UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

Muscarinic cholinergic receptors modulate dopaminergic function in brain pathways thought to mediate cocaine's abuse-related effects. Here, we sought to confirm and ...Full Text Available

Science.gov (United States)

The present paper further characterizes the cholinergic properties of acetylselenonium choline (ASeCh, (CH3)2Se+CH2CH2OCOCH3). The data demonstrate that ASeCh possesses muscarinic receptor agonist properties as evidenced by vasodepressor and smooth muscle contractile activities which are enhanced by physostigmine and antagonized by atropine. ASeCh also possessed nicotinic agonist activity on frog rectus abdominis tissue which was potentiated by physostigmine, and blocked by d-tubocurarine. The relative potencies of ASeCh ranged from approximately 1% to approximately 6% of the potency of acetylcholine in the three types of preparations examined. PMID:1435078

Science.gov (United States)

Although the mechanism is unknown, Calculus Bovis and its active components, cholic acid analogs (CAAs), have been used in China to treat a wide range of diseases. Based on the previous finding that the potency of CAA is strongly dependent on the intrinsic surface activity, this paper aimed to investigate the role of the plasma membrane in the pharmacological activity of CAAs. First, CAAs (0.1 mM) caused a surface activity-dependent depression on ATPase activity in the cell membrane extract, but it had no effects on other cellular extracts, suggesting an indispensable role of the membrane environment for pharmacological activity. Second, CAAs lowered the membrane fluidity of cultured Caco-2 cells with the same rank-order of potency sequence. Third, the hypothesis that any functional protein located on the membrane is influenced by changes in cellular membrane fluidity was supported by: ileal contraction that was induced by acetylcholine and mediated by the ...

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

The muscarinic receptor binding of trazodone, a new nontricyclic antidepressant, was compared with established tricyclic antidepressants. The ability to inhibit the binding of [3H]-quinuclidinyl benzilate...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

Single-channel currents from acetylcholine receptor channels of garter snake neuromuscular junctions were recorded using the patch-clamp technique. Low concentrations of acetylcholine or carbamylcholine...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

In rats, drug-induced depression of the central nervous system has been shown generally to be associated with an elevation in level of total acetylcholine in the brain. This generalization held true...Full Text Available

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Snake envenomation employs three well integrated strategies: prey immobilization via hypotension, prey immobilization via paralysis, and prey digestion. Purines (adenosine, guanosine and inosine) evidently play a central role in the envenomation strategies of most advanced snakes. Purines constitute the perfect multifunctional toxins, participating simultaneously in all three envenomation strategies. Because they are endogenous regulatory compounds in all vertebrates, it is impossible for any prey organism to develop resistance to them. Purine generation from endogenous precursors in the prey explains the presence of many hitherto unexplained enzyme activities in snake venoms: 5'-nucleotidase, endonucleases (including ribonuclease), phosphodiesterase, ATPase, ADPase, phosphomonoesterase, and NADase. Phospholipases A(2), cytotoxins, myotoxins, and heparinase also participate in purine liberation, in addition to their better known functions. Adenosine contributes to prey immobilization ...

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

The nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (AChR) controls signal transmission between cells in the nervous system. Abused drugs such as cocaine inhibit this receptor. Transient kinetic investigations indicate...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

The acetylcholine receptor from the electric tissue of Torpedo californica is a large, integral membrane protein containing four different types of polypeptide chains. The structure of the purified...Full Text Available

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... the ct-neurotoxin from Dendroaspis viridis venom (a-DTX) , which binds to four sites on the AcChR molecule (Conti-Tronconi & Raftery 1986). ...

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A hypotheses that mitoxantrone is a competitive antagonist at muscarinic cholinergic receptors was examined in guinea-pig hearts. In isolated left atrial muscle preparations, electrically paced at 2 Hz, the muscarinic agonist, carbachol, caused a concentration-dependent decrease in developed tension. Mitoxantrone caused a parallel right-ward shift of the concentration-response curve for carbachol. Schild plots for the effect of mitoxantrone on the carbachol concentration-response relationship were linear with a slope of 0.88 which was not significantly different from the unity. The right-ward shift of the carbachol concentration-response relationship by mitoxantrone significantly reversed after an additional incubation with a mitoxantrone-free solution, although the reversal was incomplete after a 2-h incubation in the mitoxantrone-free solution. Mitoxantrone caused a concentration-dependent displacement of specific [3H]quinuclidinyl benzilate ...

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

Two millimeter long secondary root tips of etiolated mung bean (Phaseolus aureus) plants were given 4 minute consecutive treatments of darkness, red light, far red light, and acetylcholine...Full Text Available

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The authors used radioligand binding and studies of cell contraction to characterize muscarinic receptors on dispersed smooth muscle cells from rabbit proximal and distal colon. Cells obtained after serial incubations in collagenase were used to measure binding of tritiated quinuclidinyl benzilate (["3H]QNB). At 37 degree C, specific ["3H]QNB binding was saturable and linearly related to cell number. Nonlinear regression analysis was used to determine the affinity of ["3H]QNB for its receptor. The IC_5_0 for the muscarinic agonists bethanechol and oxotremorine were 80 and 0.57 #mu#M, respectively. Hill coefficients were 0.67 for both, suggesting more complex interaction involving receptors of different affinities. In studies of cell contraction, bethanechol stimulated a dose-dependent decrease in cell length with half the maximal contraction occurring at 100 pM. These results suggest that (1) contraction is mediated by binding of bethanechol to ...

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

A parallel bundle of transmembrane (TM) alpha-helices surrounding a central pore is present in several classes of ion channel, including the nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (nAChR). We have modeled...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

Auditory fear conditioning with tone bursts followed by electric leg stimulation activates neurons not only in the auditory and somatosensory systems but also in many other regions of the brain and...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

A specific immunoglobulin, the receptor antibody, can be found in most patients with myasthenia gravis. In order to study the kinetic properties of this antibody, serial determinations of receptor antibody,...Full Text Available

UK PubMed Central (United Kingdom)

A new proprietary de novo peptide design technique generated ten 15-residue peptides targeting and containing the leading nontransmembrane hydrophobic autocorrelation wavelengths, “modes”,...Full Text Available

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Acetylcholine and other neurotransmitters play unique trophic roles in brain development. Accordingly, drugs and environmental toxicants that promote or interfere with neurotransmitter function evoke neurodevelopmental abnormalities by disrupting the timing or intensity of neurotrophic actions. The current review discusses three exposure scenarios involving acetylcholine systems: nicotine from maternal smoking during pregnancy, exposure to environmental tobacco smoke (ETS), and exposure to the organophosphate insecticide, chlorpyrifos (CPF). All three have long-term, adverse effects on specific processes involved in brain cell replication and differentiation, synaptic development and function, and ultimately behavioral performance. Many of these effects can be traced to the sequence of cellular events surrounding the trophic role of acetylcholine acting on its specific cellular receptors and associated signaling cascades. ...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

Aberrant amyloid-b peptide (Ab) accumulation along with altered expression and function of nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChRs) stand prominently in the etiology of Alzheimer's disease (AD). Since the discovery that Ab is bound to a7 nAChRs under many experimental settings, including post-mortem AD brain, much effort has been expended to understand the implications of this interaction in the disease milieu. This research update will review the current literature on the a7 nAChR-Ab interaction in vitro and in vivo, the functional consequences of this interaction from sub-cellular to cognitive levels, and discuss the implications these relationships might have for AD therapies.

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Targeted studies completed include the evaluation of tritiated N-0437, evaluation of /sup 35/S-cysteamine, evaluation of /sup 18/F-FDG and initiation of synthetic efforts towards the synthesis of iodinated N-0437 and pergolide analogs. The direction of the project has been changed due to several factors which include the decided lack of favorable experimental results, the excellence of results using muscarinic receptor ligands in pituitary, brain and heart and the contention of the DOE review panel that the original grant proposal was based on flawed assumptions together with their perceived lack of importance to pituitary imaging. In the final year of this grant, three studies will be completed. The first study is the continuation of synthetic efforts to prepare iodinated N-0437 and pergolide analogs for possible use as brain imaging agents. The second study is directed towards completion of biochemical evaluation of various muscarinic ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

[3H]Quinuclidinyl benzilate binding to rat brain muscarinic receptors decreased after repeated exposure to soman, a potent organophosphorus cholinesterase inhibitor. The topographical distribution of this decrement was analyzed by quantitative receptor autoradiography. After 4 weeks of soman, three times a week, quinuclidinyl benzilate binding decreased to 67 to 80% of control in frontal and parietal cortex, caudate-putamen, lateral septum, hippocampal body, dentate gyrus, superior colliculus, nucleus of the fifth nerve, and central grey. Minor or no decreases were observed in thalamic or hypothalamic nuclei, reticular formation, pontine nuclei, inferior colliculus, nucleus of the seventh nerve, and cerebellum. Scatchard analyses of saturation curves using frontal cortex sections from soman-treated rats revealed a decrease in maximal quinuclidinyl benzilate binding from that in control rats and a return toward control levels by 24 days without any significant ...

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Positron Emission Tomography (PET) was used to analyze in vivo antagonist binding to human myocardial muscarinic cholinergic receptor. The methiodide salt of the muscarinic antagonist, quinuclidinyl benzilate (MQNB), was labeled with the positron emitter, Carbon-11, and injected intravenously to 8 normal subjects. /sup 11/C-MQNB concentration was determined in vivo in the ventricular septum from 40 cross-sectional images acquired at the same transverse level over a period of 70 minutes. In 4 subjects, various amounts of unlabeled atropine were rapidly injected at 20 minutes to study whether atropine competitively inhibited MQNB. The kinetics of binding of /sup 11/C-MQNB were not the same in vivo and in vitro. The apparent dissociation rate of /sup 11/C-MQNB in vivo was much slower (by 1 to 2 orders of magnitude) than that observed in vitro with /sup 3/H-QNB. After atropine injection, /sup 11/C-MQNB dissociated from its binding sites at a rate ...

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We report the isolation of cDNA clones for the mouse {alpha}7 neuronal nicotinic acetylcholine receptor subunit (gene symbol Acra7), the only nicotinic receptor subunit known to bind a-bungarotoxin in mammalian brain. This gene may have relevance to nicotine sensitivity and to some electrophysiologic findings in schizophrenia. The mouse {alpha}7 subunit gene encodes a protein of 502 amino acids with substantial identity to the rat (99.6%), human (92.8%), and chicken (87.5%) amino acid sequences. The {alpha}7 gene was mapped to mouse chromosome 7 near the p locus with the following gene order from proximal to distal: Myod1-3.5 {+-}1.7 cM-Gas2-0.9 cM {+-} 0.9 cM-D7Mit70-1.8 {+-} 1.2 cM- Acra7-4.4 {+-}1.0 cM-Hras1-ps11/Igf1r/Snrp2a. The human gene was confirmed to map to the homologous region of human chromosome 15q13-q14. 26 refs., 3 figs.

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Radioiodinated ..cap alpha..-bungarotoxin, the venom of Bungarus multicinctus, is commonly used for the detection and quantification of nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChR) and anti-nAChR antibodies. A radioiodination method is described which is simple and yields a fully active product which, after fractionation, has a specific activity tenfold higher (900 Ci/mmol) than those routinely used, resulting in enhanced sensitivity of assays and conservation of material, especially muscle extracts.

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... kg/m3 density. The Rohacell foam displayed an average ultimate compressive strength of 1546 kPa. The maximum load ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The author describes the results of post-test analyses of PANDA transient (M-series) tests M2 and M3. The purpose of the PANDA post-test analysis activity is to demonstrate that TRACG is applicable for the calculation of long-term SBWR containment response to a LOCA. Comparisons between TRACG predictions and test measurements are presented and discussed in the dual context of what the test results show and the capability of TRACG to predict their key features

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

The yellow Iranian scorpion Odontobuthus doriae can cause fatal envenoming, but its mechanism of action is unclear. One of the reported manifestations of envenoming is moderate to severe involuntary tremor of skeletal muscle. In order to understand better the mechanism of action of this venom on skeletal muscle function, we examined the effects of the venom in vitro on chick biventer cervicis (CBC) and mouse hemidiaphragm (MHD) nerve muscle preparations. O. doriae venom (0.3-10mg/ml) initially increased and then decreased twitch height. The venom also caused contracture in both preparations. In mouse triangularis sterni preparations, used for all intracellular recording techniques, the venom enhanced the release of acetylcholine and induced repetitive firing of nerve action potentials and ...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

Abstract In this research, the efficiency of electrocoagulation treatment process using aluminum electrodes to treat synthetic wastewater containing Reactive Red198 (RR198) was studied. The effects of parameters such as voltage, time of reaction, electrode connection mode, initial dye concentration, electrolyte concentration, and inter electrode distance on dye removal efficiency were investigated. In addition, electrical energy consumption, electrode consumption, and operating cost at optimum condition have been investigated. The results showed that dye and chemical oxygen demand removals were 98.6 and 84%, respectively. Electrode consumption, energy consumption and operating cost were 0.052-kg/m3, 1.303-kWh/m3 and 0.256-US$/m3, respectively. Dye removal kinetic followed first order kinet...

Science.gov (United States)

1. The benzyl carbamyl analogue of lignocaine [2-(diethylaminoacetamido)-3-carbamyl-4-methyl-5-benzylpyrrole] at an intravenous dose of 4 mg/kg caused a blood pressure decrease of 54 mmHg. 2. A greater hypotensive effect was observed in hypertensive compared to normotensive animals. Anaesthesia magnified the vasodepressor effect in both groups. 3. The analogue did not possess centrally-mediated effects on blood pressure but exerted its hypotensive effect via a peripheral mechanism. 4. The analogue produced a relaxant effect on intestinal and vascular smooth muscle while exerting minimal effects on muscarinic, sympathetic, or ganglionic nicotinic receptors. 5. The analogue exhibited less cardiac depressant action on left ventricular rate (dp/dt) and force of contraction than lignocaine. 6. Lethal effects for the analogue were first observed at 16 mg/kg following intravenous administration and at 500 mg/kg following intraperitoneal administration. 7. In conclusion, ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The major feed-water line break accident is re-analyzed, which is based on Guangdong Daya Bay nuclear power station final safety analysis report, to justify the impacts of the decreasing of auxiliary feed-water flow rate on the safety margin in Daya Bay. The results showed that the accident analysis can meet the demands of acceptance criteria with the auxiliary feed-water flowrate decreasing from 45 m"3/h to 41.8 m"3/h, and enough safety margin is still retained

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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 subunits, respectively. Using an interspecies ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The concentrations of uranium, arsenic, and radium remain well below the maximum permissible values of < 0.1 mg/l (uranium), < 0.1 mg/l (arsenic) and < 100 mBq/l (radium) due to two separation stages with barium sulfate and GoPur 3000 precipitation and due to iron hydroxide/iron arsenate precipitation. The radioactive arsenates can be separated from the toxic ones by separating the sludge which is analyzed. Processing of radioactive sludges leaves reusable GoPur 3000, sulfuric solutions which contain uranium or solutions which contain carbonate, and radioactive barium sulfate whose radiation intensity of 12 mBq/g is due to the presence of radium. The sludge produced contains adsorbed salts in addition to the dosed chemicals (floated sludges: 40 g/m"3, iron sludges < 20 g/m"3). A solids content < 100 g/m"3 can be selected for both sludge portions. ...

Science.gov (United States)

The present study was performed to evaluate the antihypertensive effects of honokiol in vivo in spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR). The effects of honokiol were investigated by determination of the blood pressure, vascular reactivity, oxidative parameters, and histologic change in the aorta. Long-term administration of honokiol (400 mg/kg/d) to SHR decreased systolic blood pressure significantly. Honokiol (200, 400 mg/kg/d) enhanced the aortic relaxation in response to acetylcholine after 49-d treatment, but had no significant effects on the relaxation to sodium nitroprusside. The oral administration of honokiol significantly increased the plasma level of NO(2(-))/NO(3(-)), but decreased the level of malondialdehyde in liver of SHR compared with the control vehicle. In addition, SHR administered honokiol showed significant reductions in the elastin bands and media thickness in the aorta. These results suggest that chronic treatment with honokiol exerts an ...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

Genome-wide association studies have linked lung cancer risk with a region of chromosome 15q25.1 containing CHRNA3, CHRNA5 and CHRNB4 encoding a3, a5 and b4 subunits of nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChR), respectively. One of the strongest associations was observed for a non-silent single-nucleotide polymorphism at codon 398 in CHRNA5. Here, we have used pharmacological (antagonists) or genetic (RNA interference) interventions to modulate the activity of CHRNA5 in non-transformed bronchial cells and in lung cancer cell lines. In both cell types, silencing CHRNA5 or inhibiting receptors containing nAChR a5 with a-conotoxin MII exerted a nicotine-like effect, with increased motility and invasiveness in vitro and increasing calcium influx. The effects on motility were enhanced by addit...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

This paper introduces the solid radwaste management system, treatment methods and its continuous improvement during the past 9 years in Guangdong Daya Bay Nuclear Power Station (GNPS). GNPS has paid great attention and made a lot of efforts to implement the principle of waste minimization with source control, improvement of treatment process and strict management, so the output of solid radwastes has annually decreased since 1994. In 2002, the output of solid radwastes in GNPS was 63.5 m"3, only 50% of 1995 (127 m"3), reached the advanced level as the same type NPPs in France. During the period 1994-2002, the accumulated production of solid radwaste Packages in GNPS is 1563.51 m"3 only 18% of the design value; all the packages meet the standard and requirement for safe disposal. Besides, this paper analyzes some new technical processes and presents some ...

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A sample of 30 manganese-exposed foundry workers from two Swedish plants were examined with a partly computerized psychological test battery, comprised of 10 performance tests. Performance of the manganese-exposed workers was compared to that of a matched control group of 60 workers. Matching criteria were age, geographical area, type of work, and the results on a test of verbal comprehension. Performance of the exposed workers was inferior to that of the control group on tests of simple reaction time, digit span, and finger tapping. No correlations were found between performance and the present manganese exposure levels or the number of years employed in manganese work. The results seem to indicate that the present exposure standards for manganese, in Sweden 2.5 mg/m3 and in most other countries 5 mg/m3, are not sufficient to protect workers from negative effects on performance capacity.

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The general objective of the presented work is process intensification by means of reduced furnace chamber volumes in combination with the use of low-NOx burner technologies. Fundamental experimental investigations of the reaction zone of different burner types were made. For the development of new burner designs the CFD code FLUENT was used. Throughout the investigations it was possible to increase the furnace heating density from 62 kW/m3 up to 1133 kW/m3. To demonstrate possible technical applications two simulated industrial furnaces designs have been investigated. One main conclusion the work gave is that process intensification without an increase of pollutant emissions is possible by optimizing furnace and burner design and also position and geometry of the furnace load in a combined strategy. (author)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

An estimation method of plasma density based on surface plasmons theory for surface-wave plasmas is proposed. The number of standing-wave is obtained directly from the discharge image, and the propagation constant is calculated with the trim size of the apparatus in this methods, then plasma density can be determined with the value of 9.1 x 1017 m-3. Plasma density is measured using a Langmuir probe, the value is 8.1 x 1017 m-3 which is very close to the predicted value of surface plasmons theory. Numerical simulation is used to check the number of standing-wave by the finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) method also. All results are compatible both of theoretical analysis and experimental measurement. (authors)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Belarus has some experience of wood biomass use for power engineering aims. All the necessary equipment, assigned for power production, is manufactured at own enterprises. Belarus possesses great forest resources, total forests area makes up 8 676,1 thou ha. In the average as for the republic the percentage of forests volume makes up 37,7%. The greatest percent of forest scope have Gomel and Vitebsk regions (44,6% and 38,1% correspondingly). Of 118 administrative regions the forest scope above 20% have 15 regions (Rossonskij - 66,8%, Lel'chitsy - 66,5%). The forest scope less 20% is marked on the territory of 8 regions (Nesvizh - 9,6%, Berestovitsy - 14,6%, Zel'venskij - 14,8%). Wood reserves make up 1 437,9 mln. m"3 on the republic's territory. The greatest wood reserves are noted on the territory of Gomel, (323,6 mln. m"3 ), Minsk (286,4 mln. m"3 ) and Vitebsk ...

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6 mm diameter current leads made of M1, M3 copper and L62 brass are tested for extension of operation range of current leads supplying superconducting devices submerged into the cryostat. Data characterizing the effect of material purity on lead superheating are obtained. A theoretical model permitting to obtain analytical dependences for calculating the current lead maximum temperature is proposed and the possibility of its decrease by increasing current lead diameter in the hot part is considered.

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The lowest excited level in Ni-like ions, 3d{sup 9}4s {sup 3}D{sub 3}, decays only via a magnetic octupole (M3) decay. They present calculated values of transition wavelengths and rates for ions with 30 {le} Z {le} 100. They have observed this line in Xe{sup 26+}, using the Livermore EBIT-I electron beam ion trap and a microcalorimeter, as well as a high-resolution flat-field grating spectrometer.

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A simple method for regeneration of filaments (clones) from spheroplasts of the cyanobacterium (blue-green alga), Anabaena variabilis, was developed and used to quantify cell growth in the presence of two antibiotics. Cells from exponential phase cultures of ATCC 29413 and M3 were harvested and incubated with lysozyme (0.12% in 0.03M K-phosphate, pH 6.8, 0.55M sorbitol; 37 C) to produce spheroplasts. The spheroplasts were washed with buffer, plated onto soft agar and incubated (18 h light: 6 hr dark, 27 C). Colonies became visible at 7 - 9 days and were monitored for times up to 21 days. The concentration of chloramphenicol which inhibited cell growth by 50% was approximately 1.8 mg ml/sup -1/ medium and the concentrations of ampicillin which inhibited cell growth by 50% were approximately 4 and 15 pg ml/sup -1/ medium for ATCC 29413 and M3, respectively. This method may be useful for genetic ...

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Asymmetric plasma divided by the magnetic filter (MF) is numerically simulated by the one-dimensional particle-in-cell code VSIM1D. Depending on the asymmetry, the system behaves static or dynamic. In the static state, the potentials of the main plasma and the sub-plasma are given by the sheath potentials, {phi}{sub M} - 3T{sub Me}/e and {phi}{sub S} - 3T{sub Se}/e, respectively, with e being an electron charge and T{sub Me} and T{sub Se} being electron temperatures (T{sub Me} > T{sub Se}). In the dynamics state, while {phi}{sub M} - 3T{sub Me}/e, {phi}{sub S} oscillates periodically between {phi}{sub S,min} - 3T{sub Se}/e and {phi}{sub S,max} - 3T{sub Me}/e. The ions accelerated by the time varying potential gap get into the sub-plasma and excite the laminar shock waves. This periodic phenomenon can be understood as a limit cycle due to transitions between two bifurcated states of {phi}{sub ...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

Green Lake Landslide is an ancient giant rock slide in gneiss and granodiorite located in the deeply glaciated Fiordland region of New Zealand. The landslide covers an area of 45km2 and has a volume of about 27km3. It is believed to be New Zealands largest landslide, and possibly the largest landslide of its type on Earth. It is one of 39 known very large (106-107 m3) and giant (?108m3) postglacial landslides in Fiordland discussed in the paper. Green Lake Landslide resulted in the collapse of a 9km segment of the southern Hunter Mountains. Slide debris moved up to 2.5km laterally and 700m vertically, and formed a landslide dam about 800m high, impounding a lake about 11km long that was eventually infilled with sediments. Geomorphic evidence supported by radiocarbon dating indicates tha...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

Intermetallic compound (IMC) growth at the interface between a Sn coating and a Cu substrate with or without a Ni underlayer and its related stress state was evaluated by real-time measurements using the flexure beam method. For the Sn coating without a Ni underlayer, pyramid-shaped IMC grains of Cu6Sn5 grew along the grain boundaries of Sn from the Cu substrate, especially at the triple grain boundary junctions and the IMC grains rapidly increased their volume during the initial 3?days, During this time, the IMC growth rate was 2.3??m3/day and the compressive stress in the Sn coating rapidly developed and became saturated at about ?11?MPa. In contrast, platelet IMC grains of Ni3Sn4 formed at the surface of the Ni underlayer and the IMCs grew at a rate of 1.0??m3/day for the Sn/Ni coating....

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

We make the supergravity solutions describing the branes (D3 branes and D4 branes) localized within the D6 branes in the near core region of D6 brane. From the D=11 solutions (M3 branes and M4 branes with the Z_N identifications in the transverse space) we obtain the D=10 supergravity solutions of D3 branes localized within D6 branes and D4 branes localized within D6 branes by reducing the dimension down to D=10 along a circular direction of S"3 part of the transverse space. M3 brane solution leads to D=10 background representing D3 branes localized on D6 branes in the region close to the D6 branes core. M4 branes lead to the D4 branes localized on D6 branes in the region close to the D6 brane core.

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

For reliable operation and the optimization of production, industrial fermentation processes require appropriate tools for monitoring the process in real time. This work presents the structure and operation of a soft sensor for the on-line monitoring of biomass and product concentration during salinomycin and bacitracin fermentation in an industrial, 80-m^3 batch reactor; moreover it provides a tool for evaluation of batch production verified in industrial application. The process estimation algorithm consists of decoupled growth and product models, which ensures an unbiased convergence of the estimator and the robustness of the model. The production of secondary metabolites is described with a non-structured model upgraded with a variable forgetting factor that demonstrated a successful e...

Science.gov (United States)

New industrial Non Destructive Testing requires the development of new probes: technologies such as high spatial resolution probes for small breaking flaws detection or flexible probes for complex curved surfaces inspection. The CEA/LIST has designed and integrated 2 probes to answer industrial's constraints. The first one is based on Giant Magneto-Resistance and is able to detect 50 ?m3 flaws. The second one is based on micro-coils etched on kapton and its flexibility is adapted to curved surfaces inspection. Both are multi-elements probes, allowing fast inspection. This paper presents those new probes, their design and their performances.

Science.gov (United States)

1. Choline, and the choline analogues monoethylcholine (MEC) and N-aminodeanol (NAD) were examined for prophylactic activity in acute acetylcholinesterase inhibitor toxicity in mice. The rank order of potency of the compounds was MEC greater than NAD greater than choline. 2. Simultaneous administration of MEC (60 mg kg-1) or NAD (200 mg kg-1) with physostigmine reduced lethality to 17 and 13% respectively. MEC (60 mg kg-1) completely protected against disopropylfluorophosphate (DFP) and diazinon toxicity, and NAD reduced lethality to 17% for both agents. Choline (200 mg kg-1) exhibited only negligible antidotal activity against the inhibitors. 3. In vitro concentrations of choline, MEC, and NAD, similar to the estimated concentration obtained in vivo in the acute toxicity study, produced mixed inhibition of mouse brain acetylcholinesterase. The inhibition was dose-related and was additive to the inhibition produced by the cholinesterase inhibitors. 4. All three analogues reduced ligand ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Introduction: Previous studies have published the correlation between myocardial perfusion SPECT (MP) during cold pressor test (CPT) and intracoronary acetylcholine and its usefulness as independent marker of endothelial dysfunction (ED). Objective: To analyze the incidence of positivization of MP exercise studies in the follow up of asymptomatic patients with moderate cardiovascular risk (CV) and ED detected by PF. Material and Methods: Of 301 patients of the PARADIGMA Registry (normal exercise MP SPECT and clinical probability < 20% of events at 10 years [moderate risk by Framingham index]) 55 had positive PF (+) (18.3%). Prospectively and consecutively, 15 asymptomatic patients with PF (+), and a control group (CG) of 15 patients with negative PF, with paired sex, age and coronary risk factors (CRF), that accomplished a 12 #+-# 2 months follow up, and that underwent a new exercise and resting MP SPECT were analyzed. An MP extension score was used in a model ...

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Thirty-two asthmatic volunteers 8 to 16 yr of age, recruited through local schools and private physicians, were exposed in a chamber to clean air (control condition) and to sulfuric acid aerosol at a low concentration (46 +/- 11 micrograms/m3; mean +/- SD) and at a high concentration (127 +/- 21 micrograms/m3). Acid aerosols had mass median aerodynamic diameters near 0.5 microns with geometric standard deviations near 1.9. Temperature was 21 degrees C, and relative humidity was near 50%. Subjects were exposed with unencumbered oronasal breathing for 30 min at rest plus 10 min at moderate exercise (ventilation rate approximately 20 L/min/m2 of body surface). A subgroup (21 subjects) were exposed similarly to clean air and to high acid (134 +/- 20 micrograms/m3) with 100% oral breathing. Increased symptoms and bronchoconstriction were found after exercise under ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Since 1994 the radon studies group at the Institut de Techniques Energetiques (INTE) of the Universitat Politecnica de Catalunya in Barcelona, Spain, has carried out a campaign of continuous measurements of the equilibrium factor (F) and the unattached fraction (f_p) of radon decay products at four sites which are representative of different environmental characteristics on the Mediterranean littoral of Catalonia, Spain. It has been established that these parameters vary widely, F(0.03--0.87) and f_p (0--0.72), from one site to another and with time, according to the characteristics on the site and climate. In spite of this variation, the F and f_p parameters are log-normally or normally distributed. The measurements of F and f_p show that f_p is negatively correlated to F by a log-power equation, Ln(1/f_p)=1.90[Ln(1/F)]"-"0"."6"8, which can be used in all the F range, instead of the commonly used power equation f_p=aF"b suggested by Stranden and Strand and other authors, which fits ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

In this study, radon-222 in indoor air was surveyed in 62 rooms located in four governmental schools, for girls, in Tarqumia town that lies in the north western part of Hebron city in Palestine. The annual effective dose equivalents resulting from the inhalation of radon and its daughters by 2318 pupils and 102 staff members occupying the surveyed rooms were also measured. TASTRAK, a solid state nuclear track detector, has been used to measure the indoor radon concentrations at those schools thus, 124 radon detectors were distributed in the four school buildings. The radon detectors stayed for 70 days between February 2006 and April 2006. The results showed that the radon concentration and the annual effective dose equivalent in these schools were varied from 12 to 232.5 Bq/m"3 with an average of 34.1 Bq/m"3 and 0.62 to 12.0 mSv/y with an average of 1.76 mSv/y, respectively. The mean values of radon ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The circulating cooling water flowrate of GNPS and LNPS is totally about 190 m"3/s. Both stations are located on the western coast of semi-closed Daya Bay. A lot of studies concerning thermal impact of GNPS and LNPS have been carried out since 1987, including mathematical model, physical model, on-site survey and satellite remote sensing, etc. This paper describes the hydrological features of Daya Bay and discharge characteristics of circulating water of GNPS and LNPS, estimates the actual thermal impact of GNPS and LNPS, and indicates that it is advantageous for the dilution of circulating water while the two discharge channels of GNPS and LNPS are combined together towards east

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The strange quark star is investigated within the enlarged SU(3) Nambu-Jona-Lasinio model. The stable quark star can exist until a maximal configuration with {rho}{sub m}=3.1x10{sup 15} g cm{sup -3} with M{sub m}=1.61 M{sub circle} and R{sub m}=8.74 km is reached. Strange quarks appear for density above {rho}{sub c}=9.84 g cm{sup -3} for the quark star with radius R{sub c}=8.003 km and M{sub c}=0.77 M{sub circle}. A comparison of quark star properties obtained in the quark mean-field approach to a neutron star model constructed within the relativistic mean-field theory is presented. (author)

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

This study quantifies the external water footprint of the Netherlands by partner country and import product and assesses the impact of this footprint by contrasting the geographically-explicit water footprint with water scarcity in the different parts of the world. The total water footprint of the Netherlands is estimated to be about 2300 m^3/year/cap, of which 67% relates to the consumption of agricultural goods, 31% to the consumption of industrial goods, and 2% to domestic water use. The Dutch water footprint related to the consumption of agricultural goods, is composed as follows: 46% related to livestock products; 17% oil crops and oil from oil crops; 12% coffee, tea, cocoa and tobacco; 8% cereals and beer; 6% cotton products; 5% fruits; and 6% other agricultural products. About 11% o...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Testing of barrier properties of insulating materials against radon is usually based on the measurement of the radon diffusion coefficient. Presented report summarizes results of radon diffusion coefficients measurements in more than 120 insulating materials obtained throughout Europe. All measurements were performed by the Czech Technical University, Faculty of Civil Engineering in cooperation with the Radiation Protection Institute. We have found out that great differences exist in diffusion properties, because the diffusion coefficients vary within eight orders from 10"-"1"5 m"2/s to 10"-"8 m"2/s. For each material category of different chemical composition statistical evaluation of results is presented. Possibilities of usage of the radon diffusion coefficient for the design of radon resisting membranes are discussed. Based on the experience from the Czech Republic the paper is trying to show that controlling applicability of membranes by setting of the upper limit for the radon ...

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

In recent years, cobia has become an emerging farmed species in Asia due to its quick growth and high economic value. This study collects biological and economic data affecting the economic performance of cobia farming in three countries, namely Taiwan, China, and Vietnam. The data are collected by questionnaire sampling and analyzed by multivariate statistical analysis in order to compare the key factors affecting the production and economy of cobia farming in these three countries. The results show that Taiwan, China, and Vietnam have significant differences in input intensities and profitability. China has the highest input intensity (3372.42?TWD/m3), as its high stocking density increases feed input. Taiwan has the highest unit input cost (103.44?TWD/kg), as the high quality of the pro...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ground water is treated in the Czech Republic so that small water tanks are built above each water source to serve the primary ground water treatment; water so pretreated is then concentrated in large basins for subsequent treatment. Some water tanks where the first contact of the ground water with air takes place were selected as sites predisposed to radon accumulation. The examination was carried out near the town of Jihlava, where the bedrock contains slightly elevated radium concentrations. The average radon concentrations lay within the region of 2-4 kBq/m"3; the instantaneous values, however, exhibited appreciable periodical variations during the day. The relatively high radon concentrations will not pose a marked hazard for the personnel because the employees only reside at the sites in question for 10 to 15 minutes within 2 days, not for the whole working day

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The phase transformations and properties of a precipitation-hardened Ni-Cr-based alloy are investigated as a function of C, B, Nb, and Cr contents. It is found that the primary role of Nb consists in the formation of an independent phase, delta-Ni3Nb, a part of a gamma/gamma-prime-delta eutectoid (for high C and B concentrations) and in stimulating the gamma-sigma reaction consecutively with the gamma double prime-delta reaction (for low C and B concentrations). In both cases, the long-term strength characteristics of the Nb-alloyed system are relatively low. The substitution of boron for carbon contributes to a reduction in the number of nucleation sites for topologically close-packed phases and to the formation of more stable (with respect to excess compounds) M3B2 and MB2 borides. The high-boron material exhibits better properties and phase stability under mechanical and thermal loading. 13 references.

British Library Electronic Table of Contents (United Kingdom)

The objective of this study is to describe the complete transport chain of CO2 between capture and storage including a ship transport. This last one is composed by the following steps:Shore terminal including the liquefaction, temporary storage and CO2 loading. Ship with a capacity of 30,000m^3. On or off shore terminal including an unloading system, temporary storage and export towards the final storage. Between all the possible thermodynamic states, the liquid one is most relevant two options are compared in the study (-50^oC, 7bar) and (-30^oC, 15bar). The ship has an autonomy of 6 days, is able to cover 1000km with a cargo of 2.5Mt/year. Several scenarios are studied varying the geographical position of the CO2 source, the number of harbours and the way the CO2 is finally stored. Depen...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The total amount of uranium dissolved in seawater at a uniform concentration of 3 mg U/m3 in the world's oceans is 4.5 billion tons. An adsorption method using polymeric adsorbents capable of specifically recovering uranium from seawater is reported to be economically feasible. A uranium-specific nonwoven fabric was used as the adsorbent packed in an adsorption cage 16 m2 in cross-sectional area and 16 cm in height. We submerged three adsorption cages in the Pacific Ocean at a depth of 20 m at 7 km offshore of Japan. The three adsorption cages consisted of stacks of 52 000 sheets of the uranium-specific non-woven fabric with a total mass of 350 kg. The total amount of uranium recovered by the nonwoven fabric was >1 kg in terms of yellow cake during a total submersion time of 240 days in the ocean.

CERN Document Server

We find an exact analytic solution for the time evolution of a three Dirac neutrino system adiabatically oscillating in matter, constructing explicitly the relevant 3\\times 3 mixing matrix in matter. Using this result we investigate the solar neutrino data in a scenario where the neutrino masses are such that m_1\\alt m_2\\ll m_3, taking into account several phenomenological constraints on neutrino mixing angles and masses. A solution of the solar neutrino problem for large values of the parameter \\delta m^2=m_2^2-m_1^2 which are not usually associated with a resonance is found. This is an essentially three-generation effect.

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Environmental factors, phytoplankton biomass (Chl a) and primary production of two water areas in Daya Bay (Dapeng'ao Bay and Aotou Bay) were investigated during the transition period from spring to summer. Chl a ranged from 3.20 to 13.62 and 13.43 to 26.49 mg m"-"3 in Dapeng'ao Bay and Aotou Bay respectively, if data obtained during red tides are excluded. Primary production varied between 239.7 and 1001.4 mgC m"-"2 d"-"1 in Dapeng'ao Bay. The regional distribution of Chl a and primary production were mostly consistent from spring to summer in both bays. Seasonal transition characters have been found in Daya Bay from spring to summer, including high values of DO, nitrate and silicate. Size structures of phytoplankton and its primary production do not change very much from spring to summer, with micro-phytoplankton dominating and contributing about 50% of the whole. In Daya Bay, phytoplankton is limited by nitrogen in spring, and by phosphate ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

This paper systematically introduces the supervision monitoring for radiation environment around the Guangdong Daya Bay and Ling Ao nuclear power station by the Guangdong Environmental Radiation Research and Monitoring Center. It includes the monitoring plan, methods, quality assurance, main results and conclusions. The results show that: (1) The gas discharge have not caused any detectable impacts to the terrestrial and atmospheric environment since their operation; (2) "1"1"0"mAg could only be detected in seawater in the West Daya Bay in 1995 and 1997 and in sediments in 1997. The maximum annual average in seawater was 3.1 Bq/m"3, annual average of "1"1"0"mAg in sediments was 1.0 Bq/kg(dry). But it was always detectable in pearl oyster, gulfweed and cuttlefish in the West Daya Bay. The "1"1"0"mAg concentrations in halobios were relatively higher in 1994, 1996 and 1997. The maximum concentrations in pearl oyster, gulfweed and cuttlefish were ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

A study on oxygen-plasma treatment of ink-jet paper is presented. Paper was exposed to a weakly ionized, highly dissociated oxygen plasma with an electron temperature of 5 eV, a positive-ion density of 8 x 1015 m-3 and a density of neutral oxygen atoms of 5 x 1021 m-3. Optical emission spectroscopy (OES) was applied as a method for detection of the reaction products during the plasma treatment of the paper. OES spectra between 250 and 1000 nm were measured continuously during the plasma treatment. The wettability of the samples before and after the plasma treatment was determined by measuring the contact angle of a water drop. The appearance of the surface-functional groups was determined by using high-resolution x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), while changes in the surface morphology were monitored with scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Already after 1 s of the plasma treatment the surface, ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

A series of Model Tests of Embedment Effect on Reactor Buildings has been carried out by the Nuclear Power Engineering Corporation (NUPEC), under the sponsorship of the Ministry of International Trade and Industry (MITI) of Japan. Reactor buildings in Japan are partially embedded in general. Therefore, it is important to know how partial embedment affects the vibration characteristics of reactor buildings relating to seismic safety. Laboratory tests were conducted using a ground model made of silicone rubber (Young's modulus 2.3x10"6 Pa, Poisson's ratio 0.484, Density 1.24x 10"3 kg/m3 , Damping ratio 0.01) and a foundation model made of aluminum shown to study the effects of embedment on soil-structure interaction with different backfill types. The ground model is a cylinder, 70 cm high and 300 cm in diameter, with pit where the parallelepiped foundation model with square plan of 30 cm x 30 cm and 18 cm high was placed. Four types of backfill ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The PPCC technology, a combined cycle, requires comprehensive cleaning of the flue gases because coal contains a large variety of minerals and other substances. This would lead to fast destruction of the gas turbine blades due to erosion and corrosion. The present specifications of the turbine manufacturers for the required flue gas quality are at a maximum particulate content of 5 mg/m3 s.t.p., diameter of < 5 {micro}m, and a maximum alkali content < 0.01 mg/m3 s.t.p. The PPCC project is aimed at cleaning the flue gases of pressurized coal combustion. This method will be applied at temperature ranges where the ash is in a liquid state and which will be thus cleaned from coarse particulate material by agglomeration and inertial force separators. Appropriate separating methods are also being investigated and developed for the hazardous gaseous contents, e.g. alkali compounds, which are ...

Science.gov (United States)

The electromagnetic properties of the baryon decuplet are calculated in quenched QCD on a 20{sup 3}x40 lattice with a lattice spacing of 0.128 fm using the fat-link irrelevant clover fermion action with quark masses providing a pion mass as low as 300 MeV. Magnetic moments and charge radii are extracted from the electric and magnetic form factors for each individual quark sector. From these, the corresponding baryon properties are constructed. We present results for the higher-order moments of the spin-3/2 baryons, including the electric-quadrupole moment E2 and the magnetic-octupole moment M3. The world's first determination of a nonzero M3 form factor for the {delta} baryon is presented. With these results we provide a conclusive analysis which shows that decuplet baryons are deformed. We compare the decuplet-baryon results from a similar lattice calculation of the octet baryons. We establish ...

Science.gov (United States)

In order to lower the costs for second generation bioethanol from lignocellulosic biomass anaerobic digestion of the effluent from ethanol fermentation was implemented using an upflow anaerobic sludge blanket (UASB) reactor system in a pilot-scale biorefinery plant. Both thermophilic (53 degrees C) and mesophilic (38 degrees C) operation of the UASB reactor was investigated. At an OLR of 3.5 kg-VS/(m(3) day) a methane yield of 340 L/kg-VS was achieved for thermophilic operation (53 degrees C) while 270 L/kg-VS was obtained under mesophilic conditions (38 degrees C). For loading rates higher than 5 kg-VS/(m(3) day) the methane yields were, however, higher under mesophilic conditions compared to thermophilic conditions. The conversion of dissolved organic matter (VS(diss)) was between 68% and 91%. The effluent from the ethanol fermentation showed no signs of toxicity to the anaerobic microorganisms. ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

To understand the environmental dispersion trend of "3H and "1"4C discharged from the Wolsung nuclear power plant, the present levels of "3H and "1"4C in environmental samples in the vicinity of the Wolsong site were studied. During 1992 through 2002, the annual means of HTO and "1"4C concentrations in air collected at three sampling stations around Wolsong nuclear power plant were in the range of 1.13 #approx# 29.2 Bq m"-"3 and 0.33 #approx# 0.40 Bq g-C"-"1 respectively, decreasing with distance from the site. The annual mean of TFWT concentrations in pine needle was in the range of 104 #approx# 790 Bq L"-"1 at N-1 and 62.8 #approx# 298 Bq L"-"1 at S"-"2, while the annual mean of "1"4C concentration was in the range of 0.335 #approx# 0.897 g-C"-"1 at N-1 and 0.254 #approx# 0.332 Bq g-C"-"1 #approx# at S"-"2, showing elevated value than a 0.25 Bq g-C"-"1 of background level. (author)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

A pair of bundles is placed in a shuttle tube, which is enclosed by a carriage tube kept inside the Shuttle Transfer Station (STS). It takes about 90 minutes for the spent fuel bundles to travel from the reactor channel to Transfer Magazine (TM). Subsequently, the dry transfer operation takes about 4 minutes. An emergency air cooling flow rate of 600 m3/hr is supplied to cool the spent fuel bundles after they reach the STS, following lapse of 4 minutes of spent fuel dry transfer, in case the bundles are not submerged in the light water in STS. A thermal and hydraulic safety analysis has been done to estimate the maximum sheath temperature, if the spent fuel bundles are stuck at a location of 30 mm below the normal location aligned to the TM port. This position of the spent fuel will have least cooling from the emergency cooling airflow. At the same time, the shuttle tube carrying the spent fuel bundle is just above the water. From the analysis ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Inhalation of radon and its daughter products makes the major contribution to the total exposure of the population to natural radiations. In implementing a complex ecological survey, concentrations of radon and its daughter products were measured in different regions of Russia, namely, in the St. Petersburg Region, the Central Territories and the Altay Territory. Two suitable low price versions of the dosemeters for measuring environmental radon concentrations based on track-etch and activated-charcoal detectors were used. The radon daughter product activity and the effective dose equivalents were calculated with an equilibrium factor of 0.5 and a recommended effective dose equivalent factor of 0.061 mSv (Bq m"-"3)"-"1. Indoor measurements were taken in more than 1000 dwellings and public and industrial buildings of 21 towns and villages. The track chambers were exposed for about 2-3 months and the charcoal detectors for 6-10 days, mainly ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Quantitative estimates of lung cancer risk from exposure to diesel engine emissions were developed using data from three chronic bioassays with Fischer 344 rats. Human target organ dose was estimated with the aid of a comprehensive dosimetry model. This model accounted for rat-human differences in deposition efficiency, normal particle clearance rates, transport of particles to lung-associated lymph nodes, respiration rates, and lung surface area, as well as high-dose inhibition of particle clearance. Recent evidence indicates that the inert carbon core of the diesel particulate matter is likely to be the primary source of carcinogenicity. The epithelial tissue lining the alveoli and lower airways is the primary target site for induction of lung tumors. Dose was therefore based upon the concentration of carbon particulate matter per unit lung surface area. Unit risk estimates were developed using either a time-to-tumor or a linearized multistage model. The unit risk estimates, defined ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Tests with a 61 cm diameter fluidized-bed combustor revealed that raw cotton gin trash could be efficiently burned while satisfying Federal standards for particulate emissions. Certain chemicals within cotton gin trash zone can cause slagging or caking of ash and bed particles in the combustion zone. They can also corrode and accumulate on the heat recovery equipment. These problems are not considered insurmountable and methods of control are being studied. Raw cotton gin trash was also converted into a low Btu gas using fluidized-bed technology. Tests with a 30 cm diameter gasifier revealed that raw gin trash could be converted to a combustible gas, containing carbon monoxide and hydrogen. The heating value of the gas ranged from 3.65 to 5.29 MJ/m3 and about 50 percent of the heat value of the raw trash was converted to combustible gases. Economic analyses have shown that these techniques can be economically competitive with present fuels in ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

We have developed a photon accumulated laser mass spectrometer that enables us to identify isomers of polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxin and polychlorinated dibenzofuran. This system is comprised of a high temperature (230 deg. C) pulsed gas injector (PGI), multimirror multipath system (MMS), and the conventional time-of-flight mass spectrometer. The PGI induces the formation of a choked supersonic jet gas pulse that cools down to a temperature to restrain fragmentation and reduces vibrational and rotational thermal noises. The results suggest that the excited lifetime numbers and fragment dynamics of these species change completely with jet cooling of molecules. The MMS enhances the soft ionization efficiency (by a factor of 1000 over a single path system) through photon accumulation by extending the irradiation duration (to about 40 ns) and volume, and it further minimizes fragmentation by carefully controlling the laser intensity distribution within the ionization volume. For the ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Interpretative transport has been used to revisit the global scalings of TJ-II ECRH plasmas from a local perspective. Density, rotational transform and ERCH power scans were analysed based upon Thomson Scattering data (electron density and temperature) in steady state discharges. A simple formula to obtain the thermal conductivity, assuming pure diffusion and negligible convective heat fluxes was used in a set of 161 discharges. All the analysis was performed with the ASTRA transport shell. The density scan indicates that inside n=0,4 there is no significant change of e with density in the range studied (0.4 <ne>(1019m-3) 1.0), while in 0,5 <0,8 approximately, e decreases with density. In the rotational transform scan it is found that the values of e when a low order rational of the rotational transform is present locally seem to be smaller for the corresponding range, although it is apparent a general beneficial effect of ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The atomic masses of the alkali-metal isotopes "6Li,"2"3Na,"3"9","4"1K,"8"5","8"7Rb, and "1"3"3Cs have been obtained from measurements of cyclotron frequency ratios of pairs of ions simultaneously trapped in a Penning trap. The results, with one standard deviation uncertainty, are: M("6Li)=6.015 122 887 4(16)u,M("2"3Na)=22.989769 282 8(26)u,M("3"9K)=38.963 706 485 6(52)u,M("4"1K)=40.961 825 257 4(48)u,M("8"5Rb)=84.911 789739(9)u,M("8"7Rb)=86.909 180 535(10)u, and M("1"3"3Cs)=132.905 451 963(13)u. Our mass of "6Li yields an improved neutron separation energy for "7Li of 7251.1014(45) keV.

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

This research centered on finding and perfecting methods of collection and disposal of refuse in Ibadan North Local Government Areas. The methodology used included questionnaire administration, personal interviews, field reconnaissance, and biochemical tests of water samples, all aimed at providing useful data for the design of effective methods of collecting and disposing refuse. The local government area was divided into three classes based on resident income: a high-income area (Bodija Avenue, etc.), a medium-income area (Sanngo, Oluyole, etc.), and a low-income area (Beere, Adeoyo, etc.). The research outcomes revealed that the waste generation rate for the local government ranged from 0.2 to 0.33 kg/cap/day and waste density ranged from 172.41 to 217.61 kg/m"3. Water analyses showed that the chloride, manganese, lead, and cadmium levels in water from low-income areas were above the WHO standard. The refuse generated in high and ...

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Objectives: The purpose of this work was to study the genetic determinants responsible for extended-spectrum beta-lactamase (ESBL) resistance of Salmonella isolated from Dutch poultry, poultry meat and hospitalized humans. Methods: Thirty-four ESBL-resistant Salmonella isolates from The Netherlands were tested towards 21 antimicrobial agents. PCR and sequencing were used to determine the underlying genetic determinants responsible for the ESBL phenotypes. The transferability of the ESBL phenotypes was tested by conjugation to a susceptible Salmonella enterica serovar Dublin and plasmid purification, restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) and pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) were employed to further characterize a subset of the isolates. Results: A great genetic diversity was seen among the isolates. The bla(TEM-52) gene was most predominant and was found among Salmonella enterica serovars Blockley, Thomson, London, Enteritidis phage type 14b, Paratyphi B, Virchow and ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

A multielement apparatus for the removal of aerosols formed in the vitrification of simulated high-activity accident wastes from the decommissioned nuclear power plant A-1 has been designed, manufactured and tested. The apparatus consists of two cooling and condensing steps connected in series, and of five filtration steps also connected in series. The five filtration steps allowed to achieve a decontamination factor of 1x10"5 in the case of removal of a NaCl("2"4Na) testing model aerosol. The decontamination factor for removal of the cesium aerosol by the whole apparatus was 3.3x10"6. In the first filtration step the aerosols are removed by the cartridge with a filtration fabric made of polyethylene fibers, in the second step by the cartridge with a granulated natural material, in the third step by the cartridge with glass-fiber filtration paper, in the fourth and fifth steps by the cartridge with high-efficiency filtration paper made of glass microfibers. In the tube connecting the ...

Science.gov (United States)

This talk will summarize key features of three conceptual fusion neutron test facilities designed in the early 1980s: TASKA,^1 TDF,^2 and TASKA-M.^3 Motivated by the accessibility and maintainability of cylindrical geometry, these magnetic-mirror designs possess a simple central cell, as in a fusion neutron test facility based on the gas dynamic trap (GDT).^4 The TASKA-M design, like today's GDT designs, included the injection of neutral beams into the central cell to create a sloshing-ion distribution that gives density peaks near the materials test modules. In TASKA and TDF, the minimum-B end-cell designs contained thermal barriers, regions of low electrostatic potential to reduce electron flow between central cell and end cells. Thermal barriers improve performance but require more complicated input power systems, and their physics basis is less well established than that of simple mirrors. For TASKA-M, a more conservative design, minimum-B ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

This study concerns mixtures of triacetone triperoxide (3,3,6,6,9,9-hexamethyl-1,2,4,5,7,8-hexoxonane, TATP) and ammonium nitrate (AN) with added water (W), as the case may be, and dry mixtures of TATP with urea nitrate (UN). Relative performances (RP) of the mixtures and their individual components, relative to TNT, were determined by means of ballistic mortar. The detonation energies, E_0, and detonation velocities, D, were calculated for the mixtures studied by means of the thermodynamic code CHEETAH. Relationships have been found and are discussed between the RP and the E_0 values related to unit volume of gaseous products of detonation of these mixtures. These relationships together with those between RP and oxygen balance values of the mixtures studied indicate different types of participation of AN and UN in the explosive decomposition of the respective mixtures. Dry TATP/UN mixtures exhibit lower RP than analogous mixtures TATP/AN containing up to 25% of water. Depending on the ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The evaluation of radiotherapy and surgery as exclusive local treatment in comparably selected subgroups of patients with Ewing's sarcoma on the basis of the CESS 86-data. In the German multicenter Ewing's sarcoma study CESS 86, treatment consisted for four 9-week-courses of VACA- or VAIA-chemotherapy plus local therapy. VACA (vincristine, actinomycin D, cyclophosphamide, adriamycin) was given in low-risk extremity tumors with a tumor volume below 100 cm"3. Highrisk patients with central lesions or a tumor volume >100 m"3 received VAIA (ifosfamide instead of cyclophosphamide). Local therapy started after one complete chemotherapy course in week 10. Based on an individual decision in each patient, local therapy was either radical surgery or resection plus postoperative irradiation with 45 Gy or definitive radiotherapy with 60 Gy. Because of poor results with radiotherapy in a preceeding study, it was intended to restrict irradiation to ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

The present situation of the researches that have been made for predicting the process and range of diffusion of warm drain is reviewed. This review is divided into eight sections. The first section deals with the present situation of warm drain from power plants. For the establishment of drainage standard, there are many difficult problems to be solved because water temperature differs in its nature from other regulation items. In the second section, the process of diffusion and cooling of warm drain is explained. The third section deals with the diffusion characteristics of warm drain in Japanese coastal sea due to water temperature. Two types of diffusion are known. One is dominant irregular current, and the other is periodical reciprocating stream. The fourth section deals with the methods of prediction of diffusion. Research methods and simulation models are described. The fifth section deals with the prediction with single layer model. Fundamental consideration on the simulation ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

One of the main points for the inherent safety of a pebble bed high temperature reactor (HTR) is to guarantee the safe removal of the after-heat in case of a break-down of all active cooling systems like heat-exchangers or liner-cooling. This will be necessary because it is well known today that graphite pebble bed fuel elements stay intact, if the accident temperature is below 1600 deg. C. Therefore the heat must be taken out of the reactor system by passive, natural law heat-transfer mechanism so that the maximum fuel temperature stays below the specified limit. Today medium-sized HTRs with a power of 750 MW_t_h and more (TGTR-300, HTR 500) reach temperatures of more than 2400 deg. C in small parts of the core in such hypothetical accidents. A possible way to realize the inherent safe heat removal in advanced medium-sized HTRs is to change the form of the core. Instead of employing the standard cylindrical geometry a plate shaped core should be preferred, described by the proportion ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

There are 1.4 Gt (1.5 billion st) of recoverable coal under less than 914 m (3,000 ft) of cover in Colorado in pitching seams. Snowmass Coal Co., in cooperation with the US Department of Energy, introduced the longwall mining method in pitching seams to North America. This venture is a coal mining research program directed toward the profitable production of coal under difficult mining conditions as found in pitching seams of the western US. Snowmass Coal classifies pitching seams into the following categories for longwall on the strike in seams 3 m (10 ft) or less thick: Flat = 0 to 10/sup 0/: Normal continuous mines and shuttle cars work efficiently. Slight = 10/sup 0/ to 22/sup 0/: The maximum pitch that rubber tired equipment will function. Moderate = 22/sup 0/ to 40/sup 0/: The angle of repose of mined coal. Steep = 40/sup 0/ to 60/sup 0/: The limit of safe use of this roof support. Vertical = over 60/sup 0/. The longwall roof support ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

This study describes the feasibility of anaerobic treatment of complex phenolics mixture from a simulated synthetic coal wastewater using four identical 13.5 L (effective volume) bench scale hybrid up-flow anaerobic sludge blanket (HUASB) (combining UASB + anaerobic filter) reactors at four different hydraulic retention times (HRT) under mesophilic (27 #+-# 5 "oC) conditions. Synthetic coal wastewater with an average chemical oxygen demand (COD) of 2240 mg/L and phenolics concentration of 752 mg/L was used as substrate. The phenolics contained phenol (490 mg/L); m-, o-, p-cresols (123.0, 58.6, 42 mg/L); 2,4-, 2,5-, 3,4- and 3,5-dimethyl phenols (6.3, 6.3, 4.4 and 21.3 mg/L) as major phenolic compounds. The study demonstrated that at optimum HRT, 24 h, and phenolic loading rate of 0.75 g COD/(m"3-d), the phenolics and COD removal efficiency of the reactors were 96% and 86%, respectively. Bio-kinetic models were applied to data obtained from ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Moderate-resolution, near-infrared spectra between 0.8 and 5.2 #mu#m were obtained for 12 late-type (K0-M3) disk-bearing members of the #approx#5 Myr old Upper Scorpius OB association using SpeX on the NASA Infrared Telescope Facility. For most sources, continuum excess emission first becomes apparent between #approx#2.2 and 4.5 #mu#m and is consistent with that produced by single-temperature blackbodies having characteristic temperatures ranging from #approx#500 to 1300 K. The near-infrared spectra for 5 of 12 Upper Scorpius sources exhibit Pa#gamma#, Pa#beta#, and Br#gamma# emission, indicators of disk accretion. Using a correlation between Pa#beta# and Br#gamma# emission line luminosity and accretion luminosity, mass accretion rates ( M-dot ) are derived for these sources that range from M-dot = 3.5x10"-"1"0 to 1.5 x 10"-"8 M_s_u_n yr"-"1. Merging the SpeX observations with Spitzer Space Telescope mid-infrared (5.4-37.0 #mu#m) spectroscopy ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The gotten concentrations of radon-222 in the installations of the IEN had been determined using the active and passive methods. The active method consisted on the use of the alpha spectrometry with a portable equipment Tracerlab Instruments WLM- Plus. In the determination for the passive method, one used detectors of nuclear strokes of type LEXAN. The raised values had been gotten in the wastes deposit and its annexes, room of the press and laboratory of wastes handling. It was observed, in this sector, an instantaneous measure of alpha spectrometry, concentrations around 1000 Bq.m-3, which had over all to the function of storage, the sector, a great volume of natural radioactive materials, especially of radium-226. This determination was carried through in an extreme situation of ventilation zero, where the gates had been kept closed during the execution of the same one. It was observed, however, a considerable fall, with values ten times ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Emerging high-power microwave technologies require that bioeffects of exposure to this type of radiation be investigated for health and safety considerations. Disruption of animal behavior is reported to be a sensitive indicator of microwave exposure. Three behavioral tasks were chosen for this initial investigation of exposure to U.S. Air Force high-power microwave emitters. The tasks were: (1) single-trail avoidance, (2) water satiation, and (3) rotarod performance. Exposure to high-power microwave radiation from the USAFSAM peak-power simulator significantly affected the single-trail avoidance task. Neither the single-trail avoidance task nor rotarod performance was affected by the Gypsy emitter. However, animals exposed to 9-kW and 11-kW outputs from the USAFSAM emitter spent significantly less time imbibing water postexposure than sham-exposed animals. The most consistent finding in the animals exposed to the Gypsy pulses was that those exposed at 4 m (13.1 ft) spent significantly ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) was established during World War II with a single mission -- to design and build an atomic bomb. In the 65 years since, nuclear weapons physics, design and engineering have been the Laboratory's primary and sustaining mission. Experimental and process operations -- and associated cleanout and upgrade activities -- have generated a significant inventory of transuranic (TRU) waste that is stored at LANL's Technical Area 54, Material Disposal Area G (MDA G). When the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) opened its doors in 1999, LANL's TRU inventory totaled about 10,200 m{sup 3}, with a plutonium 239-equivalent curie (PE Ci) content of approximately 250,000 curies. By December 2008, a total of about 2,300 m3 (61,000 PE Ci) had been shipped to WIPP from LANL. This has resulted in a net reduction of about 1,000 m{sup 3} of TRU inventory over that time frame. This paper presents progress ...

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Region Lombardia has carried out a radon gas monitoring survey on its territory to localize radon prone areas as by law 241/00 enacted. To plan the survey, the Lombardia territory has been divided into two different types according to the morphology as well as the presence of a substratum of rock. The area with hills and mountains has been investigated with more attention compared to the plain because we can assume higher variability in radon concentration distribution due to the geological and morphological characteristics. The territory subdivision was based on the standard grid.. of the techniregional cartography (8 x 5 km). To perform radon indoor concentration measurements about 3600 measuring points were selected. They are located at the ground floor of buildings with the characteristics to ensure the tests are representative and comparable. It has also been taken into account evaluations done with previous surveys in accordance with the defined specification of the sites. The ...

Science.gov (United States)

BackgroundPolicies on waste disposal in Europe are heterogeneous and rapidly changing, with potential health implications that are largely unknown. We conducted a health impact assessment of landfilling and incineration in three European countries: Italy, Slovakia and England.MethodsA total of 49 (Italy), 2 (Slovakia), and 11 (England) incinerators were operating in 2001 while for landfills the figures were 619, 121 and 232, respectively. The study population consisted of residents living within 3 km of an incinerator and 2 km of a landfill. Excess risk estimates from epidemiological studies were used, combined with air pollution dispersion modelling for particulate matter (PM10) and nitrogen dioxide (NO2). For incinerators, we estimated attributable cancer incidence and years of life lost (YoLL), while for landfills we estimated attributable cases of congenital anomalies and low birth weight infants.ResultsAbout 1,000,000, 16,000, and 1,200,000 subjects lived close to incinerators in ...

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

In 1999, the plasma parameters of reversed shear (RS) plasmas had been extended in 1) DT-equivalent fusion power gain Q_D_T"e"q - 0.5 (n_D(0)#tau#_ET_i(0) - 4x10"2"0 m"-"3#centre dot#keV#centre dot#s) for 0.8 s and 2) full non-inductive current drive with 80% of the bootstrap current fraction. Physics of the internal transport barriers (ITBs) in RS plasmas, including the energy transport and the formation of ITB, were extensively studied. A nearly full current drive (92% non-inductively) was obtained with negative ion based neutral beam (NNB) injection (360 keV, 3.4 MW) in a high #beta#_p H-mode plasma (I_p=1.5 MA, B_T=3.7 T, q_9_5=4.2) with high plasma performance (#beta#_N=2.4 and H_8_9=2.56). Rise in the central electron temperature (T_e - 9 keV) resulted in the current drive efficiency #eta#_C_D of NNB reached 1.3x10"1"9 A/W/m"2, the highest for the neutral beam current drive. As for the H-mode plasmas, decrease in the pedestal ion ...