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Purpose: To quantify left ventricular function derived from retrospectively ECG-gated multislice spiral CT (MSCT) data sets in comparison to MRI. Materials and Methods: In 16 patients (14 males, 2 females, mean age 56.8 #+-# 11.5 years), retrospectively ECG-gated MSCT angiography of the coronary arteries and breath-hold steady state free precession cine MRI were performed. From MSCT data-sets, 20 axial image series were reconstructed every 5% of the RR interval. Multiplanar images were reformatted in the short axis orientation from axial images. End-systolic and end-diastolic images were selected. From these images end-systolic volume (ESV), end-diastolic volume (EDV) and stroke volume (SV) as well as the ejection fraction (EF) and myocardial mass (MM) were determined using the Simpson's method and compared with MRI. Furthermore, image quality was assessed for both imaging modalities using a four point grading scale. Results: All parameters ...

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In this paper the main design requirements concerning the setting up of a telemetry ECG monitoring system are presented. The design's most important technical solutions as well as some details are also discussed. This system is intended to provide skilled medical assistance during the cardiac rehabilitation of both asymptomatic and high risk coronary patients

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The clinical manifestation of wounds of the heart is determined by the mode, site and size of the injury as well as the structure of the pericardial and myocardial lesion. Diagnosis can be confirmed by ECG and echocardiography. Only 20% of the patients with penetrating wounds of the heart live for more than 30 minutes. Pericardio-centesis should be used only to gain time for a safe sternotomy, cardiac decompression and suture of the wound of the heart. An aggressive surgical approach is mandatory. Cardiopulmonary bypass is necessary only to correct of concomitant lesions. PMID:1983618

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The atrial myocardium has been barely visible with thallium-201 myocardial scintigraphy. This is probably related to the difference in size, distance from anterior chest wall, and small coronary blood flow of the atrium, compared with the ventricle. We have encountered eight cases of visualization of the right atrial appendix (RAA). The RAA was identified from multiple projections in all cases and sometimes confirmed by radionuclide angiocardiography. Evidence derived from ECG, chest radiographs, and cardiac catheterization, indicated that the most important factor in the visualization might be the displacement of the RAA to a more anterior position.

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The standard protocol in multislice spiral CT (MSCT) angiography for coronary arteries with fixed tube current-time settings leads to an overexposure and thus to an unnecessary high radiation dose in patients with lower weight when compared to heavier patients. The purpose of this study was to estimate the effect of reducing the radiation dose by adapting the tube current-time settings individually. Fifty patients underwent retrospectively ECG-gated MSCT of the heart. In 25 patients (group A_1) a standard protocol with constant tube current-time settings was used (4 x 1-mm collimation, 120 kV, 400 mAs_e_f_f). Subsequently, artificial image noise was added to the data of these patients simulating a directive for weight-adapted tube current-time settings (group A_2). In the other 25 patients (group B) an alternative protocol with individually weight-adapted tube current-time settings was applied. The data of all groups were evaluated by a regression analysis. The ...

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Purpose: Cardiomyopathy is one of the major complications of {beta} thalassaemia major as a result of transfusion iron overload. The aim of our study is to evaluate with MR if there is any difference of iron deposition signal intensity (SI) or distribution between non-cardiopatic and cardiopatic thalassaemic patients in order to establish if there is a relationship between cardiopathy and iron deposition. Materials and methods: We studied 20 patients affected by {beta} thalassaemia major, of whom 10 cardiopatic and 10 non-cardiopatic, and 10 healthy volunteers as control group. Serum ferritin and left ventricular ejection fraction were calculated in thalassaemic patients. All patients were examinated using a 1.5 MR unit with ECG-gated GE cine-MR T2*-weighted, SE T1-weighted and GE T2*-weighted sequences. In all cases, using an adequate ROI, the myocardial and skeletal muscle signal intensity (SI), the myocardial/skeletal muscle signal intensity radio (SIR) and the ...

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Quantitative gated SPECT (QGS) was evaluated in 7 normal volunteers and 31 patients with cardiac diseases. Adequate cut off value of a prefilter was 0.45. In phantom, the left ventricular volume value was 93.9% of determined value by 180-degree projection in L type and 98.8% by 360-degree projection in opposed type. In normal volunteers, LVEF measured by QGS program related to value by first pass method. As for functional map, regional EF and wall motion decreased at the septum side, and wall thickening at base side of heart. Good correlation was recognized (p<0.0001) between blood flow image and functional map (regional EF and wall thickening). In 20 cases of acute myocardial infarction, lesion was detected conspicuously in regional EF and wall motion. The accuracy of coronary arterial stenosis improved in functional map (regional EF 92%, wall motion 92% and wall thickening 88%). In particular, the accuracy of 3 rami lesion was 100% in ...

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Purpose: For planning the therapeutic strategies and estimating the prognosis in esophageal cancer, N-staging is very important. To date, MRI still is of minor importance as imaging modality of the mediastinum despite promising developments in the past, like ECG-gating or 'averaging' sequences, e.g. LOTA (Long-term averaging), which facilitate mediastinal and thoracic MR-imaging. In a prospective approach, the value of MRI based N-staging was examined with respect to LOTA-sequences. Material and Methods: Within from weeks prior to esophagectomy, standardized MRI of the esophagus was performed in 15 patients (10 squamous-cell-carcinomas and 5 adenocarcinomas) using a 1.5 T whole body scanner. Imaging quality was classified based on depiction of aortic wall or tracheal wall layers. Criteria for malignant infiltration were a diameter of more than 15 mm or a round appearance of a lymph node together with GD-DTPA enhancement. All data were blinded and separately read by ...

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Primary cardiac angiosarcoma is a rare cardiac tumor. The initial clinical course is often asymptomatic, and metastatic disease is present in a majority of affected patients at diagnosis. We present...Full Text Available

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TIA (Transient Ischemic Attack)

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The noninvasive assessment of cardiac function is of first importance for the diagnosis of cardiovascular diseases. Among all medical scanners only a few enables radiologists to evaluate the local cardiac...Full Text Available

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Current multi-scale computational models of ventricular electromechanics describe the full process of cardiac contraction on both the micro- and macro- scales including: the depolarization of cardiac cells, the release of calcium from intracellular stores, tension generation by cardiac myofilaments, and mechanical contraction of the whole heart. Such models are used to reveal basic mechanisms of cardiac contraction as well as the mechanisms of cardiac dysfunction in disease conditions. In this paper, we present a methodology to construct finite element electromechanical models of ventricular contraction with anatomically accurate ventricular geometry based on magnetic resonance and diffusion tensor magnetic resonance imaging of the heart. The electromechanical model couples detailed repres...

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A field study of 89 refrigerator repairmen was carried out to ascertain whether occupational exposure to fluorocarbons induces cardiac arrhythmia. The concentrations of fluorocarbons in the breathing...Full Text Available

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Purpose: For planning the therapeutic strategies and estimating the prognosis in esophageal cancer, N-staging is very important. To date, MRI still is of minor importance as imaging modality of the mediastinum despite promising developments in the past, like ECG-gating or 'averaging' sequences, e.g. LOTA (Long-term averaging), which facilitate mediastinal and thoracic MR-imaging. In a prospective approach, the value of MRI based N-staging was examined with respect to LOTA-sequences. Material and Methods: Within from weeks prior to esophagectomy, standardized MRI of the esophagus was performed in 15 patients (10 squamous-cell-carcinomas and 5 adenocarcinomas) using a 1.5 T whole body scanner. Imaging quality was classified based on depiction of aortic wall or tracheal wall layers. Criteria for malignant infiltration were a diameter of more than 15 mm or a round appearance of a lymph node together with GD-DTPA enhancement. All data were blinded and ...

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PMID:21864481

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Cardiac Arrest; Coronary Disease; Cardiovascular Risk Factors

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SUMMARYIn voltage-gated sodium, potassium, and calcium channels the functions of ion conduction and voltage sensing are performed by two distinct structural units: the pore domain...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

We report the use of cysteine-substituted mutants in conjunction with in situ oxidation to determine the physical proximity of a pair of engineered cysteines in the pore region of the voltage-gated...Full Text Available

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In voltage-gated Na⁺, K⁺, and Ca²⁺ channels, four voltage-sensor domains operate on a central pore domain in response to membrane voltage. In contrast, the voltage-gated...Full Text Available

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How an individual’s sex and genetic background modify cardiac adaptation to increased workload is a topic of great interest. We systematically evaluated morphological and physiological...Full Text Available

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Chest compression-only (CC-only) is now incorporated in the Norwegian protocol for dispatch guided CPR (cardiopulmonary resuscitation) in cardiac arrest of presumed cardiac aetiology.We present...Full Text Available

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Cardiovascular modelling has been a major research subject for the last decades. Different cardiac models have been developed at a cellular level as well as at the whole organ level. Most of...Full Text Available

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Tumor embolism occurs in 30 to 50% of all cases of cardiac myxoma, but the causes are still uncertain. Matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) are proteolytic enzymes that degrade the extracellular matrix...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

Background:The cardiac sodium–calcium exchanger (NCX1) is a key sarcolemmal protein for the maintenance of calcium homeostasis in the heart. Since heart failure...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

1. The effects of 1 mg/ml whole Naja nivea (Cape cobra) venom, and of three different toxins isolated from it, on spinal reflex excitability and cardiac and skeletal muscle activity...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

Myocarditis, often initiated by viral infection, may progress to autoimmune inflammatory heart disease, dilated cardiomyopathy and heart failure. Although cardiac myosin is a dominant autoantigen...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

ObjectiveThe objective of this study was to determine the contribution of distance to hospitals with cardiac interventional services (CIS) to county age-adjusted myocardial infarction...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

Physiological cardiac hypertrophy is associated with mitochondrial adaptations that are characterized by activation of PGC-1α and increased fatty acid oxidative (FAO) capacity. It is...Full Text Available

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... 9. Delay Circuits ----- N9-i 10. Main Gate Multivibrators ----- NI0-I 11. ...

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Feb 11, 1997 ... Dr. Baldwin's research focuses on understanding the mechanisms of skeletal and cardiac muscle adaptations to hormonal and activity ...

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A very simple theoretical scheme is proposed to implement two- and three-qubit controlled-phase gates firstly only using a single resonant interaction between ladder-type three-level atoms and the single-mode cavity. In the presented protocol, the quantum information is encoded on the stable ground states of the atoms (as the controlling qubits) and the zero- and one-photon Fock states of cavity-field (as the target qubit). Under the influence of the atomic spontaneous emission, the decay of the cavity-mode, and deviation of the coupling strength, the three-qubit controlled-phase gate may have a comparatively high fidelity. The experimental feasibility of controlled-phase gate and the case that is extended to realize N-qubit controlled-phase gate are also discussed. (general)

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In this paper, we report the systematic investigation on the melt characteristics of silicon during laser thermal processing (LTP) of amorphous silicon (a-Si) gates on ultrathin gate oxides. LTP is used to reduce the gate depletion effect in advanced semiconductor devices. The influence of implantation-induced damage and chemical inhomogeneities on the melt behavior of ion-implanted a-Si is studied using in situ time-resolved reflectance (TRR) measurements and ex situ secondary ion mass spectrometry. The results from TRR measurements indicate the presence of a buried melt for a-Si implanted with B"+ at a subamorphizing dose. In contrast, such a melt behavior is not observed during LTP of undoped a-Si and a-Si implanted with As"+ at an amorphizing dose. We attribute the marked difference in the melt characteristics to the competitive effects between compositional inhomogeneities and the extent of amorphization in the a-Si ...

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The aim of this paper is to investigate the total ionizing dose (TID) radiation effects on MOS capacitor with nitride/oxide stack gate. The stack gate MOS capacitors are fabricated with 20 nm oxide, 40 nm nitride or 110 nm nitride respectively. Through the analysis of CV curve of the irradiation capacitors, it is found that the degradation of the CV curve is due to a significant increase of interface traps and somewhat smaller oxide charge. It is also shown that the thicker of the nitride, more interface traps and oxide charge will be occurred. (authors)

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We have fabricated nanometer-spaced electrodes on electron-transparent silicon nitride membranes. A thin Cr/Au layer is evaporated on the backside of the membrane which serves as a gate electrode. Using these devices, we have performed three-terminal electron transport measurements on gold nano-particles at liquid helium temperature. Coulomb Blockade features have been observed and the capacitance to the gate has been extracted. After transport measurements, the Cr/Au back gate is removed and the devices are inspected with a transmission-electron microscope (TEM). TEM inspection reveals the presence of a few nano-particles in the nanogap, which is in agreement with the transport measurements. In addition, the nano-particle size as observed by TEM coincides with the one estimated from the gate capacitance value.

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... lasers, model switched optical memory elements ... Optical RS flip flop, Acousto-optic switches. ... FLOP CIRCUITS, OPTICAL SWITCHING, NOR GATES ...

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The performance of scanning driver circuits fabricated with self-aligned aluminum gate polysilicon thin-film transistors (TFT's) is demonstrated. After the gate electrode patterning, the fabrication process temperature is kept below 400degC to enable the use of aluminum gate electrodes. The low-temperature crystallization phenomenon, which occurs when protons are implanted simultaneously with boron or phosphorus dopants, is employed to eliminate the 600degC activation-annealing process. A maximum clock frequency of about 2.0 MHz is achieved when the driver operating voltage is 24 V and the TFT channel length is 12 [mu]m. (author).

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... .13 Teaching the Materials Science, Engineering, and Field Aspects of Concrete ... Gate Arrays. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .15 Materials Science Concepts for Introductory Courses in ...

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... stenosis. It looks from the transesophageal and the 3-D echo that most of the problem is really ... posterior leaflet, which you can see on the 3-D echo image is a major source. The anterior ...

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Opinion statement Because a minority of patients with D-transposition of the great arteries are diagnosed in utero by ultrasound, most present after delivery with cyanosis. In the absence of apparent lung disease, cyanotic neonates suspected of having a cardiac lesion should be immediately transferred to an intensive care unit at a pediatric tertiary care center for monitoring, resuscitation, and to define the cardiac anatomy and physiology. A prostaglandin E-1 infusion is usually initiated to maintain ductal patency and promote intra-cardiac mixing. In the past, balloon atrial septostomy (BAS) was routinely performed to enlarge the atrial septal defect and improve intra-cardiac mixing while the infants awaited surgery. Recent literature has reported an increase risk of stroke in neonates ...

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

Congestive heart failure (CHF) is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality. CHF is marked by atrial and ventricular enlargement and reduced cardiac contractility, as well as an association...Full Text Available

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Cardiac Malposition refers to any position of the heart other than a left-sided heart in a situs solitus individual. Associated cardiac malformations are so complex that even angiocardiographic and autopsy studies may not afford an accurate information. Although the terms and classifications used to describe the internal cardiac anatomy and their arterial connections in cardiac malpositions differ and tend to be confusing, common agreement exists on the need for a segmental approach to diagnosis. Authors present 18 cases of cardiac malpositions in which cardiac catheterization and angiocardiography were done at the Department of Radiology, Seoul National University Hospital between 1971 and 1979. Authors analyzed the clinical, radiographic, operative and autopsy findings with the emphasis on the angiocardiographic findings. The results are as follows: 1. Among ...

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Electrographic R-R interval variation was examined in a total of 915 A-bomb survivors exposed at {<=}2,000 m from the hypocenter (the {<=} 2,000 m group) and a total of 1,162 A-bomb survivors exposed at >3,000 m or entered the city after the A-bombing (the >3,000 m group). Coefficient of variation (CV) for R-R interval variation on ECG tended to be decreased with advancing age in the >3,000 m group, irrespective of sex. Especially for men in this group, CV values were significantly lower for the age group of 45 to 54 years than the groups of 65 to 74 years and 75 to 84 years. Similar tendency was observed for CV values at deep breath. Decreased CV values tended to be associated with a decrease in glucose tolerance in both men and women of the >3,000 m group. In comparing the aforementioned CV values with those in the {<=}2,000 m group, there was no significant difference between the groups. R-R interval variation on ECG was ...

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Biased above threshold (VT), pulsed photocurrent (u) measurements on windowed silicon Pd gate MOS capacitors are shifted (DV) negatively by H2/N2, whereas Au gates shift positively under NO2/air. Below VT, the shifts are reversed by adjustments of interface state population. Minor temperature increases may coax the device from inversion to depletion, inducing sign reversal of the chemical response.

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The influence of MeV electrons irradiation on the gate oxide layers of hydrogenated polysilicon thin film transistors (TFTs) was investigated by measuring gate leakage currents and threshold voltages. The experimental data revealed a decrease of oxide trap density and increase of positive oxide charge. Improvement in the interface roughness and in the oxide quality near the bottom interface was observed.

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Correlation between mechanical stress and hydrogen effects on radiation damage in polycide-gate MOS capacitors was investigated as a function of gate-oxide thickness. The compressive stress magnitude was altered by varying the silicide (TiSi/sub 2/ or WSi/sub 2/) thickness in the polycide-gate electrode, and hydrogen introduction into gate-SiO/sub 2/ film was carried out by diffusion from plasma-deposited silicon-nitride passivation film (SiN-Cap). In a MOS capacitor without passivation film (No-Cap sample), it was found that compressive stress on gate-SiO/sub 2/ reduces both positive charge build-up (..delta..Qot) and interface-trap generation (..delta..Dit). Radiation induced shift, ..delta..Qot exhibits a smaller stress effect as compared with ..delta..Dit. As gate-SiO/sub 2/ thickness decreases, the stress effect on ..delta..Qot increases, while this effect ...

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Cardiac tumours may display diverse symptoms through potential involvement of any structure of the heart. We describe a case of a highly malignant thymoma with involvement of different cardiac structures with important haemodynamic compromise. With the high sensitivity of transthoracic echocardiography for detection of intracardiac masses, computed tomography and magnetic resonance add essential structural preoperative information on the tumour and surrounding tissue as vessels, pleura, lung and mediastinum.

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Recent literature indicates that torsion of the left ventricle (LV) is a promising predictor for response to cardiac resynchronisation therapy (CRT). Among patients with severe heart failure, 45 to 75% of patients show rigid body rotation, where the base and apex rotate in the same direction, instead of normal, opposite rotation. The occurrence of this phenomenon seems to be a good indicator for response to CRT. From this review, it can be concluded that LV torsion might be a welcome addition to current selection criteria.

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Effective work function (m,eff) values of Ru gate electrode on SiO2 and HfO2 MOS capacitors were carefully examined and discussed from the viewpoint of an effect of oxygen incorporation in Ru gate electrode on m,eff. Annealing at 400degreeC in the reduction (3%H2) and the oxidation (1%O2) ambient resulted in similar changes in the m,eff of Ru/HfO2/SiO2 and Ru/SiO2 MOS capacitors. Furthermore, the Ru gate MOS capacitor after annealing in the oxidation condition have shown almost the same m,eff value to that of RuO2 gate MOS capacitors. The oxygen concentration in the Ru/HfO2 interface after annealing in oxidizing atmosphere is approximately one order of magnitude higher than that after annealing in reducing atmosphere as confirmed by secondary ion mass spectroscopy analysis. Furthermore, th...

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In this work we present the electrical characterization of non self-aligned p-channel thin film transistors fabricated by using laser doping technique for source/drain contact formation and gate oxide deposited at room temperature by Electron Cyclotron Resonance Plasma Enhanced Chemical Vapour Deposition. These techniques are suitable for a very low temperature process for TFT fabrication. The output characteristics show a current increase at high drain voltage ('kink' effect) rather moderate, if compared to self aligned polysilicon TFTs, probably due to the gradual doping profile induced by laser doping process. After bias stress at low gate voltage and high drain voltage condition a strong reduction of kink current has been observed in the output characteristics at high drain voltage, whereas minor changes has been observed in the transfer characteristics. This behaviour is similar to what observed in n-channel Gate ...

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The influence of high energy electron (23 MeV) irradiation on the electrical characteristics of p-channel polysilicon thin film transistors (PSTFTs) was studied. The channel 220 nm thick LPCVD (low pressure chemical vapor deposition) deposited polysilicon layer was phosphorus doped by ion implantation. A 45 nm thick, thermally grown, SiO{sub 2} layer served as gate dielectric. A self-alignment technology for boron doping of the source and drain regions was used. 200 nm thick polysilicon film was deposited as a gate electrode. The obtained p-channel PSTFTs were irradiated with different high energy electron doses. Leakage currents through the gate oxide and transfer characteristics of the transistors were measured. A software model describing the field enhancement and the non-uniform current distribution at textured polysilicon/oxide interface was developed. In order to assess the irradiation-stimulated changes of ...

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Cardiac contractile function is dependent on the integrity and function of the sarcolemmal membrane. Swimming exercise training is known to increase cardiac contractile performance. The purpose of the present study was to examine whether a swimming exercise program would alter sarcolemmal enzyme activity, ion flux, and composition in rat hearts. After approximately 11 wk of exercise training, cardiac myosin and actomyosin Ca2+-adenosinetriphosphatase (ATPase) activity was significantly higher in exercised rat hearts than in sedentary control rat hearts. Glycogen content was increased in plantaris and gastrocnemius muscles from exercised animals as was succinic dehydrogenase activity in gastrocnemius muscle of exercised rats in comparison to sedentary rat preparations. Sarcolemmal vesicles were isolated from hearts of exercise-trained and control rats. Sarcolemmal Na+-K+-ATPase and K+-p-nitrophenylphosphatase activities, ...

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Tensile and flexural properties of single-gated (SG) and double-gated (DG) injection moulded blend of polybutylene terephthalate (PBT) and polycarbonate (PC) and its composites containing 15, 20 and 30?wt.% short glass fibres were investigated. In the DG mouldings, a weldline was formed by direct impingement of two opposing melt fronts (i.e. cold weld). It was found that tensile modulus was not affected by the weldline but flexural modulus decreased in the presence of weldline. For both specimen types, modulus increased linearly with volume fraction of fibres (? f), according to the rule-of-mixtures for moduli. The weldline integrity (WIF) factor for flexural modulus decreased linearly with increasing ? f. Results showed that tensile and flexural strengths for SG mouldings increase with in...

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Aims and objectives.- To investigate infant well-being as measured by feeding and sleeping and parental support following discharge from the NICU in infants following major cardiac surgery. Background.- Infant feeding and sleeping have been identified as two of the most important concerns reported by parents. These concerns have been reported anecdotally for infants who have undergone cardiac surgery in the neonatal period. Design.- A prospective study using questionnaires and phone interviews followed a cohort of parents of neonates who underwent surgery in the neonatal period for congenital heart disease. Methods.- The study was conducted using validated questionnaires and phone interviews with a semi-structured questionnaire. The questionnaires were administered prior to discharge from ...

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Abstract Sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) is always a devastating and unexpected occurrence. SIDS is the leading cause of death in the first 6 months after birth in the industrialized world. Since the discovery in 1998 of long QT syndrome as an underlying substrate for SIDS, around 10-20% of SIDS cases have been proposed as being caused by genetic variants in either ion channel or ion channel-associated proteins. Until now, 10 cardiac channelopathy susceptibility genes have been found to be implicated in the pathogenesis of SIDS. Four of the genes encode cardiac ion channel a-subunits, 3 genes encode ion channel b-subunits, and 3 genes encode other channel-interacting proteins. All 10 genes have been associated with primary electrical heart diseases. SIDS may hereby be the initial sympt...

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

Peptide toxins with high affinity, divergent pharmacological functions, and isoform-specific selectivity are powerful tools for investigating the structure-function relationships of voltage-gated...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

Antagonists for kainate receptors (KARs), a family of glutamate-gated ion channels, are efficacious in a number of animal models of neuropathologies, including epilepsy, migraine pain, and anxiety....Full Text Available

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

In this paper, we present the results of Plasma-Enhanced Chemical Vapor Deposition gate-oxide (SiO_2) integrity on ELC (excimer-laser-crystallized), MILC (metal-induced lateral-crystallized) and SPC (solid-phase-crystallized) polysilicon films. We observed that gate oxide strength of poly-Si TFT strongly depends on the crystallization method for the active silicon layer. In the case of ELC films, asperities on the silicon surface reduce the SiO_2 breakdown field significantly. The metallic contaminants in MILC films are responsible for a deleterious impact on gate oxide integrity. Among the three cases, the SiO_2 breakdown field was the highest for the SPC silicon films. The breakdown fields at the 50 % failure points in Weibull plots for the ELC, MILC and SPC cases were 5.1 MV/cm, 6.2 MV/cm, and 8.1 MV/cm, respectively. We conclude that the roughness and metallic contamination of the poly-Si films are the main factors that ...

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We study the integration of multisensory and central input at the level of an identified fly motoneuron, the ventral cervical nerve motoneuron (VCNM) cell, which controls head movements of the animal....Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

BackgroundCompared to outbred Sprague Dawley (SD) rats, inbred Brown Norway (BN) rats exhibit less prepulse inhibition of startle (PPI) at long prepulse intervals,...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

ObjectivesThe aim of this study was to assess the diagnostic and prognostic value of heart-type fatty acid-binding protein (H-FABP) in elective percutaneous coronary intervention...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

BackgroundMedian sternotomy infection and bony nonunion are two commonly described complications which occur in 0.4 - 5.1% of cardiac procedures. Although relatively infrequent,...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

Radionuclide angiocardiography provides a noninvasive assessment of cardiac function and blood flow through the heart and lungs. During the past three years, this procedure has been used at the Duke...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

ObjectiveTo evaluate the association of physical activity with left ventricular structure and function in the general population in a community setting.Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

Although the heart rapidly adapts cardiac output to match the body’s circulatory demands, the regulatory mechanisms ensuring that sufficient ATP is available to perform the required...Full Text Available

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... of the American Medical Association JAMA PATIENT PAGE Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation W hen the heart stops beating (cardiac arrest), ... circulation (blood flow) returns or is restored. Providing cardiopulmonary resuscitation ( CPR ) is a way to keep some circulation ...

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OBJECTIVE--To develop, test, and validate an algorithm for diagnosing disease in neonates during an over the telephone referral to a specialist cardiac centre. DESIGN--A draft algorithm requiring only...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

Background With the increasing use of cineless diagnostic angiography laboratories, modern telecommunication networks provide an excellent opportunity to transfer dynamic cardiac...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

We report a case of a female patient who was operated at the third relapse of an atrial myxoma caused by Carney complex. The difficult operation was performed without any complications despite extensive...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

Zipper-interacting protein kinase (ZIPK) is a member of the death-associated protein kinase family associated with apoptosis in nonmuscle cells where it phosphorylates myosin regulatory light chain...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

Two cases of left ventricular aneurysm, a 16-year-old black boy and a 23-year-old white girl, from Bahia, Brazil, are presented. In both patients there was enlargement of the cardiac silhouette and...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

An integrated system of micro-and mini-computers is described to acquire, analyze, store and report data on the total activity of the heart of a critically ill patient. Real-time beat and rhythm diagnoses...Full Text Available

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Total dose irradiation effects on a VDMOS developed at Institute of Microelectronics, CAS were investigated, particularly the electric parameter changes under different bias conditions. It was found that the breakdown voltage degradation by the irradiation depended mainly on the drain bias, whereas the threshold voltage degradation depended mainly on the gate bias. Thus, an innovative and effective method to domestic VDMOS total dose ionization characterization is that threshold voltage radiation hardening characterization should be tested on gate bias condition, and the breakdown voltage radiation hardening characterization, be tested on the drain bias. (authors)

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Trapped ions are a near ideal system to study quantum information processing due to the high degree of control over the ion's external confinement and internal degrees of freedom. We demonstrate the key steps necessary for trapped ion quantum computing and focus on phonon-mediated entangling gates. We highlight several key algorithms implemented over the last decade with these gates and give a detailed description of Grover's quantum database search implemented with two trapped ion qubits.

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Background: Incidence, characteristics and predictive factors of transient ST-segment changes after DC shock are poorly known. Methods: 91 consecutive pts referred for external cardioversion of atrial fibrillation (AF) (61 men, 69+/-10yo) were prospectively included. The presence of ST elevation or depression was assessed on 12 lead-ECG immediately after the first DC shock. Correlations with DC shock characteristics (monophasic/biphasic and energy), clinical variables, echocardiographic parameters, biological parameters, medications, anesthesic drugs as well with morphological features were made. Results: 18 and 20 pts underwent 200J or 300J monophasic and 53 pts 200J biphasic DC shocks. We found an incidence of 48% for ST-segment changes: 35% for ST elevation and 13% for ST depression. ST...

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Introduction: The QT interval of the electrocardiogram (ECG) reflects the duration of ventricular depolarization and repolarization. A drug-induced prolongation of ventricular repolarization, and thereby QT prolongation, is recognized to be a marker for an enhanced risk for ventricular arrhythmia. The assessment of a drug's effect on the QT interval has therefore become routine within pharmaceutical research and development. However, the heart rate has a major influence on the QT interval; the QT interval shortens as heart rate increases such that one needs to account for such heart rate-dependent changes when evaluating possible drug-induced effects on the QT interval. The relationship between the QT interval and heart rate can be modeled mathematically and using this function a so-called...

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The response of MOS capacitors to low- and medium-energy x-ray irradiation is investigated as a function of gate material (TaSi or Al), oxide thickness, and electric field. Measured device response is compared with predictions based on discrete ordinates and Monte Carlo code simulations of dose enhancement effects, coupled with recent estimates of electron-hole recombination in MOS oxides. In comparisons of 10-keV x-ray and Co-60 irradiations of Al-gate MOS capacitors at an oxide electric field of 1 MV/cm, it is found that predictions and experiments agree to within better than 20 percent for oxide thicknesses ranging from 35 to 1060 nm. For capacitors having TaSi/Al gates, predictions and experiments agree to within better than 30 percent at 1 MV/cm, with the largest differences occurring for 35-nm gate oxides. At other electric fields, the disagreement between experiment and prediction increases ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The aim of the study was the attempt to evaluate the influence of two different methods of cardiac perfusion SPECT reconstruction (FBP and ITW) on clinical efficacy in diagnosing the coronary artery disease as well as the cardiac ischemia detection in three areas of heart vascularized by main coronary arteries: LAD, LCX and RCA with the use of artificial neural networks (ANN). The study was performed retrospectively with the use of the diagnostic image records as well as clinical dataset of 43 patients. Myocardial perfusion stress/rest SPECT study and X-ray coronarography data were evaluated for each patient. The results of coronary angiography were considered the reference method. The cardiac SPECT data were reconstructed using the two different methods: filtered backprojection (FBP) and iterative Wallis method (ITW). The local perfusion deficits denominated in stress and rest study in three main vessel ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Organic electronic devices using a pentacene have improved importantly in the last several years. We fabricated pentacene organic thin-film transistors (OTFTs) with dielectric SiO{sub 2} and ferroelectric Pb(Zr{sub 0.3},Ti{sub 0.7})O{sub 3} (PZT) gate insulators. The organic devices using SiO{sub 2} and PZT films had the field-effect mobility of approximately 0.1 and 0.004 cm{sup 2}/V s, respectively. The drain current in the transfer curve of pentacene/PZT transistors showed a hysteresis behavior originated in a ferroelectric polarization switching. In order to investigate the polarization effect of PZT gate dielectrics in a logic circuit, the simple voltage inverter using SiO{sub 2} and PZT films was fabricated and measured by an output-input measurement. The gain of inverter at the poling-down state was approximately 7.2 and it was three times larger than the value measured at the poling-up state.

Science.gov (United States)

Exercise training associated with robust conditioning can be useful for the study of molecular mechanisms underlying exercise-induced cardiac hypertrophy. A swimming apparatus is described to control training regimens in terms of duration, load, and frequency of exercise. Mice were submitted to 60- vs 90-min session/day, once vs twice a day, with 2 or 4% of the weight of the mouse or no workload attached to the tail, for 4 vs 6 weeks of exercise training. Blood pressure was unchanged in all groups while resting heart rate decreased in the trained groups (8-18%). Skeletal muscle citrate synthase activity, measured spectrophotometrically, increased (45-58%) only as a result of duration and frequency-controlled exercise training, indicating that endurance conditioning was obtained. In groups which received duration and endurance conditioning, cardiac weight (14-25%) and myocyte dimension (13-20%) increased. The best conditioning protocol to ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Time-resolved characterizations of electron beams using optical transition radiation (OTR) as a prompt conversion mechanism have recently been extended on the Los Alamos Free-electron Laser (FEL) facility 40-MeV linac. Two key timescales for rf-linac driven FELs are the micropulse (10 ps) and the macropulse (5 {mu}s to 1 ms). In the past we have used gated, intensified cameras to select a single or few micropulses (25 to 400 ns gate width) out of the pulse train to evaluate submacropulse effects. Recently, we have obtained some of the first measurements of micropulse bunch length (7 to 10 ps) and submacropulse spatial position and profile using OTR and a Hamamatsu streak camera. Additionally, micropulse elongation effects and head-to-tail transverse kicks are reported as a function of charge.

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

This paper evaluates the electric current terms from the longitudinal gradient of the longitudinal electric field in Bipolar Field-Effect-Transistors (BiFETs) with a pure base and two MOS gates operating in the unipolar (electron) current mode. These nMOS-BiFETs, known as nMOS-FinFETs, usually have electrically short channels compared with their intrinsic Debye length of about 25 #mu#m at room temperatures. These longitudinal electric current terms are important short-channel current components, which have been neglected in the computation of the long-channel electrical characteristics. This paper shows that the long-channel electrical characteristics are substantially modified by the longitudinal electrical current terms when the physical channel length is less than 100 nm.

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The influence of hydrogen ion implantation into the channel polysilicon of polysilicon thin film transistors on gate oxide conductivity has been investigated. Data for effective tunnelling barriers at the gate oxide/channel polysilicon interface are presented. A value of 1.2eV for samples with boron doped channel polysilicon is calculated. For hydrogenated boron doped samples tunnelling barriers higher than 2.1 eV are obtained. The tunnelling barriers for phosphorus doped samples are impurity concentration dependent and decrease with increasing phosphorus concentration in the range 3 x 10"1"7 to 3 x 10"1"9 cm"-"3. (Author).

CERN Document Server

The controlled growth of nanowires (NWs) with dimensions comparable to the Fermi wavelengths of the charge carriers allows fundamental investigations of quantum confinement phenomena. Here, we present studies of proximity-induced superconductivity in undoped Ge/Si core/shell NW heterostructures contacted by superconducting leads. By using a top gate electrode to modulate the carrier density in the NW, the critical supercurrent can be tuned from zero to greater than 100 nA. Furthermore, discrete sub-bands form in the NW due to confinement in the radial direction, which results in stepwise increases in the critical current as a function of gate voltage. Transport measurements on these superconductor-NW-superconductor devices reveal high-order (n = 25) resonant multiple Andreev reflections, indicating that the NW channel is smooth and the charge transport is highly coherent. The ability to create and control coherent superconducting ordered states ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Time-resolved characterizations of electron beams using optical transition radiation (OTR) as a prompt conversion mechanism have recently been extended on the Los Alamos Free-electron Laser (FEL) facility 40-MeV linac. Two key timescales for rf-linac driven FELs are the micropulse (10 ps) and the macropulse (5 {mu}s to 1 ms). In the past we have used gated, intensified cameras to select a single or few micropulses (25 to 400 ns gate width) out of the pulse train to evaluate submacropulse effects. Recently, we have obtained some of the first measurements of micropulse bunch length (7 to 10 ps) and submacropulse spatialposition and profile using OTR and a Hamamatsu streak camera. Additionally, micropulse elongation effects and head-to-tail transverse kick effects are reported as a function of charge.

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

Ventricular septal defects can occur as part of other congenital cardiac malformations or as an isolated finding. Aneurysms of the sinus of Valsalva are rare, most commonly involving the right or noncoronary sinuses. They can be congenital or acquired through infection, trauma, or degenerative diseases. They frequently co-exist with ventricular septal defects, aortic valve dysfunction, or other cardiac abnormalities. More commonly, sinus of Valsalva aneurysms are diagnosed after the clinical sequelae of rupture. Several etiologic factors may lead to the development of pathologic pericardial effusion and the detection of pericardial effusion was one of the first applications of echocardiography to gain widespread acceptance. We present a case of a chance finding of an aneurysm of the right ...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

Introduction: Patients in underdeveloped nations have limited access to life-saving medical technology including cardiac rhythm management (CRM) devices. We evaluated alternative means to provide such technology to this patient population while assessing the safety and efficacy of such a practice. Methods: Patients in the United States with clinical indications for extraction of CRM devices were consented. Antemortem CRM devices were cleaned and sterilized following a protocol established at our institution. Surveillance in vitro cultures were performed for quality assurance. The functional status of pulse generators was tested with a pacing system analyzer to confirm at least 70% battery life. Most generators were transported, in person, to an implanting institution in Nicaragua. Recipien...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Positron emission tomography (PET) is the gold standard for non-invasive assessment of myocardial viability and allows accurate detection of coronary artery disease by assessment of myocardial perfusion. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) provides high resolution anatomical images that allow accurate evaluation of ventricular structure and function together with detection of myocardial infarction. Potential hybrid PET/MR tomography may potentially facilitate the combination of information from these imaging modalities in cardiology. Furthermore, the combination of anatomical MRI images with the high sensitivity of PET for detecting molecular targets may extent the application of these modalities to the characterization of atherosclerotic plaques and to the evaluation of angiogenetic or stem cell therapies, for example. This article reviews studies using MRI and PET in parallel to compare their performance in cardiac applications together with the potential benefits ...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

Breath analysis could offer a non-invasive means of intravenous drug monitoring if robust correlations between drug concentrations in breath and blood can be established. In this study, propofol blood and breath concentrations were determined in an animal model under varying physiological conditions. Propofol concentrations in breath were determined by means of two independently calibrated analytical methods: continuous, real-time proton transfer reaction mass spectrometry (PTR-MS) and discontinuous solid-phase micro-extraction coupled with gas chromatography mass spectrometry (SPME-GC-MS). Blood concentrations were determined by means of SPME-GC-MS. Effects of changes in pulmonary blood flow resulting in a decreased cardiac output (CO) and effects of dobutamine administration resulting in...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

The first cardiac pacemaker implants occurred in the late 1950s and involved insertion of epicardial or epimyocardial leads and abdominal pulse generators. By the mid 1960s, cardiologists were making attempts to insert transvenous leads into the right ventricle. These early unipolar leads had large, polished, high polarization electrodes, no fixation device, and no lumen in which to place a stylet for lead positioning. The lead implantation procedures were usually long and the irradiation to both patient and operator excessive. Pulse generators were powered by zinc-mercury cells, which were large, unreliable, and prone to sudden output failure. Postoperative complications such as lead dislodgement, exit block, and premature power source failure were very common with most patients requiring...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

This paper presents a patient specific deformable heart model that involves the known electrical and mechanical properties of the cardiac cells and tissue. The whole heart model comprises ten Tusscher's ventricular and Nygren's atrial cell models, the anatomical and electrophysiological model descriptions of the atria (introduced by Harrild et al.) and ventricle (given by Winslow et al.), and the mechanical model of the periodical cardiac contraction and resting phenomena proposed by Moireau et al. During the propagation of the depolarization wave, the kinetic, compositional and rotational anisotropy is handled by the tissue, organ and torso model. The applied patient specific parameters were determined by an evolutionary computation method. An intensive parameter reduction was performed u...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The effect of fetal distress on the neonatal brain was investigated by neonatal CT brain scan, FHR monitoring and mode of delivery. This study involved 11 cases of full term vertex delivery in which FHR was recorded by fetal direct ECG during the second stage labor. All infants weighed 2,500 g or more. FHR monitoring was evaluated by Hon's classification. Neonatal brain edema was evaluated by cranial CT histgraphic analysis (Nakada's method). 1) Subdural hemorrhage was noted in 6 of 7 infants delivered by vacuum extraction or fundal pressure (Kristeller's method). 2) Intracranial hemorrhage was demonstrated in all of 3 infants with 5-min. Apgar score 7 or less. 3) Two cases with prolonged bradycardia and no variability had intraventricular or intracerebral hemorrhage which resulted in severe central nervous system damage. 4) The degree of neonatal brain edema correlated with 5-min. Apgar score. 5) One case with prolonged bradycardia and no variability resulted in ...

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

Spider venoms provide a highly valuable source of peptide toxins that act on a wide diversity of membrane-bound receptors and ion channels. In this work, we report isolation, biochemical analysis, and...Full Text Available

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

An investigation of the Ll x-#gamma# angular correlations following the decay of "2"0"7Bi is done by using a Si(Li) semiconductor counter as L x-ray detector. Coincidence measurements at five different angles were made between the 570-keV #gamma# ray (gated in the movable counter) and the Ll x spectrum (displayed in a multichannel analyzer).

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Quantum computers hold the promise of solving certain computational tasks much more efficiently than classical computers. We review recent experimental advances towards a quantum computer with trapped ions. In particular, various implementations of qubits, quantum gates and some key experiments are discussed. Furthermore, we review some implementations of quantum algorithms such as a deterministic teleportation of quantum information and an error correction scheme.

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

Airway ciliated cells express an ATP-gated P2X receptor channel of unknown subunit composition (P2X_cilia) which is modulated by Na⁺ and by long exposures to ATP. P2X_cilia...Full Text Available

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

A special purpose hardware machine, which simulates up to one half-million gates and 2m byte RAM ICS at a 5 millisecond clock speed is described. This is accomplished with a hardware logic (HAL) simulator. This performance is achieved with 32 distributed special parallel processors, which utilize block oriented simulation technique. The technique promises a good cost hardware logic simulator. 7 references.

Science.gov (United States)

In this communication we propose a method to implement an all-optical astable multivibrator using the non-linear material based switches and logic gates. The scheme can operate in real time. The delay time can achieve ps(pico-second). The pulse duration can be made very low and may cross the THz easily by selecting proper material and laser source.

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

Extracellular ATP has been proposed as a paracrine signal in rodent islets, but it is unclear what role ATP plays in human islets. We now show the presence of an ATP signaling pathway that enhances...Full Text Available

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

We propose a novel scheme for scalable solid state quantum computing, where superconducting microwave transmission line resonators (cavities) are arranged in a two-dimensional grid on the surface of a chip, coupling to superconducting qubits (charge or flux) at the intersections. We analyze how tasks of quantum information processing can be implemented in such a topology, including efficient two-qubit gates between any two qubits on the grid and elements of fault-tolerant computation.

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

1. We studied the effects of flash photolysis on the novel enantiomeric cardiac inotropes EMD 57033 (a calcium sensitizer) and EMD 57439 (a phosphodiesterase III inhibitor) in rat isolated ventricular...Full Text Available

Science.gov (United States)

A 56-year-old man admitted to our hospital for cardiac tamponade due to dilated cardiomyopathy did not respond to treatment by usual medical means or surgery. Pericardio-peritoneal drainage was conducted using a subcostal approach. Seven months later, the patient remains well and free of signs of pericardial tamponade. This method has proved to be safe and effective in patients with persistent massive pericardial effusion. PMID:10496067

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

Mice lacking Kv1.1 Shaker-like potassium channels encoded by the Kcna1 gene exhibit severe seizures and die prematurely. The channel is widely expressed in...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

We report for the first time a case of a 54 years old man with a fatal motorcycle accident due to an external bleeding compression of left internal mammary artery graft to the left anterior descending...Full Text Available

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The corrected transposition of the great arteries is an usual congenital cardiac malformation, which consists of transposition of great arteries and ventricular inversion, and which is caused by abnormal development of conotruncus and ventricular looping. High frequency of associated cardiac malformations makes it difficult to get accurate morphologic diagnosis. A total of 18 cases of corrected transposition of the great arteries is presented, in which cardiac catheterization and angiocardiography were done at the Department of Radiology, Seoul National University Hospital between September 1976 and June 1981. The clinical, radiographic, and operative findings with the emphasis on the angiocardiographic findings were analyzed. The results are as follows: 1. Among 18 cases, 13 cases have normal cardiac position, 2 cases have dextrocardia with situs solitus, 2 cases have dextrocardia with situs inversus ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Since chlordecone (Kepone, CD) interferes with cardiac Na{sup +} ion translocases, we have studied CD effects on cardiac SR calcium pump activity. SR was isolated from heart ventricles of male Sprague-Dawley rats. Cardiac SR Ca{sup 2+}-ATPase, {sup 45}Ca-uptake and cAMP as well as calmodulin (CaM) dependent protein phosphorylation were measured. Ca{sup 2+}-ATPase was differentiated into low affinity and high affinity forms by measuring the activity using 50 and 0.7 {mu}M free Ca{sup 2+} respectively. CD in vitro inhibited {sup 45}Ca-uptake by SR in a concentration dependent manner with an IC50 value of 7 {mu}M and SR {sup 45}Ca-uptake was totally inhibited at 20-30 {mu}M CD. In agreement with this, both high affinity and low affinity Ca{sup 2+}-ATPases, which are involved in Ca{sup 2+} transport across membranes, were also inhibited by CD in a concentration dependent manner with IC50 values of 0.7 and 3.2 {mu}M ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

We numerically constructed elementary phase-correct global quantum gates by using molecular electronic and vibrational states to encode two qubits and implement the Deutsch-Jozsa algorithm. The calculations were based on optimal control theory (OCT). The molecular species we chose were Na{sub 2} and Li{sub 2}. The electronic X{sup 1}{sigma}{sub g}{sup +} and A{sup 1}{sigma}{sub u}{sup +} states were taken as two orthonormalized energy levels of the electronic qubit. The vibrational qubits were those involved in these electronic states. The time duration of the optimized pulses with high fidelity was typically 500-900 fs, which reflects the wavepacket dynamics in electronically ground and excited states. When implementing the Deutsch-Jozsa algorithm by combining these elementary gates, we obtained a maximum probability 83.12% for Li{sub 2} molecule, which indicates that the electronic-vibrational qubits are worse than the vibrational-vibrational ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The effects of gate and drain bias stresses on thin film transistors fabricated in polysilicon films crystallized using the advanced sequential lateral solidification excimer laser annealing (SLS ELA) process, which yields very elongated polysilicon grains and allows the fabrication of TFTs without grain boundary barriers to current flow, are investigated as a function of the active layer thickness and of the TFT orientation relative to the grains. The application of hot carrier stress, with a condition of V{sub GS} = V{sub DS}/2, was determined to induce threshold voltage, subthreshold swing and transconductance degradation for TFTs in thicker polysilicon films and the associated stress-induced increase in the active layer trap density was evaluated. However, this device degradation was drastically reduced for TFTs fabricated in ultra-thin films. Furthermore, the application of the same stress condition to TFTs oriented vertically to the elongated grains resulted ...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

Si nanocrystal floating gate MOS capacitors were formed on p-Si (100) wafers by thermal plasma jet (TPJ) annealing of SiO2/SiOx /SiO2/Si(100) stacked structure. The chemical composition of SiOx layer was controlled by changing the SiH4, He, and O2 gas flow ratio during plasma enhanced chemical vapour deposition. The MOS capacitors showed clear hysteresis in capacitance-voltage (CV) characteristics after TPJ annealing. The hysteresis width shows maximum value when initial composition x =1.7, which shows the maximum photoluminescence (PL) intensity. The maximum hysteresis width of 6.8 V was observed with gate voltage swept between 20 and -20 V in x = 1.7 sample. The result means 7.4 x 1012 cm-2 carriers are injected to or emitted from Si nanocrystals. The duration of 1 V shift in flatband vo...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The minimum cardiac transit times (MTT's) at rest and following sub-maximum stresses were measured in 97 individual examinations of untrained persons and high performance athletes. It turned out that there is a strong dependence on cardiac frequency of the MTT's. This relation can be described quite satisfactorily by a hyperbolic function and in this way allows a frequency correction to be made of the MTT's. The MTT's standardized in this way (MTT.f values) represent the quotient of the end diastolic segment volume/beat volume. In the whole lesser circulatory system almost identical MTT.f values were found for the two groups under comparison at rest and following stress. In the ventricles, however, and especially so in the left ventricle, the MTT.f values were clearly higher with athletes than with untrained persons, but they strongly decreased after stresses, while the respective values remained almost constant in ordinary persons. (orig./RF).

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The chicken extracellular matrix glycoprotein ES/130 is necessary for epithelial-mesenchymal transformation in the developing hear and is also expressed in noncardiac chicken tissues such as limb and notochord. We have identified hES, the human homology of chicken ES/130. Fluorescence in situ hybridization analysis (FISH) localizes hES to human chromosome 20p11.2-p12. FISH analyses of individuals with 20p12 deletions and affected by Alagille syndrome exclude hES as a candidate gene for this disorder. Reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction studies reveal that hES is expressed in both fetal and adult human tissues and that hES expression in the left ventricle is increased in the failing adult heart. Further studies will evaluate how hES mutations may relate to congenital human cardiac and skeletal anomalies as well as cardiac remodeling in the adult. 16 refs., 2 figs.

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The theoretical hardness against total dose of the six-transistor SRAM cell is investigated in detail. An explicit analytical expression of the maximum tolerable threshold voltage shift is derived for two cross-coupled inverters. A numerical method is used to explore the hardness of the read and write operations. Both N- and P-channel access transistors designs are considered and their respective advantages are compared. The study points out that the radiation hardness mainly relies on the technology. Results obtained with the very robust Gate-All-Around process are finally presented.

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

We propose to encode a register of quantum bits in different collective electron spin wave excitations in a solid medium. Coupling to spins is enabled by locating them in the vicinity of a superconducting transmission line cavity, and making use of their strong collective coupling to the quantized radiation field. The transformation between different spin waves is achieved by applying gradient magnetic fields across the sample, while a Cooper pair box, resonant with the cavity field, may be used to carry out one- and two-qubit gate operations.

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

We study a quantum computing system using microwave photons in transmission line resonators on a superconducting chip as qubits. We show that linear optics and other controls necessary for quantum computing can be implemented by coupling to Josephson devices on the same chip. By taking advantage of the strong nonlinearities in Josephson junctions, photonic qubit interactions can be realized. We analyze the gate error rate to demonstrate that our scheme is realistic even for Josephson devices with limited decoherence times. As a conceptually innovative solution based on existing technologies, our scheme provides an integrated and scalable approach to the next key milestone for photonic qubit quantum computing.

CERN Document Server

We describe a scheme for quantum error correction that employs feedback and weak measurement rather than the standard tools of projective measurement and fast controlled unitary gates. The advantage of this scheme over previous protocols (for example Ahn et. al, PRA, 65, 042301 (2001)), is that it requires little side processing while remaining robust to measurement inefficiency, and is therefore considerably more practical. We evaluate the performance of our scheme by simulating the correction of bit-flips. We also consider implementation in a solid-state quantum computation architecture and estimate the maximal error rate which could be corrected with current technology.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Purpose: To determine the value of MRI in the postoperativ evaluation of a singular ventricle compared to echocardiography and cardiac catheterization. Materials and methods: Thirty-one patients (range: 6 months to 30 years) with a functional single ventricle following palliative corrective operations. Five patients had a Blalock-Taussig-Shunt, 8 patients a Glenn-Anastomosis and 18 a cavopulmonary shunt (6 with classic Fontan-Circulation, 12 with modified cavopulmonary anastomosis). The results in terms of postoperative morphologic changes were compared to percutaneous echocardiography (31/31) and cardiac catheterization (6/31). Results: Echocardiography, which was performed on all patients, could not visualize the entire length of the tunnel, the Glenn-Anastomosis or the central pulmonary arteries in 70% of the patients due to an inadequate acoustic window. MRI was able to show the entire tunnel in 11/12 patients and the central pulmonary ...

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...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The neuronal nicotinic acetylcholine receptor {alpha}7 subunit is a member of a family of ligand-gated ion channels, and is the only subunit know to bind {alpha}-bungarotoxin in mammalian brain. {alpha}-Bungarotoxin binding sites are known to be more abundant in the hippocampus of mouse strains that are particularly sensitive to nicotine-induced seizures. The {alpha}7 receptor is highly permeable to calcium, which could suggest a role in synaptic plasticity in the nervous system. Auditory gating deficiency, an abnormal response to a second auditory stimulus, is characteristic of schizophrenia. Mouse strains that exhibit a similar gating deficit have reduced hippocampal expression of the {alpha}7 subunit. We have cloned and sequenced the full length cDNA for the mouse {alpha}7 gene (Acra-7) and characterized its gene structure. The murine {alpha}7 shares amino acid identity of 99% and 93% with the rat and human {alpha}7 ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Optional multiple long-axial gated blood pool SPECT images were prepared for the purpose of stereoscopic and quantitative imaging of left ventricular wall motion (LVWM). Sixteen patients with ischemic heart disease and 8 healthy subjects were imaged in 32 views in the 360 degrees position after iv injection of 740 MBq of Tc-99m-labeled human serum albumin D. The R-R interval was divided into 16. After preparing conventional oblique images, long-axial images were prepared. Shortening rate of left ventricular wall was calculated in 5 segments of the apex and base of the left ventricle. An average shortening rate in each segment was graded with a score from a minimum of 0 to a maximum of 40% or more. In the normal group, shortening rate in each segment, except for the base of the septal region, exceeded 40%. In the group of ischemic heart disease, radial shortening was capable of visualizing the degree and extent of the whole LVWM abnormality. LVWM abnormality seen on ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The relative sensitivity and combined value of myocardial technetium-99m stannous pyrophosphate imaging and determinations of serum MB creatine phosphokinase (the ''myocardial'' CPK isoenzyme) in detecting acute myocardial infarction were evaluated in 41 patients with suspected infarction and 23 patients recovering from cardiac surgery. In the patients with suspected infarction, myocardial infarction was confirmed in 25 and was consistently associated with increased serum MB CPK. Abnormal radionuclide images were obtained in 23 of 25 patients (92%)) with definite myocardial infarction and in 2 of 16 patients without confirmed infarction. Although the localization of infarction by imaging correlated well with the localization by electrocardiogram, infarct size estimated by imaging did not correlate well with estimates based on peak total serum CPK activity or serial changes in CPK activity. Serum MB CPK activity increased after cardiac surgery ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ketamine-anesthetized Sprague-Dawley rats were exposed in H orientation to far-field 9.3-GHz continuous-wave (CW) and pulsed (2 microseconds 500 pps) radiofrequency radiation (RFR) at average power densities of 30 and 60 mW/sq. cm (whole-body average specific absorption rates of 9.3 and 18.6 W/kg, respectively). Irradiation was conducted to cyclicly increase colonic temperature from 38.5 to 39.5 C. Colonic, tympanic, and subcutaneous temperatures, ECG, blood pressure, and respiratory rate were continuously recorded during experimentation. At both power densities, the subcutaneous and tympanic temperature increases significantly exceeded the colonic temperature increase. At both exposure levels, heart rate increased significantly during irradiation and returned to baseline when exposure was discontinued. Blood pressure and respiratory rate did not significantly change during irradiation. There were no significant differences between the effects of CW and pulsed RFR ...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

Abstract In this paper, the effect of several turbulence parameters during various flow conditions in Owens Valley, educed from coherent Doppler lidar data have been studied. Radial velocity structure functions are processed to estimate the turbulent kinetic energy (TKE) dissipation rate, integral length scale and velocity variance, assuming a theoretical model for isotropic wind fields. Corrections for turbulence measurements have been considered to address the complications due to inherent volumetric averaging of radial velocity over each range gate, noise of the lidar data, and the assumptions required to estimate effects of smaller scales of motion on turbulence quantities. Using data from the Terrain-induced Rotor Experiment (T-REX) in April-May 2006, vertical profiles of wind and tur...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

A promising drug target currently under investigation to improve cognitive deficits in neuropsychiatric and neurological disorders is the neuronal nicotinic alpha7 acetylcholine receptor (a7nAChR). Improving cognitive impairments in diseases such as Alzheimer's (AD) and schizophrenia remains a large unmet medical need, and the a7nAChR has many properties that make it an attractive therapeutic target. The a7nAChR is a ligand gated ion channel that has particularly high permeability to Ca^2^+ and is expressed in key brain regions involved in cognitive processes (e.g., hippocampus). The a7nAChRs are localized both pre-synaptically, where they can regulate neurotransmitter release, and post-synaptically where they can activate intracellular signaling cascades and influence downstream processes...

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

We suggest and study designed defects in an otherwise periodic potential modulation of a two-dimensional electron gas as an alternative approach to electron spin based quantum information processing in the solid-state using conventional gate-defined quantum dots. We calculate the band structure and density of states for a periodic potential modulation, referred to as an antidot lattice, and find that localized states appear, when designed defects are introduced in the lattice. Such defect states may form the building blocks for quantum computing in a large antidot lattice, allowing for coherent electron transport between distant defect states in the lattice, and for a tunnel coupling of neighboring defect states with corresponding electrostatically controllable exchange coupling between different electron spins.

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The ozone production process in a pulsed positive dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) is studied by measuring the spatial distribution of ozone density using a two-dimensional laser absorption method. DBD occurs in a 6 mm point-to-plane gap with a 1 mm-thick glass plate placed on the plane electrode. First, the propagation of DBD is observed using a short-gated ICCD camera. It is shown that DBD develops in three phases: primary streamer, secondary streamer and surface discharge phases. Next, the spatial distribution of ozone density is measured. It is shown that ozone is mostly produced in the secondary streamer and surface discharge, while only a small amount of ozone is produced in the primary streamer. The rate coefficient of the ozone production reaction, O + O_2 + M #-># O_3 + M, is estimated to be 2.5 x 10"-"3"4 cm"6 s"-"1.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

In an effort to develop a simple low-temperature high-performance polysilicon thin-film transistor (TFT) technology, the authors report a fabrication process featuring laser-crystallized sputtered-silicon films. This top Al-gate coplanar TFT process subjects the substrate to a maximum temperature of 300 C, and produces devices with mobilities up to 450 cm{sup 2}/Vs, on/off current ratios greater than 10{sup 7}, without using a post-hydrogenation step. They believe these results represent the highest performance TFT`s to date fabricated from sputtered silicon films.

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The energy level schemes of "1"5"2Gd and "1"5"2Sm have been established on the basis of single #gamma#-spectra, and #gamma#-#gamma# coincidence measurements. Ge(Li) detectors were used to study the gamma spectra produced in the EC/#beta#"+ and #beta#"- decays of "1"5"2Eu to "1"5"2Sm and "1"5"2Gd, respectively. Thirteen new transitions are reported and data from eleven coincidence gates enabled five new levels to be suggested. Relative intensities and log ft values were calculated and spin/parities deduced. Comparisons are made with new predictions of the Interacting Boson Model. (orig.).

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

Prepulse inhibition (PPI) is a measure of sensorimotor gating, a pre-attentional inhibitory brain mechanism that filters extraneous stimuli. Prepulse inhibition is correlated with measures of cognition and executive functioning, and is considered an endophenotype of schizophrenia and other psychiatric illnesses in which patients show PPI impairments. As a first step toward identifying genes that regulate PPI, we performed a quantitative trait locus (QTL) screen of PPI phenotypes in a panel of mouse chromosome substitution strains (CSSs). We identified five CSSs with altered PPI compared with the host C57BL/6J strain: CSS-4 exhibited decreased PPI, whereas CSS-10, -11, -16 and -Y exhibited higher PPI compared with C57BL/6J. These data indicate that A/J chromosomes 4, 10, 11, 16 and Y harbor...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

Summary There is a current popular recognition that cigarette smoking is deleterious to health. Although this is very clearly the case for physical health, the situation regarding mental health is, however, rather more complicated. This piece concentrates on the role of smoking in schizophrenia: it is important to consider why schizophrenia, exceptionally amongst the severe and enduring mental illnesses, is associated with increased cigarette consumption. People who suffer from schizophrenia consequently have a greater risk of the complications to physical health caused by this addiction and clearly, it is important to understand why this occurs. Numerous investigators have found that both neuroleptic-naive, first-onset schizophrenics, together with chronic sufferers of the illness, consum...

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Butter-fly valves are advantageous over gate, globe, plug, and ball valves in a variety of installations, particularly in the large sizes. The purpose of this project development of linear flow rate control system for eccentric butter-fly valve (intelligent butter-fly valve system). The intelligent butter-fly valve system consist of a valve body, micro controller. The micro controller consist of torque control system, pressure censor, worm and worm gear and communication line etc. The characteristics of intelligent butter-fly valve system as follows: Linear flow rate control function. Digital remote control function. guard function. Self-checking function. (author)

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

Delayed Afterdepolarization in Sinoatrial Node. Introduction: Recent evidence indicates that spontaneous sarcoplasmic reticulum Ca release and Na-Ca exchanger current activation contribute to the sinoatrial node (SAN) automaticity. These findings suggest that SAN activity may share mechanisms that underlie both automaticity and triggered activity. The aim of this study is to test the hypothesis that spontaneous, nonvoltage gated, intracellular Ca (Cai) elevation may induce delayed afterdepolarization (DAD) in intact SAN during isoproterenol infusion. Methods and Results: We simultaneously mapped Cai and membrane potential in 31 isolated Langendorff-perfused canine right atriums (RA). Isoproterenol increased heart rate and late diastolic Cai elevation (LDCAE) of the superior SAN, leading to...

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Linear-optical passive (LOP) devices and photon counters are sufficient to implement universal quantum computation with single photons, and particular schemes have already been proposed. In this paper we discuss the link between the algebraic structure of LOP transformations and quantum computing. We first show how to decompose the Fock space of N optical modes in finite-dimensional subspaces that are suitable for encoding strings of qubits and invariant under LOP transformations (these subspaces are related to the spaces of irreducible unitary representations of U (N). Next we show how to design in algorithmic fashion LOP circuits which implement any quantum circuit deterministically. We also present some simple examples, such as the circuits implementing a cNOT gate and a Bell state generator/analyser.

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A novel floating-gate avalanche injection (FAMOS) type erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM) device is demonstrated, with a heavily focused ion-beam (FIB) implanted region of about 0.2-..mu..m width at the drain edge of the channel. This heavily B/sup +/-doped region permits a higher electric field near the drain edge, resulting in a remarkable increase of the hot-carrier generation rate, and reduces both the programming voltage and programming time. A three-dimensional device simulator, CADDETH, predicted that the electric field at the drain edge would increase by about six times, which would lead to hot-carrier generation efficiency three orders of magnitude higher.

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

Background Limited data is available for investigating the long-term safety and effects of intracoronary progenitor cell therapy in patients with acute myocardial infarction (AMI). Objective To assess the clinical course, NT-proBNP and MRI data as objective markers of cardiac function of the TOPCARE-AMI patients at 5-year follow-up. Design The TOPCARE-AMI trial was the first randomized study investigating the effects of intracoronary infusion of circulating (CPC) or bone marrow-derived progenitor cells (BMC) in 59 patients with successfully reperfused AMI. Results Five-year follow-up data were completed in 55 patients, 3 patients were lost to follow-up. None of the patients showed any signs of intramyocardial calcification or tumors at 5?years. One patient died during the initial hospitali...

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The random walk function is a mathematical function derived from studies of the mass transport and flow of diffusible materials through tubes. Approximations to the function were first used some time ago in the field of cardiac tracer dilution curves, but in the absence of rapid and reproducible curve fitting the method never became commonplace. The current study uses the latest curve-fitting techniques and shows how the method may be used with precision in the analysis of time-activity curves from dynamic oesophageal and blood flow studies. The physiological basis of the method is given and parameters obtained which relate to both the rate of flow and the local dispersion of the bolus.

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Background/Objectives: Cardiotoxic drug poisoning can lead to severe cardiac shock (CS) and death. B-type natriuretic peptide (BNP) is a well-established diagnostic and prognostic marker in heart failure but has never been assessed in patients with cardiotoxic drug poisoning. The aim of the study was to determine whether BNP could be useful for early stratification of patients admitted to intensive care unit. Methods: 30 consecutive patients experiencing shock and cardiotoxic drug exposure were enrolled in a prospective monocentric study and underwent at least two BNP measurements within the first 24 h after admission. Results: While BNP values on admission were poorly informative, subsequent BNP measurements (11 +- 6 h after admission) were significantly increased in patients with CS comp...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

Background The Norwood procedure consists of three palliative operations, performed in neonates with hypoplastic left heart syndrome. Especially the first stage (Norwood I) is associated with the highest mortality rates in paediatric cardiac surgery (up to 25%). During surgery, the aorta is reconstructed and a systemic-to-pulmonary shunt is applied. Originally the modified Blalock-Taussig shunt was used, but recently the right-ventricle-to-pulmonary-artery shunt is increasingly being employed. We reviewed the results of our operative strategy, where an individualised choice of shunt is made. Furthermore, attempts to reduce interstage mortality (between Norwood I and II) were assessed. Methods All neonates who underwent Norwood stage I palliation from August 2004 until November 2010 were in...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

Abstract A series of studies performed at our center demonstrates that gaseous microemboli (GME) remain a challenge in cardiac surgical procedures. Evaluation of novel oxygenators must address hemodynamic parameters and microemboli capture capability. The objective of this study is to compare two neonatal membrane oxygenators, the Quadrox i (MAQUET Cardiopulmonary AG, Hirrlingen, Germany) and the Capiox RX05 (Terumo Corporation, Tokyo, Japan), with respect to GME capture and hemodynamic energy delivery. The experimental circuit included a Maquet HL 20 heart lung machine, a Heater Cooler Unit HCU 30 (MAQUET Cardiopulmonary AG), a membrane oxygenator (Quadrox i Neonatal or Capiox RX05), and inch tubing from the COBE Heart/Lung Perfusion Pack (COBE Cardiovascular, Inc., Arvada, CO, USA). A Ca...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE In spite of its widespread clinical application, there is little information on the cellular cardiac effects of the antidiabetic drug rosiglitazone in larger experimental animals. In the present study therefore concentration-dependent effects of rosiglitazone on action potential morphology and the underlying ion currents were studied in dog hearts. EXPERIMENTAL APPROACH Standard microelectrode techniques, conventional whole cell patch clamp and action potential voltage clamp techniques were applied in enzymatically dispersed ventricular cells from dog hearts. KEY RESULTS At concentrations -10-M rosiglitazone decreased the amplitude of phase-1 repolarization, reduced the maximum velocity of depolarization and caused depression of the plateau potential. These effects d...

Science.gov (United States)

Self-excited oscillations of a distributed medium can be investigated in terms of discrete physical models described by multidimensional systems of nonlinear equations which transform into equations of self-oscillating distributed media as the number of dimensions goes to infinity. Differential equations of such a self-oscillating system are set up and investigated. Coupling between elements of the medium, conditions under which the system constitutes an open system, internal impedance between the energy source and the system elements, and boundary conditions defining open and closed systems are discussed. The Gunn effect, eolian noise, self-oscillations of DNA molecules and of cardiac muscle, and wave processes in the cerebral cortex are mentioned as examples of self-oscillatory processes in question.

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T{sub 2} weighted ultra-short turbo spin echo sequences were used in five individuals with variations in echo times, delayed triggering and echo intervals. To reduce movement artifacts all examinations were carried out with ECG and respiratory triggering. The sequences giving optimal image quality were then employed in 19 patients having various pulmonary abnormalities. Image resolutions, artifacts, image contrasts and diagnostic value were then judged by two observers and compared with CT. In the first study, a diastole-triggered UTSE sequence with the shortest echo proved optimal (T{sub E}=90 ms, T{sub R}=2-4 s, echo=9 ms, turbo factor=19). In the patient series studied, MRT was inferior to CT with regard to resolution and number of artifacts, but better in respect of contrast and diagnostic value. Using UTSE of the lung, MRT can produce images of good quality. Compared with CT, contrast is better with MRT, offering diagnostic advantages for MRT. (orig./MG) ...

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This report describes the geology of the following 5 Alberta Foothills/Mountains coal zones: the Kootenay, Gething, Gates, Brazeau and Coalspur coal zones. The coal areas were assessed for gas content and compared with previous coalbed methane (CBM) exploration in the area. The coal zones can be divided into shallow (less than 1000 m depth) and deep (greater than 1000 m depth) coal zones for evaluation purposes. The potential gas content of the shallow coal zones is approximately 31 Tcf of CBM. This is considered an inferred, initial, in-place, CBM resource estimate based on limited data. The gas content of deep zones is approximately 99 Tcf of in-place CBM gas. Therefore, the total ultimate CBM resource is estimated at 130 Tcf. CBM recovery is not usually attempted due to high drilling costs and low permeability. The only CBM production from the Foothills has been from the southern Alberta Kootenay coal zone, and this was limited. The shallow ...

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Some motor operated valves now have higher torque switch settings due to regulatory requirements to ensure valve operability with appropriate margins at design basis conditions. Verifying operability with these settings imposes higher stem loads during periodic inservice testing. These higher test loads increase stresses in the various valve internal parts which may in turn increase the fatigue usage factors. This increased fatigue is judged to be a concern primarily in the valve disks, seats, yokes, stems, and stem nuts. Although the motor operators may also have significantly increased loading, they are being evaluated by the manufacturers and are beyond the scope of this study. Two gate valves representative of both relatively weak and strong valves commonly used in commercial nuclear applications were selected for fatigue analyses. Detailed dimensional and test data were available for both valves from previous studies at the Idaho National Engineering ...

Science.gov (United States)

The field of stem cell research was revolutionized with the advent of induced pluripotent stem cells. By reprogramming somatic cells to pluripotent stem cells, most ethical concerns associated with the use of embryonic stem cells are overcome, such that many hopes from the stem cell field now seem a step closer to reality. Several methods and cell sources have been described to create induced pluripotent stem cells and we discuss their characteristics in terms of feasibility and efficiency. From these cells, cardiac progenitors and cardiomyocytes can be derived by several protocols and most recent advances as well as remaining limitations are being discussed. However in the short time period this technology has been around, evidence emerges that induced pluripotent stem cells may be more prone to genetic defects and maintain an epigenetic memory and thus may not be entirely the same as embryonic stem cells. Despite the lack of a complete fundamental understanding ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Male rats were injected intravenously for 15 min with physiological saline (as control) (0.05 #mu#g/kg/min) or norepinephrine (NE) (0.1 #mu#g/kg/min) followed by 740 kBq of MIBG. Rats were injected for more 30 min (early stage group) and for more 4 hr (late stage group) with physiological saline or NE. Five MBq of "9"9"mTc-tetrofosmin (TF) was administered instead of MIBG in another group. The heart was isolated and uptake of MIBG or TF of right ventricle, apex, and left ventricle (divided into 8 parts) was measured. In control group, MIBG uptake of apex was significantly lower than that of lateral wall in both early and late groups. In NE group, MIBG uptake showed a tendency to decrease in both early and late groups. Compared with control group, the uptake of anterior wall in late group decreased significantly at NE 0.1 #mu#/kg/min. The TF uptake in control group was not different in each part. In NE group, the TF uptake of right ventricle decreased significantly compared with that of ...

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Ohio State University (OSU) is uniquely poised to establish such a center, with interdisciplinary emphasis on modeling, simulation, design and control of hybrid-electric drives for a number of reasons, some of which are: (1) The OSU Center for Automotive Research (CAR) already provides an infrastructure for interdisciplinary automotive research and graduate education; the facilities available at OSU-CAR in the area of vehicle and powertrain research are among the best in the country. CAR facilities include 31,000 sq. feet of space, multiple chassis and engine dynamometers, an anechoic chamber, and a high bay area. (2) OSU has in excess of 10 graduate level courses related to automotive systems. A graduate level sequence has already been initiated with GM. In addition, an Automotive Systems Engineering (ASE) program cosponsored by the mechanical and electrical engineering programs, had been formulated earlier at OSU, independent of the GATE program proposal. The ...

Science.gov (United States)

The gadolinium isotopes are interesting for reactor applications as well as for medicine and astrophysics. The gadolinium isotopes have some of the largest neutron capture cross sections. As a consequence they are used in the control rod in reactor fuel assembly. From the basic science point of view, there are seven stable isotopes of gadolinium with varying degrees of deformation. Therefore they provide a good testing ground for the study of deformation dependent structure such as the scissors mode. Decay gamma rays following neutron capture on Gd isotopes are detected by the DANCE array, which is located at flight path 14 at the Lujan Neutron Scattering Center at Los Alamos National Laboratory. The high segmentation and close packing of the detector array enable gamma-ray multiplicity measurements. The calorimetric properties of the DANCE array coupled with the neutron time-of-flight technique enables one to gate on a specific resonance of a specific isotope in ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

A transient stability program was developed for the Taiwan Power Company, which has a high proportion of nuclear generation in its power system. This program offers a new territory to investigate nuclear plant effects on the power system transient stability. This program also provides a high speed tool for the Taipower system operational planning. A generalized procedure of synchronous machine modeling for a large-scale stability study is presented. The merits and weaknesses of machine modeling can be comprehended through each item of this procedure. Three types of nonlinear synchronous machine modeling implemented into this stability program are derived by following this procedure. A robust subroutine was derived to perform the fourth order Runge-Kutta integration method, making the software programming neat and systematical. For simulating the nuclear plant influence on the system, this program implemented an additional four functions: load-limit operation simulated by a low-value ...

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Preliminary results from a large-scale testbed of advanced lighting control technologies at the Phillip Burton Federal Building at 450 Golden Gate Ave. in San Francisco are presented. The first year objective of this project is to determine the sustainable energy savings and cost-effectiveness of different lighting control technologies compared to a portion of the building where only minimal controls are installed. The paper presents the analyzed results from six months of tests focused on accurately characterizing the energy savings potential of one type of daylight-linked lighting controls compared to the lighting in similar open-planned areas without dimming controls. After analyzing a half year;s data, we determined that the annual energy savings for this type of daylight- linked controls was 41% and 30% for the outer rows of lights on the South and North sides of the building, respectively. The annual energy savings dropped to 22% and 16% for the second row of ...

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The improvement in the functions of the viscous flow calculation method VEGA-SHIP around a ship and the expansion of application range were described as the numerical flow simulation in ship and ocean engineering and at the same time application examples to the ocean engineering by the general-purpose flow simulation code FLOW-3D handling the non-steady flow with a free surface were introduced as the numerical simulation regarding such products as a water gate and a dam. In the VEGA-SHIP, water surface was handled as a fixed wall so that wave could not be calculated. Therefore, an algorithm for calculating wave on the water surface was added to the VEGA-SHIP and a calculation method simultaneously considering the creation of wave around the ship and viscosity was developed. The FLOW-3D was used to calculate the phenomenon where inside liquid moved greatly due to the oscillation of a tank and hit against and damaged the tank ceiling in the tank, etc. for storing ...

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Introduces three designs of development working protection recommended for immediate roof, basic roof and a coal seam of 1.5-2 m, 2.5-4 m and 0.7-1.1 m thickness respectively. The first design of roof control includes a dummy road with breaker props (cutting-off support) and pack, and reinforced concrete props. The second pattern comprises a breaking gate, two rows of cutting-off timber support, up to 10 m long pack and wood chocks. According to the third pattern a breaking road was executed 5.7-6 m away from the face end with breaker props at both its sides. Two rows of pack chocks were added to the dip. Advantages and drawbacks of the three patterns are pointed out. Stress distribution in rock is shown. Position of roof and support before and after roof settling is shown. The cost of the three methods is analyzed. Recommendations useful in application of the method are provided.

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Operation safety and reliability are major guidelines in the design of city-gate units. Conventional natural gas heaters operate by a indirect mechanism, where liquid water is used to transfer heat by natural convection between the combustion chamber and the natural gas coil. In this work, the concept of vapor chamber is evaluated as an indirect gas heater. In a vapor chamber, liquid water is in contact with the heat source, and vaporizes. The vapor condenses in contact with the heat sink. A reduced scale model was built and tested in order to compare these two heating concepts where the combustion chamber was replaced by electrical cartridge heaters. This engineering model can operate either as a conventional heater or as a vapor chamber. The comparison between the concepts was done by inducing a controlled power to the cartridges and by measuring the resulting temperature distributions. In the novel design, the heat exchanger efficiency increases, and the thermal ...

CERN Document Server

Increasing the speed and complexity of semiconductor integrated circuits requires advanced processes that put extreme constraints on the level of metal contamination allowed on the surfaces of silicon wafers. Such contamination degrades the performance of the ultrathin SiO sub 2 gate dielectrics that form the heart of the individual transistors. Ultimately, reliability and yield are reduced to levels that must be improved before new processes can be put into production. It should be noted that much of this metal contamination occurs during the wet chemical etching and rinsing steps required for the manufacture of integrated circuits and industry is actively developing new processes that have already brought the metal contamination to levels beyond the measurement capabilities of conventional analytical techniques. The measurement of these extremely low contamination levels has required the use of synchrotron radiation total reflection X-ray fluorescence (SR-TXRF) ...

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Increasingly stringent safety requirements governing the nuclear industry have made it essential to gain in-depth knowledge of the injuriousness of cracking phenomena in auxiliary and secondary nuclear power plant systems, and to devise methods of rapidly evaluating potentially injurious flaws. The Defect Injuriousness Diagnosis and Treatment Package (DIDTP) discussed in this paper was developed by Framatome, a French-based PWR builder, with this goal in mind. A general description is given of the DIDTP, which is made up of tables and nomographs illustrating the injuriousness of flaws liable to be encountered in the most severely loaded regions of plant systems. The basic principles underlying the DIDTP, together with computational methods and application procedure, are detailed. Two practical examples illustrating the use of the diagnostic system are presented, one applied to the main steam line, the other to gate valve wedges. The types of results obtained and ...

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A non-synthetic polymer material, polyterpenol, was fabricated using a dry polymerization process namely RF plasma polymerization from an environmentally friendly monomer and its surface, optical and electrical properties investigated. Polyterpenol films were found to be transparent over the visible wavelength range, with a smooth surface with an average roughness of less than 0.4 nm and hardness of 0.4 GPa. The dielectric constant of 3.4 for polyterpenol was higher than that of the conventional polymer materials used in the organic electronic devices. The non-synthetic polymer material was then implemented as a surface modification of the gate insulator in field effect transistor (OFET) and the properties of the device were examined. In comparison to the similar device without the polymer insulating layer, the polyterpenol based OFET device showed significant improvements. The addition of the polyterpenol interlayer in the OFET shifted the threshold voltage ...

Science.gov (United States)

Near-ideal Schottky barrier contacts to n-type Al0.22Ga0.78N have been developed by a two-step surface treatment technique. Plasma etching of the AlxGa1-xN surface prior to Schottky metal deposition, combined with sequential chemical treatment of the etched surface, holds promise for developing high quality low-leakage Schottky contacts for low noise applications and for recessed gate high electron mobility transistors. In this work, the effect of postetch chemical treatment of the n-type Al0.22Ga0.78N surface on the performance of the Ni/Au based Schottky contact has been investigated. Three different types of chemical treatment: viz, reactive ion etching, reactive ion etching plus dipping in hot aqua regia, and reactive ion etching plus dipping in hot KOH, are studied. Detailed current-voltage studies of three different surface treated diodes and a comparison with as-deposited diodes reveal significant improvement in the diode characteristics. The latter surface ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Power plant components exposed to environments such as water and soil are susceptible to severe corrosion. Many times the effect of corrosion in power plant components can be catastrophic. The problem is aggravated for underground pipelines due to additional factors such as large network of pipelines, proximity to earth mat, high voltage transmission lines, corrosive chemicals, inadequate approach etc. Other components such as condenser water boxes, internals of pipelines, clarifier bridge structures, cooling water inlet gates and pipes etc. which are in continuous contact with water, are subjected to severe corrosion. The nature and locations of all such components are at places which are not accessible for routine maintenance and hence they require long term reliable protection against corrosion. Experience has shown that anti-corrosive coatings are inadequate in preventing corrosion and due to their location regular maintenance coatings are also not feasible. ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Using standard microfabrication techniques, it is now possible to construct devices that appear to reliably manipulate electrons one at a time. These devices have potential use as building blocks in quantum computing devices, or as a standard of electrical current derived only from a frequency and the fundamental charge. To date, the error rate in semiconductor 'tuneable-barrier' pump devices, those which show most promise for high-frequency operation, have not been tested in detail. We present high-accuracy measurements of the current from an etched GaAs quantum dot pump, operated at zero source-drain bias voltage with a single ac-modulated gate at 340 MHz driving the pump cycle. By comparison with a reference current derived from primary standards, we show that the electron transfer accuracy is better than 15 parts per million. High-resolution studies of the dependence of the pump current on the quantum dot tuning parameters also reveal possible deviations from a ...

Science.gov (United States)

Effects of swimming exercise training on left ventricular contraction and relaxation, the incidence of spontaneous defibrillation and the ventricular fibrillation threshold were studied in the isolated, perfused rat heart. The heart/body weight ratio was 4.8 +/- 0.4 x 10(-3) in swimmers compared with 3.9 +/- 0.6 x 10(-3) in sedentary controls (p less than 0.0005). The spontaneous heart rate was lower in isolated hearts of trained animals (222 +/- 18 bpm compared with 244 +/- 28, p less than 0.05). Left ventricular systolic pressure was higher in trained hearts and the rate of ventricular relaxation enhanced (p less than 0.05). The ventricular fibrillation threshold was 7.2 +/- 5.2 and 10.8 +/- 6.1 mamp in hearts of swimmers and controls, respectively, the difference not being significant. The incidence of spontaneous defibrillation was not significantly different between the two groups. It is concluded that, while swimming induces cardiac hypertrophy and ...

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Twenty-four male weanling rats were fed either copper-adequate or -deficient diets until 9 or 11 weeks of age. Deficient rat hearts had increased mitochondria: myofibril compared to adequate rats. Eleven week old deficient rat hearts had decreased mitochondria: myofibril as the hearts increased in weight, but the larger hearts had greater myofibril volume densities. Cardiac mitochondria of deficient rats appeared vacuolated with fragmented cristae and translucent matrix. Valves from copper deficient rats appeared to have less connective tissue and were fragmented in areas. For deficient rats, heart:body weights of 9 wk old rats were negatively correlated with bicuspid valve pathology scores, whereas tricuspid valve scores from 11 wk old rats were negatively correlated with myofibril volume densities. These data suggest that the enlargement of the copper-deficient rat heart is due to: larger (1) mitochondria and (2) myofibril volume densities.

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

Purpose Radiation-induced heart disease (RIHD) is a severe side effect of thoracic radiotherapy. This study examined the effects of pentoxifylline (PTX) and a-tocopherol on cardiac injury in a rat model of RIHD. Methods and Materials Male Sprague-Dawley rats received fractionated local heart irradiation with a daily dose of 9 Gy for 5 days and were observed for 6 months after irradiation. Rats were treated with a combination of PTX, 100 mg/kg/day, and a-tocopherol (20 IU/kg/day) and received these compounds either from 1 week before until 6 months after irradiation or starting 3 months after irradiation, a time point at which histopathologic changes become apparent in our model of RIHD. Results Radiation-induced increases in left ventricular diastolic pressure (in mm Hg: 35 +- 6 after sham...

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

The sources of non-white noise in Blood Oxygenation Level Dependent (BOLD) functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) are many. Familiar sources include low-frequency drift due to hardware imperfections, oscillatory noise due to respiration and cardiac pulsation and residual movement artefacts not accounted for by rigid body registration. These contributions give rise to temporal autocorrelation in the residuals of the fMRI signal and invalidate the statistical analysis as the errors are no longer independent. The low-frequency drift is often removed by high-pass filtering, and other effects are typically modelled as an autoregressive (AR) process. In this paper, we propose an alternative approach: Nuisance Variable Regression (NVR). By inclusion of confounding effects in a general linear model (GLM), we first confirm that the spatial distribution of the various fMRI noise sources is similar to what has already been described in the literature. Subsequently, we ...

Science.gov (United States)

A hallmark of congestive heart failure (CHF) is the activation of the cardiac endocrine system, in particular atrial natriuretic peptide (ANP) and brain natriuretic peptide (BNP). The natriuretic peptides are a group of structurally similar but genetically distinct peptides that have diverse actions in cardiovascular, renal, and endocrine homeostasis. ANP and BNP are of myocardial cell origin and C-type natriuretic peptide (CNP) is of endothelial origin. ANP and BNP bind to the natriuretic peptide-A receptor (NPR-A), which, via 3',5'-cyclic guanosine monophosphate (cGMP), mediates natriuresis, vasodilatation, renin inhibition, antimitogenesis, and lusitropic properties. CNP lacks natriuretic actions but possesses vasodilating and growth inhibiting actions via the guanylyl cyclase-linked natriuretic peptide-B receptor. All three peptides are cleared by the natriuretic peptide-C receptor and degraded by the ectoenzyme neutral endopeptidase 24.11, both of which are ...

Science.gov (United States)

Therapeutic hypothermia is a promising method for controlling intracranial pressure (ICP) in severely brain-injured patients. However, clinical data regarding the effect of brain hypothermia on overall outcome of these patients is limited. This may be because there are specific pitfalls associated with the clinical management of induced hypothermia in patients with severe traumatic brain injury (TBI). These pitfalls may be avoided by preventing specific risk factors when cooling is induced and with rewarming. However, these risk factors have not been well systematically discussed in the literature. In this paper, three categories of clinical issues regarding the management of brain hypothermia are discussed: (1) stress-induced secondary brain injury mechanisms; (2) technical aspects of intensive care unit (ICU) cooling management; and (3) rewarming rates and methods. For patients with a Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) score of less than 8, management of stress-induced insulin-resistant ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

MRI provides a non-invasive diagnostic tool complementing echocardiography on one hand, and showing advantages over echocardiography, on the other hand, especially after corrective procedures. The multiple different MRI sequences need to be adapted to examinations of children and patients with congenital heart disease (CHD), and can be used to detect morphologic changes, blood-flow in the heart and thoracic vessels and diastolic or systolic function of myocardium. Several factors determine the success of the examination of a complex congenital heart disease or a postoperative situs. Pediatric radiologists and radiologists experienced in congenital heart diseases have to work in close cooperation. Echocardiography should be performed before MRI. The results of prior examinations and the clinical history of the patients, including possible palliative or reconstructive operations, must be available before MRI to guide the planning of the examination. With a systematic segmental approach ...

Science.gov (United States)

The endothelin-B (ETB) receptor is a G-protein-coupled receptor that binds endothelin ligands and is essential for the development of epidermal melanocytes and enteric neurons. Recent reports indicate that ETB is localized to nuclei in cardiac ventricular myocytes, although it has been thought that ETB is localized mainly on the plasma membrane. It remains unknown, however, whether this unique distribution of ETB occurs in other tissues. To elucidate the subcellular distribution of ETB in the intestine, we performed immunofluorescence of ETB in mouse intestine using a specific antibody. ETB-like immunoreactivity was detected in both the mucosal and muscle layers. In the mucosal layer, villous epithelial cells, stromal cells of the lamina propria, and cryptic cells were immunostained. Subcellularly, ETB is localized mainly to the nuclei of villous epithelial cells. In the muscle layer, immunoreactivity of ETB was localized to the myenteric plexus. These findings ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The purpose of this study was to determine whether low doses of carbon monoxide (CO) exacerbate myocardial ischemia during a progressive exercise test. The effect of CO exposure was evaluated using the objective measure of time to development of electrocardiographic changes indicative of ischemia and the subjective measure of time to onset of angina. Sixty-three male subjects (41-75 years) with well-documented coronary artery disease, who had exertional angina pectoris and ischemic ST-segment changes in their electrocardiograms, were studied. Results from three randomized, double-blind test visits (room air, low and high CO) were compared. The effect of CO exposure was determined from the percent difference in the end points obtained on exercise tests performed before and after a 1-hr exposure to room air or CO. A significant dose-response relationship was found for the individual differences in the time to ST end point and angina for the pre-versus postexposure exercise test at the ...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Human K2P3.1 (TASK1) channels represent potential targets for pharmacological management of atrial fibrillation. K2P channels control excitability by stabilizing membrane potential and by expediting repolarization. In the heart, inhibition of K2P currents by class III antiarrhythmic drugs results in action potential prolongation and suppression of electrical automaticity. Carvedilol exerts antiarrhythmic activity and suppresses atrial fibrillation following cardiac surgery or cardioversion. The objective of this study was to investigate acute effects of carvedilol on human K2P3.1 (hK2P3.1) channels. EXPERIMENTAL APPROACH Two-electrode voltage clamp and whole-cell patch clamp electrophysiology was used to record hK2P3.1 currents from Xenopus oocytes, Chinese hamster o...

Science.gov (United States)

Maternal exposure to ambient air pollution has increasingly been linked to adverse pregnancy outcomes. The evidence linking this exposure to congenital anomalies is still limited and controversial. This case-control study investigated the association between maternal exposure to ambient particulate matter with aerodynamic diameter less than 10 ?m (PM(10)), sulfur dioxide (SO(2)), nitrogen dioxide, nitric oxide (NO), ozone (O(3)), and carbon monoxide (CO) and the occurrence of congenital heart disease in the population of Northeast England (1993-2003). Each case and control was assigned weekly average (weeks 3-8 of pregnancy) of pollutant levels measured by the closest monitor to the mother's residential postcode. Using exposure as both continuous and categorical variables, logistic regression models were constructed to quantify the adjusted odds ratios of exposure to air pollutants and the occurrence of each outcome group. We found exposure to CO and NO to be associated with ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

During cleanup of contaminated sites, Sandia National Laboratories, New Mexico (SNL/NM) frequently encounters soils with low-level radioactive contamination. The contamination is not uniformly distributed, but occurs within areas of clean soil. Because it is difficult to characterize heterogeneously contaminated soils in detail and to excavate such soils precisely using heavy equipment, it is common for large quantities of uncontaminated soil to be removed during excavation of contaminated sites. This practice results in the commingling and disposal of clean and contaminated material as low-level waste (LLW), or possibly low-level mixed waste (LLMW). Until recently, volume reduction of radioactively contaminated soil depended on manual screening and analysis of samples, which is a costly and impractical approach and does not uphold As Low As Reasonably Achievable (ALARA) principles. To reduce the amount of LLW and LLMW generated during the excavation process, SNL/NM is evaluating two ...

Science.gov (United States)

Calcium-activated chloride channels (CaCCs) are widely expressed in mammalian tissues, including intestinal epithelia, where they facilitate fluid secretion. Potent, selective CaCC inhibitors have not been available. We established a high-throughput screen for identification of inhibitors of a human intestinal CaCC based on inhibition of ATP/carbachol-stimulated iodide influx in HT-29 cells after lentiviral infection with the yellow fluorescent halide-sensing protein YFP-H148Q/I152L. Screening of 50,000 diverse, drug-like compounds yielded six classes of putative CaCC inhibitors, two of which, 3-acyl-2-aminothiophenes and 5-aryl-2-aminothiazoles, inhibited by >95% iodide influx in HT-29 cells in response to multiple calcium-elevating agonists, including thapsigargin, without inhibition of calcium elevation, calcium-calmodulin kinase II activation, or cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator chloride channels. These compounds also inhibited calcium-dependent chloride ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Quantitative digital imaging, using planar laser light scattering techniques is being developed for the analysis of turbulent and reacting flows. Quantitative image data, implying both a direct relation to flowfield variables as well as sufficient signal and spatial dynamic range, can be readily processed to yield two-dimensional distributions of flowfield scalars and in turn two-dimensional images of gradients and turbulence scales. Much of the development of imaging techniques to date has concentrated on understanding the requisite molecular spectroscopy and collision dynamics to be able to determine how flowfield variable information is encoded into the measured signal. From this standpoint the image is seen as a collection of single point measurements. The present effort aims at realizing necessary improvements in signal and spatial dynamic range, signal-to-noise ratio and spatial resolution in the imaging system as well as developing excitation/detection strategies which provide ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Rock fracture characterization documents a total of 1496 fractures in unit 2 of the Tshirege Member of the Bandelier Tuff along 6013 feet of Los Alamos Canyon`s north wall adjacent to Operational Unit 1098. Geologically termed joints, these fractures likely owe their primary origin to brittle failure during the cooling contraction of the tuff after its emplacement nearly 1 million years ago. Subsequent tectonic movement along the Pajarito Fault system has modified fracture strikes, dips, apertures, and linear density. From a background linear density of approximately 20 fractures per 100-foot interval along the canyon wall, fracture density increases to values in excess of 50 fractures per 100-foot interval in a zone at and immediately east of the Omega West reactor building TA-2-1. This increase in fracture density is coincident with the mapped trace of the Guaje Mountain Fault (GMFZ) that apparently bifurcates with a branch running through the canyon at Building TA-2-1 and another ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

In order to optimize the performance of molecular organic electronic devices it is important to study the intermolecular density of states and charge transport mechanisms in the environment of crystalline organic material. Using this approach in Field Effect Transistors (FETs) we show that material purification improves carrier mobility and decreases density of the deep localized electronic state. We also report a general exponential energy dependence of the density of localized states in a vicinity of the mobility edge (Fermi energies up to approx7 times higher than the thermal energy (kT)) in a variety of the extensively purified molecular organic crystal FETs. This observation and the low activation energy of the order of approxkT suggest that molecular structural misplacements of the sizes that are comparable with thermal molecular modes rather than impurity deep traps play a role in formation of these shallow states. We find that the charge carrier mobility in the FET ...

Science.gov (United States)

The subjective experience of one's environment is constructed by interactions among sensory, cognitive, and affective processes. For centuries, meditation has been thought to influence such processes by enabling a nonevaluative representation of sensory events. To better understand how meditation influences the sensory experience, we used arterial spin labeling functional magnetic resonance imaging to assess the neural mechanisms by which mindfulness meditation influences pain in healthy human participants. After 4 d of mindfulness meditation training, meditating in the presence of noxious stimulation significantly reduced pain unpleasantness by 57% and pain intensity ratings by 40% when compared to rest. A two-factor repeated-measures ANOVA was used to identify interactions between meditation and pain-related brain activation. Meditation reduced pain-related activation of the contralateral primary somatosensory cortex. Multiple regression analysis was used to identify brain regions ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

In this report is described the work effort performed to provide NETL with VE-Suite based Virtual Engineering software and enhanced equipment models to support NETL's Advanced Process Engineering Co-simulation (APECS) framework for advanced power generation systems. Enhancements to the software framework facilitated an important link between APECS and the virtual engineering capabilities provided by VE-Suite (e.g., equipment and process visualization, information assimilation). Model enhancements focused on improving predictions for the performance of entrained flow coal gasifiers and important auxiliary equipment (e.g., Air Separation Units) used in coal gasification systems. In addition, a Reduced Order Model generation tool and software to provide a coupling between APECS/AspenPlus and the GE GateCycle simulation system were developed. CAPE-Open model interfaces were employed where needed. The improved simulation capability is demonstrated on selected ...

Science.gov (United States)

The possibilities for therapy in the field of severe cardiac insufficiency have been extended in recent years by the introduction of novel agents endowed with a positive inotropic action. These substances may be arranged in two large classes: sympathomimetic agents and "non sympathomimetic--non digitalis-like" inotropic agents. The stimulant action of noradrenaline, adrenaline and isoproterenol on beta-adrenergic myocardial receptors has been clearly demonstrated but the usefulness of these medicines is limited by their positive chronotropic and arrhythmogenic actions. Dopamine and dobutamine have proved to be very useful in the treatment of patients in intensive care units. However, the exclusively intravenous route of administration limits their importance to the medium or long term. Several compounds, which are active by the oral route, have been the subject of therapeutic trials for the short or medium term. The problems posed by their use result, in the first ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

A number of procedures in diagnostic radiology and cardiology make use of long exposures to x-rays from fluoroscopy units. Although numerous studies have been performed to measure or calculate skin dose from these procedures, there have only been a handful of studies to determine the dose to the other organs. This thesis was focused on devising a method to calculate the absorbed dose to underlying tissues and organs. The work was performed in several stages. First, a commercial convolution/superposition-based treatment planning system used in radiation oncology was modified and complemented to make it usable with the low energies of x-rays used in diagnostic radiology. This required generation of energy deposition kernels in the kilovoltage energy range. The kernels were generated using the EGS4 Monte Carlo system of codes and added to the treatment planning system. The treatment planning system was then evaluated for its accuracy of calculations at low energies within homogeneous and ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Conventional Radiography, Fuji Computed Radiography (FCR) hardcopy and CRT images were evaluated about the detectability of pulmonary nodule using the chest phantom. Conventional and digitized chest radiographs (FCR) were used, including 45 normal cases and 45 abnormal cases with a variety pulmonary nodule. Observer performance tests were conducted to compare the effects on diagnostic accuracy of Conventional Radiography, FCR hardcopy and CRT images, and diagnostic accuracy was determined with receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis. ROC study was performed in which six radiologists were asked to locate nodule on three modalities. Two CRT monitors were used to observed CRT images. The left side CRT monitor was divided into two parts and displayed two images which were done as same image processing as FCR hardcopy. The right side CRT monitor was divided into four parts and displayed four images as a subsidiary diagnosis. The upper two images were displayed to diagnose the ...

Science.gov (United States)

Synthetic atrial natriuretic peptide (carperitide) and B-type natriuretic peptide (BNP; nesiritide) are used to treat congestive heart failure. However, despite beneficial cardiac unloading properties, reductions in renal perfusion pressures limit their clinical effectiveness. Recently, CD-NP, a chimeric peptide composed of C-type natriuretic peptide (CNP) fused to the C-terminal tail of Dendroaspis natriuretic peptide (DNP), was shown to be more glomerular filtration rate-enhancing than BNP in dogs. However, the molecular basis for the increased responsiveness was not determined. Here, we show that the DNP tail has a striking effect on CNP, converting it from a non-agonist to a partial agonist of natriuretic peptide receptor (NPR)-A while maintaining the ability to activate NPR-B. This effect is specific for human receptors because CD-NP was only a slightly better activator of rat NPR-A due to the promiscuous nature of CNP in this species. Interesting, the DNP ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Eleven patients who had undergone cardiac surgery were studied by means of high-field MR imaging (1.5 T). Six patients had aortic root and valve replaced with a Bjork-Shiley (BS) composite tubular aortic graft prosthesis for acute dissection of ascending aorta. In the other 5 patients with rheumatic calcific aortic disease, the valve had been replaced with a BS prosthesis. As a whole, MR studies were 14. Previous evaluations of magnetic field effects had seem carried out ex vivo on both BS valves and BS composite prostheses, on surgical ligation clips (Tantalium and Stainless) and on stainless wires for sternal closure. In 4 patients (2 BS composite grafts, and 2 BS valves) MRI diagnosed chronic dissection of both arch and descending aorta. In 1 of them, with a bs valve, associated localized acute dissection of ascending aorta was observed. In 3 patients with BS composite grafts, MRI revealed pseudo-aneurysms (including a thrombosed one) at the graft level. In one ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Computerized tomography-guided neurolytic splanchnic nerve block is a technique for relieving abdominal cancer pain; the goal is the alcoholic neurolytic interruption of the sensitive structures in retroperitoneal space. Computerized tomography yields accurate anatomical detailing and the course for needle placement and alcohol spread. January, 1993, to July, 1996, twenty-one bilateral splanchnic nerve blocks were performed through the posterior access. Forty-eight hours after alcoholism. 14 patients (66%) had complete pain regression; 52% of the patients needed no analgesics for 6 to 54 days and only 9 patients (42%) needed another low opioid therapy. Complications included hypotension and diarrhea in all cases. One had a cardiac arrest and diet 8 days after the procedure. There were no other complications. The whole procedure usually lasted 60 min (range: 45 to 90 min). Splanchnic nerve neurolysis is a useful treatment in the patients with severe chronic ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Since information has been regarded os a physical entity, the field of quantum information theory has blossomed. This brings novel applications, such as quantum computation. This field has attracted the attention of numerous researchers with backgrounds ranging from computer science, mathematics and engineering, to the physical sciences. Thus, we now have an interdisciplinary field where great efforts are being made in order to build devices that should allow for the processing of information at a quantum level, and also in the understanding of the complex structure of some physical processes at a more basic level. This thesis is devoted to the theoretical study of structures at the nanometer-scale, 'nanostructures', through physical processes that mainly involve the solid-state and quantum optics, in order to propose reliable schemes for the processing of quantum information. Initially, the main results of quantum information theory and quantum computation are ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Purpose: To assess the new method of 3-dimensional echocardiography in comparison to the 'gold standard' MRI as to its ability to calculate left ventricular volumes in patients with congenital heart disease. Materials and methods: Eighteen patients between the ages of 3.9 to 37.3 years (mean: 12.8{+-}9.7) with a geometrically abnormal left ventricle were examined using a 1.5 T scanner with a fast gradient-echo sequence (TR=14 ms, TE=2.6-2.9 ms, FOV=300-400 mm, flip angle=20 , matrix=128:256, slice thickness=5 mm, retrospective gating) in multislice-multiphase technique. Transthoracic 3D-echocardiography was performed with a 3.5 MHz transducer and a Tomtec {sup trademark} (Munich, Germany) system for 3D reconstruction. Results: Volume calculation was possible in all patients with 3D-echocardiography, but the muscle mass calculation only succeeded in 11 to 18 patients (61%) due to inadequate visualization of the entire myocardium. Comparing MRI and ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

High-spin states in the mirror pair nuclei {sup 49}Cr and {sup 49}Mn and their cross-conjugate partners, the mirror pair {sup 47}V and {sup 47}Cr have been investigated using experimental {gamma}-ray spectroscopic techniques. The combination of high-efficiency EUROBALL cluster Germanium detectors and clean exit-channel gating afforded by a 31-element silicon ball used in conjunction with a 15-detector neutron wall allowed a revision and extension to the energy level schemes of all four nuclei up to J{sup {pi}}=31{sup -}/2. The difference in excitation energy between states of equivalent spin in the parent nucleus and its analogue partner have thus been established for both mirror pairs up to the f{sub 7/2}-shell band terminating state for the first time. This difference is assumed to be due almost entirely to the Coulomb effect and is therefore called the Coulomb energy difference (CED). The variation in the CED with spin has been interpreted as reflecting the ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Relationship between hemodynamic response to exercise and distribution of pulmonary perfusion was studied in 71 patients with mitral stenosis. Distribution was estimated by using computerized Tc-99m-MAA perfusion images (digital perfusion images; DPI). DPI were composed of isocount areas. Various types of DPI were obtained and were classified to 6 grades (G) according to patterns of 100 - 70% isocount area in right anterior DPI, i.e. G-0 (normal), G-1 (increase of perfusion at upper zone), G-2 (uniform distribution), G-3 (disappearance of basal hyperperfusion area), G-4 (apical hyperperfusion area) and G-5 (decrease of perfusion at lower zone). Patients were devided to 4 groups according to grade. At rest there were no marked hemodynamic differences between groups (n = 71, mean pulmonary artery pressure (mPA); 24.8 +- 11.0 mmHg, cardiac index (CI); 2.7 +- 0.81 lmM/sup 2/), however hemodynamic parameter during exercise showed marked differences, i.e. G-0 (n = 13, ...

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

BACKGROUND AND AIM OF THE STUDY: Abnormal flow conditions across aortic bioprosthetic valves may result in degenerative processes. Thus, it is important to implant biological valve prostheses with velocity profiles similar to those of native valves. The study aim was to compare blood velocity and velocity gradient profiles downstream of stented and stentless aortic valves implanted in pigs, and in native porcine valves. METHODS: Stented valve prostheses (Mitroflow, n = 7) or stentless valve prostheses (Solo, n = 5 or Toronto SPV, n = 7) were implanted into pigs; the native valve was retained in eight animals. After weaning the animals from cardiopulmonary bypass, cardiac magnetic resonance imaging was performed to determine the blood velocities and velocity gradient profiles. RESULTS: The native valves had a significantly lower peakvelocity (92 +/- 26 cm/s) than the artificial valves (Solo: 247 +/- 107 cm/s; Toronto: 252 +/- 41 cm/s; Mitroflow: 229 +/- 18 cm/s). ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The evaluate the signs of aortic intramural hematoma with helical CT and the diagnostic role of this technique in patients with this condition. It was reviewed the CT findings of 396 patients submitted to emergency examinations for suspected aortic dissection from 1995 to 1999. Only 18 patients (6 women and 12 men) had CT signs of aortic intramural hematoma. Helical CT studies were carried out with the following parameters: slice thickness 10 mm, reconstruction index 10, feed 1.5 mm, conventional algorithm with minimum values of 130 kV and 125mA. All patients were examined with dynamic contrast-enhanced CT, before and after a power injection of 130 mL ionic contrast material. It was studied: hematoma localization and longitudinal extension; thickness and density of aortic wall; presence and location of intimal calcifications; integrity of intimal wall; hemo mediastinum and/or hemo thorax. Aortic wall thickening appeared as a high density crescent-shaped area at baseline CT and had low ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

MRI provides a non-invasive diagnostic tool complementing echocardiography on one hand, and showing advantages over echocardiography, on the other hand, especially after corrective procedures. The multiple different MRI sequences need to be adapted to examinations of children and patients with congenital heart disease (CHD), and can be used to detect morphologic changes, blood-flow in the heart and thoracic vessels and diastolic or systolic function of myocardium. Several factors determine the success of the examination of a complex congenital heart disease or a postoperative situs. Pediatric radiologists and radiologists experienced in congenital heart diseases have to work in close cooperation. Echocardiography should be performed before MRI. The results of prior examinations and the clinical history of the patients, including possible palliative or reconstructive operations, must be available before MRI to guide the planning of the examination. With a systematic segmental approach ...