... a flu shot There is a new nasal spray version of the vaccine, and it contains weakened ... the LAIV (Live Attenuated Influenza Vaccine). The nasal-spray flu vaccine contains three different live but weakened ...
The first candidate rotavirus vaccine was a live attenuated oral vaccine made by the classical empirical method of serial passage of virus in tissue culture cells. Current tetravalent vaccine candidates that are in the final stages of efficacy testing in the United States were made by genetic reassortment. This article briefly highlights how advances in the basic understanding of the molecular biology of rotaviruses have facilitated vaccine development. New approaches for second-generation vaccines and improvements in vaccine efficacy based on further exploitation of the tools and knowledge of rotavirus molecular biology and pathogenesis are discussed. PMID:8752289
Severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) is an infectious disease caused by a novel coronavirus that cost nearly 800 lives. While there have been no recent outbreaks of the disease, the threat...Full Text Available
The issue of the duration of immunity, particularly for the modified live viral components of veterinary vaccines, has been a significant part of the recent vaccination debate. One manufacturer has increased the recommended booster interval for these components to 3 years give name and another now states `up to 4 years' immunity.There remain many unanswered questions regarding this duration of immunity (DOI). Studies suitable for data sheet claims are time consuming and costly and can only be performed in laboratory dogs under tightly controlled conditions. Evidence from rabies serology testing in the UK shows that the response of individual animals to routine vaccination is highly variable. Much of the published field evidence on the persistence of antibody titres originates from North Am...
Abstract Recently, a study of patients with rheumatoid arthritis who developed herpes zoster while taking a tumor necrosis factor (TNF)- inhibitor reported a decreased incidence of postherpetic neuralgia. The objective of this study was to investigate whether patients on TNF- inhibitors who developed herpes zoster have a lower incidence of subsequent development of postherpetic neuralgia. A retrospective review of herpes zoster patients on TNF- inhibitors (infliximab, etanercept, or adalimumab) was conducted in 12 dermatology clinics. Medical records of such patients were reviewed thoroughly to confirm herpes zoster and TNF- inhibitors and any subsequent development of postherpetic neuralgia (pain score -3 out of 10 after 90 days of shingles onset) was noted. A total of 206 cases were revi...
Cholera vaccine candidate Peru-15 was derived from a Vibrio cholerae O1 El Tor Inaba strain by deleting the cholera toxin genetic element, introducing the gene encoding cholera toxin B subunit into recA, and screening for nonmotility. In a controlled study, Peru-15 (2 x 10(8) cfu) was administered to 11 volunteers. No vaccinee developed diarrhea, and 10 of 11 had > 4-fold rises in vibriocidal antibody titers. One month later, 5 vaccinees and 5 control volunteers were challenged with wild type V. cholerae O1. Four of 5 controls developed diarrhea (mean, 1.9 L). Two Peru-15 vaccinees developed diarrhea, 1 with < 0.3 L and 1 with approximately 1.0 L; this latter volunteer had not developed a significant vibriocidal immune response to vaccination. Peru-15 shows promise as a single-dose, oral cholera vaccine that is safe, immunogenic, and protective. PMID:7561195
Two plasmids which express either nearly intact or truncated filamentous hemagglutinin (FHA) from Bordetella pertussis and which are marked with a tetracycline resistance (Tcr) gene were transformed into Salmonella dublin SL1438, an aroA deletion mutant intended for use as an attenuated oral vaccine against salmonellosis. These S. dublin recombinants, when fed to mice, induced serum immunoglobulin, immunoglobulin M (IgM), and sometimes IgA antibody responses to FHA and S. dublin. In addition, IgA antibodies against FHA were found in gut wash fluids. S. dublin carrying pDB2300, a multicopy plasmid encoding truncated FHA protein, induced a better antibody response than did S. dublin carrying pDB2000, a low-copy-number plasmid encoding full-sized FHA. Administration of tetracycline to mice enhanced the stability of recombinant plasmids, and tetracycline-treated mice developed higher anti-FHA titers. Although neither strain examined is suitable for use in a human oral ...
Based on studies on the genetic and molecular basis of Shigella flexneri invasive properties, we have constructed and evaluated a double mutant of S. flexneri serotype 5 for utilization as a live attenuated oral vaccine against shigellosis. The first mutation, icsA, blocks intracellular spread of bacteria as well as cell-to-cell infection. It affects the capacity of the invasive pathogen to form large abscesses in epithelia. The second mutation, iuc, eliminates production of the siderophore aerobactin thus impairing growth of the bacterium within tissues. This double mutant, SC5700 appeared safe when administered intragastrically to macaque monkeys as three doses (5 x 10(10) c.f.u. each) at weekly intervals. Protection against a challenge by the wild type isolate (M90T) was observed 4 weeks after the last vaccine inoculation. Duration of carriage was considerably reduced as compared to the control group in which all animals ...
Data from 52 litters farrowed in two seasons of a cross-fostering experiment were analyzed to estimate variances and covariances for additive direct and maternal genetic effects on immune response to pseudorabies virus and B. bronchiseptica vaccine. Twenty purebred boars and 44 sows of the Duroc, Landrace and Yorkshire breeds were used. Immune response was measured after vaccine challenge. A modified-live pseudorabies (PR) vaccine was administered to piglets at 28 d of age; response was measured by log2 serum neutralization titers at 56 d. An inactivated B. bronchiseptica bacterin was administered at 28, 42 and 112 d. Antibody levels were measured relative to positive and negative controls at 28, 56 and 119 d by using an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Results from this study for heritability were .18 +/- .09 for PR titer and .15 +/- .07 and .52 +/- .15 for 56- and 119-d ELISA values, ...
To assess the influence of a live attenuated oral vaccine against porcine post-weaning colibacillosis (PWC) induced by enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli (ETEC) on mucosal lymphoid cell CD45 isoforms expression, experimental group of weaned pigs (n=6) was immunized orally with F4ac+ non-ETEC strain (day 0) and challenged with F4ac+ ETEC strain 7 days latter. Non-immunized ETEC-infected pigs (n=6) served as control. All pigs were killed on post-challenge day 7. The small intestine was excised for isolation of jejunal lamina propria (JLP) and ileal Peyer's patch (IPP) lymphocytes and immunohistochemical studies. The results obtained by immunophenotyping of isolated cells show that the proportion of CD45RA+ and CD45RC+ JLP, but not IPP, cells were higher in the non-ETEC-immunized ETEC-infected pigs versus non-immunized infected. Additionally, while CD45RA+ JLP cells increased only slightly, the expression of CD45RC isoform on the JLP cells was ...
home when you are sick helps everyone you care about Questions & Answers Flu Vaccine: Q&A Vaccine Dosage & Administration Vaccine Supply for 2011-12 Season Vaccine Supply and...
home when you are sick helps everyone you care about Questions & Answers Flu Vaccine: Q&A Vaccine Dosage & Administration Vaccine Supply for 2011-12 Season Vaccine Supply and...
home when you are sick helps everyone you care about Questions & Answers Flu Vaccine: Q&A Vaccine Dosage & Administration Vaccine Supply for 2011-12 Season Vaccine Supply and...
This issue has the following articles: (1) Deterrence with a Minimum Nuclear Stockpile - Commentary by Bruce T. Goodwin; (2) Enhancing Confidence in the Nation's Nuclear Stockpile - Livermore experts are participating in a national effort aimed at predicting how nuclear weapon materials and systems will likely change over time; (3) Narrowing Uncertainties - For climate modeling and many other fields, understanding uncertainty, or margin of error, is critical; (4) Insight into a Deadly Disease - Laboratory experiments reveal the pathogenesis of tularemia in host cells, bringing scientists closer to developing a vaccine for this debilitating disease. (5) Return to Rongelap - On the Rongelap Atoll, Livermore scientists are working to minimize radiological exposure for natives now living on or wishing to return to the islands.
Brucella melitensis is a Gram-negative coccobacillus bacteria belonging to the Alphaproteobacteria subclass. It is an important zoonotic pathogen that causes brucellosis, a disease affecting sheep, cattle, and sometimes humans. The B. melitensis strain M5-90, a live attenuated vaccine cultured from the B. melitensis virulent strain M28, has been an effective tool to control brucellosis in goats and sheep in China. Here we report the complete genome sequences of B. melitensis M28 and M5-90, strains with different virulence backgrounds, which will serve as a valuable reference for future studies. PMID:21478357
Ten children receiving maintenance dialysis were immunized with the standard dose of measles-mumps-rubella vaccine between 15 and 33 months of age. Immune responses to vaccination were determined using commercially available enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays for measles, mumps, and rubella viruses. Eight children responded to measles vaccine, 5 to mumps vaccine, 8 to rubella vaccine, and only 3 children to all three vaccines, compared with a seroconversion rate of over 90% to all three vaccines in healthy children (P less than 0.0001). We contend that the relatively poor immunocompetence of our dialysis patients explains their less than optimal vaccine response and suggest that children vaccinated while undergoing dialysis be tested to confirm serological evidence of immunity. PMID:1571219
The purpose of this study was to validate through natural exposure a cut-off level of varicella zoster IgG as protective against infection with varicella zoster virus (VZV). Laboratory testing to determine VZV immune status of pregnant women exposed to varicella is recommended. Quantitative assays are now available which are sensitive and specific. More than 200 consecutive requests for screening in pregnant patients with recent varicella contacts were followed-up by questionnaire. DiaSorin LIAISON and VZV time resolved fluorescence immuno assay (VZV TRFIA) were used to measure VZV antibody level. One hundred fifty out of 209 (72%) questionnaires were returned; 14 patients developed varicella, 129 did not and seven were not known. Patients who had been given VZIG and developed varicella on...
BackgroundPostherpetic neuralgia (PHN) is a painful and difficult to treat complication of acute herpes zoster. Current treatment options provide only partial relief and are often...Full Text Available
Ninety percent of foxes fed commercial ERA vaccine in a specially designed bait developed rabies serum neutralizing antibodies. The vaccine bait did not cause clinical signs of rabies when consumed...Full Text Available
BACKGROUND: Although the effectiveness of influenza vaccination in high-risk groups has been proven, vaccine coverage continues to be less than 50% in The Netherlands. To improve vaccination rates,...Full Text Available
SummaryBecause increasing numbers of HIV vaccine candidates are being tested globally, it is essential to differentiate vaccine-from virus-induced antibodies. Most of the currently...Full Text Available
The extensive diversity of Plasmodium falciparum antigens is a major obstacle to a broadly effective malaria vaccine but population genetics has rarely been used to guide vaccine design....Full Text Available
BackgroundThe first vaccine to prevent human papillomavirus (HPV) and cervical cancer has been licensed, and in future, vaccination may be routinely offered to 10–14 year...Full Text Available
There is a quest for the development of a new generation of vaccines consisting of well-defined subunit antigens. For a number of practical reasons it is attractive to develop vaccines on the basis...Full Text Available
The human immunodeficiency virus Tat protein is essential for virus replication and is a candidate vaccine antigen. Macaques immunized with Tat or chemically modified Tat toxoid having the same clade...Full Text Available
The development of an HIV vaccine will require a more precise understanding of the immunological and virological underpinnings of HIV infection. Magnetofection, the process of magnetizing HIV...Full Text Available
Although major inroads into making antiretroviral therapy available in resource-poor countries have been made, there is an urgent need for an effective vaccine administered shortly after birth, which...Full Text Available
... Weiss, S., D. Kobiler, H. Levy, H. Marcus, A. Pass, N. Rothschild, and Z ... of Bacillus anthracis spores conferred by a protective antigen-based vaccine in rabbits ...
The attitude of Nigerian mothers, mainly Yoruba, towards measles vaccine and other aspects of prevention are influenced by different perceptions of the cause of measles. There is a significant correlation...Full Text Available
The entire genome of rabies virus vaccine strain Flury-LEP-C, a Chinese variant of the rabies virus vaccine strain Flury-LEP, was sequenced. The overall length of the genome of Flury-LEP-C strain was...Full Text Available
BackgroundAlthough the World Health Organization had recommended that every child be vaccinated for Hepatitis B by the early 1980s, large multinational pharmaceutical companies held...Full Text Available
During the anamnestic response, the sera of four rabbits immunized with a polyvalent pneumococcal vaccine contained large amounts of cryoglobulins belonging to the G and M immunoglobulin classes. These...Full Text Available
Splenectomy or pretreatment of adult hamsters with cyclophosphamide (Cytoxan) increased the lethality of the TC-83 vaccine strain of Venezuelan encephalitis virus (VEE), inoculated subcutaneously, from 12% for normal hamsters to 75 and 76% respectively. A...
PurposeWe previously reported a randomized phase II clinical trial combining a poxvirus-based vaccine encoding PSA with radiotherapy in patients with localized prostate...Full Text Available
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
We studied the effect of booster injections and the long-term immune response after injections of an anti-human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) lipopeptide vaccine. This vaccine was injected alone...Full Text Available
A field study was conducted under commercial feedlot conditions at 2 sites in western Canada to determine the relative effects of a univalent viral vaccine (MLV 1) program versus a multivalent viral...Full Text Available
Introduction: Tumor-derived heat shock protein (HSP)-peptide complexes (HSPPCs) induced immunity against malignancies in preclinical trials, working across tumor types and bypassing the need to identify single immunogenic peptides. These results paved the way for the use of human gp96 obtained from autologous tumor samples as an anti-cancer vaccine. Areas covered: Autologous tumor-derived HSP gp96 peptide complex (HSPPC-96) vaccine is emerging as a tumor- and patient-specific cancer vaccine, with confirmed activity in several malignancies. It has been tested in Phase III clinical trials in advanced melanoma and kidney cancer with evidence for efficacy in patients with earlier stage disease. HSPPC-96-based vaccine demonstrated an excellent safety profile, thus emerging as a novel therapeuti...
Persistent hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection affects 170 million people worldwide. Acute HCV infection is often asymptomatic, but many infected individuals develop persistent infections that may lead to development of end-stage liver diseases, including liver cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma. Thus, an HCV vaccine that could significantly lower the chronicity rate would have a major impact on the disease burden. Unfortunately, HCV is a highly mutable virus, and escape mutations can undermine vaccine-induced virus-specific immunity. Also, HCV exists as multiple genotypes, and so genotype-specific vaccines might be required to achieve broad protection. Finally, vaccine development has been hampered by the lack of a small animal model and cell culture systems, but these are currently being established. Despite these obstacles, several vaccine candidates tested in the chimpanzee ...
IntroductionThe outbreak of cholera in Zimbabwe intensified interest in the control and prevention of cholera. While there is agreement that safe water, sanitation, and personal...Full Text Available
Age-related alterations in the cellular composition of the B lineage are a major cause of the poor antibody response to vaccination and to infectious agents among the elderly population. The mechanisms...Full Text Available
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A letter of inquiry was sent to 21 countries in Europe to ascertain their experience of diphtheria during the last 20 years. An analysis of the 15 replies showed that all relied on childhood vaccination...Full Text Available
BackgroundAlthough advances in rehydration therapy have made cholera a treatable disease with low case-fatality in settings with appropriate medical care, cholera continues...Full Text Available
... view on the utility of such attacks, see JH Rothschild, Tomorrow's Weapons ... Aum Shinrikyo may have had a stolen vaccine anthrax strain incapable ...
Background and aims. The multiplicity of vaccine injections during childhood leads to iterative painful and stressful experiences which may lead in turn to anticipated pain and then possibly to a true needle phobia. We aimed at evaluating a multifactorial strategy of pain management combining pharmacological and non-pharmacological approaches during vaccination, as compared to usual care, in 4- to 12-year-old children. Methods. In all, 239 children were enroled by 25 family practitioners in an open-label study. After a pseudo-randomization, usual pain management (n = 132) was compared to a multifactorial strategy (n = 107) associating preliminary application of an anesthesic patch, preferential use of specified vaccines, child education by the parents and the doctor, parental accompaniment...
BackgroundMycobacterium avium subspecies paratuberculosis causes systemic infection and chronic intestinal inflammation in many species including...Full Text Available
BackgroundThe Plasmodium falciparum pre-erythrocytic stage candidate vaccine RTS,S is being developed for protection of young children against...Full Text Available
Vibrio cholerae 638 (El Tor, Ogawa), a new CTXΦ-negative hemagglutinin/protease-defective strain that is a cholera vaccine candidate, was examined for safety and immunogenicity...Full Text Available
Adenovirus vaccine vectors derived from rare human serotypes have been shown to be less potent than serotype 5 (Ad5) at inducing immune responses to encoded antigens. To identify highly immunogenic...Full Text Available
...INFORMATION Diarrhoeal disease Food safety and foodborne illness Enterohaemorrhagic Escherichia coli (EHEC) Cholera WHO PROGRAMMES AND ACTIVITIES Child and Adolescent Health and Development (...FOS) Initiative for Vaccine Research (IVR) TECHNICAL INFORMATION Vaccine research: diarrhoeal diseases Cholera Water-related diseases Household water treatment and safe storage WHO Global Salm-Surv ...PUBLICATIONS Diarrhoea: child and adolescent health Diarrhoea: cholera RELATED TOPICS - Child health - Water - Food safety - Cholera - Travel - Breastfeeding ...
The use of tick vaccines in mammalian hosts has been shown to be the most promising alternative tick control method to current use of acaricides, which suffers from a number of limitations. However,...Full Text Available
The efficacy of a heat inactivated hepatitis B virus vaccine, containing 3 micrograms hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg), was studied in a high risk group of 800 susceptible homosexual men by a randomised...Full Text Available
Veterinarians and farmers employing multivalent killed vaccines in lactating dairy cows have reported transient losses in milk production. Few studies have quantified this loss. In this report, effects...Full Text Available
The Yellow Fever Vaccine 17D (YFV17D) has been used as a vector for the Lassa virus glycoprotein precursor (LASV-GPC) resulting in construction of YFV17D/LASV-GPC recombinant virus. The virus...Full Text Available
BackgroundThe malaria vaccine candidate antigen RTS,S includes parts of the pre-erythrocytic stage circumsporozoite protein fused to the Hepatitis B surface antigen. Two Adjuvant...Full Text Available
Because toxicity with the use of 3000 centiGray (cGy) of total lymphoid irradiation (TLI) was observed in an earlier study, 2000-cGy treatments were delivered in a 2-portal format to 7 patients and in a modified 3-portal fashion to 6 patients, as part of a randomized, investigator-blinded trial of TLI treatment for refractory rheumatoid arthritis. Analysis of combined data from the 13 patients revealed statistically significant improvement in 5 clinical indicators of disease activity at the end of TLI and 6 and 12 months later, accompanied by T4-specific immunosuppression. Management considerations resulted in the introduction of prednisone therapy in 5 patients, methotrexate in 4, and azathioprine in 1 during the interval of 8-12 months post-TLI. Herpes zoster occurred in 5 patients prior to the initiation of this additional therapy. These data indicate that, in patients with rheumatoid arthritis, a TLI dose of 2000 cGy is sufficient to produce measurable benefit ...
ObjectivesTo examine whether people who expect to live longer engage in healthier behaviors relative to people who expect to live shorter lives.Full Text Available
BackgroundIs living alone a risk factor for depression among older adults? Previous research is mixed and inconclusive, and it is unclear whether living alone influences psychological...Full Text Available
PURPOSETo compare hand-assisted laparoscopic donor nephrectomy and pure laparoscopic live donor nephrectomy techniques in live donor nephrectomy.METHODSIn...Full Text Available
In this paper we present an overview of the literature on efficacy and safety trials of the various pneumococcal conjugate vaccines on the market (PCV7) and in development (PCV9, PCV11 and allegedly PCV10 and PCV13), as well as of observations from post-licensure studies. Seven- (PCV7) and nine-valent PCV (PCV9) are reported to be sufficiently immunogenic after administration of a 3+1 schedule in infants in various RCTs. PncOMPC (PCV7 with a protein of N. meningitidis as a carrier) is less immunogenic, though this may have no repercussions for the protective efficacy against clinical disease. PCV7 is 82-97% efficacious against vaccine serotype (VT) IPD, 90% efficacious against (clinically diagnosed) pneumococcal pneumonia, and, like the 11-valent PCV, 57% efficacious against VT acute otiti...
Oral vaccination is the most desirable immunization method by which to prevent fish disease occurring at the early larval stage. We developed an Escherichia coli-based oral nervous necrosis virus (NNV) subunit vaccine and demonstrated its effectiveness in orange spotted grouper (Epinephelus coioides) fry. However, the incubation period was determined to be over 2weeks. To enhance the efficacy and shorten the incubation period, a safe and digestible biological adjuvant should be found. Vibrio anguillarum, a common marine bacterium with immune-stimulatory capability was selected as an expression host. An expression vector containing its heat shock protein 60 gene (groE) as an inducible promoter was constructed to express recombinant NNV coat protein as an antigen. The recombinant V. anguilla...
Recommended treatment of chronic hepatitis B with interferon-α and/or nucleos(t)ide analogues does not lead to a satisfactory result. Induction of HBV-specific T cells by therapeutic...Full Text Available
The trematode Fasciola hepatica (Fa.he.) is a common parasite of human and livestock. The hemoglobin (Hb) of Fa.he., a potential immunogen, was chosen for characterization...Full Text Available
BackgroundTrypanosoma cruzi, the etiologic agent of Chagas Disease, is a major vector borne health problem in Latin America and an emerging...Full Text Available
AbstractIndividual informed consent is a key ethical obligation for clinical studies, but empirical studies show that key requirements are often not met. Common recommendations to strengthen...Full Text Available
In the absence of a vaccine, there is an urgent need for the development of safe and effective topical microbicides to prevent the sexual transmission of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1)....Full Text Available
Genetically identical rhesus monkeys would have tremendous utility as models for the study of human disease and would be particularly valuable for vaccine trials and tissue transplantation studies where...Full Text Available
BackgroundPolychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) may cause immunotoxic effects, but the detailed dose–response relationship and possible vulnerable time windows of exposure are...Full Text Available
A preventive medicine program of rubella control for trainees at the Air Force Military Training Center, Lackland AFB, Texas, was begun in October 1977. Incoming trainees were screened for rubella susceptibility,...Full Text Available
...broad range of experience in designing and building research and development laboratories for products such as vaccines, blood and sera, biological products, medical devices, solid dosage forms , highly potent products and cytotoxic material. We also have experience in a range of modular laboratories for TSE research, ...
A prospective cohort study was undertaken in two commercial California dairies. The treatment group, 246 cows, received three doses of a whole cell bacterin of J5 Escherichia coli (mutant of E. coli...Full Text Available
BackgroundSurrogate immunologic markers for natural and vaccine-mediated protection against tuberculosis (TB) have not been identified.MethodsHIV-infected...Full Text Available
Israel has faced the challenge presented by epidemic poliomyelitis by using different immunization strategies. In the 1950s, inactivated poliovirus vaccine (IPV) helped to reduce the total burden of...Full Text Available
In vivo plasminogen responses to various stimuli were studied. Plasminogen-125I was prepared and used first for metabolic studies of plasminogen in control dogs. The average results were:...Full Text Available
Antibodies against feline leukemia virus (FeLV) and the feline oncornavirus-associated cell membrane antigen (FOCMA) were transferred from pregnant cats to their suckling kittens. All of these kittens...Full Text Available
... were erroneous. The oriental rat flea, Xenopsylla cheopis Rothschild, is considered to be the primary vector of ... laboratory and production of Weigl's exanthematous typhus vaccine. In Maintenance of hum...
In this report we define the parameters of the human immune response after immunization with hepatitis B vaccine. 2 wk after booster immunization, there is significant spontaneous secretion of antibody...Full Text Available
The use of dendritic cells (DCs) as a cellular adjuvant is a promising approach to the immunotherapy of cancer. It has previously been demonstrated that DCs pulsed ex vivo with Toxoplasma gondii...Full Text Available
Approximately 30% of foxes given two doses of an inactivated rabies antigen delivered directly into the intestinal tract developed an immune response as measured by rabies serum neutralizing antibodies....Full Text Available
Increasing numbers of human cowpox virus infections that are being observed and that particularly affect young non-vaccinated persons have renewed interest in this zoonotic disease. Usually causing...Full Text Available
BackgroundThe objective of the study was to analyse the evolution of Bordetella pertussis population and the influence of herd immunity in different areas of the...Full Text Available
Evaluation of the protective efficacy of recombinant T-cell-reactive proteins of Coccidioides posadasii in a murine model of coccidioidomycosis has led to the discovery of potential...Full Text Available
BackgroundAntigen sparing and cross-protective immunity are regarded as crucial in pandemic influenza vaccine development. Both targets can be achieved by adjuvantation strategy...Full Text Available
Definition of the T-lymphocyte responses to dengue viruses should aid in the development of safe and effective vaccines and help to explain the pathophysiology of dengue hemorrhagic fever and dengue...Full Text Available
The identification of the protein targets for dengue virus-specific T lymphocytes may be useful for planning the development of subunit vaccines against dengue. We studied the recognition by murine...Full Text Available
vaccination card during trial enrollment at the KEMRI/CDC site in Kenya. (Alan Rubin, KEMRI) KEMRI Clinical Officer Paul Ogai reviews a prospective participant's...
Public health activities, especially infectious disease control, depend on effective teamwork. We present the results of a pilot audit questionnaire aimed at assessing the quality of public health services...Full Text Available
... A better understanding of the links between nutrients, the gut microbiome and the intestinal immune system is likely to pave the way to the development of innovative approaches that target activation of specific immunological pathways for promoting the hostrsquo;s gut defense. Such knowledge should positively impact on the development of vaccine formulations and intervention strategies for improved control of enteric infections in developing countries. Registration fees # The Registration Fee is $715.00 on and before September 7, 2011. # After September 7, 2011, the ...
Correlates between immunological parameters and protection against Bacillus anthracis infection in animals vaccinated with protective antigen (PA)-based vaccines could provide surrogate markers to evaluate the putative protective efficiency of immunization in humans. In previous studies we demonstrated that neutralizing antibody levels serve as correlates for protection in guinea pigs (S. Reuveny et al., Infect. Immun. 69:2888-2893, 2001; H. Marcus et al., Infect. Immun. 72:3471-3477, 2004). In this study we evaluated similar correlates for protection by active and passive immunization of New Zealand White rabbits. Full immunization and partial immunization were achieved by single and multiple injections of standard and diluted doses of a PA-based vaccine. Passive immunization was carried out by injection of immune sera from rabbits vaccinated with PA-based vaccine prior to ...
In this paper we present an overview of the literature on efficacy and safety trials of the various pneumococcal conjugate vaccines on the market (PCV7) and in development (PCV9, PCV11 and allegedly PCV10 and PCV13), as well as of observations from post-licensure studies. Seven- (PCV7) and nine-valent PCV (PCV9) are reported to be sufficiently immunogenic after administration of a 3+1 schedule in infants in various RCTs. PncOMPC (PCV7 with a protein of N. meningitidis as a carrier) is less immunogenic, though this may have no repercussions for the protective efficacy against clinical disease. PCV7 is 82-97% efficacious against vaccine serotype (VT) IPD, 90% efficacious against (clinically diagnosed) pneumococcal pneumonia, and, like the 11-valent PCV, 57% efficacious against VT acute otitis media. Naturally, it would be of paramount public health interest if the same levels of efficacy and effectiveness could be achieved with fewer doses. ...
The ..beta.. decay half-lives of neutron-rich isotopes with Z=24-28 are calculated in the QRPA with a Gamow-Teller residual interaction. For odd-mass and odd-odd systems QRPA phonon correlations are introduced to quasiparticle transitions in first-order perturbation. The calculated half-lives agree very well with the experimental values. For later application of this model to nuclei far from stability, we have examined the dependence of the calculated half-lives on the model parameters.
The #beta# decay half-lives of neutron-rich isotopes with Z=24-28 are calculated in the QRPA with a Gamow-Teller residual interaction. For odd-mass and odd-odd systems QRPA phonon correlations are introduced to quasiparticle transitions in first-order perturbation. The calculated half-lives agree very well with the experimental values. For later application of this model to nuclei far from stability, we have examined the dependence of the calculated half-lives on the model parameters. (orig.).
All Streptococcus pneumoniae strains isolated from paediatric clinical samples at Heraklion University General Hospital in the 10-year period 2000-2009 were tested for serotype and susceptibility to antimicrobials. Among a total of 258 strains, 159 were isolated in the 5-year period 2000-2004, before the introduction of the heptavalent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV7), and 99 in the post-PCV7 5-year period 2005-2009. The prevalence of PCV7-included serotypes decreased in the post-PCV7 period (p?=?0.0002), but an increase was observed for serotypes 7F (p?=?0.002) and 19A (p?=?0.004). Pan-susceptibility rates and susceptibility to cotrimoxazole increased in the post-PCV7 period (p?=?0.01 and p?=?0.008, respectively), but serotype 19A emerged as a contributor to multi-resistance (p?=?0.007). PCV7 was followed by decreased S. pneumoniae resistance and prevalence of vaccine-related serotypes but increased prevalence of serotypes 7F and 19A. ...
ContextMusic and surgery.ObjectiveTo determine the effect of live classical piano music on vital signs of patients undergoing ophthalmic surgery.DesignRetrospective...Full Text Available
The widely accepted oxidative stress theory of aging postulates that aging results from accumulation of oxidative damage. Surprisingly, data from the longest-living rodent known, naked mole-rats [MRs;...Full Text Available
The introduction and survival of zoonotic bacterial pathogens in poultry farming have been linked to bacterial association with free-living protozoa. To date, however, no information is available on...Full Text Available
The purpose of this study was to illuminate the experiences of poor, urban HIV-positive drug users. Sixty participants were asked about HIV risk behaviors, the impact of HIV on their lives,...Full Text Available
The purpose of this study was to assess the effect of a 735-kV transmission line on the electric and magnetic field exposures of people living at the edge of the line's right of way. Exposure of 18...Full Text Available
Using 31P-nuclear magnetic resonance, we studied the relationship between myocardial high-energy phosphate content and flux values for the creatine kinase reaction in the living rat under inotropic...Full Text Available
The proposed short wavelength coherent light source driven by the SLAC 3 km linac might be used to induce transitions between nuclear isomeric states. If an isotope were found with energetically adjacent isomeric states, one short-lived and one long-lived, and it were possible to separate and concentrate the long-lived species, and other nuclear and solid-state parameters were favorable, it might be possible to convert sufficient population to the short-lived state to realize [gamma]-ray lasing. Even if the x-ray intensity were insufficient, study of such driven transitions would be quite valuable.
The proposed short wavelength coherent light source driven by the SLAC 3 km linac might be used to induce transitions between nuclear isomeric states. If an isotope were found with energetically adjacent isomeric states, one short-lived and one long-lived, and it were possible to separate and concentrate the long-lived species, and other nuclear and solid-state parameters were favorable, it might be possible to convert sufficient population to the short-lived state to realize {gamma}-ray lasing. Even if the x-ray intensity were insufficient, study of such driven transitions would be quite valuable.
European sea bass (Dicentrarchus labrax L.) is a marine species of great economic importance, particularly in Mediterranean aquaculture. However, numerous pathogenic viruses, bacteria, fungi and parasites affect the species, causing various infectious diseases and thereby leading to the most heavy losses in aquaculture production of sea bass. In this respect, knowledge on molecular and genetic mechanisms of resistance to pathogens and specific features of immune response against various infectious agents should greatly benefit the development of effective vaccines and proper vaccination strategies in marker-assisted selection of fish resistant to a range of infections. To date, genetic knowledge on sea bass immune regulatory genes responsible for resistance to pathogens is relatively poor ...
Vaccine-mediated prevention of primary HIV-1 infection at the heterosexual mucosal portal of entry may be facilitated by highly optimised formulations or drug delivery devices for intravaginal (i.vag) immunization. Previously we described hydroxyethylcellulose (HEC)-based rheologically structured gel vehicles (RSVs) for vaginal immunization of an HIV-1 vaccine candidate, a soluble recombinant trimeric HIV-1 clade-C envelope glycoprotein designated CN54gp140. Here we investigated the efficacy of lyophilized solid dosage formulations (LSDFs) for prolonging antigen stability and as i.vag delivery modalities. LSDFs were designed and developed that upon i.vag administration they would reconstitute with the imbibing of vaginal fluid to mucoadhesive, site-retentive semi-solids. Mice were immunize...
AbstractBackground Randomised controlled trials (RCTs) in the 1970s and early 1980s showed the polysaccharide serogroup A vaccine (SgAV) prevented serogroup A meningococcal meningitis (SGAMM). Subsequent non-RCTs suggested significant variations in the age-specific duration of protection among children. Objectives To determine the protective effect, duration of protection, age-specific effects and the effect of booster doses in children of the SgAV against SGAMM. Search strategy We searched the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL) (The Cochrane Library 2010, issue 2) which contains the Acute Respiratory Infections Group's Specialised Register, MEDLINE (January 1950 to May Week 3, 2010) and EMBASE (January 1974 to May 2010). Selection criteria We included RCTs. Non-RCTs ...
The half-lives of short-lived nuclei produced by 14 MeV or thermal neutron bombardments were measured with a Ge detector, a Spectrum Multi-Scaler (Laboratory Equipment Corporation SMS-48) and a High-Rate Spectroscopy Amplifier (EG and G ORTEC Model 973) in the multi-scaling mode. The corrections for pile-up and dead-time losses were performed by applying source and pulser methods. The half-lives of {sup 91m}Mo, {sup 97m}Nb, {sup 138}Cs, {sup 139}Ba, {sup 174}Tm and {sup 203m}Pb were determined with accuracy of 0.22-0.6% and the accuracy has been much improved. (author)
The law of the 30 December 1991 on the high activity long lived radioactive wastes reached the end. This synthesis final document presents the scientific and technological results, obtained still the end of 2005, on the separation and the transmutation of long lived radionuclides of high activity long lived radioactive wastes. It is organized in five chapters: a presentation of the context and the historical aspects, the researches, the objectives and the strategy of the axis 1, the researches results on the advanced separation, the researches results on the transmutation, the scenario of separation-transmutation and their environmental, technical and economical impacts. (A.L.B.)
Hepatitis B subviral particles, purified from plasma of asymptomatic carriers seropositive for hepatitis B e antigen, were treated with various conditions reported for the processing of vaccines. Thereafter,...Full Text Available
Serum and salivary responses of 95 infants to either a standard (4 x 10(4) plaque-forming units (PFU), 47 neonates) or a high dose (4 x 10(5) PFU, 48 neonates) of tetravalent reassortant rhesus rotavirus...Full Text Available
The ERA strain of rabies virus was propagated in a baby hamster kidney cell line (BHK-21/C13). The viral titer was 10(1.8) tissue culture infective doses (TCID) higher than that of commercial ERA vaccine....Full Text Available
Newly hatched chicks were dosed orally with a Salmonella typhimurium wild-type strain, an S. enteritidis wild-type strain, and a genetically defined S. enteritidis aroA vaccine candidate, strain CVL30....Full Text Available
Type I interferon is important in anti-viral responses and in coordinating the innate immune response. Here we explore the use of interferon-β to adjuvant the response to a rabies virus...Full Text Available
BackgroundAfrican horse sickness virus (AHSV) causes a non-contagious, infectious disease in equids, with mortality rates that can exceed 90% in susceptible horse populations....Full Text Available
Among important candidates for babesial vaccines are apical complex proteins, including rhoptry-associated protein 1 (RAP-1) from Babesia bovis and B. bigemina, which...Full Text Available
A recent clinical trial of a T-cell-based AIDS vaccine delivered with recombinant adenovirus type 5 (rAd5) vectors showed no efficacy in lowering viral load and was associated with increased risk of...Full Text Available
In order to conserve vaccines in hot countries a solar refrigerator has been made by a French university. It is a photothermal refrigerator without batteries. It uses two gases: ammonia and calcium chloride. The refrigerator is autonomous and can work eleven days without sun. (N.C.)
Measurements of the half-lives of some long-lived nuclides of elements Z = 92, 94, 95 and 96 have been compiled and evaluated. Recommended values are presented for {sup 232-236,238}U, for {sup 236,238-242,244}Pu, for {sup 241,242m,243}Am, and for {sup 242-248,250}Cm. Values are presented for both spontaneous fission half-life and total half-life. Problems with reported uncertainties are also discussed. (author).
This report presents the main conclusions of 15 years of researches managed by the CEA. This report is the preliminary version of the 2005 final report. It presents the main conclusions of the actions on the axis 1 and 3 of the law of the 30 December 1991. The synthesis report on the axis 1 concerns results obtained on the long lived radionuclides separation and transmutation in high level and long lived radioactive wastes. the synthesis report on the axis 3 presents results obtained by the processes of conditioning and of ground and underground long term storage. (A.L.B.)
In this work, the half-lives of the beta-unstable nuclei {sup 101}Mo and {sup 101}Tc were studied using neutron-irradiated samples of {sup 100}Mo to produce {sup 101}Mo which in its turn generates {sup 101}Tc by beta decay. The gamma activity of each sample was followed for 5 consecutive half-lives in steps of 5 minutes. A total of 22 sources were measured and checked for dead-time influence, and the half-lives were obtained by weighted average. The results are statistically incompatible with the tabulated values.
In this work, the half-lives of the beta-unstable nuclei "1"0"1Mo and "1"0"1Tc were studied using neutron-irradiated samples of "1"0"0Mo to produce "1"0"1Mo which in its turn generates "1"0"1Tc by beta decay. The gamma activity of each sample was followed for 5 consecutive half-lives in steps of 5 minutes. A total of 22 sources were measured and checked for dead-time influence, and the half-lives were obtained by weighted average. The results are statistically incompatible with the tabulated values.
Beta-decay studies of the new neutron-rich isotopes sup(58,59)Cr, "6"3Mn, sup(66,67)Co and "6"9Ni, yielding distinctly shorter half-lives than the corresponding theoretical predictions, are presented. The influence of the short half-lives on the r-process calculations of nuclear abundances is discussed. It is concluded that a significantly higher neutron density than the one obtained from explosive helium burning in supernovae is needed to reproduce the observed abundances around A = 80. (orig.).
A three-level approach to viability is developed, considering (1) living systems, (2) a niche, understood as the area within the reach of their actions, and (3) an environment. A systematic analysis of the interrelations between these levels shows that living systems emerge with matter/energy processing systems. These can add controller structures when producing excess energy. A three-sensor controller structure enables a living system to deal with unfavourable and scarce environments. Further evolution of these controller structures offers improved ways to act on niches. Maintaining niches in scarce environments can require technology or economy. So social systems emerge, which are understood as aggregates of living systems. Basic patterns of interactions within social systems are analyse...
INTRODUCTIONSexual dysfunction symptoms in patients with HIV have not been fully investigated in Brazil.OBJECTIVESTo investigate the association...Full Text Available
Despite advances in standard of living of the population, the condition of widows and divorced women remains deplorable in society. The situation is worse in developing nations with their unique social,...Full Text Available
Accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS) represents a powerful technique for the detection of long-lived radionuclides through ultra-low isotope ratio measurements. In many cases, counting atoms rather than decays yields much higher sensitivities. The potential of AMS will be demonstrated on typical radionuclides of interest with half-lives between some tens of years up to a hundred million years. The precise measurement of the 27Al(n,2n)26Al excitation function will be exemplified. Lack of information exists for a list of nuclides as pointed out by nuclear data requests. A brief overview on detection limits and some applications for selected long-lived radionuclides is given.
Despite the existence of effective analgesic drugs, many cancer patients live and die with ineffective pain control. The control of cancer pain is largely achievable with the appropriate use of available...Full Text Available
Mar 2, 2010 ... The NASA/JPL Education Office works with educators -- both classroom teachers and informal educators -- to provide tools, resources and ...
Francisella tularensis is a gram negative facultative intracellular bacterium that causes the zoonotic disease tularemia. Free-living amebae, such as Acanthamoeba and...Full Text Available
About a third of the population in the cities of developing countries live in slums and shanty towns. By the year 2000 it is estimated that this number will grow to 2200 million, and by 2025 about 57%...Full Text Available
Contractile vacuole complexes are critical components of cell volume regulation and have been shown to have other functional roles in several free-living protists....Full Text Available
In the present article, the study to examine the ability of free-living amoebae (FLA) to serve as vectors of cryptosporidia is presented. Ten strains of different free-living amoebae of the FLA collection of the Parasitology Lab at Koblenz were cultivated in the presence of Cryptosporidium parvum oocysts. After phagocytosis and ingestion, the oocysts could be found in food vacuoles within the cytoplasm of the trophozoites of two different FLA strains. The uptake and the transport of the oocysts within the trophozoites could be demonstrated in an Acanthamoeba sp. (group II) strain (maximum, three oocysts; average, one oocyst) as well as in a Thecamoeba quadrilineata strain (maximum, 15 oocysts; average, eight oocysts), with the help of light microscopy. We found that these free-living amoeb...
Background:People with severe and persistent mental illness need help in most aspects of their lives, as the disability associated with these diseases can be debilitating....Full Text Available
Among the numerous free-living amoebae (FLA) of soil and water habitats, certain species belonging to two genera Acanthamoeba and Naegleria are facultative parasites of man.They cause disease called primary amoebic meningoencephalitis where history of contact with water was recorded in most of the cases especially with Naegleria species. The present work aimed to search for presence of free-living amoebae in the water and trials for its control by Ultraviolet-radiation (UV-radiation). Samples from different water sources were examined for the presence of free-living amoebae. These samples were cultured on non-nutrient agar streaked with bacteria. Amoebae were detected and identified by means of their morphological characters. Twelve positive cases of one hundred and twenty examined samples could be detected. The positive samples were exposed to different doses of UV-radiation for different times.
Abstract The brain is highly sensitive to environmental hypoxia. Little is known, however, about the neuropsychological effects of high altitude residence in the developing brain. We recently described only minor changes in processing speed in native Bolivian children and adolescents living at approximately 3700-m. However, evidence for loss of cerebral autoregulation above this altitude (4000-m) suggests a potential threshold of hypoxia severity over which neuropsychological functioning may be compromised. We conducted physiological and neuropsychological assessments in 62 Bolivian children and adolescents living at La Paz (-3700-m) and El Alto (-4100-m) in order to address this issue. Groups were equivalent in terms of age, gender, social class, schooling, parental education and genetic ...
CESAREAN SECTION SHAWNEE MISSION MEDICAL CENTER MERRIAM, KANSAS March 13, 2008 00:00:09 ANNOUNCER: Tonight you will experience the miracle of birth during a live ...
The kinetics of biosorption and desorption of lindane by live activated sludge and the fungus R. arrhizus was studies. The results from the use of live activated sludge suggest that besides biosorption, other lindane removal mechanisms acted in parallel. Most probably, biodegradation. A relationship between biodegradation and bisorption-desorption was established. Mass spectroscopy and gas chromatography studies suggested the presence of lindane biodegradation by products. Lindane accumulated by the live activated sludge could be desorbed while being biodegraded at the same time. Values for lindane biokinetic constants were estimated. Biosorption of lindane by live R. arrhizus is a rapid and reversible process with no indication of biodegradation. Values for the lindane biotransformation kinetic coefficients were estimated. (orig.).
Arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi are mutualistic symbionts living in the roots of 80% of land plant species, and developing extensive, below-ground extraradical hyphae fundamental for the uptake of...Full Text Available
Uranium and thorium ores are the source of natural radionuclides. Briefly described are the original and current methods of long-lived nuclide separation ("2"3"8U, "2"3"5U, "2"2"6Ra, "2"3"0Th, "2"3"1Pa, "2"2"7Ac, "2"3"2Th, "2"2"8Ra+"2"2"8Ac, "2"2"8Th), some short-lived nuclides ("2"3"4Th and "2"2"8Ac), radon, short-lived radon daughter products and long-lived radon daughter products ("2"1"0Pb, "2"1"0Bi, "2"1"0Po). Some nuclides, such as "2"1"0Po or "2"3"1Pa can more easily be producedin reactors. (Ha).
Containing an epidemic at its origin is the most desirable mitigation. Epidemics have often originated in rural areas, with rural communities among the first affected. Disease dynamics in rural regions have received limited attention, and results of general studies cannot be directly applied since population densities and human mobility factors are very different in rural regions from those in cities. We create a network model of a rural community in Kansas, USA, by collecting data on the contact patterns and computing rates of contact among a sampled population. We model the impact of different mitigation strategies detecting closely connected groups of people and frequently visited locations. Within those groups and locations, we compare the effectiveness of random and targeted vaccinations using a Susceptible-Exposed-Infected-Recovered compartmental model on the contact network. Our simulations show that the targeted vaccinations of only 10% ...
Marburg virus belongs to the genus Marburgvirus in the family Filoviridae and causes a severe hemorrhagic fever, known as Marburg hemorrhagic fever (MHF), in both humans and nonhuman primates. Similar to the more widely known Ebola hemorrhagic fever, MHF is characterized by systemic viral replication, immunosuppression and abnormal inflammatory responses. These pathological features of the disease contribute to a number of systemic dysfunctions including hemorrhages, edema, coagulation abnormalities and, ultimately, multiorgan failure and shock, often resulting in death. A detailed understanding of the pathological processes that lead to this devastating disease remains elusive, a fact that contributes to the lack of licensed vaccines or effective therapeutics. This article will review the...
...Keeping chickens: a beginner's guide : Directgov - Environment and greener living chickens, feeding chickens, egg marking, registering a ...flock, battery hens Chickens; Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs; Registrations; Animals; Livestock; Local government; Local ...authorities A guide for people keeping chickens on the laws for registering and feeding them, and how to spot key diseases. A ...guide for people keeping chickens on the laws for registering and feeding them, and how to spot key diseases. Keeping chickens: ...
Populations living close to high-voltage transmission lines often have residential magnetic field exposures in excess of 1 microT, and sometimes over 2 microT. Yet, populations studied in most epidemiologic...Full Text Available
A 5.76 MeV alpha-particle group has been observed in Am and Bk sources separated from a CERN W target. The data are interpreted due to the production of long-lived isomeric states in /sup 236/Am and /sup 236/Bk which decay to /sup 236/Pu. The possibility of high spin states as well as of shape isomeric states is raised.
A possibility of short-lived isotopes production in inter-tank section between the first and the second drift tube tanks (20.45 MeV) in INR linac is considered. At the initial stage the main efforts are concentrated on production of fluorine-18 used for positron emission tomography. The results of beam forming calculations, target heating calculations, equipment activation calculations as well as installation configuration and design are presented.
The present report is final report from a study on characterisation of radioactive waters in the Nordic countries. The study has mainly been focused on long-lived low and intermediate level radioactive waste. Methods to measure or estimate the activity content and the general composition are discussed. Recommendations are given regarding characterisation of waste under treatment and characterisation of already produced waste packages. (au).
Measurements of the half-lives of some long-lived nuclides of elements Z = 92, 94, 95 and 96 have been compiled and evaluated. Recommended values are presented for "2"3"2"-"2"3"6","2"3"8U, for "2"3"6","2"3"8"-"2"4"2","2"4"4Pu, for "2"4"1","2"4"2"m","2"4"3Am, and for "2"4"2"-"2"4"8","2"5"0Cm. Values are presented for both spontaneous fission half-life and total half-life. Problems with reported uncertainties are also discussed. (author).
The long-lived nuclides of the americium curium elements are of interest for their use in certain safeguard applications and for nuclear reactor burnup studies in waste management. Recommended values are presented for /sup 241,242m,243/Am, and for /sup 242,243,244,245,246,247,248,250/Cm. These values result from a consistent evaluation of all these half-lives. These preliminary estimates were presented earlier. The uncertainties are provided at the 95% confidence limit for each of the recommended values. It will be noted that many of the recommended errors considerably exceed errors quoted by individual authors in their publication, by up to an order of magnitude, e.g., the total half-life of /sup 242,246,248/Cm and the spontaneous fission half-life of /sup 244/Cm. 65 refs., 18 tabs.
The half-lives of "4"1Ar, "8"0"mBr, "9"4"mNb, "1"0"1Mo, "1"0"1Tc, "1"0"9Pd, "1"0"9"mPd, "1"2"2Sb, "1"2"2"mSb, "1"2"3"mSn, "1"5"2"mEu and "2"3"9Np have been measured more accurately compared to previous measurements. All of these half-lives and 39 others published earlier will be cited by M.S. Antony in the forthcoming project 'Chart of the nuclides - Strasbourg, 1990' due to appear early 1991. (author) 34 refs.; 4 figs.; 2 tabs.
Here we use published 16S rRNA gene sequences to compare the bacterial assemblages associated with humans, other mammals, other metazoa, and free-living microbial communities spanning a range...Full Text Available
In the decade before the discovery of insulin, the prominent American physicians Frederick Allen and Elliott Joslin advocated severe fasting and undernutrition to prolong the lives of diabetic patients....Full Text Available
This revision of the APT Waste Management Plan details the waste management requirements and issues specific to the APT plant for design considerations, construction, and operation. The APT Waste Management Plan is by its nature a living document and will be reviewed at least annually and revised as required.
For terrestrial animals and plants, a fundamental cost of living is water vapor lost to the atmosphere during exchange of metabolic gases. Here, by bringing together previously developed models for...Full Text Available
Recent reports confirm that, due to the presence of long-lived, latently infected cell populations, eradication of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) from infected patients by using antiretroviral...Full Text Available
Inhibiting insulin/IGF-1 signalling extends lifespan and delays age-related disease in species throughout the animal kingdom. This life-extension pathway, the first to be defined, was discovered through...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
BackgroundHigh complexity is considered a hallmark of living systems. Here we investigate the complexity of temporal gene expression patterns using the concept of Permutation Entropy...Full Text Available
After more than a decade of the AIDS epidemic in Thailand, the number of children whose parents are living with HIV or have died from AIDS is increasing significantly and it has been reported that these...Full Text Available
BackgroundCholera has claimed many lives throughout history and it continues to be a global threat, especially in countries in Africa. The disease is listed as one of three internationally...Full Text Available
BackgroundFor hundred of years, people in the region encompassed by the Afghanistan-Iran-Pakistan borders (AIP region) have been challenged by conflict and political and civil instability,...Full Text Available
BackgroundRNA turnover plays an important role in the gene regulation of microorganisms and influences their speed of acclimation to environmental changes. We investigated whole-genome...Full Text Available
The United States Virgin Islands (USVI) is facing a diabetes epidemic similar to the one on the U.S. mainland, yet little is known regarding the cultural context relevant to self-management...Full Text Available
The planned spallation source can be of considerable significance for biomedical basic research and for clinically relevant diagnostic and therapeutic applications. The following gives a brief description and explanations for its possible use in clinical medicine: I. Treatment of Malignant Tumors II. Production of Isotopes for Biochemical Investigations in Living Organisms for Diagnostic Purposes.
The neonatal Fc receptor FcRn provides IgG molecules with their characteristically long half-lives in vivo by protecting them from intracellular catabolism and then returning them to...Full Text Available
...Year nine students will be taught the importance of mateship in a bid to reduce risky behaviour and save lives as part of a school-based intervention program to be introduced in Queensland. 24.11.10 Safe sex saves schoolies from chlamydia The safe-sex message is failing to get ...
The purpose of this research is to clarify how psychological factors' impact on public acceptance of nuclear energy varies with where they live and their degree of knowledge. For this purpose, we carried out questionnaire survey about nuclear energy at three urban areas and two nuclear power plant siting areas. After collecting data, we applied factor analysis to the data, and found four factors which construct cognitive structure of nuclear energy. Using multiple regression analysis, we evaluated the impact of the four factors on two issues: the decision for or against nuclear policy and the reaction to nuclear power plant siting, and compared changes of the impact by where respondents live and their degree of knowledge. Consequently, we found that the impact of all four factors on the two issues varies with where respondents live. We also found that the impact of respondents' degree of knowledge to four factors varies ...
Although patients with cleft lip and palate (CLP) are not seen regularly in general dental practice, this is a frequent congenital anomaly; approximately one in every 800 live births results in a CLP....Full Text Available
BackgroundRapid and correct diagnosis of malaria is considered an important strategy in the control of the disease. However, it remains to be determined how well these tests can...Full Text Available
Inferences concerning the lives of extinct animals are difficult to obtain from the fossil record. Here we present a novel approach to the study of extinct carnivores, using a comparison between fossil...Full Text Available
Aug 8, 2011 ... Panel > Cloudenomics 101 What Cloud Computing Really Means for NASA. 11:00 am in Collaboration, LiveCall by Lucas Cioffi (Moderator) ...
Background. The Free Radical Theory of Aging mechanistically links oxidative stress to aging. Okinawa has among the world's longest-lived populations but oxidative stress in this...Full Text Available
Since living things began their activities on the earth, the extermination of living things in large number on global scale occurred twice 230 million years ago (P-Tr boundary) and 65 million years ago (K-T boundary). As to the cause of exterminating living things in short period, there are volcano eruption theory, meteorite collision theory and so on, but still it is not decided. Therefore, as to the strata of P-Tr boundary in south-western part of China where it has been known the preservation of P-Tr strata is especially good, the existence of elements was measured by instrument neutron activation analysis and ICP-MS, and the state of change was examined. According to the results, the change occurred at the P-Tr boundary on the earth, and further, the possibility of meteorite collision by paying attention to Ir were examined. The samples, the neutron activation analysis, the ICP-MS and the results are reported. The ...
...links ensure all of our managed accommodation is easily accessible to both campus sites and our special student arrangement makes travelling on the Metro rapid transit system easily affordable. Our halls are comfortable and they are very reasonable. Download the rents table here Rents 2009-2010 Students living in ...
To confirm that Mycobacterium tuberculosis chaperonin 10 (Cpn10) is secreted outside the live bacillus, infected macrophages were examined by electron microscopy. This revealed that...Full Text Available
BackgroundIndividuals living in malaria endemic areas generally harbour multiple parasite strains. Multiplicity of infection (MOI) can be an indicator of immune status. However,...Full Text Available
BackgroundNematoda diverged from other animals between 600–1,200 million years ago and has become one of the most diverse animal phyla on earth. Most nematodes are free-living...Full Text Available
Chemical reactions in living cells are under strict enzyme control and conform to a tightly regulated metabolic program. However, uncontrolled and potentially deleterious endogenous reactions occur,...Full Text Available
Major breakthroughs have recently been reported that can help overcome two inherent drawbacks of NMR: the lack of sensitivity and the limited memory of longitudinal magnetization. Dynamic nuclear polarization...Full Text Available
Photosynthetic antenna complexes capture and concentrate solar radiation by transferring the excitation to the reaction center that stores energy from the photon in chemical bonds. This process occurs...Full Text Available
Objectives To understand the perspectives of people with severe chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) as their illness progresses, and of their informal and professional carers,...Full Text Available
This booklet presents safe practices that you should follow if your activities take you near high-voltage transmission lines. It documents information that has generally been available to the public.
The live outdoor webcam seems inseparable from the mid-1990s' popular proliferation of the Internet. Combining a well-known medium, i.e. the photograph, with a new one, i.e. the Internet, the live outdoor webcam seems in the rear-view mirror to have contributed significantly to the popular perception of the Internet as a globally distended and thus "geographical" medium. Moreover, due to its role in the NASA Triana mission, the never-realised flagship of the Clinton-Gore administration's Digital Earth project, the live webcam seemed to play an important part in the construction of what leading geographers coined a "virtual geography"-the geography of the Internet, and the networked geography-that sought to establish itself as a new field of study during the late 1990s. In order to substantiate for this interpretation, I would like in the first part of this article to identify a number of basic characteristics of the outdoor ...
Summary: The small DNA tumor viruses have provided a very long-lived source of insights into many aspects of the life cycle of eukaryotic cells. In recent years, the emphasis has been on cancer-related...Full Text Available
BackgroundThe fifth Millennium Development Goal (MDG5) aims at improving maternal health. Globally, the maternal mortality ratio (MMR) declined from 400 to 260 per 100000 live births...Full Text Available
ObjectivesIn 2003, the Omani Ministry of Health Child Health Care Program initiated a national Birth Defects (BD) Register. This paper reviews the magnitude and risk factors of birth...Full Text Available
AbstractExclusive breastfeeding of infants for the first 6 months of life with continued breastfeeding for at least 6 more months occurs only 11.9% of the time in the United States. Efforts...Full Text Available
In vivo two-photon imaging through the pupil of the primate eye has the potential to become a useful tool for functional imaging of the retina. Two-photon excited fluorescence images...Full Text Available
Hair shaft melanin components (eu- or/and pheomelanin) are a long-lived record of precise interactions in the hair follicle pigmentary unit, e.g., between follicular melanocytes, keratinocytes,...Full Text Available
... Contrary to this definition, abiotic environmental factors are those in which no organisms participate - e.g. the geological underground, light, temperature and heat. Biotope The biotope is an area of uniform environmental conditions providing living place for a specific assemblage of plants and animals....
BackgroundAt least some forms of breast cancer are increasingly being viewed as a chronic illness, where an emphasis is placed on meeting the various ongoing needs of people living...Full Text Available
Conventional methods for removing metals from aqueous solutions include chemical precipitation, chemical oxidation or reduction, ion exchange, reverse osmosis, electrochemical treatment and evaporation. The removal of radionuclides from aqueous waste streams has largely relied on ion exchange methods which can be prohibitively costly given increasingly stringent regulatory effluent limits. The use of microbial cells as biosorbants for heavy metals offers a potential alternative to existing methods for decontamination or recovery of heavy metals from a variety of industrial waste streams and contaminated ground waters. The toxicity and the extreme and variable conditions present in many radionuclide containing waste streams may preclude the use of living microorganisms and favor the use of non-living biomass for the removal of actinides from these waste streams. In the work presented here, we have examined the biosorption of uranium by ...
Cementitious materials have physical and chemical properties that are well suited for the requirements of radioactive waste management. Namely, the materials have low permeability and durability that is consistent with the time frame required for short-lived radionuclides to decay. Furthermore, cementitious materials can provide a long-term chemical environment that substantially reduces the mobility of some long-lived radionuclides of concern for decommissioning (e.g., C-14, Ni-63, Ni-59). Because of these properties, cementitious materials are common in low-level radioactive waste disposal facilities throughout the world and are an attractive option for entombment of nuclear facilities. This paper describes design considerations for cementitious barriers in the context of performance over time frames of a few hundreds of years (directed toward short-lived radionuclides) and time frames of thousands of years (directed ...
Cementitious materials have physical and chemical properties that are well suited for the requirements of radioactive waste management. Namely, the materials have low permeability and durability that is consistent with the time frame required for short-lived radionuclides to decay. Furthermore, cementitious materials can provide a long-term chemical environment that substantially reduces the mobility of some long-lived radionuclides of concern for decommissioning (e.g., C-14, Ni-63, Ni-59). Because of these properties, cementitious materials are common in low-level radioactive waste disposal facilities throughout the world and are an attractive option for entombment of nuclear facilities. This paper describes design considerations for cementitious barriers in the context of performance over time frames of a few hundreds of years (directed toward short-lived radionuclides) and time frames of thousands of years (directed ...
Data reveal that sodium pentobarbital anesthesia does not depress glucose uptake of neutrophils stimulated by the addition of live E. coli. E. coli viability was reduced equally in blood obtained before and after sodium pentobarbital anesthesia. Pre- and ...
The objectives of this study were to examine the association between dietary factors and underweight and overweight adult Vietnamese living in the rural areas of Vietnam. A cross-sectional study of...Full Text Available
Adenosine triphosphate (ATP) is an indicator of living biomass in marine particulates. This report details the method used by Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory to analyze particulate ATP in samples taken from oligotrophic, tropical ocean waters. It represents a synthesis of previously published methods.
DNA damage is a threat to genomic integrity in all living organisms. Plants and green algae are particularly susceptible to DNA damage especially that caused by UV light, due to their light dependency...Full Text Available
Activation of beta-adrenergic or muscarinic acetylcholine receptors expressed in transfected cells or epidermal growth factor receptors in human keratinocytes produces 15% to 200% changes in cellular...Full Text Available
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.
BackgroundInvestigation of the functioning of the brain in living systems has been a major effort amongst scientists and medical practitioners. Amongst the various disorder of the...Full Text Available
This special issue of AGE showcases powerful alternative or unconventional approaches to basic aging research, including the use of exceptionally long-lived animal model species and...Full Text Available
This study analyzed the atmospheric emissions produced by the live firing of a 155 mm Howitzer gun. The study was conducted during a live firing training exercise at a Canadian Forces Base. Air emissions were sampled continuously for 3 hours. Particles and chemicals were accumulated on sampling media during the firing of 69 rounds. A single round was fired using 4 bags of propellants, and an additional 3 rounds were fired using 5 bags of propellant. Samples included particulate matter; hydrogen cyanide; polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs); dinitrotoluene compounds; benzene; toluene; ethylbenzene; xylene; metals; aldehydes; nitric acid; nitric oxide; nitrogen dioxide; hydrogen sulphide; and sulphur dioxide. Samples were collected at 8 m to the left of the gun as well as at 22 m in front of the gun muzzle in the line of fire. Results of the study showed that 60 per cent of the particles were below 10 {mu}m. Formaldehyde concentrations of 7.1 ...
Short-lived fission gas release from fuel pellets during irradiation was investigated based on the experimental results of the gas-flow rigs irradiated in the Halden Heavy Water Reactor (HBWR). The release-to-birth (R/B) rates of short-lived fission gas were measured by means of gas-flow measurement during the irradiation experiments. Surface-to-volume (S/V) ratios of fuel pellets and diffusion coefficients of short-lived fission gas release were evaluated from the obtained (R/B) values. The increase of (S/V) ratio agreed well with the point where the fuel temperature exceeded the threshold of 1% fission gas release. This indicates that the interlinkage of fission gas bubbles occurred there. The evaluated diffusion coefficients scattered in the range between 10"-"2"3 and 10"-"1"7 m"2/s, and the effects of fuel type (UO_2 or MOX) were not clearly observed. In addition, it is likely that the restructuring effect of fuel ...
UK Nirex has announced four sites which it wishes to assess for the disposal of low-level and short-lived intermediate-level radioactive wastes. There is local opposition at all four of the potential sites. (U.K.).
Fish living in contaminated environments accumulate toxic chemicals in their tissues. Biomarkers are needed to identify the resulting health effects, particularly focusing on early changes at a subcellular...Full Text Available
...Main | Next »Why America deserves three cheers Justin Webb | 08:09 UK time, Monday, 13 July 2009 My dear friend Lexington is leaving America to live ...
Objective:To assess the awareness and attitude of the general public toward people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA) in Mangalore, a city in Coastal Karnataka.Full Text Available
The long-lived nuclides of the americium and curium elements are of interest for their use in certain safeguard applications and for nuclear reactor burnup studies in waste management. Recommended values are presented for /sup 241,242m,243/Am, and for /sup 242,243,244,245,246,247,248,250/Cm. These values result from a consistent evaluation of all these half-lives. These preliminary estimates were presented earlier. The uncertainties are provided at the 95% confidence limit for each of the recommended values. It will be noted that many of the recommended errors considerably exceed errors quoted by individual authors in their publication, by up to an order of magnitude, e.g. the total half-life of /sup 242,246,248/Cm and the spontaneous fission half-life of /sup 244/Cm. These preliminary estimates for the half-lives were given previously. Efforts continue to reevaluate the various experiments to better gauge the systematic ...
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
Hundreds of thousands of people worldwide live or work in close proximity to steel mills. Integrated steel production generates chemical pollution containing compounds that can induce genetic damage...Full Text Available
Models of age-related effects on behavior predict that among short-lived species younger adults are more attractive and attracted to opposite-sex conspecifics than are older adults, whereas...Full Text Available
Objectives.To understand how “cumulative inequality” (CI), expressed as individual advantage and choice, and “external social supports” contribute...Full Text Available
Mechanical forces can regulate various functions in living cells. The cytoskeleton is a crucial element for the transduction of forces in cell-internal signals and subsequent biological responses. Accordingly,...Full Text Available
BackgroundThe pH is an important parameter controlling many metabolic and signalling pathways in living cells. Recombinant fluorescent pH indicators (pHluorins) have come into vogue...Full Text Available
... At the Vintage at Goodwood festival we're curating this summer, we intend to demonstrate how sustainability can be cool without being hippy in 2010. It really can - I'm the living embodiment of that . . .\\
The total half-life and the half-life for spontaneous fission are evaluated for the various long-lived nuclides of interest. Recommended values are presented for /sup 241/Am, /sup 242m/Am, /sup 243/Am, /sup 242/Cm, /sup 243/Cm, /sup 244/Cm, /sup 245/Cm, /sup 246/Cm, /sup 247/Cm, /sup 248/Cm, and /sup 250/Cm. The uncertainties are provided at the 95% confidence limit for each of the recommended values.
The total half-life and the half-life for spontaneous fission are evaluated for the various long-lived nuclides of interest. Recommended values are presented for "2"4"1Am, "2"4"2Am, "2"4"3Am, "2"4"2Cm, "2"4"3Cm, "2"4"4Cm, "2"4"5Cm, "2"4"6Cm, "2"4"7Cm, "2"4"8Cm, and "2"5"0Cm. The uncertainties are provided at the 95% confidence limit for each of the recommended values. (author).
A new acquisition and evaluation procedure has been introduced for the measurement of time-dependent processes in gamma-ray spectrometry, in order to extract more information, including half-lives, from the data recorded during acquisition and to enable a more comprehensive analysis of the results. These advanced, off-line data evaluation techniques improve the selectivity and the background subtraction and make it possible to estimate the important analytical parameters (e.g., half-lives) more accurately than with the usual decay curve fitting method. (author)
This review begins with an historical account of biomaterials applications followed by a concise description of the phenomena taking place between the living tissues and non-living materials containing them. After describing the requirements for biodegradability and the mechanisms involved, a thorough literature survey of such polymers is presented. In the end a very short review of the work done in this area by the authors in recent years is given, including: the synthesis of a wide variety of biodegradable di-and tri-block copolymers, preparation of microparticles; stealth-and immuno-liposomes; dendrosomes and polymersomes; and some of their applications in drug and gene delivery.
Biosorption is an important removal mechanism in treating hydrophobic toxic organics in biological reactors. Equilibrium sorption isotherms and sorption kinetics of 2,4-dichlorophenol on live and chemically inactive anaerobic granules were studied. A metabolic inhibitor was used to inactivate the biological activity of the biomass. Results showed that the difference in the biosorption of live and chemically inactive anaerobic granules is not significant. This would suggest that anaerobic biosorption is mainly a physical-chemical process and that metabolic-mediated diffusion in the process is negligible. 12 refs., 3 tabs., 7 figs.
Selected applications of novel techniques in Agricultural Biotechnology, Health Food formulations and Medical Biotechnology are being reviewed with the aim of unraveling future developments and policy changes that are likely to open new markets for Biotechnology and prevent the shrinking or closing of existing ones. Amongst the selected novel techniques with applications in both Agricultural and Medical Biotechnology are: immobilized bacterial cells and enzymes, microencapsulation and liposome production, genetic manipulation of microorganisms, development of novel vaccines from plants, epigenomics of mammalian cells and organisms, and biocomputational tools for molecular modeling related to disease and Bioinformatics. Both fundamental and applied aspects of the emerging new techniques are being discussed in relation to their anticipated, marked impact on future markets and present policy changes that are needed for success in either Agricultural or Medical ...
Abstract Development of inhibitors and vaccines that mitigate rumen-derived methane by targeting methanogens relies on knowledge of the methanogens present. We investigated the composition of archaeal communities in the rumens of farmed sheep (Ovis aries), cattle (Bos taurus) and red deer (Cervus elaphus) using denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) to generate fingerprints of archaeal 16S rRNA genes. The total archaeal communities were relatively constant across species and diets, and were less variable and less diverse than bacterial communities. There were diet- and ruminant-species-based differences in archaeal community structure, but the same dominant archaea were present in all rumens. These were members of three coherent clades: species related to Methanobrevibacter ruminan...
The efficiency of dendrosome (a gene porter) was assessed in transferring recombinant human rotavirus VP2 cDNA into A549, a human lung cell line. After gene transferring, transmission electron microscopy showed core-like particles (CLPs) formation in the transfected cells both with dendrosome and lipofectamine porters. In addition, western blotting analysis showed that the expression of VP2 gene was almost equal in the dendrosome and lipofectamine-transfected cells. Also, the cytotoxicity studies revealed that dendrosome had a lower cytotoxicity than lipofectamine. Therefore, our study may introduce dendrosome as a possible carrier for gene transferring into the human lung cell line, especially, for intranasally administration of DNA vaccines.
Mycoplasma ovipneumoniae is associated with chronic non-progressive pneumonia of sheep and goats. As with many other mycoplasmas involved in animal diseases, protective immune responses have not been achieved with vaccines, even though antibody responses can be obtained. This study focuses on characterizing the interaction of M. ovipneumoniae with ovine PBMC using carboxy-fluorescein-succinimidyl-ester (CFSE) loading and flow cytometry to measure lymphoid cell division. M. ovipneumoniae induced a strong in vitro polyclonal suppression of CD4^+, CD8^+, and B blood lymphocyte subsets. The suppressive activity could be destroyed by heating to 60^oC, and partially impaired by formalin and binary ethyleneimine treatment that abolished its viability. The activity resided on the surface-exposed m...
Three in vivo assays were used to measure the immunocompetence of chickens in two generations of a selection experiment. The obtained data were used to estimate the variance components for sire and dam for antibody production to Pasteurella multocida and Mycoplasma gallisepticum vaccines, for T-cell-mediated immunity evaluated by a phytohemagglutinin wing web assay, and for clearance of foreign particles from the circulatory system. Heritabilities of and genetic correlations among these immunological traits were calculated from the sire variance components. Heritability estimates of the immunological traits based on the sire component of variance ranged from .06 to .53, and genetic correlations among immunological traits were generally negative. PMID:1956847
Chitosan (a?-(1-4)-amino-2-deoxy-b?-D-glucan) is a deacetylated form of chitin, a polysaccharide from crustacean shells. Its unique characteristics, such as positive charge, biodegradability, biocompatibility, nontoxicity, and rigid structure, make this macromolecule ideal for an oral vaccine delivery system. We prepared reverse-phase evaporation vesicles (REVs) sandwiched by chitosan (Chi) and polyvinylic alcohol (PVA). However, in this method, there are still some problems to be circumvented related to protein stabilization. During the inverted micelle phase of protein nanoencapsulation, hydrophobic interfaces are expanded, leading to interfacial adsorption, followed by protein unfolding and aggregation. Here, spectroscopic and immunological techniques were used to ascertain the effects ...
Background: Chloroquine has in-vitro activity against influenza and could be an ideal candidate for worldwide prevention of influenza in the period between onset of a pandemic with a virulent influenza strain and the development and widespread dissemination of an effective vaccine. We aimed to assess the efficacy of such an intervention. Methods: In this randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial done at a single centre in Singapore, we randomly assigned (1:1) healthy adults to receive chloroquine phosphate (500 mg/day for 1 week, then once a week to complete 12 weeks) or matching placebo by use of a computer-generated randomisation list. Participants filled an online symptom diary every week, supplemented by daily diaries and self-administered nasal swabs when unwell. Haemagglutin...
Summary The antigenic relationship between the phocine distemper virus (PDV) strain causing the epidemic in 2002 and the PDV strain of 1988, canine distemper virus from two dogs and one marten, and one measles virus strain was investigated in vivo and in vitro using monospecific polyclonal and monoclonal antibodies directed against five different proteins of canine or phocine distemper virus (N, P, M, F, H). Epitopic mapping revealed no difference between the PDV strains causing the epidemics in 1988 or 2002. However, the use of these antibodies allowed discrimination between different morbilliviruses including a vaccine strain of canine distemper virus. The major differences among the investigated morbilliviruses were found in the H protein.
The aim of this study was to document vascular complications that occurred following cadaveric and living donor kidney transplants in order to assess the overall incidence of these complications at our center as well as to identify possible risk factors. In a retrospective cohort study, 1500 consecutive renal transplant recipients who received a living or cadaveric donor kidney between December 1988 and July 2006 were evaluated. The study was performed at the Nemazee Hospital, Shiraz, Iran. The assessment of the anatomy and number of renal arteries as well as the incidence of vascular complications was made by color doppler ultrasonography, angiography, and/or surgical exploration. Clinically apparent vascular complications were seen in 8.86% of all study patients (n = 133) with the most frequent being hemorrhage (n = 91; 6.1%) followed by allograft renal artery stenosis (n = 26; 1.7%), renal artery thrombosis (n = 9; 0.6%), and renal vein ...
The objective of the project was to develop a welded tubular joint database to assess the fatigue design curves (X and X{prime}) in the American Petroleum Institute design code (API RP2A). Changes in the curve-fitting method and screening criteria (primarily the exclusion of the very thin tubular joints) produced results different from those reported previously. The current results show that the X and X{prime} curves are too conservative and that a new curve should be adopted. The Department of Energy T{prime} curve was found to be consistent with the screened tubular joint air data and is recommended for use in API RP2A. The weldment size effect exponent (n) of 0.25 in the current version of API RP2A was found to be too small, and a higher value of 0.30 consistent with the Department of Energy recommendations is recommended. The fatigue test results for tubular joints tested in air and tubular joints tested in sea water with cathodic protection are the same at long fatigue ...
The unknown {beta}-decay half-lives of 22 isotopes far off stability (5 < T{sub Z} < 10) in the region from Ti to Ni were measured at GSI, Darmstadt. The nuclei were produced in a fragmentation reaction of 500 A.MeV {sup 86}Kr-projectile impinging on a thick Be target. The isotopes of interest were separated and identified with the fragment separator, FRS, by a combination of B{rho},Z, and ToF techniques. An additional range separation was performed by a selective implantation into granular detectors. The spatial and time correlations of the implant with the consecutively detected {beta}-particles were used to determine the unknown half-lives. For nuclei far off stability, {beta}-decay chains were measured and analyzed as well, leading to an even more reliable evaluation of the lifetimes. The large discrepancies found between the measured and the theoretical values emphasize that most recent theoretical work is not an improvement over ...
Gold and silver nanoparticles display extraordinarily large apparent refractive indices near their plasmon resonance (PR) wavelengths. These nanoparticles show good contrast in a narrow spectral band but are poorly resolved at other wavelengths in differential interference contrast (DIC) microscopy. The wavelength dependence of DIC contrast of gold/silver nanoparticles is interpreted in terms of Mie's theory and DIC working principles. We further exploit this wavelength dependence by modifying a DIC microscope to enable simultaneous imaging at two wavelengths. We demonstrate that gold/silver nanoparticles immobilized on the same glass slides through hybridization can be differentiated and imaged separately. High-contrast, video-rate images of living cells can be recorded both with and without illuminating the gold nanoparticle probes, providing definitive probe identification. Dual-wavelength DIC microscopy thus presents a new approach to the simultaneous ...
Al2O3-based ceramic is one of the most widely used materials for tools employed in hardened steel turning applications due to its high hardness, wear resistance, heat resistance and chemical stability. The objective of this work is to predict the lives of Al2O3-(W, Ti)C ceramic tools in intermittent turning of hardened AISI 1045 steel by means of damage evolution model taking into account the mechanical loading and thermal effect in the cutting process. A damage evolution model analyzing the RVE with uniformly distributed interacting cracks is constructed based on micromechanics. The calculated results of the proposed damage evolution model are compared with the lives of two kinds of Al2O3-(W, Ti)C ceramic tools obtained through experiments. It is found that the proposed model can be used to predict the lives of the ceramic cutting tools in intermittent turning operation.
To assess the effects of automobile exhaust on human health, we determined serum concentrations of total immunoglobulin E and hyaluronate in 185 schoolchildren who lived in a district that contained major roads. Serum immunoglobulin E levels were elevated in children who had asthma or wheezing, but levels did no t differ with respect to distance of their homes from the major roads. Serum hyaluronate levels were higher in children who lived less than 50 m from the roadside, compared with children who resided a greater distance from roads. The difference, however, was significant only in a subgroup of children in whom immunoglobulin E levels exceeded 250 IU/ml. Our results suggest that serum hyaluronate levels in children reflect the effects of traffic-related air pollution. Children with high immunoglobulin E levels appeared to be particularly susceptible to the effects of automobile exhaust. 34 refs., 2 figs., 3 tabs.
A number of preparations of residual non-living brewery yeast were examined for their ability to remove lead from solution. Those preparations included washed and un-washed intact yeast and washed and un-washed homogenates of the yeast cells. Using biosorption isotherm analysis it was found that the washed and un-washed preparations of intact, non-living yeast exhibited maximum biosorption capacities for lead of 127 and 99 mg/g dry weight biomass, respectively. The washed and un-washed cell homogenates exhibited maximum biosorption capacities of 38 and 139 mg lead/g dry weight biomass, respectively. Since it had previously been shown that these preparations of biomass were capable of removing uranium from solution by combined biosorption and precipitation processes, it was decided to examine removal of lead from solution using a form of equilibrium dialysis in which the biomass was retained within a semi-permeable membrane during contact ...
A trans-uranium (TRU) fuel should be manufactured and loaded in transmutation systems in order to transmute the long-lived TRU nuclides into short-lived ones. However, since all of the TRU nuclides are not completely transmuted in one cycle lifetime in transmutation systems, the spent TRU fuel has to be treated to recover the long-lived radionuclides or fuel matrix materials. One concept to manufacture TRU fuel for transmutation is to recover uranium from TRU and molten salt. If this type of fuel is adopted for transmutation, uranium could also be an objective material to be recovered and recycled. Since electrowinning is a promising technology to be employed for the recovery of uranium from fuel materials, some experimental work of electrowinning using anode of Cd-Li alloy was carried out in this study. The basic salt chosen was a mixture of LiCl-KCl which has an eutectic point at 357 .deg. C.
A trans-uranium (TRU) fuel should be manufactured and loaded in transmutation systems in order to transmute the long-lived TRU nuclides into short-lived ones. However, since all of the TRU nuclides are not completely transmuted in one cycle lifetime in transmutation systems, the spent TRU fuel has to be treated to recover the long-lived radionuclides or fuel matrix materials. One concept to manufacture TRU fuel for transmutation is to recover uranium from TRU and molten salt. If this type of fuel is adopted for transmutation, uranium could also be an objective material to be recovered and recycled. Since electrowinning is a promising technology to be employed for the recovery of uranium from fuel materials, some experimental work of electrowinning using anode of Cd-Li alloy was carried out in this study. The basic salt chosen was a mixture of LiCl-KCl which has an eutectic point at 357 .deg. C
Live cores were obtained from five reservoirs using special precautions to prevent contamination by exogenous microorganisms and minimize exposure to oxygen. The depths from which the cores were obtained ranged from 2,705 ft to 6,568 ft. Core plugs were cut radially from live cores, encased in heat-shrink plastic tubes, placed in core holders, and fitted with inlets and outlets. Nutrient additions stimulated the in-situ microbial population to increase, dissolve stratal material, produce gases, and release oil. Reduction in flow through the core plugs was observed in some cases, while in other cases flow was increased, probably due to the dissolution of carbonates in the formation. A field demonstration of the ability of the in-situ microbial population to increase oil recovery by blocking the more permeable zones of the reservoir is currently underway. This demonstration is being conducted in the North Blowhorn Creek Unit situated in Lamar ...
Macrophage differentiation antigen associated with complement three receptor function (Mac-1) belongs to #beta#_2 subfamily of integrins that mediate important cell-cell and cell-extracellular matrix interactions. Biochemical studies have indicated that Mac-1 is a constitutive heterodimer in vitro. Here, we detected the heterodimerization of Mac-1 subunits in living cells by means of two fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) techniques (fluorescence microscopy and fluorescence spectroscopy) and our results demonstrated that there is constitutive heterodimerization of the Mac-1 subunits and this constitutive heterodimerization of the Mac-1 subunits is cell-type independent. Through FRET imaging, we found that heterodimers of Mac-1 mainly localized in plasma membrane, perinuclear, and Golgi area in living cells. Furthermore, through analysis of the estimated physical distances between cyan fluorescent protein (CFP) and yellow fluorescent ...
The unknown #beta#-decay half-lives of 22 isotopes far off stability (5 < T_Z < 10) in the region from Ti to Ni were measured at GSI, Darmstadt. The nuclei were produced in a fragmentation reaction of 500 A.MeV "8"6Kr-projectile impinging on a thick Be target. The isotopes of interest were separated and identified with the fragment separator, FRS, by a combination of B#rho#,Z, and ToF techniques. An additional range separation was performed by a selective implantation into granular detectors. The spatial and time correlations of the implant with the consecutively detected #beta#-particles were used to determine the unknown half-lives. For nuclei far off stability, #beta#-decay chains were measured and analyzed as well, leading to an even more reliable evaluation of the lifetimes. The large discrepancies found between the measured and the theoretical values emphasize that most recent theoretical work is not an improvement over calculations ...
This paper reports the findings of a study that explores the perspectives of 25 young Cypriots regarding the symbolic values of smoking with respect to their everyday lived experiences. This study was motivated by recognising the high levels of smoking prevalence among adolescents in Cyprus and the absence of published research 'recording' their own versions of reality about smoking. Data for the study were generated from one-to-one qualitative interviews which encouraged the participants to articulate the symbolic value of smoking in their day-to-day experiences. The analysis focuses first, on the content of the embedded symbolic values of smoking (e.g. the quality of being 'cool') and second on the role of these values (e.g. used in projecting an image) in their everyday lives. A central...
The most important aim of the title program is to investigate the possibility to convert long-lived actinides and mobile fission products in short-lived and stable isotopes by means of nuclear transmutation and recycling. First, an overview is given of the present situation regarding fission material waste, the origin of such waste in light water reactors and the options for interim and ultimate storage. Next, attention is paid to the aim of the the RAS program, the working method and the results so far of national and international research on the transmutation of actinides and fission products. Speculative expectations for the future are briefly outlined. The report also contains four appendices with technical aspects of the title subject: the RAS program of ECN, chemical aspects of reprocessing fission material, transmutation in fission reactors and in accelerators. 12 figs., 7 tabs., 4 appendices, 57 refs.
Summary Despite the great interest of red porgy as a new species for Mediterranean aquaculture, its commercial production is constrained by the high incidence of skeletal deformities occurring in this species under culture conditions. Several studies have been conducted to better understand the origin of these anomalies in this species, using different system intensiveness, rotifers enrichment products or rotifers docosahexaenoic acid content. The first study showed that culture intensification increased the number of fish with an extra vertebrae, what was probably related to the different nutritional quality of live preys employed in each treatment, since water temperature, salinity and genetic background were identical for the different batches of fish studied. Total incidence of skeleta...
Bark beetles that colonize living conifers and their microbial associates encounter constitutive and induced chemical defenses of their host. Monoterpene hydrocarbons comprise a major component of these allelochemicals, and many are antibiotic to insects, fungi, and bacteria. Some bark beetle species exhaust these defenses by killing their host through mass attacks mediated by aggregation pheromones. Others lack adult aggregation pheromones and do not engage in pheromone-mediated mass attacks, but rather have the ability to complete development within live hosts. In the former species, the larvae develop in tissue largely depleted of host terpenes, whereas in the latter exposure to these compounds persists throughout development. A substantial literature exists on how monoterpenes affect b...
This study investigated the occurrence of free-living amoebae (FLA) in immunodeficiency wards of hospitals in Tehran, Iran. A total of 70 dust and biofilm samples from wards serving transplant, pediatric (malignancies), HIV, leukemia and oncology patients of five university hospitals were collected and examined for the presence of FLA using culturing and molecular approaches. Based on the morphology of the amoebae in plate cultures, primer sets were applied for molecular identification of Acanthamoeba, vahlkampfiid amoebae and Hartmannella. Out of 70 samples, 37 (52.9%) were positive for FLA. Acanthamoeba belonged to the T4 genotype was the most prevalent isolate. Presence of the T4 genotype on medical instruments, including an oxygen mask in an isolation room of an immunodeficiency pediat...
Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) images of live rats with sterile and pyogenic abscesses, hematomas, and various implanted and spontaneous neoplasms demonstrated good contrast differentiation between pathologic and surrounding normal tissues. This differentiation was maximal when both the T1 and T2 tissue relaxation times were used as criteria. Neoplasms have a broad range of T1 and T2 values and may be confused with abscesses or hematomas. Tissue rate constants (1/T1 and 1/T2) are mainly dependent on total water content, the exception being fat, which has a 1/T2 value much shorter than that expected on the basis of water content alone.
...Marine Flatworms provides a fascinating introduction to the intriguing world of polyclad flatworms, a group of large, free-living marine Platyhelminthes, which are found throughout the world but are most colourful in tropical waters. Although not related to molluscs, they are often mistaken for sea slugs ...com Marine Flatworms provides a fascinating introduction to the intriguing world of polyclad flatworms, a group of large, free-living marine Platyhelminthes, which are found throughout the world but are most colourful in tropical waters. Although not related to molluscs, they are often mistaken for sea ...the world Over 300 stunning full colour photographs Brings together polyclads worldwide Newly developed key to polyclad families Introduction The world of worms Flatworms (Phylum:Platyhelminthes) Segmented Worms (Phylum: Annelida) Round worms (Nematoda) Other worms The polyclad body Habitat and lifestyle Colours and ...
Under 10CFR50 Appendix B, utilities have a commitment to establish and maintain material control programs to assure the safety and reliability of their power plants. The guidelines in this report discuss methods of establishing, maintaining, and extending the shelf life of limited life items. In addition, these guidelines establish justifiable shelf lives for a sample of 70 items and review the effects of environmental conditions. Moreover, the guidelines are consistent with utility qualification test documentation and provide for evaluation of items with expired shelf lives. These guidelines set precedent by indicating that the shelf life is greater than previously available for many items. This increase in shelf life has been established through natural and accelerated aging tests.
Objective: To reduce mental health symptoms and high-risk behaviors and increase social support and service utilization among street-living youth, the authors conducted a pilot study to assess the feasibility of the social enterprise intervention (SEI) at a homeless youth agency. Method: Convenience sampling was used to recruit 16 street-living youth from the agency. SEI participants received 7 months of vocational and small business training and service referrals. A comparison sample of 12 agency youth was used. Results: Findings from independent sample t tests demonstrate that SEI participants displayed significant improvements at 9 months in life satisfaction, family contact, peer support, and depressive symptoms. Conclusions: Preliminary findings suggest that the SEI was feasible within the agency setting and associated with higher mental health and social outcomes. (Contains 3 figures and 3 tables.)
The biological half-life of "1"3"7Cs in the total body of human subjects was determined in 23 individuals of Japanese male adult in their normal works by measuring amount of "1"3"7Cs in both their total body and daily urine in the same period. For the group, the value was determined by averaging the half-lives for individuals, by comparing the mean body burden and the mean daily urinary excretion, or by applying a curve fitting method to the body burden estimate. The biological half-life averaged 86 days, ranging from 50 to 161 days. The averages of the biological half-lives for the group were 83, 87 and 82 days in the different periods of observation. By the curve fitting method, 85 days was found for the group. The biological half-life for the individuals depended on both body weight and age, to a lesser extent, of the subjects. (author).
AbstractBACKGROUND: Disparities in treatment and mortality for colorectal cancer (CRC) may reflect differences in access to specialized care or other characteristics of the area where an individual lives. METHODS: Surveillance, Epidemiology and End Results Program-Medicare data for seniors diagnosed with CRC were linked to area measures of the sociodemographic characteristics and the capacity of surgeons, medical oncologists, and radiation oncologists. Outcomes included receipt of stage-appropriate CRC care and mortality. RESULTS: After adjustment, blacks and Hispanics were less likely than whites to undergo surgery (odds ratio [OR] 0.57, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.52-0.63 and OR 0.82, 95% CI 0.70-0.95, respectively). Individuals who lived in areas with the highest tertile of surgeon c...
We present two applications of CR-39 to estimate biological effects of heavy ion irradiation. The accurate measurement of fluence of ions using CR-39 is indispensable to calculate the action cross sections for biological effects. Ions with 6 MeV/n at the Medium Energy Beam Course, HIMAC (NIRS) were extracted to the air, and degraded with the air. DNA and living cells were irradiated by ions with various specific energies at several air columns along with the Bragg curve. DNA strand breaks and cell killing were measured and the results were converted to the action cross sections using the fluence measured with CR-39 at the irradiation positions. Another example of the application of CR-39 is to identify whether the ions with a specific energy pass through the cell or stop within the cell. (author)
? Introduction For large trees without a continuous sequence of growth rings in their trunk, such as the African baobab (Adansonia digitata L.), the only accurate method for age determination is radiocarbon dating. As of today, this method was limited to dating samples collected from the remains of dead specimens. ? Methods Our research extends significantly the dating of such trees to large live specimens with inner cavities. The new approach is based on collecting samples from the cavities and their subsequent radiocarbon dating. ? Results The giant two-stemmed Platland tree, also known as Sunland baobab, was investigated by using this new approach. AMS radiocarbon dates of the oldest sample segments originating from the two inner cavities indicate that the large stem I (364.5?m3) is 750...
Accelerator Mass Spectrometry (AMS) is the analytical technique of choice for the detection of long-lived radionuclides which cannot be practically analysed with decay counting or conventional mass spectrometry. The main use of AMS has been in the analysis of radiocarbon and other cosmogenic radionuclides for archaeological, geological and environmental applications. In addition, AMS has been recently applied in biomedicine to study exposure of human tissues to chemicals and biomolecules at attomole levels. There is also a world-wide effort to analyse rare nuclides of heavier masses, such as long-lived actinides, with important applications in safeguards and nuclear waste disposal. The use of AMS is limited by the expensive accelerator technology required and there are several attempts to develop smaller and cheaper AMS spectrometers. 5 refs.
A rickettsia related to but distinct from the spotted fever agent, Rickettsia rickettsii, has been detected in 167 (18.9%) of 884 Rhipicephalus sanguineus taken off dogs in central and northern Mississippi. The organisms could readily be isolated in male meadow voles (Microtus pennsylvanicus), where it produced massive infections in the tissues of tunica vaginalis. It was practically nonpathogenic for male guinea pigs, although inoculation of these animals with infected tunica vaginalis of voles afforded in 30 of 38 instances solid immunity to challenge with virulent R. rickettsii. The Rhipicephalus rickettsia grew well in monolayers of chicken embryo fibroblast, Vero, mouse L, and HeLa cells. Cytopathogenic effects were minimal unless large concentrations of rickettsiae were used as inocula. It also could be established in embryonated hen eggs but only after injection of massive doses of L cell-propagated organisms. Serological tests (complement fixation, microagglutination and/or ...
We evaluated the use of a novel gene porter (Den123-a nontoxic self-assembled dendritic spheroidal nanoparticle made of biodegradable monomers), aiming to enhance and improve the desired immune response in protection from allergy. Footpad DNA immunization in Balb/c mice was done three times using the Bet v 1a gene with or without Den123 with 2-week intervals followed by sensitization with rBetv1 (5mg) in alum twice in a weekly interval. Different doses of pCMV-Betv1 were used (10mg and 100mg). The protective role of different formulations was evaluated by measuring the IgG1, IgG2a and IgE antibody production, cytokine release of isolated splenocytes and b-hexosaminidase release from the RBL cells. Higher and increasing ratios of IgG2a/IgG1 were seen in mice which received plasmids in combi...
Xenotropic murine leukemia virus-related virus (XMRV) was discovered in human prostate tumors and later in some chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) patients. However, subsequent studies have identified various sources of potential contamination with XMRV and other murine leukemia virus (MLV)-related sequences in test samples. Biological and nucleotide sequence analysis indicates that XMRV is distinct from known xenotropic MLVs and has a broad host range and cell tropism including human cells. Therefore, it is prudent to minimize the risk of human exposure to infection by evaluating XMRV contamination in cell lines handled in laboratory research and particularly those used in the manufacture of biological products. Nested DNA PCR assays were optimized for investigating XMRV gag and env sequences in various cell lines, which included MRC-5, Vero, HEK-293, MDCK, HeLa, and A549, that may be used in the development of some vaccines and other cell lines broadly used in ...
OBJECTIVES: The authors examine the rationale and efficacy of pre-travel hepatitis B immunization strategies based on itinerary and presumed on-travel risk behaviour. METHODS: A large survey among 26,640 Danes survey provided data on journey lengths and destinations, immunization coverage, risk behaviour and knowledge. RESULTS: The estimated cumulative lifetime stay in endemic areas outside Europe is 4.3 months. The majority of risk situations are involuntary and unforeseeable. The majority of risk situations occur on short-term journeys. 5% nonimmune and 5% short-term travellers experienced at least one risk situation such as injections/operations/tattoos on their journey. The level of knowledge of hepatitis A and B is low. CONCLUSIONS: The rationale and efficacy of current immunization strategies are challenged. Based on the results presented here and the availability of vaccines with long-lasting coverage, the authors find that recommendations of immunization ...
1. Gamma globulin metabolism and distribution were studied employing rabbit gamma globulin (RGG)I(131) 24 times in 13 control rabbits. Similar studies were performed before and during the ananmestic response in 4 rabbits previously sensitized with a polyvalent pneumococcal vaccine. 2. During the ananmestic response, gamma-globulin levels increased from 1.0 to 6.0 gm/100 ml, and the gamma-globulin pool increased from 0.7 to 4.7 gm/kg. There was no change in the intravascular-extravascular partition of gamma globulin. 3. Gamma globulin degradation increased from 0.06 to 0.33 gm/kg/day during the 28 days of the immunization period while gamma globulin synthesis increased even further to average 0.47 gm/kg/day. Following the attainment of elevated gamma globulin levels the fractional rate of RGG-I(131) turnover increased from 8.0 to 12.5 per cent/day. 4. No differences were noted in the metabolism of homologous or autologous gamma globulin regardless of the allotypic ...
Hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) have remained at the forefront of stem cell research for the past 50 years, since the therapeutic potential of bone marrow transplantation was realized. Uniquely, among stem and progenitor cells, research progress has been made in parallel between the laboratory benchtop and hospital bedside during this period. Integral to this work has been the role of the transfusion medicine services in the collection, storage, and processing of HSCs. The next decade promises to bring further developments: with new fields of cellular therapies, stem cell vaccination, and stem cell drug testing opening up. This article summarizes exciting areas of research concerning the behavior and potential clinical applications of HSCs. For the purposes of clarity, we describe in turn the trafficking and transfer of HSCs; ex vivo expansion of HSC units from different sources; and finally, applications of specifically selected subsets of hematopoietic cells and ...
Global meat and milk consumption is exponentially increasing due to population growth, urbanization and changes in lifestyle in the developing world. This is an excellent opportunity for developing countries to improve the livestock sector by using technological advances. Biotechnology is one of the avenues for improved production in the "Livestock revolution". Biotechnology developments applied to livestock health, nutrition, breeding and reproduction are improving with a reasonable pace in developing countries. Simple bio-techniques such as artificial insemination have been well implemented in many parts of the developing world. However, advanced technologies including transgenic plant vaccines, marker assisted selection, solid state fermentation for the production of fibrolytic enzymes, transgenic fodders, embryo transfer and animal cloning are confined largely to research organizations. Some developing countries such as Taiwan, China and Brazil have considered ...
Summary Background Treatment of localised renal cell carcinoma consists of partial or radical nephrectomy. A substantial proportion of patients are at risk for recurrence because no effective adjuvant therapy exists. We investigated the use of an autologous, tumour-derived heat-shock protein (glycoprotein 96)-peptide complex (HSPPC-96; vitespen) as adjuvant treatment in patients at high risk of recurrence after resection of locally advanced renal cell carcinoma. Methods In this open-label trial, patients were randomly assigned to receive either vitespen (n=409) or observation alone (n=409) after nephrectomy. Randomisation was done in a one to one ratio by a computer-generated pseudo-random number generator, with a block size of four, and was stratified by performance score, lymph node stat...
The clinical manifestation of wounds of the heart is determined by the mode, site and size of the injury as well as the structure of the pericardial and myocardial lesion. Diagnosis can be confirmed by ECG and echocardiography. Only 20% of the patients with penetrating wounds of the heart live for more than 30 minutes. Pericardio-centesis should be used only to gain time for a safe sternotomy, cardiac decompression and suture of the wound of the heart. An aggressive surgical approach is mandatory. Cardiopulmonary bypass is necessary only to correct of concomitant lesions. PMID:1983618
BackgroundDue to improvements in cancer survival the number of people of working age living with cancer across Europe is likely to increase. UK governments have made commitments...Full Text Available
We have recently shown the applicability of robotics to the synthesis of a positron-emitting radiopharmaceutical, namely 16#alpha#[F-18]fluoroestradiol-17#beta#, a breast tumor imaging agent. We now report the application of the robot to the synthesis of two additional radiopharmaceuticals, [F-18]spiroperiodol and [C-11]butanol. This achievement shows the power of a robot as a multifunctional automated device for the synthesis of several positron-emitting radiopharmaceuticals in limited laboratory space. (author).
As a result of the accident at the Chernobyl Power Plant the larger part of Belarus turned out to be polluted by radionuclides. At present isotopes of Cs, Sr and Pu, characterized by long half-lives are most dangerous for the health of the population of the polluted territories. The aim of the present work was to characterize plant species with high "1"3"7Cs and "9"0Sr accumulation ability and to determine the dependence of the accumulation on the treatment with biologically active substances. (author)
A survey carried out in 2005 among members of a healthy population of children living in Bolivia and Peru revealed that fecal carriage of Escherichia coli strains resistant to expanded-spectrum...Full Text Available
Esters of dihydric alcohols with alkenylphosphonic or alkenylphosphinic acids which are polymerizable by free radicals are described. They are combined with polymer binders, in particular water-soluble polymers, and photoinitiators forming free radicals to give photopolymerizable mixtures which are suitable for the production of photoresists and printing plates. The mixtures display low heat-sensitivity and have long shelf lives. (author) 1 tab.
The quark structure of constituent nucleons is considered by a qualitative comparison of features of different models with experimental data with respect to cumulative meson production. It is shown that the fluctuation of the density of nuclear matter, ie the creation and disintegration of a short lived few-nucleon correlation (flucton), is a type of the quasi-resonance formation in the nucleus which exists without any connection with the incident particle. The cumulative production in the region under investigation is mostly the result of a Regge type dissociation of the flucton. (U.K.).
The Waste Acceptance Preliminary Specifications (WAPS) require that the DWPF estimate the inventory of long-lived radionuclides present in the waste glass, and report the values in the Waste Form Qualification Report. In this report, conservative (biased high) estimates of the radionuclide inventory of glass produced from waste currently in the Tank Farm are provided. In most cases, these calculated values compare favorably with actual data. In those cases where the agreement is not good, the values reported here are conservative.
This book contains 49 chapters. Some of the titles are: Molecular, Genetic, and Clinical Aspects of the HLA System; The Normal Immune Response; Significance of the ABO Antigen System; The Role of Dialysis in the Management of End-Stage Renal Disease; Access for Dialysis; Patient Selection for Renal Transplantation; The Living Donor in Kidney Transplantation; and Kidney Preservation by Cold Storage.
... The award is named for the late Samuelson, a leader and advocate for upward mobility and placement programs to enable visually impaired and blind persons to lead productive lives. The award was created to recognize the career achievements and accomplishments of employees who work in a NIB-associated agency. The Chicago Lighthouse, the company for which Uken works, nominated him based on his exceptional performance at CERL as ...
... It is well camouflaged and each individual has unique back pattern markings. It eats mainly spiders and insects. The Eastern Lined Earless Dragon is a small dragon lizard measuring up to 21cm in length. It is well camouflaged and each individual has unique back ... It is well camouflaged and each individual has unique back pattern markings. It eats mainly spiders and insects. It lives in and around grass tussocks as well as small holes in the ground that are also used by invertebrates such as wolf spiders and crickets....
Uutest heliplaatidest Jamiroquai "Dynamite", Wallflowers "Rebel, Sweetheart", Corgan, Billy "The Future Embrace", Mariza "Transparente", Turin Brakes "JackinABox", Hellacopters "Rock& Roll is Dead", Belle & Sebastian "Push bar To Open Old", Farmer, Mylene "Avant Guel'ombre", Kreck "If You Live", Dream Theater "Octavarium"
BackgroundIn an effort to promote healthy ageing and preserve health and function, the government of Chile has formulated a package of actions into the Programme for Complementary...Full Text Available
TH1 cytokine secretion was examined in response to synthetic peptides of the 85A component of the major secreted, fibronectin-binding antigen 85 complex from Mycobacterium tuberculosis in seven different...Full Text Available
In the 21st century, eighty years after William Baer presented his groundbreaking work treating bone and soft tissue infections with live maggots, thousands of therapists around the globe have rediscovered...Full Text Available
BackgroundSeventy percent of urban populations in sub-Saharan Africa live in slums. Sustaining HIV patients in these high-risk and highly mobile settings is a major future challenge....Full Text Available
Tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-alpha) plays a central role in activation of first-line defenses of a host against foreign organisms. To determine whether Brucella infection modulated TNF-alpha production,...Full Text Available
Populations living close to high-voltage transmission lines often have residential magnetic field exposures in excess of 1 [mu]T, and sometimes over 2 [mu]T. Yet, populations studied in most epidemiologic investigations of the association between residential magnetic field exposure and cancer typically have exposures below 1 [mu]T and frequently below 0.5 [mu]T. To improve statistical power and precision, it would be useful to compare high exposure populations with low exposure population. Toward this end, we have developed an automated method for identifying populations living near high-voltage transmissions lines. These populations likely have more highly exposed individuals that the population at large. The method uses a geographic information system (GIS) to superimpose digitized transmission line locations on U.S. Census block location data and then extract relevant demographic data. Analysis of data from a pilot study of the population ...
Electricity is a universal energy and one of the driving powers of civilisation. World-wide, future developments like growing economies and structural changes in industry, a higher standard of living and a bigger world population - are impossible without appropriate supply of power and electricity. An expert of Siemens Power Generation presents his views. (orig.)
Past "elitist" development efforts modeled on Western academic education have failed to meet manpower needs but resist change due to popular preference for "modern" occupations. A new development strategy providing universal basic education and improved general living standards is needed. (Part of a theme issue on Third World educational development.) (SJL)
The development of a gas-operated diffusion absorption heat pump for the heating of living spaces is described. By various improvement an energy efficiency of the prototypes of 1.5 was achieved. Structural alterations led to a lower overall height and lower production costs. The CFCs used in electric heat pumps were replaced by environmentally neutral ammonia. Compared with conventional gas heating systems, the CO2 output could be reduced by more than 30%. figs., tabs.
The oceanic bathypelagic realm (1000–4000 m) is a nutrient-poor habitat. Most fishes living there have pelagic larvae using the rich waters of the upper 200 m. Morphological...Full Text Available
This study examines the extent of radioactive pollution of moss cover of forest communities of the Kamenskii district of the Sverdlovsk region. This area contains the periphery section of the Eastern-Ural Radioactive Trace, formed as a result of the Kyshtymskii accident. Mosses do not release radionuclides for a long time, making them a biological indicator of radioactive environmental pollution and making them useful for radioecological monitoring. 14 refs., 2 figs., 1 tab.
In the Arabian Gulf region in general, and in Saudi Arabia in particular, demand for water in the agricultural, domestic, and industrial sectors has increased dramatically as a result of rapid development, and improved standard of living, and diversification of economic activity in agriculture and industry. This article presents an overview of supply and demand situations prevailing in the Arabian Gulf region and discusses various conventional and unconventional alternatives for meeting the growing demand for water. It also describes conservation measures and their socioeconomic effects.
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Fatty acid biosynthesis is crucial for all living cells. In contrast to higher organisms, bacteria use a type II fatty acid synthase (FAS II) composed of a series of individual proteins, making...Full Text Available
This book presents the current knowledge about the effects of electromagnetic fields on living matter. The three-part format covers dielectric permittivity and electrical conductivity of biological materials; effects of direct current and low frequency fields; and effects of radio frequency (including microwave) fields. The parts are designed to be consulted independently or in sequence, depending upon the needs of the reader. Useful appendixes on measurement units and safety standards are also included.
imaging of the solar corona began in 1960 via a primitive pinhole camera on a ... IR wavelengths. Such data help us to study in detail the pre-eruptive ...... Schematic picture of flare loops, CME, and the current sheet between ..... As part of NASA's Living With a Star (LWS) program the planned Sentinel mission ...
Measurements of gamma-ray spectra, following the thermal neutron fission of "2"3"5U have been made using a high purity germanium detector at the University of Massachusetts Lowell (UML) Van de Graaff facility. The gamma spectra were measured at delay times ranging from 0.2 s to nearly 10000 s following the rapid transfer of the fission fragments with a helium-jet system. On the basis of the known gamma transitions, forty isotopes have been identified and studied. By measuring the relative intensities of these transitions, the relative yields of the various precursor nuclides have been calculated. The results are compared with the recommended values listed in the ENDF/B-VI fission product data base (for the lifetimes and the relative yields) and those published in the Nuclear Data Sheets (for the beta branching ratios). This information is particularly useful for the cases of short-lived fission products with lifetimes of the order of fractions of a second or a few ...
The Accelerator Transmutation Waste System is under development at the Los Alamos National Laboratory. The goal is to perform an independent verification of the feasibility of actinide and long-lived fission product burning in this system. The authors' work is divided into five tasks: (a) production of an actinide and long-lived fission product cross section library from JEF 2.2; (b) simulation using MCNP and KENO IV Monte Carlo codes, of the Accelerator Transmutation Waste System configurations existing in literature; (c) validation of HETC Monte Carlo code (production of spallation source); (d) validation of the cross sections by comparison of Keff and reaction rate results, calculated with MNCP and KENO IV, with experimental benchmarks and intercomparison between the authors' calculations of a PWR unit cell and the computations carried out with various codes and cross section libraries (NEACRP critically group data); and (e) simulation of ...
The most striking feature of quantum mechanics is the existence of superposition states, where an object appears to be in different situations at the same time. Up to now, the existence of such states has been tested with small objects, like atoms, ions, electrons and photons, and even with molecules. Recently, it has been even possible to create superpositions of collections of photons, atoms, or Cooper pairs. Current progress in optomechanical systems may soon allow us to create superpositions of even larger objects, like micro-sized mirrors or cantilevers, and thus to test quantum mechanical phenomena at larger scales. Here we propose a method to cool down and create quantum superpositions of the motion of sub-wavelength, arbitrarily shaped dielectric objects trapped inside a high--finesse cavity at a very low pressure. Our method is ideally suited for the smallest living organisms, such as viruses, which survive under low vacuum pressures, and optically behave ...
We demonstrate that a massive asymptotic giant branch (AGB) star is a good candidate as the main source of short-lived radionuclides in the early solar system. Recent identification of massive (4-8 solar masses) AGB stars in the Galaxy, which are both lithium- and rubidium-rich, demonstrates that these stars experience proton captures at the base of the convective envelope (hot bottom burning), together with high-neutron density nucleosynthesis with 22Ne as a neutron source in the He shell and efficient dredge-up of the processed material. A model of a 6.5 solar masses star of solar metallicity can simultaneously match the abundances of 26Al, 41Ca, 60Fe, and 107Pd inferred to have been present in the solar nebula by using a dilution factor of 1 part of AGB material per 300 parts of original solar nebula material, and taking into account a time interval between injection of the short-lived nuclides and consolidation of the first meteorites equal ...
Lectin is a generic name of sugar binding protein in living organisms. With an objective to clarify physiological functions of lectin in marine invertebrates and utilize it as a useful material in the bio-chemical industry, studies were carried out on the chemical structure, distribution in living organisms and structural changes of lectin. Lectin is involved with such physiological actions as immunity reactions, generation and differentiation, Ca fixation and symbiosis. Lectin is one of the main components of lymph fluid in shellfish and crustacean, and is a multi-functional polymer that is related with foreign substance recognition, Ca transport, and shell formation. Lectin of a certain kind shows strong actions to accelerate cell division. Organs and cells were cultivated for lectin producing organs and lectin producing cells to verify the production thereof. Elucidation was attempted in a molecular level on such physiological functions as ...
Irradiation of live bivalve molluscs is a promising new technique to reduce the public health threats of viral and bacterial pathogens in the consumption of raw shellfish. In studies conducted within the past year, live hardshelled clams and oysters were innoculated with Simian Rotavirus SA-11, Poliovirus I, and Hepatitis-A virus and treated with gamma ray ionizing radiation from University of Lowell/DOE 800,000 Curie "6"0Co source over a dose range of 0.5--10 kiloGray (50--1000 kilorad) to determine the effectiveness of the process in eliminating viral activity and thus easing the potential viral health threats associated with uncooked bivalves. Two viral strains, SA-11 and Poliovirus I, were employed as models to perfect laboratory technique and to estimate the most appropriate range of dose exposures necessary for optimal inactivation of the infectious pathogen, Hepatitis A. Post-irradiation survivorship of the oysters and quahogs was ...
Over the last four decades the Irish Sea has received controlled discharges of radioactive effluents from the Sellafield (Windscale) nuclear fuel reprocessing plant in Cumbria, UK. Enhanced levels of a range of fission, activation and transuranic elements have been reported in a variety of environmental media. Most of the {sup 239,240}Pu and {sup 241}Am and about 10% of the {sup 137}Cs have been retained in a deposit of the fine sediment near the discharge point. The quantities of radionuclides discharged annually from Sellafield decreased by two orders of magnitude from the mid-1970s to 1990, but estimated critical group internal and external exposure decreased by less than one order of magnitude over this period. Redistribution of the contaminated marine sediment is potentially of major significance. In this paper, a review is presented of published work and recent our study relating to Sellafield waste long-lived radionuclides, especially transuranium elements, ...
High-voltage transmission lines can be just as safe as the electrical wiring in the homes--or just as dangerous. The crucial factor is ourselves: they must learn to behave safely around them. This booklet is a basic safety guide for those who live and work around power lines. It deals primarily with nuisance shocks due to induced voltages, and with potential electric shock hazards from contact with high-voltage lines. References on possible long-term biological effects of transmission lines are shown. In preparing this booklet, the Bonneville Power Administration has drawn on more than 50 years of experience with high-voltage transmission. BPA operates one of the world`s largest networks of long-distance, high-voltage lines. This system has more than 400 substations and about 15,000 miles of transmission lines, almost 4,400 miles of which are operated at 500,000 volts.
Notched and smooth cylindrical plasma nitrided (PN) and quench and tempered (Q and T) steel specimens made of a B-Mn SS2131 ({approx}AISI 15B21H) steel have been exposed to constant amplitude plane reversed bending corrosion fatigue tests (R = -1) at 47 Hz in sea water. S - N curves show that sea water suppresses the fatigue limit and reduces fatigue strength (especially at long lives) of smooth and notched Q and T and PN specimens. Plasma nitriding improves the corrosion fatigue resistance of Q and T specimens; this is associated with the good corrosion resistance of {epsilon} and {gamma}`-phases, the enhancement of corrosion and fatigue by compressive residual stresses, and the consumption of H{sup +} ions during reduction of nitrogen. This improvement is more significant for smooth specimens and for long lives. Notch sensitivity of Q and T and PN specimens decreases with fatigue life. Pitting corrosion, cyclic applied stress and residual ...
Acanthamoeba castellanii is a free-living amoeba found in soil, freshwater, and marine environments and an important predator of bacteria. Acanthamoeba castellanii is also an opportunistic pathogen of clinical interest, responsible for several distinct diseases in humans. In order to provide a genomic platform for the study of this ubiquitous and important protist, we generated a sequence survey of approximately 0.5 x coverage of the genome. The data predict that A. castellanii exhibits a greater biosynthetic capacity than the free-living Dictyostelium discoideum and the parasite Entamoeba histolytica, providing an explanation for the ability of A. castellanii to inhabit adversity of environments. Alginate lyase may provide access to bacteria within biofilms by breaking down the biofilm matrix, and polyhydroxybutyrate depolymerase may facilitate utilization of the bacterial storage compound polyhydroxybutyrate as a food source. Enzymes for the ...
Water and mud samples were collected from canals and rivers which were adjacent to outlets discharging warm water of 3 power plants in Berlin. Downstream samples from 1 bathing resort were also collected. Free living amoebae were isolated from 138 water and 69 mud samples. From these respectively 156 and 73 strains could be cultured and were administered intranasally to mice for pathogenicity tests. Two Acanthamoeba strains from water and 7 from mud could be reisolated from mouse brain and or lungs, although no pathological disorders could be observed. Five Naegleria strains were negative in mouse inoculation tests. Four Acanthamoeba strains which were positive in mice were cultured at + 45 degrees C; no cytopathogenic effects were observed in tissue cultures. Acanthamoeba infective for mice could also be isolated from samples at low water temperatures. Further investigations have to show, whether changes in virulence of amoebic strains are of significance and ...
Previous corrosion studies identified the materials Hastelloy C4, Ti 99.8-Pd, and carbon steels as promising for the manufacture of long-lived high-level waste containers that could act as an engineered barrier in a rock-salt repository. Here, the efficiency of the corrosion-resistant concept using surface-welded Hastelloy C4 as corrosion protection of carbon steel containers is compared with the corrosion-allowance concept using unalloyed or low-alloyed steels. The materials are examined in three disposal relevant brines (two rich in MgCl_2, one rich in NaCl) at 150 C. The results indicate that welded Hastelloy C4 is highly resistant to corrosion in the NaCl-rich brine. In the presence of sulfides or MgCl_2-rich brines, however, severe pitting corrosion occurs. The three steels investigated are resistant to pitting corrosion in all brines, and their general corrosion rates imply corrosion allowances acceptable for thick-walled containers. In view of these results, ...
Radon exposure assessment in case-control studies on radon and lung cancer is generally based on contemporary radon concentration measurements, which can be affected by significant changes in the building structures or in living habits. Another method to estimate the radon exposure of the subjects is the recently developed retrospective dosimetry technique based on the {sup 210}Po surface activity from glass objects. In order to compare the results obtained by the two methods, a study has been carried out in a sample of 26 dwellings in Rome, with radon concentration values ranging from 28 to 623 Bq m{sup -3}. Retrospective detectors based on CR-39 and LR 115 were exposed on 50 glass objects in bedrooms and living rooms. The correlation factor between the two sets of data, after removing six extreme values, is 0.67, which is similar to results obtained in other validation studies of similar sample size. The correlation increases to 0.83 if the ...
We have carried out theoretical calculations for the production of the long-lived isomers {sup 93m}Nb({1/2}{sup {minus}}, 16y), {sup 121m}Sn(11/2{minus}, 55 yr), {sup 166m}Ho(7-, 1200 yr), {sup 184m}Re(8+, 165 d), {sup 186m}Re(8+, 2{times}10{sup 5} yr), {sup 178m}Hf(16+, 31 yr), {sup 179m}Hf(25/2-, 25 d), {sup 192m}Ir(9+, 241 yr), all of which pose potential radiation activation problems in nuclear fusion reactors. We consider (n, 2n), (n,n{prime}), and (n, {gamma}) production modes and compare our results both with experimental data (where available) and systematic. We also investigate the dependence of the isomeric cross section ratio on incident neutron energy for the isomers under consideration. The statistical Hauser-Feshbach plus preequilibrium code GNASH was used for the calculations. Where discrete state experimental information was lacking, rotational band members above the isomeric state, which can be justified theoretically but have not been ...
Sepsis induced by methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) has worse outcome because of multiresistance to a large group of antibiotics, which may lead to death from septic shock. In the present study, we firstly found that artesunate in combination with oxacillin was capable of protecting mice challenged with live MRSA WHO-2 (WHO-2) and the protection was related to the reduced TNF-a and IL-6 levels and decreased bacterial load. Based on above results, artesunate was further investigated from two aspects in vitro, anti-inflammation effect and antibacterial enhancement effect on antibiotics. Artesunate not only inhibited TNF-a and IL-6 release but also inhibited mRNA and protein expressions of TLR2 and Nod2, two important receptors, in murine peritoneal macrophages stimulated wit...
The TRIGA-SPEC experiment has been installed recently at the research reactor TRIGA Mainz. Ground state properties like masses, charge radii, spins, and moments of short-lived nuclides can be determined with very-high precision using the Penning trap mass spectrometer TRIGA-TRAP, and the collinear laser spectroscopy setup TRIGA-LASER. Short-lived neutron-rich radionuclides in the mass range 80 < A < 140 are produced by thermal neutron induced fission of e.g. U-235, Pu-239 or Cf-249, respectively. For the extraction and ionization of the fission products a gas-jet system is coupled to a 2.45-GHz ECR ion source for the production of singly charged ions. The gas-jet has been tested on-line and fission products have been extracted. First off-line tests of the ion source have been performed successfully with argon gas. The results of the commissioning test of the ion source and the on-line coupling of the experiments are presented.
Computers have a direct impact on our lives nowadays. Human's interaction with the computer has modified with the passage of time as improvement in technology occurred the better the human computer interaction became. Today we are facilitated by the operating system that has reduced all the complexity of hardware and we undergo our computation in a very convenient way irrespective of the process occurring at the hardware level. Though the human computer interaction has improved but it's not done yet. If we come to the future the computer's role in our lives would be a lot more rather our life would be of the artificial intelligence. In our future the biggest resource would be component of time and wasting time for a key board entry or a mouse input would be unbearable so the need would be of the computer interaction environment that along with the complexity reduction also minimizes the time wastage in the human computer interaction. ...
The properties of the mixing layer in dynamic systems were studied by the example of a mathematical model of the cubic image type. Its role in the generation of information and the evolution of its significance was shown. At the moment of generation, information is of zero significance, and this significance then increases. A criterion of efficiency was proposed, and the optimum moment of making a decision in creative work was determined. It was shown that the increase in the variability of the parameters of a living system upon entry into the mixing layer and its decrease upon exit can serve as objective indicators of the transition of the system from one dynamic regime (attractor) to another. PMID:12723364
The ``Passivhaus Darmstadt-Kranichstein`` is a 4 unit terrace house with an extremely low total annual energy consumption of less than 32 kWh/m{sup 2} of living area, thereof about 12 kWh are needed for room heating. The determining factors for the low consumption are the superinsulation, airtightness of the thermal envelope in combination with a highly efficient VAV ventilation system, and an improved window construction. The results of a detailed monitoring program allow decisive statements concerning reduction of energy consumption, relief of environment, indoor air quality, and thermal comfort. (author)
The purpose of this study was to assess the utility of the Arabic translation of the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT) among a sample of male Muslim prisoners (N = 107) in Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE). Confirmatory factor analysis indicated a two-factor model to be the best fit of the data. Good internal reliability (a =.91) and predictive validity were also observed. While the limitations of the study are observed, these promising results suggest that the Arabic version of the AUDIT is a reliable and sound measure of alcohol use disorders among prisoners in the UAE.
The symbiotic polychaetes of the genus Osedax living on the bones of whale carcasses have become known as bone-eating worms. It is believed that whale bones are the source of nutrition for those gutless worms and that fatty acids are produced by their symbionts and transferred to the host. However, the symbionts are of the heterotrophic group Oceanospirillales and as such are not able to synthesize organic carbon de novo. Also, they are not housed in close contact to the bone material. We studied the ultrastructure of the integument overlying the symbiont housing trophosome in the ovisac region and the roots region and of the symbiont-free trunk region of Osedax to investigate the hosts possible contribution in feeding for the whole symbiosis. The epidermis differs conspicuously between th...
This short article discusses the results of a market survey on ventilation systems for residential buildings and the role played by ventilation systems in our daily lives. Problems incurred as a result of insufficient ventilation conditions such as the formation of mould in dwellings whose windows have been replaced with better seals are discussed, for example. The negative image of air-conditioning and its causes are examined. The need for action in this area is stressed. Further findings of the study are presented, including a detailed review of current equipment and scenarios on how these systems can develop in the future. The extension of the study to cover the situation in further European countries is mentioned.
The universe is full of exotic particles and waves. Some, such as neutrinos, pass through our neighbourhood unnoticed; others, such as extreme uv radiation, are absorbed by the upper atmosphere before they are able to do too much damage. For a long time, any systematic attempt to understand how our weather can be affected by extra-terrestrial sources other than solar visible and infrared radiation has been a lively and often controversial diversion from mainstream research. But recent scientific and technological breakthroughs and concern over long-term climate change have brought this subject into the spotlight.
The discussion focuses on the ways in which the 3 panelists in their lives and work embody fourth wave feminism, which combines politics, psychology, and spirituality in an overarching vision of change. Jane Fonda's emphasis on the importance of making narratives of gender a central organizer for personal and societal transformation, Hedda Bolgar's insistence that psychoanalysts recognize the complex dialectic between unconscious dynamics and sociocultural realities in order not to conflate conflicts rooted in social inequalities with individual issues, and Sue Shapiro's understanding of the ambiguous role of individual therapy in situations of historical and social trauma such as the tsunami in Indonesia are all examples of fourth wave feminism in practice. The unfinished business of the ...
This paper describes a simulation model for predicting end-use energy consumption in residential sectors of a city or region. In this model, the annual energy consumption of a dwelling is simulated from the occupants' schedule of living activities, weather data and energy efficiencies of appliances and dwellings. By summing up the simulation results for various household categories, total energy consumption for the residential sector in a region can be estimated. In this paper, energy consumption for Osaka City is simulated. The result is compared with statistical data. The effects of energy efficiency standards and urban heat island phenomena are examined. (author)
The improved facilities of the ISOLDE isotopic separator on-line with the 600 MeV synchrocyclotron at CERN opened the possibility to reach nuclei very far from stability (as far as 22 neutrons deficient in the Cs region and 27 neutrons deficient in the Hg region). Simultaneously the development of on-line spectrometry allowed the study of nuclei with very short half-lives and low counting rates. Results recently obtained in the odd-A iridium region are presented after a short summary of recent on-line devices developments and results. (Auth.).
Radiological hazard in uranium mining and milling operations are primarily due to exposure to external beta and gamma radiation as well as to airborne radionuclides which consist of radon and its short-lived daughter products. In May 1981 a radiological survey programme was performed in order to make a general assessment of the radiation hazards associated with the uranium mines and the Uranium Pilot Plant operated by the M.T.A. Institute in the Koprubasi district of the Manisa province. In this paper a preliminary radiological risk evaluation attempt is presented based on the radiation and radioactivity measurements performed in this district in May 1981.
The Waste Acceptance Preliminary Specifications (WAPS) require that the DWPF estimate the inventory of long-lived radionuclides present in the waste glass, and report the values in the Waste Form Qualification Report. In this report, conservative (biased high) estimates of the radionuclide inventory of glass produced from waste currently in the Tank Farm are provided. In most cases, these calculated values compare favorably with actual data. In those cases where the agreement is not good, the values reported here are conservative.
Study of the rate of dissolution in simulated lung fluid of uranium from 3 different ore matrices and from refined uranium dioxide in an essentially all teflon extraction apparatus; the rate of dissolution of thorium from a nickel metal/2 percent thoria mixture; the effect of neutron irradiation of the studied materials upon the dissolution rates; and the adsorptions of the radioisotope tracers barium 133 (substitute for radium), lead 203 and thorium 234 upon the extraction system components.
Over the years, nurses, doctors and scientists have sought ways of assessing the impact of pain on patients. While many of the instruments devised have been extremely useful in identifying the nature and intensity of pain, defining the effect it has on people's lives and perceptions has proved much more problematic. Based on the work she carried out with patients suffering from chronic benign pain, Karen Rose explores one aspect of these effects--the feeling of isolation. By using a four-step anthropological approach to identify the impact of pain, she argues, nurses can arrive at a realistic and accurate assessment of how patients are coping. PMID:7947167
For the development of a long-lived electrically rechargeable zinc/air battery, the structure and wettability of pasted zinc electrodes were optimized. Pasted zinc electrodes, having the same nominal capacities but containing 1% to 10% cellulose, were prepared and tested under defined charge and discharge conditions in zinc-oxygen cells. The maximum power as well as the cycle life of these cells were measured. After different times of operation, the porosity and the pore size distribution of the pasted zinc electrodes were measured by means of mercury porosimetry. (author) 4 figs., 1 tab., 6 refs.
The performance of a high temperature ion source coupled to a helium gas-jet transport system for an efficient mass separation of neutron-rich alkaline earth and lanthanide isotopes is reported and the results of overall efficiency measurements using different cluster materials in the gas-jet are given. A fast, microprocessor controlled tape transport system for ..gamma..-spectroscopic studies on short-lived isotopes is described. Some results on the decay of 3.8sub(-s) /sup 152/Pr are presented. (orig.).
The performance of a high temperature ion source coupled to a helium gas-jet transport system for an efficient mass separation of neutron-rich alkaline earth and lanthanide isotopes is reported and the results of overall efficiency measurements using different cluster materials in the gas-jet are given. A fast, microprocessor controlled tape transport system for ..gamma..-spectroscopic studies on short-lived isotopes is described. Some results on the decay of 3.8sub(-s) /sup 152/Pr are presented.
There is a growing interest on dynamic and broader concepts of deprivation such as vulnerability, which takes in to account the destitution of individuals from future shocks. We use the framework of decision making under uncertainty to arrive at a new measure of vulnerability to poverty. We highlight the importance of current standard of living to better capture the notion of vulnerability. In conceptualizing the new class of measures of vulnerability, we thus move beyond the standard expected poverty measures that is commonly found in the literature. We also axiomatically characterize the new class of measure and discuss some of its properties.
Nuclear reaction cross-sections for stable strontium and cesium isotopes, which were calculated by different approaches, are compared to available experimental data. Neutron and proton induced reaction cross-sections for the long-lived radionuclides [sup 90]Sr and [sup 137]Cs have been calculated in the energy range from 1 MeV to 10 GeV. Recommendations concerning cross-section calculations for strontium and cesium isotopes at intermediate and high energies are given. (orig.)
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Field experiments were conducted in the 30-km zone of Gomel's region of the Byelorussia to study factors aecting a biological radionuclide accessibility. A contamination density by radiocesium equaled 2,7-9,9 MBk/m"2, strontium 90 - 0,3-0,5 MBk/m"2 in 1991. A sowing of oats barley, lupin was carried out. It was shown that radionuclide accumulation by agricultural plants was determined basically by biological peculiarities of plants in greater degree than by the contamination density. It was shown that strontium 90 migration from the soil was more intensive than that of radiocesium. 8 tabs.
Since the mid-1980s the number of scientists from all over the world using CERN's facilities has increased enormously. Currently more than 6,000 users, over half of the planet's high-energy physicists, carry out fundamental research at CERN. This user community is living proof that CERN welcomes inter- regional collaboration which benefits all and boosts the progress of science. The LHC, the only machine capable of addressing problems way beyond today's frontiers of high energy physics, offers an unique opportunity for extending world wide collaboration.
Typhoons Aere (2004) and Matsa (2005) caused high nephelometric turbidity in the Shihmen reservoir in northern Taiwan, jeopardizing the operation of the reservoir for several days, and ultimately impacting the living conditions and economy of the downstream residents. The torrential rains caused landslides and debris flows in upland areas, and flowed into riverbeds, likely contributing significantly to the suspended sediment yields in the reservoir. This investigation elucidates how upland landslides affect sediment attributes in the reservoir basin. Study methods including field observations, spatial analysis in GIS and aerial photo interpretation are adopted to trace the sediment sources and contributing factors to the landslide. Torrential rains induced landslides and debris-flows uplan...
The restricted temperature stability of the synthetic thermal oil which is used as heat carrier fluid in parabolic trough collectors so far limits the live steam parameters in the steam cycle to approximately 375 Celsius. In order to break through this limit, already for quite some time it is researched to replace the thermal oil by boiler feeding waters and to accomplish the evaporation in the collectors. The contribution under consideration gives an overview on the direct evaporation concept and summarizes the past operational experiences. Moreover, the challenges with the integration of this technology in a steam turbine cycle are elaborated.
This paper presents results from one of the projects developed within the general framework of the international Programme 'CORE' (Cooperation for Rehabilitation in Belarus). The overall objective of the programme is to make sustainable improvements to the living conditions of the inhabitants of the territories affected by the Chernobyl disaster. The CORE Programme is currently developed in four contaminated districts of Belarus (Bragin, Cherchersk, Slavgorod and Stolyn) in the following four areas: economic and social development; health care and surveillance; education and culture; and radiological quality. The project that is presented here refers specifically to the field of 'radiological quality' and will last until the end of 2008. The project named 'implementation of an inclusive radiation monitoring system' was launched in April 2004 in the Bragin district, which is one of the most contaminated areas in ...
During 2009, the Hilton M. Briggs Library, South Dakota State University, went live with MetaLib, a federated search engine from Ex Libris. This paper presents the implementation process, addresses resource accessibility issues, and suggests a number of resources that can be consulted about these issues. Readers can apply similar strategies to projects involving federated search systems, as many implementation projects involve the same basic considerations presented here. The author did not find any studies specifically focused on configurations of MetaLib resources, so this content should be singularly useful.
A database has been compiled on human dietary intakes of trace elements by populations groups living in various countries. The main sources of information used were (1) publications in the open scientific literature, and (2) data submitted to the IAEA in response to a questionnaire. The database contains 1,758 intake values covering 35 elements and 47 countries. In this report the data are listed in various ways to facilitate identification of intake values for any specified country, element and population group. 4 refs, 5 tabs.
The nuclei {sup 81}Zr and {sup 85}Mo with T{sub z}=1/2 have been reinvestigated via their {beta}-delayed proton emissions with p-{gamma} coincidence measurement. The half-life of {sup 81}Zr has been measured to be 5.3{+-}0.5 s, which agrees with one of the two previous values. For {sup 85}Mo, the measured half-life is 3.2{+-}0.2 s, which revises the previous value. (orig.) With 3 figs., 12 refs.
The nuclei "8"1Zr and "8"5Mo with T_z=1/2 have been reinvestigated via their #beta#-delayed proton emissions with p-#gamma# coincidence measurement. The half-life of "8"1Zr has been measured to be 5.3#+-#0.5 s, which agrees with one of the two previous values. For "8"5Mo, the measured half-life is 3.2#+-#0.2 s, which revises the previous value. (orig.).
Economic depreciation of similar cost recovery schemes delay cash return of investment. Such delay may require new types of securities. Due to uncertainty of regulatory action and technology over the prolonged recovery life of the projects, investors may require a higher return, thereby raising the cost of capital. Utility managements might eschew long lived investment, too, even if cost effective to the consumer. Alternatives exist that would approximate the price signals of economic depreciation without discouraging investment. The importance of upfront returns to the investment process should not be minimized. 2 figs., 3 refs. (AV)
The US Department of Energy Office of Building Technology, State and Community Programs sponsored EcoTecture Solutions, Inc. (dba Sustainable Living Alliance {trademark}) in producing two home tours showcasing energy- and resource-efficient buildings in Austin, Texas, held on October 16, 1999, and Albuquerque, New Mexico, held on May 20, 2000. Lists are given of the notable building technologies, passive solar design features, and energy- and water-efficient technologies and design employed in the houses. There were over 1200 visitors to the 22 residential and 3 commercial buildings included in the tour.
Transmissions of sperm by unirradiated and irradiated cotton bollworm, Helicoverpa armigera, were studied by live dissection of females immediately after the initiation of mating. In cotton bollworm the sperm transfer was rather a complex process. In fact unirradiated males failed to transfer sperm in about 19% of their matings. When irradiated with 250 Gy and 400 Gy, aberrations of sperm transmission were about 21% and 50% respectively. The failure of spermatophore 'cap' location was an important reason of sperm transmission aberrations. When females mated to high-dose-irradiated males, their oviposition response appeared abnormal
The nature of radicals in wood irradiated in vacuum was studied by ESR method. The decay rate of radicals changes in three temperature ranges. Long-lived radicals are very stable at 298"0K, at which the wood-plastics composite has often been studied. The number of radicals formed by irradiations shows fairly good agreement with the total number of radicals in each isolated wood component. The graft copolymerization of MMA to irradiated wood was also studied by means of ESR, and it was found that PMMA propagating radicals are formed in irradiated wood. These radicals are probably formed by the result of graft copolymerization of MMA of wood. (auth.).
In a majority of living organisms, FoF1 ATP synthase performs the fundamental process of ATP synthesis. Despite the simple net reaction formula, ADP + Pi → ATP + H2O,...Full Text Available
The purpose of this article was to study the dissipation rate of carfentrazone-ethyl in soil and its terminal residue in wheat field eco-system. The results showed that carfentrazone-ethyl dissipated rapidly in soil after application. Its half-lives in soil were 5.8 and 3.8?h in Beijing and Jilin, respectively. The terminal residues of carfentrazone-ethyl in soil samples were very low (around 0.003?0.005?mg/kg), and the residues in wheat grain were not detectable. The use of carfentrazone-ethyl in wheat could be considered to be safe.
The term biological motion is often used by researchers studying the patterns of movement generated by living forms and in sports. We studied a pattern recognition system of motion in sport using biological motion data. Biological motion data are acquired using a 3D motion capture system. However, 3D motion capture systems are very expensive. In this article, a biological motion capture system was built using acceleration sensors. Our proposed system uses the technique of Gaussian fitting and regression analysis. We tested our proposed system in pattern recognition of outdoor tennis and its evaluations.
This paper is intended to describe how the citizens who are living near power plants or more generally nuclear facilities can be involved in the radiological control of their environment. Through the experience of the last twenty years, the article describes the conditions of the progressive setting up of a non- governmental system of control to build its principles of action and put them into practice. Three kinds of actions are described, the first two dealing with the problems in France and the last one related to a post-accidental situation in the contaminated areas of Belarus. The conclusion underlines how important it is to encourage this kind of involvement in order to increase public awareness of nuclear activities and their consequences. (authors)
Most households in low and middle income countries, including in India, use solid fuels (coal/coke/lignite, firewood, dung, and crop residue) for cooking and heating. Such fuels increase child mortality, chiefly from acute respiratory infection. There are, however, few direct estimates of the impact of solid fuel on child mortality in India. Methods: We compared household solid fuel use in 1998 between 6790 child deaths, from all causes, in the previous year and 609 601 living children living in 1.1 million nationally-representative homes in India. Analyses were stratified by child's gender, age (neonatal, post-neonatal, 1-4 years) and colder versus warmer states. We also examined the association of solid fuel to non-fatal pneumonias. Solid fuel use was very common (87% in households with child deaths and 77% in households with living children). After adjustment for demographic factors and ...
The detection efficiency of #alpha# particles of "2"1"4Po 7.69 MeV and "2"1"8Po 6.00 MeV in measuring radon daughters were determined through the data which were measured with long-lived #alpha# standard source and radon daughter standard source and with curve-fitting method of general formulation. The indeterminacy was #<=#2.5% and #<=#2.7% respectively. Their ranges in filter membrane were also determined, and the effect of the indeterminacy on the self-absorption factors was #<=#1.3%.
The pollution of the environment with toxic metals is a result of many human activities, such as mining and metallurgy, and the effects of these metals on the ecosystems are of large economic and public-healthsignificance. This paper presents the features and advantages of the unconventional removal method of heavy metals - biosorption - as a part of bioremediation. Bioremediation consists of a group of applications, which involve the detoxification of hazardous substances instead of transferring them from one medium to another, by means of microbes and plants. This process is characterized as less disruptive and can be often carried out on site, eliminating the need to transport the toxic materials to treatment sites. The biosorption (sorption of metallic ions from solutions by live or dried biomass) offers an alternative to the remediation of industrial effluents as well as the recovery of metals contained in other media. Biosorbents are prepared from naturally ...
The experimental work completed thus far in the areas of rapid radiochemical separations and metastable isomeric states is summarized. Activation analyses were made in samples of ore materials and metals using rapid radiochemical separations to isolate short-lived radioactive isotopes such as 3.77-min V/sup 52/ and 14.6-min Mo/sup 101/. The analytical results obtained were compared to the results obtained from standard chemical and instrumental analytical methods and, where possible, to activation analysis results obtained from longer-lived isotopes of the same element. Further work is in progress to improve the procedures, to evaluate the reproducibility and accuracy of the methods, and to evaluate their usefulness on a wide variety of sample matrices. The research on short-lived metastable isomers showed that 1.7-min W/sup 185m/ is not produced in sufficiently high yield for the development of a ...
The first part of a systematic investigation is presented of surface treatments affecting the fatigue behavior of smooth and notched quenched and tempered (Q and T) specimens made of a B-Mn SS2131 ({approx}AISI 15B21H) steel. In this part, the effects of plasma nitriding (nitriding temperature=480 C, time=24 h) on the fatigue strength and notch sensitivity were investigated. Constant stress amplitude plane reversed bending fatigue tests (R=-1) at 47 Hz were conducted using cylindrical plasma nitriding (PN) and Q and T steel specimens with K{sub t}=1.05 and 1.7. The compound layer was found to consists of {epsilon}-phase and {gamma}`-phase. S-N curves show that plasma nitriding improves the fatigue limit by 53 and 115% of Q and T smooth and notched specimens, respectively. The fatigue strength of smooth specimens is improved through the whole fatigue life but only for long fatigue lives for notched specimens. Plasma nitriding reverses the low notch sensitivity (at ...
The concentrations of Cd, Co, Cr, Fe, Mo, Ni, Se, Ti, V and Zn in biological fluids, human blood serum and market milk were determined by neutron activation analysis, with enrichment by coprecipitation. The pre-concentration of these trace elements was accomplished by converting the dissolved trace metal ions into their pyrrolidinedithiocarbamate (1-pyrrolidinecarbodithioate) chelates, followed by coprecipitation with a metal carrier such as Ni, Pb or Bi. The coprecipitation was carried out prior to irradiation for the short-lived nuclides (V, Ti and Se) and after irradiation for the other elements. The validity of the method was checked using certified biological reference materials; the concentrations of trace elements found by the proposed method agreed well with the published certified data. The limits of detection for Cd, Co, Cr, Fe, Mo, Ni, Se (obtained through the long-lived isotope "7"5Se) and Zn under the present experimental ...
At the Forschungszentrum Karlsruhe the HGF Strategy Fund project entitled 'Innovative Technology to Reduce Radiotoxicity' is performed which delivers an essential scientific contribution to the application oriented fundamental research for Accelerator Driven Systems (ADS). The addressed topics are in the areas of heavy liquid metal technology, thermalhydraulics and materials / corrosion. An ADS consists of three main components: an proton accelerator, a spallation target and a subcritical blanket. The strategic objective of an ADS is the transmutation of long-lived radioactive waste (plutonium, minor actinides and long-lived fission products) into short-lived isotopes or stable elements, thus closing the fuel cycle. The objective of one task of the HGF Strategy Fund Project is the numerical calculation of a closed spallation target module. In a consequent next step such a spallation target can be experimentally investigated ...
The population of U.S. Department of Defense military working dogs provides an opportunity to study the lifetime occurrence of neoplasia in 2 breeds of dogs--the German Shepherd Dog and the Belgian Malinois. Medical records were reviewed for all dogs that died or were euthanized in 1992 (135 German Shepherd Dogs and 106 Belgian Malinois). Histologically confirmed neoplasms were recorded. More than 30% of both breeds (41 German Shepherd Dogs and 33 Belgian Malinois) developed at least 1 primary neoplasm during their lives, with 10% developing more than 1 neoplasm. Nearly 57% of the neoplasms were benign, and approximately 43% were malignant. German Shepherd Dogs lived 9.7 years, on average, and Belgian Malinois lived 7.9 years, on average. Of the dogs that developed any neoplasm, Belgian Malinois had a mean age at 1st diagnosis that was 1.1 years younger and a mean age at 1st diagnosis of malignancy that was 1.7 years ...
The Belgian radioactive waste management agency NIRAS/ONDRAF has undertaken a comparative assessment study on long-term waste management options for the high-level and/or long-lived radioactive waste that should be managed as a result of the use of nuclear energy in Belgium. This study is one of the supportive documents to a Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) process initiated end of 2008 and geared towards a decision in principle by the Belgian Government in 2010 on the long-term management of such radioactive waste. NIRAS/ONDRAF, together with Belgian and international research organisations, has developed a reference option for such high-level and long-lived radioactive waste, called Category B and C Waste, consisting of the disposal of such waste in a clay formation [SAFIR-2]. More than 30 years of R and D have been undertaken resulting, among others, in the underground research facility HADES, though the decision in principle by ...
The spike (S) protein of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV) has two major functions: interacting with the receptor to mediate virus entry and inducing protective immunity. Coincidently, the receptor-binding domain (RBD, residues 318-510) of SAR-CoV S protein is a major antigenic site to induce neutralizing antibodies. Here, we used RBD-Fc, a fusion protein containing the RBD and human IgG1 Fc, as a model in the studies and found that a single amino acid substitution in the RBD (R441A) could abolish the immunogenicity of RBD to induce neutralizing antibodies in immunized mice and rabbits. With a panel of anti-RBD mAbs as probes, we observed that R441A substitution was able to disrupt the majority of neutralizing epitopes in the RBD, suggesting that this residue is critical for the antigenic structure responsible for inducing protective immune responses. We also demonstrated that the RBD-Fc bearing R441A mutation could not bind to soluble and cell-associated ...
The biomedical and ecological interest for the microwave impact on the Earth biosphere is continuously increased since the industrial, military and communication activities strongly contribute to the electromagnetic stress of living bodies. In the next the authors present some of the main results obtained regarding the microwave exposure of various types of biological material: bacteria, fungi, young plant seedlings, dry seeds, animal tissues. The electromagnetic exposure was carried out in open space in well controlled environmental conditions by using 10.75 GHz/1 m W cm{sup -2} microwaves. Biochemical assays and cytogenetic tests have been carried out to reveal the changes induced post irradiation. The response of some pathogen bacteria, have been emphasized by means of turbidimetric measurements - the stimulatory effect being noticed at the level of the microbial population density (the stimulation of the human body microbial flora seems to be one of the side ...
Objectives This paper examines the determinants of the insureds decision to use their health insurance card when seeking outpatient and inpatient health care in Vietnam. Methods Uses Vietnams latest Household Living Standard Survey data and random-intercept logistic regression to assess the influence of the observed individual, household and commune/ward factors on the insureds decision to access health insurance benefits while controlling for the unobserved commune/ward-specific factors. Results Compared to the compulsory enrollees, the voluntary enrollees and the beneficiaries of the Health Care Fund for the Poor are less likely to use their card when seeking inpatient care. An individuals likelihood of accessing insurance benefits varies inversely with income and the level of education,...
The multiple responses of fishes to changes in dissolved oxygen saturations have been studied widely in the laboratory. In contrast only few studies have included field observations. The objective of the present study was to evaluate the performance of a novel acoustic dissolved oxygen transmitter for field biotelemetry. The results demonstrated that the output of the transmitter was unaffected by three different temperatures (10 to 30 degrees C) and described the dissolved oxygen saturation with high accuracy (r(2) > 0.99) over the entire range of 0 to 191% saturation. The response time (>= 90% of end value) of the transmitter was 12 s both in terms of decreasing (100 to 0%) and increasing (0 to 100%) oxygen saturations. When externally attached to fishes the present findings support the use of the transmitter for reliable dissolved oxygen measurements on individuals living in environments that may change both temporally and spatially with regard to ambient ...
Lack of access to basic education leads to diminished individual and national capabilities, therewith furthering cycles of poverty. An equitable education system meeting basic learning needs represents not only a human right, but also a means for reducing poverty, promoting productivity, and sustaining development. The Government of China--the most populous developing nation, the majority of whose citizens live in rural areas--has been committed to universalizing nine-year compulsory education among school-aged children and eliminating illiteracy among youths and adults aged 15-45. This study examines lessons learned from China's efforts in these areas. It also reports on current challenges and trends in a new national initiative for achieving high-quality universal basic education by the year 2007.
Cyst nematodes are troublesome parasites that live on, and destroy, a range of important host vegetable plants. Damage caused by the potato cyst nematode has now been reported in over 50 countries. One approach to eliminating the problem is to stimulate early hatching of the nematodes, but key hatching stimuli are not naturally available in sufficient quantities to do so. Here, we report the first chemical synthesis of solanoeclepin A, the key hatch-stimulating substance for potato cyst nematode. The crucial steps in our synthesis are an intramolecular cyclization reaction for construction of the highly strained tricyclo[5.2.1.01,6]decane skeleton (DEF ring system) and an intramolecular Diels???Alder reaction of a furan derivative for the synthesis of the ABC carbon framework. The present ...
The fatigue life variability of the #alpha#+#beta# titanium alloy, Ti-6Al-2Sn-4Zr-6Mo increased with decreasing stress level. The variability in life was found to be due to segregation of lives due to two failure mechanisms. A bimodal cumulative distribution model was shown to accurately describe the combined failure modes. The nominal failure processes for the two regimes were similar, with crack nucleation occurring in equiaxed #alpha#p particles, irrespective of life or stress level. However the variability in life was not controlled by the size of the crack-nucleating #alpha#p, but rather by the ability of the material to distribute deformation and avoid early crack nucleation.
Contamination of certain areas of Europe with radiocaesium from the Chernobyl accident led to a higher {sup 137}Cs accumulation (i.e. 300-600 Bq kg{sup -1}) in grain and to potential post-accident contamination of broiler chickens. In future, such contamination may require a simple determination of the {sup 137}Cs activity concentration in broiler chicken meat which would lead to measures for preventing the recommended limits of radionuclide contamination of the meat for human consumption from being exceeded. This paper describes the development of a rapid method for the in vivo monitoring of the broiler chicken using a lead-shielded sodium iodide detector. The method enables simply fixed live chicken to be monitored, the results showing a good correlation (R{sup 2}=0.98) with measurements of meat from chicken previously monitored in vivo prior to slaughter.
Using longitudinal data from Ukraine we examine the extent of any long-lasting effects of exposure to the Chernobyl disaster on the health and labour market performance of the adult workforce. Variation in the local area level of radiation fallout from the Chernobyl accident is considered as a random exogenous shock with which to try to establish its causal impact on poor health, labour force participation, hours worked and wages. There appears to be a significant positive association between local area-level radiation dosage and perception of poor health, though much weaker associations between local area-level dosage and other specific self-reported health conditions. There is also some evidence to suggest that those who lived in areas more exposed to Chernobyl-induced radiation have sig...
Modern civilisation is based on substantial utilisation of energy. Rapid industrial development and improvement of living standards in India require energy planners to adequately forecast the energy demand and take appropriate measures in advance. However, the development and establishment of new technology is a slow process, sometimes extending over decades. Hence, energy options based on new technologies need to be planned for much in advance making allowance for uncertainties and delays. Fast Breeder Reactor (FBR) technology is an advanced energy option promising abundant and economic supply of power. Research and development work on FBRs has been conducted at the Indira Gandhi Centre of Atomic Research (IGC) since 1971. The international trends in FBR development are highlighted in this discussion and an overview of some of the research activities at IGC is presented. (author). 8 refs., 7 tab s.
A first-hand account of developments in the Soviet rocket industry is presented. The organization and leadership of the rocket and missile industry are traced from its beginning in the 1920s. The development of the Glushko Experimental Design Bureau, where the majority of Soviet rocket engines were created, is related. The evolution of Soviet rocket engines is traced in regard to both their technical improvement and their application in missiles and space vehicles. Improved Glushko engines and specialized Isaev and Kosberg engines are discussed. The difficulties faced by the Soviet missile and space program, such as the pre-Sputnik failures, the oscillation problem of 1965/1966, which exposed a weakness in Soviet ICBM missiles, and the Nedelin disaster of 1960, which cost the lives of more than 200 scientists and engineers, as well as the Commander-in-Chief of the Strategic Rocket Forces, Marshall Nedelin, are examined. 122 refs.
The cross section and activity profile of different radioisotopes produced by #alpha#-induced nuclear reaction on natural zirconium, have been obtained by stacked foil activation using 40 MeV #alpha#-particles from Variable Energy Cyclotron (VEC) machine at Calcutta. The activity profile would be used to study the surface loss of zircaloy materials of engineering components by thin layer activation (TLA) technique. Generally, isotopes with suitable #gamma#-rays and long half-lives are the most useful in TLA technique, e.g., "9"2Nb, "9"5"gNb and "9"5Zr. (author). 2 refs., 1 tab.
The emission of the plerion G21.5-0.9 appears more extended in X rays than in radio. This is an unexpected result because it would imply that short-lived X-ray electrons may reach distances even larger than radio electrons. Applying an empirical relationship between dust scattering optical depth and photoelectric column density, the measured column density leads to a large optical depth at 1 keV, of about 1. Therefore we investigate the hypothesis that the detected halo be an effect of dust scattering, re-analyzing an Cal/PV XMM-Newton observation of G21.5-0.9 and critically examining it in terms of a dust scattering model. We also present a spectral analysis of a prominent extended feature in the northern sector of the halo.
High levels of unemployment are a permanent feature in the urban areas of many developing countries. South Africa is no exception in this regard. Poverty and hardship caused by unemployment force many participants in the labour market to venture into the urban informal economy in order to survive. The activities of the waste pickers fall within the urban informal economy. In spite of the fact that waste pickers are a common sight in the urban areas of Pretoria and other South African cities, remarkably little is known about them and scant attention is paid to them. The aim of the study was to establish a socio-economic profile of the street waste pickers in Pretoria and to describe the social interaction and relationship dynamics between the waste pickers and their families, each other, th...
The inherent open-ended nature of socio-cultural phenomena makes it necessary to create new theoretical frameworks that enable us to understand the fluidity of the relations between different parts of the dynamic system. Recent advance in modern biology seems to provide a set of heuristic concepts useful to investigate the complexity and fluidity of the relationship between different contexts. One of these is the Rayner?s logic of natural inclusionality. According whit Rayner?s evolutionary standpoint any living system is constantly in dialogue with its natural neighbourhood on the basis of an interdependent and co-evolutive process involved both the context and the organism. The aim of this paper is to evaluate the model proposed by Rayner in light of contextual perspective in development...
Introduction.Microfluidic technology allows fast reactions in a simple experimental setup, while using very low volumes and amounts of starting material. Consequently, microfluidic technology is an ideal tool for radiolabeling reactions involving short-lived positron emitters. Optimization of the complex array of different reaction conditions requires knowledge of the different reaction parameters linked to the microfluidic system as well as their influence on the radiochemical yields. 1-(5-Deoxy-5-fluoro-?-d-arabinofuranosyl)-2-nitroimidazole ([18F]FAZA) is a frequently used radiotracer for PET imaging of tumor hypoxia. The present study describes the radiosynthesis of [18F]FAZA by means of microfluidic technology and subsequent small animal PET imaging in EMT-6 tumor-bearing mice.Methods...
Benthic biological samples were taken in 1977 from the vicinity of the Farallon Islands radioactive waste disposal sites for characterization of the infaunal macroinvertebrates and foraminifera. A total of 120 invertebrate species were collected, of which 75 species (63 percent) were polychaetes. Forty-three of these polychaete species have not previously been reported from depths greater than 1000m. A total of 1044 macroinvertebrate specimens were collected of which 54 percent were polychates. Only the nematods were present at all six benthic stations, but the community structure was dominated by the polychaetes Tauberia gracilis, Allia pulchra, Chaetozone setosa, and Cossura candida. Living and dead foraminifera were reported. The possible role of polychaetes in bioturbation and in the marine food chain is briefly discussed with respect to the various polychaete feeding mechanisms.
We have studied energy levels in "6"3Fe populated in the #beta#-decay of "6"3Mn. A new (preliminary) level scheme of "6"3Fe includes 10 excited states connected by 21 #gamma#-rays. The first excited states at 357 and 451 keV have the level half-lives of 110 ps and 780 ps, respectively. Three states, at 357, 451 and 1132 keV, are strongly #beta#-fed with log ft #approx# 5, while there is only a very week #beta#-feeding, if any at all, to the ground state. The new results imply that "6"3Fe departs from a simple shell model structure observed for heavier N = 37 isotones of "6"5Ni and "6"7Zn. (author)
Heavy ion irradiation on tantalum metal target with 57 MeV {sup 11}B{sup 4+} leads to the production of no-carrier-added radioisotopes of platinum, {sup 187,188}Pt and iridium, {sup 187,188}Ir in the matrix, which have been effectively separated from the bulk target and from each other with suitable anion exchangers employing liquid-liquid extraction (LLX). Also {sup 188,189}Pt and {sup 188,189}Ir radionuclides have been produced, from their short-lived precursors {sup 188,189}Au, in {sup 12}C{sup 6+} irradiated tantalum matrix. Gamma-spectroscopy has been utilised to determine the production, extent of separation and purity of the radiotracers at different stages of the experiment. (orig.)
One hypothesis for the decline of the North American greater (Aythya marila) and lesser (A. affinis) scaup population is that contaminant burdens acquired on wintering or staging areas impair reproduction or cause lethal or sublethal health effects. Recent studies have found increased selenium (Se) concentrations in scaup but have focused on the fall and spring staging periods. From January to March 2006 and December to March 2006 and 2007, we analyzed liver tissues collected from greater scaup wintering in western Lake Ontario for 16 trace elements. We also measured Se concentrations in greater scaup blood and Dreissenid mussel tissue. Se was the only trace element that occurred at increased concentrations (>10??g/g liver dry weight) in a substantial proportion (99%) of greater scaup live...
This paper describes an experiment which has been performed with a somewhat different philosophy in its approach as compared to previous work. (a) The trigger threshold energy was increased by more than a factor of ten on previous experiments reducing the dilution effect of many lower energy showers known not to produce tachyons. 1673 shower were recorded. (b) The exposure time was made longer than previous experiments in order to obtain a reasonably large statistical sample at the higher threshold. Observations were made between February 1979 and June 1980, the total live time being 9768 hours. (c) Records of the detector output amplitude for the 480#mu#s lead time were integrated point by point as is sometimes done in radio astronomy, this gives the integrated energy deposition within the detector.
The #alpha# radiation dose to the lungs of people who live in buildings constructed of some granites, low density concretes, and gypsum boards is higher than for residents of most other types of dwellings due to the air-borne progeny of radon. There is evidence that sealing the interior surfaces with epoxy paint, for example, can reduce the #alpha# dose to the lung significantly without a compensating increase in whole-body exposure to the #gamma#-rays from radon progeny. Based on the incidence rates for lung cancer in uranium miners, a concentration of radon of the order of 1 to 5 pCi/l. appears to be a reasonable limit for 'lifetime' exposure indoors for 'typical' home ventilation conditions. (author).
A number of epidemiological studies indicate an association between depression and proximity to high voltage transmission lines. These studies have been criticized, however, for using surrogate measures of electromagnetic fields (EMFs) and unstandardized measures of depression. In an effort to overcome these limitations, the Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression (CES-D) scale was administered to 152 women living either adjacent to a transmission line or one block away. Results indicate that homes adjacent to the transmission lines have an average EMF level of 4.86 milligauss at their front door and those one block away have an average of 0.68 milligauss. There was no significant difference in CES-D scores between the groups, controlling for demographic variables. There appeared to be an increase in other health effects, including cancer and miscarriages, but these findings were preliminary and need further investigation.
In the field of Living Probabilistic Safety Assessment (LPSA) the reliability data updating is an important factor. In risk analysis equipment failure data is needed to estimate the frequencies of events contributing to risk posed by a facility. Five years data of emergency diesel generator (EDG) of Daya Bay Nuclear Power Plant (NPP) has been studied in this paper. The data updating process has been done by using two methods, i.e., the classical method and Bayesian method. The aim of using these methods is to calculate the operational failure rate (@l) and demand failure probability (p). The results show that the operational failure rate is 1.7E-3 per hour and the demand failure probability is 2.4E-2 demand per day for Daya Bay NPP. By comparing the results obtain from classical and Bayesi...
The present study has investigated metal contamination at nine sites (10 sampling stations) from the English Channel to the Mediterranean Sea, including low level and highly contaminated sediments. Both total and labile concentrations of metals were determined in superficial sediments. The influence of different pHs was tested and metal lability at pHs encountered in the gut of invertebrates (the ragworm Nereis diversicolor, the blue mussel Mytilus edulis, the Japanese oyster Crassostrea gigas) was compared with the distribution of metals in various operationally defined geochemical fractions. Cd showed the highest lability and Cu the lowest, whereas Zn lability was intermediate. Metal concentrations were determined in bivalves at six sites and in worms at three sites. Cd in living organis...
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.
The calculated radioactive waste inventories of the Turkey Point pressurized water fission reactor (PWR) and the Starfire conceptual fusion tokamak are compared as a function of time from initial start-up to 10,000 years after decommissioning. Only material out of reactor at least one year is considered. The total activity in Ci/W(th) of the Starfire tokamak is slightly greater than that of the PWR during the active lifetimes of the two reactors and beyond 1000 years. However, using reduced activation materials in Starfire can result in about 1/2000 as much long-lived radioactivity as in the fission reactor. It is stressed that comparison of wastes on this basis is not straightforward, since the radioisotopes and methods required for their disposal are different for fusion and fission reactors. 2 refs., 1 fig., 2 tabs.
Recent research findings of epidemiologist Alice Stewart suggest that nuclear workers may be at risk of contracting cancer even though their measured occupational doses fall within current safety standards. It is argued that these standards are inappropriate as they are based on extrapolations of studies on survivors of the Hiroshima and Nagasaki explosions. These individuals received single doses of radiation, whereas today's nuclear industry personnel are exposed to low-level ionizing radiation over the length of their working lives. Stewart's team linked low dose occupational exposure to ionizing radiation with an increased risk of cancer in respiratory, digestive and blood-forming tissues. The nuclear industry and United States government agencies hotly contest these assertion with their potentially damaging political and economic consequences. (UK).
Recent research findings of epidemiologist Alice Stewart suggest that nuclear workers may be at risk of contracting cancer even though their measured occupational doses fall within current safety standards. It is argued that these standards are inappropriate as they are based on extrapolations of studies on survivors of the Hiroshima and Nagasaki explosions. These individuals received single doses of radiation, whereas today's nuclear industry personnel are exposed to low-level ionizing radiation over the length of their working lives. Stewart's team linked low dose occupational exposure to ionizing radiation with an increased risk of cancer in respiratory, digestive and blood-forming tissues. The nuclear industry and United States government agencies hotly contest these assertion with their potentially damaging political and economic consequences. (UK).
The book presents a very good account of all aspects of protection from ionizing radiation. The quantities and units are given and defined used in nuclear physics and dosimetry. The effects of ionizing radiation on cells and on man are described. The principles are presented of radiation protection including limits and valid regulations and decrees. Also discussed is internal irradiation and its modelling. A great part of the book is devoted to aspects of monitoring persons, the living and working environment and to the determination of internal contamination. The system of radiation protection in Czechoslovakia is described and some practical questions are discussed of protection during radiodiagnosis and radiotherapy, in the nuclear fuel cycle, in the operation of nuclear power installations and in crack detection. In conclusion a survey is given of the population exposure from various natural and artificial sources. (M.D.). 57 figs., 34 tabs., 138 refs.
The Savannah River Site disposes of low-level radioactive waste within on-site engineered disposal facilities. The Savannah River Site must demonstrate that these disposals meet the requirements of DOE Order 435 . 1 through a process known as performance assessment (PA). The objective of this document is to provide the radionuclide -specific data needed for the PA calculations . This work is part of an on-going program to periodically review and update existing PA work as new data becomes available. Revision of the E -Area Low-Level Waste Facility PA is currently underway. The number of radionuclides selected to undergo detailed analysis in the PA is determined by a screening process. The basis of this process is described. Radionuclide-specific data for half-lives, decay modes, daughters, dose conversion factors and groundwater concentration limits are presented with source references and methodologies.
Recently it was demonstrated that long-lived quantum coherence exists during excitation energy transport in photosynthesis. It is a valid question up to which length, time and mass scales quantum coherence may extend, how one may detect this coherence and what, if any, role it plays in the dynamics of the system. Here we suggest that the selectivity filter of ion channels may exhibit quantum coherence, which might be relevant for the process of ion selectivity and conduction. We show that quantum resonances could provide an alternative approach to ultrafast two-dimensional (2D) spectroscopy to probe these quantum coherences. We demonstrate that the emergence of resonances in the conduction of ion channels that are modulated periodically by time-dependent external electric fields can serve as signatures of quantum coherence in such a system. Assessments of experimental feasibility and specific paths towards the experimental realization of such experiments are ...
To understand dynamic developmental processes, living tissues must be imaged frequently and for extended periods of time. Root development is extensively studied at cellular resolution to understand basic mechanisms underlying pattern formation and maintenance in plants. Unfortunately, ensuring continuous specimen access, while preserving physiological conditions and preventing photo-damage, poses major barriers to measurements of cellular dynamics in indeterminately growing organs such as plant roots. We present a system that integrates optical sectioning through light sheet fluorescence microscopy with hydroponic culture that enables us to image at cellular resolution a vertically growing Arabidopsis root every few minutes and for several consecutive days. We describe novel automated routines to track the root tip as it grows, track cellular nuclei and identify cell divisions. We demonstrate the system's capabilities by collecting data on divisions and nuclear ...
Elastic and inelastic proton scattering has been measured in inverse kinematics on the unstable nucleus {sup 40}S. A phenomenological DWBA analysis yields a quadrupole deformation parameter {beta}{sub 2} = 0.35 {+-} 0.05 for the 2{sup +}{sub 1} state. Consistent phenomenological and microscopic proton scattering analyses have been applied to all even-even Sulfur isotopes from A = 32 to A = 40. The microscopic analysis used microscopic collective model densities and a modified Jeukenne-Lejeune-Mahaux effective interaction. This analysis suggests the presence of a neutron skin in the heavy sulfur isotopes. The analysis is consistent with normalization values for {lambda}{sub {upsilon}} and {lambda}{sub {omega}} of 0.95 for both the real and imaginary parts of the JLM potential. (author)
Applications of molten salts technology to separation and synthesis of materials have been studied eagerly, which would develop new fields of materials science. Research Group for Actinides Science, Department of Materials Science, Japan Atomic Energy Research Institute (JAERI), together with Reprocessing and Recycle Technology Division, Atomic Energy Society of Japan, organized the Workshop on Molten Salts Technology and Computer Simulation at Tokai Research Establishment, JAERI on July 18, 2001. In the workshop eleven lectures were made and lively discussions were there on the fundamentals and applications of the molten salts technology that covered the structure and basic properties of molten salts, the pyrochemical reprocessing technology and the relevant computer simulation. The 10 of the presented papers are indexed individually. (J.P.N.)
Understanding of probiotic-induced regulatory gene expression and networking is critical to further explore their roles in controlling infection. Transcriptional profile of selected innate immune genes in primary bovine intestinal epithelial cells was assessed over a time course of incubation with the probiotic Lactobacillus plantarum 299v. Based on gene expression results, a time point was chosen to prime epithelial cells with the probiotic prior to infection with rotavirus. Plaque assays and genomic analysis provided the basis for establishing the efficacy of probiotics in preventing a rotaviral infection. Plaque assays revealed that the probiotic is capable of decreasing (at least by 100-fold) the levels of live virus when the cells were primed with the probiotic. Results from gene expr...
Abstract It is well established that ageing handicaps the ability of prey to escape predators, yet surprisingly little is known about how ageing affects the ability of predators to catch prey. Research into long-lived predators has assumed that adults have uniform impacts on prey regardless of age. Here we use longitudinal data from repeated observations of individually-known wolves (Canis lupus) hunting elk (Cervus elaphus) in Yellowstone National Park to demonstrate that adult predatory performance declines with age and that an increasing ratio of senescent individuals in the wolf population depresses the rate of prey offtake. Because this ratio fluctuates independently of population size, predatory senescence may cause wolf populations of equal size but different age structure to have d...
Male meadow voles housed in a long photoperiod (14 h light/day, LP) preferred female to male odors, whereas males maintained in a short photoperiod (10 h light/day, SP) did not display preferences for odors of either sex. These odor-preference patterns matched those of free-living males during spring and autumn, respectively. The preference of LP male voles for female over male odors was eliminated by gonadectomy and reinstated by treatment with testosterone. In SP males, although gonadectomy did not affect odor choices, a preference for female odors was induced by testosterone treatment. Treatment with estradiol did not alter odor preferences of LP or SP males. In conjunction with previous result, the present findings suggest that hormonal responsiveness of neural substrates that control odor preferences are sexually dimorphic and may reflect sex differences in reproductive strategies. PMID:1615048
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...
Objectives: Many youth with tics experience distress about having tics and how others may perceive them. Such symptoms are often more impairing and distressing than are the tics and negatively impact self-concept, functioning, and quality of life. Although treatments exist that target the frequency and severity of tics, no intervention has been developed that helps youth with tics cope with their condition and limit associated functional impairment and distress. Given this, we developed a cognitive-behaviorally oriented psychotherapy protocol that promotes adaptive coping and resiliency among youth with tics in addressing varied issues commonly experienced by this population. This poster reports data from the Phase I component of this study. Method: Phase I concentrated on developing the t...
For the development of a long-lived, electrically rechargeable zinc-air battery the structure and wettability of pasted zinc electrodes were optimized. Pasted zinc electrodes containing 1 to 10% cellulose, but having almost the same nominal capacities, were prepared and tested in zinc/oxygen cells. The effect of discharge rate on cell voltage and delivered capacity, as well as the maximum power, were measured. Furthermore, cell charge-discharge behaviour and cycle life were examined. After different times of operation, the porosity and the pore size distribution of the pasted zinc electrodes were measured by means of mercury porosimetry. The life cycle and peak power drain capability of the Zn/oxygen battery could be substantially improved by the addition of 10 wt% cellulose to the pasted zinc electrode. (author)
Abstract People with a physical disability are a population who for a number of reasons may be vulnerable to social isolation. Research into Internet based support sites has found that social support and an online sense of community can be developed through computer mediated communication channels. This study aims to gain an understanding of the benefits that membership of disability specific online communities may have for people with a physical disability. An online survey was administered to a sample of users of such sites (N = 160). Results indicated that users did receive moral support and personal advice through participating in such online communities. Further, results indicated that online social support and feeling a sense of community online were positively associated with partic...
Time-differential magnetic moment measurements on the first-excited Isup(#pi#)=2"+ states in "2"0Ne and "2"4Mg with mean lives of 1.0 and 2.1 ps, respectively are described. The lifetime of the latter state was determined simultaneously. A special detection geometry was designed to improve the experimental #gamma#-ray anisotropy measured with finite-size detectors. For "2"0Ne also a time-integral measurement with charge-state separation was performed. The necessary electronics circuitry built to perform these complicated measurements and the plunger assembly with laser interferometer are also described. A magnetic moment measurement of "2"2Ne(2_1"+) with tau=5.0 ps and transient field measurements at low and high recoil velocities are reported. A discussion of possible extensions of the techniques are given. (Auth.).
A newly-available radioisotopic system, /sup 172/Hf-/sup 172/Lu, has excellent potential for tracer applications in which nuclear data acquisition must be accomplished in real time. The 6.7-day half-life of /sup 172/Lu is sufficient for a large fraction of tracer experiments, and should allow the direct incorporation of /sup 172/Lu into tests that have traditionally utilized much longer-lived radionuclides. Since /sup 172/Lu is the daughter component of a radioisotope generator, however, its effective shelf-life is determined by the half-life of its 1.9-year /sup 172/Hf parent. Consequently, the frequency of isotope procurement need not be any more extensive than investigators would normally be accustomed to. Discussion relevant to isotope production, generator operation, and nuclide acquisition is presented in this paper.
Almost 900m adolescents and adults are illiterate in the developing world, yet most policy discussions focus on the educational circumstances of primary aged children. As a result non-formal educational programs for adolescents and adults are given very little support, and this group is virtually ignored in international agreements such as the millennium declaration. This article presents the first serious attempt at evaluating the impact of a non-formal education program. Results show significant learning achievement over the academic year, as well as strong development impacts of the program in non-learning dimensions of participants' lives. These positive impacts, plus the significantly lower unit costs and self-targeted nature of the program provide strong evidence that this type of pr...
Nomographs that calculate the threshold values of surface fire parameters which lead to crown fire initiation were created by linking two separate fire behavior models: Van Wagner?s crown fire ignition criteria and Byram?s surface fire model. The nomographs were also based on the existing surface (fuel load, fuel heat content) and canopy (foliar moisture content, live crown base height) fuel models of Aleppo (Pinus halepensis Mill.) pine forests of Mediterranean Greece. The most important fire parameters for crown fire initiation that are calculated by the nomographs are the critical flame length and the forward spread rate of the surface fire. These parameters are readily observable in the field during fires. The nomographs provide a judicious way to assess whether a crown fire is likely ...
A study of the influence of the concentration of secondary addition, high concentrations of primary dopant, diffusion enhancer and stabilizer on radiation hardness is presented. It is concluded that the diffusion enhancing technique is the most powerful method for improving radiation hardness. A new polystyrene scintillator which contains 2% pT, 0.02% POPOP, 20% diffusion enhancer and 0.02% stabilizer gave 91% of initial light output immediately after 3 Mrad irradiation in air. Data are presented that show that scintillator prepared from commercial polymer is more radiation-hard and has greater light output than scintillator prepared from monomer. It is assumed that this difference is due to different molecular weight distributions. Some protocols for acceleration of aging (yellowing and crazing) are presented. It is shown that one of the main reasons for aging of plastic scintillators is residual monomer. 10 refs., 18 figs., 1 tab.
Aim: This paper aims to describe self-rated health (SRH) status among older adults in a rural community of Vietnam, and examine individual and household-level factors associated with good health rating among the study populations. Methods: The study was carried out in the Bavi district, a rural community located 60 km west of Hanoi, the capital, within the Epidemiological Field Laboratory of Bavi (FilaBavi) in Vietnam in 2006. All people aged 50 years and over who lived within the district were surveyed. Face-to-face household interviews were conducted by trained surveyors using standard World Health Organization/INDEPTH network questionnaire-summary version. A logistic multilevel modeling approach was applied to analyze the association between SRH and both individual and household-level f...
Summary Many important moral decisions, particularly at the policy level, require the evaluation of choices involving outcomes of variable magnitude and probability. Many economic decisions involve the same problem. It is not known whether and to what extent these structurally isomorphic decisions rely on common neural mechanisms. Subjects undergoing fMRI evaluated the moral acceptability of sacrificing a single life to save a larger group of variable size and probability of dying without action. Paralleling research on economic decision making, the ventromedial prefrontal cortex and ventral striatum were specifically sensitive to the "expected moral value" of actions, i.e., the expected number of lives lost/saved. Likewise, the right anterior insula was specifically sensitive to outcome p...
One of vector-borne avian protozoa, Leucocytozoon lovati, has been found in the Japanese rock ptarmigans (Lagopus mutus japonicus), the endangered bird species distributed in the alpine regions in Japan. Vector arthropod species of L. lovati has also been estimated as Simuliidae black flies distributed in the same habitat of the host bird, however, possible blood meals of the black flies were not identified yet. To reveal host animals of black flies, we estimated the blood resources by using molecular techniques. Black flies were collected at Mt. Chogatake, one of the alpine regions of Japan in which Japanese rock ptarmigans live in June 2005. The analyzed 144 specimens were morphologically identified into five species including Simulium japonicum (n?=?87), Prosimulium hirtipes (n?=?48), P...
AISI 316L stainless steel was welded by the electron beam (EB) and laser techniques. Microstructural characteristics, hardness profile, creep rupture properties and creep damage of the welds were investigated. Fully austenitic microstructure was obtained in the two welds. The solidification structure of the welds consisted of the cellular and equiaxed dendrites. The creep rupture lives of the two welds were almost the same, and they were reduced by a factor of about two compared to the base metal. Moreover, the rupture elongation of the welds was lower than that of the base metal. Creep damage was observed in the ``parting`` region of the welds and in the heat-affected zone (HAZ), respectively. Final creep fracture occurred in the ``parting`` region of the welds. (orig.).
AISI 316L stainless steel was welded by the electron beam (EB) and laser techniques. Microstructural characteristics, hardness profile, creep rupture properties and creep damage of the welds were investigated. Fully austenitic microstructure was obtained in the two welds. The solidification structure of the welds consisted of the cellular and equiaxed dendrites. The creep rupture lives of the two welds were almost the same, and they were reduced by a factor of about two compared to the base metal. Moreover, the rupture elongation of the welds was lower than that of the base metal. Creep damage was observed in the ''parting'' region of the welds and in the heat-affected zone (HAZ), respectively. Final creep fracture occurred in the ''parting'' region of the welds. (orig.).
The ground state masses of thirty-nine neutron-rich nuclei from "5"1Ca to "7"2Ni have been measured using the Time-of-Flight Isochronous (TOFI) spectrometer. Eight of these masses have been measured for the first time and thirty-one are remeasurements of neutron-rich nuclei previously reported. Good agreement between these results and a previous TOFI experiment was observed except for the most neutron-rich isotopes of vanadium through iron with the present results being more bound and in better agreement with theory. The low binding energy of "6"8Ni, as indicated by an unreasonably low two-neutron separation energy, suggests the presence of a high-lying, long-lived isomeric state in this nucleus. (orig.).
One of the most popular stories found in the Upani?ads centers around a debate between the ritualist and philosopher, Yajnavalkya, and a series of interlocutors about the nature of sacrifice, the self, and the cosmos. This story, from a textual-historical perspective, is unique in that the last interlocutor, Sakalya, is said to die by having his head shatter because he is unable to answer a question about the fundamental nature of immortality. In this paper, I analyze the interrelationship of these two main characters and argue that this relationship is one key to not only understanding the portrayal of these characters, but also the larger import of this debate about immortality. I provide an intratextual rationale for the head-shattering conclusion and discuss how character and d...
The body of knowledge known as ''management'' has evolved incrementally over the past 100 years through a variety of innovators, including: Frederick Taylor, Max Weber, Mary Parker Follett, Chester Barnard, William Ouchi and Tom Peters. While the miracle of management - its structures, processes and techniques - has provided humankind with quantum advances in standard of living, there is an emerging theme in the literature to suggest that ''Management 1.0'' founded within the industrial age paradigm has reached the limits of its relevance. This paper proposes that it is time to consider a new conceptualization - ''Management 2.0'' - based on the global, information age paradigm in which modern businesses compete. This paper examines six forces which are currently redefining the future of m...
A variety of observations suggest that the Universe had a hot dense origin and that the pregalactic composition of the Universe was determined by nuclear reactions that occurred in the first few minutes. There is no unique hot Big Bang theory, but the simplest version produces a primeval chemical composition that is in good qualitative agreement with the abundances deduced from observation. Whether or not any Big Bang theory will provide quantitative agreement with observations depends on a variety of factors in elementary particle physics (number and masses of stable or long-lived particles, half-life of neutron, structure of grand unified theories) and from observational astronomy (present mean baryon density of the Universe, the Hubble constant and deceleration parameter). The influence of these factors on the abundances is discussed, as is the effect of departures from homogeneity and isotropy in the early Universe.
Luminescent transition metal complexes are enjoying a growing interest because of their ubiquitous applications in, e.g., the fields of material science, sensors and (biomedical) diagnostics, and iridium(III) and ruthenium(II) complexes are among the best studied. Due to their long-living excited states, these complexes can have a strong interaction with dioxygen, resulting in luminescence quenching. This oxygen quenching might be regarded as an unwanted effect in luminescence imaging, but, on the other hand, it can be exploited for diagnostic and therapeutic applications as well. After a theoretical introduction concerning the dioxygen quenching mechanism and the parameters involved, in the second part of this review we focus on the possibility of tailoring this quenching by modifying sel...
Indoor and soil gas Radon (222Rn) concentration measurements were accomplished in two stages in Sivas, a central eastern city in Turkey. In the first stage, CR-39 passive nuclear track detectors supplied by the Turkish Atomic Energy Authority (TAEA) were placed in the selected houses throughout Sivas centrum in two seasons; summer and winter. Before the setup of detectors, a detailed questionnaire form was distributed to the inhabitants of selected houses to investigate construction parameters and properties of the houses, and living conditions of inhabitants. Detectors were collected back two months later and analysed at TAEA laboratories to obtain indoor 222Rn gas concentration values. In the second stage, soil gas 222Rn measurements were performed using an alphameter near the selected h...
Hybrid electric vehicles (HEV) need long-lived high-power batteries as energy storage devices. Batteries based on lithium-ion technology can meet the high-power goals but have been unable to meet HEV calendar-life requirements. As part of the US Department of Energy's Advanced Technology Development (ATD) Program, diagnostic studies are being conducted on 18650-type lithium-ion cells that were subjected to accelerated aging tests at temperatures ranging from 40 to 70 C. This article summarizes data obtained by gas chromatography, liquid chromatography, electron microscopy, X-ray spectroscopy and electrochemical techniques, and identifies cell components that are responsible for the observed impedance rise and power fade.
Using hydrogen at high pressures of up to 150 bar as an OH scavenger in aqueous MV"2"+ solutions (pH 1) it is possible to differentiate between two kinds of transient formed simultaneously by H-atom attack on methyl viologen. One of them is assigned to an H adduct on the N atom, MV"+H"+, with absorption bands identical to those of the radical cation, MV"+. The MV"+H"+ species deprotonates forming the long-lived radical cation, MV"+. The second type of transient produced is attributed to an H-adduct on the ring carbon, MV"2"+H, decaying by second-order kinetics. The formation of MV"+ by electron transfer from the propan-2-ol radical has been reinvestigated (pH 0 to 7); its absorption spectrum does not change in this pH range. Rate constants and molar extinction coefficients are presented. (U.K.).
The diversity of ectoparasites in Southeast Asia and flea-host associations remain largely understudied. We explore specialization and interaction patterns of fleas infesting non-volant small mammals in Bornean rainforests, using material from a field survey carried out in two montane localities in northwestern Borneo (Sabah, Malaysia) and from a literature database of all available interactions in both lowland and montane forests. A total of 234 flea individuals collected during our field survey resulted in an interaction network of eight flea species on seven live-captured small mammal species. The interaction network from all compiled studies currently includes 15 flea species and 16 small mammal species. Host specificity and niche partitioning of fleas infesting diurnal treeshrews and ...
Summary Indigenous people demonstrably lived along rivers and around lakes and wetlands of Australia's Murray-Darling Basin in pre-European times. Waterways were, and continue to be, of major significance to the society and culture of Aboriginal peoples throughout Australia. Historically, they exploited most of the fauna - from mussels and crayfish, to fish and birds - and either ate, or used for other purposes, many species of aquatic plants. Such practices placed them in the role of environmental modifiers, a role played by all human groups from both past and present. They built sophisticated fish traps, cut gaps in river banks to allow fish to move on to floodplains, and there is evidence that they practised a form of fish culture by creating small impoundments in which small fish could...
Results of strain controlled fatigue and tensile tests are presented for two nickel base solution hardened alloys which are reference structural alloys for use in several high temperature gas cooled reactor concepts. These alloys, Hastelloy X Inconel 617, were tested at temperatures ranging from room temperature to 871/sup 0/C in air and impure helium. Materials were tested in the solution annealed as well as in the pre-aged condition where aging consisted of isothermal exposure at one of several temperatures for periods of up to 20,000 h. Comparisons are also given between the strain controlled fatigue lives of these alloys and several other commonly used alloys all tested at 538/sup 0/C.
In this work, the half-life of the {sup 155}Sm beta{sup -} decay was determined using enriched {sup 154}Sm samples submitted to irradiation in the IEA-R1 reactor of IPEN; the activity of the samples were followed for 4-5 consecutive half lives using a 198 cm{sup 3} HPGe detector. The data was corrected using a non paralizable dead time correction and fitted to an exponential decay function using a non linear fitting procedure developed on the MatLab platform. The resulting value--T{sub 1/2} = 22.180(26) min--was compatible to the one found in the literature, with a lower uncertainty.
In this work, the half-life of the "1"5"5Sm #beta#"- decay was determined using enriched "1"5"4Sm samples submitted to irradiation in the IEA-R1 reactor of IPEN; the activity of the samples were followed for 4-5 consecutive half lives using a 198 cm"3 HPGe detector. The data was corrected using a non paralizable dead time correction and fitted to an exponential decay function using a non linear fitting procedure developed on the MatLab platform. The resulting value--T_1_/_2 = 22.180(26) min--was compatible to the one found in the literature, with a lower uncertainty.
Abstract: It seems that if abortion is permissible, then stem cell research must be as well: it involves the death of a less significant thing (an embryo rather than a fetus) for a greater good (lives saved rather than nine months of physical imposition avoided). However, I argue in this essay that this natural thought is mistaken. In particular, on the assumption that embryos and fetuses have the full moral status of persons, abortion is permissible but one form of stem cell research is not-the practice of creating embryos and then destroying them to extract cell material. Furthermore, I argue that the same is true on the assumption that embryos and fetuses have at least some moral status. I conclude that this form of stem cell research is permissible only if the embryos in question lack ...
The behaviour of the wave function of the universe under the barrier for the anisotropic cosmological Bianchi type-IX model taking account of the scalar field is explored. In view of the known difficulties with the interpretation of multidimensional ones is offered. For this purpose in the frameworks of the semiclassical approach the system of characteristics equations relative to one variable is written out. This system describes a bundle of the characteristics along which the multidimensional problem is reduced to a one-dimensional one that allows to utilize the standard interpretation of the wave function as well as the usual Schroedinger equation. The obtained results for the Bianchi type-IX model are reduced to the following statement: the universe tunnels through the barrier from an isotropic state with small anisotropy that is necessary for providing a ling-lived inflation to derive the universe.
Shallow-water zooplanktivorous fish rely on their vision for foraging. In shallow water, feeding efficiency decreases in dim light and thus the fish cease foraging at crepuscular hours. Creatures living in the lower parts of their depth ranges are expected to be exposed to limited light levels for longer hours. However, observations of the zooplanktivore Dascyllus marginatus showed little change in foraging duration down to 40m deep. We asked whether the visual system's functionality changes with depth along the depth range of this damselfish; we examined eye and retina anatomy for changes in visual acuity and light sensitivity and used the optomotor response to test for spatial and temporal light summation. We found only minor changes in the anatomy of the eye that are not expected to aff...
The wavelength of the free electron laser (FEL) in Osaka University can be continuously varied in the range of 5.0-20.0 #mu#m. The FEL has a double-pulse structure, consisting of a train of macropulses of pulse duration 12 #mu#s. Each macropulse contains a train of 330 micropulses of pulse duration 5 ps. The tunability and picosecond pulses afford new medical and biological applications. However, a macropulse of long pulse duration leads to undesirable secondary effects. Precise control of the macropulse duration is essential for the high-precision applications of the FEL. An FEL pulse control system using acousto-optic modulators has been developed to investigate mechanical (shock-wave) effects of the FEL on living tissues. With this system, we have controlled photoinduced shock waves and determine the mechanism of interaction during FEL-induced tissue ablation.
This paper introduces a parallel measurement approach for fast infrared-based human temperature screening suitable for use in a large public area. Our key idea is based on the combination of simple image processing algorithms, infrared technology, and human flow management. With this multidisciplinary concept, we arrange as many people as possible in a two-dimensional space in front of a thermal imaging camera and then highlight all human facial areas through simple image filtering, image morphological, and particle analysis processes. In this way, an individual's face in live thermal image can be located and the maximum facial skin temperature can be monitored and displayed. Our experiment shows a measured 1ms processing time in highlighting all human face areas. With a thermal imaging ca...
A test program was conducted under contract to Sandia National Laboratories to investigate water/steam effects on elevated temperature low cycle fatigue and creep-fatigue of Alloy 800. This report presents interpretation and analysis of the test results. Tubular specimens with water sealed inside were cycled to failure under strain control. Tests were conducted to 616K (650/sup 0/F) and 922K (1200/sup 0/F); some at 922K included tensile or compressive hold periods to simulate creep-fatigue conditions. The tubular specimens showed significantly lower lives than solid bar specimens cycled at equivalent strain ranges. Rough internal surfaces contributed to early crack initiation with these specimens. Inclusion of hold periods caused further large reductions in cycles to failure.
A major new initiative to develop and irradiate a long-lived, mixed-oxide (MOX) fuel system in the Fast Flux Test Facility (FFTF) has been implemented by Westinghouse Hanford Company for the U.S. Department of Energy. The purpose of this new fuel system, called the core demonstration experiment (CDE), is to demonstrate the capability of achieving a 3-yr life in a prototypical, heterogeneous reactor environment under prototypical power and temperature conditions. Ten fuel and six blanket CDEs are establishing the performance characteristics of entire fuel assemblies of wire-wrapped, large-diameter, annular-pellet, advanced MOX fuel pins with the tempered martensitic HT-9 alloy cladding and end caps, HT-9 wire wrap, and an HT-9 duct in a heterogeneous array with the blanket assemblies. The CDE performance characteristics are confirming the basis for design, fabrication, and irradiation of the CDE.
Black pepper, white pepper, red pepper, ginger and turmeric were irradiated with 10 MeV electrons from a linear accelerator to a dose of 100 kGy and radioactivity was measured in order to estimate induced radioactivity in the irradiated foods. Induced radioactivity could not be detected significantly by #gamma#-ray spectrometry in the irradiated samples except for spiked samples which contain some photonuclear target nuclides in the list of photonuclear reactions which could produce radioactivity below 10 MeV. From the amount of observed radioactivities of short-lived photonuclear products in the spiked samples and calculation of H_5_0 according to ICRP Publication 30, it was concluded that the induced radioactivity and its biological effects in the 10 MeV electron-irradiated natural samples were negligible in comparison with natural radioactivity from "4"0K contained in the samples. (author).
BackgroundMore than 11 million Americans live with chronic lung disease; in search for an alternative to donor organs, we attempted to regenerate lungs based on perfusion decellularized lung scaffolds that can be transplanted similar to a donor organ. MethodsCadaveric rat lungs were decellularized by detergent perfusion. Resulting scaffolds were mounted in bioreactors and seeded with endothelial and fetal lung cells. Biomimetic organ culture was maintained for 7 days. Resulting bioartificial left lungs were transplanted in orthotopic position after left pneumonectomy in rats. Cadaveric left lung transplants and pneumonectomies served as controls. Blood gas analyses, compliance testing, and fluoroscopies were performed on postoperative days 1, 7, and 14. Lungs were removed for final analysi...
... Jillian Kilby is a civil engineer and director of J L Kilby Pty Ltd based between Walgett and Brewarrina in North West NSW. Building an engineering company in rural NSW combines Jillianrsquo;s passions for quality projectengineering services, and rural communities. It is also testament to her determination to build a career no matter where she chose to live. Her company has a strong focus on improving ... Some of Jillianrsquo;s recent projects include involvement in an alternate inland highway feasibility study, a water study at Brewarrina, a multipurpose jetty tender in Wyndham, Western Australia, and project management of the SES yard development in Walgett. Jillian is involved in Engineers Australiarsquo;s Sydney Division. She was the chairman of the Civiland Structural Panel in 2009, is a current board member of the ...
Considerable effort worldwide has been put into trying to find the best way to utilise the large amount of energy that we put into our dustbins every day. One of the problems encountered is that the waste collection systems tend to gather together in one place between 400 and 1000 t of the stuff everyday and since it is possible to extract rather more than 2 MW from each tonne, that is a lot of energy for which to find a market. In continental European cities, especially Germany, and Sweden with most of the population living in apartment blocks, and with colder winters than the UK, district heating provides a suitable market. With its milder winters, more diverse housing and cheap gas the UK is not such a fertile ground for district heating. But since the passing of the Energy Act in 1984, there is a steady market in electricity generation with the advantage that the purchase tariffs are published so that income can be accurately calculated.
There are two fundamental reasons or motivations for energy conservation: (1) economics; and (2) consideration of energy - its sources and availability. Economics speaks for itself and needs little explanation: a project is undertaken, the cost is recovered in a given period of time (we hope) and our company realizes cost savings thereafter. We study and propose a project; we estimate the payback. If approved, we implement the project. Then, we eagerly watch for its effectiveness - for the proposed payback. The second consideration in regard to energy conservation might - in the foreseeable future - become by far the most important - that of availability. Very knowledgeable persons have stated that this - in reality - is the most serious problem facing our nation today. Readily available, reasonably priced energy has given to the US the high form of living experienced today. An interruption in this flow could catapult our nation in an awesome catastrophe. The ...
The introduction of live insects into human food is rare in developed countries. However, we report, for the first time, an emerging risk that exists from dried fruit in Central Europe. Recently, massive and frequent infestation of dried fruit imported from the Mediterranean region by the mite, Carpoglpyhus lactis L. (Acarina: Carpoglyphidae), has been found. In 180 samples taken from supermarkets, 13% were contaminated; the contamination levels ranged from 0 to 660 mites per g of dried fruit. The contamination was found in dried apricots, figs, plums and raisins. To estimate the risks and food preferences of C. lactis, its growth rate was examined under laboratory conditions. Starting with a hypothetical population of 10 mites per g of dried fruit, the risk level of 1000 mites per g of dr...
The article deals with a novel electrochemical method of preparing long-lived silver nanoparticles suspended in aqueous solution as well as silver powders. The method does not involve the use of any chemical stabilising agents. The morphology of the silver nanoparticles obtained was studied using transmission electron microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, atomic force microscopy and dynamic light scattering measurements. Silver nanoparticles suspended in water solution that were produced by the present technique are nearly spherical and their size distribution lies in the range of 2 to 20 nm, the average size being about 7 nm. Silver nanoparticles synthesised by the proposed method were sufficiently stable for more than 7 years even under ambient conditions. Silver crystal growth on the surface of the cathode in the electrochemical process used was shown to result in micron-sized structures consisting of agglomerated silver nanoparticles with the sizes below 40 ...
Endophytes are microorganisms that live within healthy plant tissues, and include fungi and bacteria. They can be mutualists, comensals or even latent pathogens. Presence of these endosymbionts may affect host physiology, for example by consuming products of photosynthesis (endophytes are heterotrophs) or producing toxic metabolites. In this work two fungicides were used to eliminate fungal endophytes from seedlings of guarea guidonia. light saturated photosynthesis (Amax) was measured in endophytefree plants and compared with control plants. Each fungicide killed different fungal endosymbionts. phomopsis was more susceptible to benomyl while colletotrichum was more susceptible to propiconazole. Although suggestive, values of Amax were not significantly different for each treatment compared with control plants. No prediction can be made at this point about the final outcome of a given plantendophytic fungi interaction
In a series of experiments carried out on young and adult rabbits the effect of isocaloric low protein diets containing 4% or 8% protein compared with a diet containing 21% protein on Obeliscoides cuniculi infection was studied. The pathogenesis, resistance and local immunity were assessed after single infections with 10,000 larvae or reinfection with 5000 larvae. Live weight gain was reduced in young and adult rabbits fed the low protein diets, but the establishment of parasites was not substantially influenced by protein deprivation. However, development of worms in the histotrophic phase and parasite fecundity were impaired in association with the low protein diet. Moreover, mild anaemia as well as changes in the mucosal immune response as a result of infection were related to the level of dietary protein. (author). 30 refs, 6 figs, 5 tabs.
White seabream (Diplodus sargus) is today recognized as a potential species for Mediterranean aquaculture. Still, scarce information exists on weaning practices in order to reduce the live food period. This study aims to evaluate the effect of an early weaning on fish larvae digestive enzymes activities. In order to accomplish this, larvae were weaned with an inert diet at 20days after hatching (DAH) (feeding regime W20) and a control group was weaned at 27DAH (feeding regime W27). Before weaning, the onset and development of the main digestive enzymes were studied. The pattern of variation of digestive enzymes activities were analyzed at 0, 2, 9, 13 and 20DAH, and from then on at 0, 1 and 3weeks after diet introduction; that is, at 20, 27 and 41days for feeding regime W20, and days 27, 34...
The Hamiltonian Mean Field model describes a system of N fully-coupled particles showing a second-order phase transition as a function of the energy. The dynamics of the model presents interesting features in a small energy region below the critical point. In particular, when the particles are prepared in a ``water bag'' initial state, the relaxation to equilibrium is very slow. In the transient time the system lives in a dynamical quasi-stationary state and exhibits anomalous (enhanced) diffusion and L\\'evy walks. In this paper we study temperature and velocity distribution of the quasi-stationary state and we show that the lifetime of such a state increases with N. In particular when the $N\\to \\infty$ limit is taken before the $t \\to \\infty$ limit, the results obtained are different from the expected canonical predictions. This scenario seems to confirm a recent conjecture proposed by C.Tsallis.
ABSTRACT This research examined whether the Internet improves life satisfaction. The study surveyed 195 college students, and a structural model was built to explain effects of the Internet on school life satisfaction using a confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). In line with social cognitive theory and literature on social effects of the Internet, current data supported the hypotheses that Internet use, perceived online social support, and online social self-efficacy had direct positive impacts on school life satisfaction. Offline extroversion, online extroversion, online social self-efficacy, and online social outcome expectations influenced school life satisfaction indirectly: offline extroversion acted through social online self-efficacy and online extroversion; online social self-effica...
This article presents the micro-electro-mechanical systems (MEMS) microrobot which demonstrates locomotion controlled by hardware neural networks (HNN). The size of the microrobot fabricated by the MEMS technology is 4 ? 4 ? 3.5 mm. The frame of the robot is made of silicon wafer, and it is equipped with a rotary-type actuator, a link mechanism, and six legs. The rotary-type actuator generates rotational movement by applying an electrical current to artificial muscle wires. The locomotion of the microrobot is obtained by the rotation of the rotary-type actuator. As in a living organism, the HNN realized robot control without using any software programs, A/D converters, or additional driving circuits. A central pattern generator (CPG) model was implemented as an HNN system to emulate the lo...
Radon concentrations were continuously measured outdoors, in living room and basement in 10-minute intervals for a month. The radon time series were analyzed by comparing algorithms to extract phase-space dynamical information. The application of fractal methods enabled to explore the chaotic nature of radon in the atmosphere. The computed fractal dimensions, such as Hurst exponent (H) from the rescaled range analysis, Lyapunov exponent (#lambda# ) and attractor dimension, provided estimates of the degree of chaotic behavior. The obtained low values of the Hurst exponent (0
Electric utilities have been surprised by recent opposition to the construction of very-high-voltage transmission lines, which met with little resistance in the past. Concerns over health and safety factors are associated with the increase in the number of such lines, although their presence has always been an inconvenience and a hazard for those living and working in the immediate vicinity. The new lines present additional hazards due to the continuous flow of small electric currents and the charges that build up in the area of the towers and lines. The lines are also a threat to persons wearing cardiac pacemakers. There is experimental evidence from the Soviet Union and the U.S. that electric and magnetic fields at the frequencies of such power lines can have serious biological effects on growth rates and the functioning of the central nervous system. Full disclosure that possible risks are involved and the opportunity to avoid these risks is a public ...
This document comprises the final technical report for atomic collisions research supported by DOE grant No. DE-FG02-87ER13778 from September 1, 2001 through August 31, 2004. The research involved the experimental investigation of excitation and charge-changing processes occurring in ion-atom and ion-molecule collisions. Major emphases of the study were: (1) interference effects resulting from coherent electron emission in H2, (2) production of doubly vacant K-shell (hollow ion) states due to electron correlation, and (3) formation of long-lived metastable states in electron transfer processes. During the period of the grant, this research resulted in 23 publications, 12 invited presentations, and 39 contributed presentations at national and international meetings and other institutions. Brief summaries of the completed research are presented below.
In this study, the authors evaluated how much price changes in food and energy - two basic living expenditures competing for consumers' budgets - would affect consumer welfare. We first estimated a US complete demand system to quantify the interdependent demand relationships among 11 categories of consumption expenditures. Among the estimates, the own price elasticities of both food and energy are relatively inelastic, a finding that explains the dynamics of the recent soaring food and energy prices. The estimated demand elasticities were then incorporated into the measurement of Hicksian compensating variation to analyse the consumer welfare effects of price changes in food and energy. The results indicated that an increase in food and energy prices would increase compensated expenditures...
Turbine sets are inspected at their overhaul intervals throughout their operating lives. Using three examples, the present article describes the procedure in the inspection and assessment of steam turbines during overhauls and also deals with rehabilitation measures. In addition to the usual non-destructive tests and the recording of findings, computational life assessments are also considered. (orig.) [Deutsch] Turbosaetze werden waehrend ihrer Betriebszeit anlaesslich von Revisionen ueberprueft. Anhand von drei Beispielen wird in diesem Beitrag die Vorgehensweise bei der Pruefung und Bewertung von Dampfturbinen bei Revisionen und fuer Rehabilitationsmassnahmen dargestellt. Neben ueblichen zerstoerungsfreien Pruefungen und Befundaufnahmen erfolgten in Verbindung damit auch rechnerische Lebensdauerbewertungen. (orig.)
The lower condition factors for two catfish species in water heated by effluents from APCo's Glen Lyn, Virginia plant as compared to control areas probably is not due to lack of food as evidenced by macroinvertebrate sampling and the fact that only 4.3 percent of the catfish stomachs were empty. Results suggested that young-of-the-year channel catfish were nonselectively eating food organisms present at both control and heated stations. The difference between stomach contents of flatheat catfish from the heated site and fauna available at that site indicated that fish were either moving out of the heated area to feed or were selectively feeding on organisms (particularly mayflies) which were in the substrate or drifted into the heated area. Stomach contents of the two species and distribution and abundance of the macroinvertebrate benthos community are detailed.
SummaryBackground Persistent Lyme Disease Symptoms (PLDS) have included fatigue, headaches, poor concentration and memory, lightheadedness, joint pain, and mood disturbances. Evidence-based guidelines committees disagree over the severity of PLDS. The 2004 International Lyme and Associated Diseases Society (ILADS) concluded that PLDS are severe. The 2006 Infectious Disease Society of America (IDSA) guidelines committee concluded that PLDS are nothing more than the "aches and pains of daily living" and an ad hoc International Lyme group concluded that PLDS are "symptoms common in persons who have never had Lyme disease." Hypothesis Clinical trials validate the severity of persistent Lyme disease symptoms. Evaluation of the Hypothesis There are 22 standardized instruments used to measure the...
We have studied actinide burn-up in ICF reactor pellets; i.e., 14 MeV neutron fission of the very long-lived actinides that pose storage problems. A major advantage of pellet fuel region burn-up is safety: only milligrams of highly toxic and active material need to be present in the fusion chamber, whereas blanket burn-up requires the continued presence of tons of actinides in a small volume. The actinide data tables required for Monte Carlo calculations of the burn-up of /sup 241/Am and /sup 243/Am are discussed in connection with a study of the sensitivity to cross section uncertainties. More accurate and complete cross sections are required for realistic quantitative calculations.
Following the United Kingdom's nuclear tests at Maralinga in Australia in the 1960's, the Australian government signed away its rights to claim compensation for decontamination costs in a 1968 agreement. Controversy now rages as the Australian government is claiming pound33 million for this purpose from the United Kingdom to compensate the Maralinga Tjarutja for the loss of access to their traditional lands. They claim that the UK clean-up operation was inadequate and that much plutonium was spread over the land, rather than contained in pits. Measurements of contamination at the site were wrong by a factor of ten according to a 1984 visit when Australian scientists were horrified to realize that an Aboriginal child living near Taranaki could inhale more than 460 millisieverts a year. As ministers from both countries meet in June 1993 the debate is likely to be heated and hotly defended. (UK).
Proper balance control is a key aspect of acitivities of daily living. The aim of this study was to determine the contribution of body weight to predict balance stability. The balance stability of 59 male subjects with BMI ranging from 17.4 to 63.8kg/m2 was assessed using a force platform. The subjects were tested with and without vision. A stepwise multiple regression analysis was used to determine the independent effect of body weight, age, body height and foot length on balance stability (i.e., mean speed of the center of foot pressure). With vision, the stepwise multiple regression revealed that body weight accounted for 52% of the variance of balance stability. The addition of age contributed a further 3% to explain balance control. Without vision, body weight accounted for 54% of the...
Biosorption of lead from aqueous solutions by living and immobilized cell of C. freundii was examined as a function of metal concentration in a batch laboratory bioreactor. Lead concentrations were analyzed using Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometer (AAS). X-ray Energy Dispersion (EDX) analyses were made in order to determine the accumulation of lead on the cells and shell surfaces. Before and after the experiments the biomaterials and adsorbents were examined by Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM). Biosorption was detected over a range of initial lead concentrations from 25{times}10{sup -3} to 200{times}10{sup -3} kg/m{sup 3}. 15 refs., 4 figs.
A method of using fungi in removing heavy metal from wastewater was discussed. Fungi for this purpose can be obtained inexpensively, and on a constant basis from industrial fermentation processes. The biosorption of lead, cadmium and nickel on fungal stock cultures, was investigated. In these experiments, the fungal stock used was Aspergillus niger and Rhizopus stolonfier. Alkali pre-treatment of the fungal biomass improved the metal biosorptive capacity in comparison to live cells. The effect of alkali treatment, however, varied,showing highest biosorptive capacity for lead and least for nickel. Results showed that metal biosorption of metallic ions increased with an increase in pH from 3.2 to 4.0. Equilibrium times of five hours were observed for the biosorption of lead and cadmium, while the equilibrium time for nickel was three hours. 10 refs., 3 tabs., 7 figs.
Summary Exposures to natural and simulated altitudes are combined with a reduction of the available oxygen (hypoxia) and may provoke health problems or even emergencies. Although millions of people are living at high altitudes, are regularly or occasionally performing mountain sport activities, are transported by airplanes, and are increasingly frequently exposed to hypoxia at their workplace, e.g. with fire control systems, there is no consensus about the level of hypoxia which is well tolerated by most of human beings. Thus, the present mini review tries to define such a level. This review indicates that although humans show adaptive responses even to altitudes below 2000 m or corresponding normobaric hypoxia (FiO2: >16%) most of these subjects without severe pre-existing diseases well t...
A review is presented of the literature through 1977 on the uses of radioactive lead isotopes in metabolic studies in man, animals, and plants. These studies have been done mainly with the naturally-occurring, long-lived (22-yr half life) "2"1"0Pb, but a few were with 53-hr "2"0"3Pb or 10.6-hr "2"1"2Pb. Such studies have made possible estimates of the metabolic parameters of lead in man and animals, such as intestinal absorption, the ratio of fecal-to-urinary excretion of endogenous lead, residence time of lead in the body and in various organs, and the distribution in the body (skeleton, liver, kidney, and blood). Subsequently, these parameters and data have been used to trace the sources of lead for man, such as those from the atmosphere, food, cigarette smoke, and automobile exhaust.
The paper describes, for the Hausa farmers of Gidan Jatau in northern Nigeria, the distinct ways in which they see and understand (a) their close and distant environment and (b) their bodies' anatomy and physiology. These ways result in 'another geography' - of both space and being - which, however, may no longer now have the resonance it had in the early 1970s when the author lived in Gidan Jatau for two years as a guest. At that time, the spiritual dimensions of daily life were deemed important to the health and prosperity of each person and to the farmstead as a whole. The argument is made that the urban-centred literature on the bori possession-cult neglects the ordinary, anonymous spirits of house and field. Any serious archaeology of the landscape will need insights into this 'altern...
The alloy type 'alloy 800' with its different variants is used for numerous components in high-temperature reactor (HTR) plants, e.g. for hot-gas conductors, the high-pressure part of steam generators, superheaters, steam collecting vessels and live steam conductors. This study deals with the evaluation of creep rupture tests on 28 welded joints of alloy 800 with an accumulated test duration of 410 years, with the objective to obtain quantitative information on a possible loss of strength in comparison with the unwelded material. The longest test period of an individual test amounted to 98,000 h and the analyzed test temperature range lay between 550"0 and 1000"0C. (orig./MM).
Having know of four more natural hot spring located in Amphur Phipun, Nakorn Si Thammarat Province, the present investigators went on July 27, 2005 to collect water samples from the four new hot springs in Ampur Phipun, Nakorn Si Thammarat Province. The methods of collection and the determination of radon gas and free-living amoeba were the same as those employed in previous studies. The results revealed radon concentrations higher than the drinking safety limits of 11 Bq/L in specimens from Baan Huaysai Kow (32.30 Bq/L) and Baan Hunob (31.18 Bq/L; both naegleria and acanthamoeba were present in the specimens of the above two sites, whereas only naegleria recovered from Baan Huaysai Kow (Nai Nukul place) and none from Baan Nong Bua.
Greening is a useful mitigation strategy for planners mainly from a visual perspective. For high-density urban living environment such as Hong Kong, urban greening helps cooling the air and providing shade; it also helps lowering building energy consumption by providing a better outdoor boundary condition. Many researchers have also suggested that greening may be employed as a strategy for combating the ill effects of urban Heat Island (UHI). Working towards a set of better greening guidelines for urban planners, the current paper first provides a comprehensive review of planning with urban greening. It then describes parametric studies that have been conducted to investigate the preferred location, amount, and types of vegetation for urban planning. The parametric studies employed the num...
Background: As the global population ages, support for family caregivers who provide the bulk of care to community-dwelling older people is becoming ever more important. However, in many countries, homecare-service practitioners currently do not follow a systematic approach to assessing and responding to caregiver needs. Objectives: The aim of this study was to explore the experiences of caregivers and practitioners who took part in a field test of the Family Caregivers Support Agreement (FCSA) tool, a modified version of the Carers Outcome Agreement Tool (COAT) initially developed as the result of an Anglo-Swedish study. Both the COAT and the FCSA are designed to facilitate partnerships between caregivers and practitioners so that needs assessment and subsequent support services are negot...
One chemical reagent, hydrazine hydrate, was discovered to accelerate the growth of semiconductor nanocrystals (cadmium telluride) instead of additional energy, which was applied to the synthesis of high-quality CdTe nanocrystals at room temperature and ambient conditions within several hours. Under this mild condition the mercapto stabilizers were not destroyed, and they guaranteed CdTe nanocrystal particle sizes with narrow and uniform distribution over the largest possible range. The CdTe nanocrystals (photoluminescence emission range of 530-660 nm) synthesized in this way had very good spectral properties; for instance, they showed high photoluminescence quantum yield of up to 60%. Furthermore, we have succeeded in detecting the living Borrelia burgdorferi of Lyme disease by its photoluminescence image using CdTe nanocrystals.