated in a Bulgarian hospital was found to produce CTX-M-71, a new CTX-M variant characterized by one amino acid substitution...Full Text Available

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Surveys of the antigenic properties of a wide range of variants of the H3N2 (Hong Kong) influenza virus subtype have revealed complex patterns of variants cocirculating during each of the main epidemic...Full Text Available

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The Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) is a public health agency with responsibility for assessing the public health implications associated with uncontrolled releases of hazardous...Full Text Available

CERN Document Server

The study of quantum walk process has been widely divided into the two standard variants, the discrete-time quantum walk (DTQW) and the continuous-time quantum walk (CTQW). The connection between the two variants has been established by considering limiting value of the coin operation parameter in the DTQW and the coin degree of freedom is show to be unnecessary [26]. But the coin degree of freedom is an additional resource which can be exploited to control the dynamics of the QW process. In this paper we present a generic quantum walk (QW) model using a quantum coin-embedded unitary shift operation U_{C}. The standard version of the DTQW and the CTQW can be conveniently retrieved from this generic model retaining the features of the coin degree of freedom in both the variants.

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Udgivelsesdato: APR

KoreaScience (Korea)

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PMID:16049230

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We showed recently that secretion of glutamate in biotin-limited cells of Corynebacterium glutamicum is mediated by carrier systems in the plasma membrane (C. Hoischen and R. Kr�e4;mer, Arch. Microbiol....Full Text Available

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179 cognitively healthy adults enrolled in the Sun Health Brain Donation program between 7/91 and 12/07 were at least 60 years old and nondemented at the time of death (21 had developed mild...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

The Ty transposable elements of Saccharomyces cerevisiae form a heterogeneous family within which two broad structural classes (I and II) exist. The two classes differ by two large substitutions and...Full Text Available

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The hemagglutinin (HA) glycoprotein of influenza virus performs two critical roles during infection: it binds virus to cell surface sialic acids, and under mildly acidic conditions it induces fusion...Full Text Available

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The influence of high temperature thermal ageing treatments on the development of intercrystalline creep damage in two variants of Alloy 800 has been investigated. Ageing up to 3000 h and creep testing were carried out at 800 and 900 C. The high temperature behaviour of the 800HT variant is discussed with reference to the effect of heat treatments on the microstructure. The metallographic methods by which the creep damage was quantitatively determined are described. The growth rate of intercrystalline microcracks was described using a statistical model and the dependence of crack growth rate on the thermal history for both 800HT and 800H was determined. The carbide precipitation and growth processes were determined as functions of the exposure temperature and duration. The results showed the three characteristic stages, precipitation, growth and coarsening (Ostwald ripening). The largest increase in the intergranular creep damage was found in ...

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Photosynthetic (Ps) electron transport pathways often contain multiple electron carriers with overlapping functions. Here we focus on two c-type cytochromes (cyt) in facultative phototrophic...Full Text Available

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The properties of an atypical Brucella strain isolated from lymph node tissue of a cow slaughtered as a brucellosis reactor were examined. The organism was Gram negative and highly pleomorphic, existing...Full Text Available

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In a follow-up to our previously reported genome-wide association study of cutaneous basal cell carcinoma (BCC)1, we describe here several new susceptibility...Full Text Available

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PurposeThe size of neuronal populations is modulated by gene variants that influence cell production and survival, in turn influencing neuronal connectivity, function,...Full Text Available

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Human erythrocyte glucose-6-phosphate is normally quite stable in the presence of 10 #mu#M NADP"+. Certain glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase variants lose virtually all their activity at this concentration of NADP"+ but are reactivated by 200 #mu#M NADP"+. Such variants presumably have a defect in their NADP"+-binding site. The authors analyzed the sequence of cDNA or genomic DNA from seven unrelated patients with hemolytic anemia due to the inheritance of variants that are reactivated by NADP"+. Six patients had substitutions of one of three adjacent amino acids, and the seventh patient had another amino acid substitution 23 residues downstream. These amino acids are highly conserved, all being present in rat and all but one being found also in Drosophila. The anomalous electrophoretic behavior of some of the variants can be explained by their loss of ability to bind NADP"+. The conclude that the ...

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Pseudoaneurysms related to the superior mesenteric artery (SMA) are a recognised complication of trauma to the vessel, and successful treatment with stenting has been previously described. We report...Full Text Available

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Dedifferentiated liposarcoma (DDLPS) is a variant of liposarcoma but with a more aggressive course. It occurs most commonly in the retroperitoneum and rarely in any other anatomical location. We describe...Full Text Available

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The complete nucleotide sequences of two alleles of cellobiose dehydrogenase, cdh-1 (3,627 bp) and cdh-2 (3,623 bp), from Phanerochaete chrysosporium OGC101 are reported. The nucleotide sequences of...Full Text Available

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BackgroundBlue nevi that arise from the Müllerian tract are rare melanocytic lesions. Several histopathologic variants of cellular blue nevi have been described. The angiomatoid...Full Text Available

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A comparative study has been carried out of the growth of two lines of Datura innoxia (Mill.) cells, designated DI-6 and NR1, their resistance to chlorate, and their ability to assimilate...Full Text Available

Science.gov (United States)

A plethora of experimental studies use mtDNA as a marker of demographic processes without questioning the possibility that selection may bias their interpretations. We studied four lines of Drosophila melanogaster that have a standardized nuclear DNA but variable mtDNA. We completed the sequencing of the mitochondrial genomes (excluding the A+T rich region) and compiled the differences. We then assayed male influence on oviposition, starvation resistance, lipid proportion and physical activity. We discuss these results in terms of the known differences between the lines and conclude that naturally occurring mtDNA variants in D. melanogaster are expressed at the level of the organismal phenotype. PMID:21757031

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The mouth is an obvious portal of entry to the body, and oral health reflects and influences general health and well being. Maternal oral health has significant implications for birth outcomes and infant...Full Text Available

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The 7 conference papers in Vol. 9 review the implications of environmental problems and discuss the consequences of pollution abatement measures, especially for the economics of energy conversion. The future developments of pollutant emissions are assessed.

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... Possessing the unique perspective of space, space-based weapons can immediately ... A weapon system with enough space-based platforms at ...

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In this study the results of mathematical simulation and experimental research of texture transition in stress assisted shear phase transformations are discussed. The orientation distribution function (ODF) calculation model to the any type crystalline lattice symmetry materials has been suggested. By crystalline lattice symmetry analysis this computer program determines necessary amount of the initial experimental data. The experimental verification supports this model well. The ODF calculation model after shear phase transformation with equal use of all possible variants of orientation relationship or with various degrees of variant selection worked out. In this study the experimental and calculating data of the direct and reversal shear transformations #alpha# <=> #gamma# in Fe-alloys and B2 <=> B19' in Ti-Ni alloys are discussed. The stress assisted shear phase transformation model and computer program to calculate ODF after ...

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The non-perturbative validity of covariant BRST-quantization of gauge theories on compact Euclidean space-time manifolds is reviewed. BRST-quantization is related to the construction of a Topological Quantum Field Theory (TQFT) of Witten type on the gauge group. The criterion for the non-perturbative validity of the quantization is that the partition function of the corresponding TQFT does not vanish and that its (equi-variant) BRST-algebra is free of anomalies. I sketch the construction of a TQFT whose partition function is proportional to the generalized Euler-characteristic of the coset space S U (n){sub gauge} / SU(n){sub global} with an associated equi-variant BRST-algebra that manifestly preserves translational symmetry. Some non-perturbative consequences of this approach are discussed. (author)

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The extent to which the effect of risk factors on cognitive ageing is dependent on APOE ε4 remains unclear. The objective of this study is to examine whether APOE ε4 allele modifies...Full Text Available

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Gastrin and its carboxyl-terminal homolog cholecystokinin (CCK) exert a variety of biological actions in the brain and gastrointestinal tract that are mediated in part through one or more G protein-coupled...Full Text Available

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Attempts to synthesize YPd[sub 2]Si-type representatives LnPd[sub 2]Al were successful only with Ln triple bond Ce, Pr, Nd. This orthorhombic structure (oP16; space group Pnma) is an ordered variant of the Fe[sub 3]C type. Only NdPd[sub 2]Al undergoes magnetic ordering above 2 K. (orig.)

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BackgroundSelection of hepatitis B virus (HBV) by host immunity has been suggested to give rise to variants with amino acid substitutions at or around the 'a' determinant...Full Text Available

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It is demonstrated that normal pitting can occur during oxidizing conditions in the repository. It is also concluded that a new theory for pitting corrosion has to be developed, as the present theory is not in accordance with all practical and experimental observations. A special variant of pitting, based on the growth of sulfide whiskers, is suggested to occur during reducing conditions. However, such a mechanism needs to be demonstrated experimentally. A simple calculational model of canister corrosion was developed based on the results of this study. 69 refs, 3 figs.

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Among important candidates for babesial vaccines are apical complex proteins, including rhoptry-associated protein 1 (RAP-1) from Babesia bovis and B. bigemina, which...Full Text Available

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Sphingomonas paucimobilis B90A contains two variants, LinA1 and LinA2, of a dehydrochlorinase that catalyzes the first and second steps in the metabolism of hexachlorocyclohexanes (R....Full Text Available

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BackgroundTrisomic variants of human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) arise spontaneously in culture. Although trisomic hESCs share many properties with diploid hESCs, they also exhibit...Full Text Available

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Case-parent trios were used in a genome wide association study of cleft lip with/without cleft palate (CL/P). SNPs near two genes not previously associated with CL/P [MAFB:...Full Text Available

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Mitochondrial dysfunction has been implicated in premature aging, age-related diseases, and tumor initiation and progression. Alterations of the mitochondrial genome accumulate both in aging tissue...Full Text Available

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... In a HEAO 1 study of active galaxies, principally Seyfert 1s, in the 2, 165 keV energy range, Rothschild et al. ... As discussed by Rothschild et al. ...

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sive star evolution based on our new calculations of this pulsational instability, where the initial mass of SNe progenitors increases according to the ...

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This dissertation is devoted to the study of the phenomenological consequences of the three-generation heterotic string models based on the Calabi-Yau compactifications and the N = 2 superconformal constructions.

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BackgroundFloating knee injuries are usually associated with other significant injuries. Do these injuries have implications on the management of the floating knee and the final...Full Text Available

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Periodontitis is an infectious process characterized by inflammation affecting the supporting structures of the teeth. Porphyromonas gingivalis is a major oral bacterial species implicated...Full Text Available

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Phosphorylation is one of the most frequent modifications in intracellular signaling and is implicated in many processes ranging from transcriptional control to signal transduction in innate immunity....Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

Although coagulase-negative staphylococci (C-NS) have been implicated in certain human infections, they are generally regarded as contaminants, and their clinical significance is questioned. To assess...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

The synapsin III gene, SYN3, which belongs to the family of synaptic vesicle-associated proteins, has been implicated in the modulation of neurotransmitter...Full Text Available

Environmental Research Database

DescriptionThis Studentship will focus on the implications of material nutrition and health for reproduction in green turtles, and specifically the role played by dietary carotenoids.

Environmental Research Database

DescriptionNanotechnology is rapidly expanding, and is forecast to become a trillion dollar industry in the near future. It is inevitable that as nanotechnology applications increase, increasing amounts of manufactured nanoparticles (mNPs) will be released into the environment. The environmental and human health implications of the release of most of the huge range of possible particle types are as yet largely unknown, but in the context of groundwaters, apart from implications for the drinking of contam [continued...

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We evaluated the similarities between ozone-induced and mite-induced emission of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) from lima beans, and tested the response of the natural enemies of herbivores to these emissions using trophic system of two-spotted spider mites and predatory mites. The acute ozone-exposure and spider mite-infestation induced the emission of two homoterpenes, (E)-4,8-dimethyl-1,3,7-nonatriene and (E,E)-4,8,12-trimethyl-1,3,7,11-tridecatetraene, and (Z)-3-hexenyl acetate. Only plants with spider mite-infestation emitted the monoterpene (E)-{beta}-ocimene. Predatory mites were equally attracted to ozone-exposed and unexposed plants, but discriminated between spider mite-infested and uninfested plants, when both were exposed to ozone. The similarities between ozone and herbivore-induced VOCs suggest that plant defence against phytotoxic ozone and the production of VOCs for attraction of the ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Protocols were standardized for in vitro propagation of several elite and diverse banana accessions using shoot tip explants. Tissue culture raised plants were field planted at multiple locations. Studies were undertaken for the induction of mutations using multiple shoot cultures of six selected cultivars, Shreemanti (AAA), Basrai (AAA), Lal Kela (AAA), Rasthali (AAB), Karibale Monthan (ABB) and a wild diploid (BB). These shoot cultures were irradiated at different doses of gamma rays (0-100 Gy) and subcultured thrice (up to M_1V_3) to separate shimeras, followed by induction of rooting (M_1V_4). In general, the rate of multiplication had a negative association with the dose of gamma rays. Enhanced multiplication of shoots was noticed at lower doses. The proliferation of shoots was arrested beyond 50 Gy and a dose of 70 Gy was completely lethal for all the genotypes studied. The rooted plantlets were hardened in the green house and in the early stages of field growth, a few ...

CERN Document Server

In this paper we have investigated the performance of PSO Particle Swarm Optimization based clustering on few real world data sets and one artificial data set. The performances are measured by two metric namely quantization error and inter-cluster distance. The K means clustering algorithm is first implemented for all data sets, the results of which form the basis of comparison of PSO based approaches. We have explored different variants of PSO such as gbest, lbest ring, lbest vonneumann and Hybrid PSO for comparison purposes. The results reveal that PSO based clustering algorithms perform better compared to K means in all data sets.

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

A 60-year-old male was bitten by a venomous snake (Vipera ammodytes) and gradually developed signs of an allergic reaction including generalized itching, generalized rash, and chest discomfort. This was followed by severe retrosternal pain with electrocardiographic evidence of an inferior myocardial ischemia progressing to acute myocardial infarction. Cardiac enzymes and troponin, serum tryptase, and histamine were elevated. Coronary arteriography showed normal coronary arteries. This is a characteristic type I variant of Kounis syndrome, which is the concurrence of acute coronary syndromes with conditions associated with mast cell activation including allergic or hypersensitivity reactions as well as anaphylactic or anaphylactoid reactions. This is the first report to show that viper bite...

CERN Document Server

This largely expository paper first gives an introduction to Hilbert stability and its use in Gieseker's GIT construction of $\\overline{M}_g$. Then I review recent work in this area--variants for unpointed curves that arise in Hassett's log minimal model program, starting with Schubert's moduli space of pseudostable curves, and constructions for weighted pointed stable curves and for pointed stable maps due to Swinarski and to Baldwin and Swinarski respectively. The focus is on the steps at which new ideas are needed. Finally, I list open problems in the area, particularly some arising in the log minimal model program that seem inaccessible to current techniques.

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The cubature Kalman filter (CKF) is a relatively new addition to derivative-free approximate Bayesian filters built under the Gaussian assumption. This paper extends the CKF theory to address nonlinear smoothing problems; the resulting state estimator is named the fixed-interval cubature Kalman smoother (FI-CKS). Moreover, the FI-CKS is reformulated to propagate the square-root error covariances. Although algebraically equivalent to the FI-CKS, the square-root variant ensures reliable implementation when committed to embedded systems with fixed precision or when the inference problem itself is ill-conditioned. Finally, to validate the formulation, the square-root FI-CKS is applied to track a ballistic target on reentry.

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A study conducted at the IHS had the aim to obtain basic information on whether it is possible to build flow turbines following the free jet principle that are on a par with, or superior to, the conventional design, especially in terms of performance and the efficiency curve. Several inflow contours with a ventilated free jet and a conventional flow turbine were studied. The direct comparison of these variants revealed a slightly enhanced peak load efficiency and a very distinct superiority of the free jet contour during partial load. But the efficiency of all variants failed to attain the values claimed by commercial manufacturers. As compared to the initial contour, peak load efficiency was enhanced by 5 per cent. During partial load, the variants studied showed a distinct superiority of the free jet concept over the contour of conventional flow turbines. (orig.) [Deutsch] Am IHS wurde eine Untersuchung mit dem Ziel ...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

Aim To determine the fate and clinical implication of large (?2cm), non-hypervascular nodules depicted on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in the cirrhotic liver. Materials and methods In 21 patients with cirrhosis (14 hepatitis B, two ethanol abuse, four cryptogenic, one Wilson's disease), 25 large (?2cm in the longest dimension) non-hypervascular nodules were identified on dynamic MRI. The implications for diagnosis of the initial size, contour, and signal characteristics on MRI in addition to patients' age and cause of cirrhosis were assessed in our analysis. Results Twelve (75%) out of 16 lesions were malignant or potentially-malignant from 14 hepatitis B patients, while seven (78%) of the nine lesions from other patients were benign (p=0.016). The mean age of the patients who ha...

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

The phosphatidylinositol pathway is implicated in the regulation of numerous cellular functions and responses to extracellular signals. An important branching point in the pathway is the phosphorylation...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

Transient receptor potential (TRP) ion channels have been implicated in detecting chemical, thermal and mechanical stimuli in organisms ranging from mammals to Caenorhabditis elegans....Full Text Available

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Objective To establish current practice in the use of Read codes for diabetes.Design Cross sectional study.Setting 17 practices in the Battersea...Full Text Available

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In a "nutrition transition", the consumption of foods high in fats and sweeteners is increasing throughout the developing world. The transition, implicated in the rapid rise of obesity and diet-related...Full Text Available

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In addition to the well documented role of cytokines in mediating tissue-level interactions, it is now clear that matrix macromolecules fulfil a complementary regulatory function. Data highlighted in...Full Text Available

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Memory consolidation requires transcription and translation of new protein. Arc, an effector immediate early gene, and zif268, a regulatory transcription factor, have been implicated in synaptic plasticity...Full Text Available

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PurposeHeavy metals and other forms of oxidative stress have been implicated as key factors in the formation of age-related cataract in humans. Metallothioneins are...Full Text Available

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Mouse genetic resources include inbred strains, recombinant inbred lines, chromosome substitution strains, heterogeneous stocks, and the Collaborative Cross (CC). These resources were generated through...Full Text Available

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The target of rapamycin (TOR) pathway regulates cell growth and aging in various organisms. In Saccharomyces cerevisiae, silent information regulator 2 (Sir2) modulates cellular senescence. Moreover,...Full Text Available

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What do we mean when we say that a mental condition is a medical disorder rather than a normal form of human suffering or a problem in living? The status of psychiatry as a medical discipline depends...Full Text Available

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Anthocyanins are flavonoid pigments that accumulate in the large central vacuole of most plants. Inside the vacuole, anthocyanins can be found uniformly distributed or as part of sub-vacuolar pigment...Full Text Available

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No abstract prepared.

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The proliferation of stem cell research, conflated with its ethical and moral implications, has led governments to attempt regulation of both the science and funding of stem cells. Due to a diversity...Full Text Available

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1. Miniature end-plate potentials (m.e.p.p.s) were intra- and extracellularly recorded from neuromuscular junctions in rat phrenic nerve—diaphragm preparations in vitro....Full Text Available

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BackgroundUnderstanding the interactions between ion channels and blockers remains an important goal that has implications for delineating the basic mechanisms of ion channel function...Full Text Available

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BackgroundMagnetic Resonance Imaging scanners have become ubiquitous in hospitals and high-field systems (greater than 3 Tesla) are becoming increasingly common. In light of recent...Full Text Available

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The etiology of major depression remains unknown, but dysfunction of serotonergic signaling has long been implicated in the pathophysiology of this disorder. p11 is an S100 family member recently...Full Text Available

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That regulatory T cells (Tregs) have a crucial role in controlling allergic diseases such as asthma is now undisputed. The cytokines most commonly implicated in Treg-mediated suppression of...Full Text Available

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IntroductionRecent Food and Drug Administration legislation enables the mandating of product performance standards for cigarette smoke and the evaluation of manufacturers’...Full Text Available

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A pore-forming peptide is implicated in the potent cytolytic activity of pathogenic Entamoeba histolytica. Using NH2-terminal sequence information of this peptide, the corresponding cDNA was isolated....Full Text Available

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Human longevity is in part genetically determined, and the insulin/IGF-1 signal transduction (IIS) pathway has consistently been implicated. In humans, type 2 diabetes is a frequent disease that results...Full Text Available

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OBJECTIVENicotinamide adenine dinucleotides (NAD⁺ and NADH) play a crucial role in cellular energy metabolism, and a dysregulated NAD⁺-to-NADH ratio is implicated...Full Text Available

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SummaryPAS domains sense oxygen, redox potential and light, and are implicated in behavior, circadian rhythmicity, development and metabolic regulation. Although PAS domains are...Full Text Available

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Neutral endopeptidase 24.11 (NEP, CD10) is a cell-surface enzyme expressed by prostatic epithelial cells that cleaves and inactivates neuropeptides implicated in the growth of androgen-independent prostate...Full Text Available

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BackgroundThe precise mechanisms involved in the initiation and progression of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) are not known. Early stages of RA often have non-specific symptoms, delaying...Full Text Available

Science.gov (United States)

The discussion of energy usage falls naturally into three parts. The first is a review of what the problem is, the second is a description of steps that can be taken to conserve energy at existing facilities, and the third is a review of the implications of energy consumption on future facilities.

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There has been great interest in understanding the methods by which collagen-based load-bearing tissue is constructed, grown and maintained in vertebrate animals. To date, the responsibility for this...Full Text Available

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Over the last two centuries, there has been a significant increase in average lifespan expectancy in the developed world. One unambiguous clinical implication of getting older is the risk of experiencing...Full Text Available

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To determine the mechanism of the cardiac dilatation and reduced contractility of obese Zucker Diabetic Fatty rats, myocardial triacylglycerol (TG) was assayed chemically and morphologically. TG was...Full Text Available

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The receptors for IGF-I (IGF-IR) and insulin (IR) have been implicated in physiological cardiac growth, but it is unknown whether IGF-IR or IR signaling are critically required. We generated mice with...Full Text Available

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BackgroundApproximately 80% of all new HIV-1 infections are acquired through sexual contact. Currently, there is no clinically approved microbicide, indicating a clear and...Full Text Available

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Infections have been implicated in the pathogenesis of a number of autoimmune diseases, and Yersinia enterocolitica (YE) might play a role in the development of autoimmune thyroid disease...Full Text Available

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Sauropod dinosaurs, the dominant herbivores throughout the Jurassic, challenge general rules of large vertebrate herbivory. With body weights surpassing those of any other megaherbivore, they relied...Full Text Available

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IntroductionPrevious observations suggest that active systemic juvenile idiopathic arthritis (sJIA) is associated with a prominent erythropoiesis gene-expression signature. The aim...Full Text Available

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The hyaluronic acid capsule of Streptococcus uberis has been implicated in conferring resistance to phagocytosis by bovine neutrophils. Construction of a bank of random insertion mutants...Full Text Available

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The content of guanine+cytosine varies markedly along the chromosomes of homeotherms and great effort has been devoted to studying this heterogeneity and its biological implications. Already...Full Text Available

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BackgroundHuman Papillomavirus (HPV) E2 plays several important roles in the viral cycle, including the transcriptional regulation of the oncogenes E6 and E7, the regulation of the...Full Text Available

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The continued evolution of bacterial pathogens has major implications for both human and animal disease, but the exchange of genetic material between host-restricted pathogens is rarely considered....Full Text Available

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BackgroundEpidemiological studies showed that physical exercise, specifically moderate lifelong training, is protective against cardiovascular morbidity and mortality. Most experimental...Full Text Available

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BackgroundLeukotrienes (LTs) belong to the large family of lipid mediators implicated in various inflammatory conditions such as asthma and rheumatoid arthritis. Four distinct types...Full Text Available

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BackgroundObesity has reached epidemic proportions in the United States. It is implicated in the development of a variety of chronic disease states and is associated with increased...Full Text Available

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Purpose.To determine the effects of vasodilators on intraocular pressure (IOP) and the protein content of sheep aqueous humor (AH), because the vasodilators may increase fluid leakage...Full Text Available

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Molecular life science is one of the fastest-growing fields of scientific and technical innovation, and biotechnology has profound effects on many aspects of daily life—often with deep, ethical...Full Text Available

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Several Bartonella species have now been implicated as human pathogens. The recovery of these fastidious organisms in the clinical microbiology laboratory remains difficult, and current...Full Text Available

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The worldwide decline in honeybee colonies during the past 50 years has often been linked to the spread of the parasitic mite Varroa destructor and its interaction with certain honeybee...Full Text Available

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Details of ion transporting abnormalities in cystic fibrosis airway epithelium are now known. The central hypothesis, that excessive drying of the airway surfaces is a primary event that leads to all...Full Text Available

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Since polyglutamine (polyQ) aggregate formation has been implicated as playing an important role in expanded CAG repeat diseases, it is important to understand the biophysics underlying the...Full Text Available

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Objective: Hamstring injuries can be quite debilitating and often result in chronic problems. Eccentric muscle actions are often the last line of defense against muscle injury...Full Text Available

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Our understanding of the development of neurotransmitter systems in the central nervous system has increased greatly over the past three decades and it has become apparent that drug effects...Full Text Available

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BackgroundMultiple sclerosis (MS) is the endpoint of a complex and still poorly understood process which results in inflammation, demyelination and axonal and neuronal degeneration....Full Text Available

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Approximately 20% to 30% of patients who undergo coronary arteriography for the evaluation of chest pain are found to have normal coronary arteries. These patients have a survival rate comparable to...Full Text Available

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Growing evidences indicate that proteases are implicated in adipogenesis and in the onset of obesity. We previously reported that the cysteine protease cathepsin K (ctsk) is overexpressed in the white...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

Although salamanders are characteristic amphibians in Holarctic temperate habitats, in tropical regions they have diversified evolutionarily only in tropical America. An adaptive radiation centered...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

Autophagy is an evolutionarily conserved degradative pathway that has been implicated in a number of physiological events important for human health. This process was originally identified as a response...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

Chagas disease, caused by infection with Trypanosoma cruzi, is an important cause of cardiovascular disease. It is increasingly clear that parasite-derived prostaglandins potently modulate...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

Allometric equations are often used to extrapolate traits in animals for which only body mass estimates are known, such as dinosaurs. One important decision can be whether these equations should be...Full Text Available

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

This paper introduces briefly neutrinoless Double Beta Decay and discusses its implications for neutrino physics. After a presentation of general experimental concepts, such as the various proposed methodological approaches and the sensitivity, the current experimental situation is concisely reviewed.

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

Amyloid precursor protein (APP), implicated in Alzheimer's disease, is a transmembrane protein of undetermined function. APP is cleaved by gamma-secretase that releases the APP intracellular domain...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

BackgroundCentrosome aberrations can cause genomic instability and correlate with malignant progression in common human malignancies such as breast and prostate cancer. Deregulation...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

A new method of random data analysis has been developed with special implications for membrane noise. The integral spectrometer uses overlapping broad-band filters of simple design, whose bandwidth...Full Text Available

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

The objective of this paper is to analyze the implications of varying degrees of financial openness for the impact of technology shocks on a real, small open economy with financial and informational frictions. Aggregate fluctuations and propagation mechanisms under increasing financial openness are investigated in a dynamic, stochastic, general equilibrium framework in the case of positive technology shocks. The imperfections in the economy in the form of informational asymmetries among the agents and uncertainty in the production process necessitate financial intermediation and collateralized borrowing in the economy. The reason to abstract from money in the setup of the framework is to be able to concentrate on the real implications of increasing financial openness for the effect of tech...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

Anxiety disorders are a highly prevalent and disabling class of psychiatric disorders. This review focuses on new directions in neurobiological research and implications for the development of novel psychopharmacological treatments. Neuroanatomical and neuroimaging research in anxiety disorders has centered on the role of the amygdala, reciprocal connections between the amygdala and the prefrontal cortex, and, most recently, alterations in interoceptive processing by the anterior insula. Anxiety disorders are characterized by alterations in a diverse range of neurochemical systems, suggesting ample novel targets for drug therapies. Corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) concentrations are elevated in a subset of anxiety disorders, which suggests the potential utility of CRF receptor antagoni...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The global demand for platinum has consistently outgrown supply in the past decade. This trend likely will continue and the imbalance may possibly escalate into a crisis. Platinum plays pivotal roles in both conventional automobile emissions control and the envisioned hydrogen economy. A platinum crisis would have profound implications on energy and environment. On the one hand, inadequate platinum supply will prevent widespread commercialization of hydrogen fuel-cell vehicles. On the other hand, expensive platinum may enhance the competitiveness of hybrid, plug-in hybrid, and battery-powered electric cars. Policymakers should weigh the potential impacts of a platinum crisis in energy policy.

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The roughness length at air-sea interface during free convection (Z0fc) is mainly related to the convective velocity (w) rather than the friction velocity (u). The parameterization of Z0fc with (w)2/g as proposed by Abdella and D'Alessio (2003) is evaluated. It is shown that the field measurements at MM Lab, Tarapur Maharashtra Site (TMS) coastal site using Metek GmbH, Ultra sonic anemometers are consistent with the proposed formula. In order to avoid self-correlation by using u, a new parameterization of w with ?u and ?v and gustiness parameter as given by Fairall et al. (1996) is used. The mean values of w and Z0fc estimated using new parameterization were observed to be 0.97 m/s and 2.3E-4 m respectively for the year 2009 at TMS. (author)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

We performed polarized neutron reflectometry (PNR) experiments on a 29 nm thick Au{sub 93}Fe{sub 7} film in a temperature range from 295 K down to 2 K in a vertical magnetic field up to 6 T. These high-field experiments were performed on the C5 spectrometer in Chalk River, Canada, using a split-pair cryomagnet. The magnetization as determined by PNR can be described with a Brillouin function from 295 K down to 50 K assuming the magnetic moment of isolated Fe atoms, i.e. 4{mu}{sub B} per Fe atom. Below 50 K the onset of the spin-glass freezing is observed as a strong deviation from this Brillouin type behavior of isolated atoms.

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

A magnetic rhombohedral PrCo_2C_x (x = 0.05 #approx#0.25) phase (space group Rbar 3m), which is heavily twinned along the #left brace#110#right brace# and #left brace#211#right brace# planes, was identified. The twinning mechanism was explored by analyzing the reduction of crystal symmetry due to the cubic-rhombohedral phase transformation. The origin of the twinning and the formation of four twin variants were attributed to the insertion of carbon interstitials into Co_4 tetrahedrons along the bar 3 axis in the rhombohedral lattice, which corresponds to one of the four equivalent axes of its parent PrCo_2 cubic-lattice.

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

Objective A number of effective treatments for bulimia nervosa have been developed, but they are infrequently used, in part due to problems with dissemination. The goal of this study was to examine the cost effectiveness of telemedicine delivery of cognitive behavioral therapy for bulimia nervosa. Method A randomized controlled trial of face-to-face versus telemedicine cognitive behavioral therapy for bulimia nervosa. One hundred twenty eight women with DSM-IV bulimia nervosa or eating disorder, not otherwise specified subsyndromal variants of bulimia nervosa were randomized to 20 sessions of treatment over 16 weeks. A cost effectiveness analysis from a societal perspective was conducted. Results The total cost per recovered (abstinent) subject was $9324.68 for face-to-face CBT, and $7300....

CERN Document Server

The discovery that the cosmic expansion is accelerating has been followed by an intense theoretical and experimental response in physics and astronomy. The discovery implies that our most basic notions about how gravity work are violated on cosmological distance scales. One simple fix is the introduction of a cosmological constant into the field equations for general relativity. However, the extremely small value of the cosmological constant, relative to theoretical expectations, has led theorists to explore a wide variety of alternative explanations that involve the introduction of an exotic negative-pressure fluid or a modification of general relativity. Here we briefly review the evidence for cosmic acceleration. We then survey some of the theoretical attempts to account for it, including the cosmological constant, quintessence and its variants, mass-varying neutrinos, and modifications of general relativity, such as scalar-tensor and $f(R)$ theories and ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Contradictory reports in the literature on the reliability of lymphography stimulated the authors to test the diagnostic accuracy, employing methods which are approximately analogous to practice, using carcinoma of the cervix as the model on which the study was carried out. Using 21 observers it was found that there was no correlation between their experience and on-target accuracy of the diagnosis. Good observers obtained an accuracy of 85% with good proportions between sensitivity in the recognition of detail, specificity and readiness to arrive at a decision on the basis of discriminatory ability. With the help of the concept of the ROC curves, the position taken up by the observers in respect of diagnostic decisions, and a complex manner of assessing the various characteristic factors determining diagnostic accuracy, are demonstrated. This form of test, which permits manipulation of different variants of diagnosis, is recommended, among other things, for ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Recently, molecular clusters are the subject of several experimental and computational studies by means of their bonding structures. We studied, first time, small difluorine monoxide clusters such as dimer (linear, cyclic, bifurcated), trimer and tetramer structures using B3LYP variant of density functional theory with cc-pVDZ basis set. On the basis of the optimized geometry, various energy properties such as binding energy, molecular orbital energies, two and three body interaction energies have been calculated. Additionally dipole moment, polarizability, anisotropic polarizability and hyper polarizability have been calculated and compared with monomer structure.

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

A kind of metastable beta titanium alloy, i.e. Ti-10Mo-8V-1Fe-3.5Al, was aged under elastic compressive stress. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) investigations revealed that, in the stress-aged samples, precipitated alpha plates were parallel to each other. However, in the conventionally aged samples, alpha plates intersected each other. In other words, variant of alpha plate was selected in the stress-aged samples. Tensile tests showed that, at equivalent tensile strength, the stress-aged samples exhibited higher ductility, compared to the conventionally aged ones.

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

Dissolved microcystins (MCs) are regularly present in water dominated by microcystin-producing, bloom-forming cyanobacteria. In vitro experiments with environmentally feasible concentrations (5 ? 10?7 M) of the three most common microcystins, MC-LR, MC-RR, and MC-YR, revealed that they influence the metabolism of different representative phytoplanktons. At light intensities that are close to the cyanobacterial bloom environment (50??mol m?2 s?1), they produce morphological and physiological changes in both microcystin-producing and -nonproducing Microcystis aeruginosa strains and also have similar effects on the green alga Scenedesmus quadricauda that is frequently present in cyanobacterial blooms. All three microcystin variants tested induce cell aggregation, increase in cell volume, and ...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

In the post Genome era, the aim of behavior genetics has shifted from estimating the relative contributions of genes and environmental factors to (co-)variation in human complex traits, to localization of genes and identification of functional genetic variants. This special issue reflects this transition and presents fifteen papers that report on genome-wide linkage scans for complex traits in humans and on methodological tools and innovations. Six papers focus on cognition and report overlapping linkage peaks on chromosomes 6p and 14p. Papers on addictive behavior, i.e. smoking and alcohol dependence and its endophenotypes, find moderate LOD scores on chromosomes 6p, 5q, 4p and 7q, respectively. Three papers concentrate on emotionality, depression and loneliness and examine chromosomes 2q...

CERN Document Server

A well-known diffuse interface model consists of the Navier-Stokes equations nonlinearly coupled with a convective Cahn-Hilliard type equation. This system describes the evolution of an incompressible isothermal mixture of binary-fluids and it has been investigated by many authors. Here we consider a variant of this model where the standard Cahn-Hilliard equation is replaced by its nonlocal version. More precisely, the gradient term in the free energy functional is replaced by a spatial con- volution operator acting on the order parameter phi. Therefore the coupling with the Navier-Stokes equations is difficult to handle even in two spatial dimensions because of the lack of regularity of phi. We establish the global existence of a weak solution.

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

Occurrence of genetic variants during micropropagation is occasionally encountered when the cultures are maintained in vitro for long period. Therefore, the micropropagated multiple shoots of Vanilla planifolia Andrews developed from axillary bud explants established 10 years ago were used to determine somaclonal variation using random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) and intersimple sequence repeats markers (ISSR). One thousand micro-plants were established in soil of which 95 plantlets (consisting of four phenotypes) along with the mother plant were subjected to genetic analyses using RAPD and ISSR markers. Out of the 45 RAPD and 20 ISSR primers screened, 30 RAPD and 7 ISSR primers showed 317 clear, distinct and reproducible band classes resulting in a total of 30 115 bands. However, no ...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

Introduction: The orofacial clefts include 30 variant according to Tessier classification: the number 30 contain mandibular arc damage isolated or associated with damage of surrounding soft tissue. Case report: Our patient was a newborn with median mandibular cleft associated with ankyloglossia, bifid tongue and a top cervical fistula. We have not found polymalformative syndrome. The early surgical management included one time and after-effect were simple within 11months. Discussion: We point up difficulties for antenatal diagnosis and controversy about appropriate time for management of bone defect. The last physiopathologic hypotheses were explicated.

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

The transformation mechanism of hexagonal delta phase from the disordered bcc gamma phase has not been reported before in the Zr-rich U-Zr alloy system. With the help of X-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and high-resolution TEM analyses it was shown that the gamma to delta conversion takes place by the lattice collapse mechanism of omega transformation. It was also ascertained that a higher aging temperature or time promotes the growth of all four variants of the delta phase within a parent gamma grain. In addition, ab initio electronic structure calculations showed that the bcc to hexagonal transformation, involving partial ordering of the parent bcc phase followed by (111) plane collapse, is energetically favorable.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Whereas in part 1 and 2 the detailed observation equations of terrestrial type for an integrated geodetic model are presented this paper will outline how the theory is transferred in an operational program. The main lines of functions of the FORTRAN IV program are discussed. Since the input specifications as well as the data requirements are described in detail and illustrated by example of input and output part 3 can serve as an user-guide for OPERA. OPERA is an acronym for operational adjustment. Besides the integrated determination of 3D-geocentric coordinates and the gravity disturbing potential the program can handle all cases of traditional geodesy (in total 13 variants of solution are provided) equivalent also with adjustments in ellipsoidal coordinates B, L or H, as well as constrained adjustments, pure prediction of the gravity disturbing field, etc.

CERN Document Server

We report about the fabrication and analysis of the properties of Cr/CrO_x/Cr tunnel junctions and SET transistors, prepared by different variants of direct-writing multilayer technique. In all cases, the CrO_x tunnel barriers were formed in air under ambient conditions. From the experiments on single junctions, values for the effective barrier height and thickness were derived. For the Cr/CrO_x/Cr SET transistors we achieved minimal junction areas of 17 x 60 nm^2 using a scanning transmission electron microscope for the e-beam exposure on Si_3N_4 membrane substrate. We discuss the electrical performance of the transistor samples as well as their noise behavior.

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Techniques of chemical analysis, amino acid sequencing and autoradiography are being used to study the frequency of incorporation of normally noncoded amino acids into hemoglobins and seminal fluid proteins. We are studying, by the sequencing of radiolabeled proteins followed by the recovery of ["3H] isoleucine phenylthiohydantoin by high-performance liquid chromatography, the frequency at which normally noncoded isoleucine is incorporated into hemoglobin because of base-substitution mutations versus translational errors. Irradiation increases the isoleucine content of human hemoglobin and the frequency of substitution of isoleucine for specific amino acids in rabbit hemoglobin. Studies to date indicate that these techniques have been developed sufficiently for initial analysis of the potential of drugs and environmental pollutants to induce base-substitution mutations in mammalian somatic cells.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

In view of the importance of the material Alloy 800 in high-temperature reactor plants (HTR), a material data bank was established which is used for statistical evaluation of mechanical and physical material behaviour. Based on investigations on the interconnection between the mechanical properties at high temperatures and the metallurgical parameters, different types of Alloy 800 were specified in compliance with the component requirements. In addition, aspects of corrosion and toughness behaviour were taken into consideration. The specifications and strength characteristics for the different variants of Alloy 800 were incorporated into draft DIN standards after discussion and approval in expert committees. Further important characteristics of the mechanical and physical material behaviour were summarized in HTR material data sheets so as to furnish an improved basis for the design and stress analyses of Alloy 800 components. (orig.).

CERN Document Server

We propose a combined experimental (Atomic Force Microscopy) and theoretical study of the structural and dynamical properties of nucleosomes. In contrast to biochemical approaches, this method allows to determine simultaneously the DNA complexed length distribution and nucleosome position in various contexts. First, we show that differences in the nucleo-proteic structure observed between conventional H2A and H2A.Bbd variant nucleosomes induce quantitative changes in the in the length distribution of DNA complexed with histones. Then, the sliding action of remodeling complex SWI/SNF is characterized through the evolution of the nucleosome position and wrapped DNA length mapping. Using a linear energetic model for the distribution of DNA complexed length, we extract the net wrapping energy of DNA onto the histone octamer, and compare it to previous studies.

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

The paper describes two schemes that follow the model of Lamarckian evolution and combine differential evolution (DE), which is a population-based stochastic global search method, with the local optimization algorithm of conjugate gradients (CG). In the first, each offspring is fine-tuned by CG before competing with their parents. In the other CG is used to improve both parents and offspring in a manner that is completely seamless for individuals that survive more than one generation. Experiments involved training weights of feed-forward neural networks to solve three synthetic and four real-life problems. In six out of seven cases the DE?CG hybrid, which preserves and uses information on each solution?s local optimization process, outperformed two recent variants of DE.

Science.gov (United States)

Four trypsin inhibitor homologs, the first known from Dendroaspis angusticeps venom, were characterized using a combination of gel filtration, cation exchange, reverse-phase liquid chromatography, Edman degradation and mass spectrometry. The four toxins comprise two 57 residue and two 59 residue isoforms. The long toxins possess a Lys-Gln N-terminal extension lacked by the short toxins. The only other structural difference is an Arg/His replacement at position 55. The long Arg55 variant is identical to trypsin inhibitor E from the venom of Dendroaspis polylepis. The name epsilon-dendrotoxin is suggested so as to follow the nomenclature of Benishin, C.G., Sorensen, R.G., Brown, W.E., Krueger, B.K., Blaustein, M.P., 1988. Four polypeptide components of green mamba venom selectively block certain potassium channels in rat brain synaptosomes. Mol. Pharmacol. 34, 152-159. Among snake venom protease inhibitors, the epsilon-dendrotoxins are structurally most like the ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Large-scale decommissioning of Russian nuclear-powered submarines (NPS) and their utilization prospects gave rise to numerous complicated scientific and technical, as well as economic, problems. Problems of handling of radioactive equipment from the reactor compartments (RC) are among the vital ones, arousing a growing concern with the public. Without solution of the problems the processes of NPS utilization can not be considered completed. It involves potential hazard, for the environment both from NPS being paid up (temporal on-float storage) with unloaded spent nuclear fuel (SNF), and RC, cut from submarine hull, containing highly radioactive equipment and materials but no SNF. Diverse variations of the concept of reactor compartment handling of NPS subject to, utilization are possible, but, in principle, there are essentially two variants: (1) RC utilization directly in the course of NPS utilization, envisaging removal of radioactive equipment from the reactor ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Energy in general is essential for economic and social development, prosperity, health and security of citizens. of the other hand, world population over the last 10 years has increased by more than 12%, and now it is exactly about 6.4 billion people and it means more demand for energy. Meanwhile, global primary energy consumption has seen an increase of 20%. Energy supply has some sources and unfortunately most of them have impact on life cycle in biosphere. However, the developed countries, that are only 16% in the population in 2000, consume the energy of 80%. This article deals with the threat of global climate change and its implications throughout the world.

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the most common form of neurodegenerative disease. The vast majority cases of AD are sporadic, without clear cause, and a combination of environmental and genetic factors has been implicated. The hypothesis that homocysteine (Hcy) is a risk factor for AD was initially prompted by the observation that patients with histologically confirmed AD had higher plasma levels of Hcy, termed hyperhomocysteinemia (HHcy), than age-matched controls. Most evidence accumulated so far implicates HHcy as a risk factor for AD onset, but there are also conflicting results. In this review we summarize reports on the relationship between HHcy and AD from epidemiological investigations, including observational studies and randomized controlled clinical trials. We also examine recent i...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

Purpose - This article aims to examine approaches by academic libraries in demonstrating return on investment (RoI). Design/methodology/approach - As a participant in a recent international RoI study, the author reviews the various difficulties in developing a suitable methodology. Findings - Using grant income as the basis for demonstrating RoI, it was found that wide differences in results may be attributable to a number of factors related to the parent organisation, the availability of grant funding and the country of the study. Research limitations/implications - Further work is necessary to arrive at a suitable methodology for a diverse range of academic libraries. Practical implications - Library managers are alerted to issues and problems surrounding the development of return on inv...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

The synapsin III gene, SYN3, which belongs to the family of synaptic vesicle-associated proteins, has been implicated in the modulation of neurotransmitter release and in synaptogenesis, suggesting a potential role in several neuropsychiatric diseases. The human SYN3 gene is located on chromosome 22q12-13, a candidate region implicated in previous linkage studies of schizophrenia. However, association studies of SYN3 and schizophrenia have produced inconsistent results. In this study, four SYN3 SNPs (rs133945 (-631 C>G), rs133946 (-196 G>A), rs9862 and rs1056484) were tested in three sets of totally 3759 samples that comprise 655 affected subjects and 626 controls in the Irish Case-Control Study of Schizophrenia (ICCSS), 1350 samples incorporating 273 pedigrees in the Irish Study of High D...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

The amygdala, perhaps more than any other brain region, has been implicated in numerous neuropsychiatric and neurodevelopmental disorders. It is part of a system initially evolved to detect dangers in the environment and modulate subsequent responses, which can profoundly influence human behavior. If its threshold is set too low, normally benign aspects of the environment are perceived as dangers, interactions are limited, and anxiety may arise. If set too high, risk taking increases and inappropriate sociality may occur. Given that many neurodevelopmental disorders involve too little or too much anxiety or too little of too much social interaction, it is not surprising that the amygdala has been implicated in many of them. In this chapter, we begin by providing a brief overview of the phy...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Since nuclear terrorism has been identified as a real threat, the Korean government has earnestly developed elementary technologies and sub-systems for establishing an integrated defensive system against nuclear terrorism, which is based on the concept of defense-in-depth. This paper introduces the gist and implications of the studies that have been conducted in building the national nuclear material tracking system for preventing and intercepting the illicit trafficking and transporting of nuclear material in Korea. (orig.)

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

Atopic eczema is a chronic skin condition affecting between 5% and 20% of children aged up to 11 years at one time or other. Research suggests that prevalence is increasing and various environmental...Full Text Available

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The aims of the work described here were to provide an experimental basis for evaluating the committed effective dose equivalent per unit intake together with the ALI for four industrial oxide bearing dusts, and to assess the extent to which {sup 241}Am could be used for estimating the {sup 239}Pu content of the lung after an accidental intake of these materials. (author).

Environmental Research Database

DescriptionIn young pigs the post-weaning period is generally characterised by a marked reduction in voluntary feed intake, poor growth and development, and diarrhoea. The associated reduction in digestive and absorptive capacity of the gastrointestinal tract decreases the overall efficiency of nutrient capture and utilisation, thereby causing an increase in nutrient loading to the environment. The reduction in digestive and absorptive efficiency after weaning has implications for lifetime performance be [continued...

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

While a great deal of evidence has directly implicated the importance of O6-alkylation of guanine in the mutagenicity of alkylating agents, evidence demonstrating the oncogenic potential of this lesion...Full Text Available

Science.gov (United States)

Biofilm-specific antibiotic resistance is influenced by multiple factors. We demonstrated that Pseudomonas aeruginosa tssC1, a gene implicated in type VI secretion (T6S), is important for resistance of biofilms to a subset of antibiotics. We showed that tssC1 expression is induced in biofilms and confirmed that tssC1 is required for T6S. PMID:21784934

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The basics of a supersymmetric SU(2)_L x SU(2)_R x U(1)_B-I, model are reviewed. The production and subsequent decays of the doubly charged triplet higgsino #DELTA##+-##+-# in the Next Linear Collider are discussed. The slepton pair production in the framework of this model is also analyzed. (author)

Science.gov (United States)

This 'Issues in Ecology' article from the Ecological Society of America provides information about the consequences of nutrient enrichment along the US coast. It describes problems such as harmful algal blooms (HABs), anoxia, hypoxia, and dead zones. It explains which nutrients are involved and describes implications of excess nutrients in regions such as the Gulf of Mexico/Mississippi River basin. The article features several color photographs, maps, and diagrams.

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Conceptual and factual advances in understanding neuronal migration in the past two decades have provided new insight into the pathogenesis of brain malformations at the cellular, molecular, and functional levels. Some of these results may have direct implications in understanding the consequences of ionizing radiation on the fetal central nervous system in utero. (orig.).

CERN Document Server

Standard methods in non-linear analysis are used to show that there exists a parabolic branching of solutions of the Lichnerowicz-York equation with an unscaled source. We also apply these methods to the extended conformal thin sandwich formulation and show that if the linearised system develops a kernel solution for sufficiently large initial data then we obtain parabolic solution curves for the conformal factor, lapse and shift identical to those found numerically by Pfeiffer and York. The implications of these results for constrained evolutions are discussed.

Wastenet

... The relation between turbulence structure and a scalar detected using a new statistical test for the change in fractal dimension of a time-series, Department of Geography, University of Durham Workshop on Coherent Structures in Rivers Keylock C.J., Nishimura K., Nemoto M., Ito Y. 2006. The wake structure from fractal fences: implications for the control of turbulent suspensions, Warwick Turbulence ...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

ABSTRACT Extending the unified theory of acceptance and use of technology (UTAUT) model, this study postulates a model of online social support. The model is empirically tested using data from undergraduates in Taiwan regarding their usage of instant messaging (IM). The test results indicate that all model paths are significant, except that the path between online social support and facilitating conditions is insignificant. This study offers limitations and implications.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

A summary is provided of the first of three years of experimental and theoretical research on free-forced convection flows in cavity-type solar receivers. New experimental and theoretical results are presented and discussed. The implication of these findings, with respect to the future thrust of the research program, is clarified as well as is possible at the present time. Following various related conclusions a summary and tentative schedule of work projected for year two of research are presented.

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

The ankle plantar flexor muscles, gastrocnemius (Gas) and soleus (Sol), have been shown to play important roles in providing body support and forward propulsion during human walking. However, there...Full Text Available

Environmental Research Database

DescriptionFossil fuels have a detrimental effect on the environment. They lead to the increase in atmospheric carbon dioxide which has been documented over the last 150 years. In contrast, some sources of renewable energy are near carbon neutral. Renewable energy produced from biomass constitutes such a type of energy and so has many potential advantages. The Energy White Paper (DTI et al., 2003) identifies bioenergy as an important means of meeting the Government's energy and environment objectives, in [continued...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Scenario analyses are described here using the Global MARKAL-Macro Trade (GMMT) model to study the economic implications of the Kyoto Protocol to the UN Convention on Climate change. Some conclusions are derived in terms of efficient implementations of the post-Kyoto extensions of the Protocol. (author) 2 figs., 5 refs.

CERN Document Server

Nature-inspired algorithms are among the most powerful algorithms for optimization. This paper intends to provide a detailed description of a new Firefly Algorithm (FA) for multimodal optimization applications. We will compare the proposed firefly algorithm with other metaheuristic algorithms such as particle swarm optimization (PSO). Simulations and results indicate that the proposed firefly algorithm is superior to existing metaheuristic algorithms. Finally we will discuss its applications and implications for further research.

Science.gov (United States)

A report is presented of a hearing conducted before the Joint Committee on Atomic Energy on August 27, 1976, to discuss the legal implications for reactor licensing resulting from court challenges to procedures for assessing the environmental impact of radioactive waste disposal. (DG)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

A research report presents the basic data required when designing a building with minimal environmental impacts. Topics covered include the energy consumption of building elements during their lifetime, the environmental implications linked to the extraction and processing of building material and the energy consumed in buildings by the occupants. (UK)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The structural instability in high temperature A-15 superconductors is examined from a phenomenological, Landau theoretic point of view, based on the picture of an electronically driven lattice instability. emphasis is given to lattice properties--in particular, the extended softening of phonons in k-pace and phonon linewidth. Implications of the extended softening on the microscopic picture of the transition, and the interplay between structural and superconducting instabilities in the A-15 compounds are discussed.

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

Dopamine (DA) D3 and D2 receptor mechanisms are implicated in cocaine's abuse-related behavioral effects, but the relative contribution of the two receptor subtypes is only partially characterized....Full Text Available

CERN Document Server

In this paper, we intend to formulate a new metaheuristic algorithm, called Cuckoo Search (CS), for solving optimization problems. This algorithm is based on the obligate brood parasitic behaviour of some cuckoo species in combination with the Levy flight behaviour of some birds and fruit flies. We validate the proposed algorithm against test functions and then compare its performance with those of genetic algorithms and particle swarm optimization. Finally, we discuss the implication of the results and suggestion for further research.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The determination of relative abundances of helium and deuterium in Jupiter and Saturn provides estimates of the primordial abundances of these elements. The values so inferred can be compared with theoretical predictions of the standard model of the big-bang theory as a test of the model and suggest either that deuterium is more efficiently consumed in subsequent nucleosynthesis than hitherto assumed, or that the standard big-bang model should be revised in order for there to have been less production of primordial helium.

Science.gov (United States)

Campylobacter spp. are present in the intestinal tract and internal tissues of broiler breeder and broiler chickens. Campylobacter spp. are known to cause acute bacterial gastroenteritis in humans and raw poultry products have been implicated as a significant source of these infections. The object...

Science.gov (United States)

The anesthetic agents methohexital (Brevital), Innovar, and ketamine (Ketaject) were examined for their effect on seizure duration following electroconvulsive stimulation in a rat model of electroconvulsive therapy (ECT). Compared to unanesthetized control animals, methohexital anesthesia shortened seizure duration by 42%, ketamine anesthesia tended to increase seizure duration, and Innovar anesthesia had no effect on duration of seizures. PMID:7349626

Environmental Research Database

DescriptionAt present, measurement of rumen pH for differnt diets and feeding regimes is only possible through direct sampling of the rumen fluid. Such invasive procedures are not practical at the farm level and they have ethical implications for research programmes. This approach also has limitations to its reliability due to spatial variations in acidity within the rumen. Mathematical modelling offers a non-invasive real-time alternative for monitoring rumen pH, and the purpose of the research propose [continued...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The object of this research is the evaluation of the performance of ultra high speed relays (UHSR's) used for protection of a-c transmission lines. For purposes of this report, these are relays whose response time is less than a quarter of a cycle of the 60 Hz wave (i.e. 4.167 ms.). To identify relaying schemes that may comply with this definition, a literature survey was undertaken. The selected relays were studied in detail and modeled on a digital computer. A theoretical description of these relays is presented. Records of real transient data as well as of simulated data were used as input to the digital models of relays. The real data were recorded by means of monitoring stations connected to the Florida Power and Light Company transmission lines. The simulated data were obtained by modeling the relevant parts of the utility's transmission system using a University of British Columbia simplified version of the well known ...

Science.gov (United States)

Directed evolution of proteins depends on the production of molecular diversity by random mutagenesis. While a number of methods have been developed for introducing this diversity, the best ways to sample it are not always clear. Here we used simple statistics to analyse completeness and diversity in randomized libraries generated by oligonucleotide-directed mutagenesis, error-prone polymerase chain reaction (epPCR) and in vitro recombination of highly homologous sequences. For oligonucleotide-directed mutagenesis, we derive equations to estimate how complete a given library is expected to be and also to predict the size of library required to give a fixed probability of being 100% complete. We describe the statistical bases for computer programs which estimate the number of distinct variants represented in epPCR and shuffled libraries, dubbed PEDEL and DRIVeR, respectively. These programs allow the user to calculate (rather than guess) the diversity represented in ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

subsequent to its in-reactor dwell time, spent fuel still contains large amounts of materials that are recoverable, for value-added energy purposes (uranium, plutonium), together with fission products, and minor actinides, making up the residues from nuclear reactions. The treatment and recycling of spent nuclear fuel, as implemented in France, entail that such materials be chemically partitioned. The development of the process involved, and its deployment on an industrial scale stand as a high achievement of French science, and technology. Treatment and recycling allow both a satisfactory management of nuclear waste to be implemented, and substantial savings, in terms of fissile material. Bolstered of late as it has been, due to spectacularly skyrocketing uranium prices, this strategy is bound to become indispensable, with the advent of the next generation of fast reactors. This Monograph surveys the chemical process used for spent fuel treatment, and its ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

In an adiabatic low-pressure calorimeter, the temperature dependence of the standard molar heat capacity of paramagnetic dicarbonyl rhodium complex with o-semiquinone (CO){sub 2}Rh(SQ) has been determined in the range from T=(6 to 355)K mainly with an accuracy of about 0.3%. Over the ranges from T=(205 to 234) K, T=(266 to 315)K and T=(316 to 345)K physical transformations have been revealed and their enthalpies and entropies have been estimated. The experimental data were used to calculate the thermodynamic functions C{sub p,m}{sup o}/R,{delta}{sub 0}{sup T}H{sub m}{sup o}/(R.K),{delta}{sub 0}{sup T}S{sub m}{sup o}/R and {phi}{sub m}{sup o}={delta}{sub 0}{sup T}S{sub m}{sup o}-{delta}{sub 0}{sup T}H{sub m}{sup o}/T (where R is the universal gas constant) between T=(0 and 355)K. The fractal dimension D in the heat capacity function of the fractal variant of Debye heat capacity theory has been evaluated.

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

In the future even more than in the past, nuclear power will be indispensable in the present industrialized countries and in those still under development. The safe, nonpolluting, and economic supply of energy to mankind in the future includes so many different problems that the technology of the high-temperature reactor at its present level of development, and with the possibilities is offers above and beyond those provided by other, established, technologies, does not have to mark the end of some old line of development, but rather should be seen as the starting point of a development offering promise for the future. It is for this very reason that the extensive, valuable knowledge and experience accumulated in the construction, operation, and decommissioning of the AVR and THTR plants, the development of the HTR module and other variants and, last, but not least, the valuable results of projects such as PNP, NFE, and HHT, must be preserved at the research ...

Science.gov (United States)

The iron hormone hepcidin is inhibited by matriptase-2, a liver serine-protease encoded by TMPRSS6 gene. Cleaving the BMP-coreceptor hemojuvelin, matriptase-2 impairs the BMP/SMAD signaling pathway, downregulates hepcidin and facilitates iron absorption. TMPRSS6 inactivation causes iron-deficiency-anemia refractory to iron administration both in humans and mice. Genome wide association studies have shown that the SNP rs855791, which causes the matriptase-2 V736A amino acid substitution, is associated with variations of serum iron, transferrin saturation, hemoglobin and erythrocyte traits. Here we show that in vitro matriptase-2 736(A) inhibits hepcidin more efficiently than 736(V). Moreover, in a genotyped population, after exclusion of samples with iron deficiency and inflammation, hepcidin, hepcidin/transferrin saturation and hepcidin/ferritin ratios were significantly lower and iron parameters were consistently higher in homozygotes 736(A) than in 736(V). Our results indicate that ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

An original device and a method of its application for restoring of the function of relatively incompetent valves (both patented) are elaborated. Application of the new device allows to lower the difficulty of surgical treatment, to decrease the duration of operation and post-operative period. The long-term results of six-year long experience of its application are presented. The patients examination after 2,5-3,0-year post-operation period shows perfect vein valve correction. A device for stone extraction from tubular organs (patented) fabricated with titanium nickelide superelastic alloy is presented. The new suggested design is free of the drawback inherent in the previous one. The working element of the device is formed as a truncated cone or a truncated cone coaxial with the cylinder (the previous design was formed as a full cone) that prevents overstraining and residual strain accumulation during the manipulation process. Since the first publication the design of spiral stent and ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The nature of the 5f electronic structure of plutonium (Pu) remains unclear. [1] Despite many recent attempts to resolve the issue, a plethora of important unanswered questions remain. While many theoretical approaches to the problem have been promulgated, the real source of the difficulty is the absence of sufficient experimental benchmarking. This paucity of impact on the part of experimental results is driven in part by the difficulties of working with Pu: it is highly radioactive, biologically toxic, chemically reactive and restricted in its distribution and permitted access to user facilities. The results of these liabilities include the following: (1) it is very difficult, if not impossible, to get large single crystals of single phase samples and; (2) many state of the art experiments can not be done because general user facilities are not available for use with Pu samples. Additionally, there is the apparently bizarre nature of Pu, which seems to defeat the efforts to analyze ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

We show that a general variant of the Wick theorems can be used to reduce the time ordered products in the Gell-Mann and Low formula for a certain class on non local quantum field theories, including the case where the interaction Lagrangian is defined in terms of twisted products. The only necessary modification is the replacement of the Stueckelberg-Feynman propagator by the general propagator (the 'contractor' of Denk and Schweda) D(y-y';#tau#-#tau#')=(1)/i(#DELTA#_+(y-y')#theta#(#tau#-#tau#')+#DELTA#+(y'-y)#theta#(#tau#'-#tau#)), where the violations of locality and causality are represented by the dependence of #tau#,#tau#' on other points, besides those involved in the contraction. This leads naturally to a diagrammatic expansion of the Gell-Mann and Low formula, in terms of the same diagrams as in the local case, the only necessary modification concerning the Feynman rules. The ordinary local theory is easily recovered as a special case, and there is a ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

High resolution Monte-Carlo simulations show that the neutron spectrum, fuel burnup and fuel temperature feedback effect of a PWR core loaded with Thoria-based fuel (Th/Pu-O_2) do not significantly differ from the MOX fuelled one due to the similar neutronic characteristics of both fertile materials (Th-232, U-238). The core physics of this fuel variant is characterized by an enhanced moderator/void temperature coefficient (by factor 2.4) and high incineration rate for Pu (approx. 60 %). A PWR core loaded with the Molybdenum-based inert matrix fuel (IMF) - in contrast to MOX-, shows a harder spectrum, resulting in small temperature coefficients of reactivity and particularly in a higher fuel depletion rate as well as an enhanced TRU reduction performance. The incineration of Pu amounts to 46 % resulting, in turn, in generation of minor actinides of about 10 % of the total Pu consumption. The higher excess reactivity resulting from the initial Pu contents is ...

Science.gov (United States)

Endoreduplication represents a cell cycle variant during which multiple rounds of DNA replication occur without subsequent chromosome separation and cytokinesis, resulting into a cellular increase of the DNA content. Although the DNA ploidy level of cells is controlled by external stimuli such as light, currently limited knowledge is available on how environmental signals regulate the endoreduplication cycle at the molecular level. Previously, we have demonstrated that the conversion from the mitotic cell cycle into an endoreduplication cycle is mediated by the atypical E2F transcription factor DEL1 that operates as a repressor of endocycle onset. Here, we identified DEL1 as a transcriptional target of the classical E2Fb and E2Fc transcription factors that antagonistically control DEL1 transcript levels through competition for a single E2F cis-acting binding site. Correspondingly with the reported opposite effect of light on the E2Fb and E2Fc protein levels, the ...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

Aims: The present study explored the integrative effect of genes encoding methadone pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic pathways on methadone maintenance doses in Han Chinese Patients. Materials & methods: Genomic DNA was extracted from 321 opioid-dependent patients and 202 healthy controls, and realtime-PCR and PCR-RFLP were conducted to determine the genotypes. Results: Pair-wise comparisons revealed that carriers of the variants ABCB1 3435C>T or CYP2B6 516G>T alleles were more likely to require a higher methadone dose than noncarriers (both p G or 939C>T allele had a two-fold chance of requiring a lower methadone dose than noncarriers (p = 0.001). Proportional odds regression with adjustment of cofactors demonstrated that ...

CERN Document Server

The Cahn-Hilliard-Navier-Stokes system is based on a well-known diffuse interface model and describes the evolution of an incompressible isothermal mixture of binary fluids. A nonlocal variant consists of the Navier-Stokes equations suitably coupled with a nonlocal Cahn-Hilliard equation. The authors, jointly with P. Colli, have already proven the existence of a global weak solution to a nonlocal Cahn-Hilliard-Navier-Stokes system subject to no-slip and no-flux boundary conditions. Uniqueness is still an open issue even in dimension two. However, in this case, the energy identity holds. This property is exploited here to define, following J.M. Ball's approach, a generalized semiflow which has a global attractor. Through a similar argument, we can also show the existence of a (connected) global attractor for the convective nonlocal Cahn-Hilliard equation with a given velocity field, even in dimension three. Finally, we demonstrate that any weak solution fulfilling ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Certain 6000-series extrusions may develop susceptibility to intergranular corrosion (IGC) by improper heat treatment, especially if copper is present as an alloying element. Although occurrence of IGC in such cases is documented, the underlying mechanisms are not adequately explained. We present corrosion data for two model alloys, having different Cu content and Mg:Si ratio, showing that the susceptibility to IGC depended primarily on the Cu content and secondly on thermal processing. Low Cu samples (0.0005 wt.% Cu) were essentially resistant to IGC. High Cu samples (0.12 wt.% Cu), which were air cooled after extrusion, exhibited significant IGC. However, IGC susceptibility was reduced significantly as a result of artificial aging to peak strength. Water quenched high Cu samples were essentially resistant to IGC. However, slight IGC susceptibility was introduced after aging. Electron optical characterisation revealed Al_4Mg_8Si_7Cu_2 (Q-phase) grain boundary precipitates on all the ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The authors present tensile data and creep-rupture data out to approximately 40,000 h duration on low-carbon Alloy 800. Each of the four casts was heat treated to three conditions in tube form. When the test programme was originally conceived, the prime object was to obtain 100,000 hour design data; the programme was designed prior to some of the more recently discovered effects such as that of #gamma#' on ductility. Therefore no specific attempt was made to control to a low level, the Al and Ti contents of the casts. A subsequent programme was embarked upon in 1976 where these factors were taken into account. The bulk data obtained show many characteristics which are probably typical of the low-carbon variant of this material and both the quantity and duration of the data are a contribution to the knowledge of the long-term behaviour of this class of alloy, whose future use lies, inter alia, in nuclear applications over the temperature range for which ERA data ...

Science.gov (United States)

A first-principles task-based approach to the design of medical ultrasonic imaging systems for breast lesion discrimination is described. This study explores a new approximation to the ideal Bayesian observer strategy that allows for object heterogeneity. The new method, called iterative Wiener filtering, is implemented using echo data simulations and a phantom study. We studied five lesion features closely associated with visual discrimination for clinical diagnosis. A series of human observer measurements for the same image data allowed us to quantitatively compare alternative beamforming strategies through measurements of visual discrimination efficiency. Employing the Smith-Wagner model observer, we were able to breakdown efficiency estimates and identify the processing stage at which performance losses occur. The methods were implemented using a commercial scanner and a cyst phantom to explore development of spatial filters for systems with shift-variant ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Shell Solar GmbH is working on a variant of the so-called stacked elemental layer process for CIGSSe absorber production. The metal films resp. the selenium are deposited on the Mb electrode at room temperature by DC sputtering (CIG) or evaporation (Se) and then processed into semiconductors by rapid thermal annealing (RTP). Currently, the mean efficiency of the pilot plant is i 12.6 {+-} 0.2 % for non-sealed 30 x 30 cm{sup 2} modules, the key efficiency is 13.0 %. In addition to the 30 x 30 cm{sup 2} pilot line, a small series of 60x90cm2 modules was constructed in December 2004. Here, the mean efficiency was 13.0 percent while the average module power was higher than 60 W. The contribution also describes investigations of ceramically sputtered n-ZnO:Al layers with reduced Al concedntrations of 1 percent and on reactively sputtered n-ZnO.Al layers from the double roller magnetron. (orig.) [German] Bei Shell Solar GmbH wird eine Variante des ...

CERN Document Server

We have performed multicanonical Monte Carlo simulations of C-peptide of ribonuclease A. It is known by CD and NMR experiments that this peptide has high alpha-helix content in aqueous solution and that the side-chain charges of residues Glu-2$^-$ and His-12$^+$ play an important role in the stability of the alpha-helix. In order to confirm these experimental implications, we have used two analogues of the peptide with charged and neutral side chains of Glu-2 and His-12. Two dielectric functions, distance-dependent and constant, are considered to study the effects of solvent contributions. All the simulations were started from random initial conformations. Various thermodynamic quantities such as average helicity as a function of residue number and average distance between two side chains as a function of temperature are calculated. The results are found to be in accord with the implications of CD and NMR experiments. The lowest-energy ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

During the next 100 years, the mean annual temperature is expected to be 1-6 deg C higher than at present. It is also expected to be accompanied by a lengthening of the thermal growing season and increased precipitation. Consequently, climatic change will increase the uncertainty of the management of forest ecosystems in the future. In this context, this research project aimed to outline the ecological and silvicultural implications of climatic change with regard to (1) how the expected climatic change might modify the functioning and structure of the boreal forest ecosystem, and (2) how the silvicultural management of the forest ecosystem should be modified in order to maintain sustainable forest yield under changing climatic conditions. The experimental component of the project concerned first the effect that elevating temperature and elevating concentration of atmospheric carbon have on the ontogenetic development of Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L) and on the ...