This paper aims to explore consumer preference for fresh vegetables labelled as organic in combination with health and environment related quality traits. The study decomposes organic farming into its main quality aspects and measures consumers' preference structure for organic, in general, and for specific organic quality traits in particular. By means of stated choice preference modelling, the following hypotheses are tested: consumers prefer health over environment related quality traits; the organic label plays a significant role in consumers' choice for organic products; organic farming is perceived as healthier and more environmentally friendly than conventional farming; purchase intention is mainly driven by health related quality traits; both health and environmental concerns influ...
Childhood cancer survivors often experience complications related to cancer and its treatment that may adversely affect quality of life and increase the risk of premature death. The purpose of this...Full Text Available
Communication problems have been implicated in many safety and quality issues, but tools to examine communication networks and their impact on patient outcomes are only beginning to become available....Full Text Available
Immunoassays are versatile analytical techniques that had a leading role in various clinical applications, during the last four decades. The studies carried out by Rosalyn Yalow, Solomon Berson and Roger Ekins in the 1960s gave a breakthrough in the development of this novel analytical method. Sensitivity up to femtomolar concentrations, high specificity and universal application to different classes of molecular species made immunoassay a very useful tool in analytical investigation. The expertise acquired by immunochemists in producing antibodies against any antigen and the ability of radiochemists in labeling the antigens with "1"2"5I without affecting the active site are the two main factors responsible for the above development. There are concerns about the safety and health of humans due to the high-level contamination of environment by pesticides, industrial compounds and metals, anabolic steroids in milk and meat products, and presence of mycotoxins in food ...
Abstract Male infertility continues to be a clinical challenge of increasing significance. While male factors such as decreased semen quality are responsible for 25% of all infertility issues, the etiology of suboptimal semen quality is poorly understood. Many physiological, environmental, and genetic factors have been implicated, including oxidative stress. Oxidative stress is induced by reactive oxygen species (ROS), or free radicals, and although ROS are required for critical aspects of sperm function, excessive levels of ROS can negatively impact sperm quality. The origin of ROS generation, and the etiologies of increased ROS in men with suboptimal sperm quality have only recently been elucidated, offering multiple targets for potential therapy. Here, we present a critical review of th...
The causes and processes of contamination, as well as the possible human health implications for the main contaminants of drinking water are described. The quality of drinking water in Italy is defined through the comparison of the pollutant levels with the World Health Organization guidelines published in 1993 and the USEPA HAs (Health Advisories) of 1994 (annexed to the report).
Metabolic carbon labelling experiments enable a large amount of extracellular fluxes and intracellular carbon isotope enrichments to be measured. Since the relation between the measured quantities and the unknown intracellular metabolic fluxes is given by bilinear balance equations, flux determination from this data set requires the numerical solution of a nonlinear inverse problem. To this end, a general algorithm for flux estimation from metabolic carbon labelling experiments based on the least squares approach is developed in this contribution and complemented by appropriate tools for statistical analysis. The linearization technique usually applied for the computation of nonlinear confidence regions is shown to be inappropriate in the case of large exchange fluxes. For this reason a sophisticated compactification transformation technique for nonlinear statistical analysis is developed. Statistical analysis is then performed by computing ...
A microcosm laboratory experiment was conducted to determine the impact of biological reworking by the ragworm Nereis diversicolor on the redistribution of particle-bound radionuclides deposited at the sediment-water interface. Over the course of the 40-day experiment, as much as 35% of a 137Cs-labelled particulate tracer deposited on the sediment surface was redistributed to depths of up to 11 cm by the polychaete. Three different reworking models were employed to model the profiles and quantify the biodiffusion and biotransport coefficients: a gallery-diffuser model, a continuous sub-surface egestion model and a biodiffusion model. Although the biodiffusion coefficients obtained for each model were quite similar, the continuous sub-surface egestion model provided the best fit to the data...
One of the refinements of modern Nuclear Medicine is the capacity of providing dynamic and kinetics images of the administered radiopharmaceutical, reproducing its transport mechanism, action sites, receptor binding and excretion route. With the continues technological advances new radiopharmaceuticals have been developed in order to express higher specificity and with higher characters of affinity between receptor/complex. One radiopharmaceutical is formed by a reagent or bio molecule that has in its structure a radioisotope, that has the objectives of carrying it to the organs of affinity or to benign or malign tumoral process. Somatostatin inhibits the growing and proliferation of several tumoral cells. Somatostatin analogs bind to somatostatic receptors that are expressed in different kind of neoplasia DOTA-LANREOTIDE (DOTALAN) is an octapeptide analog to somatostatin. The interest of labeling the bio conjugate with gallium-67 in Nuclear Medicine comes from its ...
Increasing economic and recreational opportunities, attractive scenery and a perception of a better quality of life are luring people to the coast. Unfortunately, these activities together with the commensurate increase in population in the area inevitably result in pollution of coastal waters with excessive microorganisms and other pollutants. Microbial pollutants not only contaminate the coastal water but also aquatic food sources, thus posing a health risk to consumers. Fish is a major source of protein in Cameroon, especially in the coastal areas. In this study, we investigated the microbiological quality of fish from the Limbe and Tiko beaches in South West Cameroon from May to October 2007. We isolated human pathogenic bacteria from three anatomic sites (skin, gills, intestine) of 50 fish (150 specimens) and investigated their susceptibility patterns to a battery of antibiotics. Data were analyzed statistically using chi2 with ...
This paper explores the potential implications of climate change for the use and management of water resources in Britain. It is based on a review of simulations of changes in river flows, groundwater recharge and river water quality. These simulations imply, under feasible climate change scenarios, that annual, winter and summer runoff will decrease in southern Britain, groundwater recharge will be reduced and that water quality - as characterised by nitrate concentrations and dissolved oxygen contents - will deteriorate. In northern Britain, river flows are likely to increase throughout the year, particularly in winter. Climate change may lead to increased demands for water, over and above that increase which is forecast for non-climatic reasons, primarily due to increased use for garden watering. These increased pressures on the water resource base will impact not only upon the reliability of water supplies, but also ...
The objective of this Task Group is the coordination of research studies on biokinetic models and the evaluation of the implications of new biokinetic models on dose assessment and safety standards. For this the new ICRP models, which will be used for a revision of ICRP Publications 30, 54, 68 and 78, are implemented into six different computer codes in five European countries and quality assured by intercomparison procedures. The work has started with the implementation of the new ICRP Alimentary Tract Model. New systemic models and the new NCRP wound model will follow. The work also includes the evaluation of experimental results in terms of formulation by the new model structures and a quality assurance of model formulation. PMID:17556343
Oil and gas resources in the offshore areas of the US constitute a significant portion of US recoverable hydrocarbon resources. The exploration, development and production of these offshore resources in California, however, could have significant air qualityimplications for coastal air basins. This study was developed to address a problem that frequently arises with offshore air quality assessments. Typically, such assessments are performed for a specific activity scenario (e.g., a Federal OCS Lease Sale involving a projected number of drilling rigs, platforms, pipelines, etc.) and assume a projected (but uncertain) level of recoverable oil and gas resources. This study enables interested parties to estimate air emissions and impacts for a wide range of OCS-related development scenarios. The modular emission calculation procedure and the generic impact assessment provide for maximum flexibility in reassessing the emissions ...
The two-compartment radioassay for microbial kinetics based on continuous measurement of the {sup 14}CO{sub 2} released by bacterial metabolism of 14C-labeled substrate offers a valuable approach to testing the potency of antimicrobial drugs. By using a previously validated radioassay with gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria, a group of protein synthesis inhibitors was evaluated for their effect on microbial growth kinetics. All tested drugs induced changes in both the slopes and intercepts of the growth curves. An exponential growth model was applied to quantify the drug effect on the processes of bacterial {sup 14}CO{sub 2} liberation and cell generation. The response was measured in terms of a generation rate constant. A linear dependence of the generation rate constant on the dose of spectinomycin was observed with Escherichia coli. Sigmoidal-shaped curves were found in the assays of chloramphenicol and tetracycline. The implications ...
Abstract in english The tegument surface of the adult schistosome, bounded by a normal plasma membrane overlain by a secreted membranocalyx, holds the key to understanding how schistosomes evade host immune responses. Recent advances in mass spectrometry (MS), and the sequencing of the Schistosoma mansoni transcriptome/genome, have facilitated schistosome proteomics. We detached the tegument from the worm body and enriched its surface membranes by differential extraction, before subjecting t (more) he preparation to liquid chromatography-based proteomics to identify its constituents. The most exposed proteins on live worms were labelled with impearmeant biotinylation reagents, and we also developed methods to isolate the membranocalyx for analysis. We identified transporters for sugars, amino acids, inorganic ions and water, which confirm the importance of the tegument plasma membrane in nutrient acquisition and solute balance. Enzymes, including phosphohydrolases, ...
TC inhibits protein synthesis in E. coli by interfering with aminoacyl-tRNA binding to the ribosomal A site, and there is strong evidence that such inhibition results from TC binding to a high affinity site on the 30S subunit. The SPORE approach has been used to define those 30S proteins that are potentially important for high affinity TC binding, measured as the (/sup 3/H)-TC co-sedimenting with the reconstitution particle through a sucrose density gradient. Reverse phase-HPLC has been used both to prepare ribosomal proteins and to analyze the protein content of reconstituted particles. The results obtained so far show that protein S7, as well as some proteins linked to S7 in the 30S assembly map, are important for TC binding, whereas other ribosomal proteins are not. These results are in very good accord with their earlier photoaffinity labeling studies that strongly implicated S7 as forming part of the TC binding site. Interestingly, protein ...
Morphine sulfate (MS Contin), a proven analgesic in the treatment of cancer pain and chronic benign pain, seems to be a good analgesic for the treatment of burn pain. MS Contin is morphine sulfate incorporated in a wax cellulose matrix delivery system. This wax cellulose delivery system gives MS Contin its duration of action. Ten patients were enrolled in an open-labeled, nonrandomized study. The study was designed to examine the analgesic efficacy of MS Contin in the burn population. Each patient remained in the study for 6 days. The efficacy of the analgesic regimen was subjectively measured by the visual pain scale. The MS Contin group was retrospectively compared with a group of patients who were given continuous intravenous infusions of morphine. The two groups were matched according to age, burn size, surgical procedures, and hospital stay. The analgesic qualities of MS Contin were comparable to those of continuous intravenous morphine ...
Ozone is the most important regional-scale air pollutant causing risks for vegetation and human health in many parts of the world. Ozone impacts on yield and quality of crops and pastures depend on precursor emissions, atmospheric transport and leaf uptake and on the plant?s biochemical defence capacity, all of which are influenced by changing climatic conditions, increasing atmospheric CO2 and altered emission patterns. In this article, recent findings about ozone effects under current conditions and trends in regional ozone levels and in climatic factors affecting the plant?s sensitivity to ozone are reviewed in order to assess implications of these developments for future regional ozone risks. Based on pessimistic IPCC emission scenarios for many cropland regions elevated mean ozone lev...
Using databases derived from the pattern recognition approach, the paper presents a methodology for utilizing fuzzy models to enhance the quality of decision-making using fuzzy-logic algorithms. Two multi-objective fuzzy-logic control algorithms for controlling power system static/dynamic security are presented and analyzed. The first algorithm is based on the successive inferences of fuzzy implication rules for each individual objective, and the second algorithm is an application of the method of fuzzy linear programming. The paper discusses the properties, advantages and limitations of applying fuzzy decision-making logic in the pattern-recognition approach and concludes by highlighting potential areas for further development. (author)
Determination of the maximum temperature and temperature distribution along the rake face of the cutting tool is of particular importance because of its controlling influence on tool life, as well as, the quality of the machined part. Numerous attempts have been made to approach the problem with different methods including experimental, analytical and numerical analysis. Although considerable research effort has been made on the thermal problem in metal cutting, there is hardly a consensus on the basics principles. The unique tribological contact phenomenon, which occur in metal cutting is highly localized and non-linear, and occurs at high temperatures, high pressures and high strains. This has made it extremely difficult to predict in a precise manner or even assess the performance of va...
Digital audio sampling is explained, and some of its implications in digital sound applications are discussed. Digital sound equipment is rapidly replacing analog recording devices as the state-of-the-art in audio technology. The philosophy of digital recording involves doing away with the continuously variable analog waveforms and turning the patterns into numbers. A digital recording device rapidly samples the incoming sounds, quantifying the signal into a series of numerical values (binary codes). Although digital sound eliminates many of the traditional analog problems, digital signal processing presents key problems in sampling rates and synchronization. Careful control is necessary to check signals through each step in the audio chain. The advantages of digital audio processing include increased signal-to-noise ratio, no flutter, transparent generation of copies, and sound manipulation. These benefits come with increased quality control ...
We describe a large class of chemical reaction networks, those endowed with a subtle structural property called concordance. We show that the class of concordant networks coincides precisely with the class of networks which, when taken with any weakly monotonic kinetics, invariably give rise to kinetic systems that are injective --- a quality that, among other things, precludes the possibility of switch-like transitions between distinct positive steady states. We also provide persistence characteristics of concordant networks, instability implications of discordance, and consequences of stronger variants of concordance. Some of our results are in the spirit of recent ones by Banaji and Craciun, but here we do not require that every species suffer a degradation reaction. This is especially important in studying biochemical networks, for which it is rare to have all species degrade.
Based on the view that major changes in the social and economic context in the United States require major policy changes related to early childhood education, this paper examines the factors supporting public policy changes and how advocates for change in early childhood education might incorporate effective strategies. The paper is presented in two parts. Part 1 reviews the research on state policy settings and the factors that tend to support policy change. This part focuses attention on the ways that state policymakers appear to learn from what is going on elsewhere and incorporate new ideas into their policy agendas. Several strategic implications for advocates of policy change are presented, such as brainstorming a list of potential obstacles to the introduction of a policy innovation or shaping the debate so the public will support change. Part 2 of the paper takes these general strategic implications and considers their relevance to ...
The Burrard Thermal Generating Station is located at Port Moody, British Columbia, and burns natural gas to supply steam to six turbine units for generating up to 912 MW of electricity. The Burrard plant accounts for ca 8.7% of the provincial generating capability. Burrard is expected to continue to fill a vital role as a supplier of displaceable firm energy to the British Columbia Hydro system. In parallel with a renewed focus on Burrard from a system planning perspective, there have also been concerns about air pollution from the plant in the context of its possible effect on the region's air quality. To address this and other issues surrounding Burrard's future, B.C. Hydro established a project team to conduct a utilization study. The team's work focused on the role of Burrard in providing a reliable and profitable role in electricity generation, the options for dealing with the air quality issue, and the ...
Iodine-125 labelled vinyl and aryl iodides are formed via the reaction of sodium iodide-125 with vinyl- and arylboronic acids. Good yields of isomerically pure products are obtained.
To determine whether PKH26 labeling affects the morphologies, phenotypes, proliferation, and secretion abilities of human umbilical mesenchymal stromal cells (HUMSCs) were investigated. Isolated HUMSCs were labeled with PKH26, and cell morphology was observed under microscope. Cell cycle, apoptotic cell death, expression of PKH26, and the proliferation rate were evaluated. Additionally, fluorescence intensity of PKH26 labeling at different passage times was quantified. There were no detectable differences in cell morphology, cell growth, and proliferation rate after PKH26 labeling. In addition, fluorescence intensity of PKH26 labeling was gradually reduced with increase of the passage times. The PKH26 labeling disappeared after passage six times. In summary, PKH26 labeling is a safe and ef...
The present investigation compares the suitability of two radiolabeling techniques for hemoglobin. "1"2"5I labeling of hemoglobin with Iodogen as iodinating agent caused major changes in the chromatographic behaviour and an accelerated plasma clearance of the labeled hemoglobin in rats. A recently developed two-step procedure for "9"9"mTc labeling gave better results. The label had only minimal influence on the chromatographic behaviour of hemoglobin. In vivo, no free label occurred in the circulation and no transfer of the label to other plasma proteins took place. The plasma clearance of "9"9"mTc-labeled hemoglobin in rats was slowed. However, this could be explained entirely by diminishing glomerular filtration, probably by inhibition of the dissociation of the hemoglobin molecule into dimers. The plasma clearance of hemoglobin modified ...
The awareness of health issues related to buildings has heightened past decades. Indoor Environmental Quality (IEQ) has been addressed in most Green Building Rating Systems nowadays. This article analyses the scope of IEQ (Indoor Environmental Quality) within Rating Systems GPR Gebouw, BREEAM-NL (Dutch version of Building Research Establishment's Environmental Assessment Method) and LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design). Each Rating System allocates health aspects. However, none of these Rating Systems addresses a complete set of relevant aspects. High ratings do not guarantee healthy buildings. It is concluded that, in general, credits for energy efficiency do not interfere with credits for enhanced indoor environmental quality. [Dutch] Gezondheidsaspecten van gebouwen hebben afgelopen decennia steeds meer en integraler aandacht gekregen. In de instrumenten GPR Gebouw, BREEAM-NL (Nederlandse versien ...
The influence of reconstituting a murine monoclonal IgG_1 antibody kit with pertechnetate Tc99m on antibody distribution in the liver, spleen and sternal bone marrow of patients was examined. The "9"9"mTc-labelled antibody used is directed against non-specific cross-reacting antigen (NCA-95) and carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) and has been successfully applied for imaging tissue inflammation and bone marrow scanning. Radioactivity uptake was determined in the liver, spleen, bone marrow and a precordial background region in a consecutive series of 25 patients, examined with an antibody preparation, routinely radiolabelled according to the manufacturer's recommendations and in 14 patients, in whom the antibody was reconstituted with special care, avoiding bubble formation and dropping of buffer into the antibody-containing vial. Gentle compared with routine antibody reconstitution caused a highly significant reduction of the antibody uptake in the liver, as determined ...
Protected cultures are widespread along the Lebanese narrow coastline, encouraged by mild winter conditions. Although one of the most intensive production systems, water and nutrients managements are mostly empirical, based on the experience of the grower himself or of his workers. So far, water has been available in Lebanon, but it will become scarce within ten years. The conservation of water quality by a rational addition of nutrients is particularly relevant to protected cultures. This is important as greenhouses are developed on imported shallow soils that could be fragile and highly vulnerable to pollution. Sound management includes the amount and the forms of fertilizers as well as the modality of fertigation. An experiment was conducted during two spring seasons in a location along the northern coast in a typical unheated greenhouse. The cucumber response to two frequencies and modalities of fertigation was followed: continuous T2C and T3C and discontinuous ...
A general method for stable-isotope labeling of large proteins is introduced and applied for studies of the E. coli GroE chaperone proteins by solution NMR. In addition to enabling the residue-specific {sup 15}N-labeling of proteins on a highly deuterated background, it is also an efficient approach for uniform labeling. The method meets the requirements of high-level deuteration, minimal cross-labeling and high protein yield, which are crucial for NMR studies of structures with sizes above 150 kDa. The results obtained with the new protocol are compared to other strategies for protein labeling, and evaluated with regard to the influence of external factors on the resulting isotope labeling patterns. Applications with the GroE system show that these strategies are efficient tools for studies of structure, dynamics and intermolecular interactions in large ...
In the present study the authors have shown that glycoproteins are present in the plasma membrane of Acanthamoeba castellanii by utilizing different radioactive labeling techniques. Plasma membrane proteins in the amoeba were iodinated by "1"2"5I-lactoperoxidase labeling and the solubilized radiolabeled glycoproteins were separated by lectin-Sepharose affinity chromatography followed by polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. The periodate/NaB"3H_4 and galactose oxidase/NaB"3H_4 labeling techniques were used for labeling of surface carbohydrates in the amoeba. Several surface-labeled glycoproteins were observed in addition to a diffusely labeled region with M_r of 55,000-75,000 seen on electrophoresis, which could represent glycolipids. The presence of glycoproteins in the plasma membrane of Acanthamoeba castellanii was confirmed by metabolic ...
The Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) is a public health agency with responsibility for assessing the public health implications associated with uncontrolled releases of hazardous...Full Text Available
Six major use pesticides (Atrazine, Dicamba, Isoproturon, Lindane, Paraquat and Trifluralin) with differing physico-chemical properties were evaluated for the significance of 'bound' or non extractable residue formation. Investigations were carried out in purpose-built microcosms where mineralization, volatilisation, 'soil water' extractable and organic solvent extractable residues could be quantified. Extractable residues were defined as those accessible by sequential extraction where the solvent used became increasingly non-polar. Dichloromethane was the 'harshest' solvent used at the end of the sequential extraction procedure. {sup 14}C-labelled volatilised and {sup 14}CO{sub 2} fractions were trapped on exit from the microcosm. The pesticides were categorised into 3 classes based on their behaviour. (i) Type A (Atrazine, Lindane and Trifluralin) in which ring degradation was limited as was the formation of ...
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 ...
Purpose: To use the theory of planned behavior (TPB) as a theoretical framework to explore in depth the range of beliefs held by consumers about internet shopping in general and internet grocery shopping in particular. Design/methodology/approach: Seven focus group interviews, four in the United Kingdom and three in Denmark, were conducted among consumers with different degrees of experience with internet grocery shopping. This diversification of respondents was chosen to capture a broad range of the consumer beliefs that predict intentions to buy groceries online or not. The TPB framework was used to construct the interview guide that was followed in all focus groups. Findings: An unexpected result of the explorative study was that the seven groups consisting of more or less experienced internet shoppers differed only little in their pool of beliefs (outcome and control beliefs). Beliefs about internet grocery shopping, positive as well as negative, were remarkably congruent across ...
The use of municipal sewage sludge as a fertilizer in agriculture is a convenient method of disposal. However, sludge is often contaminated with toxic organic compounds such as dioxins, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), with implications for soil fertility and quality of crops for human and animal consumption. These compounds can be assimilated by intact plants or in-vitro cell-Culture systems. The amount of uptake depends on the plant species and on the physico-chemical conditions that influence, for example, molecular configuration; uptake rates are higher with low-molecular-weight and polar compounds. The xenobiotic can be converted to polar conjugates and hydroxylated metabolites that may also be toxic. In some cases, large amounts of the compound and/or its metabolic products are incorporated into non-extractable residues. The bound residues, especially those associated with carbohydrate ...
One of the most challenging problems in Opportunistic Spectrum Access (OSA) is to design channel sensing-based protocol in multi secondary users (SUs) network. Quality of Service (QoS) requirements for SUs have significant implications on this protocol design. In this paper, we propose a new method to find joint policies for SUs which not only guarantees QoS requirements but also maximizes network throughput. We use Decentralized Partially Observable Markov Decision Process (Dec-POMDP) to formulate interactions between SUs. Meanwhile, a tractable approach for Dec-POMDP is utilized to extract sub-optimum joint policies for large horizons. Among these policies, the joint policy which guarantees QoS requirements is selected as the joint sensing strategy for SUs. To show the efficiency of the proposed method, we consider two SUs trying to access two-channel primary users (PUs) network modeled by discrete Markov chains. Simulations demonstrate three ...
Salinisation of freshwater has been identified as a serious environmental issue in Australia and around the world. Protective concentrations (trigger values) for salinity can be used to manage salinity impacts, though require locally relevant salinity tolerance information. 72-h acute salinity tolerance values were determined for 102 macroinvertebrates collected from 11 locations in four biologically distinct freshwater bio-regions in Northeast Australia and compared with sensitivities observed in Southeast Australia. The salinity tolerance of individual taxa was consistent across Northeast Australia and between Northeast and Southeast Australia. However, two distinct communities were identified in Northeast Australia using distributions of the acute tolerance values and a calculated index of salinity sensitivity. Salinity trigger values should therefore be representative of local or regionally relevant communities and may be adequately calculated using sensitivity values from ...
The growing global public concern over deteriorating air quality and greenhouse gases emissions released from various combustion processes, and particularly power plants and transportation system, led governments and local authorities, especially in industrialised countries into taking these issues seriously and establishing standards to reduce air pollution down to acceptable levels, (clean air act, earth summit,...). The transportation sector has another unwanted product, noise pollution caused by different segments of this sector including the noise produced by the engine, tires noise and exhaust noise, in addition to the noise product by private standby generals operating during electricity cut-off periods. To be able to estimate the environmental impacts of the national power plants and the transportation sector, it is necessary to collect enough data (samples of lead emissions, SO_2 concentration, sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, hydrocarbons, ozone and ...
In an effort to evaluate the feasibility of introducing computed radiography (FCR) into mass screening for lung cancer, the ability of FCR to detect nodules one cm in diameter was examined using a humanoid chest phantom. Based on the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis, the detectability of FCR was compared with that of conventional radiography and photofluorography. The values of area under ROC curves were higher for FCR (0.963 for image similar to that with conventional film-intensifying screen system, image A; and 0.952 for processed image, image B) than the other two methods (0.774 for radiography and 0.789 for photofluorography). Degradation of image quality in FCR could be avoided by a wide latitude even if proper exposure techniques might not be employed. Images A and B in FCR yielded excellent delineation for nodules in the lung field and in the retrocardiac and subdiaphragmatic regions, respectively. This may have ...
In an effort to evaluate the feasibility of introducing computed radiography (FCR) into mass screening for lung cancer, the ability of FCR to detect nodules one cm in diameter was examined using a humanoid chest phantom. Based on the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis, the detectability of FCR was compared with that of conventional radiography and photofluorography. The values of area under ROC curves were higher for FCR (0.963 for image similar to that with conventional film-intensifying screen system, image A; and 0.952 for processed image, image B) than the other two methods (0.774 for radiography and 0.789 for photofluorography). Degradation of image quality in FCR could be avoided by a wide latitude even if proper exposure techniques might not be employed. Images A and B in FCR yielded excellent delineation for nodules in the lung field and in the retrocardiac and subdiaphragmatic regions, respectively. This may have ...
The report was prepared for the IPCC by Working Group II. The remit of Working Group II was to describe the environmental and socioeconomic implications of possible climate changes over the next decades caused by increasing concentrations of greenhouse gases. The scenarios used include the following features: an effective doubling of atmospheric CO{sub 2} between now and 2025-2050; a consequent increase of global mean temperature of 1.5-4.5{degree}C; an unequal global distribution of the temperature increase; a sea level rise of 0.3 to 0.5m by 2050. The impacts of possible climate change were assessed for the following: agriculture and forestry; natural terrestrial ecosystems; hydrology and water resources; human settlements including the energy, transport and industrial sectors; human health; air quality and changes in UV-B radiation; oceans and coastal zones; seasonal snow cover; ice and permafrost. Further action is recommended. 1015 refs., ...
BackgroundIn recent years, near-infrared fluorescence (NIRF)-labeled iron nanoparticles have been synthesized and applied in a number of applications, including the labeling of human cells for monitoring the engraftment process, imaging tumors, sensoring the in vivo molecular environment surrounding nanoparticles and tracing their in vivo biodistribution. These studies demonstrate that NIRF-labeled iron nanoparticles provide an efficient probe for cell labeling. Furthermore, the in vivo imaging studies show excellent performance of the NIR fluorophores. However, there is a limited selection of NIRF-labeled iron nanoparticles with an optimal wavelength for imaging around 800 nm, where tissue autofluorescence is minimal. Therefore, it is necessary to develop additional alternative NIRF-labeled iron nanoparticles for application in this area.ResultsThis study ...
A facile solution chemistry is demonstrated to fabricate high-quality polycrystalline strontium ruthenium oxide (SrRuO{sub 3}) thin film electrodes on silicon substrates suppressing the formation of undesired ruthenium oxide (RuO{sub 2}) for the deposition of dielectric and ferroelectric materials like lead lanthanum zirconate titanate (PLZT). The robust, highly crystalline SrRuO{sub 3} film fabrication process does not favor the formation of RuO{sub 2} because of molecular level modification of the precursors possessing analogous melting points, yielding homogeneous films. This chemistry is further understood and complemented by kinetic and thermodynamic analysis of the DTA data under nonisothermal conditions, with which the activation energies to form RuO{sub 2} and SrRuO{sub 3} were calculated to be 156 {+-} 17 and 96 {+-} 10 kJ/mol, respectively. The room-temperature resistivity of the SrRuO{sub 3} film was measured to be 850 {+-} 50 {mu}{Omega} cm on silicon ...
Solid fuels such as coal, wood, and crop straw supply some fraction of household cooking and heating fuel for more than one billion people in China. As these fuels do not generally combust cleanly in household stoves, their use levies large health and environmental burdens, particularly in rural regions. Production of clean-burning fuels from agricultural residue offers one prospect for mitigating health and social burdens imposed by household use of solid fuels. This dissertation explores the question: how might production of clean-burning household fuels from agricultural residues affect human health and social conditions in rural China? I approach this question from three perspectives. First, a technically plausible but currently unproven village-scale energy technology is explored in a scenario bounded by natural resources and substantiated by engineering specifications, estimates of indoor exposures to air pollution, and epidemiological analyses. This analysis asks at the national ...
The quality of fuel oils is discussed. The problems that the fuel oil marketer must deal with that relate to the quality of the fuel oil are described.
Numerous laboratory investigations have shown that sulfur dioxide (SO/sub 2/) induces bronchoconstriction and respiratory symptoms in exercising asthmatics. These effects appear to depend on dose rate (the product of exposure concentration and ventilation rate), and may occur at dose rates attainable during outdoor exercise in SO/sub 2/-polluted communities. Effects are rapid in onset, requiring no more than 5 min of exercise during exposure. Thus they may be induced by transient elevations of SO/sub 2/ levels, which may occur near large pollution sources even when longer-term average concentrations meet existing air quality standards. Even very mild asthmatics typically are far more sensitive to SO/sub 2/ than healthy volunteers. The authors discuss an investigation designed to expand and improve the dose-response information on SO/sub 2/. In comparison to earlier work it employed a larger, clinically more diverse population of volunteer subjects. Comparatively ...
Three photaffinity labeled derivatives of epothilone D were prepared by total synthesis, using efficient novel asymmetric synthesis methods for the preparation of two important synthetic building...Full Text Available
High resolution structural elucidation of macromolecular structure by solid-state nuclear magnetic resonance requires the preparation of uniformly aligned samples that are isotopically labeled. In...Full Text Available
Rat somatotropin (growth hormone) was labelled biosynthetically by incubating anterior pituitary lobes with radioactive amino acids for 24 h in a simple buffered salts medium containing glucose. The...Full Text Available
We describe a clustering method for labeled link network (semantic graph) that can be used to group important nodes (highly connected nodes) with their relevant link's labels by using PARAFAC tensor decomposition. In this kind of network, the adjacency matrix can not be used to fully describe all information about the network structure. We have to expand the matrix into 3-way adjacency tensor, so that not only the information about to which nodes a node connects to but by which link's labels is also included. And by applying PARAFAC decomposition on this tensor, we get two lists, nodes and link's labels with scores attached to each node and labels, for each decomposition group. So clustering process to get the important nodes along with their relevant labels can be done simply by sorting the lists in decreasing order. To test the method, we construct ...
Objective:In this article, we describe a successful low-dose, off-label usage of drotrecogin alfa (Xigris), given at 18 mcg/kg per hour, in a patient with severe sepsis who had an...Full Text Available
Electron spin resonance (ESR) studies have been performed on spin-labeled model membranes aligned using the isopotential spin-dry ultracentrifugation (ISDU) method of Clark and Rothschild. This method...Full Text Available
BackgroundObesity is a major public health threat and policies aimed at curbing this epidemic are emerging. National calorie labeling legislation is forthcoming and requires rigorous...Full Text Available
BackgroundGenotyping analysis using capillary DNA sequencing with fluorescently labeled primer pairs obtained by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) is widely used, but is expensive....Full Text Available
The basic approach to radioactive labeling techniques in hemoglobin identification consists of mixing 14C labeled normal carrier globin with 3H labeled unknown globin and carrying out the subsequent separations and purifications looking at the distribution of 3H and 14C radioactivity. This technique was devised to ascertain the amino acid substitution in Hb Indianapolis and was instrumental in solving the structure of Hb Vicksburg. It was also useful in determining the purity of gamma-chains from cultures of human and baboon erythroid progenitors. Another use of this technique would be in identifying aberrant peaks of radioactivity in chain separation chromatograms, such as ''pre-peaks''.
Astatine conversed into cationic form is shown to form stable complex with diethylenetriaminpentacetic acid. Due to this complex astatine joins RN_2 type monoclonal antibodies. More favorable conditions to prepare astatine labelled antibodies are found. Chromatographical analysis and electromigration experiments have shown that astatine is strongly retained in in-vitro biomolecule. Astatine did not escape from the labelled antibodies even in case of urea effect on them. Immune activity of astatine labelled antibodies remained similar in 20 h. 28 refs., 4 figs.
A useful method for preparing radioiodinated photoaffinity labels from alkyl anilines which offer significant advantages over present methods is described. The one-pot synthesis gives good radiochemical yields (40-64%) of pure, high specific activity (350-1500 mCi/#mu#mol) "1"2"4I labelled iodaryl azides while minimising manipulation of radioactive materials. Purification of the ["1"2"5I]iodoazido photoaffinity labels is achieved by high performance liquid chromatography. (author).
A useful method for preparing radioiodinated photoaffinity labels from alkyl anilines which offer significant advantages over present methods is described. The one-pot synthesis gives good radiochemical yields (40-64%) of pure, high specific activity (350-1500 mCi/{mu}mol) {sup 124}I labelled iodaryl azides while minimising manipulation of radioactive materials. Purification of the ({sup 125}I)iodoazido photoaffinity labels is achieved by high performance liquid chromatography. (author).
The synthesis of (/sup 14/C)-10,11-Epoxy-(2E,6E)-farnesyl diazoacetate in one vessel, starting from (/sup 14/C)-glyoxylic acid, is described. This compound is useful as a potential photoaffinity labeling agent for juvenile hormone binding sites.
A microcosm laboratory experiment was conducted to determine the impact of biological reworking by the ragworm Nereis diversicolor on the redistribution of particle-bound radionuclides deposited at the sediment-water interface. Over the course of the 40-day experiment, as much as 35% of a {sup 137}Cs-labelled particulate tracer deposited on the sediment surface was redistributed to depths of up to 11 cm by the polychaete. Three different reworking models were employed to model the profiles and quantify the biodiffusion and biotransport coefficients: a gallery-diffuser model, a continuous sub-surface egestion model and a biodiffusion model. Although the biodiffusion coefficients obtained for each model were quite similar, the continuous sub-surface egestion model provided the best fit to the data. The average biodiffusion coefficient, at 1.8 {+-} 0.9 cm{sup 2} y{sup -1}, is in good agreement with the values quoted by other workers on the bioturbation effects of this ...
A microcosm laboratory experiment was conducted to determine the impact of biological reworking by the ragworm Nereis diversicolor on the redistribution of particle-bound radionuclides deposited at the sediment-water interface. Over the course of the 40-day experiment, as much as 35% of a "1"3"7Cs-labelled particulate tracer deposited on the sediment surface was redistributed to depths of up to 11 cm by the polychaete. Three different reworking models were employed to model the profiles and quantify the biodiffusion and biotransport coefficients: a gallery-diffuser model, a continuous sub-surface egestion model and a biodiffusion model. Although the biodiffusion coefficients obtained for each model were quite similar, the continuous sub-surface egestion model provided the best fit to the data. The average biodiffusion coefficient, at 1.8 #+-# 0.9 cm"2 y"-"1, is in good agreement with the values quoted by other workers on the bioturbation effects of this polychaete ...
Carbohydrate and nucleotide structural determination using modern spectroscopic techniques is dependent on our ability to label oligonucleotides and oligosaccharides with stable isotopes. Uniform Carbon 13 and Nitrogen 15 labeling of oligonucleotides is important to present-day efforts, which are focused on determining the structure of relatively small oligosaccharides and oligonucleotides, which form the elements of larger structures. Because of the relatively recent interest in three-dimensional structure, the development of techniques used to label them has lagged behind parallel techniques used to label peptides and proteins. Therefore, this group`s discussion focused primarily on problems faced today in obtaining oligonucleotides labeled uniformly with carbon 13 and nitrogen 15.
W have introduced template-synthesized metal phosphate nanoparticle labels for electrochemical immunoassay. Such use of an apoferritin template offers a simple and convenient route to prepare metallic nanoparticle labels for electrochemical immunoassays and avoid the complicated and time-consuming nanoparticle synthesis process (QD synthesis). Releasing metal ions from metal phosphate in an acetate buffer (pH 4.6) eliminates the harsh condition in the traditional metallic nanoparticle dissolution (e.g., strong acid dissolution of QDs and gold nanoparticles). This method is ultrasensitive and its DL is low to 77fM. The simultaneous detection of multiple protein targets is easily performed by using different metal phosphate nanoparticle labels (cadmium phosphate and lead phosphate). This approach can be extended to prepare multiple metal (such as zinc, lead, cadmium, copper, indium, gold, silver) phosphate nanoparticle ...
The mouth is an obvious portal of entry to the body, and oral health reflects and influences general health and well being. Maternal oral health has significant implications for birth outcomes and infant...Full Text Available
A yellow-pigmented, gram-negative, gliding bacterium isolated from an industrial water spray air humidification system was implicated as a causative agent in several occurrences of lung disease with...Full Text Available
The 7 conference papers in Vol. 9 review the implications of environmental problems and discuss the consequences of pollution abatement measures, especially for the economics of energy conversion. The future developments of pollutant emissions are assessed.
"Correctional Health Care: Implications for Public Health Policy" is the first in a series of articles that examines the special health care needs of persons who are incarcerated in America's correctional...Full Text Available
This document is an executive summary of the colloquium organized by the French syndicate of renewable energies (SER) which took place at the Maison de l'UNESCO in Paris during the national debate on energies organized by the French government in spring 2003. The colloquium was organized around 6 round tables dealing with: the world perspectives and the environmental context of the contribution of renewable energies to the sustainable development (respect of Kyoto protocol commitments, contribution to the security of energy supplies, lack of large scale program of development of decentralized power generation in developing countries, lack of market tools linked with CO{sub 2} emissions, improvement of competitiveness); development of renewable energies in Europe (promotion and sustain in all European countries, obligation of supply and purchase, pricing regulation, European harmonization of practices); renewable electricity and its place in the new orientation law about ...
There are five tasks within this project on thermally stable coal-based jet fuels. Progress on each of the tasks is described. Task 1, Investigation of the quantitative degradation chemistry of fuels, has 5 subtasks which are described: Literature review on thermal stability of jet fuels; Pyrolytic and catalytic reactions of potential endothermic fuels: cis- and trans-decalin; Use of site specific {sup 13}C-labeling to examine the thermal stressing of 1-phenylhexane: A case study for the determination of reaction kinetics in complex fuel mixtures versus model compound studies; Estimation of critical temperatures of jet fuels; and Surface effects on deposit formation in a flow reactor system. Under Task 2, Investigation of incipient deposition, the subtask reported is Uncertainty analysis on growth and deposition of particles during heating of coal-derived aviation gas turbine fuels; under Task 3, Characterization of solid gums, sediments, and carbonaceous deposits, ...
Aim: Rheumatoid arthritis is a limiting disease having, among its pathological features, the inflammation of synovial tissue with progressive and later destruction of the articulation. This leads to joint deformation and loss of its function, generating pain and reducing the mobility of the affected articulation. The aim was to evaluate "1"6"6Ho-Hydroxyapatite ("1"6"6 Ho-HA) as potential radiopharmaceutical for the symptomatic treatment of chronic and acute arthritis. Materials and Methods: Holmiun-166 was produced by irradiation of Ho_2O_3 at La Reina Research Reactor, Nuclear Chilean Energy Commission. Hydroxyapatite was in-house synthesized. Its labelling and quality controls follows the internationally accepted procedures. An antigen's arthritis was induced to eight New Zealand rabbits with the "1"6"6 Ho-HA radiochemical being administered thereafter in two dosage modalities (single and double). The compound therapeutic efficiency was ...
Intact rat fat cell exposed to 12.5 ..mu..M (..gamma..-32P)ATP incorporate label into specific proteins within minutes. By solubilizing the reaction mixture with SDS which bypasses the subcellular fractionation steps, the labeled proteins can be identified in autoradiographs of SDS-PAGE gels. The most prominently labeled protein has an M/sub r/ of 42,000. Localization of this component to the cell surface can be made on the basis of inhibition of phosphorylation by addition of a protein derived from the rat brain with protein kinase inhibitory property, susceptibility of the phosphorylated protein to the tryptic digestion, inhibition of phosphorylation of this protein after brief exposure to melittin. To rule out the possibility that the cell surface protein might be a mitochondrial contaminant from broken cells, /sup 32/Pi-labeled and (..gamma..-/sup 32/P)ATP-labeled cells were ...
Selection of the appropriate radiation quality is an important aspect of optimisation for every clinical imaging task in radiology, since it affects both image quality and patient dose. Spreadsheet...Full Text Available
This handbook provides guidance in the application of quality assurance to measurement activities. It is intended to help those persons making measurements in applying quality assurance to their work activities by showing how laboratory practices and quality assurance requirements are integrated to provide control within those activities. The use of the guidance found in this handbook should help provide consistency in the interpretation of quality assurance requirements across all types of measurement laboratories. This handbook also can assist quality assurance personnel in understanding the relationships between laboratory practices and quality assurance requirements. The handbook is composed of three chapters and several appendices. Basic guidance is provided by the three chapters. In Chapter 1, the role of quality assurance in obtaining ...
Full text: Red blood cells (RBCs) labeled with "9"9"mTc are commonly used in the evaluation of cardiac function, gastrointestinal tract bleeding, red blood cell volume or splenic sequestration. Generally stannous ion is used as reducing agent. A proposed mechanism is that once the stannous ion (Sn) and the pertechnetate ("9"9"mTc) reach the interior of the RBC, the radionuclide is mainly house in the #beta#-chain of hemoglobin. The aim of this study was to determine if hemoglobin content reduction, an indicator of iron deficiency anemia, could affect the efficiency of RBC labeling and the biological distribution of this radiopharmaceutical. We studied 30 rats fed for 3 weeks after weaning with diets with iron contents of 6.5 ppm (group A), 18 ppm (group B) and 100 ppm (control). For all groups, the labeling yields were always higher than 97%; the percentage of radioactivity was mostly founded in blood with almost negligible ...
A photoaffinity derivative of the local anesthetic trimethisoquin, 5-azido-["3H]trimethisoquin (5-A["3H]T) labelled bands of app. mol. wt 50 k and 66 k. To explain the rather paradoxical labelling by 5-A["3H]T of two polypeptide chains instead of one, three possibilities were considered: (i) The site for non-competititve blockers is not carried by the 50 k or 66 k chain; however, these chains lie in the vicinity of the binding site and become preferentially labelled since they present chemical groups with which the nitrene group of 5-A["3H]T reacts. (ii) The 50 k and 66 k chains are different but carry binding sites for non-competitive blockers with similar reactivities. (iii) The 50 k chain labelled by 5-A["3H]T derives from the 66 k chain by proteolysis. These results show that the third alternative is the correct one. Under conditions which limit proteolysis, 5-A["3H]T selectively ...
The overall purpose of this project is to evaluate the biological and economic feasibility of restoring high-quality forests on mined land, and to measure carbon sequestration and wood production benefits that would be achieved from forest restoration procedures. In this quarterly report, we present a preliminary comparison of the carbon sequestration potential of forests growing on 14 mined sites in a seven-state region in the Midwestern and Eastern Coalfields. Carbon contents of these forests were compared to adjacent forests on non-mined land. The study was installed as a 3 x 3 factorial in a random complete block design with three replications at each location. The treatments include three forest types (white pine, hybrid poplar, mixed hardwood) and three silvicultural regimes (competition control, competition control plus tillage, competition control plus tillage plus fertilization). Each individual treatment plot is 0.5 acres. Each block of nine plots ...
This book summarizes the research that has been conducted in Canada over the past five years on the issue of climate change impacts on key sectors such as water resources, agriculture, forestry, fisheries, coastal zones, transportation, and human health and well-being. The book refers to the growing evidence that climate change is occurring. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) believes that these changes have already contributed to increases in annual precipitation, cloud cover and extreme temperatures over the last 50 years. It suggests that it in order to develop an effective strategy for adaptation, it is necessary to understand the vulnerability of each sector to climate change in terms of the nature of climate change, the climatic sensitivity of the region being considered, and the capacity to adapt to the changes. Adaptation will require a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions in order to lower the rate of climate change. Problems associated with water resources ...
A procedure for high level tritium labelling at the C2-H position of adenosine 5`-triphosphate ([2-{sup 3}H]-ATP, 1), based on the tritiodehalogenation reaction of 2-bromoadenosine 5`-triphosphate (2) has been elaborated. This precursor was prepared in a six-step synthesis from guanosine. The tritiodehalogenation of (2) for three hours over palladium oxide in phosphate buffer yielded tritium labelled ATP with high specific activity, in good chemical yield. (author).
Four /sup 125/I labeled mono- and diamines were prepared and evaluated as potential brain-imaging agents. The diamines are analogues of the previously reported /sup 75/Se labeled diamines, which show high brain uptake and retention. All of the radioiodinated amines display high initial brain uptake in rats after intravenous injection (1.7-2.4% dose/organ). The xylylenediamines show prolonged brain retention (t1/2 approximately 18 h), which is desirable for brain imaging. In contrast, the benzylamine is rapidly cleared from brain tissue (t1/2 approximately 15 min).
Scientists at JPL have developed chemical and biological techniques using microspheres filled with drugs, electron-opaque metals, or radioactive, fluorescent, magnetic or electrically charged materials to label specific groups of cells. Synthetic polymeric microspheres are coupled with specific antibodies to form reagents called immunomicrospheres, which can seek out and attach themselves to any specific group of cells. These cell-labeling techniques, therefore, open new avenues not only to the basic study of cells but also to the diagnosis and treatment of many diseases, including cancer.
Photosynthetic carbohydrates from the leaves are exported through the phloem to growing tips, roots, flowers and fruits. If sucrose labelled with {sup 14}C is applied to the leaves of bean plants, the pathway for sugar movement may be readily observed by autoradiography. Students apply the labelled sucrose during class time and return the next day to press their plants. During the next class, the pressed and dried plants are placed against X-ray film and left in the dark for four weeks. the film is then developed, examined for presence of label and compared to the pressed plants. Source to sink movement is clearly illustrated and information about the mechanism of phloem transport and loading is gained through experimental treatments, which include blocking the phloem pathway and inhibiting energy production.
The binding of iodine-labelled plasminogen to Helicobacter pylori CCUG 17874 was characterized. Inhibition of the binding was observed after preincubation of H. pylori...Full Text Available
The known biological functions of RNA have expanded in recent years and now include gene regulation, maintenance of sub-cellular structure, and catalysis, in addition to propagation of genetic information. As for proteins, RNA function is tightly correlated with structure. Unlike proteins, structural information for larger, biologically functional RNAs is relatively limited. NMR signal degeneracy, relaxation problems, and a paucity of long-range {sup 1}H-{sup 1}H dipolar contacts have limited the utility of traditional NMR approaches. Selective isotope labeling, including nucleotide-specific and segmental labeling strategies, may provide the best opportunities for obtaining structural information by NMR. Here we review methods that have been developed for preparing and purifying isotopically labeled RNAs, as well as NMR strategies that have been employed for signal assignment and structure determination.
The human erythrocyte (RBC) Rh blood group system consists of a complex of distinct integral membrane polypeptides with physical properties common to the aminophospholipid transporter responsible for the transbilayer movement of phosphatidylserine (PS) in RBC. To assess the involvement of Rh polypeptides in PS translocation, the aminophospholipid translocase was labeled with a photoactivatable PS analogue, "1"2"5I-azido-PS, and with an inhibitor of PS transport, "1"2"5I-labeled 2-(2-pyridyldithio)ethylamine. The ability of monoclonal Rh antibodies to immunoprecipitate the labeled transporter was determined. Immunoprecipitated Rh polypeptides were found to be labeled with the aminophospholipid translocase markers, suggesting that Rh proteins are involved in the transbilayer movement of PS.
Additional measurements have been made of deposition and retention of inhaled radioactively labeled iron oxide aerosols generated by a spinning top aerosol generator.
... radiation during clinical therapy and exposures due to radiation accidents or attacks, in which the doses are uncontrolled ... only be used off-label in victims of radiation accidents or attacks. The idea...
Clean Water Act You are here: Water Laws & Regulations Policy & Guidance Clean Water Act Water Quality and 401 Certification Water Quality and 401 Certification Water Quality...
The effect of abatacept, a selective T-cell co-stimulation modulator, on vaccination has not been previously investigated. In this open-label, single-dose, randomized, parallel-group, controlled study,...Full Text Available
Synthesis of the azido substituted non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug 2-(2,6-dichloroanilino)phenylacetic acid and isotope labeling of this compound have been performed and are described. Initial evaluation of the binding ability and photoreactivity indicates that this compound has potential for photoaffinity labeling as well as enzyme selectivity studies. (author).
The modes of action of the five major endo-(1----4)-beta-D-glucanases (I, II, III, IV and V) purified from Penicillium pinophilum cellulase were compared by h.p.l.c. analysis, with normal, 1-3H-labelled...Full Text Available
The authors have used limited proteolysis of affinity-labeled estrogen receptors (ER), coupled with antireceptor antibody immunoreactivity, to assess structural features of ER and the relatedness of ER from MCF-7 human breast cancer and rat uterine cells. MCF-7 ER preparations covalently labeled with ["3H]tamoxifen aziridine (["3H]TAZ) were treated with trypsin (T), #alpha#-chymotrypsin (C), or Staphylococcus aureus V8 protease prior to electrophoresis on sodium dodecyl sulfate gels. Fluorography revealed a distinctive ladder of ER fragments containing TAZ for each protease generated from the M/sub r/ 66,000 ER. Immunoblot detection with the primate-specific antibody D75P3#gamma# revealed that all immunoreactive fragments corresponded to TAZ-labeled fragments but that some small TAZ-labeled fragments were no longer immunoreactive. In contrast, use of the antibody H222SP#gamma# revealed a correspondence ...
We present evidence that the role of tryptophan and other potential intermediates in the pathways that could lead to indole derivatives needs to be reexamined. Two lines of Lemna gibba...Full Text Available
This case report demonstrates an hepatic amebic abscess by scintigrapy, utilizing a new radiopharmaceutical designed specifically for that purpose. The abscess is delineated as a positive lesion after twenty four hours. The agent, "1"3"1I-labeled bromometronidazole, may prove to be specific for the diagnosis of these abscesses. (orig.).
The rate of appearance of labeled thyroxine (T4) and albumin in lymph from various areas after simultaneous i.v. injection of the labeled substances in conscious ambulatory sheep has been used to estimate...Full Text Available
...) Abstract: Fluorescence microscopic imaging is widely used in biomedical research to study molecular and cellular processes in cell culture or tissue samples. This is motivated by the high inherent sensitivity of fluorescence techniques, the spatial resolution that compares favorably with cellular dimensions, the stability of the fluorescent labels used and the sophisticated strategies that have been developed for selectively labeling target molecules. More recently, two and ...
33 patients with advanced malignant melanoma were studied after intravenous administration of 131I-labeled Fab fragments specific for p97, an oncofetal glycoprotein of human melanoma. In all, 47 gamma...Full Text Available
HIPDM is an "1"2"3I-labeled agent with a distribution in brain reflecting regional perfusion. This compound is neutral and lipid soluble at blood pH and freely crosses the blood-brain barrier. At the lower pH in brain, it picks up a hydrogen ion and becomes positively charged. In this form the molecule is not lipid soluble and it is trapped in brain.
A method is described to smear extremely thin layers of nuclear emulsion on labeled electron microscope preparations and to measure the thicknesses of these layers, Without further separation, preparation and emulsion can be observed after exposure and development in an electron microscope. The source of the tracks formed in the emulsion can be exactly identified and the size and structure determined. This method finds applications in dust research and also in the analysis of medical and biological sections. Further information can be obtained about properties of different emulsions. (auth)
The obtained results in presently study demonstrate that the feasibility of the detection of the sentry ganglion in cervix uterine cancer using a boarding by laparoscopic via, being necessary the use of twice labelled as much with patent blue and radioisotope (colloid of labelled rhenium with "9"9"mTc, total dose of 3 MCi) to achieve the identification of the ganglion. (Author)
High liver uptake and slow body clearance presently limit the usefulness of "1"1"1In labeled antibodies for tumor imaging. We have investigated "2"0"3Pb as an alternate and better antibody label. The DTPA and cyclohexyl EDTA (CDTA) conjugates of an anticolon carcinoma antibody, 17-1A were labeled (bicyclic anhydride method) with "2"0"3Pb and "1"1"1In with 60 and 90% labeling yields, respectively. The biodistribution of "2"0"3Pb-17-1A conjugates was compared with the corresponding "1"1"1In-labeled preparations and with "2"0"3Pb-DTPA, "2"0"3Pb-nitrate and nonrelevant antibody controls in normal and human tumor (SW948) xenografted nude mice at 24, and 96 hr. Lead-203-labeled CDTA and DTPA antibody conjugates gave similar in vivo distributions. Even though the lead bound to these chelate-antibody conjugates was more labile in serum and in vivo, compared to indium, ...
Radioimmunoassays for detecting cell-associated or released virus are described using either 125I- or [3H]acetate-labeled antibodies. In the first assay system, antigen-antibody...Full Text Available
Seventy male Wistar rats were the recipients of labeled small lymphocytes (1.5 X 10(7) each) collected from the peripheral blood of syngeneic donors. The migrating labeled lymphocytes were traced in...Full Text Available
Research is described in the development of organometallic reagents in which the boron was attached to a nonreactive organic or inorganic matrix such as polystyrene, silica, or alumina. We developed the synthesis of oxygen-15 labelled butanol, which has been found to be a valuable blood flow agent in humans. We have also developed a series of polymeric borane derivatives which were used to prepare nitrogen-13 labelled amines.
A simple procedure is described for preparing {sup 125}I-labelling hyluronan of high molecular weight. The reducing terminal group of hyaluronic acid was derivatized with tyramine through the formation of a Schiff base which was subsequently reduced with sodium cyanoborohydride. By radioiodination of the aromatic ring, {sup 125}I-labelled hyaluronic acid was obtained in high yield (40%) and high specific activity, 555 GBq/mmol (15 Ci/mmol). (Author).
Ribosomal protein L 10 from the livers of trout, hen, and rat was found to be the main target for 2-nitro-4-azidobenzoyl-Phe-tRNA in affinity labelling experiments. Therefore, despite somewhat different electrophoretic mobilities, this protein seems to be involved in the organization of the peptidyl transferase centre in ribosomes of various vertebrates. (author).
Two methods were used to label pig kidney microvillar membrane proteins from the luminal and cytoplasmic surfaces of closed membrane vesicles. The first method was lactoperoxidase-catalysed radioiodination. Lactoperoxidase and glucose oxidase were positioned inside or outside the vesicles, iodination being initiated by adding glucose and "1"2"5I. After electrophoresis of the proteins, asymmetric labelling patterns on radioautographs were observed. However the major disadvantage of this method was the high degree of intramembrane labelling of the fatty acid chains of membrane lipids. The second method overcame this disadvantage. A new hydophilic photoreagent, 3,5-di("1"2"5I)iodo-4-azidobenzenesulphonate, was transported by a Na"+-dependent system into microvillar vesicles, thus permitting labelling from either side of the membrane when the vesicles were photolysed. The activity of several microvillar ...
Cell extracts of the thermophile Clostridium thermohydrosulfuricum catalyzed the phosphorylation by (..gamma..-/sup 32/P)ATP of several endogenous proteins with M/sub r/s between 13,000 and 100,000. Serine and tyrosine were the main acceptors. Distinct substrate proteins were found in the soluble (e.g., proteins p66, p63, and p53 of M/sub r/s 66,000, 63,000, and 53,000, respectively) and particulate (p76 and p30) fractions, both of which contained protein kinase and phosphatase activity. The soluble fraction suppressed the phosphorylation of particulate proteins and contained a protein kinase inhibitor. Phosphorylation of p53 was promoted by 10..mu..M fructose 1,6-bisphosphate or glucose 1,6-bisphosphate and suppressed by hexose monophosphates, whereas p30 and p13 were suppressed by 5 ..mu..M brain (but not spinach) calmodulin. Polyamines, including the odd polyamines characteristic of thermophiles, modulated the labeling of most of the phosphoproteins. Apart from ...
The time of appearance of newly synthesized rRNAs and ribosomal proteins (r-proteins) in the ribosomes of pea cotyledons (Pisum sativum L.) during germination was investigated. The ribosomal fraction was isolated and analyzed according to the method of germination of the embryo in the presence of labeled precursors or after pulse labeling of the embryos at different stages of germination. For the identification of newly synthesized rRNAs in the ribosomes we estimated the relative stability of labeled RNAs to the action of RNase, the sedimentation rate, the ability to be methylated in vivo in the presence of (/sup 14/C)CH/sub 3/-methionine, and the localization in the subunits of dissociated ribosomes. The presence of newly synthesized r-proteins in the ribosomes was judged on the basis of the electrophoretic similarity in SDS-disc electrophoresis of labeled polypeptides of purified ribosome preparations ...
The heavy chains of Acanthamoeba myosins, IA, IB and II, turkey gizzard myosin, and rabbit skeletal muscle myosin subfragment-1 were specifically labeled by radioactive ATP, ADP, and UTP, each of which is a substrate or product of myosin ATPase activity, when irradiated with uv light at 0"0C. With UTP, as much as 0.45 mol/mol of Acanthamoeba myosin IA heavy chain and 1 mol/mol of turkey gizzard myosin heavy chain was incorporated. Evidence that the ligands were associated with the catalytic site included the observations that reaction occurred only with nucleotides that are substrates or products of the ATPase activity; that the reaction was blocked by pyrophosphate which is an inhibitor of the ATPase activity; that ATP was bound as ADP; and that label was probably restricted to a single peptide following limited subtilisin proteolysis of labeled Acanthamoeba myosin IA heavy chain and extensive cleavage with CNBr and ...
Reactions of consumers to the appearance and taste of pork with and without information concerning outdoor production of pigs were tested in France, Denmark, Sweden and UK. Consumers in all four countries focussed on colour and fatness rather than marbling and drip to make their choice. Almost half of the British and Danish preferred the paler and the French the darker pork. Most people preferred the leaner pork. When information was provided in the form of labels, the vast majority of consumers preferred the pork labelled as originating from their own country as opposed to 'imported' and that labelled as pork from pigs 'raised outside' as opposed to 'inside'. There was no difference in the taste of grilled pork from indoor and outdoor production systems but pork labelled 'home produced' or 'outdoor' were more appreciated. Consumers' willingness to pay varied widely and was higher for those consumers ...
Energy expenditure (EE) of four adult men on a weight-maintenance diet was estimated by use of doubly labeled water, intake balance, and direct and indirect calorimetry. The doubly labeled water (2H218O) method was used to estimate free-living EE for 13 d. Metabolizable energy (ME) intake was used to estimate free-living EE for 1 wk. The subjects' 24-h EE was measured in a dual direct-indirect room calorimeter on 3 alternate days. Estimates of free-living EE as measured by ME intake and doubly labeled water indicate agreement between the two methods (mean difference +/- SEM, -1.04 +/- 0.63%). Measurements of EE with indirect and direct calorimetry are equivalent (mean difference 0.63 +/- 0.44%). The daily EE measured by doubly labeled water in these free-living adults over a 13-d period was 15.01% greater than the 24-h EE measured within the calorimeter.
A new /sup 99m/Tc-phosphine-isocyanide complex with the general structure (/sup 99m/Tc (DEPE)/sub 2/(CNR)/sub 2/)/sup +/ has been synthesised and tested in animals and one human. In three animal species (rat, rabbit, dog), the complex is an efficient myocardial imaging agent, while in humans it remains in the blood pool. The complex is 100% protein bound in animals and humans, but whereas in humans it is attached to a 51.5 kdalton protein (probably prealbumin), in rabbits it appears to be bound to a larger macromolecule (M.W.>100 kdalton). The efficiency of the complex for blood pool labelling was tested in a human volunteer and compared with the standard in vivo red cell labelling technique with stannous pyrophosphate. A satisfactory radionuclide angiogram could be performed with less than 370 MBq of the complex. The count rate for the complex (cps/MBq) was 15% higher than that obtained with the labelled red cells and ...
implications for treatment. In M.A. Chesney 8,. R. H. Rosenman (Eds.) Anqer and hostility in cardiovascular and behavioral disorders (pp. 103-126). ...
Mitochondrial dysfunction has been implicated in premature aging, age-related diseases, and tumor initiation and progression. Alterations of the mitochondrial genome accumulate both in aging tissue...Full Text Available
... In a HEAO 1 study of active galaxies, principally Seyfert 1s, in the 2, 165 keV energy range, Rothschild et al. ... As discussed by Rothschild et al. ...
Described as the body's largest organ, the skin is strategically located at the interface with the external environment where it has evolved to detect, integrate and respond to a diverse range...Full Text Available
sive star evolution based on our new calculations of this pulsational instability, where the initial mass of SNe progenitors increases according to the ...
This dissertation is devoted to the study of the phenomenological consequences of the three-generation heterotic string models based on the Calabi-Yau compactifications and the N = 2 superconformal constructions.
Schizophrenia is a heterogeneous psychiatric disorder in which multiple neurotransmitter systems have been implicated. Increased and decreased dopamine transmission in the subcortical meso-limbic and...Full Text Available
BackgroundFloating knee injuries are usually associated with other significant injuries. Do these injuries have implications on the management of the floating knee and the final...Full Text Available
and the implications for massive star evolution. In recent years, the complex nature of the circumstellar regions of evolved massive stars has become apparent. ...
Periodontitis is an infectious process characterized by inflammation affecting the supporting structures of the teeth. Porphyromonas gingivalis is a major oral bacterial species implicated...Full Text Available
Jan 7, 2010 ... Deforestation. The environmental implications of the word are as numerous as the syllables. And scientists like Jim Collatz have the job of ...
Phosphorylation is one of the most frequent modifications in intracellular signaling and is implicated in many processes ranging from transcriptional control to signal transduction in innate immunity....Full Text Available
The importance of designating criteria for diagnosing dementia lies in its implications for clinical treatment, research, caregiving, and decision-making. Dementia diagnosis in Huntington's...Full Text Available
Although coagulase-negative staphylococci (C-NS) have been implicated in certain human infections, they are generally regarded as contaminants, and their clinical significance is questioned. To assess...Full Text Available
A brief review of standard big bang nucleosynthesis theory and the related observations of the light element isotopes is presented. Implications of BBN on chemical evolution and constraints on particle properties will also be discussed.
The synapsin III gene, SYN3, which belongs to the family of synaptic vesicle-associated proteins, has been implicated in the modulation of neurotransmitter...Full Text Available
DescriptionThis Studentship will focus on the implications of material nutrition and health for reproduction in green turtles, and specifically the role played by dietary carotenoids.
This assessment is a feasibility study according to ISO 14024. It deals with the question whether an ecolabel is suitable for wood pellet heating systems and how concrete criteria for an ecolabel for wood pellet heating plants could be specified. The study begins with a comprehensive market analysis in order to identify possible plants for which an ecolabel would make sense. In the main part of the study, the environmental relevance of the chosen plants is analysed. For this analysis, plant manufacturers were interviewed and a comparison between wood pellet heating systems and heating systems which use gas, oil or wood was carried out. On the basis of this analysis, it was possible to derive a number of criteria which were discussed with company representatives and other experts in this field. As a result of this dialogue and the investigation process as a whole, the introduction of an ecolabel for wood pellet heating plants can be recommended. Wood pellet heating systems are ...
In Hungary, legislation for nuclear power plants was developed at the end of the 1970s, among which is the quality assurance code for nuclear power plants. Hungarian practice is presented, including discussion of the requirements for quality assurance, qualification of the suppliers and inspection practices. The general requirements of quality assurance in the course of construction of a nuclear power plant are presented: quality assurance of technological equipment, fuel, electrical equipment, automatic instrumentations, building structures and technology.
Insulitis is considered the histopathological hallmark of type I diabetes. In the non-obese diabetic (NOD) mouse, diabetes has never been observed in the absence of insulitis. The in vivo detection of insulitis could be of relevance for early prediction of diabetes. As approximately 15% of islet-infiltrating lymphocytes express interleukin 2 receptors, the authors have labelled recombinant inter-leukin 2 with "1"2"3I and used this radiopharmaceutical to detect insulitis by gamma camera imaging. The authors studied 71 prediabetic NOD and 27 normal Balb/c mice. Labelled #alpha#-lactalbumin was used as the control protein. In the first set of experiments the tissue distribution of radiolabelled interleukin 2 in isolated organs from animals sacrificed at different time points was studied. Higher radioactivity was detected in the pancreas of NOD mice injected with labelled interleukin 2, as compared to NOD mice receiving ...
The active site of chicken gizzard myosin was labeled by direct photoaffinity labeling with ["3H]UDP. ["3H] UDP was stably trapped at the active site by addition of vanadate (Vi) and Co"2"+. The extraordinary stability of the myosin.Co2+.[3H]UDP.Vi complex (t1/2 greater than 5 days at 0 degrees C) allowed it to be purified free of extraneous ["3H]UDP before irradiation began. Upon UV irradiation, greater than 60% of the trapped ["3H]UDP was photoincorporated into the active site. Only the 200-kDa heavy chain was labeled, confirming earlier results using ["3H]UTP. Extensive tryptic digestion of photolabeled myosin subfragment 1 followed by high performance liquid chromatography separations and removal of nucleotide phosphates by treatment with alkaline phosphatase allowed two labeled peptides to be isolated. Sequencing of the labeled peptides and radioactive counting showed that ...
This report documents a case history in which a cadaver and the associated burial objects were found well preserved after being buried for more than 2100 years in Southern China. The preservation is attributed to a layer of kaolin that surrounded the coffin and served as a barrier to water and air movement. The implications for the disposal of nuclear fuel waste are discussed.
DescriptionNanotechnology is rapidly expanding, and is forecast to become a trillion dollar industry in the near future. It is inevitable that as nanotechnology applications increase, increasing amounts of manufactured nanoparticles (mNPs) will be released into the environment. The environmental and human health implications of the release of most of the huge range of possible particle types are as yet largely unknown, but in the context of groundwaters, apart from implications for the drinking of contam [continued...
Four "1"2"5I labeled mono- and diamines were prepared and evaluated as potential brain-imaging agents. The diamines are analogues of the previously reported "7"5Se labeled diamines, which show high brain uptake and retention. All of the radioiodinated amines display high initial brain uptake in rats after intravenous injection (1.7-2.4% dose/organ). The xylylenediamines show prolonged brain retention (t1/2 approximately 18 h), which is desirable for brain imaging. In contrast, the benzylamine is rapidly cleared from brain tissue (t1/2 approximately 15 min).
In this paper, we introduce a new recursive neural network model able to process directed acyclic graphs with labelled edges. The model uses a state transition function which considers the edge labels and is independent both from the number and the order of the children of each node. The computational capabilities of the new recursive architecture are assessed. Moreover, in order to test the proposed architecture on a practical challenging application, the problem of object detection in images is also addressed. In fact, the localization of target objects is a preliminary step in any recognition system. The proposed technique is general and can be applied in different detection systems, since it does not exploit any a priori knowledge on the particular problem. Some experiments on face detection, carried out on scenes acquired by an indoor camera, are reported, showing very promising results. PMID:16181770
A brief survey is presented of the methods of preparation and of the applications of radiopharmaceuticals labelled with short-lived positron radionuclides "1"1C, "1"8F, "1"3N and "1"5O which, thanks to their energy level schemes, short half-life and the 511 keV photon radiation energy are almost ideal tracers in modern nuclear medicine and pharmacology. In conjunction with computerized tomography, they represent one of the most sensitive diagnostic imaging methods, the so-called positron emission tomography. In addition, their incorporation in the molecule of a pharmaceutical does not change the biological and chemical properties of the original molecule unlike those of radiopharmaceuticals labelled with technetium, iodine, etc. (author). 125 refs.
A series of four 125I-labeled 1-substituted-4-phenylpiperazines were prepared and evaluated in rats as potential brain imaging agents. The compounds were labeled using (125I)iodide/chloramine-T or iodine monochloride and isolated in 48-60% radiochemical yields. The tissue distribution studies indicated that a butyrophenone derivative demonstrated the best overall brain-imaging properties. Compared with the compounds having other 1-substituents this agent had a more prolonged retention of activity in the brain and higher brain-to-blood ratios over the 4-h period studied. The in vivo behavior of this agent is comparable to that of radioiodinated N-isopropyl-p-iodoamphetamine, and, because it can be labeled directly via electrophilic methods, it has substantial potential for use in brain imaging with single photon emission computed tomography.
Wheat leaves can be induced by excision to produce fructans. Fructose residues of newly made oligofructans in leaves labeled in vivo with {sup 14}CO{sub 2} are not equally labeled. We report here on a fructosyl transferase activity in wheat leaves catalyzing the reaction: G{sup *}-F{sup *} + G-F-F = G{sup *}-F{sup *}-F + G-F. This activity, described previously in J. artichoke was attributed to fructan:fructan fructosyl transferase (FFT). The rate of this reaction in vitro is much higher than that of net kestose synthesis by SST. Hence, appearance of labeled 1-kestose from sucrose may not be an accurate measure of SST, but a curious reshuffling of hexoses between pools of 1-kestose and sucrose.
The effect of NaCl and Na_2SO_4 treatments on chlorophyll content, rate of "1"4C assimilation and products of photosynthesis in peanut (Arachish hypogaea L.) variety TMV-10 has been investigated. It was observed that chlorophyll content was affected mainly by NaCl, Na_2SO_4 treatment lowered the rate of photosynthetic "1"4CO_2 fixation. The analysis of labelled products revealed that the salts affect the carbon metabolism differently. The radioactivity was found to be accumulated in fractions of sugars and sugarphosphates in the leaves of NaCl treated plants. Na_2SO_4 treatment brought about considerable decline in labelling of sugars and an increase in labelling of amino acids and sugarphosphates. (orig.).
Hydrophobic labelling is frequently used in the study of membrane-inserted domains of intrinsic proteins. However, the published procedures, fail to incorporate sufficient radioactivity into membrane immunoglobulins of B lymhocytes to permit investigation of their subunit structures and associations with other proteins. In order to increase the specific radioactivity of ["1"2"5I]iodonaphtylazide ["1"2"5I]INA), an improved method for the synthesis of the reagent was developed. In addition, the optimal conditions for labelling B lymhpocytes with ["1"2"5I]INA and commercially available reagent 3-(trifluoromethyl)-3-(trifluoromethyl)-3-(3'-["1"2"5Iliodophenyl)diazirine (["1"2"5I]TID were isolated and analysed in detail by SDS-PAGE. The usefulness of the two reagents for the investigation of lipid-embedded domains of membrane proteins is discussed. (author). 28 refs.; 4 figs.
Although good encryption functions are probabilistic, most symbolic models do not capture this aspect explicitly. A typical solution, recently used to prove the soundness of such models with respect to computational ones, is to explicitly represent the dependency of ciphertexts on random coins as labels. In order to make these label-based models useful, it seems natural to try to extend the underlying decision procedures and the implementation of existing tools. In this paper we put forth a more practical alternative based on the following soundness theorem. We prove that for a large class of security properties (that includes rather standard formulations for secrecy and authenticity properties), security of protocols in the simpler model implies security in the label-based model. Combined with the soundness result of (\\textbf{?}) our theorem enables the translation of security results in unlabeled symbolic models to ...
Copper bioavailability was studied in rats using an extrinsic Cu label. Copper absorption from sunflower seeds (46%), peanuts (41%), cooked shrimp (50%), and cooked beef (40%) was as good or better than copper sulfate (46%). Copper from plant foods (sunflower seeds, garbanzo beans, peanuts) was absorbed equally as well as copper from animal foods (beef, shrimp, chicken liver), 39 +/- 7% vs 43 +/- 7%, P greater than 0.05. There was no significant difference in percentage Cu absorption between intrinsically labeled chicken liver and extrinsically labeled chicken liver. In a second experiment, Cu absorption was measured in the presence of glucose, fructose, sucrose, or cornstarch. There were no significant differences in Cu absorption due to different carbohydrates in a single meal.
The iodinated oil lipiodol is commonly used as a carrier for in situ delivery of drugs or radioactivity to hepatic tumors. Recently, we reported a new kit formulation for high-activity labeling of lipiodol with the {beta}-emitting radionuclide Re-188. Since the whole preparation involves different steps and complex manipulations of high-activity samples, we describe here an automated synthesis module that allows the easy preparation of sterile and pyrogen-free samples of Re-188 lipiodol ready to be administered to the patient. Important advantages include the possibility to incorporate high Re-188 activity into the lipiodol hydrophobic phase and a sharp reduction of radiation exposure of the operator assisting the labelling procedure. Application of this modular reaction system could be also extended to the preparation of other Re-188 radiopharmaceuticals and to compound labelled with different {beta}-emitting therapeutic ...
The authors have studied the distribution of H-3 labelled schistosomicidal drug in mice by autoradiography. The H-3-labelled substances were found in liver and kidney and in successfully decreasing amounts in brain, lung, heart, fat, testis, pancreas and spleen. In various cells the silver granules were present mainly in the cytoplasms but a few in the nucleus. After administration of this labelled schistosomicidal drug, the mice were killed and studied in groups successively at 4, 8, 24 hrs. No difference in the distribution of silver granules were observed. This fact indicated that, this drug was rapidly absorbed and highly concentrated with a long duration of reservation in liver. All of these favours the schistosomicidal effect of the drug. As this drug was highly concentrated in the cytoplasm of liver cells, that might provide a pathophysiologic basis for the explanation of jaundice in the clinical practice. Moreover, ...
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BackgroundThe aim of this study is to validate the questionnaire ECOS-16 (Assessment of health related quality of life in osteoporosis) for the evaluation of health related quality...Full Text Available
This report presents results from the soil inorganic analysis of the 44th set of environmental quality assessment samples, of the quality assessment program, that were received on or before June 3, 1996. The samples were analyzed for RCRA metals.
Quality reporting tools, integrated with ambulatory electronic health records, can help clinicians and administrators understand performance, manage populations, and improve quality. Report Central...Full Text Available
The status of the concept of controlling the quality of physicians is reviewed as are studies that have been done on methods to measure and improve quality. The conclusions are dismal given the rhetoric...Full Text Available
The `Procurement Quality Function` is an element of the Body of Knowledge of Quality Engineering, as defined by the American Society for Quality Control (ASQC). This paper describes the Procurement Quality function which has been installed as an integral part of the Quality Engineering group of the Technical and Management Support Services (T&MSS) contractor to the United States Department of Energy (DOE) Yucca Mountain Site Characterization Project. Each of the elements of the T&MSS Procurement Quality Engineering (PQE) system is discussed along with the measurements obtained. With the installation and development of the PQE system we have attained more meaningful evaluation of supplier capability, reduction of procurement document review reject ratios from 31% to less than 2% per quarter, more effective measurement and control of supplier performance, ...
... tests, one often encounters, for instance, separated flows with large ... It is suspected that the flow-quality criteria given in AGARD Report No. ...
BACKGROUND: This prospective and retrospective study carried out over a period of one month (50 patients) looked at the quality of hospital records of urethral catheterisation with reference to the...Full Text Available
Amphibians are considered reliable indicators of environmental quality. In the western United States, a general decline of frog populations parallels an apparent worldwide decline. The factors thought...Full Text Available
As controlled clinical vocabularies assume an increasing role in modern clinical information systems, so the issue of their quality demands greater attention. In order to meet the resulting stringent...Full Text Available
The following aspects will be discussed: The main function of the Division of Inspection Services and its role in the Marketing of agricultural products; the shelf life of agricultural products: short review of present methods with a practical example of losses incurred due to limited keeping quality; irradiation and heat treatment: advantages of inhibited microbiological activities and undesirable chemical changes from a quality control point of view; quality standards: the basic principles of quality control; consequences of effective post-harvest treatment: export of deciduous and citrus fruit; the magnitude of the problem of poor keeping quality and quality requirements; other fruit; quantities and export limitations and vegetables; quantity and quality requirements; local marketing: fruit and vegetables subjected to inspection; quantity ...
...Air Quality Monitoring Networks Products and Equipment Find and compare a variety of air quality monitoring networks products and equipment on the world's largest environmental industry portal. ...
A commercially available synthetic nucleic acid probe (SNAP) conjugated to alkaline phosphatase was compared with standard culture techniques for detecting Campylobacter species. The SNAP was able to...Full Text Available
... NE Mall Room B-607, EPA Headquarters, 401 M ... formally adopted and initiated a joint strategy for ... CLI kick-off Partner and Task Force meeting. ...
Using nitrogen-13 initial measurements have been made of rumen ammonia-nitrogen pool size and turnover, and rate of incorporation of ammonia into microbial protein. It is also feasible to measure the rate of incorporation of absorbed ammonia into urea and the appearance of label in saliva.
This study describes procedures and outcomes in a functional analysis of problem behavior of 2 public school students. For a 13-year-old honors student, bizarre tacts (labeled as psychotic speech by...Full Text Available
The metabolism of 14C-labeled fatty acids and triacylglycerols was followed in intact germinating oil palm seedlings as well as in tissue slices. In the germinating seedling, the shoot contained...Full Text Available
Microbes in nature frequently function as members of complex multitaxon communities, but the structural organization of these communities at the micrometer level is poorly understood because of limitations...Full Text Available
An immunoassay employing 125I-labeled enterotoxin B and polystyrene tubes coated with specific antibody was used for assaying purified and crude enterotoxin. Antibody was adsorbed to untreated...Full Text Available
By pretreating simian virus 40-infected BSC-1 cells with glucosamine, [3H]uridine labeling of both cellular and viral RNA can be halted instantaneously by addition of cold uridine. We have...Full Text Available
Convection-enhanced delivery (CED) has emerged as a promising method of targeted drug-delivery for treating central nervous system (CNS) disorders, but the influence of brain structure on infusate...Full Text Available
The adenovirus fiber knob causes the first step in the interaction of adenovirus with cell membrane receptors. To obtain information on the receptor binding site(s), the interaction of labeled cell...Full Text Available
The authors studied the flow of carbon ({sup 14}C) from CO{sub 2} through sucrose to oligofructans in wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) leaves that had been induced by excision to accumulate fructan. Leaves were either labeled for 30 min and then chased in ambient air for 2 h or labeled continuously for 2 h. Fructans were chromatographed on BioGel P2 column. During continuous labeling, the specific activity was highest in sucrose and decreased for fructans with DP 3 to 5, and each increased linearly with time for 2 h. During the chase period, sucrose specific activity increased for 60 min and then declined while oligofructans gained in specific activity through the 2 h period. After 30 min of labeling, the specific activity of fructose moiety of sucrose was equal to glucose but, in oligofructans, those of the individual fructose units were not. The results may provide insight into the fructosyl ...
Platelet deposition on bovine pericardial-tissue mitral-valve prostheses in 11 dogs was observed noninvasively by use of "1"1"1In-labeled platelets and quantified after sacrifice at one (n . 3), 14 (n . 3), and 30 (n . 5) days postimplantation (300-400 microCi of labeled platelets having been injected 24 hours previously). Thrombosis on the sewing ring and pericardial leaflets at one and 14 days and on the leaflets at 30 days was delineated in scintiphotos. In vitro quantification (% injected dose) indicated that the leaflets, sewing ring, and perivalvular tissue retained 0.904% of labeled platelets at one day postimplantation, 0.198% at 14 days, and 0.040% at 30 days. Platelet half-life was reduced to 38 hours at 21 days postimplantation but returned toward the normal (50 hours) with fibrous ingrowth in the sewing ring. Microembolism in lung and kidney, as measured by tissue/blood radioactivity ratio, also was decreased ...
Production of dissolved macromolecules by ambient autotrophic and heterotrophic microbial populations was measured in a eutrophic Florida reservoir by in situ labeling with various radioactive substrates....Full Text Available
Skin sensitization is the most commonly reported occupational illness, causing much suffering to a wide range of people. Identification and labeling of environmental allergens is urgently required to...Full Text Available
BackgroundZibotentan (ZD4054) is a specific endothelin A (ETA) receptor antagonist being investigated for the treatment of prostate cancer. As zibotentan is eliminated...Full Text Available
The synthesis of (3-{sup 15}N)-labeled adenine has been reported by several groups. Each of these syntheses followed essentially the same route, in which the {sup 15}N is introduced by nitration of 4-bromoimidazole under forcing conditions using ({sup 15}N)-HNO{sub 3}. The authors have devised an alternate route which uses an azo coupling reaction for introduction of the {sup 15}N and proceeds through the intermediacy of (5-{sup 15}N)-labeled 5-aminoimidazole-4-carboxamide (AICA). An unrelated route to the (5-{sup 15}N)-labeled 5-amino-imidazole ribonucleoside (AIRs) was recently reported. AICA is a versatile precursor, which is most commonly used for entry into the guanine or isoguanine families, although it is usually used as the AICA-riboside rather than the heterocycle itself. The authors have found that AICA also can be used for the adenine family by cyclization to hypoxanthine using diethoxymethyl acetate in DMF at ...
To gain insight into the process of mitochondrial transmission in yeast, we directly labeled mitochondrial proteins and mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) and observed their fate after the fusion of two cells....Full Text Available
Choline (Cho)-containing phospholipids are the most abundant phospholipids in cellular membranes and play fundamental structural as well as regulatory roles in cell metabolism and signaling. Although...Full Text Available
The somatic sensory system responds to stimuli of distinct modalities, including touch, pain, itch, and temperature sensitivity. In the past century, great progress has been made in understanding the...Full Text Available
To investigate the fate of intrinsic factor and cobalamin during cobalamin absorption, we incubated enterocytes isolated from guinea pig ileum for periods of up to 30 min with 57Co-labeled...Full Text Available
BackgroundWe have recently reported successful treatment of patients with chronic pain syndromes using human pooled intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG) in a prospective, open-label...Full Text Available
The use of dideoxynucleotide triphosphates labeled with different fluorescent dyes (dye terminators) is the most versatile method for automated DNA sequencing. However, variation in peak heights reduces...Full Text Available
The sucrose derivative 6'-deoxy-6'-(2-hydroxy-4-azido)benzamidosucrose (6'-HABS) was prepared from sucrose (via 6'-deoxy-6'-aminosucrose) and 4-amino-salicylic acid. 6'-HABS is a competitive inhibitor of sucrose influx into protoplasts from developing soybean cotyledons and of sucrose binding to membranes from the bacteria P. saccharophila. The Ki for inhibition in the soybean protoplasts was 75..mu..M. 6'-Deoxy-6'-(2-hydroxy-3-/sup 125/Iodo-4-azido)benzamidosucrose was prepared by lactoperoxidase iodination of 6'-HABS. Upon photolysis in the presence of membranes from P saccharophila, label from the photoprobe is incorporated into a sucrose inducible polypeptide of mass 84 KD in SDS-PAGE. The polypeptide is protected from labeling by the inclusion of sucrose in the photolysis mixture. Photolysis conditions which lead to specific labeling of ...
Fibroblast cell population kinetics in the developing molar periodontal ligament was investigated in 10, 12, 16 and 20 days old mice by autoradiography after the administration of [3H]thymidine. Labelled...Full Text Available
13C metabolic flux analysis (MFA) is the most comprehensive means of characterizing cellular metabolic states. Uniquely labeled isotopic tracers enable more focused analyses to probe...Full Text Available
The Calorie (kcal) of present U.S. food labels is similar to the original French definition of 1825. The original published source (now available on the internet) defined the Calorie as the quantity...Full Text Available
Colonies of toxin-producing Pasteurella multocida were detected with peroxidase-labeled monoclonal antibodies by a membrane assay. Examination of the specificity of the assay with 29 P. multocida cultures...Full Text Available
Dairy products doubly labeled with 45Ca and 47Ca were used to evaluate an extrinsic labeling procedure for calcium bioavailability determination. Nonfat milk, yogurt, and fresh cheese curd were prepared from caprine milk that was intrinsically labeled with 45Ca. The products were then labeled extrinsically with 47Ca and administered to rats by gavage. The 47Ca to 45Ca ratio in bone and teeth averaged about 1.00 with either milk, yogurt, or CaCl2, but the ratio was about 1.04 when dosed with cheese curd. Ca absorption, determined by whole-body counting of 47Ca, was lower (P less than 0.05) in cheese curd (59%) than in either milk (69%), yogurt (72%), or CaCl2 (72%). Expressed as percent of dose, the absorption of 47Ca was highly correlated with bone 47Ca (r = 0.973) and with bone 45Ca (r = 0.946). Correlation between tibia 47Ca and tibia 45Ca was r = 0.923. For the dairy products tested, our results ...
The hypothesis that the internal viscosity of erythrocytes is governed by the intracellular hemoglobin (Hb) concentration is examined. Here viscosity is determined by labeling of the cytoplasmic reduced...Full Text Available
A solid-phase radioimmunoassay employing 125I-labeled enterotoxins and polystyrene tubes coated with specific antibody has been developed for assaying the relative concentrations of antibodies...Full Text Available
The cDNA encoding the B chain of the plant toxin ricin has been cloned and expressed in monkey kidney COS-M6 cells. The recombinant B chain was detected by labeling the transfected cells with [35S]methionine...Full Text Available
This paper reviews the development of cerebral scintigraphy from its early days of planar imaging with simple technetium-99m labelled compounds to the recent revival of the technique in the form of...Full Text Available
Hairpin oligonucleotides were synthesized with stems ending in a double-stranded structure, which can be ligated to double-strand breaks in DNA, and with loops that contain nucleotides modified by the...Full Text Available
A multispecialty panel of physicians evaluated a case series of 53 composite-materials workers in a large aircraft manufacturing facility who filed workers' compensation claims for illness labeled by...Full Text Available
Amino acids labelled with dimethylaminoazobenzenesulphonyl chloride can be separated by reversed-phase high-pressure liquid chromatography and detected in the visible region (436 nm). All 19 naturally...Full Text Available
The Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) inspects domestic and imported meat and poultry food products to assure the public that they are safe, wholesome, not economically adulterated and properly labeled. The Service also monitors the activities of meat and poultry plants and related activities in allied industries, and establishes standards and approves labels for meat and poultry products. As part of its responsibility, shortly after the Chernobyl accident occurred, FSIS developed a plan to assess this accident's impact on domestically produced and imported meat and poultry
Six kinds of diamino-dithiol compounds are labelled with "9"9Tc"m by ligands exchange reaction. Their ligands exchange percentage is over 95%. The biodistribution of one of these compounds in mice shows 0.88% brain uptake after two minutes and 0.28% after 15 minutes respectively. Although the brain uptake is lower for this compound, it has longer retention in brain. So, the experiment results are valuable to the design of new brain imaging agent in the future.
Syntheses of all five of the singly labeled (/sup 15/N)adenines are now provided. The presence or absence of two-bond /sup 15/N-/sup 1/H spin couplings in their /sup 1/H NMR spectra confirm the location of the isotope in each case. The fragmentation patterns in their mass spectra are indicative of the sequential losses of HCN units and of CH/sub 2/N/sub 2/ from adenine upon electron impact.
We describe a compact ultrafiltration system for the removal of pyrogens and bacteria from water labeled with the stable isotopes of deuterium and oxygen-18. The ultrafiltration system is constructed from readily available commercial components and can achieve complete removal of pyrogens and bacteria from 1L contaminated water within 30 min. By use of our procedure, loss of the isotopically labeled water by retention in the filtration system was minimal. The purified water is suitable for both oral and intravenous administration to healthy human subjects participating in nutrition studies.
An isotopic exchange method was used to label lipiodol with [sup 131]I. The labelling efficiency was > 92.5%, and the radiochemical purity of [[sup 131]I]lipiodol was above 98% as determined by ITLC. The influencing factors e.g. the heating temperature, reaction, pH and storage conditions were studied and the optimum conditions were determined. In a pilot study injecting [[sup 131]I]lipiodol for the treatment of hepatoma, about 70% of hepatoma patients had a response to the treatment with a reduction of [alpha]-fetoprotein and decrease of hepatoma sizes. The overall median survival was 9 months (range 2-17 months). (author).
An azido-"1"2"5iodo-ansamycin (1) in the geldanamycin family was prepared in two steps in one reaction vessel from 17-amino-22-(4'-aminophenacyl)-17-demethoxygeldanamycin (3). The title compound was suitable for photoaffinity labeling proteins that interacted with ansamycins. An alternative synthesis is reported for preparation of unlabeled title compound in order to afford practical amounts of (1) for conventional biochemical studies. (Author).
An azido-[sup 125]iodo-ansamycin (1) in the geldanamycin family was prepared in two steps in one reaction vessel from 17-amino-22-(4'-aminophenacyl)-17-demethoxygeldanamycin (3). The title compound was suitable for photoaffinity labeling proteins that interacted with ansamycins. An alternative synthesis is reported for preparation of unlabeled title compound in order to afford practical amounts of (1) for conventional biochemical studies. (Author).
Our major goal of our work has been to develop and use NMR techniques to study how methanogenic archaebacteria deal with osmotic stress with the hope of providing insights into increasing the salt tolerance of other cells. The project has three main sections: (i) in vivo studies of methanogens; (ii) use of {sup l3}C- and {sup l5}N- labeled potential precursors and in vitro analyses of specific label uptake for elucidation of osmolyte dynamics and biosynthetic pathways of osmolytes in these organisms, and isolation of key biosynthetic enzymes; and (iii) collaborative studies on identification of organic solutes in other methanogens.
Our major goal of our work has been to develop and use NMR techniques to study how methanogenic archaebacteria deal with osmotic stress with the hope of providing insights into increasing the salt tolerance of other cells. The project has three main sections: (i) in vivo studies of methanogens; (ii) use of [sup l3]C- and [sup l5]N- labeled potential precursors and in vitro analyses of specific label uptake for elucidation of osmolyte dynamics and biosynthetic pathways of osmolytes in these organisms, and isolation of key biosynthetic enzymes; and (iii) collaborative studies on identification of organic solutes in other methanogens.
Possibilities of applying the Pb/sup 203/ isotonic solution without a carrier as a label of blood erythrocytes, are found. There is a number of advantages in the Pb/sup 203/ isotonic solution without a carrier, such as a high label efficiency (above 95%), a short half-life (52 hours), and a low radiation dose. These factors prove to be favourable as compared with Cr/sup 51/ widely used for these purposes. Besides, of all preparations used up to now to treat erythrocytes and to scan the spleen, it is only in the case of Pb/sup 203/ isotonic solution without a carrier that no weight amounts of chemical substances do not enter the organism.
Studies of various established human bladder and renal carcinoma cell lines cultured in vitro demonstrated the presence of specific, saturable, high affinity binding sites for /sup 125/I-labeled human interferon Beta ser IFN-beta ser). This recombinant produced interferon labeled with approximately one atom of /sup 125/I/molecule of IFN expressed minimal or no loss of antiviral activity. A single class of binding sites (1000-2000/cell) with an affinity constant of 10(10)-10(11) L/M was measured at 4 degrees C for cells exhibiting widely different sensitivity to the antiproliferative effect of IFN-beta ser. Major fluctuations in the binding of /sup 125/I-labeled IFN-beta ser to cellular receptors were observed during in vitro proliferation of four of five cell lines examined. A significant decrease (P less than 0.001) in specific binding was observed 48 h after cultures were established. Cell cycle analysis suggested that ...
In the use of doxorubicin and radiation for treatment of human malignant tumors in vivo, the relationship between treatment-induced apoptosis and Ki-67 labeling index was investigated. Four human tumor xenografts (ependymoblastoma, NNE; primitive neuroectodermal tumor, YKP; small cell lung carcinoma, GLS; glioblastoma, KYG) were transplanted under the skin of thigh of the nude mice (BALB/cA JcL-nu). The mice were given a single radiation dose of 1 Gy, or doxorubicin alone intraperitoneally at a dose of 8 mg/kg. After treatment, sections of tumor specimens were prepared from paraffin-embedded tissues. Hematoxylin and eosin staining, TUNEL staining, and immunohistochemical analysis of Ki-67 were performed. In NNE, apoptotic cells appeared most frequently after treatment compared with all other tumors, and the incidence of apoptosis in the radiation-treated group was much higher than in the doxorubicintreated group. As the incidence of apoptosis in NNE increased, the ...
The patients studied were referred for routine abscess localization with indium-111 labelled autologous leukocytes. One series (n=15) was studied at 1 day after reinjection of labelled cells and a second series (n=9) was studied between 4 hours and 4 days after reinjection of labelled cells. The leukocytes were isolated by a gravity sedimentation method and labelled with In-111 oxinate according to Roevekamp and co-workers. The labelled cell suspension administered to the patient contained between 11 and 15 MegaBq (300-400 microCi). The indium-111 concentration in the liver and spleen was quantitated using a scintillation camera and an on-line computer system. Phantom studies were carried out to obtain conversion factors from geometric mean counts to MegaBq of activity for both liver and spleen. Once determined, the amount of activity in liver and spleen was corrected for physical ...
The purpose of this work was to develop a high specific activity radioiodinated cell membrane probe for tracking lymphocytes in-vivo to replace the nucleus localizing, cytotoxic lipophilic chelates (In-111 oxine and Tc-99m HMPAO) currently used. Alkylation of parent dye 4-[2-[-N,N-didecylamino]phenyl]ethenyl pyridine with E-1-tributylstannyl-3-tosylpropene (prepared form E-1-tributylstannyl-1-propene-3-ol), gave a tributyltin precursor 1. Radiolabeled 3-[4-[2-[4-(N,N-didecylamino)phenyl]ethenyl]pyridino] E-[I-125]-1-iodopropene (2), was prepared from 1 using peracetic acid in acetonitrile/water. Labeling yields and specific activities achieved were 26% (#approx#2170 Ci/mmol), 40% (1220 Ci/mmol), and 55% (200 Ci/mmol) for nca, 0.4, and 2 nanomole carrier iodide runs respectively. Canine mixed leukocytes (0.5-1.0 x 10"8 cells) were labeled with 2 (67% and 42% yields for 200 Ci/mol and 1220 Ci/mmol preparations) and showed blood clearance similar ...
Insulin receptors on the surface of isolated rat adipocytes were photoaffinity labeled at 12 degrees C with the iodinated photoreactive insulin analogue, 125I-B2 (2-nitro-4-azidophenylacetyl)-des-PheB1-insulin, and the pathways in the intracellular processing of the labeled receptors were studied at 37 degrees C. During 37 degrees C incubations, the labeled 440-kDa insulin receptors were continuously internalized (as assessed by trypsin inaccessibility) and degraded such that up to 50% of the initially labeled receptors were lost by 120 min. Metabolic poisons (0.125-0.75 mM 2,4-dinitrophenol (DNP) and 1-10 mM NaF), which led to dose-dependent depletion of adipocyte ATP pools, inhibited receptor loss, and caused up to 3-fold increase in intracellular receptor accumulation. This effect was due to inhibition of intracellular receptor degradation, and there was no apparent effect of the metabolic poisons on ...
The use of natural products in all over the world has been increased in Brazil as well as in other countries. Maytenus ilicifolia is commonly used in popular medicine. The labeling of red blood cells (RBC) with technetium-99m ("9"9"m Tc) have been for many studies in nuclear medicine. This labeling procedure depends on a reducing agent and stannous chloride is normally used. Here, we investigate if the extract of Maytenus ilicifolia is capable to alter the labeling of RBC and blood proteins with "9"9"m Tc. Blood samples were incubated with Maytenus ilicifolia. Stannous chloride solution and Tc-99m were. Blood was centrifuged and plasma (P) and blood cells (C) were isolated. Samples of P or C were precipitated with trichloroacetic acid, centrifuged and IF and IF were separated. The percentage of radioactivity (% ATI) in C, IF-P and IF-C was calculated. The %ATI in decreased in C from 93.6#+-#2.3 to 29.0#+-#2.7, on FI-P from ...
Bone formation and resorption have been measured in patients with idiopathic osteoporosis by histomorphometry of 7.5-mm trephine biopsies and in the whole body by 85Sr radiotracer methodology and calcium balances. The studies were synchronized and most were preceded by double in vivo tetracycline labeling. Correlations between histological and kinetic bone formation indices were better when better when based on the extent of double tetracycline labels than on measurements of osteoid by visible light microscopy. Correction of the kinetic data for long-term exchange, using 5 months' serial whole body counting of retained 85Sr, improved the fit of the kinetic to the histological data. A statistical analysis of the measurement uncertainties showed that the residual scatter in the best correlations (between exchange-corrected bone formation rates and double-labeled osteoid surface indices) could be attributed to ...
The Jewish philosopher and educator Martin Buber (1878-1965) is considered one of the twentieth century's greatest contributors to the philosophy of religion and is also recognized as the pre-eminent scholar of Hasidism. He has also attracted considerable attention as a philosopher of education. However, most commentaries on this aspect of his work have focussed on the implications of his philosophy for formal education and for the education of the child. Given that much of Buber's philosophy is based on dialogue, on community and on mutuality, it is puzzling that relatively little has been written on the implications of Buber's thought for the theory and practice of non-formal adult education. The article provides a discussion of the philosophy underpinning this aspect of Martin Buber's l...
Aim To determine the fate and clinical implication of large (?2cm), non-hypervascular nodules depicted on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in the cirrhotic liver. Materials and methods In 21 patients with cirrhosis (14 hepatitis B, two ethanol abuse, four cryptogenic, one Wilson's disease), 25 large (?2cm in the longest dimension) non-hypervascular nodules were identified on dynamic MRI. The implications for diagnosis of the initial size, contour, and signal characteristics on MRI in addition to patients' age and cause of cirrhosis were assessed in our analysis. Results Twelve (75%) out of 16 lesions were malignant or potentially-malignant from 14 hepatitis B patients, while seven (78%) of the nine lesions from other patients were benign (p=0.016). The mean age of the patients who ha...
The last decade has produced an explosion in neuroscience research examining young children's early processing of language that has implications for education. Noninvasive, safe functional brain measurements have now been proven feasible for use with children starting at birth. In the arena of language, the neural signatures of learning can be documented at a remarkably early point in development, and these early measures predict performance in children's language and pre-reading abilities in the second, third, and fifth year of life, a finding with theoretical and educational import. There is evidence that children's early mastery of language requires learning in a social context, and this finding also has important implications for education. Evidence relating socioeconomic status (SES) ...
The quality assurance requirements in various countries and according to various international codes and standards are presented, compared and critically discussed. Cases of developing countries are also discussed, and the use of IAEA code of practice and other codes for quality assurance in these countries is reviewed. Recommendations are made regarding the quality assurance system to be applied for Egypt's nuclear power plants.
The general requirements applicable to the quality assurance of the Finnish nuclear power plants are presented in the Council of State Decision (395/91) and in the guide YVL 1.4. This guide specifies the quality assurance requirements to be applied during the operation of the nuclear power plants as well as of the other nuclear facilities. Quality assurance applies to all the activities and organizations with a bearing on the safe operation of the nuclear power plants. (5 refs.).
The present code requirements on quality assurance as well as the present praxice of quality assurance procedures in the operation of nuclear power plants are presented. On the example of recurring inspections the organizational and technical complications are shown with respect to the code and licensing requirements. Taking the present experiences into account suggestions are given how to transform the general requirements of KTA 1401 to quality assurance requirements during plant operation. (orig.).
Fuzzy theory has been regarded as a very important technique for quality management (QM) of distributed manufacturing system and attracts the attentions of academic and industry; however, there is a lack of a comprehensive literature review and a classification scheme for it. This paper is the first academic literature review of the fuzzy theory applied in quality management of distributed manufacturing system. It involves five most popular databases in this research area and covers more than 20 journals, proposes a classification scheme using clustering analysis method. Sixty-one journal articles were finally selected, reviewed and classified. Each selected article was classified firstly based on four QM dimensions (quality planning, quality control, quality assurance and quality improvem...
I. S. Kirbis, P. Maxwell, M. S. Flear, K. Miller and M. Ibrahim External quality control for immunocytochemistry on cytology samples: a review of UK NEQAS ICC (cytology module) results Objective:- To date, external quality control for immunocytochemistry on cytology samples is provided only by the United Kingdom national external quality assessment service for immunocytochemistry and in situ hybridisation (UK NEQAS ICC & ISH). For the purpose of this study a retrospective analysis of a comprehensive collection of quality-related data regarding immunocytochemistry on cytology samples collected through this service was analysed. Methods:- The quality of immunocytochemical reactions, using on-line collected data, was analysed for the last 23 UK NEQAS ICC cytology module external quality asses...
Purpose - Holding the number of outside directorships constant, this paper aims to test whether executive directors from superior performing firms are subsequently rewarded with better quality outside directorships. Design/methodology/approach - The quality of new outside directorship appointments is modelled using a two-step Heckman selection procedure to control for the probability of acquiring a new outside board seat. Outside directorship quality is estimated using an index formed from series of observable firm-specific characteristics proxying for the following three latent aspects of quality: prestige, reputational risk and monetary rewards. The index aggregates across these three dimensions to produce an overall quality score, with higher scores signifying higher quality directorshi...
Purpose: To compare the diagnostic quality and adverse events of the water-soluble, non-ionic, iso-osmolar, dimeric contrast media iodixanol and iotrolan in hysterosalpingography (HSG). Material and Methods: One hundred and twenty patients participated in a double-blind randomized parallel-group phase-III study. Questionnaires and patient interviews were used. Diagnostic quality was assessed using a visual analogue scale and the quality in specific regions was rated using a categorical scale. Results: Overall diagnostic quality was equal for the two groups. There was no statistically significant difference between the two groups in diagnostic quality in the specific regions of interest. No differences between the contrast media were found with regard to adverse events. Conclusion: Both contrast media provided images of high diagnostic quality in HSG. (orig.)
This paper, firstly, introduces the background in developing a high quality water supply system, in which the drinking water system is isolated inside a building. Results of questionnaire on the high quality service water are illustrated. The results of questionnaire have revealed that the high quality service water is extremely interested. Then, are described the target quality of high quality water, the constitution of high quality water supply system, the treatment process, the measures to secure safety and sanitary, and the method of maintenance. The high quality water is produced through the activated charcoal absorption treatment, membrane treatment, ozonation, cooling, mineral addition, and disinfection of city water. Furthermore, application examples of this system adopted to a department store and a bachelor apartment house are ...
Huntsville, Alabama Utilities has successfully provided services for over 53 years. However, the quality of service demands from customers are changing every day! Part of this demand is due to updated digital appliances, home and business computers, and automated systems. A quality program was initiated in 1992 as a result of an internal assessment. The Malcolm Baldrige approach was selected which includes seven areas: (1) Leadership; (2) Information and Analysis; (3) Strategic Planning; (4) Human Resource Utilization; (5) Quality Assurance of Products and Services: (6) Quality Results: (7) Customer Satisfaction. Training for and implementation of the Quality program is discussed in detail.
This paper develops a model of nonlinear pricing with competition. The novel element is that each consumer's willingness to pay for quality is private information and is allowed to differ across brands. The consumer's preferences are represented by a multidimensional type containing the marginal value of quality for different products. Buyers with high willingness to pay for quality also display strong preferences for particular brands, and require higher discounts in order to switch away from their favorite product. Therefore, competition is fiercer for buyers with lower tastes for quality, and hence more elastic demands. This is in sharp contrast to earlier models in which competition is fiercer for higher-taste, more valuable buyers. In equilibrium, firms either compete intensively for ...
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The phosphatidylinositol pathway is implicated in the regulation of numerous cellular functions and responses to extracellular signals. An important branching point in the pathway is the phosphorylation...Full Text Available
The side effects of cancer therapy on normal tissues limit the success of therapy. Generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) has been implicated for numerous chemotherapeutic agents including doxorubicin...Full Text Available
Transient receptor potential (TRP) ion channels have been implicated in detecting chemical, thermal and mechanical stimuli in organisms ranging from mammals to Caenorhabditis elegans....Full Text Available
To date few reports have provided direct comparison of psychosocial vulnerability and resources among youth with victimization and perpetration histories. Within a racially diverse, high-risk...Full Text Available
Objective To establish current practice in the use of Read codes for diabetes.Design Cross sectional study.Setting 17 practices in the Battersea...Full Text Available
BackgroundProlylcarboxypeptidase (Prcp) gene, along with altered PRCP and kallikrein levels, have been implicated in inflammation pathogenesis. PRCP regulates angiotensin...Full Text Available
In a "nutrition transition", the consumption of foods high in fats and sweeteners is increasing throughout the developing world. The transition, implicated in the rapid rise of obesity and diet-related...Full Text Available
I report on some recent work done in collaboration with E. de Rafael on the connection between ultraviolet renormalons in QCD and Nambu-Jona-Lasinio-like Lagrangians as its effective description at low energies. (orig.)
In addition to the well documented role of cytokines in mediating tissue-level interactions, it is now clear that matrix macromolecules fulfil a complementary regulatory function. Data highlighted in...Full Text Available
Recent research has implicated the nucleus accumbens (NAc) in consolidating recently acquired goal-directed appetitive memories, including spatial learning and other instrumental processes. However,...Full Text Available
Memory consolidation requires transcription and translation of new protein. Arc, an effector immediate early gene, and zif268, a regulatory transcription factor, have been implicated in synaptic plasticity...Full Text Available
BackgroundInterim analysis of accumulating trial data is important to protect participant safety during randomized controlled trials (RCTs). Data Monitoring Committees (DMCs) often...Full Text Available
PurposeHeavy metals and other forms of oxidative stress have been implicated as key factors in the formation of age-related cataract in humans. Metallothioneins are...Full Text Available
Krabbe disease (KD) is an inherited neurological disorder caused by the deficiency of galactocerebrosidase activity resulting in accumulation of psychosine, which leads to energy depletion,...Full Text Available
Mouse genetic resources include inbred strains, recombinant inbred lines, chromosome substitution strains, heterogeneous stocks, and the Collaborative Cross (CC). These resources were generated through...Full Text Available
Peri-prosthetic infections are notoriously difficult to treat as the biomaterial implant is ideal for bacterial adhesion and biofilm formation, resulting in decreased antibiotic sensitivity....Full Text Available
The target of rapamycin (TOR) pathway regulates cell growth and aging in various organisms. In Saccharomyces cerevisiae, silent information regulator 2 (Sir2) modulates cellular senescence. Moreover,...Full Text Available
DNA methylation of cytosine residues is a widespread phenomenon and has been implicated in a number of biological processes in both prokaryotes and eukaryotes. This methylation occurs at the 5-position...Full Text Available
What do we mean when we say that a mental condition is a medical disorder rather than a normal form of human suffering or a problem in living? The status of psychiatry as a medical discipline depends...Full Text Available
Paraquat poisoning in mammals results in a characteristic lung lesion manifested principally as progressive pulmonary fibrosis. Paraquat is actively concentrated into the lung but the site of uptake remains undefined. A method is described for the autoradiographic localization of paraquat in rats. Preliminary evidence for the site of uptake implicates the bronchiol. (author).
Anthocyanins are flavonoid pigments that accumulate in the large central vacuole of most plants. Inside the vacuole, anthocyanins can be found uniformly distributed or as part of sub-vacuolar pigment...Full Text Available
The fungal pathogen Candida albicans is one of the leading causative agents of death in immunocompromised individuals. It harbors an arsenal of cell wall anchored factors that are implicated...Full Text Available
Cilia are important cellular structures that have been implicated in a variety of signaling cascades. In this review, we discuss the current evidence for and against a link between cilia and both the...Full Text Available
The proliferation of stem cell research, conflated with its ethical and moral implications, has led governments to attempt regulation of both the science and funding of stem cells. Due to a diversity...Full Text Available
Comparative studies of flocculent and grand-design spirals suggest that density waves are not the predominant trigger of star formation in most galaxies. Implications for chemical evolution are profound. It may be possible to ignore the details of the spiral-wave phenomenon in research aimed at unifying the chemical properties of spiral disks. 16 references.
1. Miniature end-plate potentials (m.e.p.p.s) were intra- and extracellularly recorded from neuromuscular junctions in rat phrenic nerve—diaphragm preparations in vitro....Full Text Available
The length polymorphism of the serotonin (5-HT) transporter gene promoter region has been implicated in altered 5-HT function and, in turn, neuropsychiatric illnesses, such as anxiety and depression....Full Text Available
BackgroundUnderstanding the interactions between ion channels and blockers remains an important goal that has implications for delineating the basic mechanisms of ion channel function...Full Text Available
Destress blasting is commonly used as a stress control technique at the Galena Mine, Wallace, Idaho, where the U.S. Bureau of Mines maintains a cooperative research program with the mine operators (ASARCO). A digital seismic array and an array of borehole...
BackgroundMagnetic Resonance Imaging scanners have become ubiquitous in hospitals and high-field systems (greater than 3 Tesla) are becoming increasingly common. In light of recent...Full Text Available
A vast amount of circumstantial evidence implicates oxygen-derived free radicals (especially, superoxide and hydroxyl radical) and high-energy oxidants [such as peroxynitrite (OONO−)]...Full Text Available
The etiology of major depression remains unknown, but dysfunction of serotonergic signaling has long been implicated in the pathophysiology of this disorder. p11 is an S100 family member recently...Full Text Available
BackgroundSynonymous sites are freer to vary because of redundancy in genetic code. Messenger RNA secondary structure restricts this freedom, as revealed by previous findings in...Full Text Available
That regulatory T cells (Tregs) have a crucial role in controlling allergic diseases such as asthma is now undisputed. The cytokines most commonly implicated in Treg-mediated suppression of...Full Text Available
The prevalence of obesity among children, adolescents and adults has been dramatically increasing worldwide during the last several decades. The obesity epidemic has been recognized as one of...Full Text Available
IntroductionRecent Food and Drug Administration legislation enables the mandating of product performance standards for cigarette smoke and the evaluation of manufacturers’...Full Text Available
RasGRF1 is a Ras-guanine nucleotide exchange factor implicated in a variety of physiological processes including learning and memory and glucose homeostasis. To determine the role of RASGRF1 in aging,...Full Text Available
A pore-forming peptide is implicated in the potent cytolytic activity of pathogenic Entamoeba histolytica. Using NH2-terminal sequence information of this peptide, the corresponding cDNA was isolated....Full Text Available
Preterm and low birthweight (PTLBW) continues to be a major cause of mortality and morbidity across the world. In recent years, maternal periodontal disease has been implicated as a risk factor for...Full Text Available
Human longevity is in part genetically determined, and the insulin/IGF-1 signal transduction (IIS) pathway has consistently been implicated. In humans, type 2 diabetes is a frequent disease that results...Full Text Available
To resolve the phylogeny of the autochthonous mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) haplogroups of India and determine the relationship between the Indian and western Eurasian mtDNA pools more precisely, a diverse...Full Text Available
OBJECTIVENicotinamide adenine dinucleotides (NAD+ and NADH) play a crucial role in cellular energy metabolism, and a dysregulated NAD+-to-NADH ratio is implicated...Full Text Available
... be rare or absent as leaves in the forest litter. The differences between the amount of leaf and ... the relative proportions of leaf species in a forest litter when compared with standing biomass has sig...
SummaryPAS domains sense oxygen, redox potential and light, and are implicated in behavior, circadian rhythmicity, development and metabolic regulation. Although PAS domains are...Full Text Available
The nucleocapsid protein (NC) of retroviruses plays a major role in genomic RNA packaging, and some evidence has implicated the matrix protein (MA) of certain retroviruses in viral RNA binding. To further...Full Text Available
Neutral endopeptidase 24.11 (NEP, CD10) is a cell-surface enzyme expressed by prostatic epithelial cells that cleaves and inactivates neuropeptides implicated in the growth of androgen-independent prostate...Full Text Available
Myelin-associated glycoprotein (MAG) has been implicated in inhibition of nerve regeneration in the CNS. This results from interactions between MAG and the Nogo receptor and gangliosides on...Full Text Available
BackgroundThe precise mechanisms involved in the initiation and progression of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) are not known. Early stages of RA often have non-specific symptoms, delaying...Full Text Available
Out of nearly 900 women in a research study of human immunodeficiency virus infection in pregnancy, 8 were subsequently found not to be infected. Misdiagnoses could have resulted from (a) laboratory...Full Text Available
The discussion of energy usage falls naturally into three parts. The first is a review of what the problem is, the second is a description of steps that can be taken to conserve energy at existing facilities, and the third is a review of the implications of energy consumption on future facilities.
Antibodies to myelin oligodendrocyte glycoprotein (MOG) have been implicated in Multiple Sclerosis demyelination through activation of complement and/or macrophage-effector processes. We presented...Full Text Available
There has been great interest in understanding the methods by which collagen-based load-bearing tissue is constructed, grown and maintained in vertebrate animals. To date, the responsibility for this...Full Text Available
Electricity markets in the United States are undergoing unprecedented structural changes as a result of the confluence of regulatory, competitive, and technological forces. This paper introduces these structural changes and forces and discuss the implications, markets and commercialization scenarios for emerging fuel cells in evolving US electricity markets.
Over the last two centuries, there has been a significant increase in average lifespan expectancy in the developed world. One unambiguous clinical implication of getting older is the risk of experiencing...Full Text Available
... on a transgressive surface; examples from the Silurian Whirlpool Sandstone of southern Ontario, Canada. Journal of Sedimentary ... and C. J. Salas. 1991. The Lower Silurian Whirlpool Sandstone. in Cheel, ...
To determine the mechanism of the cardiac dilatation and reduced contractility of obese Zucker Diabetic Fatty rats, myocardial triacylglycerol (TG) was assayed chemically and morphologically. TG was...Full Text Available
Decitabine, an epigenetic modifier that reactivates genes otherwise suppressed by DNA promoter methylation, is effective for some, but not all cancer patients, especially those with solid tumors. It...Full Text Available
The receptors for IGF-I (IGF-IR) and insulin (IR) have been implicated in physiological cardiac growth, but it is unknown whether IGF-IR or IR signaling are critically required. We generated mice with...Full Text Available
Stargardt disease (STGD) is the major form of inherited juvenile macular degeneration. Pyridinium bis-retinoid A2E is a major component of lipofuscin which accumulates in retinal pigment epithelium...Full Text Available
BackgroundApproximately 80% of all new HIV-1 infections are acquired through sexual contact. Currently, there is no clinically approved microbicide, indicating a clear and...Full Text Available
Oxidative stress has been implicated in the etiology of age-related muscle loss (sarcopenia). However, the underlying mechanisms by which oxidative stress contributes to sarcopenia have not been thoroughly...Full Text Available
Infections have been implicated in the pathogenesis of a number of autoimmune diseases, and Yersinia enterocolitica (YE) might play a role in the development of autoimmune thyroid disease...Full Text Available
Electronic personal health records (ePHRs) can potentially maximize access and coordination of health information and improve patient/clinician collaboration, patient self-management, and health outcomes....Full Text Available
Sauropod dinosaurs, the dominant herbivores throughout the Jurassic, challenge general rules of large vertebrate herbivory. With body weights surpassing those of any other megaherbivore, they relied...Full Text Available
Records of past climates contained in ice cores, ocean sediments, and other archives show that large, abrupt, widespread climate changes have occurred repeatedly in the past. These changes were especially...Full Text Available
IntroductionPrevious observations suggest that active systemic juvenile idiopathic arthritis (sJIA) is associated with a prominent erythropoiesis gene-expression signature. The aim...Full Text Available
Illthrift was observed in 20/60 lambs aged 40–45 days in a dairy sheep flock in Greece. Cryptosporidiosis had been diagnosed and successfully treated with halofuginone lactate a month earlier....Full Text Available
The hyaluronic acid capsule of Streptococcus uberis has been implicated in conferring resistance to phagocytosis by bovine neutrophils. Construction of a bank of random insertion mutants...Full Text Available
Objectives. Thousands of Louisiana residents were asked to boil water because of widespread disruptions in electricity and natural gas services after Hurricane Rita. We sought to assess...Full Text Available
The content of guanine+cytosine varies markedly along the chromosomes of homeotherms and great effort has been devoted to studying this heterogeneity and its biological implications. Already...Full Text Available
BackgroundHuman Papillomavirus (HPV) E2 plays several important roles in the viral cycle, including the transcriptional regulation of the oncogenes E6 and E7, the regulation of the...Full Text Available
Neonatal administration of the synthetic glucocorticoid, dexamethasone (DEX) retards brain growth, alters adult behaviors and induces cell death in the rat brain, thereby implicating glucocorticoids...Full Text Available
The continued evolution of bacterial pathogens has major implications for both human and animal disease, but the exchange of genetic material between host-restricted pathogens is rarely considered....Full Text Available
SummaryBlastomycosis is a serious and potentially fatal infection by the thermally dimorphic fungus Blastomyces dermatitidis. PCR assays targeting the BAD-1 virulence...Full Text Available
BackgroundEpidemiological studies showed that physical exercise, specifically moderate lifelong training, is protective against cardiovascular morbidity and mortality. Most experimental...Full Text Available
Free radical formation has been implicated in the toxicity of a wide range of xenobiotics. In recent years, particular interest has been paid to compounds which can undergo a one electron reduction...Full Text Available
BackgroundLeukotrienes (LTs) belong to the large family of lipid mediators implicated in various inflammatory conditions such as asthma and rheumatoid arthritis. Four distinct types...Full Text Available
Bisretinoid lipofuscin compounds that accumulate in retinal pigment epithelial (RPE) cells are implicated in the pathogenesis of some forms of macular degeneration. In the development of approaches...Full Text Available
BackgroundObesity has reached epidemic proportions in the United States. It is implicated in the development of a variety of chronic disease states and is associated with increased...Full Text Available
Neurons containing the neuropeptide hypocretin (orexin) are localized only in the lateral hypothalamus from where they innervate multiple regions implicated in arousal, including the basal forebrain....Full Text Available
Purpose.To determine the effects of vasodilators on intraocular pressure (IOP) and the protein content of sheep aqueous humor (AH), because the vasodilators may increase fluid leakage...Full Text Available
Porphyromonas gingivalis has been implicated as a causative pathogen in periodontitis. Immunotherapeutic approaches have recently been suggested to aid in the clearance of P....Full Text Available
Molecular life science is one of the fastest-growing fields of scientific and technical innovation, and biotechnology has profound effects on many aspects of daily life—often with deep, ethical...Full Text Available
The sirtuin Sirt6 is a NAD-dependent histone deacetylase that is implicated in gene regulation and lifespan control. Sirt6 can interact with the stress-responsive transcription factor NF-κB...Full Text Available
Several Bartonella species have now been implicated as human pathogens. The recovery of these fastidious organisms in the clinical microbiology laboratory remains difficult, and current...Full Text Available
Merozoite surface proteins have been implicated in the initial attachment to the host red blood cell membrane that begins the process of invasion, an important step in the life cycle of the malaria...Full Text Available
The worldwide decline in honeybee colonies during the past 50 years has often been linked to the spread of the parasitic mite Varroa destructor and its interaction with certain honeybee...Full Text Available
Circadian clock is implicated in the regulation of aging. The transcription factor CLOCK, a core component of the circadian system, operates in complex with another circadian clock protein BMAL1. Recently...Full Text Available
Details of ion transporting abnormalities in cystic fibrosis airway epithelium are now known. The central hypothesis, that excessive drying of the airway surfaces is a primary event that leads to all...Full Text Available
Magnetotactic bacteria contain chains of magnetically interacting crystals (magnetosome crystals), which they use for navigation (magnetotaxis). To improve magnetotaxis efficiency, the magnetosome crystals...Full Text Available
Since polyglutamine (polyQ) aggregate formation has been implicated as playing an important role in expanded CAG repeat diseases, it is important to understand the biophysics underlying the...Full Text Available
Objective: Hamstring injuries can be quite debilitating and often result in chronic problems. Eccentric muscle actions are often the last line of defense against muscle injury...Full Text Available
MicroRNAs (miRNAs) have been implicated to play key roles in normal physiological functions, and altered expression of specific miRNAs has been associated with a number of diseases. It is of great interest...Full Text Available
Our understanding of the development of neurotransmitter systems in the central nervous system has increased greatly over the past three decades and it has become apparent that drug effects...Full Text Available
The purpose of this study was to determine the clinical significance of nodal micrometastasis detected by immunohistochemistry in patients that had undergone curative surgery for pancreatic cancer....Full Text Available
BackgroundMultiple sclerosis (MS) is the endpoint of a complex and still poorly understood process which results in inflammation, demyelination and axonal and neuronal degeneration....Full Text Available
Urethral and endocervical swabs and self-collected vaginal swabs (SCVSs) and urine specimens are all used as samples for diagnosis of urogenital infection with Chlamydia trachomatis....Full Text Available
Approximately 20% to 30% of patients who undergo coronary arteriography for the evaluation of chest pain are found to have normal coronary arteries. These patients have a survival rate comparable to...Full Text Available
The synthesis of an extracellular ribbon of cellulose in the bacterium Acetobacter xylinum takes place from linearly arranged, membrane-localized, cellulose-synthesizing and extrusion complexes that...Full Text Available
Growing evidences indicate that proteases are implicated in adipogenesis and in the onset of obesity. We previously reported that the cysteine protease cathepsin K (ctsk) is overexpressed in the white...Full Text Available
Previous work has implicated prefrontal cortices in selecting among and retrieving conceptual information stored elsewhere. However, recent neurophysiological work in monkeys suggests that prefrontal...Full Text Available
Although salamanders are characteristic amphibians in Holarctic temperate habitats, in tropical regions they have diversified evolutionarily only in tropical America. An adaptive radiation centered...Full Text Available
The concordance of standard big bang nucleosynthesis theory and the related observations of the light element isotopes (including some new higher {sup 4}He abundances) will be reviewed. Implications of BBN on chemical evolution, dark matter and constraints on particle properties will be discussed.
Autophagy is an evolutionarily conserved degradative pathway that has been implicated in a number of physiological events important for human health. This process was originally identified as a response...Full Text Available
Purposes1. To determine the optimal pelvic nodal clinical target volume for post-operative treatment of endometrial cancer. 2. To compare the DVH of different treatment planning...Full Text Available
Chagas disease, caused by infection with Trypanosoma cruzi, is an important cause of cardiovascular disease. It is increasingly clear that parasite-derived prostaglandins potently modulate...Full Text Available
BackgroundFormation of site specific genomic double strand breaks (DSBs), induced by the expression of a pair of engineered zinc-finger nucleases (ZFNs), dramatically increases the...Full Text Available
Allometric equations are often used to extrapolate traits in animals for which only body mass estimates are known, such as dinosaurs. One important decision can be whether these equations should be...Full Text Available
Calcium ions represent universal second messengers within neuronal cells integrating multiple cellular functions, such as release of neurotransmitters, gene expression, proliferation, excitability,...Full Text Available
This paper introduces briefly neutrinoless Double Beta Decay and discusses its implications for neutrino physics. After a presentation of general experimental concepts, such as the various proposed methodological approaches and the sensitivity, the current experimental situation is concisely reviewed.
AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) was initially viewed as energy sensor and activated by increased intracellular concentrations of AMP following nutrient deprivation. Physiological or pathological...Full Text Available
Amyloid precursor protein (APP), implicated in Alzheimer's disease, is a transmembrane protein of undetermined function. APP is cleaved by gamma-secretase that releases the APP intracellular domain...Full Text Available
Advanced Glycated End Products (AGEs) are formed by non-enzymatic protein glycation and are implicated in several physiological aspects including cell aging and diseases. Recent data indicate that bacteria...Full Text Available
BackgroundCentrosome aberrations can cause genomic instability and correlate with malignant progression in common human malignancies such as breast and prostate cancer. Deregulation...Full Text Available
Aberrant transglutaminase (TG) activity has been implicated in the pathology of numerous diseases including Huntington disease and Alzheimer disease. To fully characterize the role of TGs in...Full Text Available
A new method of random data analysis has been developed with special implications for membrane noise. The integral spectrometer uses overlapping broad-band filters of simple design, whose bandwidth...Full Text Available
The decline in immune function with aging, known as immunosenescence, has been implicated in evolutionarily diverse species, but the underlying molecular mechanisms are not understood. During aging...Full Text Available
Aim: Compounds such "9"9"mTc-MDP and "9"9"mTc-HEDP are used regularly in bone scintigraphy for metastasis detection. The therapeutics properties of beta emitter radionuclides like "1"5"3Sm, "1"6"6Ho and "1"7"7Lu has been widely reported in literature being "1"7"7Lu the less developed for medical applications. With the purpose of study different radiopharmaceuticals alternatives, for metastasis bone palliation, we have evaluated, on a comparative basis, the labeling of "1"5"3Sm-MDP, "1"5"3Sm-HEDP, "1"6"6Ho-MDP, "1"6"6Ho-HEDP, "1"7"7Lu-MDP and "1"7"7Lu-HEDP from the exhibited radionuclidic purity and biological distribution point of view. Material and Methods: The radionuclides were produced at La Reina Research Reactor, Chilean Nuclear Energy Commission. The radionuclidic purity was determined by gamma-Ray spectrometry. The labeling was accomplished with MDP (Plenum) and HEDP synthesized in-house. The in-vitro affinity of ...
The objective of this paper is to analyze the implications of varying degrees of financial openness for the impact of technology shocks on a real, small open economy with financial and informational frictions. Aggregate fluctuations and propagation mechanisms under increasing financial openness are investigated in a dynamic, stochastic, general equilibrium framework in the case of positive technology shocks. The imperfections in the economy in the form of informational asymmetries among the agents and uncertainty in the production process necessitate financial intermediation and collateralized borrowing in the economy. The reason to abstract from money in the setup of the framework is to be able to concentrate on the real implications of increasing financial openness for the effect of tech...
The Beyond the Standard Model Working Group discussed a variety of topics relating to exotic searches at current and future colliders, and the phenomenology of current models beyond the Standard Model. For example, various supersymmetric (SUSY) and extra dimensions search possibilities and constraints are presented. Fine-tuning implications of SUSY searches are derived. The implications of Higgs (non)-discovery are discussed, as well as the program HDECAY. The individual contributions are included seperately. Much of the enclosed work is original, although some is reviewed.
Anxiety disorders are a highly prevalent and disabling class of psychiatric disorders. This review focuses on new directions in neurobiological research and implications for the development of novel psychopharmacological treatments. Neuroanatomical and neuroimaging research in anxiety disorders has centered on the role of the amygdala, reciprocal connections between the amygdala and the prefrontal cortex, and, most recently, alterations in interoceptive processing by the anterior insula. Anxiety disorders are characterized by alterations in a diverse range of neurochemical systems, suggesting ample novel targets for drug therapies. Corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) concentrations are elevated in a subset of anxiety disorders, which suggests the potential utility of CRF receptor antagoni...
While there is growing interest in Real Time Pricing as a competitive tool, its adoption to date has been constrained by wariness on the part of many utilities and many of their customers. That wariness is not misplaced, for Real Time Pricing is not for everyone. In order for both utilities and their customers to benefit, the pricing system must be properly tailored for, and offered to, the appropriate audience. This paper discusses needs for identifying targets, implications of targeting of Real Time Pricing to various types of customers, and implications for design and marketing of such pricing systems. Examples from utility experiences are provided, and recommendations are offered for development of improved targeting of Real Time Pricing.
The global demand for platinum has consistently outgrown supply in the past decade. This trend likely will continue and the imbalance may possibly escalate into a crisis. Platinum plays pivotal roles in both conventional automobile emissions control and the envisioned hydrogen economy. A platinum crisis would have profound implications on energy and environment. On the one hand, inadequate platinum supply will prevent widespread commercialization of hydrogen fuel-cell vehicles. On the other hand, expensive platinum may enhance the competitiveness of hybrid, plug-in hybrid, and battery-powered electric cars. Policymakers should weigh the potential impacts of a platinum crisis in energy policy.
The murine 3T3-L1 fibroblast under appropriate incubation conditions differentiates into an adipocyte phenotype. This 3T3-L1 adipocyte exhibits many of the morphologic, biochemical, and insulin-responsive features of the normal rodent adipocyte. Using quantitative electron microscopic (EM) autoradiography we find that, when /sup 125/I-insulin is incubated with 3T3-L1 adipocytes, the ligand at early times of incubation localizes to the plasma membrane of the cell preferentially to microvilli and coated pits. When the incubation is continued at 37 degrees C, /sup 125/I-insulin is internalized by the cells and preferential binding to the villous surface is lost. With the internalization of the ligand, two intracellular structures become labeled, as determined by the method of hypothetical grain analysis. These include large clear, presumably endocytotic, vesicles and multivesicular bodies. Over the first hour of incubation the labeling of these ...
A method for the introduction of N-(/sup 3/H)acetyl groups into glycosaminoglycans is described. The procedure is based on (/sup 3/H)acetylation of N-unsubstituted hexosamine residues by treating the polysaccharides with (/sup 3/H)acetic anhydride. Preparations of heparin and heparin sulfate were found to contain significant numbers of N-unsubstituted hexosamine residues, as isolates. In contrast, such units could not be detected in chondroitin sulfate, dermatan sulfate, or hyaluronic acid. These polysaccharides were therefore subjected to partial N-deacetylation by reaction with hydrazine in the presence of hydrazine sulfate. After treatment with (/sup 3/H)acetic anhydride, the specific activities of the resulting labeled polysaccharide preparations ranged between 0.1 X 10/sup 6/ and 0.6 X 10/sup 6/ cpm /sup 3/H/..mu..g of uronic acid. The /sup 3/H-labeled polysaccharide preparations did not differ significantly from the corresponding ...
Tumor imaging using radioiodinated monoclonal antibodies (Mab) suffered from rapid in vivo deiodination. This problem can be circumvented by covalent attachment of a bifunctional chelating group to the Mab followed by chelation with a suitable cationic radionuclide such as In-111. Competition of trace metal contaminants with In-111 for chelating sites, however, is known to lower the labeling yield. Since commercially available reagents may be contaminated with other trace metal ions, the effect of trace metals on Mab-DTPA chelation and the possibility of masking the trace metal effect on the In-111 labeling of Mab-DTPA were, therefore, investigated. Labeling yield of 93% was obtained when 1 mg (20mg/ml) of Mab F(ab')/sub 2/-DTPA (protein to DTPA ratio of --1) was allowed to incubate with 3 mCi In-111 in 2 ml acetate buffer (0.5M, pH 5.5) for 30 min. The yield was drastically decreased to 13-76% when the reactions were ...
An improved labeling procedure for peptides attached to organometallic 99mTc(III) '4+1' mixed-ligand complexes in which the radiometal is coordinated by a tripodal tetradentate chelator 2,2',2''-nitrilotriethanethiol (NS3) and a monodentate isocyanide ligand is presented. The labeling procedure was evaluated by the synthesis of [99mTc(NS3)(L2-RGD)]. The containing radiopharmaceutically interesting RGD-peptide cyclo[Arg-Gly-Asp-D-Tyr-Lys] was modified with 4-isocyanobutanoic acid (L2) as linker conjugated to N6-Lys to get the monodentate ligand L2-RGD. The structural identity of the 99mTc-conjugate was confirmed by comparison to a Re reference compound. The Tc- and Re-conjugates had matching retention times under identical HPLC conditions. The 99mTc-labeling was performed in a novel one-step procedure using the eluate of a 99Mo/99mTc generator, NS3, the isocyanide modified peptide, SnCl2, Na2EDTA, mannitol and ascorbic acid ...
A carrier-free radioiodinated phenylazide derivative of forskolin, 3-iodo-4-azidophenethylamido-7-O-succinyl-deacetyl-forskolin (({sup 125}I)IAPS-forskolin), has been shown to be a highly selective photoaffinity probe for the human erythrocyte glucose transported and the glucose transport proteins found in several mammalian tissues and cultured cells where the glucose transport protein is present at a low concentration. The photoincorporation of ({sup 125}I)IAPS-forskolin into these glucose transporters was blocked by D- (but not L-) glucose, cytochalasin B, and forskolin. In addition to labeling the mammalian glucose transport proteins, ({sup 125}I)IAPS-forskolin also labeled the L-arabinose transporter from E. coli. In muscle and adipose tissues, glucose transport is markedly increased in response to insulin. ({sup 125}I)IAPS-forskolin was shown to selectivity tag the glucose transporter in membranes derived from these cells. In addition, the ...
A carrier-free radioiodinated phenylazide derivative of forskolin, 3-iodo-4-azidophenethylamido-7-O-succinyl-deacetyl-forskolin (["1"2"5I]IAPS-forskolin), has been shown to be a highly selective photoaffinity probe for the human erythrocyte glucose transported and the glucose transport proteins found in several mammalian tissues and cultured cells where the glucose transport protein is present at a low concentration. The photoincorporation of ["1"2"5I]IAPS-forskolin into these glucose transporters was blocked by D- (but not L-) glucose, cytochalasin B, and forskolin. In addition to labeling the mammalian glucose transport proteins, ["1"2"5I]IAPS-forskolin also labeled the L-arabinose transporter from E. coli. In muscle and adipose tissues, glucose transport is markedly increased in response to insulin. ["1"2"5I]IAPS-forskolin was shown to selectivity tag the glucose transporter in membranes derived from these cells. In addition, the covalent ...
Proper use of quality assurance will provide the basis for an effective management control system for nuclear waste management programs. Control is essential for achieving successful programs free from costly losses and failures and for assuring the public and regulators that the environment and health and safety are being protected. The essence of quality assurance is the conscientious use of planned and systematic actions, based on selecting and applying appropriate requirements from an established quality assurance standard. Developing a quality assurance program consists of using knowledge of the technical and managerial aspects of a project to identify and evaluate risks of loss and failure and then to select appropriate quality assurance requirements that will minimize the risks. Those requirements are integrated into the project planning documents and are carried out as ...
This study was designed to identify the relationship between free time management and quality of life, exploring whether the amount of free time or the way people using their free time relates to their quality of life. Data were collected from National Pingtung University of Science and Technology in Taiwan. Of the 500 questionnaires distribute, 403 usable questionnaires were received with an 81% response rate. The result has found a positive relationship between free time management and quality of life. Contrary to this, there was no significant relationship between time allocation and quality of life. Results might indicate that people who manage their free time well lead to better quality of life. Suggestions based on the observed relationship and directions for future researches were d...
How does one assure that both quality and creativity are obtained in basic research environments QA theoreticians have attempted to develop workable definitions of quality, but in more reflective moments, these definitions often fail to capture the deeper essence of the idea of quality.'' This paper asserts that creativity (as a product of the human mind) is a concrete interface between perfunctory definitions of quality (conformance to specifications) and more philosophical speculations about the nature of quality- related ultimates'' like elegance or beauty. In addition, we describe the distinction between creative ideas and creative acts and highlight one of the major inhibitors of creativity, fear. Finally we show that highly creative people often have an irreverent attitude toward boundaries and established authority, and discuss how one can ...
Managing service quality is vital to retain customer satisfaction and augment revenues for any business organization. Often it is difficult to assess service quality due to lack of quantifiable measures and limited data. In this paper, we present a hybrid approach based on SERVQUAL and fuzzy TOPSIS for evaluating service quality of urban transportation systems. The proposed approach consists of three steps. The first step involves development of a SERVQUAL based questionnaire to collect data for measuring transportation service quality. The participants provide linguistic assessments to rate the service quality criteria and the alternatives. In step 2, the linguistic ratings are combined through fuzzy TOPSIS to generate an overall performance score for each alternative. The alternative wit...
The synthesis of ["1"1C]phenobarbital, ["1"1C]pentobarbital and["1"1C]amobarbital labelled in the 5-[1-"1"1C]ethyl position is reported. The malonic esters R- CH(CO_2Et)_2 [R phenyl-, 1-methylbutyl-, and 3- methylbutyl- were alkylated with [1-"1"1C]ethyl iodide prepared from ["1"1C]carbon dioxide. Ring closure of the 2-[1-"1"1C]ethyl-labelled malonic esters with urea afforded 5-[1-"1"1C]ethyl-phenobarbital,-phenobarbital, -pentobarbital and -amobarbital synthesis times of 42-47 min, counted from ["1"1C] carbon dioxide. In typical syntheses starting with 3 GBq pentobarbitol and (81 mCi) ["1"1C]carbon dioxide, 150-215 MBq (4-6 mCi) were produced in 25-30% decay corrected -amobarbital radiochemical yields with radiochemical purities greater than 98%. (author).
The measurement of physiological parameters in man is possible with the help of positron emission tomography (PET) and radiopharmaceuticals labeled with short lived positron emitters as C 11, N 13, O 15 and F 18. With the use of this substances it is possible to make a tomographic map defining regional metabolic parameters in normal and diseased brain. This technique has therefore also be named 'in vivo autoradiography'. The possibility of applying C 11 or F 18 labeled deoxyglucose with PET for detecting regional and local changes in cerebral metabolic rate of glucose in brain development in children of 5 days to 1 year of age is discussed. Beyond this a relationship between cerebral metabolic rate of glucose, cerebral blood flow and cerebral metabolic rate of oxygen by use of this technique after inhalation of O 15 and C 11-labeled CO_2 is shown. Attention is drawn to the application of C 11-methyl-spiperone and PET to ...
The radioiodine-labeled amines currently available as brain-imaging agents, based on our previous work and that of others, are prepared either by exchange labeling or by direct iodination of a protected intermediate. The intrinsic slowness of these processes limits their potential for use with the positron-emitting 122I, as it has a half-life of only 3.6 min. This isotope has advantages of a low dose to the patient and availability from a generator containing the parent 20-h 122Xe. To develop a radiopharmaceutical in which 122I could be utilized, we prepared a number of secondary and tertiary amines (maintaining the 2,5-dimethoxy substitution pattern which allows direct iodination at the 4-position) with 131I. The organ distributions of these compounds were studied, and the best properties were found in the N,N-dimethyl homologue (2,5-dimethoxy-N,N-dimethyl-4-iodoamphetamine). This compound was successfully synthesized in a matter of seconds, ...
The radioiodine-labeled amines currently available as brain-imaging agents, based on our previous work and that of others, are prepared either by exchange labeling or by direct iodination of a protected intermediate. The intrinsic slowness of these processes limits their potential for use with the positron-emitting 122I, as it has a half-life of only 3.6 min. This isotope has advantages of a low dose to the patient and availability from a generator containing the parent 20-h 122Xe. To develop a radiopharmaceutical in which 122I could be utilized, we prepared a number of secondary and tertiary amines (maintaining the 2,5-dimethoxy substitution pattern which allows direct iodination at the 4-position) with 131I. The organ distributions of these compounds were studied, and the best properties were found in the N,N-dimethyl homologue (2,5-dimethoxy-N,N-dimethyl-4-iodoamphetamine). This compound was successfully synthesized in a matter of seconds, ...
The contribution of platelets and clotting factors in thrombosis on cardiovascular prostheses had been quantified with several tracers. Thrombus formation in vivo could be measured semiquantitatively in animal models and patients with indium-111, Technetium-99m labeled platelets, iodine-123, iodine-131 labeled fibrinogen, and In-111 and Tc-99m labeled antibody to the fibrinogen-receptor on the platelet- membrane, or fibrin. The early studies demonstrated that certain platelet-inhibitors, e.g. sulfinpyrazone, aspirin or aspirin- persantine increased platelet survival time with mechanical valves implanted in the baboon model and patients. Thrombus localization by imaging is possible for large thrombus on thrombogenic surface of prosthesis in the acute phase. The majority of thrombus was found in the sewing ring (Dacron) in the acute phase in both the mechanical and tissue valves. The amount of retained thrombus in both ...
Sucrose and mannitol are major photosynthetic products and translocates in celery. Assimilate partitioning and transport were studied by pulse-labeling leaves with /sup 14/CO/sub 2/ followed by different length chases in ambient air. After a 2 h chase in the light there was more /sup 14/C in sucrose than mannitol in source leaves and their petioles. In contrast after a 2 h dark chase leaves contained more /sup 14/C in mannitol than sucrose but petioles had more /sup 14/C in sucrose than mannitol. After a 15 h chase (6 h light; 9 h dark) labeled sucrose was higher in source petiole vascular bundles than in adjacent parenchyma tissue but label in glucose and fructose was higher in the parenchyma tissue. After the 15 h chase most of the /sup 14/C remaining in developing sink leaves and their petioles was in mannitol. Although in the light mannitol:sucrose ratios are the same in leaf and petiole tissues, in the dark sucrose is ...
The radiochemical purity of the cobalt-57 complex of bleomycin could be enhanced by adjusting the pH of the final product to a value between 5 and 6. This radiopharmaceutical appeared to have better tumor visualizing properties compared to the not neutralized preparation. The clinical use of the cobalt-57 bleomycin complex is however limited by the long physical half-life of the label, causing a risk of radioactive contamination. It appeared to be possible to label bleomycin with radioactive cations ("1"1"1In"3"+, sup(99m)Tc"4"+, "1"9"7Hg"2"+ and "6"7Cu"2"+) having suitable gamma ray energies and short half-lifes. These bleomycin complexes showed a high radiochemical purity judged by their behaviour on thin layer chromatography, paper chromatography, and electrophoresis, but their application as tumor visualizing radiopharmaceutical turned out to be disappointing compared with cobalt-57 bleomycin. (orig.).
Gel filtration of human erythrocyte (RBC) lysate incubated with labeled thyroxine (Tu) or triiodothyronine (Tt) revealed co-elution of a major iodothyronine-binding fraction (R-2) and hemoglobin. Solutions of purified human hemoglobin and Tt also showed co-elution of hormone and hemoglobin. Because hematin and protoporphyrin were shown to bind labeled Tt, the oxygen-binding site on hemoglobin was excluded as the site of iodothyronine-hemoglobin interaction. Analysis of hormone binding by heme and globin moieties showed Tt binding to be limited to the heme fraction. Addition of excess unlabeled Tt to hemoglobin or heme incubated with labeled Tt indicated 75% to 90% of hormone binding was poorly dissociable. These observations suggested that the presence of hemoglobin in RBC lysate or in serum could influence the measurement of Tu and Tt by specific radioimmunoassay (RIA). Subsequent studies of the addition to serum of human ...
The aim of this study was to assess the utility of a radioimmunoconjugate containing a lead radionuclide for therapy and scintigraphy applications. The radioimmunoconjugate evaluated consisted of a bifunctional DOTA ligand and monoclonal antibody (MAb) B72.3 using athymic mice bearing LS-174T tumors, human colon carcinoma xenografts. In the studies reported here, the lead-203-DOTA complex itself was first demonstrated to have in vivo stability. MAb B72.3 was then conjugated with the DOTA ligand and labeled with "2"0"3Pb, and the immunoreactivity of B72.3 was maintained. The localization of the radioimmunoconjugate to tumor tissue and other select organs paralleled that of DOTA-"1"2"5I-B72.3, suggesting a similar metabolic pattern of the two radioimmunoconjugates. Thus, the DOTA-metal complex does not alter the behavior of the radioimmunoconjugate. Tumor localization of the "2"0"3Pb-DOTA-B72.3 conjugate was demonstrated with biodistribution studies as well as ...
The effects of mouse epidermal growth factor (EGF) on bone formation and resorption were examined in male mice. EGF administration (2-200 ng.g-1.day-1 ip for 7 days) induced a dose-dependent rise in plasma EGF levels that remained within physiological range. Histomorphometric analysis of caudal vertebrae showed that EGF (20 and 200 ng.g-1.day-1) reduced the endosteal matrix and mineral appositional rates after 5 days of treatment as measured by double (3H)proline labeling and double tetracycline labeling, respectively. This effect was transitory and was not observed after 7 days of EGF administration. EGF administered for 7 days induced a dose-dependent increase in the periosteal osteoblastic and tetracycline double-labeled surfaces. At high dosage (200 ng.g-1.day-1) EGF administration increased the osteoclastic surface and the number of acid phosphatase-stained osteoclasts, although plasma calcium remained normal. The ...
Clove (Caryophyllus aromaticus L.) has been used for clinical procedures. Blood constituents labeled with technetium-99m (99mTc) are used in nuclear medicine. The aim of this work was to evaluate the effects of clove extract on the labeling blood constituents with 99mTc and on the morphology of red blood cells. Blood samples were incubated with clove, stannous chloride and 99mTc. Plasma, blood cells, insoluble fractions of plasma and blood cells were separated. The radioactivity was counted and percentage of radioactivity (%ATI) to each blood fraction was calculated. The shape and morphometric parameter (perimeter/area ratio) were evaluated. Clove extract altered significantly (p<0.05) the %ATI of blood constituents and the shape of red blood cells without modifying the perimeter/area ratio. The results indicate that clove extract presents chemical compounds that interfere with the radiolabeling of blood constituents and alter the ...
Dynamics and metabolism of sugars translocated into the fruit region were investigated in tomato using {sup 14}C-labelled compounds. The translocation substance in tomato is thought to be sucrose, but the amount of sucrose in its fruit is very small. Therefore, the degradation of sucrose in the fruit and its translocation to the fruit was investigated. The sucrose was digested into hexoses such as glucose, fructose, etc. and the degradation rate was considerably low. In the stage of thickening growth, sucrose was more extensively converted into other substances except for sugars compared with the coloring stage. Then, {sup 14}C-labelled fructose was given through its gynophore to investigate the degree of reproduction to sucrose. The fructose level in the fruit reached the platean by 48 hrs after the addition and gradually decreased. The radioactivities were detected in sugars, organic acids and other alcohol soluble substances, etc. These ...
Six men were fed a diet composed of conventional foods with all bread as whole wheat bread. Intrinsically labeled "6"5Cu bread (containing 6.5 ppm Cu and 48 atom % "6"5Cu) was substituted for unlabeled bread for 3 days, and stools were collected for 24 days. Extrinsically labeled bread was then substituted for 3 days and another 24-day stool collection made. "6"5Cu excretion was measured by mass spectrometry. Mean Cu intake was 1.10 mg of Cu/day. Average Cu balance was /minus/0.06 /+-/ 0.08 mg/day. Average absorption of the intrinsic copper was 72.2 /+-/ 9.3% and of extrinsic Cu 64.2 /+-/ 5.8%. The ratio of extrinsic to intrinsic absorption was 0.906 /+-/ 0.164. Absorption of intrinsic and extrinsic tracers did not differ significantly (p > 0.05) by a paired t-test, and the ratio (E/I) was not significantly different from 1. Use of extrinsic Cu tracers to assess Cu absorption is supported by these results.
The circulation in microvascularized rib grafts has been compared with that in conventional rib grafts and in those augmented by a direct vascular bundle implantation into the bone grafts. A new experimental model has been designed to correlate vascular perfusion, bone scan patterns, tetracycline labeling, and histological findings in these bone grafts. Posterior microvascularized rib grafts were found to have a circulatory pattern identical to that of the normal rib. Failed microvascularized rib grafts were revascularized more slowly than conventional rib grafts. Vascular bundles implanted into rib grafts remained patent and increased the rate of revascularization. The stripping or preservation of periosteum had no observable effects on the rate or pattern of conventional rib graft revascularization. The circulation in rib grafts was accurately reflected in technetium 99 bone scans, as was the patency of the anastomoses of microvascularized rib grafts and of ...
The kinetics of {sup 14}C-photosynthate import by developing wheat grains was followed after pulse-labeling the flag leaf with {sup 14}CO{sub 2}. Samples were collected from four successive points along the transport pathway to and within the grain: exuding aphid stylets on the peduncle, exuding grain pedicels, the grain crease tissues, and the liquid contents of the endosperm cavity. In addition, microautoradiographs were prepared of the grain crease tissues during movement of the {sup 14}C pulse into the grain. At all times, sucrose accounted for 93 to 97% of the total {sup 14}C present at all four sampling sites. The main features of the {sup 14}C kinetics could be accounted for by a simple compartmental model consisting of sucrose pools in series. Microautoradiographs of the crease tissues showed fairly uniform labeling of vascular parenchyma at all times, with a sharp gradient in labeling across the chalaza to the ...
If a closed smooth manifold $M$ with an action of a torus $T$ satisfies certain conditions, then a labeled graph $\\mG_M$ with labeling in $H^2(BT)$ is associated with $M$, which encodes a lot of geometrical information on $M$. For instance, the "cohomology" ring $\\mHT^*(\\mG_M)$ of $\\mG_M$ is defined to be a subring of $\\bigoplus_{v\\in V(\\mG_M)}H^*(BT)$, where $V(\\mG_M)$ is the set of vertices of $\\mG_M$, and is known to be often isomorphic to the equivariant cohomology $H^*_T(M)$ of $M$. In this paper, we determine the ring structure of $\\mHT^*(\\mG_M)$ when $M$ is a flag manifold of classical type directly without using the fact that $\\mHT^*(\\mG_M)$ is isomorphic to $H^*_T(M)$.
Two no-carrier-added "1"2"5I-labelled photoaffinity rapamycin analogs were prepared: 7-demethoxy-7-(4-azido-3-"1"2"5I-benzyloxy) rapamycin and its C_2_8-C_2_9 seco analog. The key reactions of the synthesis were substitution of the C_7 methoxyl of rapamycin with 4-azido-3-tributylstannylbenzyloxy group, exchange of tributyltin with "1"2"5I using Na"1"2"5I and Chloramine-T, and a ZnCl_2 mediated retro-Aldol cleavage of the C_2_8-C_2_9 bond of rapamycin. (author).
Two peptide ligands conjugated adenine, [9-N-(tritylmercapto acetyl diglycyl aminoethyl) adenine, Tr-MAG_2-Ade] and [9-N-(tritylmercapto acetyl triglycyl aminoethyl) adenine, Tr-MAG3-Ade], are synthesized and labeled with "9"9"mTc by directly labeling method. The stability of "9"9"mTc-MAG_2- adenine and "9"9"mTc-MAG_3-adenine in vitro is measured. The uptake radios of tumor to muscle at 3h post-injection are 5.70 and 4.92, respectively. The biodistribution and scintigraphic imaging studies show that the two complexes have high localization in tumor and high contrasted tumor images can be obtained, which suggest their potential utility as tumor imaging agents. But the high radioactivity of abdomen could prevent the tumor imaging in this area. (author)
When labeled cAMP is incubated with isolated mitochondria from rat liver, it penetrates not only through the outer membrane of the mitochondria but also into the mitoplasts, where it is accumulated chiefly in the matrix. Damage to the mitochondrial membrane by freezing-thawing promotes not an influx but an efflux of cAMP out of the mitoplasts. A substantial part of the labeled nucleotide in all the investigated submitochondrial fractions was identified as intact cAMP by the method of thin-layer chromatography. The transport of cAMP into the mitochondria can explain the activation of their functions by the hormones that activate cytoplasmic adenylate cyclase and by extramitochondrial (cytosol) cAMP, as well as the presence of cAMP-dependent protein kinase and cAMP-phosphodiesterase in the mitochondria.
Eight patients with double-velour Dacron aorto-femoral grafts implanted for 2-60 months were studied. Indium-111-labelled platelets were found to have a shortened mean platelet lifespan (MPLS) of 138 +- 32 hours compared with the normal platelet lifespan of 224 +- 23 hours. Labelled platelets accumulated on all grafts, irrespective of graft age, to a maximum of 1,80 +- 0,83% of whole body radioactivity; thereafter graft radio-activity decreased. This suggests that platelets on the graft are in dynamic equilibrium with those in the circulation. Platelets may be lost from the graft by embolization or radioactivity may be released because of platelet lysis. Although MPLS may depend on the age and surface area of the graft, concomitant arterial disease probably also contributes to the shortened MPLS.
This paper describes the design and operating experience with a high performance control system tailored to the requirements of the SuperHILAC accelerator. A large number (20) of the latest 16-bit microcomputer boards are used in a parallel-distributed manner to get a high system bandwidth. Because of the high bandwidth, software costs and complexity are significantly reduced. The system by its very nature and design is easily upgraded and repaired. Dynamically assigned and labeled knobs, together with touch-panels, allow a flexible and efficient operator interface. An X-Y vector graphics system provides for display and labeling of real-time signals as well as general plotting functions. This control system allows attachment of a powerful auxiliary computer for scientific processing with access to accelerator parameters.
Major depressive disorder and alcohol dependence are common and serious mental illnesses. There is a great interest in discovering useful treatments for both mood symptoms and alcohol abuse in those patients with depressive disorders and comorbid alcohol dependence. The primary purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness and tolerability of mirtazapine for the treatment of patients with alcohol dependence comorbid with a depressive disorder in an open label, naturalistic multicentre treatment setting. The 17-item Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HDRS), the Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale (HARS) and the Clinical Global Impression-Severity (CGI-S) scale were measured at baseline and at weeks 4 and 8 for the assessment of treatment effectiveness. Alcohol craving was measured using ...
Mineralization and volatilization of ring labelled "1"4C-2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid in soil was studied over a period of six weeks under laboratory conditions at 25 deg. C in three different soils collected from three sites, Delhi, Jaipur and Ludhiana. A very slow rate of both mineralization and volatilization was observed in all the three soils. The observed mineralization, was highest for the Delhi soil, 0.93%, followed by the Ludhiana soil, 0.73% and the Jaipur soil 0.14% in 42 days. The extent of volatilization was 0.46% for the Jaipur soil, 0.37% for the Ludhiana soil and 0.32% for the Delhi soil. (author)
Within the past decade two important groups of radiopharmaceuticals labelled with /sup 123/I were introduced into the clinical application opening new areas of metabolic studies in nuclear medicine: radioiodinated fatty acids were developed for metabolic studies of the myocardium and radioiodinated amphetamine derivatives were prepared for studying brain diseases by means of SPECT. It must be emphasized that the radiochemical problems with both groups of compounds are practically the same since both are radioiodinated by a nucleophilic substitution mechanism using /sup 123/I directly in its anionic form. The clinical application of brain imaging agents, particularly the one of p-/sup 123/I-iodo-N-isopropylamphetamine, is important and will presumably increase as soon as the details of the individual biochemical steps, which are involved in brain uptake mechanisms, are evaluated. It is felt that the potential of the clinical IMP application is greater than the ...
Labelling of "1"4C-M-ISP and its absorption, translocation and distribution in peanut and soybean seedling were studied. The results of experiments showed that the radioactive substance could be translocated in xylem and phloem of two kinds of plants. The root of peanut seedling absorbed "1"4C-M-ISP from the nutrient solution more strong than the root of soybean seedling did. After leaf treatment with "1"4C-M-ISP, the soybean seedling absorbed more radioactive substance than peanut seedling did. But the translocation's speed of radioactive substance in pnloem of two kinds of plants were similar.
Hydrogen cyanide (HCN) production by Pseudomonas aeruginosa in a synthetic medium is stimulated by the presence of glycine. Methionine enhances this stimulation but will not substitute for glycine as a stimulator of cyanogenesis. Threonine and phenylalanine are effective substitutes for glycine in the stimulation of HCN production. Glycine, threonine, and serine are good radioisotope precursors of HCN, but methionine and phenylalanine are not. Cell extracts of P. aeruginosa convert (/sup 14/C)threonine to (/sup 14/C)glycine. H14CN is produced with low dilution of label from either (1-/sup 14/C)glycine or (2-/sup 14/C)glycine, indicating a randomization of label either in the primary or secondary metabolism of glycine. When whole cells were fed (1,2-/sup 14/C)glycine, cyanide and bicarbonate were the only radioactive extracellular products observed.
Summary Background The seventh amendment of the European Union (EU) Cosmetics Directive (March 2005) and the Detergents Regulations of the EU (October 2005) are now legal requirements in Europe. Cosmetic products and detergents must be labelled for 26 individual named fragrances, when present at concentrations of > 10 parts per million (p.p.m.) in leave-on products and > 100 p.p.m. in rinse-off products. Objectives To make an assessment of the exposure pattern to fragrance of the U.K. consumer and to determine the frequency with which the constituent fragrances of fragrance mix I (FM I) and fragrance mix II (FM II) are included in products currently sold in the U.K. Methods A study of perfumed cosmetic and household products available on the shelves of U.K. retailers was carried out in Jan...
Objective: To develop a method for RIA of transferrin without dilution of the serum sample. Methods: The measurable range was broadened through: Lowering of the specific radioactivity of the labelled antigen, increasing the concentration of the anti-serum and improve the curve fitting method. Results: The antiserum affinity was 3.82 x 10"-"1"0 mol/L, the specific radioactivity of the labelled antigen was 15.3 mg/mic, inter-assay error CV 5.38%, intra-assay error CV = 3.5% and the shape of the curve was good. For 30 normal control specimens, the mean TF content was 2.81 +- 0.972 mg/ml. Conclusion: Development of a method for RIA of TF without previous dilution of the test serum was of clinical value
Proposed features of the competitive electricity market in Ontario were reviewed. The speaker predicted that demand for renewable energy in Ontario`s competitive electricity market will be affected by green power, emissions trading, labelling, and renewables portfolio standard. Under current regulations retailers can charge customers a premium for purchasing electricity generated by `green` sources. The existing limits on emissions of sulphur dioxide, nitrogen oxides and carbon dioxides will remain in place, but an emissions cap and trading program for all Ontario-based generation is an option to consider. Ontario`s Market Design Committee (MDC) has recommended the implementation of emissions trading for electricity-related air pollutants for all generators located in Ontario. The complex mechanics of emission trading are explained. The MDC recommendation of the use of standard labels to disclose the mix of energy sources used by sellers of ...
Abstract Background: Dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB) is a common dementia of the elderly. A significant cholinergic deficit has been demonstrated that may be responsive to treatment by cholinesterase inhibitors (ChEIs). Methods: A 24-week, open-label study was designed to assess the efficacy and safety of a ChEI, galantamine, in 50 patients with DLB. Results: This study showed beneficial effects with galantamine in 2 of the 3 primary efficacy parameters. The scores on the Neuropsychiatric Inventory (NPI-12) improved by 8.24 points from baseline (p = 0.01) especially in visual hallucinations and nighttime behaviors (p = 0.004). The scores on the Clinician's Global Impression of Change improved by 0.5 points from baseline (p = 0.01). The third primary efficacy parameter, the Cognitive Drug R...
Phenytoin (PHT), phenobarbital (PHB), lamotrigine (LTG), and topiramate (TPM) are some of the most widely used antiepileptic drugs (AEDs). Monitoring of their concentrations in serum is important for the treatment of epilepsy. A reference measurement procedure (RMP) for certification of PHT, PHB, LTG, and TPM in serum has been developed and critically evaluated. Isotopically labeled compounds of PHT, PHB, LTG, and TPM are used as internal standards for the four AEDs. The four drugs and their respective labeled internal standards are simultaneously extracted from serum using solid-phase extraction prior to reversed-phase liquid chromatography?tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). Chromatographic separation was performed using a C18 column. Electrospray ionization (ESI) in the positive ion mo...
Methods were developed for the separation of radioactively labeled carbohydrate components of proteoglycans by isocratic ion-moderated partition HPLC. Neutral sugars were separated after hydrolysis in trifluoroacetic acid with baseline separation between glucose, xylose, galactose, fucose, and mannose. N-Acetylneuraminic acid, N-acetylated hexosamines, glucose, galactose, and xylitol were likewise well separated from each other under isocratic elution conditions. Glucuronic acid, iduronic acid, and their lactones were separated after hydrolysis in formic acid and sulfuric acid. Glucosamine, galactosamine, galactosaminitol, and glucosaminitol were separated by HPLC on a cation exchanger with neutral buffer after hydrolysis in hydrochloric acid. THe separation techniques also proved useful in fractionation of exoglycosidase digests of O- and N-linked oligosaccharides. Separations of aldoses, hexosamines, and uronic acids were adapted to sensitive photometric ...
Summary Background- Treatments that achieve sustainable steroid-free clinical remission in Crohn-s disease are needed; however, long-term steroid-sparing efficacy data are limited. Aim- To evaluate steroid-sparing efficacy and the impact of steroid discontinuation on adverse events during treatment of Crohn's disease with adalimumab in the phase III randomised, double-blind 1-year CHARM trial and for an additional 2-years in its open-label extension ADHERE. Methods- Steroid-free remission and response and steroid-sparing (-50% steroid dose reduction) remission rates were evaluated over 3-years in patients who were taking corticosteroids at CHARM baseline. Results- Of 778 patients randomised in CHARM (including those who did not achieve clinical response to open-label induction therapy), 31...
A new procedure for preparing an 211At-labeled radiopharmaceutical is suggested. The 211At? anion forms a strong bond with the Rh3+ cation incorporated in the complex with a thiother ligand, 1,5,9,13-tetrathiacyclohexadecane-3,11-diol (16-S4-diol). The reaction conditions are optimized with 131I as astatine analog. The complexes are studied by paper electrophoresis, ion exchange, and thin-layer chromatography. The kinetics of the addition of the 131I? anion to Rh(16-S4-diol) and the dependence of the yield of the forming complex 131I-Rh(16-S4-diol) on the temperature, solution acidity, and reactant concentrations are examined. Taking into account the results obtained, the complex 211At-Rh(16-S4-diol) is prepared by adding astatide (211 At?) to equivalent amounts of RhCl3 and the tetrathioe...
BackgroundStrategies to accurately identify the occurrence of specific health care events in administrative data is central to many quality improvement and research efforts. Many...Full Text Available
This paper describes how a computerized MIS is used to assist HMO management to conduct utilization and quality of care review activities in a prepaid medical care network. The HMO is a ‘network’...Full Text Available
ObjectivesThe objective of this paper is to describe the complex mixed-methods design of a study conducted to assess health-related quality of life (HRQOL) outcomes...Full Text Available
BackgroundHeterogeneous results for research investigating health-related quality of life (HRQL) in patients undergoing sphincter-ablating procedures for rectal cancer...Full Text Available
BackgroundQuality of Life measurements are necessary tools for effectively evaluating health services. In the population of patients afflicted with war-related blindness in Iran,...Full Text Available
Experience of the Westinghouse Water Reactors Division with indoctrination and training of quality engineers includes training of personnel from Westinghouse divisions in the USA and overseas as well as of customers' personnel. A written plan is prepared for each trainee in order to fit the training to the individual's needs, and to cover the full range of information and activities. The trainee is also given work assignments, working closely with experienced quality engineers. He may prepare inspection plans and audit check lists, assist in the preparation of QA training modules, write procedures, and perform supplier surveillance and data analyses, or make special studies of operating systems. The trainee attends seminars and special courses on work-related technical subjects. Throughout the training period, emphasis is placed on inculcating an attitude of team work in the trainee so that the result of the training is the achievement of both ...
BackgroundRandomized controlled trials (RCTs) which are of poor quality tend to exaggerate the effect estimate and lead to wrong or misleading conclusions. The aim of this study...Full Text Available
This plan describes the Quality Assurance Program which will be applied to spent fuel handling and packaging tests conducted at the Area 25 E-MAD facility, Nevada Test Site (NTS).
OBJECTIVE. This study was conducted to determine whether an index for measuring quality of care for psychiatric emergencies is reliable and valid. DATA SOURCES/STUDY SETTING. The study used primary...Full Text Available
In the RIR (Risk-informed Regulation), PSA (Probabilistic Safety Assessment) plays a major role because it provides overall risk insights for the regulatory body and utility. Therefore, the scope, the level of details and the technical adequacy of PSA, i.e. the quality of PSA is to be ensured for the successful RIR. To improve the quality of Korean PSA, we evaluate the quality of the KSNP (Korean Standard Nuclear Power Plant) internal full-power PSA model based on the 'ASME PRA Standard' and the 'NEI PRA Peer Review Process Guidance.' As a working group, PSA experts of the regulatory body and industry also participated in the evaluation process. It is finally judged that the overall quality of the KSNP PSA is between the ASME Standard Capability Category I and II. We also derive some items to be improved for upgrading the quality of the PSA up to ...
BackgroundHealth related quality of life (HRQoL) is one of the most important outcomes to measure effectiveness of an intervention, especially for islet transplantation...Full Text Available
PURPOSE This study was designed to evaluate the impact of electronic medical record (EMR) implementation on quality of diabetes care.METHODS We conducted a 5-year longitudinal...Full Text Available
AIMS:This study aimed to determine the effect of 50 days of forced swimming stress on fertilization capacity of rat and subsequent offspring quality.SETTING...Full Text Available
Are economic resources related to relationship quality among young couples, and to what extent does this vary by relationship type? To answer these questions, we estimated regression models...Full Text Available
A numerical technique is developed for estimating water quality violation frequencies due to pollutant discharges from urban areas during combined sewer overflow events. The first four moments of in-stream pollutant concentration are found by integrating a pollutant loading - wat...
Introduction:Although radical prostatectomy (RP) is an effective treatment for prostate cancer, it has potentially deleterious effects on health-related quality of life (HRQoL)....Full Text Available
BackgroundEvidence on human semen quality as it relates to exposure to various metals, both essential (e.g., zinc, copper) and nonessential (e.g., cadmium, lead), is inconsistent....Full Text Available
BackgroundThe effects of intervention programs on health-related quality of life (HRQOL) of patients with hip fracture have not been well studied. We hypothesized that older patients...Full Text Available