Comparative study of the sensitivities of onion and broad bean root ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Chemicals which cause chromosomal aberration (CA) in plant cells frequently produce identical CA in cultured animal cells. Plant species however, differ in sensitivities. Onion and broad bean (BB) root meristem cells were compared for sensitivity to chlorpyrifos (CPF), mercury chloride (HgCl2), ethyl methanesulphonate ...

The Need for Context-Sensitive Measures of Educational Quality in Transnational Higher Education

Science.gov (United States)

Pyvis, David

2011-01-01

This paper argues that the current approach to educational quality formation in transnational higher education promotes educational imperialism, and that guidelines and practices should be altered to embrace context-sensitive measures of quality. The claims are sustained by findings from a study that investigated how academics understood and…

Comparative sensitivity of Selenastrum capricornutum and Lemna minor to sixteen herbicides

Science.gov (United States)

Fairchild, J.F.; Ruessler, D.S.; Haverland, P.S.; Carlson, A.R.

1997-01-01

Aquatic plant toxicity tests are frequently conducted in environmental risk assessments to determine the potential impacts of contaminants on primary producers. An examination of published plant toxicity data demonstrates that wide differences in sensitivity can occur across phylogenetic groups of plants. Yet relatively few studies have been conducted with the specific intent to compare the relative sensitivity of various aquatic plant species to contaminants. We compared the relative sensitivity of the algae Selenestrum capricornutum and the floating vascular plant Lemna minor to 16 herbicides (atrazine, metribuzin, simazine, cyanazine, alachlor, metolachlor, chlorsulfuron, metsulfuron, triallate, EPTC, trifluralin, diquat, paraquat, dicamba, bromoxynil, and 2,4-D). The herbicides studied represented nine chemical classes and several modes of action and were chosen to represent major current uses in the United States. Both plant species were generally sensitive to the triazines (atrazine, metribuzin, simazine, and cyanazine), sulfonureas (metsulfuron and chlorsulfuron), pyridines (diquat and paraquat), dinitroaniline (trifluralin), and acetanilide (alachlor and metolachlor) herbicides. Neither plant species was uniformly more sensitive than the other across the broad range of herbicides tested. Lemna was more sensitive to the sulfonureas (metsulfuron and chlorsulfuron) and the pyridines (diquat and parequat) than Selenastrum. However Selenastrum was more sensitive than Lemna to one of two thiocarbamates (triallate) and one of the triazines (cyanazine). Neither species was sensitive to selective broadleaf herbicides including bromoxynil, EPTC, dicamba, or 2,4-D. Results were not always predictable in spite of obvious differences in herbicide modes of action and plant phylogeny. Major departures in sensitivity of Selenastrum occurred between chemicals within individual classes of the triazine, acetanilide, and thiocarbamate herbicides. Results indicate that neither

Higher intramuscular triacylglycerol in women does not impair insulin sensitivity and proximal insulin signaling

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Høeg, Louise; Roepstorff, Carsten; Thiele, Maja

2009-01-01

that despite 47% higher IMTG levels in women in the follicular phase whole body as well as leg insulin sensitivity are higher than in matched men. This was not explained by sex differences in proximal insulin signalling in women. In women it seems that a high capillary density and type 1 muscle fiber...... expression may be important for insulin action. Key words: Muscle Triglycerides, gender, insulin action, sex paradox....

Comparing sensitivity analysis methods to advance lumped watershed model identification and evaluation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Y. Tang

2007-01-01

Full Text Available This study seeks to identify sensitivity tools that will advance our understanding of lumped hydrologic models for the purposes of model improvement, calibration efficiency and improved measurement schemes. Four sensitivity analysis methods were tested: (1 local analysis using parameter estimation software (PEST, (2 regional sensitivity analysis (RSA, (3 analysis of variance (ANOVA, and (4 Sobol's method. The methods' relative efficiencies and effectiveness have been analyzed and compared. These four sensitivity methods were applied to the lumped Sacramento soil moisture accounting model (SAC-SMA coupled with SNOW-17. Results from this study characterize model sensitivities for two medium sized watersheds within the Juniata River Basin in Pennsylvania, USA. Comparative results for the 4 sensitivity methods are presented for a 3-year time series with 1 h, 6 h, and 24 h time intervals. The results of this study show that model parameter sensitivities are heavily impacted by the choice of analysis method as well as the model time interval. Differences between the two adjacent watersheds also suggest strong influences of local physical characteristics on the sensitivity methods' results. This study also contributes a comprehensive assessment of the repeatability, robustness, efficiency, and ease-of-implementation of the four sensitivity methods. Overall ANOVA and Sobol's method were shown to be superior to RSA and PEST. Relative to one another, ANOVA has reduced computational requirements and Sobol's method yielded more robust sensitivity rankings.

Comparative Case Studies on Indonesian Higher Education Rankings

Science.gov (United States)

Kurniasih, Nuning; Hasyim, C.; Wulandari, A.; Setiawan, M. I.; Ahmar, A. S.

2018-01-01

The quality of the higher education is the result of a continuous process. There are many indicators that can be used to assess the quality of a higher education. The existence of different indicators makes the different result of university rankings. This research aims to find variables that can connect ranking indicators that are used by Indonesian Ministry of Research, Technology, and Higher Education with indicators that are used by international rankings by taking two kind of ranking systems i.e. Webometrics and 4icu. This research uses qualitative research method with comparative case studies approach. The result of the research shows that to bridge the indicators that are used by Indonesian Ministry or Research, Technology, and Higher Education with web-based ranking system like Webometrics and 4icu so that the Indonesian higher education institutions need to open access towards either scientific or non-scientific that are publicly used into web-based environment. One of the strategies that can be used to improve the openness and access towards scientific work of a university is by involving in open science and collaboration.

Organic solvent exposure and contrast sensitivity: comparing men and women

Science.gov (United States)

Oliveira, A.R.; Campos, A.A.; de Andrade, M.J.O.; de Medeiros, P.C.B.; dos Santos, N.A.

2018-01-01

The goal of this study was to compare the visual contrast sensitivity (CS) of men and women exposed and not exposed to organic solvents. Forty-six volunteers of both genders aged between 18 and 41 years (mean±SD=27.72±6.28) participated. Gas station attendants were exposed to gas containing 46.30 ppm of solvents at a temperature of 304±274.39 K, humidity of 62.25±7.59% and ventilation of 0.69±0.46 m/s (a passive gas chromatography-based sampling method was used considering the microclimate variables). Visual CS was measured via the psychophysical method of two-alternative forced choice using vertical sinusoidal gratings with spatial frequencies of 0.2, 0.5, 1.0, 2.0, 5.0, 10.0, and 16.0 cpd (cycles per degree) and an average luminance of 34.4 cd/m2. The results showed that visual CS was significantly lower (P<0.05) in the following groups: i) exposed men compared to unexposed men at frequencies of 0.2, 0.5, 1.0, and 2.0 cpd; ii) exposed women compared to unexposed women at a frequency of 5.0 cpd; and iii) exposed women compared to exposed men at a frequency of 0.5 cpd, even at exposures below the tolerance limit (300 ppm). These results suggest that the visual CS of exposed men was impaired over a wider range of spatial frequencies than that of exposed women. This difference may have been due to the higher body fat content of women compared to that of men, suggesting that body fat in women can serve as a protective factor against neurotoxic effects. PMID:29340521

Comparative sensitivity of juvenile and adult Potamopyrgus antipodarum (Mollusca: Hydrobiidae) under chronic exposure to cadmium and tributyltin.

Science.gov (United States)

Ruppert, Katharina; Geiß, Cornelia; Ostermann, Sina; Theis, Christina; Oehlmann, Jörg

2016-07-28

To investigate a potential extension of a partial life cycle test protocol to a full life cycle test design, a comparative sensitivity analysis with juvenile and adult Potamopyrgus antipodarum was performed. Neonates and adult snails were exposed to the metal cadmium (Cd) and the endocrine disruptor tributyltin (TBT) at nominal concentrations ranging from 1.56 to 50 μg Cd/L and from 25 to 1,000 ng TBT-Sn/L. The experiments were performed over 28 days at 16°C in a semi-static test design. Mortality was assessed for both life stages. Juvenile snails' specific growth rate and reproduction of adults were investigated as main endpoints. We determined effects on snails' survival, juvenile growth and embryo numbers in the brood pouch of adult snails under exposure to both chemicals. Juvenile control mortality was between 25% and 30% and significantly higher than in the control groups with adult snails. A higher sensitivity of juvenile snails compared to adults was observed for the endpoint mortality. Calculated LC50 in Cd exposed snails was 38.2 μg/L for adults and 15.0 μg/L for juvenile snails. Significant effects on mortality in TBT exposed adult snails occurred at the highest test concentration only with a LC50 of 535 ng Sn/L. Juvenile survival was significantly affected at 50.8 ng Sn/L and higher concentrations. Effect concentrations for the main endpoints reproduction and juvenile growth show comparable sensitivities. For Cd exposed groups, EC50 values were 11.3 μg/L for the endpoint reproduction in adult snails and 3.82 μg/L for juvenile growth with overlapping confidence intervals. TBT also significantly affected juvenile snails' growth (EC50: 178 ng Sn /L). EC50 for embryo numbers was 125 ng TBT-Sn/L. Results indicate the manageability of a FLC test starting with newly hatched snails. Precautions have to be taken to guarantee a sufficient number of surviving snails until adulthood so that reproduction can be assessed. For final decision for the

Use of Capillary Blood Samples Leads to Higher Parasitemia Estimates and Higher Diagnostic Sensitivity of Microscopic and Molecular Diagnostics of Malaria than Venous Blood Samples.

Science.gov (United States)

Mischlinger, Johannes; Pitzinger, Paul; Veletzky, Luzia; Groger, Mirjam; Zoleko-Manego, Rella; Adegnika, Ayola A; Agnandji, Selidji T; Lell, Bertrand; Kremsner, Peter G; Tannich, Egbert; Mombo-Ngoma, Ghyslain; Mordmüller, Benjamin; Ramharter, Michael

2018-05-25

Diagnosis of malaria is usually based on samples of peripheral blood. However, it is unclear whether capillary (CAP) or venous (VEN) blood samples provide better diagnostic performance. Quantitative differences of parasitemia between CAP and VEN blood and diagnostic performance characteristics were investigated. Patients were recruited between September 2015 and February 2016 in Gabon. Light microscopy and qPCR quantified parasitemia of paired CAP and VEN samples, whose preparation followed the exact same methodology. CAP and VEN performance characteristics using microscopy were evaluated against a qPCR gold-standard. Microscopy revealed a median (IQR) parasites/L of 495 (853,243) in CAP and 429 (524,074) in VEN samples manifesting in a +16.6% (p=0.04) higher CAPparasitemia compared with VENparasitemia. Concordantly, qPCR demonstrated that -0.278 (p=0.006) cycles were required for signal detection in CAP samples. CAPsensitivity of microscopy relative to the gold-standard was 81.5% (77.485.6%) versus VENsensitivity of 73.4% (68.878.1%), while CAPspecificity and VENspecificity were 91%. CAPsensitivity and VENsensitivity dropped to 63.3% and 45.9%, respectively for a sub-population of low-level parasitemias while specificities were 92%. CAP sampling leads to higher parasitemias compared to VEN sampling and improves diagnostic sensitivity. These findings may have important implications for routine diagnostics, research and elimination campaigns of malaria.

Comparative sensitivity of human and rat neural cultures to chemical-induced inhibition of neurite outgrowth

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Harrill, Joshua A.; Freudenrich, Theresa M.; Robinette, Brian L.; Mundy, William R., E-mail: mundy.william@epa.gov

2011-11-15

There is a need for rapid, efficient and cost-effective alternatives to traditional in vivo developmental neurotoxicity testing. In vitro cell culture models can recapitulate many of the key cellular processes of nervous system development, including neurite outgrowth, and may be used as screening tools to identify potential developmental neurotoxicants. The present study compared primary rat cortical cultures and human embryonic stem cell-derived neural cultures in terms of: 1) reproducibility of high content image analysis based neurite outgrowth measurements, 2) dynamic range of neurite outgrowth measurements and 3) sensitivity to chemicals which have been shown to inhibit neurite outgrowth. There was a large increase in neurite outgrowth between 2 and 24 h in both rat and human cultures. Image analysis data collected across multiple cultures demonstrated that neurite outgrowth measurements in rat cortical cultures were more reproducible and had higher dynamic range as compared to human neural cultures. Human neural cultures were more sensitive than rat cortical cultures to chemicals previously shown to inhibit neurite outgrowth. Parallel analysis of morphological (neurite count, neurite length) and cytotoxicity (neurons per field) measurements were used to detect selective effects on neurite outgrowth. All chemicals which inhibited neurite outgrowth in rat cortical cultures did so at concentrations which did not concurrently affect the number of neurons per field, indicating selective effects on neurite outgrowth. In contrast, more than half the chemicals which inhibited neurite outgrowth in human neural cultures did so at concentrations which concurrently decreased the number of neurons per field, indicating that effects on neurite outgrowth were secondary to cytotoxicity. Overall, these data demonstrate that the culture models performed differently in terms of reproducibility, dynamic range and sensitivity to neurite outgrowth inhibitors. While human neural

Comparative sensitivity of human and rat neural cultures to chemical-induced inhibition of neurite outgrowth

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Harrill, Joshua A.; Freudenrich, Theresa M.; Robinette, Brian L.; Mundy, William R.

2011-01-01

There is a need for rapid, efficient and cost-effective alternatives to traditional in vivo developmental neurotoxicity testing. In vitro cell culture models can recapitulate many of the key cellular processes of nervous system development, including neurite outgrowth, and may be used as screening tools to identify potential developmental neurotoxicants. The present study compared primary rat cortical cultures and human embryonic stem cell-derived neural cultures in terms of: 1) reproducibility of high content image analysis based neurite outgrowth measurements, 2) dynamic range of neurite outgrowth measurements and 3) sensitivity to chemicals which have been shown to inhibit neurite outgrowth. There was a large increase in neurite outgrowth between 2 and 24 h in both rat and human cultures. Image analysis data collected across multiple cultures demonstrated that neurite outgrowth measurements in rat cortical cultures were more reproducible and had higher dynamic range as compared to human neural cultures. Human neural cultures were more sensitive than rat cortical cultures to chemicals previously shown to inhibit neurite outgrowth. Parallel analysis of morphological (neurite count, neurite length) and cytotoxicity (neurons per field) measurements were used to detect selective effects on neurite outgrowth. All chemicals which inhibited neurite outgrowth in rat cortical cultures did so at concentrations which did not concurrently affect the number of neurons per field, indicating selective effects on neurite outgrowth. In contrast, more than half the chemicals which inhibited neurite outgrowth in human neural cultures did so at concentrations which concurrently decreased the number of neurons per field, indicating that effects on neurite outgrowth were secondary to cytotoxicity. Overall, these data demonstrate that the culture models performed differently in terms of reproducibility, dynamic range and sensitivity to neurite outgrowth inhibitors. While human neural

Using mineralogy and higher-level taxonomy as indicators of species sensitivity to pH: A case-study of Puget Sound

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Shallin Busch

2017-09-01

Full Text Available Information on ecosystem sensitivity to global change can help guide management decisions. Here, we characterize the sensitivity of the Puget Sound ecosystem to ocean acidification by estimating, at a number of taxonomic levels, the direct sensitivity of its species. We compare sensitivity estimates based on species mineralogy and on published literature from laboratory experiments and field studies. We generated information on the former by building a database of species in Puget Sound with mineralogy estimates for all CaCO3-forming species. For the latter, we relied on a recently developed database and meta-analysis on temperate species responses to increased CO2. In general, species sensitivity estimates based on the published literature suggest that calcifying species are more sensitive to increased CO2 than non-calcifying species. However, this generalization is incomplete, as non-calcifying species also show direct sensitivity to high CO2 conditions. We did not find a strong link between mineral solubility and the sensitivity of species survival to changes in carbonate chemistry, suggesting that, at coarse scales, mineralogy plays a lesser role to other physiological sensitivities. Summarizing species sensitivity at the family level resulted in higher sensitivity scalar scores than at the class level, suggesting that grouping results at the class level may overestimate species sensitivity. This result raises caution about the use of broad generalizations on species response to ocean acidification, particularly when developing summary information for specific locations. While we have much to learn about species response to ocean acidification and how to generalize ecosystem response, this study on Puget Sound suggests that detailed information on species performance under elevated carbon dioxide conditions, summarized at the lowest taxonomic level possible, is more valuable than information on species mineralogy.

Subjective Experiences and Sensitivities in Women with Fibromyalgia: A Quantitative and Comparative Study

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

P. De Roa

2018-01-01

Full Text Available Fibromyalgia is a chronic widespread pain syndrome associated with chronic fatigue. Its pathogenesis is not clearly understood. This study presents subjective experiences and sensitivities reported by fibromyalgia patients, which should be considered in primary care to avoid medical nomadism, as well as stigmatization of the patients. The prevalence of significant characteristics was compared with others patients consulting at the same pain unit who suffer from rebel and disabling form of chronic migraine. Psychometric tests were anonymously completed by 78 patients of the Pain Unit (44 fibromyalgia patients and 34 migraine patients. Tests evaluated pain (Visual Analog scale, childhood traumas (Childhood Trauma Questionnaire, lack of parental affection, stressful life events (Holmes and Rahe Scale, anxiety and depression (Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale, perceived hypersensitivity to 10 stimuli, and hyperactivity before illness. However, pain scores were comparable in the two groups, and the prevalence was significantly higher in fibromyalgia patients than in migraine patients for anxiety (81.8% versus 51.5% and depression (57.1% versus 8.8%. Childhood physical abuses were more frequently reported in fibromyalgia than in migraine cases (25% versus 3%. Similarly, the feeling of lack of parental affection, subjective hypersensitivity to stress and stimuli (cold, moisture, heat, full moon, and flavors or hyperactivity (ergomania, appeared as prominent features of fibromyalgia patients. Fibromyalgia patients considered themselves as being hypersensitive (mentally and physically compared to migraine patients. They also have higher depression levels. Beyond somatic symptoms, precociously taking account of psychosocial and behavioral strategies would highly improve treatment efficiency of the fibromyalgia syndrome.

Combination of methylated-DNA precipitation and methylation-sensitive restriction enzymes (COMPARE-MS) for the rapid, sensitive and quantitative detection of DNA methylation.

Science.gov (United States)

Yegnasubramanian, Srinivasan; Lin, Xiaohui; Haffner, Michael C; DeMarzo, Angelo M; Nelson, William G

2006-02-09

Hypermethylation of CpG island (CGI) sequences is a nearly universal somatic genome alteration in cancer. Rapid and sensitive detection of DNA hypermethylation would aid in cancer diagnosis and risk stratification. We present a novel technique, called COMPARE-MS, that can rapidly and quantitatively detect CGI hypermethylation with high sensitivity and specificity in hundreds of samples simultaneously. To quantitate CGI hypermethylation, COMPARE-MS uses real-time PCR of DNA that was first digested by methylation-sensitive restriction enzymes and then precipitated by methyl-binding domain polypeptides immobilized on a magnetic solid matrix. We show that COMPARE-MS could detect five genome equivalents of methylated CGIs in a 1000- to 10,000-fold excess of unmethylated DNA. COMPARE-MS was used to rapidly quantitate hypermethylation at multiple CGIs in >155 prostate tissues, including benign and malignant prostate specimens, and prostate cell lines. This analysis showed that GSTP1, MDR1 and PTGS2 CGI hypermethylation as determined by COMPARE-MS could differentiate between malignant and benign prostate with sensitivities >95% and specificities approaching 100%. This novel technology could significantly improve our ability to detect CGI hypermethylation.

The scotopic visual sensitivity of four species of trout: A comparative study

Science.gov (United States)

Russel B. Rader; Timberley Belish; Michael K. Young; John Rothlisberger

2007-01-01

We compared the maximum scotopic visual sensitivity of 4 species of trout from twilight (mesotopic) to fully dark-adapted vision. Scotopic vision is the minimum number of photons to which a fully dark-adapted animal will show a behavioral response. A comparison of visual sensitivity under controlled laboratory conditions showed that brown trout (Salmo trutta...

The Emergent Terrains of "Higher Education Regionalism": How and Why Higher Education Is an Interesting Case for Comparative Regionalism

Science.gov (United States)

Chou, Meng-Hsuan; Ravinet, Pauline

2016-01-01

The introduction of regional political initiatives in the higher education sector symbolizes one of the many aspects of the changing global higher education landscape. Remarkably, these processes have generally escaped comparative scrutiny by scholars researching higher education policy cooperation or regional integration. In this article, we…

Noise sensitivity: Symptoms, health status, illness behavior and co-occurring environmental sensitivities

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Baliatsas, Christos, E-mail: c.baliatsas@nivel.nl [Netherlands Institute for Health Services Research (NIVEL), Utrecht (Netherlands); Kamp, Irene van, E-mail: irene.van.kamp@rivm.nl [National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM), Bilthoven (Netherlands); Swart, Wim, E-mail: wim.swart@rivm.nl [National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM), Bilthoven (Netherlands); Hooiveld, Mariëtte, E-mail: m.hooiveld@nivel.nl [Netherlands Institute for Health Services Research (NIVEL), Utrecht (Netherlands); Yzermans, Joris, E-mail: J.Yzermans@nivel.nl [Netherlands Institute for Health Services Research (NIVEL), Utrecht (Netherlands)

2016-10-15

Epidemiological evidence on the symptomatic profile, health status and illness behavior of people with subjective sensitivity to noise is still scarce. Also, it is unknown to what extent noise sensitivity co-occurs with other environmental sensitivities such as multi-chemical sensitivity and sensitivity to electromagnetic fields (EMF). A cross-sectional study performed in the Netherlands, combining self-administered questionnaires and electronic medical records of non-specific symptoms (NSS) registered by general practitioners (GP) allowed us to explore this further. The study sample consisted of 5806 participants, drawn from 21 general practices. Among participants, 722 (12.5%) responded “absolutely agree” to the statement “I am sensitive to noise”, comprising the high noise-sensitive (HNS) group. Compared to the rest of the sample, people in the HNS group reported significantly higher scores on number and duration of self-reported NSS, increased psychological distress, decreased sleep quality and general health, more negative symptom perceptions and higher prevalence of healthcare contacts, GP-registered NSS and prescriptions for antidepressants and benzodiazepines. These results remained robust after adjustment for demographic, residential and lifestyle characteristics, objectively measured nocturnal noise exposure from road-traffic and GP-registered morbidity. Co-occurrence rates with other environmental sensitivities varied between 9% and 50%. Individuals with self-declared sensitivity to noise are characterized by high prevalence of multiple NSS, poorer health status and increased illness behavior independently of noise exposure levels. Findings support the notion that different types of environmental sensitivities partly overlap. - Highlights: • People with self-reported noise sensitivity experience multiple non-specific symptoms. • They also report comparatively poorer health and increased illness behavior. • Co-occurrence with other

Noise sensitivity: Symptoms, health status, illness behavior and co-occurring environmental sensitivities

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Baliatsas, Christos; Kamp, Irene van; Swart, Wim; Hooiveld, Mariëtte; Yzermans, Joris

2016-01-01

Epidemiological evidence on the symptomatic profile, health status and illness behavior of people with subjective sensitivity to noise is still scarce. Also, it is unknown to what extent noise sensitivity co-occurs with other environmental sensitivities such as multi-chemical sensitivity and sensitivity to electromagnetic fields (EMF). A cross-sectional study performed in the Netherlands, combining self-administered questionnaires and electronic medical records of non-specific symptoms (NSS) registered by general practitioners (GP) allowed us to explore this further. The study sample consisted of 5806 participants, drawn from 21 general practices. Among participants, 722 (12.5%) responded “absolutely agree” to the statement “I am sensitive to noise”, comprising the high noise-sensitive (HNS) group. Compared to the rest of the sample, people in the HNS group reported significantly higher scores on number and duration of self-reported NSS, increased psychological distress, decreased sleep quality and general health, more negative symptom perceptions and higher prevalence of healthcare contacts, GP-registered NSS and prescriptions for antidepressants and benzodiazepines. These results remained robust after adjustment for demographic, residential and lifestyle characteristics, objectively measured nocturnal noise exposure from road-traffic and GP-registered morbidity. Co-occurrence rates with other environmental sensitivities varied between 9% and 50%. Individuals with self-declared sensitivity to noise are characterized by high prevalence of multiple NSS, poorer health status and increased illness behavior independently of noise exposure levels. Findings support the notion that different types of environmental sensitivities partly overlap. - Highlights: • People with self-reported noise sensitivity experience multiple non-specific symptoms. • They also report comparatively poorer health and increased illness behavior. • Co-occurrence with other

Comparative evaluation of sea-urchin larval stage sensitivity to ocean acidification.

Science.gov (United States)

Passarelli, M C; Cesar, A; Riba, I; DelValls, T A

2017-10-01

Changes in the marine carbonate system may affect various calcifying organisms. This study is aimed to compare the sensitivity of embryo-larval development of two species of sea urchins (Paracentrutos lividus and Lytechinus variegatus) collected and exposed to samples from different coastal zone (Spain and Brazil) to ocean acidification. The results showed that the larval stages are very sensitive to small changes in the seawater's pH. The larvae from P. lividus species showed to be more sensitive to acidified elutriate sediments than larvae from L. variegatus sea urchin. Furthermore, this study has demonstrated that the CO 2 enrichment in aquatic ecosystems cause changes on the mobility of the metals: Zn, Cu, Fe, Al and As, which was presented different behavior among them. Although an increase on the mobility of metals was found, the results using the principal component analysis showed that the pH reduction show the highest correlations with the toxicity and is the main cause of embryo-larval development inhibition. In this comparative study it is demonstrated that both species are able to assess potential effects of the ocean acidification related to CO 2 enrichment by both near future scenarios and the risk associated with CO 2 leakages in the Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) process, and the importance of comparative studies in different zones to improve the understanding of the impacts caused by ocean acidification. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Comparing sensitivity and count rate performance of small-bore DOI-PET scanners by computer simulation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kobayashi, Tetsuya; Takahashi, Hisashi; Yamaya, Taiga; Murayama, Hideo; Kitamura, Keishi; Hasegawa, Tomoyuki; Suga, Mikio

2006-01-01

In the development of a dedicated small-bore DOI-PET scanner for small animals (jPET-RD), we performed Monte Carlo simulations using the GATE based on Geant4 and investigated the influence of the proximity of the detectors to the target object on the sensitivity and count rate performance. The jPET-RD is based on a large-size depth-of-interaction (DOI) block detector that consists of a 4-layered array of 32 x 32 LSO crystals (1.4 mm x 1.4 mm x 4.5 mm) and a 256-ch flat panel position-sensitive photomultiplier tube. In this work, three detector geometries were simulated: two rings of six detector blocks arranged in a hexagonal pattern (FOV 85 mm in diameter) and four detector blocks arranged in a tetragonal pattern (FOV 49 mm in diameter) and in an overlapped tetragonal pattern (FOV 38 mm in diameter). The simulation results showed that the smaller bore geometry can provide higher sensitivity because of its larger solid angle. Although it clearly affected the noise equivalent count rate (NECR) due to its high dead-time, parallel readout with appropriate anode segmentation improved the NECR at 20 MBq by a factor of 1.1 to 1.4 compared with the case of 256-ch anodes read out by one front-end circuit. (author)

Sensitivity Enhancement in Si Nanophotonic Waveguides Used for Refractive Index Sensing

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yaocheng Shi

2016-03-01

Full Text Available A comparative study is given for the sensitivity of several typical Si nanophotonic waveguides, including SOI (silicon-on-insulator nanowires, nanoslot waveguides, suspended Si nanowires, and nanofibers. The cases for gas sensing (ncl ~ 1.0 and liquid sensing (ncl ~ 1.33 are considered. When using SOI nanowires (with a SiO2 buffer layer, the sensitivity for liquid sensing (S ~ 0.55 is higher than that for gas sensing (S ~ 0.35 due to lower asymmetry in the vertical direction. By using SOI nanoslot waveguides, suspended Si nanowires, and Si nanofibers, one could achieve a higher sensitivity compared to sensing with a free-space beam (S = 1.0. The sensitivity for gas sensing is higher than that for liquid sensing due to the higher index-contrast. The waveguide sensitivity of an optimized suspended Si nanowire for gas sensing is as high as 1.5, which is much higher than that of a SOI nanoslot waveguide. Furthermore, the optimal design has very large tolerance to the core width variation due to the fabrication error (∆w ~ ±50 nm. In contrast, a Si nanofiber could also give a very high sensitivity (e.g., ~1.43 while the fabrication tolerance is very small (i.e., ∆w < ±5 nm. The comparative study shows that suspended Si nanowire is a good choice to achieve ultra-high waveguide sensitivity.

Diagnostic PCR: Comparative sensitivity of four probe chemistries

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Josefsen, Mathilde Hartmann; Löfström, Charlotta; Sommer, Helle Mølgaard

2009-01-01

Three probe chemistries: locked nucleic acid (LNA), minor groove binder (MGB) and Scorpion were compared with a TaqMan probe in a validated real-time PCR assay for detection of food-borne thermotolerant Campylobacter. The LNA probe produced significantly lower Ct-values and a higher proportion of...

Spontaneous baroreflex sensitivity estimates during graded bicycle exercise: a comparative study

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Vallais, Frederic; Baselli, Giuseppe; Lucini, Daniela; Pagani, Massimo; Porta, Alberto

2009-01-01

In the literature, several methods have been proposed for the assessment of the baroreflex sensitivity from spontaneous variability of heart period and systolic arterial pressure. The present study compares the most utilized approaches for the evaluation of the spontaneous baroreflex sensitivity (i.e. sequence-based, spectral, cross-spectral and model-based techniques) over a protocol capable of inducing a progressive decrease of the baroreflex sensitivity in the presence of a relevant respiratory drive (i.e. a stepwise dynamic bicycle exercise at 10%, 20% and 30% of the maximum nominal individual effort) in 16 healthy humans. Results demonstrated that the degree of correlation among the estimates is related to the structure of the model explicitly or implicitly assumed by the method and depends on the experimental condition (i.e. on the physiological mechanisms contemporaneously active with baroreflex, e.g. cardiopulmonary reflexes). However, even in the presence of a significant correlation, proportional and/or constant biases can be present, thus rendering spontaneous baroreflex estimates not interchangeable. We suggest that the comparison among different baroreflex sensitivity estimates might elucidate physiological mechanisms responsible for the relationship between heart period and systolic arterial pressure

Fibroid explants reveal a higher sensitivity against MDM2-inhibitor nutlin-3 than matching myometrium

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Markowski Dominique N

2012-01-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Spontaneous cessation of growth is a frequent finding in uterine fibroids. Increasing evidence suggests an important role of cellular senescence in this growth control. Deciphering the underlying mechanisms of growth control that can be expected not only to shed light on the biology of the tumors but also to identify novel therapeutic targets. Methods We have analyzed uterine leiomyomas and matching normal tissue for the expression of p14Arf and used explants to see if reducing the MDM2 activity using the small-molecule inhibitor nutlin-3 can induce p53 and activate genes involved in senescence and/or apoptosis. For these studies quantitative real-time RT-PCR, Western blots, and immunohistochemistry were used. Statistical analyses were performed using the student's t test. Results An in depth analysis of 52 fibroids along with matching myometrium from 31 patients revealed in almost all cases a higher expression of p14Arf in the tumors than in the matching normal tissue. In tissue explants, treatment with the MDM2 inhibitor nutlin-3 induced apoptosis as well as senescence as revealed by a dose-dependent increase of the expression of BAX as well as of p21, respectively. Simultaneously, the expression of the proliferation marker Ki-67 drastically decreased. Western-blot analysis identified an increase of the p53 level as the most likely reason for the increased activity of its downstream markers BAX and p21. Because as a rule fibroids express much higher levels of p14Arf, a major negative regulator of MDM2, than matching myometrium it was then analyzed if fibroids are more sensitive against nutlin-3 treatment than matching myometrium. We were able to show that in most fibroids analyzed a higher sensibility than that of matching myometrium was noted with a corresponding increase of the p53 immunopositivity of the fibroid samples compared to those from myometrium. Conclusions The results show that uterine fibroids represent a cell

Creep theories compared by means of high sensitivity tensile creep data

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Salim, A.

1987-01-01

Commonly used creep theories include time-hardening, strain-hardening and Rabotnov's modified strain-hardening. In the paper they are examined by using high sensitivity tensile creep data produced on 1% CrMoV steel at a temperatue of 565 0 C. A special creep machine designed and developed by the author is briefly described and is compared with other existing machines. Tensile creep data reported cover a stress range of 100-260 MN m -2 ; four variable-creep tests each in duplicate are also reported. Test durations are limited to 3000 h, or failure, whichever occurs earlier. The strain-hardening theory and Rabotnov's modified strain-hardening theory are found to give good prediction of creep strain under variable stress conditions. The time-hardening theory shows a relatively poor agreement and considerably underestimates the accumulated inelastic strain under increasing stress condition. This discrepancy increases with the increased stress rate. The theories failed to predict the variable stress results towards the later part of the test where tertiary effects were significant. The use of creep equations which could account for creep strain at higher stress levels seems to improve the situation considerably. Under conditions of variable stress, it is suggested that a theory based on continuous damage mechanics concepts might give a better prediction. (author)

Comparing light sensitivity, linearity and step response of electronic cameras for ophthalmology.

Science.gov (United States)

Kopp, O; Markert, S; Tornow, R P

2002-01-01

To develop and test a procedure to measure and compare light sensitivity, linearity and step response of electronic cameras. The pixel value (PV) of digitized images as a function of light intensity (I) was measured. The sensitivity was calculated from the slope of the P(I) function, the linearity was estimated from the correlation coefficient of this function. To measure the step response, a short sequence of images was acquired. During acquisition, a light source was switched on and off using a fast shutter. The resulting PV was calculated for each video field of the sequence. A CCD camera optimized for the near-infrared (IR) spectrum showed the highest sensitivity for both, visible and IR light. There are little differences in linearity. The step response depends on the procedure of integration and read out.

Aortic Baroreceptors Display Higher Mechanosensitivity than Carotid Baroreceptors

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Eva On-Chai Lau

2016-08-01

Full Text Available Arterial baroreceptors are mechanical sensors that detect blood pressure changes. It has long been suggested that the two arterial baroreceptors, aortic and carotid baroreceptors, have different pressure sensitivities. However, there is no consensus as to which of the arterial baroreceptors are more sensitive to changes in blood pressure. In the present study, we employed independent methods to compare the pressure sensitivity of the two arterial baroreceptors. Firstly, pressure-activated action potential firing was measured by whole-cell current clamp with a high-speed pressure clamp system in primary cultured baroreceptor neurons. The results show that aortic depressor neurons possessed a higher percentage of mechano-sensitive neurons. Furthermore, aortic baroreceptor neurons show a lower pressure threshold than that of carotid baroreceptor neurons. Secondly, uniaxial stretching of baroreceptor neurons, that mimics the forces exerted on blood vessels, elicited a larger increase in intracellular Ca2+ rise in aortic baroreceptor neurons than in carotid baroreceptor neurons. Thirdly, the pressure-induced action potential firing in the aortic depressor nerve recorded in vivo was also higher. The present study therefore provides for a basic physiological understanding on the pressure sensitivity of the two baroreceptor neurons and suggests that aortic baroreceptors have a higher pressure sensitivity than carotid baroreceptors.

Comparative copper sensitivity between life stages of common subantarctic marine invertebrates.

Science.gov (United States)

Holan, Jessica R; King, Catherine K; Davis, Andrew R

2018-03-01

The development of environmental guidelines in the Antarctic and subantarctic is essential, because expansion of research, tourism, and fishing is placing these regions at increasing risk of contamination. Data are currently insufficient to create the region-specific guidelines needed for the unique conditions in these areas. To develop the most appropriate environmental guidelines, data from the most sensitive life stages of a species should be included to ensure effective protection throughout its life cycle. It is generally accepted that early life stages are more sensitive to contaminants. We compared the toxicity of copper between juvenile and adult life stages of 4 subantarctic marine invertebrates using sublethal and lethal endpoints. For 2 of the species tested, juveniles were more sensitive than adults. (The 7-d median effect concentration [EC50] values for the gastropod Laevilittorina caliginosa were 79 μg/L at the juvenile stage and 125 μg/L at the adult; for the flatworm Obrimoposthia ohlini, values were 190 μg/L at the juvenile stage and 300 μg/L at the adult.) For the isopod Limnoria stephenseni, juveniles were either more sensitive or of equal sensitivity to adults (7-d EC50 values: juvenile 278 μg/L and adult 320 μg/L). In contrast, for the bivalve Gaimardia trapesina, adults appeared to be more sensitive than young adults (7-d EC50 values: juvenile 23 μg/L and adult life history stages was observed, the present study contributes important information for the development of water quality guidelines in polar regions. Environ Toxicol Chem 2018;37:807-815. © 2017 SETAC. © 2017 SETAC.

QUALITY ASSURANCE SYSTEMS IN POLISH AND UKRAINIAN HIGHER EDUCATION. A COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Marta Tutko

2015-02-01

Full Text Available The article deals with the progress made to develop external and internal quality assurance systems in Polish and Ukrainian higher education in the European Higher Education Area background. The focus of the paper is on the extent to which quality assurance systems in these countries are following the Standards and Guidelines for Quality Assurance in the European Higher Education Area. Furthermore, internal and external quality assur-ance in the European context is presented in the article. The authors of the article also conducted a comparative analysis of quality assurance systems in Polish and Ukrainian higher education.

Comparative Sensitivities of Gravitational Wave Detectors Based on Atom Interferometers and Light Interferometers

Science.gov (United States)

Baker, John G.; Thorpe, J. I.

2012-01-01

We consider a class of proposed gravitational wave detectors based on multiple atomic interferometers separated by large baselines and referenced by common laser systems. We compute the sensitivity limits of these detectors due to intrinsic phase noise of the light sources, non-inertial motion of the light sources, and atomic shot noise and compare them to sensitivity limits for traditional light interferometers. We find that atom interferometers and light interferometers are limited in a nearly identical way by intrinsic phase noise and that both require similar mitigation strategies (e.g. multiple arm instruments) to reach interesting sensitivities. The sensitivity limit from motion of the light sources is slightly different and favors the atom interferometers in the low-frequency limit, although the limit in both cases is severe. Whether this potential advantage outweighs the additional complexity associated with including atom interferometers will require further study.

Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS): compared sensitivity of different motor response parameters in ALS.

Science.gov (United States)

Pouget, J; Trefouret, S; Attarian, S

2000-06-01

Owing to the low sensitivity of clinical signs in assessing upper motor neuron (UMN) involvement in ALS, there is a need for investigative tools capable of detecting abnormal function of the pyramidal tract. Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) may contribute to the diagnosis by reflecting a UMN dysfunction that is not clinically detectable. Several parameters for the motor responses to TMS can be evaluated with different levels of significance in healthy subjects compared with ALS patients. The central motor conduction time, however, is not sensitive in detecting subclinical UMN defects in individual ALS patients. The amplitude of the motor evoked potential (MEP), expressed as the percentage of the maximum wave, also has a low sensitivity. In some cases, the corticomotor threshold is decreased early in the disease course as a result of corticomotor neuron hyperexcitability induced by glutamate. Later, the threshold increases, indicating a loss of UMN. In our experience, a decreased silent period duration appears to be the most sensitive parameter when using motor TMS in ALS. TMS is also a sensitive technique for investigating the corticobulbar tract, which is difficult to study by other methods. TMS is a widely available, painless and safe technique with a good sensitivity that can visualize both corticospinal and corticobulbar tract abnormalities. The sensitivity can be improved further by taking into account the several MEP parameters, including latency and cortical silent period decreased duration.

15. Sensitivity in visualizing vegetations in cardiac lead-induced endocarditis: A comparative study between transesophageal vs. transthoracic echocardiography

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

A. AlFagih

2016-07-01

Full Text Available Despite advancement in sterile cardiac device implantation techniques, wound infections and/or bacteremia remain a significant problem. The presence of a vegetation in lead-induced endocarditis (LIE is a critical factor that determines the management. Transthoracic (TTE and Transesophageal (TEE Echocardiography are two different cardiac modalities that are used for the detection of lead vegetation. However, it is not yet clear which of the two has the highest diagnostic accuracy. We aim to identify which of the two has the highest sensitivity. In addition, we aim to correlate the existence of a vegetation with blood and wound culture results. We conducted a chart review in 113 patients whom underwent lead extraction at Prince Sultan Cardiac Center in Saudi Arabia during the period of Jan, 2002 to Jul, 2015. Six patients underwent lead extraction twice, increasing the number to be a total of 119 cases. Out of the study cohort, we include 38 patients who had both TTE and TEE done prior to lead extraction. Data regarding TTE, TEE, as well as blood and wound cultures were collected from echocardiography and microbiology lab reports using a well-structured case report form.Of the study population, 21 patients (55.3% had lead vegetations visualized either by TTE or TEE. Nineteen patients had vegetations detected by TEE, compared to 6 patients only when TTE was used. The sensitivity of TEE and TTE were 90.5% (CI: 69.6–98.8% and 28.5% (95% CI: 11.3–52.1%, respectively. Blood and wound culture results showed that in the presence of a vegetation, blood cultures were positive in 55% of the cases (P = 0.036 while only 44.4% of those with vegetations had a positive wound culture (P = 0.347. TEE has higher sensitivity in detecting vegetations compared to TTE in LIE. The presence of a vegetation is more likely to be associated with a positive blood culture than a positive wound culture. Further studies ought to measure the accuracy of different

Higher holonomies: comparing two constructions

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Schaetz, Florian; Arias Abad, Camilo

2015-01-01

, there are the higher holonomies associated with flat superconnections as studied by Igusa [7], Block–Smith [3] and Arias Abad–Schätz [1]. We first explain how by truncating the latter construction one obtains examples of the former. Then we prove that the two-dimensional holonomies provided by the two approaches...

Comparative sensitizing potencies of fragrances, preservatives, and hair dyes

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lidén, Carola; Yazar, Kerem; Johansen, Jeanne Duus

2016-01-01

the sensitizing potencies of fragrance substances, preservatives, and hair dye substances, which are skin sensitizers that frequently come into contact with the skin of consumers and workers, LLNA results and EC3 values for 72 fragrance substances, 25 preservatives and 107 hair dye substances were obtained from...... two published compilations of LLNA data and opinions by the Scientific Committee on Consumer Safety and its predecessors. The median EC3 values of fragrances (n = 61), preservatives (n = 19) and hair dyes (n = 59) were 5.9%, 0.9%, and 1.3%, respectively. The majority of sensitizing preservatives...... and hair dyes are thus strong or extreme sensitizers (EC3 value of ≤2%), and fragrances are mostly moderate sensitizers. Although fragrances are typically moderate sensitizers, they are among the most frequent causes of contact allergy. This indicates that factors other than potency need to be addressed...

Discipline-Specific Compared to Generic Training of Teachers in Higher Education.

Science.gov (United States)

Silva-Fletcher, Ayona; May, Stephen A

A recurrent theme arising in the higher education sector is the suitability and effectiveness of generic versus discipline-specific training of university teachers, who are often recruited based on their disciplinary specialties to become teachers in higher education. We compared two groups of participants who had undergone training using a generic post-graduate certificate in higher education (PGCertGeneric) versus a discipline-specific course in veterinary education (PGCertVetEd). The study was conducted using a survey that allowed comparison of participants who completed PGCertGeneric (n=21) with PGCertVetEd (n=22). Results indicated that participants from both PGCertGeneric and PGCertVetEd considered teaching to be satisfying and important to their careers, valued the teaching observation component of the course, and identified similar training needs. However, the participants of the PGCertVetEd felt that the course made them better teachers, valued the relevance of the components taught, understood course design better, were encouraged to do further courses/reading in teaching and learning, changed their teaching as a result of the course, and were less stressed about teaching as compared to the PGCertGeneric participants (p<.05). It is likely that the PGCertVetEd, which was designed and developed by veterinarians with a wider understanding of the veterinary sector, helped the participants perceive the training course as suited to their needs.

Accessibility of higher education: the right to higher education in comparative approach

OpenAIRE

Pūraitė, Aurelija

2011-01-01

At present there is an unprecedented demand for and a great diversification in higher education, as well as an increased awareness of its vital importance for socio-cultural and economic development. The complexity of the right to education is especially at issue while discussing the right to higher education, which on a national level is non-compulsory, even though the number of people who have acquired higher education during the second half of the twentieth century has tripled. Therefore t...

Beware the black box: investigating the sensitivity of FEA simulations to modelling factors in comparative biomechanics

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Christopher W. Walmsley

2013-11-01

Full Text Available Finite element analysis (FEA is a computational technique of growing popularity in the field of comparative biomechanics, and is an easily accessible platform for form-function analyses of biological structures. However, its rapid evolution in recent years from a novel approach to common practice demands some scrutiny in regards to the validity of results and the appropriateness of assumptions inherent in setting up simulations. Both validation and sensitivity analyses remain unexplored in many comparative analyses, and assumptions considered to be ‘reasonable’ are often assumed to have little influence on the results and their interpretation.Here we report an extensive sensitivity analysis where high resolution finite element (FE models of mandibles from seven species of crocodile were analysed under loads typical for comparative analysis: biting, shaking, and twisting. Simulations explored the effect on both the absolute response and the interspecies pattern of results to variations in commonly used input parameters. Our sensitivity analysis focuses on assumptions relating to the selection of material properties (heterogeneous or homogeneous, scaling (standardising volume, surface area, or length, tooth position (front, mid, or back tooth engagement, and linear load case (type of loading for each feeding type.Our findings show that in a comparative context, FE models are far less sensitive to the selection of material property values and scaling to either volume or surface area than they are to those assumptions relating to the functional aspects of the simulation, such as tooth position and linear load case. Results show a complex interaction between simulation assumptions, depending on the combination of assumptions and the overall shape of each specimen. Keeping assumptions consistent between models in an analysis does not ensure that results can be generalised beyond the specific set of assumptions used. Logically, different

In Defence of International Comparative Studies. on the Analytical and Explanatory Power of the Nation State in International Comparative Higher Education Research

Science.gov (United States)

Kosmützky, Anna

2015-01-01

Higher education is undergoing a process of globalization and new realities of a globalized higher education world are emerging. Globalization also has a profound impact on higher education research. Global and transnational topics are theoretically and empirically elaborated and seem on the rise, whereas the international comparative outlook…

Gender Inequalities and Higher Music Education: Comparing the UK and Sweden

Science.gov (United States)

de Boise, Sam

2018-01-01

Whilst the impact of gender inequalities has been studied in relation to music education, especially in the UK, relatively little has been written about their impact on higher music education (HME). This article compares data on HME programs and courses, in the UK and Sweden, from 2010 to 2014. It looks at similarities and differences in the…

Comparative study of isolates from community-acquired and catheter-associated urinary tract infections with reference to biofilm-producing property, antibiotic sensitivity and multi-drug resistance.

Science.gov (United States)

Bardoloi, Vishwajeet; Yogeesha Babu, K V

2017-07-01

Urinary tract infection (UTI) can be community-acquired (Com-UTI) or catheter-associated (CAUTI) and may be associated with biofilm-producing organisms. A comparative analysis of biofilm-producing property (BPP), antibiotic-sensitivity and multi-drug resistance (MDR) and their relation with the BPP of isolates from Com-UTI and CAUTI has not yet been performed and necessitated this study. (1) isolation of bacteria from CAUTI and Com-UTI and identification of their BPP, antibiotic-sensitivity and MDR status; (2) comparison of the isolates from CAUTI and Com-UTI as regards BPP, MDR status and their relation with BPP. isolates from 100 cases each of Com-UTI and CAUTI were subjected to Congo redagar (CRA) and Safranin tube tests. Antibiotic susceptibility was investigated using the disc diffusion method. Both groups were compared regarding BPP, drug sensitivity and MDR status. Statistical analyses were performed using χ2 and Fisher's exact tests. 76.19 % of isolates from Com-UTI and 60.72 % from CAUTI had BPP (P=0.0252; significant). The Safranin tube test detected more isolates with BPP than the CRA test. MDR is greater in CAUTI than Com-UTI (83.33 % versus 64.76 %; P=0.0039; significant). MDR is greater in isolates with BPP in both Com-UTI and CAUTI (76.47 and 62.35 %; non-significant). BPP was found in both Com-UTI and CAUTI. When used together, the Safranin tube test and the CRA test increased the sensitivity of detecting BPP. MDR was higher in CAUTI than Com-UTI. MDR and BPP are not interrelated or associated, especially in settings where it is not certain that isolates were obtained from a well-formed biofilm. However, this does not rule out a higher incidence or prevalence of MDR in isolates with BPP taken directly from the biofilms.

Comparative Overview of UWB and VLC for Data- Intensive and Security-Sensitive Applications

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Prasad, Ramjee; Mihovska, Albena D.; Cianca, Ernestina

2012-01-01

This paper provides a comparative overview of two short-range wireless technologies with high potential for use in various data-intensive and security-sensitive applications, namely, ultra wideband (UWB) and visible light communications (VLC). Both are emerging technologies with some unique...... and standardization developments for both technologies and gives a proposal for their suitability based on a comparative view, of the strengths and weaknesses for use in applications, such as home networking, vehicular communications, and medical care, including the main technical challenges....

A Paleolithic diet confers higher insulin sensitivity, lower C-reactive protein and lower blood pressure than a cereal-based diet in domestic pigs

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ugander Martin

2006-11-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background A Paleolithic diet has been suggested to be more in concordance with human evolutionary legacy than a cereal based diet. This might explain the lower incidence among hunter-gatherers of diseases of affluence such as type 2 diabetes, obesity and cardiovascular disease. The aim of this study was to experimentally study the long-term effect of a Paleolithic diet on risk factors for these diseases in domestic pigs. We examined glucose tolerance, post-challenge insulin response, plasma C-reactive protein and blood pressure after 15 months on Paleolithic diet in comparison with a cereal based swine feed. Methods Upon weaning twenty-four piglets were randomly allocated either to cereal based swine feed (Cereal group or cereal free Paleolithic diet consisting of vegetables, fruit, meat and a small amount of tubers (Paleolithic group. At 17 months of age an intravenous glucose tolerance test was performed and pancreas specimens were collected for immunohistochemistry. Group comparisons of continuous variables were made by use of the t-test. P Results At the end of the study the Paleolithic group weighed 22% less and had 43% lower subcutaneous fat thickness at mid sternum. No significant difference was seen in fasting glucose between groups. Dynamic insulin sensitivity was significantly higher (p = 0.004 and the insulin response was significantly lower in the Paleolithic group (p = 0.001. The geometric mean of C-reactive protein was 82% lower (p = 0.0007 and intra-arterial diastolic blood pressure was 13% lower in the Paleolithic group (p = 0.007. In evaluations of multivariate correlations, diet emerged as the strongest explanatory variable for the variations in dynamic insulin sensitivity, insulin response, C-reactive protein and diastolic blood pressure when compared to other relevant variables such as weight and subcutaneous fat thickness at mid sternum. There was no obvious immunohistochemical difference in pancreatic islets

Learning in a Game-Based Virtual Environment: A Comparative Evaluation in Higher Education

Science.gov (United States)

Mayer, Igor; Warmelink, Harald; Bekebrede, Geertje

2013-01-01

The authors define the requirements and a conceptual model for comparative evaluation research of simulation games and serious games (SGs) in a learning context. A first operationalisation of the model was used to comparatively evaluate a suite of 14 SGs on varying topics played between 2004 and 2009 in 13 institutes of higher education in the…

Silicon nanowire structures as high-sensitive pH-sensors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Belostotskaya, S O; Chuyko, O V; Kuznetsov, A E; Kuznetsov, E V; Rybachek, E N

2012-01-01

Sensitive elements for pH-sensors created on silicon nanostructures were researched. Silicon nanostructures have been used as ion-sensitive field effect transistor (ISFET) for the measurement of solution pH. Silicon nanostructures have been fabricated by 'top-down' approach and have been studied as pH sensitive elements. Nanowires have the higher sensitivity. It was shown, that sensitive element, which is made of 'one-dimensional' silicon nanostructure have bigger pH-sensitivity as compared with 'two-dimensional' structure. Integrated element formed from two p- and n-type nanowire ISFET ('inverter') can be used as high sensitivity sensor for local relative change [H+] concentration in very small volume.

A comparative study of dye-sensitized solar cells added carbon nanotubes to electrolyte and counter electrodes

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Uk Lee, Sung; Hong, Byungyou [School of Information and Communication Engineering, Sungkyunkwan University (Korea); Seok Choi, Won [Department of Electrical Engineering, Hanbat National University (Korea)

2010-04-15

For the purpose of increasing the energy conversion efficiency of dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs), carbon nanotubes (CNTs) were added to electrolyte and PtCl{sub 4}-treated electrode. We used two different powders containing single-wall CNT (SWCNT) and multi-wall CNT (MWCNT). We added CNTs to PtCl{sub 4}-treated electrode (called as CNT-counter electrode) or electrolyte (called as CNT-electrolyte) and then fabricated four kinds of DSSCs with SWCNT-counter electrode, MWCNT-counter electrode, SWCNT-electrolyte, and MWCNT-electrolyte. The efficiency of CNT-counter electrode DSSC was improved to 4.03% (SWCNT) and 4.36% (MWCNT), respectively. In case of CNT-electrolyte DSSC, MWCNT-electrolyte DSSC showed higher efficiency (4.2%) than SWCNT-electrolyte DSSC (3.62%). Compared with a standard DSSC without CNTs whose efficiency was 3.22%, the energy conversion efficiency increased up to about 26% and 24% for the MWCNT-electrode DSSC and the MWCNT-electrolyte DSSC, respectively. (author)

Sensitivity analysis of critical experiment with direct perturbation compared to TSUNAMI-3D sensitivity analysis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Barber, A. D.; Busch, R.

2009-01-01

The goal of this work is to obtain sensitivities from direct uncertainty analysis calculation and correlate those calculated values with the sensitivities produced from TSUNAMI-3D (Tools for Sensitivity and Uncertainty Analysis Methodology Implementation in Three Dimensions). A full sensitivity analysis is performed on a critical experiment to determine the overall uncertainty of the experiment. Small perturbation calculations are performed for all known uncertainties to obtain the total uncertainty of the experiment. The results from a critical experiment are only known as well as the geometric and material properties. The goal of this relationship is to simplify the uncertainty quantification process in assessing a critical experiment, while still considering all of the important parameters. (authors)

Is Ethical Sensitivity in Teaching Culturally Bound? Comparing Finnish and Iranian Teachers' Ethical Sensitivity

Science.gov (United States)

Gholami, Khalil; Kuusisto, Elina; Tirri, Kirsi

2015-01-01

In this study, we investigated the culture-invariant and culture-dependent nature of teachers' ethical sensitivity in two countries. Our case study involves teachers from Finland (n = 864) representing Western culture, and from Iran (n = 556) representing Eastern culture. Culturally bound elements of ethical sensitivity were studied with the…

HIGHER SERUM CAFFEINE IN SMOKERS WITH SCHIZOPHRENIA COMPARED TO SMOKING CONTROLS

OpenAIRE

Gandhi, Kunal K; Williams, Jill M; Menza, Matthew; Galazyn, Magdalena; Benowitz, Neal L.

2010-01-01

Previous studies of high dietary caffeine intake in individuals with schizophrenia have not demonstrated biological evidence of higher intake or controlled smoking behavior. This study aimed to examine differences in serum caffeine levels in 104 smokers with schizophrenia/schizoaffective disorder (SCZ/SA) and compare them to 63 smokers without any mental illness (CON). Since we were interested in measuring caffeine levels, we excluded all non caffeine users from the study. Blood draws were st...

Fibroblasts maintained in 3 dimensions show a better differentiation state and higher sensitivity to estrogens

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Montani, Claudia [Laboratory of Biotechnology, Department of Laboratory Medicine, Civic Hospital of Brescia (Italy); Steimberg, Nathalie; Boniotti, Jennifer [Laboratory of Tissue Engineering, Anatomy and Physiopathology Unit, Department of Clinical and Experimental Sciences, School of Medicine, University of Brescia (Italy); Biasiotto, Giorgio; Zanella, Isabella [Laboratory of Biotechnology, Department of Laboratory Medicine, Civic Hospital of Brescia (Italy); Department of Molecular and Translational Medicine, University of Brescia, Brescia (Italy); Diafera, Giuseppe [Integrated Systems Engineering (ISE), Milan (Italy); Biunno, Ida [IRGB-CNR, Milan (Italy); IRCCS-Multimedica, Milan (Italy); Caimi, Luigi [Laboratory of Biotechnology, Department of Laboratory Medicine, Civic Hospital of Brescia (Italy); Department of Molecular and Translational Medicine, University of Brescia, Brescia (Italy); Mazzoleni, Giovanna [Laboratory of Tissue Engineering, Anatomy and Physiopathology Unit, Department of Clinical and Experimental Sciences, School of Medicine, University of Brescia (Italy); Di Lorenzo, Diego, E-mail: diego.dilorenzo@yahoo.it [Laboratory of Biotechnology, Department of Laboratory Medicine, Civic Hospital of Brescia (Italy)

2014-11-01

Cell differentiation and response to hormonal signals were studied in a 3D environment on an in-house generated mouse fibroblast cell line expressing a reporter gene under the control of estrogen responsive sequences (EREs). 3D cell culture conditions were obtained in a Rotary Cell Culture System; (RCCS™), a microgravity based bioreactor that promotes the aggregation of cells into multicellular spheroids (MCS). In this bioreactor the cells maintained a better differentiated phenotype and more closely resembled in vivo tissue. The RCCS™ cultured fibroblasts showed higher expression of genes regulating cell assembly, differentiation and hormonal functions. Microarray analysis showed that genes related to cell cycle, proliferation, cytoskeleton, migration, adhesion and motility were all down-regulated in 3D as compared to 2D conditions, as well as oncogene expression and inflammatory cytokines. Controlled remodeling of ECM, which is an essential aspect of cell organization, homeostasis and tissue was affected by the culture method as assessed by immunolocalization of β-tubulin. Markers of cell organization, homeostasis and tissue repair, metalloproteinase 2 (MMP2) and its physiological inhibitor (TIMP4) changed expression in association with the relative formation of cell aggregates. The fibroblasts cultured in the RCCS™ maintain a better responsiveness to estrogens, measured as expression of ERα and regulation of an ERE-dependent reporter and of the endogenous target genes CBP, Rarb, MMP1 and Dbp. Our data highlight the interest of this 3D culture model for its potential application in the field of cell response to hormonal signals and the pharmaco-toxicological analyses of chemicals and natural molecules endowed of estrogenic potential. - Highlights: • We here characterized the first cell line derived from an estrogen reporter mouse. • In the RCCS cells express an immortalized behavior but not a transformed phenotype. • The RCCS provides a system for

Comparative study of different surrogate markers for individual radiation sensitivity

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hoffmann, Nele Julia

2013-01-01

Radiotherapy is an important part of therapeutic tumor treatment concept. The applied total dose is limited by the unavoidable radiation effect on the surrounding normal tissue and the risk of radiation induced acute or chronic side effects. The clinical radiation sensitivity, i.e. the risk of radiogenic side effects is strongly coupled to the cellular radiation sensitivity. The contribution is focused on the development of a predictive tool for the individual radiation sensitivity for individual radiotherapeutic planning using lymphocytes. Residual foci, i.e. accumulated repair associated proteins at the residual double strand break are supposed to be surrogate markers of the cellular radiation sensitivity. No relation between the foci detection and the G(0)/G(1) was found assay with respect to the individual radiation sensitivity.

Comparing the sensitivity of permafrost and marine gas hydrate to climate warming

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Taylor, A.E.; Dallimore, S.R.; Hyndman, R.D.; Wright, F.

2005-01-01

The sensitivity of Arctic subpermafrost gas hydrate at the Mallik borehole was compared to temperate marine gas hydrate located offshore southwestern Canada. In particular, a finite element geothermal model was used to determine the sensitivity to the end of the ice age, and contemporary climate warming of a 30 m thick methane hydrate layer lying at the base of a gas hydrate stability zone prior to 13.5 kiloannum (ka) before present (BP). It was suggested that the 30 m gas-hydrate-bearing layer would have disappeared by now, according to the thermal signal alone. However, the same gas-hydrate-bearing layer underlying permafrost would persist until at least 4 ka after present, even with contemporary climate warming. The longer time for subpermafrost gas hydrate comes from the thawing pore ice at the base of permafrost, at the expense of dissociation of the deeper gas hydrate. The dissociation of underlying gas hydrate from climate surface warming is buffered by the overlying permafrost

Human sensitivity to vertical self-motion.

Science.gov (United States)

Nesti, Alessandro; Barnett-Cowan, Michael; Macneilage, Paul R; Bülthoff, Heinrich H

2014-01-01

Perceiving vertical self-motion is crucial for maintaining balance as well as for controlling an aircraft. Whereas heave absolute thresholds have been exhaustively studied, little work has been done in investigating how vertical sensitivity depends on motion intensity (i.e., differential thresholds). Here we measure human sensitivity for 1-Hz sinusoidal accelerations for 10 participants in darkness. Absolute and differential thresholds are measured for upward and downward translations independently at 5 different peak amplitudes ranging from 0 to 2 m/s(2). Overall vertical differential thresholds are higher than horizontal differential thresholds found in the literature. Psychometric functions are fit in linear and logarithmic space, with goodness of fit being similar in both cases. Differential thresholds are higher for upward as compared to downward motion and increase with stimulus intensity following a trend best described by two power laws. The power laws' exponents of 0.60 and 0.42 for upward and downward motion, respectively, deviate from Weber's Law in that thresholds increase less than expected at high stimulus intensity. We speculate that increased sensitivity at high accelerations and greater sensitivity to downward than upward self-motion may reflect adaptations to avoid falling.

A comparative study of the metabolic profile, insulin sensitivity and inflammatory response between organically and conventionally managed dairy cattle during the periparturient period.

Science.gov (United States)

Abuelo, A; Hernández, J; Benedito, J L; Castillo, C

2014-09-01

The number of organically managed cattle (OMC) within the European Union has increased tremendously in the last decade. However, there are still some concerns about animals under this farming system meeting their dietary requirements for milk production. The aim of this study was to compare the metabolic adaptations to the onset of lactation in three different herds, one conventional and two organic ones. Twenty-two conventionally managed cattle (CMC) and 20 from each organic farm were sampled throughout the periparturient period. These samplings were grouped into four different stages: (i) far-off dry, (ii) close-up dry, (iii) fresh and (iv) peak of lactation and compared among them. In addition, the results of periparturient animals were also compared within each management type with a control group (animals between the 4th and 5th months of pregnancy). Metabolic profiles were used to assess the health status of the herds, along with the quantification of the acute phase proteins haptoglobin and serum amyloid A, insulin and the calculation of different surrogate indices of insulin sensitivity. Generalised linear mixed models with repeated measurements were used to study the effect of the stage, management type or their interaction on the serum variables studied. The prevalence of subclinical ketosis was higher in OMC, although they showed better insulin sensitivity, a lower degree of inflammation and less liver injury, without a higher risk of macromineral deficiencies. Therefore, attention should be paid on organic farms to the nutritional management of cows around the time of calving in order to prevent the harmful consequences of excessive negative energy balance. Moreover, it must be taken into account that most of the common practices used to treat this condition in CMC are not allowed on a systematic basis in OMC.

Higher prevalence of anemia among pregnant immigrant women compared to pregnant ethnic Danish women

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Nybo, Mads; Friis-Hansen, Lennart; Felding, Peter

2007-01-01

The aim of the study was to investigate whether the well-known high anemia prevalence in pregnant women from the eastern Mediterranean and Asian regions decreased when the women immigrated to a low-frequency region (Denmark). During 70 months, 1,741 pregnant immigrant women referred from primary...... status parameters were examined in the two groups. The prevalence of anemia was higher in the immigrant group (20.0%) compared to the Danish women (4.9%) (P ... indicated iron deficiency. Conclusively, the pregnant immigrant women had significantly higher prevalence of anemia compared to pregnant women of Danish origin. It indicates the need for an alternative routine screening procedure for this population group, which should also include nutritional counselling....

The Relationship between Ethical Sensitivity, High Ability and Gender in Higher Education Students

Science.gov (United States)

Schutte, Ingrid; Wolfensberger, Marca; Tirri, Kirsi

2014-01-01

This study examined the ethical sensitivity of high-ability undergraduate students (n=731) in the Netherlands who completed the 28-item Ethical Sensitivity Scale Questionnaire (ESSQ) developed by Tirri & Nokelainen (2007; 2011). The ESSQ is based on Narvaez' (2001) operationalization of ethical sensitivity in seven dimensions. The following…

Politics and Culture in Croation Higher Education: A Comparative Perspective on Educational Reform.

Science.gov (United States)

Reichard, Max

1992-01-01

Offers a historical overview of a series of reforms of higher education in the former Yugoslavia republic, stressing the cultural importance of "obrazovanje" (formal education/training) and "odgoj" (moral education/personal development) in Croatia. Describes the development of "visa skola," comparable to U.S.…

Comparing Higher Education Practices and Cultural Competences in Kenya and the United States

Science.gov (United States)

Musamali, Kennedy; Martin, Barbara N.

2016-01-01

Examined within this paper are effective leadership practices across two cultures. Specifically, this study examined the relationship between cultural competency and effective leadership practices in higher education institutions. A quantitative design was used to investigate and compare effective practices of educational leaders in two distinct…

The governance of higher education regionalisation: comparative analysis of the Bologna Process and MERCOSUR-Educativo

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Verger, A.; Hermo, J.P.

2010-01-01

The article analyses two processes of higher education regionalisation, MERCOSUR‐Educativo in Latin America and the Bologna Process in Europe, from a comparative perspective. The comparative analysis is centered on the content and the governance of both processes and, specifically, on the reasons of

Internationalising Nordic higher education: comparing the imagined with actual worlds of international scholar-practitioners

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Meeri Hellstén

2018-01-01

Full Text Available This comparative case study addresses a timely issue engaging researchers involved in the internationalisation of Nordic Higher Education, in the context of Sweden and Finland. The study examines a hypothetical imaginary in the transition between university international policy statements and their understandings from the position of a globalised episteme. The investigation forms a tag-project as part of a funded large international research project examining ethical internationalism in times of global crises, involving a partnership between more than twenty higher education institutions in excess of ten countries across five continents. The data was collected using a mixed-methods design, whilst being controlled across the matched data collection period in 2013-2014. Data consisted of policy texts, surveys and interviews. The current research inquiry reports on a within and across comparative analyses of certain policy texts and follow-up interviews with university management. The results yield logical support for a global higher education imaginary driving internationalisation in ways which reveal paradoxical associations between the imagined and the real worlds of international scholar-practitioners.

Will Bribery and Fraud Converge? Comparative Corruption in Higher Education in Russia and the USA

Science.gov (United States)

Osipian, Ararat L.

2014-01-01

This study analyses the issue of comparative corruption in the national higher education sectors in the United States of America (USA) and the Russian Federation (RF). Corruption in higher education, as well as the way it is addressed in legislation and court cases and reflected in the media, appears to be consistent with the trajectory and pace…

Driving higher magnetic field sensitivity of the martensitic transformation in MnCoGe ferromagnet

Science.gov (United States)

Ma, S. C.; Ge, Q.; Hu, Y. F.; Wang, L.; Liu, K.; Jiang, Q. Z.; Wang, D. H.; Hu, C. C.; Huang, H. B.; Cao, G. P.; Zhong, Z. C.; Du, Y. W.

2017-11-01

The sharp metamagnetic martensitic transformation (MMT) triggered by a low critical field plays a pivotal role in magnetoresponsive effects for ferromagnetic shape memory alloys (FSMAs). Here, a sharper magnetic-field-induced metamagnetic martensitic transformation (MFIMMT) is realized in Mn1-xCo1+xGe systems with a giant magnetocaloric effect around room temperature, which represents the lowest magnetic driving and completion fields as well as the largest magnetization difference around MFIMMT reported heretofore in MnCoGe-based FSMAs. More interestingly, a reversible MFIMMT with field cycling is observed in the Mn0.965Co0.035Ge compound. These results indicate that the consensus would be broken that the magnetic field is difficult to trigger the MMT for MnCoGe-based systems. The origin of a higher degree of sensitivity of martensitic transformation to the magnetic field is discussed based on the X-ray absorption spectroscopic results.

Comparative sensitivity of five species of macrophytes and six species of algae to atrazine, metribuzin, alachlor, and metolachlor

Science.gov (United States)

Fairchild, James F.; Ruessler, Shane; Carlson, A. Ron

1998-01-01

This study determined the relative sensitivity of five species of aquatic macrophytes and six species of algae to four commonly used herbicides (atrazine, metribuzin, alachlor, and metolachlor). Toxicity tests consisted of 96-h (duckweed and algae) or 14-d (submerged macrophytes) static exposures. The triazine herbicides (atrazine and metribuzin) were significantly more toxic to aquatic plants than were the acetanilide herbicides (alachlor and metolachlor). Toxicity studies ranked metribuzin > atrazine > alachlor > metolachlor in decreasing order of overall toxicity to aquatic plants. Relative sensitivities of macrophytes to these herbicides decreased in the order of Ceratophyllum > Najas > Elodea > Lemna > Myriophyllum. Relative sensitivities of algae to herbicides decreased in the order of Selenastrum > Chlorella > Chlamydomonas > Microcystis > Scenedesmus > Anabaena. Algae and macrophytes were of similar overall sensitivities to herbicides. Data indicated that Selenastrum, a commonly tested green alga, was generally more sensitive compared to other plant species. Lemna minor, a commonly tested floating vascular plant, was of intermediate sensitivity, and was fivefold less sensitive than Ceratophyllum, which was the most sensitive species tested. The results indicated that no species was consistently most sensitive, and that a suite of aquatic plant test species may be needed to perform accurate risk assessments of herbicides.

Dissipation of excess photosynthetic energy contributes to salinity tolerance: a comparative study of salt-tolerant Ricinus communis and salt-sensitive Jatropha curcas.

Science.gov (United States)

Lima Neto, Milton C; Lobo, Ana K M; Martins, Marcio O; Fontenele, Adilton V; Silveira, Joaquim Albenisio G

2014-01-01

The relationships between salt tolerance and photosynthetic mechanisms of excess energy dissipation were assessed using two species that exhibit contrasting responses to salinity, Ricinus communis (tolerant) and Jatropha curcas (sensitive). The salt tolerance of R. communis was indicated by unchanged electrolyte leakage (cellular integrity) and dry weight in leaves, whereas these parameters were greatly affected in J. curcas. The leaf Na+ content was similar in both species. Photosynthesis was intensely decreased in both species, but the reduction was more pronounced in J. curcas. In this species biochemical limitations in photosynthesis were more prominent, as indicated by increased C(i) values and decreased Rubisco activity. Salinity decreased both the V(cmax) (in vivo Rubisco activity) and J(max) (maximum electron transport rate) more significantly in J. curcas. The higher tolerance in R. communis was positively associated with higher photorespiratory activity, nitrate assimilation and higher cyclic electron flow. The high activity of these alternative electron sinks in R. communis was closely associated with a more efficient photoprotection mechanism. In conclusion, salt tolerance in R. communis, compared with J. curcas, is related to higher electron partitioning from the photosynthetic electron transport chain to alternative sinks. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier GmbH. All rights reserved.

Amino acid substitutions of Na,K-ATPase conferring decreased sensitivity to cardenolides in insects compared to mammals.

Science.gov (United States)

Dalla, Safaa; Swarts, Herman G P; Koenderink, Jan B; Dobler, Susanne

2013-12-01

Mutagenesis analyses and a recent crystal structure of the mammalian Na,K-ATPase have identified amino acids which are responsible for high affinity binding of cardenolides (such as ouabain) which at higher doses block the enzyme in the phosphorylated state. Genetic analysis of the Na,K-ATPase of insects adapted to cardenolides in their food plants revealed that some species possess substitutions which confer strongly increased resistance to ouabain in the mammalian enzyme such as the substitution T797A or combined substitutions at positions 111 and 122. To test for the effect of these mutations against the background of insect Na,K-ATPase, we here expressed the ouabain sensitive Na,K-ATPase α-subunit of Drosophila melanogaster together with the β-subunit Nrv3 in baculovirus-infected Sf9 cells and introduced the substitutions N122H, T797A, Q111T-N122H, Q111V-N122H, all of which have been observed in cardenolide-adapted insects. While all constructs showed similar expression levels, ouabain affinity of mutated Na,K-ATPases was reduced compared to the wild-type fly enzyme. Ouabain sensitivity of the ATPase activity in inhibition assays was significantly decreased by all mutations, yet whereas the IC₅₀ for the single mutations of N122H (61.0 μM) or T797A (63.3 μM) was increased roughly 250-fold relative to the wild-type (0.24 μM), the double mutations of Q111V-N122H (IC₅₀ 550 μM) and Q111T-N122H (IC₅₀ 583 μM) proved to be still more effective yielding a 2.250-fold increased resistance to ouabain. The double mutations identified in cardenolide-adapted insects are more effective in reducing ouabain sensitivity of the enzyme than those found naturally in the rat Na,K-ATPase (Q111R-N122D) or in mutagenesis screens of the mammalian enzyme. Obviously, the intense selection pressure on cardenolide exposed insects has resulted in very efficient substitutions that decrease cardenolide sensitivity extremely. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Comparative sensitivity of 125I-protein A and enzyme-conjugated antibodies for detection of immunoblotted proteins

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bernstein, J.M.; Stokes, C.E.; Fernie, B.

1987-01-01

Immunoblotting is a powerful technique for the detection of small amounts of immunologically interesting proteins in unpurified preparations. Iodinated protein A (PA) has been widely used as a second antibody for detection of proteins; however, it does not bind equally well to immunoglobulins from different species nor does it bind to all subclasses of immunoglobulin G (IgG). We compared the sensitivity of [ 125 I]PA with those of both horseradish peroxidase-conjugated second antibodies (HRP) and glucose oxidase-anti-glucose oxidase (GAG) soluble complexes for visualizing bovine serum albumin, human IgG, or human C3 which was either dot blotted or electroblotted to nitrocellulose. [ 125 I]PA was uniformly 10- to 100-fold less sensitive than either HRP or GAG. GAG was more sensitive than HRP except for C3 (electroblotting) and bovine serum albumin and IgG (dot blotting), in which they were equivalent. In general, dot blotting was 10- to 1000-fold more sensitive than electroblotting. Although relative sensitivities varied depending on the proteins analyzed and the antisera used, GAG appeared to be superior to [ 125 I]PA and HRP for detection of immunoblotted proteins

Dynamics of Inequalities in Access to Higher Education: Bulgaria in a Comparative Perspective

Science.gov (United States)

Ilieva-Trichkova, Petya; Boyadjieva, Pepka

2014-01-01

This paper aims at studying the dynamics of inequalities in access to higher education (HE) both in a historical and a comparative perspective. It uses Bulgaria as a case study and places it among five other countries such as Estonia, Hungary, Poland, Slovakia and Slovenia. The adopted approach differentiates between equity in HE and inequalities…

Highly efficient and stable cyclometalated ruthenium(II) complexes as sensitizers for dye-sensitized solar cells

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Huang, Jian-Feng; Liu, Jun-Min; Su, Pei-Yang; Chen, Yi-Fan; Shen, Yong; Xiao, Li-Min; Kuang, Dai-Bin; Su, Cheng-Yong

2015-01-01

Highlights: • Four novel thiocyanate-free cyclometalated ruthenium sensitizer were conveniently synthesized. • The D-CF 3 -sensitized DSSCs show higher efficiency compared to N719 based cells. • The DSSCs based on D-CF 3 and D-bisCF 3 sensitizers exhibit excellent long-term stability. • The diverse cyclometalated Ru complexes can be developed as high-performance sensitizers for use in DSSC. - Abstract: Four novel thiocyanate-free cyclometallted Ru(II) complexes, D-bisCF 3 , D-CF 3 , D-OMe, and D-DPA, with two 4,4′-dicarboxylic acid-2,2′-bipyridine together with a functionalized phenylpyridine ancillary ligand, have been designed and synthesized. The effect of different substituents (R = bisCF 3 , CF 3 , OMe, and DPA) on the ancillary C^N ligand on the photophysical properties and photovoltaic performance is investigated. Under standard global AM 1.5 solar conditions, the device based on D-CF 3 sensitizer gives a higher conversion efficiency of 8.74% than those based on D-bisCF 3 , D-OMe, and D-DPA, which can be ascribed to its broad range of visible light absorption, appropriate localization of the frontier orbitals, weak hydrogen bonds between -CF 3 and -OH groups at the TiO 2 surface, moderate dye loading on TiO 2 , and high charge collection efficiency. Moreover, the D-bisCF 3 and D-CF 3 based DSSCs exhibit good stability under 100 mW cm −2 light soaking at 60 °C for 400 h

Intermuscular Coherence Between Surface EMG Signals Is Higher for Monopolar Compared to Bipolar Electrode Configurations

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Maurice Mohr

2018-05-01

Full Text Available Introduction: The vasti muscles have to work in concert to control knee joint motion during movements like walking, running, or squatting. Coherence analysis between surface electromyography (EMG signals is a common technique to study muscle synchronization during such movements and gain insight into strategies of the central nervous system to optimize neuromuscular performance. However, different assessment methods related to EMG data acquisition, e.g., different electrode configurations or amplifier technologies, have produced inconsistent observations. Therefore, the aim of this study was to elucidate the effect of different EMG acquisition techniques (monopolar vs. bipolar electrode configuration, potential vs. current amplifier on the magnitude, reliability, and sensitivity of intermuscular coherence between two vasti muscles during stable and unstable squatting exercises.Methods: Surface EMG signals from vastus lateralis (VL and medialis (VM were obtained from eighteen adults while performing series of stable und unstable bipedal squats. The EMG signals were acquired using three different recording techniques: (1 Bipolar with a potential amplifier, (2 monopolar with a potential amplifier, and (3 monopolar electrodes with a current amplifier. VL-VM coherence between the respective raw EMG signals was determined during two trials of stable squatting and one trial of unstable squatting to compare the coherence magnitude, reliability, and sensitivity between EMG recording techniques.Results: VL-VM coherence was about twice as high for monopolar recordings compared to bipolar recordings for all squatting exercises while coherence was similar between monopolar potential and current recordings. Reliability measures were comparable between recording systems while the sensitivity to an increase in intermuscular coherence during unstable vs. stable squatting was lowest for the monopolar potential system.Discussion and Conclusion: The choice of

High sensitivity MOSFET-based neutron dosimetry

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fragopoulou, M.; Konstantakos, V.; Zamani, M.; Siskos, S.; Laopoulos, T.; Sarrabayrouse, G.

2010-01-01

A new dosemeter based on a metal-oxide-semiconductor field effect transistor sensitive to both neutrons and gamma radiation was manufactured at LAAS-CNRS Laboratory, Toulouse, France. In order to be used for neutron dosimetry, a thin film of lithium fluoride was deposited on the surface of the gate of the device. The characteristics of the dosemeter, such as the dependence of its response to neutron dose and dose rate, were investigated. The studied dosemeter was very sensitive to gamma rays compared to other dosemeters proposed in the literature. Its response in thermal neutrons was found to be much higher than in fast neutrons and gamma rays.

Higher Rate of Tuberculosis in Second Generation Migrants Compared to Native Residents in a Metropolitan Setting in Western Europe

Science.gov (United States)

Marx, Florian M.; Fiebig, Lena; Hauer, Barbara; Brodhun, Bonita; Glaser-Paschke, Gisela; Haas, Walter

2015-01-01

Background In Western Europe, migrants constitute an important risk group for tuberculosis, but little is known about successive generations of migrants. We aimed to characterize migration among tuberculosis cases in Berlin and to estimate annual rates of tuberculosis in two subsequent migrant generations. We hypothesized that second generation migrants born in Germany are at higher risk of tuberculosis compared to native (non-migrant) residents. Methods A prospective cross-sectional study was conducted. All tuberculosis cases reported to health authorities in Berlin between 11/2010 and 10/2011 were eligible. Interviews were conducted using a structured questionnaire including demographic data, migration history of patients and their parents, and language use. Tuberculosis rates were estimated using 2011 census data. Results Of 314 tuberculosis cases reported, 154 (49.0%) participated. Of these, 81 (52.6%) were first-, 14 (9.1%) were second generation migrants, and 59 (38.3%) were native residents. The tuberculosis rate per 100,000 individuals was 28.3 (95CI: 24.0–32.6) in first-, 10.2 (95%CI: 6.1–16.6) in second generation migrants, and 4.6 (95%CI: 3.7–5.6) in native residents. When combining information from the standard notification variables country of birth and citizenship, the sensitivity to detect second generation migration was 28.6%. Conclusions There is a higher rate of tuberculosis among second generation migrants compared to native residents in Berlin. This may be explained by presumably frequent contact and transmission within migrant populations. Second generation migration is insufficiently captured by the surveillance variables country of birth and citizenship. Surveillance systems in Western Europe should allow for quantifying the tuberculosis burden in this important risk group. PMID:26061733

Sensitive and rapid detection of Mycoplasma capricolum subsp ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Compared with a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test that targets the H2 gene sequences of MCCP, the sensitivity of the loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) assay was higher (approximately 0.75 fg DNA per reaction). The LAMP products could be visualized by agar gel electrophoresis. There were no cross ...

Prognostic Value of High-Sensitivity Cardiac Troponin T Compared with Risk Scores in Stable Cardiovascular Disease.

Science.gov (United States)

Biener, Moritz; Giannitsis, Evangelos; Kuhner, Manuel; Zelniker, Thomas; Mueller-Hennessen, Matthias; Vafaie, Mehrshad; Trenk, Dietmar; Neumann, Franz-Josef; Hochholzer, Willibald; Katus, Hugo A

2017-05-01

Risk stratification of patients with cardiovascular disease remains challenging despite consideration of risk scores. We aimed to evaluate the prognostic performance of high-sensitivity cardiac troponin T in a low-risk outpatient population presenting for nonsecondary and secondary prevention. All-cause mortality, a composite of all-cause mortality, acute myocardial infarction, and stroke (end point 2), and a composite of all-cause mortality, acute myocardial infarction, stroke and rehospitalization for acute coronary syndrome, and decompensated heart failure (end point 3) were defined. The prognostic performance of high-sensitivity cardiac troponin T on index visit was compared with the PROCAM score and 3 FRAMINGHAM subscores. In 693 patients with a median follow-up of 796 days, we observed 16 deaths, 32 patients with end point 2, and 83 patients with end point 3. All risk scores performed better in the prediction of all-cause mortality in nonsecondary prevention (area under the curve [AUC]: PROCAM: 0.922 vs 0.523, P = .001, consistent for all other scores). In secondary prevention, high-sensitivity cardiac troponin T outperformed all risk scores in the prediction of all-cause mortality (ΔAUC: PROCAM: 0.319, P risk scores. Our findings on the prediction of all-cause mortality compared with the FRAMINGHAM-Hard Coronary Heart Disease score were confirmed in an independent validation cohort on 2046 patients. High-sensitivity troponin T provides excellent risk stratification regarding all-cause mortality and all-cause mortality, acute myocardial infarction, and stroke in a secondary prevention cohort in whom risk scores perform poorly. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Surrogate indicators of sensitivity in gynecologic cytology: Can they be used to improve the measurement of sensitivity in the laboratory?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Renshaw Andrew

2009-01-01

Full Text Available Background: Measuring the sensitivity of screening in gynecologic cytology in real life is problematic. However, other quality measures may correlate with sensitivity, including the atypical squamous cells (ASC/squamous intraepithelial lesion (SIL ratio. Whether these other measures can function as "surrogate indicators" for sensitivity and improve the assessment of sensitivity in the laboratory is not known. Materials and Methods: We compared multiple quality measures with true screening sensitivity in a variety of situations. Results: The abnormal rate, ASC rate, and ASC/SIL ratio were all highly correlated (r = .83 or greater with sensitivity when the overall laboratory sensitivity was low (85% but became less correlated (.64 or less or uncorrelated when the screening sensitivity was higher (88% or 95%, respectively. Sensitivity was more highly correlated with the abnormal rate than the ASC/SIL ratio at low screening sensitivity. While thresholds could be set that were highly sensitive and specific for suboptimal screening, these thresholds were often less than one standard deviation away from the mean. Conclusion: The correlation of the abnormal rate and the ASC/SIL ratio with sensitivity depends on overall sensitivity. Standards to define minimum screening sensitivity can be defined, but these standards are relatively narrow. These features may limit the utility of these quality measures as surrogates for sensitivity.

Tilted c-Axis Thin-Film Bulk Wave Resonant Pressure Sensors With Improved Sensitivity

OpenAIRE

Anderås, Emil; Katardjiev, Ilia; Yantchev, Ventsislav

2012-01-01

Aluminum nitride thin film bulk wave resonant pressure sensors employing c- and tilted c-axis texture, have been fabricated and tested for their pressure sensitivities. The c-axis tilted FBAR pressure sensors demonstrate substantially higher pressure sensitivity compared to its c-axis oriented counterpart. More specifically the thickness plate quasi-shear resonance has demonstrated the highest pressure sensitivity while further being able to preserve its performance in liquid environment.

Comparative sensitivity of quantitative EEG (QEEG) spectrograms for detecting seizure subtypes.

Science.gov (United States)

Goenka, Ajay; Boro, Alexis; Yozawitz, Elissa

2018-02-01

To assess the sensitivity of Persyst version 12 QEEG spectrograms to detect focal, focal with secondarily generalized, and generalized onset seizures. A cohort of 562 seizures from 58 patients was analyzed. Successive recordings with 2 or more seizures during continuous EEG monitoring for clinical indications in the ICU or EMU between July 2016 and January 2017 were included. Patient ages ranged from 5 to 64 years (mean = 36 years). There were 125 focal seizures, 187 secondarily generalized and 250 generalized seizures from 58 patients analyzed. Seizures were identified and classified independently by two epileptologists. A correlate to the seizure pattern in the raw EEG was sought in the QEEG spectrograms in 4-6 h EEG epochs surrounding the identified seizures. A given spectrogram was interpreted as indicating a seizure, if at the time of a seizure it showed a visually significant departure from the pre-event baseline. Sensitivities for seizure detection using each spectrogram were determined for each seizure subtype. Overall sensitivities of the QEEG spectrograms for detecting seizures ranged from 43% to 72%, with highest sensitivity (402/562,72%) by the seizure detection trend. The asymmetry spectrogram had the highest sensitivity for detecting focal seizures (117/125,94%). The FFT spectrogram was most sensitive for detecting secondarily generalized seizures (158/187, 84%). The seizure detection trend was the most sensitive for generalized onset seizures (197/250,79%). Our study suggests that different seizure types have specific patterns in the Persyst QEEG spectrograms. Identifying these patterns in the EEG can significantly increase the sensitivity for seizure identification. Copyright © 2018 British Epilepsy Association. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Phase sensitive diffraction sensor for high sensitivity refractive index measurement

Science.gov (United States)

Kumawat, Nityanand; Varma, Manoj; Kumar, Sunil

2018-02-01

In this study a diffraction based sensor has been developed for bio molecular sensing applications and performing assays in real time. A diffraction grating fabricated on a glass substrate produced diffraction patterns both in transmission and reflection when illuminated by a laser diode. We used zeroth order I(0,0) as reference and first order I(0,1) as signal channel and conducted ratiometric measurements that reduced noise by more than 50 times. The ratiometric approach resulted in a very simple instrumentation with very high sensitivity. In the past, we have shown refractive index measurements both for bulk and surface adsorption using the diffractive self-referencing approach. In the current work we extend the same concept to higher diffraction orders. We have considered order I(0,1) and I(1,1) and performed ratiometric measurements I(0,1)/I(1,1) to eliminate the common mode fluctuations. Since orders I(0,1) and I(1,1) behaved opposite to each other, the resulting ratio signal amplitude increased more than twice compared to our previous results. As a proof of concept we used different salt concentrations in DI water. Increased signal amplitude and improved fluid injection system resulted in more than 4 times improvement in detection limit, giving limit of detection 1.3×10-7 refractive index unit (RIU) compared to our previous results. The improved refractive index sensitivity will help significantly for high sensitivity label free bio sensing application in a very cost-effective and simple experimental set-up.

Comparative influence of propranolol and verapamil on glycemic control and histamine sensitivity associated with L-thyroxine-induced hyperthyroidism - an experimental study.

Science.gov (United States)

Bhatt, Parloop A; Makwana, Dharmesh

2008-02-01

The present investigation was undertaken to study the comparative effectiveness of beta-adrenergic antagonist propranolol and calcium channel blocker verapamil on L-thyroxine-induced alteration on glycemic control and histamine sensitivity on rats and guinea pigs, respectively. Injection of L-thyroxine sodium every alternate day for 3 weeks in guinea pigs (75 microg/kg, i.p.) and rats (75 mg/kg, s.c.) produced a condition similar to thyrotoxicosis. Verapamil and propranolol administered daily in the third week along with L-thyroxine to two separate groups of hyperthyroid animals reversed thyroxine-induced loss in body weight, reduction in serum TSH levels, and rise in body temperature. Effect on glucose metabolism and insulin sensitivity was studied on rats. Compared to normal rats, L-thyroxine-treated animals showed a state of hyperglycemia, hyperinsulinemia, impaired glucose tolerance, and insulin resistance. Propranolol (10 mg/kg, i.p.) treatment significantly decreased fasting serum glucose levels without affecting serum insulin levels, AUC glucose, and K(ITT) values. Treatment with verapamil (5 mg/kg, i.p.) significantly reduced fasting serum glucose and insulin levels, AUC glucose, and significantly increased K(ITT) values. Effect of propranolol (15 mg/kg, orally) and verapamil (20 mg/kg, orally) treatment on histamine sensitivity was studied on L-thyroxine-treated guinea pigs. Compared to normal guinea pigs, L-thyroxine-treated guinea pigs showed an increased sensitivity to histamine-induced asphyxia. Verapamil treatment reversed this increased histamine sensitivity while propranolol aggravated it. In conclusion, compared to propranolol, verapamil has advantageous effects on glucose metabolism, insulin and histamine sensitivity and could therefore be a valuable addition as an adjunctive therapy option currently available for thyrotoxicosis associated with diabetes and/or anaphylaxis.

Axial asymmetry for improved sensitivity in MEMS piezoresistors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shuvra, Pranoy Deb; McNamara, Shamus; Lin, Ji-Tzuoh; Alphenaar, Bruce; Walsh, Kevin; Davidson, Jim

2016-01-01

The strain induced resistance change is compared for asymmetric, symmetric and diffused piezoresistive elements. Finite element analysis is used to simulate the performance of a T-shaped piezoresistive MEMS cantilever, including a lumped parameter model to show the effect of geometric asymmetry on the piezoresistor sensitivity. Asymmetric piezoresistors are found to be much more sensitive to applied load than the typical symmetric design producing about two orders of magnitude higher resistance change. This is shown to be due to the difference in the stress distribution in the symmetric and asymmetric geometries resulting in less resistance change cancellation in the asymmetric design. Although still less sensitive than diffused piezoresistors, asymmetric piezoresistors are sensitive enough for many applications, and are much easier to fabricate and integrate into MEMS devices. (paper)

Ultrahigh humidity sensitivity of graphene oxide.

Science.gov (United States)

Bi, Hengchang; Yin, Kuibo; Xie, Xiao; Ji, Jing; Wan, Shu; Sun, Litao; Terrones, Mauricio; Dresselhaus, Mildred S

2013-01-01

Humidity sensors have been extensively used in various fields, and numerous problems are encountered when using humidity sensors, including low sensitivity, long response and recovery times, and narrow humidity detection ranges. Using graphene oxide (G-O) films as humidity sensing materials, we fabricate here a microscale capacitive humidity sensor. Compared with conventional capacitive humidity sensors, the G-O based humidity sensor has a sensitivity of up to 37800% which is more than 10 times higher than that of the best one among conventional sensors at 15%-95% relative humidity. Moreover, our humidity sensor shows a fast response time (less than 1/4 of that of the conventional one) and recovery time (less than 1/2 of that of the conventional one). Therefore, G-O appears to be an ideal material for constructing humidity sensors with ultrahigh sensitivity for widespread applications.

Comparative sensitivity of photosynthesis and translocation to sulfur dioxide damage in Phaseolus vulgaris L

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Noyes, R.D.

1978-01-01

The inhibiting effect of sulfur dioxide on photosynthesis in a mature bean leaf and, simultaneously, on the rate of carbohydrate translocation from this same leaf has been examined. The results show a reduction of 0, 13, and 73% in net photosynthesis and 39, 44, and 69% in translocation, at concentrations of 0.1, 1, and 3 ppm sulfur dioxide, respectively. The inhibition of translocation at 0.1 ppm sulfur dioxide without any accompanying inhibition of net photosynthesis indicates that translocation is considerably more sensitive to sulfur dioxide damage. The mechanism of translocation inhibition at 1 ppm sulfur dioxide or less is shown to be independent of photosynthetic inhibition. Whereas, it is suggested that at higher concentrations significant inhibition of photosynthesis causes an additive reduction of translocation due to reduced levels of transport sugars. Autoradiograms of 14 C-labeled source leaves indicate that one possible mechanism of sulfur dioxide damage to translocation is the inhibition of sieve-tube loading. Inhibition of phloem translocation at common ambient levels (0.1 ppm) of sulfur dioxide is important to the overall growth and yield of major agricultural crops sensitive to sulfur dioxide

Higher insulin sensitivity in EDL muscle of rats fed a low-protein, high-carbohydrate diet inhibits the caspase-3 and ubiquitin-proteasome proteolytic systems but does not increase protein synthesis.

Science.gov (United States)

Dos Santos, Maísa Pavani; Batistela, Emanuele; Pereira, Mayara Peron; Paula-Gomes, Silvia; Zanon, Neusa Maria; Kettelhut, Isis do Carmo; Karatzaferi, Christina; Andrade, Claudia Marlise Balbinotti; de França, Suélem Aparecida; Baviera, Amanda Martins; Kawashita, Nair Honda

2016-08-01

Compared with the extensor digitorum longus (EDL) muscle of control rats (C), the EDL muscle of rats fed a low-protein, high-carbohydrate diet (LPHC) showed a 36% reduction in mass. Muscle mass is determined by the balance between protein synthesis and proteolysis; thus, the aim of this work was to evaluate the components involved in these processes. Compared with the muscle from C rats, the EDL muscle from LPHC diet-fed rats showed a reduction (34%) in the in vitro basal protein synthesis and a 22% reduction in the in vitro basal proteolysis suggesting that the reduction in the mass can be associated with a change in the rate of the two processes. Soon after euthanasia, in the EDL muscles of the rats fed the LPHC diet for 15days, the activity of caspase-3 and that of components of the ubiquitin-proteasome system (atrogin-1 content and chymotrypsin-like activity) were decreased. The phosphorylation of p70(S6K) and 4E-BP1, proteins involved in protein synthesis, was also decreased. We observed an increase in the insulin-stimulated protein content of p-Akt. Thus, the higher insulin sensitivity in the EDL muscle of LPHC rats seemed to contribute to the lower proteolysis in LPHC rats. However, even with the higher insulin sensitivity, the reduction in p-E4-BP1 and p70(S6K) indicates a reduction in protein synthesis, showing that factors other than insulin can have a greater effect on the control of protein synthesis. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Comparative sequence analysis of acid sensitive/resistance proteins in Escherichia coli and Shigella flexneri

Science.gov (United States)

Manikandan, Selvaraj; Balaji, Seetharaaman; Kumar, Anil; Kumar, Rita

2007-01-01

The molecular basis for the survival of bacteria under extreme conditions in which growth is inhibited is a question of great current interest. A preliminary study was carried out to determine residue pattern conservation among the antiporters of enteric bacteria, responsible for extreme acid sensitivity especially in Escherichia coli and Shigella flexneri. Here we found the molecular evidence that proved the relationship between E. coli and S. flexneri. Multiple sequence alignment of the gadC coded acid sensitive antiporter showed many conserved residue patterns at regular intervals at the N-terminal region. It was observed that as the alignment approaches towards the C-terminal, the number of conserved residues decreases, indicating that the N-terminal region of this protein has much active role when compared to the carboxyl terminal. The motif, FHLVFFLLLGG, is well conserved within the entire gadC coded protein at the amino terminal. The motif is also partially conserved among other antiporters (which are not coded by gadC) but involved in acid sensitive/resistance mechanism. Phylogenetic cluster analysis proves the relationship of Escherichia coli and Shigella flexneri. The gadC coded proteins are converged as a clade and diverged from other antiporters belongs to the amino acid-polyamine-organocation (APC) superfamily. PMID:21670792

The Improved Sensitivity to Crossmodal Asynchrony Caused by Voluntary Action: Comparing Combinations of Sensory Modalities

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Norimichi Kitagawa

2011-10-01

Full Text Available The brain has to assess the fine temporal relationship between voluntary actions and their sensory effects to achieve precise spatiotemporal control of body movement. Recently we found that voluntary action improved the subsequent perceptual temporal discrimination between somatosensory and auditory events. In voluntary condition, participants actively pressed a button and a noise burst was presented at various onset asynchronies relative to the button press. The participants made either ‘sound-first’ or ‘touch-first’ responses. We found that the temporal order judgment performance in the voluntary condition (as indexed by just noticeable difference was significantly better than that when their finger was passively stimulated (passive condition. Temporal attention and comparable involuntary movement did not explain the improvement caused by the voluntary action. The results suggest that predicting sensory consequences via a ‘forward’ model enhances perceptual temporal resolution for precise control of the body. The present study examined whether this improved temporal sensitivity caused by the voluntary action is also observed for the other combinations of sensory modalities. We compared the effects of voluntary action on the temporal sensitivity between auditory-somatosensory, visual-somatosensory, and somatosensory-somatosensory stimulus pairs.

Pathways to an East Asian Higher Education Area: A Comparative Analysis of East Asian and European Regionalization Processes

Science.gov (United States)

Chao, Roger Y., Jr.

2014-01-01

The Author argues that historical regional developments in Europe and East Asia greatly influence the formation of an East Asian Higher Education Area. As such, this article compares European and East Asian regionalization and higher education regionalization processes to show this path dependency in East Asian regionalization of higher education…

Higher assimilation than respiration sensitivity to drought for a desert ecosystem in Central Asia.

Science.gov (United States)

Gu, Daxing; Otieno, Dennis; Huang, Yuqing; Wang, Quan

2017-12-31

Responses of ecosystem assimilation and respiration to global climate change vary considerably among terrestrial ecosystems constrained by both biotic and abiotic factors. In this study, net CO 2 exchange between ecosystem and atmosphere (NEE) was measured over a 4-year period (2013-2016) using eddy covariance technology in a desert ecosystem in Central Asia. Ecosystem assimilation (gross primary production, GPP) and respiration (R eco ) were derived from NEE by fitting light response curves to NEE data based on day- and nighttime data, and their responses to soil water content (SWC) and evaporative fraction (EF) were assessed during the growing season. Results indicated that both GPP and R eco linearly decreased with declining SWC, with the sensitivity of GPP to SWC being 3.8 times higher than that of R eco during the entire growing season. As a result, ecosystem CO 2 sequestration capacity decreased from 4.00μmolm -2 s -1 to 1.00μmolm -2 s -1 , with increasing soil drought . On a seasonal scale, significant correlation between GPP and SWC was only found in spring while that between R eco and SWC was found in all growing seasons with the sensitivity increasing steadily from spring to autumn. EF had a low correlation with SWC, GPP and R eco (R 2 =0.03, 0.02, 0.05, respectively), indicating that EF was not a good proxy for soil drought and energy partitioning was not tightly coupled to ecosystem carbon exchanges in this desert ecosystem. The study deepens our knowledge of ecosystem carbon exchange and its response to drought as well as its coupling with ecosystem energy partitioning in an extreme dry desert. The information is critical for better assessing carbon sequestration capacity in dryland, and for understanding its feedback to climate change. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Clinical study of carbapenem sensitive and resistant Gram-negative bacteremia in neutropenic and nonneutropenic patients: The first series from India.

Science.gov (United States)

Ghafur, A K; Vidyalakshmi, P R; Kannaian, P; Balasubramaniam, R

2014-01-01

Carbapenem resistance is a growing global concern. There is a lack of published clinical studies on the topic from Indian subcontinent. Aim of this study was to analyze clinical profile of patients with carbapenem sensitive and resistant bacteremia among neutropenic and nonneutropenic patients. Retrospective analysis of 141 patients who had carbapenem resistant or sensitive Gram-negative bacteremia, identified over a period of 1-year was done by medical records review, in Apollo Specialty Hospital, a 300-bedded tertiary care Oncology, neurosurgical and orthopedic center in South India. Of the total 141 patients with Gram-negative bacteremia, 44 had carbapenem resistant ones. Of these 44 patients, 17 were neutropenics (resistant neutropenic group) and 27 nonneutropenic patients (resistant nonneutropenic group). Of the 97 patients with carbapenem sensitive bacteremia, 43 were neutropenic (sensitive neutropenic group) and 54 nonneutropenics (sensitive nonneutropenic group). The 28 days mortality was significantly higher in carbapenem resistant bacteremic group compared to the sensitive one (P = 0.008). This is the first study from India comparing clinical features of patients with carbapenem sensitive and resistant blood stream infections. Patients with carbapenem resistant bacteremia had higher mortality compared to patients with sensitive bacteremia.

Thallium-201 myocardial perfusion imaging at rest and during exercise. Comparative sensitivity to electrocardiography in coronary artery disease

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bailey, I.K.; Griffith, L.S.C.; Rouleau, J.; Strauss, H.W.; Pitt, B.

1977-01-01

The sensitivity of myocardial perfusion imaging (MPI) using thallium-201 injected both at rest and during peak exercise was compared to simultaneously recorded 12 lead electrocardiography (ECG) for the detection of transient ischemia in 20 normal subjects and 63 patients with coronary artery disease (CAD). No significant perfusion defects or ECG changes were seen on either the rest or exercise studies in any of the normal subjects. Fifty-six percent of patients with CAD developed new perfusion defects with exercise compared to 38 percent who developed ischemic ST-segment depression (P < 0.02). However, when chest pain and/or ST depression were considered indices of ischemia, the sensitivity of exercise testing and thallium-201 MPI was similar. The increased sensitivity of MPI compared to ST-segment depression on the ECG was due to patients with baseline ECG abnormalities and those who failed to achieve 85 percent of predicted maximum heart rate with exercise. Analysis of the exercise results according to the extent of coronary artery disease revealed a progressive increase in both positive ECGs and MPI with the number of vessels involved. In patients with single vessel disease the MPI was more sensitive than the ECG (P < 0.02). The combination of the rest and exercise ECG, MPI and chest pain during exercise failed to identify 11 percent of patients with CAD. Exercise thallium-201 MPI is a useful adjunct to conventional exercise testing particularly when evaluating patients with abnormal resting ECGs, those who develop ventricular conduction defects or arrhythmias during exercise, and those who fail to achieve their predicted heart rate because of fatigue or breathlessness

Thermal and pressure pain sensitivity in patients with unilateral shoulder pain: comparison of involved and uninvolved sides.

Science.gov (United States)

Coronado, Rogelio A; Kindler, Lindsay L; Valencia, Carolina; George, Steven Z

2011-03-01

Cross-sectional. In the examination of patients with unilateral shoulder pain, pain provocation testing to compare the involved and uninvolved sides has been considered useful. However, side-to-side comparisons of experimental pain sensitivity in patients with unilateral shoulder pain are not widely reported in the literature. To compare experimental pain sensitivity between the involved and uninvolved sides in patients with unilateral shoulder pain. In consecutive patients seeking operative treatment for shoulder pain, sensitivity measures of bilateral pressure pain threshold at the shoulder and forearm, and thermal pain threshold, tolerance, and temporal summation at the forearm, were examined. Pressure sensitivity was tested with a Fischer pressure algometer, and thermal sensitivity with a computer-controlled Medoc neurosensory analyzer. The involved and uninvolved sides were compared with an analysis of variance. Influence of sex and location of testing were considered as covariates in the analysis. Fifty-nine consecutively recruited participants completed experimental pain sensitivity testing. Participants reported significantly lower pressure pain thresholds in the involved side compared to the uninvolved side (F1,56 = 4.96, P = .030). In addition, female compared to male participants demonstrated lower pressure pain thresholds in the bilateral shoulder regions (F1,56 = 10.84, P = .002). There was no difference in thermal pain sensitivity between sides. Average clinical pain intensity was negatively correlated with pressure pain threshold at the involved local site (r = -0.284, P = .029), indicating an influence of clinical pain intensity on local pressure pain. The results of this study provide evidence for higher experimental pressure pain sensitivity in the involved side of patients with unilateral shoulder pain and no difference between sides for thermal pain sensitivity. Females demonstrated higher pain sensitivity than males to pressure stimuli at the

Higher Levels of c-Met Expression and Phosphorylation Identify Cell Lines With Increased Sensitivity to AMG-458, a Novel Selective c-Met Inhibitor With Radiosensitizing Effects

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Li Bo; Torossian, Artour; Sun, Yunguang; Du, Ruihong; Dicker, Adam P.; Lu Bo

2012-01-01

Purpose: c-Met is overexpressed in some non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) cell lines and tissues. Cell lines with higher levels of c-Met expression and phosphorylation depend on this receptor for survival. We studied the effects of AMG-458 on 2 NSCLC cell lines. Methods and Materials: 3-(4,5-Dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-5-(3-carboxymethoxyphenyl)-2-(4-sulfophenyl) -2H-tetrazolium assays assessed the sensitivities of the cells to AMG-458. Clonogenic survival assays illustrated the radiosensitizing effects of AMG-458. Western blot for cleaved caspase 3 measured apoptosis. Immunoblotting for c-Met, phospho-Met (p-Met), Akt/p-Akt, and Erk/p-Erk was performed to observe downstream signaling. Results: AMG-458 enhanced radiosensitivity in H441 but not in A549. H441 showed constitutive phosphorylation of c-Met. A549 expressed low levels of c-Met, which were phosphorylated only in the presence of exogenous hepatocyte growth factor. The combination of radiation therapy and AMG-458 treatment was found to synergistically increase apoptosis in the H441 cell line but not in A549. Radiation therapy, AMG-458, and combination treatment were found to reduce p-Akt and p-Erk levels in H441 but not in A549. H441 became less sensitive to AMG-458 after small interfering RNA knockdown of c-Met; there was no change in A549. After overexpression of c-Met, A549 became more sensitive, while H441 became less sensitive to AMG-458. Conclusions: AMG-458 was more effective in cells that expressed higher levels of c-Met/p-Met, suggesting that higher levels of c-Met and p-Met in NSCLC tissue may classify a subset of tumors that are more sensitive to molecular therapies against this receptor.

A comparative study of Dirac quasinormal modes of charged black holes in higher dimensions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chakrabarti, Sayan K.

2009-01-01

In this work we study the Dirac quasinormal modes of higher dimensional charged black holes. Higher dimensional Reissner-Nordstroem type black holes as well as charged black holes in Einstein-Gauss-Bonnet theories are studied for fermionic perturbations using WKB method. A comparative study of the quasinormal modes in the two different theories of gravity has been performed. The behavior of the frequencies with the variation of black hole parameters as well as with the variation of space-time dimensions is studied. We also study the large multipole number limit of the black hole potential in order to look for an analytic expression for the frequencies. (orig.)

Relative sensitivity of formability to anisotropy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Logan, R.W.; Maker, B.N.

1997-01-01

This work compares the relative importance of material anisotropy in sheet forming as compared to other material and process variables. The comparison is made quantitative by the use of normalized dependencies of depth to failure (forming limit is reached) on various measures of anisotropy, as well as strain and rate sensitivity, friction, and tooling. Comparisons are made for a variety of forming processes examined previously in the literature as well as two examples of complex stampings in this work. 7 The examples rover a range from nearly pure draw to nearly pure stretch situations, and show that for materials following a quadratic yield criterion, anisotropy is among the most sensitive parameters influencing formability. For materials following higher-exponent yield criteria, the dependency is milder but is still of the order of most other process parameters. However, depending on the particular forming operation, it is shown that in some cases anisotropy may be ignored, whereas in others its consideration is crucial to a good quality analysis

High sensitivity phase retrieval method in grating-based x-ray phase contrast imaging

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wu, Zhao; Gao, Kun; Chen, Jian; Wang, Dajiang; Wang, Shenghao; Chen, Heng; Bao, Yuan; Shao, Qigang; Wang, Zhili, E-mail: wangnsrl@ustc.edu.cn [National Synchrotron Radiation Laboratory, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230029 (China); Zhang, Kai [Institute of High Energy Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049 (China); Zhu, Peiping; Wu, Ziyu, E-mail: wuzy@ustc.edu.cn [National Synchrotron Radiation Laboratory, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230029, China and Institute of High Energy Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049 (China)

2015-02-15

Purpose: Grating-based x-ray phase contrast imaging is considered as one of the most promising techniques for future medical imaging. Many different methods have been developed to retrieve phase signal, among which the phase stepping (PS) method is widely used. However, further practical implementations are hindered, due to its complex scanning mode and high radiation dose. In contrast, the reverse projection (RP) method is a novel fast and low dose extraction approach. In this contribution, the authors present a quantitative analysis of the noise properties of the refraction signals retrieved by the two methods and compare their sensitivities. Methods: Using the error propagation formula, the authors analyze theoretically the signal-to-noise ratios (SNRs) of the refraction images retrieved by the two methods. Then, the sensitivities of the two extraction methods are compared under an identical exposure dose. Numerical experiments are performed to validate the theoretical results and provide some quantitative insight. Results: The SNRs of the two methods are both dependent on the system parameters, but in different ways. Comparison between their sensitivities reveals that for the refraction signal, the RP method possesses a higher sensitivity, especially in the case of high visibility and/or at the edge of the object. Conclusions: Compared with the PS method, the RP method has a superior sensitivity and provides refraction images with a higher SNR. Therefore, one can obtain highly sensitive refraction images in grating-based phase contrast imaging. This is very important for future preclinical and clinical implementations.

High sensitivity phase retrieval method in grating-based x-ray phase contrast imaging

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wu, Zhao; Gao, Kun; Chen, Jian; Wang, Dajiang; Wang, Shenghao; Chen, Heng; Bao, Yuan; Shao, Qigang; Wang, Zhili; Zhang, Kai; Zhu, Peiping; Wu, Ziyu

2015-01-01

Purpose: Grating-based x-ray phase contrast imaging is considered as one of the most promising techniques for future medical imaging. Many different methods have been developed to retrieve phase signal, among which the phase stepping (PS) method is widely used. However, further practical implementations are hindered, due to its complex scanning mode and high radiation dose. In contrast, the reverse projection (RP) method is a novel fast and low dose extraction approach. In this contribution, the authors present a quantitative analysis of the noise properties of the refraction signals retrieved by the two methods and compare their sensitivities. Methods: Using the error propagation formula, the authors analyze theoretically the signal-to-noise ratios (SNRs) of the refraction images retrieved by the two methods. Then, the sensitivities of the two extraction methods are compared under an identical exposure dose. Numerical experiments are performed to validate the theoretical results and provide some quantitative insight. Results: The SNRs of the two methods are both dependent on the system parameters, but in different ways. Comparison between their sensitivities reveals that for the refraction signal, the RP method possesses a higher sensitivity, especially in the case of high visibility and/or at the edge of the object. Conclusions: Compared with the PS method, the RP method has a superior sensitivity and provides refraction images with a higher SNR. Therefore, one can obtain highly sensitive refraction images in grating-based phase contrast imaging. This is very important for future preclinical and clinical implementations

A global model of malaria climate sensitivity: comparing malaria response to historic climate data based on simulation and officially reported malaria incidence

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Edlund Stefan

2012-09-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background The role of the Anopheles vector in malaria transmission and the effect of climate on Anopheles populations are well established. Models of the impact of climate change on the global malaria burden now have access to high-resolution climate data, but malaria surveillance data tends to be less precise, making model calibration problematic. Measurement of malaria response to fluctuations in climate variables offers a way to address these difficulties. Given the demonstrated sensitivity of malaria transmission to vector capacity, this work tests response functions to fluctuations in land surface temperature and precipitation. Methods This study of regional sensitivity of malaria incidence to year-to-year climate variations used an extended Macdonald Ross compartmental disease model (to compute malaria incidence built on top of a global Anopheles vector capacity model (based on 10 years of satellite climate data. The predicted incidence was compared with estimates from the World Health Organization and the Malaria Atlas. The models and denominator data used are freely available through the Eclipse Foundation’s Spatiotemporal Epidemiological Modeller (STEM. Results Although the absolute scale factor relating reported malaria to absolute incidence is uncertain, there is a positive correlation between predicted and reported year-to-year variation in malaria burden with an averaged root mean square (RMS error of 25% comparing normalized incidence across 86 countries. Based on this, the proposed measure of sensitivity of malaria to variations in climate variables indicates locations where malaria is most likely to increase or decrease in response to specific climate factors. Bootstrapping measures the increased uncertainty in predicting malaria sensitivity when reporting is restricted to national level and an annual basis. Results indicate a potential 20x improvement in accuracy if data were available at the level ISO 3166–2

Comparing Administrative Satisfaction in Public and Private Higher Education.

Science.gov (United States)

Volkwein, James Fredericks; Parmley, Kelli

This study examined job satisfaction among administrators in public and private higher education. Data on nearly 1,200 administrators, ranging from directors to presidents, was obtained through surveys of 120 public and private universities. It was found that both public and private higher education administrators were most satisfied with the…

Preliminary comparative proteomics study of cervical carcinoma tissues with different sensitivity to concurrent chemoradiotherapy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhu Hong; Liao Yuping; Zeng Liang; Xiao Zhiqiang

2008-01-01

, subunit of replicative DNA polymerase and HSP70. The higher expression of HSP70 in LS group and galectin7 in HS groups were further confirmed by western blot and immunohistochemical method. Conclusions: The 2-DE gels images are successfully acquired from high-sensitivity group and low-sensitivity group of intermediate stage and advanced cervical carcinoma tissues treated by concurrent chemoradiotherapy. Some differentially expressed proteins between the two groups can be further confirmed by western blot and immunohistochemical method. (authors)

Lower neighborhood quality in adolescence predicts higher mesolimbic sensitivity to reward anticipation in adulthood

Science.gov (United States)

Gonzalez, Marlen Z.; Allen, Joseph P.; Coan, James A.

2016-01-01

Life history theory suggests that adult reward sensitivity should be best explained by childhood, but not current, socioeconomic conditions. In this functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) study, 83 participants from a larger longitudinal sample completed the monetary incentive delay (MID) task in adulthood (~25 years old). Parent-reports of neighborhood quality and parental SES were collected when participants were 13 years of age. Current income level was collected concurrently with scanning. Lower adolescent neighborhood quality, but neither lower current income nor parental SES, was associated with heightened sensitivity to the anticipation of monetary gain in putative mesolimbic reward areas. Lower adolescent neighborhood quality was also associated with heightened sensitivity to the anticipation of monetary loss activation in visuo-motor areas. Lower current income was associated with heightened sensitivity to anticipated loss in occipital areas and the operculum. We tested whether externalizing behaviors in childhood or adulthood could better account for neighborhood quality findings, but they did not. Findings suggest that neighborhood ecology in adolescence is associated with greater neural reward sensitivity in adulthood above the influence of parental SES or current income and not mediated through impulsivity and externalizing behaviors. PMID:27838595

Lower neighborhood quality in adolescence predicts higher mesolimbic sensitivity to reward anticipation in adulthood

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Marlen Z. Gonzalez

2016-12-01

Full Text Available Life history theory suggests that adult reward sensitivity should be best explained by childhood, but not current, socioeconomic conditions. In this functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI study, 83 participants from a larger longitudinal sample completed the monetary incentive delay (MID task in adulthood (∼25 years old. Parent-reports of neighborhood quality and parental SES were collected when participants were 13 years of age. Current income level was collected concurrently with scanning. Lower adolescent neighborhood quality, but neither lower current income nor parental SES, was associated with heightened sensitivity to the anticipation of monetary gain in putative mesolimbic reward areas. Lower adolescent neighborhood quality was also associated with heightened sensitivity to the anticipation of monetary loss activation in visuo-motor areas. Lower current income was associated with heightened sensitivity to anticipated loss in occipital areas and the operculum. We tested whether externalizing behaviors in childhood or adulthood could better account for neighborhood quality findings, but they did not. Findings suggest that neighborhood ecology in adolescence is associated with greater neural reward sensitivity in adulthood above the influence of parental SES or current income and not mediated through impulsivity and externalizing behaviors.

A natively paired antibody library yields drug leads with higher sensitivity and specificity than a randomly paired antibody library.

Science.gov (United States)

Adler, Adam S; Bedinger, Daniel; Adams, Matthew S; Asensio, Michael A; Edgar, Robert C; Leong, Renee; Leong, Jackson; Mizrahi, Rena A; Spindler, Matthew J; Bandi, Srinivasa Rao; Huang, Haichun; Tawde, Pallavi; Brams, Peter; Johnson, David S

2018-04-01

Deep sequencing and single-chain variable fragment (scFv) yeast display methods are becoming more popular for discovery of therapeutic antibody candidates in mouse B cell repertoires. In this study, we compare a deep sequencing and scFv display method that retains native heavy and light chain pairing with a related method that randomly pairs heavy and light chain. We performed the studies in a humanized mouse, using interleukin 21 receptor (IL-21R) as a test immunogen. We identified 44 high-affinity binder scFv with the native pairing method and 100 high-affinity binder scFv with the random pairing method. 30% of the natively paired scFv binders were also discovered with the randomly paired method, and 13% of the randomly paired binders were also discovered with the natively paired method. Additionally, 33% of the scFv binders discovered only in the randomly paired library were initially present in the natively paired pre-sort library. Thus, a significant proportion of "randomly paired" scFv were actually natively paired. We synthesized and produced 46 of the candidates as full-length antibodies and subjected them to a panel of binding assays to characterize their therapeutic potential. 87% of the antibodies were verified as binding IL-21R by at least one assay. We found that antibodies with native light chains were more likely to bind IL-21R than antibodies with non-native light chains, suggesting a higher false positive rate for antibodies from the randomly paired library. Additionally, the randomly paired method failed to identify nearly half of the true natively paired binders, suggesting a higher false negative rate. We conclude that natively paired libraries have critical advantages in sensitivity and specificity for antibody discovery programs.

Acute airway effects of airborne formaldehyde in sensitized and non-sensitized mice housed in a dry or humid environment

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Larsen, Søren Thor, E-mail: stl@nrcwe.dk; Wolkoff, Peder, E-mail: pwo@nrcwe.dk; Hammer, Maria, E-mail: mha@nrcwe.dk; Kofoed-Sørensen, Vivi, E-mail: vks@nrcwe.dk; Clausen, Per Axel, E-mail: pac@nrcwe.dk; Nielsen, Gunnar Damgård, E-mail: gdn@nrcwe.dk

2013-05-01

We investigated the role of air humidity and allergic sensitization on the acute airway response to inhaled formaldehyde (FA) vapor. Mice were sensitized to the immunogen ovalbumin (OVA) by three intraperitoneal injections followed by two aerosol challenges, giving rise to allergic airway inflammation. Control mice were sham sensitized by saline injections and challenged by saline aerosols. Once sensitized, the mice were housed at high (85–89%) or low (< 10%) relative humidity, respectively for 48 h prior to a 60-min exposure to either 0.4, 1.8 or about 5 ppm FA. Before, during and after exposure, breathing parameters were monitored. These included the specific markers of nose and lung irritations as well as the expiratory flow rate, the latter being a marker of airflow limitation. The sensory irritation response in the upper airways was not affected by allergic inflammation or changes in humidity. At high relative humidity, the OVA-sensitized mice had a decreased expiratory airflow rate compared to the saline control mice after exposure to approximately 5 ppm FA. This is in accordance with the observations that asthmatics are more sensitive than non-asthmatics to higher concentrations of airway irritants including FA. In the dry environment, the opposite trend was seen; here, the saline control mice had a significantly decreased expiratory airflow rate compared to OVA-sensitized mice when exposed to 1.8 and 4 ppm FA. We speculate that increased mucus production in the OVA-sensitized mice has increased the “scrubber effect” in the nose, consequently protecting the conducting and lower airways. - Highlights: ► Role of air humidity and allergy on sensitivity to an airway irritant was studied. ► In the humid environment, allergy amplified the effects of formaldehyde. ► In the dry environment, allergy reduced the effect of formaldehyde. ► Neither allergy nor humidity changed the formaldehyde-induced nasal irritation.

Acute airway effects of airborne formaldehyde in sensitized and non-sensitized mice housed in a dry or humid environment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Larsen, Søren Thor; Wolkoff, Peder; Hammer, Maria; Kofoed-Sørensen, Vivi; Clausen, Per Axel; Nielsen, Gunnar Damgård

2013-01-01

We investigated the role of air humidity and allergic sensitization on the acute airway response to inhaled formaldehyde (FA) vapor. Mice were sensitized to the immunogen ovalbumin (OVA) by three intraperitoneal injections followed by two aerosol challenges, giving rise to allergic airway inflammation. Control mice were sham sensitized by saline injections and challenged by saline aerosols. Once sensitized, the mice were housed at high (85–89%) or low (< 10%) relative humidity, respectively for 48 h prior to a 60-min exposure to either 0.4, 1.8 or about 5 ppm FA. Before, during and after exposure, breathing parameters were monitored. These included the specific markers of nose and lung irritations as well as the expiratory flow rate, the latter being a marker of airflow limitation. The sensory irritation response in the upper airways was not affected by allergic inflammation or changes in humidity. At high relative humidity, the OVA-sensitized mice had a decreased expiratory airflow rate compared to the saline control mice after exposure to approximately 5 ppm FA. This is in accordance with the observations that asthmatics are more sensitive than non-asthmatics to higher concentrations of airway irritants including FA. In the dry environment, the opposite trend was seen; here, the saline control mice had a significantly decreased expiratory airflow rate compared to OVA-sensitized mice when exposed to 1.8 and 4 ppm FA. We speculate that increased mucus production in the OVA-sensitized mice has increased the “scrubber effect” in the nose, consequently protecting the conducting and lower airways. - Highlights: ► Role of air humidity and allergy on sensitivity to an airway irritant was studied. ► In the humid environment, allergy amplified the effects of formaldehyde. ► In the dry environment, allergy reduced the effect of formaldehyde. ► Neither allergy nor humidity changed the formaldehyde-induced nasal irritation

Higher Education and Efficiency in Europe: A Comparative Analysis

Science.gov (United States)

Sánchez-Pérez, Rosario

2012-01-01

This paper analyses the efficiency of higher education in equalizing the feasible wages obtained for men and women in the labour market. To do that, It is estimated two stochastic frontiers. The first one measures the effect of higher education inside the group of men and women for six European countries. The results indicate that in Denmark,…

Higher fluorine-18 fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography (FDG-PET) uptake in tuberculous compared to bacterial spondylodiscitis

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bassetti, Matteo; Merelli, Maria; Della Siega, Paola; Righi, Elda [Santa Maria della Misericordia University Hospital, Infectious Diseases Division, Udine (Italy); Di Gregorio, Fernando [Santa Maria della Misericordia University Hospital, Microbiology Unit, Udine (Italy); Screm, Maria; Scarparo, Claudio [Santa Maria della Misericordia University Hospital, Radiology Unit, Udine (Italy)

2017-06-15

Tuberculous spondylodiscitis can be difficult to diagnose because of its nonspecific symptoms and the similarities with non-tubercular forms of spinal infection. Fluorine-18-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography combined with computed tomography (FDG PET-CT) is increasingly used for the diagnosis and monitoring of tubercular diseases. Retrospective, case-control study comparing tuberculous spondylodiscitis with biopsy-confirmed pyogenic spondylodiscitis in the period 2010-2012. Ten cases of tuberculous spondylodiscitis and 20 controls were included. Compared to pyogenic, tuberculous spondylodiscitis was more frequent in younger patients (P = 0.01) and was more often associated with thoraco-lumbar tract lesions (P = 0.01) and multiple vertebral involvement (P = 0.01). Significantly higher maximum standardized uptake values (SUV) at FDG-PET were displayed by tuberculous spondylodiscitis compared to controls (12.4 vs. 7.3, P = 0.003). SUV levels above 8 showed the highest value of specificity (0.80). Mean SUV reduction of 48% was detected for tuberculous spondylodiscitis at 1-month follow-up. Higher SUV levels at FDG-PET were detected in tuberculous compared with pyogenic spondylodiscitis. PET-CT use appeared useful in the disease follow-up after treatment initiation. (orig.)

Sensitivity/uncertainty analysis of a borehole scenario comparing Latin Hypercube Sampling and deterministic sensitivity approaches

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Harper, W.V.; Gupta, S.K.

1983-10-01

A computer code was used to study steady-state flow for a hypothetical borehole scenario. The model consists of three coupled equations with only eight parameters and three dependent variables. This study focused on steady-state flow as the performance measure of interest. Two different approaches to sensitivity/uncertainty analysis were used on this code. One approach, based on Latin Hypercube Sampling (LHS), is a statistical sampling method, whereas, the second approach is based on the deterministic evaluation of sensitivities. The LHS technique is easy to apply and should work well for codes with a moderate number of parameters. Of deterministic techniques, the direct method is preferred when there are many performance measures of interest and a moderate number of parameters. The adjoint method is recommended when there are a limited number of performance measures and an unlimited number of parameters. This unlimited number of parameters capability can be extremely useful for finite element or finite difference codes with a large number of grid blocks. The Office of Nuclear Waste Isolation will use the technique most appropriate for an individual situation. For example, the adjoint method may be used to reduce the scope to a size that can be readily handled by a technique such as LHS. Other techniques for sensitivity/uncertainty analysis, e.g., kriging followed by conditional simulation, will be used also. 15 references, 4 figures, 9 tables

Comparative sensitivity and inhibitor tolerance of GlobalFiler® PCR Amplification and Investigator® 24plex QS kits for challenging samples.

Science.gov (United States)

Elwick, Kyleen; Mayes, Carrie; Hughes-Stamm, Sheree

2018-02-17

In cases such as mass disasters or missing persons, human remains are challenging to identify as they may be fragmented, burnt, been buried, decomposed, and/or contain inhibitory substances. This study compares the performance of a relatively new STR kit in the US market (Investigator® 24plex QS kit; Qiagen) with the GlobalFiler® PCR Amplification kit (Thermo Fisher Scientific) when genotyping highly inhibited and low level DNA samples. In this study, DNA samples ranging from 1 ng to 7.8 pg were amplified to define the sensitivity of two systems. In addition, DNA (1 ng and 0.1 ng input amounts) was spiked with various concentrations of five inhibitors common to human remains (humic acid, melanin, hematin, collagen, calcium). Furthermore, bone (N = 5) and tissue samples from decomposed human remains (N = 6) were used as mock casework samples for comparative analysis with both STR kits. The data suggest that the GlobalFiler® kit may be slightly more sensitive than the Investigator® kit. On average STR profiles appeared to be more balanced and average peak heights were higher when using the GlobalFiler® kit. However, the data also show that the Investigator® kit may be more tolerant to common PCR inhibitors. While both STR kits showed a decrease in alleles as the inhibitor concentration increased, more complete profiles were obtained when the Investigator® kit was used. Of the 11 bone and decomposed tissue samples tested, 8 resulted in more complete and balanced STR profiles when amplified with the GlobalFiler® kit. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Advantages of Chemical Exchange-Sensitive Spin-Lock (CESL) Over Saturation Transfer (CEST) for Hydroxyl- and Amine-Water Proton Exchange Studies

Science.gov (United States)

Jin, Tao; Kim, Seong-Gi

2014-01-01

The chemical exchange (CE) rate of endogenous hydroxyl and amine protons with water is often comparable to the difference in their chemical shifts. These intermediate exchange (IMEX) processes have been imaged by the CE saturation transfer (CEST) approach with low-power and long-duration irradiation. However, its sensitivity is not optimal, and more importantly, the signal is contaminated by slow magnetization transfer processes. Here, the property of CEST signals is compared to a CE-sensitive spin-locking (CESL) technique irradiating at the labile proton frequency. Firstly, using a higher power and shorter irradiation in CE-MRI yields i) increasing selectivity to faster chemical exchange rates by higher sensitivity to faster exchanges and less sensitivity to slower CE and magnetization transfer processes, and ii) decreasing in vivo asymmetric magnetization transfer contrast measured at ±15 ppm. The sensitivity gain of CESL over CEST is higher for a higher-power and shorter irradiation. Unlike CESL, CEST signals oscillate at a very high power and short irradiation. Secondly, time-dependent CEST and CESL signals are well modeled by analytical solutions of CE-MRI with asymmetric population approximation (CEAPA), which can be used for quantitative CE-MRI, and validated by simulations of Bloch-McConnell equations and phantom experiments. Lastly, in vivo amine-water proton exchange contrast measured at 2.5 ppm with ω1 of 500 Hz is 18% higher in sensitivity for CESL than CEST at 9.4 T. Overall, CESL provides better exchange rate selectivity and sensitivity than CEST; therefore, CESL is more suitable for CE-MRI of IMEX protons. PMID:25199631

The Compton Camera - medical imaging with higher sensitivity Exhibition LEPFest 2000

CERN Multimedia

2000-01-01

The Compton Camera reconstructs the origin of Compton-scattered X-rays using electronic collimation with Silicon pad detectors instead of the heavy conventional lead collimators in Anger cameras - reaching up to 200 times better sensitivity and a factor two improvement in resolution. Possible applications are in cancer diagnosis, neurology neurobiology, and cardiology.

Intraspecies comparative genomics of three strains of Orientia tsutsugamushi with different antibiotic sensitivity.

Science.gov (United States)

Liao, Hsiao-Mei; Chao, Chien-Chung; Lei, Haiyan; Li, Bingjie; Tsai, Shien; Hung, Guo-Chiuan; Ching, Wei-Mei; Lo, Shyh-Ching

2017-06-01

We recently reported the genome of Orientia tsutsugamushi (OT) strain Karp (GenBank Accession #: NZ_LYMA00000000.2, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/nuccore/NZ_LYMA00000000.2) with > 2 Mb in size through clone-based sequencing and high throughput genomic shotgun sequencing (HTS). The genomes of OT strains AFSC4 and AFSC7 were similarly sequenced by HTS Since strains AFSC4 (GenBank Accession #: NZ_LYMT00000000.1, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/nuccore/1035784408) and AFSC7 (GenBank Accession #: NZ_LYMB00000000.1, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/nuccore/1035854767) were more resistant to antibiotics than strain Karp, we conducted comparative analysis of the three draft genomes annotated by RAST server aimed to identify possible genetic bases of difference in microbial antibiotic sensitivity. Intraspecies comparative genomics analysis of the three OT strains revealed that two ORFs encoding hypothetical proteins in both strains AFSC4 and AFSC7 are absent in strain Karp.

Assessment of higher order structure comparability in therapeutic proteins using nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy.

Science.gov (United States)

Amezcua, Carlos A; Szabo, Christina M

2013-06-01

In this work, we applied nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy to rapidly assess higher order structure (HOS) comparability in protein samples. Using a variation of the NMR fingerprinting approach described by Panjwani et al. [2010. J Pharm Sci 99(8):3334-3342], three nonglycosylated proteins spanning a molecular weight range of 6.5-67 kDa were analyzed. A simple statistical method termed easy comparability of HOS by NMR (ECHOS-NMR) was developed. In this method, HOS similarity between two samples is measured via the correlation coefficient derived from linear regression analysis of binned NMR spectra. Applications of this method include HOS comparability assessment during new product development, manufacturing process changes, supplier changes, next-generation products, and the development of biosimilars to name just a few. We foresee ECHOS-NMR becoming a routine technique applied to comparability exercises used to complement data from other analytical techniques. Copyright © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Optimization of economic load dispatch of higher order general cost polynomials and its sensitivity using modified particle swarm optimization

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Saber, Ahmed Yousuf; Chakraborty, Shantanu; Abdur Razzak, S.M.; Senjyu, Tomonobu

2009-01-01

This paper presents a modified particle swarm optimization (MPSO) for constrained economic load dispatch (ELD) problem. Real cost functions are more complex than conventional second order cost functions when multi-fuel operations, valve-point effects, accurate curve fitting, etc., are considering in deregulated changing market. The proposed modified particle swarm optimization (PSO) consists of problem dependent variable number of promising values (in velocity vector), unit vector and error-iteration dependent step length. It reliably and accurately tracks a continuously changing solution of the complex cost function and no extra concentration/effort is needed for the complex higher order cost polynomials in ELD. Constraint management is incorporated in the modified PSO. The modified PSO has balance between local and global searching abilities, and an appropriate fitness function helps to converge it quickly. To avoid the method to be frozen, stagnated/idle particles are reset. Sensitivity of the higher order cost polynomials is also analyzed visually to realize the importance of the higher order cost polynomials for the optimization of ELD. Finally, benchmark data sets and methods are used to show the effectiveness of the proposed method. (author)

Use of an Antecedent Analysis and a Force Sensitive Platform to Compare Stereotyped Movements and Motor Tics

Science.gov (United States)

Crosland, Kimberly A.; Zarcone, Jennifer R.; Schroeder, Stephen; Zarcane, Troy; Fowler, Stephen

2005-01-01

Stereotyped movements displayed by 6 participants and tics displayed by 6 children were evaluated using an antecedent behavioral analysis and a force sensitive platform. We found that tics occurred more often in an alone condition when compared to high preference toy and play conditions, whereas stereotyped movements were more variable across…

Gender expression, sexual orientation and pain sensitivity in women.

Science.gov (United States)

Vigil, Jacob M; Rowell, Lauren N; Lutz, Charlotte

2014-01-01

Despite a growing body of literature investigating sex differences with regard to pain, surprisingly little research has been conducted on the influence of various aspects of self-identity, including gender expression and sexual orientation, on pain sensitivity within each sex, particularly among women. In men, dispositional femininity is linked to greater clinical pain and trait masculinity is associated with higher pain thresholds. To examine whether gender expression and sexual orientation are associated with within-sex differences in ischemic pain sensitivity in healthy young women. A convenience sample of 172 females (mean age 21.4 years; range 18 to 30 years of age; 56.0% white, 89% heterosexual) performed an ischemic pain task in counterbalanced order. Desired levels of dispositional femininity for a preferred romantic partner and self-described levels of personal dispositional femininity were measured. Compared with heterosexual women, lesbian and bisexual women reported lower pain intensity ratings early in the discomfort task. Irrespective of sexual orientation, attraction to more feminine romantic partners and dispositional masculinity were correlated with lower pain intensity, and with higher pain thresholds and tolerance levels. These preliminary findings suggest that within-sex differences in sexual orientation and other aspects of identity, irrespective of biological sex, may be important to consider when examining experimental pain performance and clinical pain experiences. Larger investigations of the psychophysiological relationships among sexual orientation, gender expression and pain sensitivity are warranted. These findings may have implications for differences in clinical pain sensitivity of lesbian and bisexual women compared with heterosexual women.

Preterm Cord Blood Contains a Higher Proportion of Immature Hematopoietic Progenitors Compared to Term Samples.

Science.gov (United States)

Podestà, Marina; Bruschettini, Matteo; Cossu, Claudia; Sabatini, Federica; Dagnino, Monica; Romantsik, Olga; Spaggiari, Grazia Maria; Ramenghi, Luca Antonio; Frassoni, Francesco

2015-01-01

Cord blood contains high number of hematopoietic cells that after birth disappear. In this paper we have studied the functional properties of the umbilical cord blood progenitor cells collected from term and preterm neonates to establish whether quantitative and/or qualitative differences exist between the two groups. Our results indicate that the percentage of total CD34+ cells was significantly higher in preterm infants compared to full term: 0.61% (range 0.15-4.8) vs 0.3% (0.032-2.23) p = 0.0001 and in neonates <32 weeks of gestational age (GA) compared to those ≥32 wks GA: 0.95% (range 0.18-4.8) and 0.36% (0.15-3.2) respectively p = 0.0025. The majority of CD34+ cells co-expressed CD71 antigen (p<0.05 preterm vs term) and grew in vitro large BFU-E, mostly in the second generation. The subpopulations CD34+CD38- and CD34+CD45- resulted more represented in preterm samples compared to term, conversely, Side Population (SP) did not show any difference between the two group. The absolute number of preterm colonies (CFCs/10microL) resulted higher compared to term (p = 0.004) and these progenitors were able to grow until the third generation maintaining an higher proportion of CD34+ cells (p = 0.0017). The number of colony also inversely correlated with the gestational age (Pearson r = -0.3001 p<0.0168). We found no differences in the isolation and expansion capacity of Endothelial Colony Forming Cells (ECFCs) from cord blood of term and preterm neonates: both groups grew in vitro large number of endothelial cells until the third generation and showed a transitional phenotype between mesenchymal stem cells and endothelial progenitors (CD73, CD31, CD34 and CD144)The presence, in the cord blood of preterm babies, of high number of immature hematopoietic progenitors and endothelial/mesenchymal stem cells with high proliferative potential makes this tissue an important source of cells for developing new cells therapies.

Preterm Cord Blood Contains a Higher Proportion of Immature Hematopoietic Progenitors Compared to Term Samples.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Marina Podestà

Full Text Available Cord blood contains high number of hematopoietic cells that after birth disappear. In this paper we have studied the functional properties of the umbilical cord blood progenitor cells collected from term and preterm neonates to establish whether quantitative and/or qualitative differences exist between the two groups.Our results indicate that the percentage of total CD34+ cells was significantly higher in preterm infants compared to full term: 0.61% (range 0.15-4.8 vs 0.3% (0.032-2.23 p = 0.0001 and in neonates <32 weeks of gestational age (GA compared to those ≥32 wks GA: 0.95% (range 0.18-4.8 and 0.36% (0.15-3.2 respectively p = 0.0025. The majority of CD34+ cells co-expressed CD71 antigen (p<0.05 preterm vs term and grew in vitro large BFU-E, mostly in the second generation. The subpopulations CD34+CD38- and CD34+CD45- resulted more represented in preterm samples compared to term, conversely, Side Population (SP did not show any difference between the two group. The absolute number of preterm colonies (CFCs/10microL resulted higher compared to term (p = 0.004 and these progenitors were able to grow until the third generation maintaining an higher proportion of CD34+ cells (p = 0.0017. The number of colony also inversely correlated with the gestational age (Pearson r = -0.3001 p<0.0168.We found no differences in the isolation and expansion capacity of Endothelial Colony Forming Cells (ECFCs from cord blood of term and preterm neonates: both groups grew in vitro large number of endothelial cells until the third generation and showed a transitional phenotype between mesenchymal stem cells and endothelial progenitors (CD73, CD31, CD34 and CD144The presence, in the cord blood of preterm babies, of high number of immature hematopoietic progenitors and endothelial/mesenchymal stem cells with high proliferative potential makes this tissue an important source of cells for developing new cells therapies.

Photoelectric Properties of DSSCs Sensitized by Phloxine B and Bromophenol Blue

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Penghui Ren

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Phloxine B and bromophenol blue as the sensitizers of dye-sensitized solar cells were investigated via UV-Vis spectra, FT-IR spectra, fluorescence spectra, and current-voltage characteristics. The frontier molecular orbital, vibration analysis, and the first hyperpolarizability were calculated with DFT/6-31G(d. The dipole moment, light harvesting efficiency (LHE, and larger absolute value of driving force of electron injection (ΔGinject were also discussed. The calculated results were compared with the experimental results of phloxine B and bromophenol blue. It was found that, compared with bromophenol blue, bigger dipole moment of phloxine B results in larger open circuit voltage (Voc according to the correlation between dipole moment and Voc. At the same time, for configuration of phloxine B, it has higher LHE and ΔGinject, which are helpful to enhance the abilities of absorbing sunlight and electron injection. Therefore, higher LHE and ΔGinject for phloxine B produced a larger value of Jsc.

Using global sensitivity analysis to understand higher order interactions in complex models: an application of GSA on the Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation (RUSLE) to quantify model sensitivity and implications for ecosystem services management in Costa Rica

Science.gov (United States)

Fremier, A. K.; Estrada Carmona, N.; Harper, E.; DeClerck, F.

2011-12-01

Appropriate application of complex models to estimate system behavior requires understanding the influence of model structure and parameter estimates on model output. To date, most researchers perform local sensitivity analyses, rather than global, because of computational time and quantity of data produced. Local sensitivity analyses are limited in quantifying the higher order interactions among parameters, which could lead to incomplete analysis of model behavior. To address this concern, we performed a GSA on a commonly applied equation for soil loss - the Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation. USLE is an empirical model built on plot-scale data from the USA and the Revised version (RUSLE) includes improved equations for wider conditions, with 25 parameters grouped into six factors to estimate long-term plot and watershed scale soil loss. Despite RUSLE's widespread application, a complete sensitivity analysis has yet to be performed. In this research, we applied a GSA to plot and watershed scale data from the US and Costa Rica to parameterize the RUSLE in an effort to understand the relative importance of model factors and parameters across wide environmental space. We analyzed the GSA results using Random Forest, a statistical approach to evaluate parameter importance accounting for the higher order interactions, and used Classification and Regression Trees to show the dominant trends in complex interactions. In all GSA calculations the management of cover crops (C factor) ranks the highest among factors (compared to rain-runoff erosivity, topography, support practices, and soil erodibility). This is counter to previous sensitivity analyses where the topographic factor was determined to be the most important. The GSA finding is consistent across multiple model runs, including data from the US, Costa Rica, and a synthetic dataset of the widest theoretical space. The three most important parameters were: Mass density of live and dead roots found in the upper inch

Dimension-6 operator analysis of the CLIC sensitivity to new physics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ellis, John; Roloff, Philipp; Sanz, Verónica; You, Tevong

2017-01-01

We estimate the possible accuracies of measurements at the proposed CLIC e + e − collider of Higgs and W + W − production at centre-of-mass energies up to 3 TeV, incorporating also Higgsstrahlung projections at higher energies that had not been considered previously, and use them to explore the prospective CLIC sensitivities to decoupled new physics. We present the resulting constraints on the Wilson coefficients of dimension-6 operators in a model-independent approach based on the Standard Model effective field theory (SM EFT). The higher centre-of-mass energy of CLIC, compared to other projects such as the ILC and CEPC, gives it greater sensitivity to the coefficients of some of the operators we study. We find that CLIC Higgs measurements may be sensitive to new physics scales Λ=O(10) TeV for individual operators, reduced to O(1) TeV sensitivity for a global fit marginalising over the coefficients of all contributing operators. We give some examples of the corresponding prospective constraints on specific scenarios for physics beyond the SM, including stop quarks and the dilaton/radion.

Functionalized graphene/silicon chemi-diode H₂ sensor with tunable sensitivity.

Science.gov (United States)

Uddin, Md Ahsan; Singh, Amol Kumar; Sudarshan, Tangali S; Koley, Goutam

2014-03-28

A reverse bias tunable Pd- and Pt-functionalized graphene/Si heterostructure Schottky diode H2 sensor has been demonstrated. Compared to the graphene chemiresistor sensor, the chemi-diode sensor offers more than one order of magnitude higher sensitivity as the molecular adsorption induced Schottky barrier height change causes the heterojunction current to vary exponentially in reverse bias. The reverse bias operation also enables low power consumption, as well as modulation of the atomically thin graphene's Fermi level, leading to tunable sensitivity and detection of H₂ down to the sub-ppm range.

Evaluation of selected biomarkers for the detection of chemical sensitization in human skin: a comparative study applying THP-1, MUTZ-3 and primary dendritic cells in culture.

Science.gov (United States)

Hitzler, Manuel; Bergert, Antje; Luch, Andreas; Peiser, Matthias

2013-09-01

Dendritic cells (DCs) exhibit the unique capacity to induce T cell differentiation and proliferation, two processes that are crucially involved in allergic reactions. By combining the exclusive potential of DCs as the only professional antigen-presenting cells of the human body with the well known handling advantages of cell lines, cell-based alternative methods aimed at detecting chemical sensitization in vitro commonly apply DC-like cells derived from myeloid cell lines. Here, we present the new biomarkers programmed death-ligand 1 (PD-L1), DC immunoreceptor (DCIR), IL-16, and neutrophil-activating protein-2 (NAP-2), all of which have been detectable in primary human DCs upon exposure to chemical contact allergens. To evaluate the applicability of DC-like cells in the prediction of a chemical's sensitization potential, the expression of cell surface PD-L1 and DCIR was analyzed. In contrast to primary DCs, only minor subpopulations of MUTZ-3 and THP-1 cells presented PD-L1 or DCIR at their surface. After exposure to increasing concentrations of nickel and cinnamic aldehyde, the expression level of PD-L1 and DCIR revealed much stronger affected on monocyte-derived DCs (MoDCs) or Langerhans cells (MoLCs) when compared to THP-1 and MUTZ-3 cells. Applying protein profiler arrays we further identified the soluble factors NAP-2, IL-16, IL-8 and MIP-1α as sensitive biomarkers showing the capacity to discriminate sensitizing from non-sensitizing chemicals or irritants. An allergen-specific release of IL-8 and MIP-1α could be detected in the supernatants of MoDCs and MoLCs and also in MUTZ-3 and THP-1 cells, though at much lower levels. On the protein and transcriptional level, NAP-2 and IL-16 indicated sensitizers most sensitively and specifically in MoDCs. Altogether, we have proven the reciprocal regulated surface molecules PD-L1 and DCIR and the soluble factors MIP-1α, NAP-2 and IL-16 as reliable biomarkers for chemical sensitization. We further show that primary

Drought sensitivity changes over the last century at the North American savanna-forest boundary

Science.gov (United States)

Heilman, K.; McLachlan, J. S.

2017-12-01

Future environmental changes can affect the sensitivity of tree growth to climate. Theses changes are of particular concern at biome boundaries where tree distribution could shift as a result of changes in both drought and drought sensitivity. One such region is the North American savanna-forest boundary, where increased CO2 and droughts could alter savanna and forest ecosystem distributions in two contrasting ways: 1). More severe droughts may increase drought sensitivity, favoring open savanna ecosystems or, 2). Increases in water use efficiency resulting from higher atmospheric CO2 may decrease drought sensitivity, promoting forest expansion. This study sought to understand whether the past 100 years of climate and CO2 changes have impacted regional tree growth-climate sensitivity. To test for these climate sensitivity changes, we measured the sensitivity of Quercus spp. radial growth to Palmer Drought Severity Index (PDSI). Tree growth sensitivity to climate can vary according to many factors, including: stand structure, available moisture, and tree age. To control for these factors, we sampled tree growth-climate responses at sites in both open and closed forests, and at both low and high annual precipitation. Within each site, we compared growth responses to climate between trees established under high CO2 conditions after 1950 (high CO2 young), and tree established before 1950 under low CO2 levels (low CO2 young). At most sites, low CO2 young have a higher drought sensitivity than higher CO2 young. These changes in the sensitivity to drought are consistent with CO2 enhancement of water use efficiency. Furthermore, these differences in drought sensitivity are higher at sites with high temperature and low precipitation, suggesting that the alleviation of drought is more likely in hot and dry regions. Thus, if CO2 enhancement is indeed occurring in these systems, lower growth sensitivity to drought in hot and dry regions could favor increased forest growth. If

Parental overprotection increases interpersonal sensitivity in healthy subjects.

Science.gov (United States)

Otani, Koichi; Suzuki, Akihito; Matsumoto, Yoshihiko; Kamata, Mitsuhiro

2009-01-01

The effect of parental rearing on interpersonal sensitivity was studied in 469 Japanese volunteers. Perceived parental rearing was assessed by the Parental Bonding Instrument, which consists of the factors of care and protection, and interpersonal sensitivity was measured by the Interpersonal Sensitivity Measure (IPSM). In male subjects, higher IPSM scores were related to higher scores of paternal protection (P < .01) and maternal protection (P < .05). In female subjects, higher IPSM scores were related to higher scores of maternal protection (P < .001). The present study suggests that in both males and females, interpersonal sensitivity is increased by high protection of the same-sex parents and that in males there is an additional effect of high maternal protection.

Comparative Method for Indirect Sensitivity Measurement of UHF RFID Reader with Respect to Interoperability and Conformance Requirements

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lukas Kypus

2014-01-01

Full Text Available There is never-ending race for the competitive advantage that forces RFID technology service integrators to focus more on used technology qualitative aspects and theirs impacts inside RFID ecosystem. This paper contributes to UHF RFID reader qualitative parameters evaluation and assessment problematic. It presents and describes in details indirect method and procedure of sensitivity measurement created for UHF RFID readers. We applied this method on RFID readers within prepared test environment and confirmed long term intention and recognized trend. Due to regulations limitations, there is not possible to increase output power over defined limits, but there are possibilities to influence reader sensitivity. Our proposal is to use customized comparative measurement method with insertion loss compensation for return link. Beside the main goal achievement, results show as well the qualitative status of development snapshot of reader. Method and following experiment helped us to gain an external view, current values of important parameters and motivation we want to follow up on as well as compared developed reader with its commercial competitors.

High-Sensitivity GaN Microchemical Sensors

Science.gov (United States)

Son, Kyung-ah; Yang, Baohua; Liao, Anna; Moon, Jeongsun; Prokopuk, Nicholas

2009-01-01

Systematic studies have been performed on the sensitivity of GaN HEMT (high electron mobility transistor) sensors using various gate electrode designs and operational parameters. The results here show that a higher sensitivity can be achieved with a larger W/L ratio (W = gate width, L = gate length) at a given D (D = source-drain distance), and multi-finger gate electrodes offer a higher sensitivity than a one-finger gate electrode. In terms of operating conditions, sensor sensitivity is strongly dependent on transconductance of the sensor. The highest sensitivity can be achieved at the gate voltage where the slope of the transconductance curve is the largest. This work provides critical information about how the gate electrode of a GaN HEMT, which has been identified as the most sensitive among GaN microsensors, needs to be designed, and what operation parameters should be used for high sensitivity detection.

Comparison of ozone uptake and sensitivity between a phytotron study with young beech and a field experiment with adult beech (Fagus sylvatica)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nunn, Angela J.; Kozovits, A.R.; Reiter, I.M.; Heerdt, C.; Leuchner, M.; Luetz, C.; Liu, X.; Low, M.; Winkler, J.B.; Grams, T.E.E.; Haeberle, K.-H.; Werner, H.; Fabian, P.; Rennenberg, H.; Matyssek, R.

2005-01-01

Chamber experiments on juvenile trees have resulted in severe injury and accelerated loss of leaves along with reduced biomass production under chronically enhanced O 3 levels. In contrast, the few studies conducted on adult forest trees in the field have reported low O 3 sensitivity. In the present study, young beech in phytotrons was more sensitive to O 3 than adult beech in the field, although employed O 3 regimes were similar. The hypotheses tested were that: (1) differences in O 3 uptake were caused by the ontogenetically higher stomatal conductance of young compared to adult trees (2) the experimental settings in the phytotrons enhanced O 3 uptake compared to field conditions, and (3) a low detoxification capacity contributes to the higher O 3 sensitivity of the young trees. The higher O 3 sensitivity of juvenile beech in the phytotrons is demonstrated to relate to both the experimental conditions and the physiological responsiveness inherent to tree age. - Juvenile beech trees in phytotrons are more sensitive to ozone than adult forest trees due to lower defence capacity and growth conditions

18F-FDG PET/CT compared to conventional imaging modalities in pediatric primary bone tumors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

London, Kevin; Stege, Claudia; Kaspers, Gertjan; Cross, Siobhan; Dalla-Pozza, Luciano; Onikul, Ella; Graf, Nicole; Howman-Giles, Robert

2012-01-01

F-Fluoro-2-deoxy-d-glucose (FDG) positron emission tomography (PET) is useful in adults with primary bone tumors. Limited published data exist in children. To compare hybrid FDG positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT) with conventional imaging (CI) modalities in detecting malignant lesions, predicting response to chemotherapy and diagnosing physeal involvement in pediatric primary bone tumors. Retrospective analysis of PET/CT and CI reports with histopathology or follow-up > 6 months as reference standard. Response parameters and physeal involvement at diagnosis were compared to histopathology. A total of 314 lesions were detected in 86 scans. Excluding lung lesions, PET/CT had higher sensitivity and specificity than CI (83%, 98% and 78%, 97%, respectively). In lung lesions, PET/CT had higher specificity than CI (96% compared to 87%) but lower sensitivity (80% compared to 93%). Higher initial SUV max and greater SUV max reduction on PET/CT after chemotherapy predicted a good response. Change in tumor size on MRI did not predict response. Both PET/CT and MRI were very sensitive but of low specificity in predicting physeal tumor involvement. PET/CT appears more accurate than CI in detecting malignant lesions in childhood primary bone tumors, excluding lung lesions. It seems better than MRI at predicting tumor response to chemotherapy. (orig.)

arXiv Dimension-6 Operator Analysis of the CLIC Sensitivity to New Physics

CERN Document Server

Ellis, John; Sanz, Veronica; You, Tevong

2017-05-17

We estimate the possible accuracies of measurements at the proposed CLIC e$^{+}$ e$^{−}$ collider of Higgs and W$^{+}$ W$^{−}$ production at centre-of-mass energies up to 3 TeV, incorporating also Higgsstrahlung projections at higher energies that had not been consid-ered previously, and use them to explore the prospective CLIC sensitivities to decoupled new physics. We present the resulting constraints on the Wilson coefficients of dimension-6 operators in a model-independent approach based on the Standard Model effective field theory (SM EFT). The higher centre-of-mass energy of CLIC, compared to other projects such as the ILC and CEPC, gives it greater sensitivity to the coefficients of some of the operators we study. We find that CLIC Higgs measurements may be sensitive to new physics scales $ \\Lambda =\\mathcal{O}(10) $ TeV for individual operators, reduced to $ \\mathcal{O}(1) $ TeV sensitivity for a global fit marginalising over the coefficients of all contributing operators. We give some examples of...

Children with ADHD Show No Deficits in Plantar Foot Sensitivity and Static Balance Compared to Healthy Controls

Science.gov (United States)

Schlee, Gunther; Neubert, Tom; Worenz, Andreas; Milani, Thomas L.

2012-01-01

The goal of this study was to investigate plantar foot sensitivity and balance control of ADHD (n = 21) impaired children compared to age-matched healthy controls (n = 25). Thresholds were measured at 200 Hz at three anatomical locations of the plantar foot area of both feet (hallux, first metatarsal head (METI) and heel). Body balance was…

Olfactory sensitivity for sperm-attractant aromatic aldehydes: a comparative study in human subjects and spider monkeys.

Science.gov (United States)

Kjeldmand, Luna; Salazar, Laura Teresa Hernandez; Laska, Matthias

2011-01-01

Using a three-alternative forced-choice ascending staircase procedure, we determined olfactory detection thresholds in 20 human subjects for seven aromatic aldehydes and compared them to those of four spider monkeys tested in parallel using an operant conditioning paradigm. With all seven odorants, both species detected concentrations lyral, and 3-phenylpropanal. No significant correlation between presence/absence of an oxygen-containing moiety attached to the benzene ring or presence/absence of an additional alkyl group next to the functional aldehyde group, and olfactory sensitivity was found in any of the species. However, the presence of a tertiary butyl group in para position (relative to the functional aldehyde group) combined with a lack of an additional alkyl group next to the functional aldehyde group may be responsible for the finding that both species were most sensitive to bourgeonal.

How can we use the radioecological sensitivity concept as a tool for risk management?

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mercat-Rommens, C.; Renaud, P.

2004-01-01

The consequences for the man and the environment of the discharges of nuclear facilities depend on the importance and the nature of the discharges, but also on the environment which receives them. Thus, the impact of a pollution, which is expressed in term of toxicity, risk or economic consequences, varies according to the characteristics of the environment and the use of this environment by the man. The radioecological sensitivity can be defined as the response of the environment to a radioactive pollution. For a determined discharge, the higher is the response, the more sensitive is the environment. If all the ecosystems appear sensitive, their sensitivity does not concern the same criteria and it is currently difficult to compare these criteria between them. The idea of the SENSIB project is to create a standardized tool which makes it possible to represent and to compare with the same scale the sensitivity of various ecosystems. The SENSIB project aims to develop both a methodology to calculate sensitivity indexes and a radioecological sensitivity scale usable for risk management. (orig.)

Relationship of Corneal Pain Sensitivity With Dry Eye Symptoms in Dry Eye With Short Tear Break-Up Time.

Science.gov (United States)

Kaido, Minako; Kawashima, Motoko; Ishida, Reiko; Tsubota, Kazuo

2016-03-01

The purpose of this prospective comparative study was to investigate corneal sensitivity in subjects with unstable tear film, with and without dry eye (DE) symptoms. Forty-one eyes of 41 volunteers (mean age: 45.1 ± 9.4 years; age range, 23-57 years), with normal tear function and ocular surface except for tear stability, were studied. The eyes were divided into two groups depending on the presence or absence of DE symptoms: 21 eyes with DE symptoms (symptomatic group); and 20 eyes without DE symptoms (asymptomatic group). Three types of corneal sensitivity values were measured using a Cochet-Bonnet esthesiometer: the sensitivity for perception of touch (S-touch), the sensitivity for blinking (S-blink), and the sensitivity for pain (S-pain). Mean S-blink and S-pain were significantly higher in the symptomatic group than in the asymptomatic group (P 0.05). Corneal sensitivity for blinking and pain evoked by increased stimuli was higher in the symptomatic group (subjects with short break-up time DE) compared with subjects who have no DE symptoms despite decreased tear stability. The presence of both tear instability and hyperesthesia, rather than tear instability alone, may contribute to DE pathogenesis.

Sensitivity to immunodepressant action of cyclophosphamide: analysis of interstrain differences in mice.

Science.gov (United States)

Pevnitsky, L A; Telegin LYu; Zhirnov, G F; Mazurov, A V; Viktorov, V V

1985-01-01

In one of our previous studies (Pevnitsky et al., Bull. exp. Biol. Med., 83, 438-440, 1977), we have found significant differences between various strains of mice in the sensitivity to immunodepressant action of cyclophosphamide (CP). The degree of these differences was not determined by the level of their immune response which indicates that the cause of the interstrain differences lies in a specific reaction of mice to the immunodepressant. The main parameters of CP effect which may be responsible for variable sensitivity to the immunodepressant action in vivo were studied in several murine strains (Balb/cJLacSto, CBA/CaLacSto, and DBA/2JSto): (1) rate of the preparation activation in liver microsomes; (2) pharmacokinetics of NBP-metabolites in the blood serum; (3) immunodepressant action of the in vivo activated CP; (4) sensitivity of immunocompetent target cells to activated CP effect. It was found that DBA/2 mice are the most sensitive to CP in vivo. The level of "active" CP in their blood serum is higher than in BALB/c mice. Besides, they are characterized by a higher sensitivity of immunocompetent cells compared to BALB/c and CBA mice.

Comparing the sensitivity of chlorophytes, cyanobacteria, and diatoms to major-use antibiotics.

Science.gov (United States)

Guo, Jiahua; Selby, Katherine; Boxall, Alistair B A

2016-10-01

The occurrence of antibiotic residues in the aquatic environment is an emerging concern. In contrast to daphnia and fish, algae are known to be particularly sensitive to antibiotic exposure. However, to date, a systematic evaluation of the sensitivity of different algal species to antibiotics has not been performed. The aim of the present study was therefore to explore the sensitivity of a battery of algal species toward antibiotic exposures. The present study investigated the growth inhibition effects of 3 major-use antibiotics, tylosin, lincomycin, and trimethoprim, on 7 algal species from the chlorophyte, cyanobacteria, and diatom groups. Based on median effective concentration (EC50) values, cyanobacteria (EC50 = 0.095-0.13 μmol/L) were found to be the most sensitive group to lincomycin followed by chlorophytes (EC50 = 7.36-225.73 μmol/L) and diatoms (EC50 > 225.73 μmol/L). Cyanobacteria were also the most sensitive group to tylosin (EC50 = 0.09-0.092 μmol/L), but, for this compound, diatoms (EC50 = 1.33-5.7 μmol/L) were more sensitive than chlorophytes (EC50 = 4.14-81.2 μmol/L). Diatoms were most sensitive to trimethoprim (EC50 = 7.36-74.61 μmol/L), followed by cyanobacteria (EC50 = 315.78-344.45 μmol/L), and chlorophytes (EC50 > 344.45 μmol/L) for trimethoprim. Although these results partly support the current approach to regulatory environmental risk assessment (whereby cyanobacterial species are recommended for use with antibiotic compounds), they indicate that for some antibiotics this group might not be the most appropriate test organism. It is therefore suggested that environmental risk assessments consider data on 3 algal groups (chlorophytes, cyanobacteria, and diatoms) and use test species from these groups, which are consistently found to be the most sensitive (Pseudokirchneriella subcapitata, Anabaena flos-aquae, and Navicula pelliculosa). Environ Toxicol Chem 2016;35:2587-2596. © 2016 SETAC. �

Resistances to Scientific Knowledge Production of Comparative Measurements of Dropout and Completion in European Higher Education

Science.gov (United States)

Carlhed, Carina

2017-01-01

The article is a critical sociological analysis of current transnational practices on creating comparable measurements of dropout and completion in higher education and the consequences for the conditions of scientific knowledge production on the topic. The analysis revolves around questions of epistemological, methodological and symbolic types…

Laminating solution-processed silver nanowire mesh electrodes onto solid-state dye-sensitized solar cells

KAUST Repository

Hardin, Brian E.

2011-06-01

Solution processed silver nanowire meshes (Ag NWs) were laminated on top of solid-state dye-sensitized solar cells (ss-DSCs) as a reflective counter electrode. Ag NWs were deposited in <1 min and were less reflective compared to evaporated Ag controls; however, AgNW ss-DSC devices consistently had higher fill factors (0.6 versus 0.69), resulting in comparable power conversion efficiencies (2.7%) compared to thermally evaporated Ag control (2.8%). Laminated Ag NW electrodes enable higher throughput manufacturing and near unity material usage, resulting in a cheaper alternative to thermally evaporated electrodes. © 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Rejection Sensitivity, Jealousy, and the Relationship to Interpersonal Aggression.

Science.gov (United States)

Murphy, Anna M; Russell, Gemma

2018-07-01

The development and maintenance of interpersonal relationships lead individuals to risk rejection in the pursuit of acceptance. Some individuals are predisposed to experience a hypersensitivity to rejection that is hypothesized to be related to jealous and aggressive reactions within interpersonal relationships. The current study used convenience sampling to recruit 247 young adults to evaluate the relationship between rejection sensitivity, jealousy, and aggression. A mediation model was used to test three hypotheses: Higher scores of rejection sensitivity would be positively correlated to higher scores of aggression (Hypothesis 1); higher scores of rejection sensitivity would be positively correlated to higher scores of jealousy (Hypothesis 2); jealousy would mediate the relationship between rejection sensitivity and aggression (Hypothesis 3). Study results suggest a tendency for individuals with high rejection sensitivity to experience higher levels of jealousy, and subsequently have a greater propensity for aggression, than individuals with low rejection sensitivity. Future research that substantiates a link between hypersensitivity to rejection, jealousy, and aggression may provide an avenue for prevention, education, or intervention in reducing aggression within interpersonal relationships.

Piper Ornatum and Piper Betle as Organic Dyes for TiO2 and SnO2 Dye Sensitized Solar Cells

Science.gov (United States)

Hayat, Azwar; Putra, A. Erwin E.; Amaliyah, Novriany; Hayase, Shuzi; Pandey, Shyam. S.

2018-03-01

Dye sensitized solar cell (DSSC) mimics the principle of natural photosynthesis are now currently investigated due to low manufacturing cost as compared to silicon based solar cells. In this report, we utilized Piper ornatum (PO) and Piper betle (PB) as sensitizer to fabricate low cost DSSCs. We compared the photovoltaic performance of both sensitizers with Titanium dioxide (TiO2) and Tin dioxide (SnO2) semiconductors. The results show that PO and PB dyes have higher Short circuit current (Jsc) when applied in SnO2 compared to standard TiO2 photo-anode film even though the Open circuit voltage (Voc) was hampered on SnO2 device. In conclusion, from the result, higher electron injections can be achieved by choosing appropriate semiconductors with band gap that match with dyes energy level as one of strategy for further low cost solar cell.

Functionalized graphene/silicon chemi-diode H2 sensor with tunable sensitivity

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Uddin, Md Ahsan; Singh, Amol Kumar; Sudarshan, Tangali S; Koley, Goutam

2014-01-01

A reverse bias tunable Pd- and Pt-functionalized graphene/Si heterostructure Schottky diode H 2 sensor has been demonstrated. Compared to the graphene chemiresistor sensor, the chemi-diode sensor offers more than one order of magnitude higher sensitivity as the molecular adsorption induced Schottky barrier height change causes the heterojunction current to vary exponentially in reverse bias. The reverse bias operation also enables low power consumption, as well as modulation of the atomically thin graphene’s Fermi level, leading to tunable sensitivity and detection of H 2 down to the sub-ppm range. (paper)

{sup 18}F-FDG PET/CT compared to conventional imaging modalities in pediatric primary bone tumors

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

London, Kevin [The Children' s Hospital at Westmead, Department of Nuclear Medicine, Sydney, NSW (Australia); University of Sydney, Discipline of Paediatrics and Child Health, Sydney Medical School, Sydney, NSW (Australia); Stege, Claudia; Kaspers, Gertjan [VU Medical Centre, Divisions of Paediatric Oncology/Haematology, Amsterdam (Netherlands); Cross, Siobhan; Dalla-Pozza, Luciano [The Children' s Hospital at Westmead, Department of Oncology, Sydney (Australia); Onikul, Ella [The Children' s Hospital at Westmead, Department of Medical Imaging, Sydney (Australia); Graf, Nicole [The Children' s Hospital at Westmead, Department of Pathology, Sydney (Australia); Howman-Giles, Robert [The Children' s Hospital at Westmead, Department of Nuclear Medicine, Sydney, NSW (Australia); University of Sydney, Discipline of Imaging, Sydney Medical School, Sydney, NSW (Australia)

2012-04-15

F-Fluoro-2-deoxy-d-glucose (FDG) positron emission tomography (PET) is useful in adults with primary bone tumors. Limited published data exist in children. To compare hybrid FDG positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT) with conventional imaging (CI) modalities in detecting malignant lesions, predicting response to chemotherapy and diagnosing physeal involvement in pediatric primary bone tumors. Retrospective analysis of PET/CT and CI reports with histopathology or follow-up > 6 months as reference standard. Response parameters and physeal involvement at diagnosis were compared to histopathology. A total of 314 lesions were detected in 86 scans. Excluding lung lesions, PET/CT had higher sensitivity and specificity than CI (83%, 98% and 78%, 97%, respectively). In lung lesions, PET/CT had higher specificity than CI (96% compared to 87%) but lower sensitivity (80% compared to 93%). Higher initial SUV{sub max} and greater SUV{sub max} reduction on PET/CT after chemotherapy predicted a good response. Change in tumor size on MRI did not predict response. Both PET/CT and MRI were very sensitive but of low specificity in predicting physeal tumor involvement. PET/CT appears more accurate than CI in detecting malignant lesions in childhood primary bone tumors, excluding lung lesions. It seems better than MRI at predicting tumor response to chemotherapy. (orig.)

Evidence supporting oral sensitivity to complex carbohydrates independent of sweet taste sensitivity in humans.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Julia Y Q Low

Full Text Available Compared to simple sugars, complex carbohydrates have been assumed invisible to taste. However, two recent studies proposed that there may be a perceivable taste quality elicited by complex carbohydrates independent of sweet taste. There is precedent with behavioural studies demonstrating that rats are very attracted to complex carbohydrates, and that complex carbohydrates are preferred to simple sugars at low concentrations. This suggests that rats may have independent taste sensors for simple sugars and complex carbohydrates. The aim of this paper is to investigate oral sensitivities of two different classes of complex carbohydrates (a soluble digestible and a soluble non-digestible complex carbohydrate, and to compare these to other caloric and non-nutritive sweeteners in addition to the prototypical tastes using two commonly used psychophysical measures. There were strong correlations between the detection thresholds and mean intensity ratings for complex carbohydrates (maltodextrin, oligofructose (r = 0.94, P 0.05. However, moderate correlations were observed between perceived intensities of complex carbohydrates and sweeteners (r = 0.48-0.61, P < 0.05. These data provide evidence that complex carbohydrates can be sensed in the oral cavity over a range of concentrations independent of sweet taste sensitivity at low concentrations, but with partial overlap with sweet taste intensity at higher concentrations.

Sensitivity Analysis of Multidisciplinary Rotorcraft Simulations

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Li; Diskin, Boris; Biedron, Robert T.; Nielsen, Eric J.; Bauchau, Olivier A.

2017-01-01

A multidisciplinary sensitivity analysis of rotorcraft simulations involving tightly coupled high-fidelity computational fluid dynamics and comprehensive analysis solvers is presented and evaluated. An unstructured sensitivity-enabled Navier-Stokes solver, FUN3D, and a nonlinear flexible multibody dynamics solver, DYMORE, are coupled to predict the aerodynamic loads and structural responses of helicopter rotor blades. A discretely-consistent adjoint-based sensitivity analysis available in FUN3D provides sensitivities arising from unsteady turbulent flows and unstructured dynamic overset meshes, while a complex-variable approach is used to compute DYMORE structural sensitivities with respect to aerodynamic loads. The multidisciplinary sensitivity analysis is conducted through integrating the sensitivity components from each discipline of the coupled system. Numerical results verify accuracy of the FUN3D/DYMORE system by conducting simulations for a benchmark rotorcraft test model and comparing solutions with established analyses and experimental data. Complex-variable implementation of sensitivity analysis of DYMORE and the coupled FUN3D/DYMORE system is verified by comparing with real-valued analysis and sensitivities. Correctness of adjoint formulations for FUN3D/DYMORE interfaces is verified by comparing adjoint-based and complex-variable sensitivities. Finally, sensitivities of the lift and drag functions obtained by complex-variable FUN3D/DYMORE simulations are compared with sensitivities computed by the multidisciplinary sensitivity analysis, which couples adjoint-based flow and grid sensitivities of FUN3D and FUN3D/DYMORE interfaces with complex-variable sensitivities of DYMORE structural responses.

Does the accuracy of single reading with CAD (computer-aided detection) compare with that of double reading?: A review of the literature

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bennett, R.L.; Blanks, R.G.; Moss, S.M.

2006-01-01

Aim: To examine current evidence to determine whether the accuracy of single reading with computed-aided detection (CAD) compares with that of double reading. Methods: We performed a literature review to identify studies where both protocols had been investigated and compared. We identified eight studies that compared single reading with CAD against double reading, of which six reported on comparisons of both sensitivity and specificity. Results: Of the six studies identified, three showed no differences in either sensitivity or specificity. One showed single reading with CAD had a higher sensitivity at the same specificity, another that single reading with CAD had a higher specificity at the same sensitivity. However, one study, in a real-life setting, showed that single reading with CAD had a higher sensitivity but a lower specificity. Conclusion: As the majority of the studies were not in a real-life setting, used test sets, lacked sufficient training in the use of CAD and simulated double reading (using a protocol of recall if one suggests), current evidence is therefore limited as to the accuracy, in terms of sensitivity and specificity, of single reading with CAD in comparison with the most common practice in the UK of double reading using a protocol of consensus or arbitration

Insulin sensitivity in relation to fat distribution and plasma adipocytokines among abusers of anabolic androgenic steroids.

Science.gov (United States)

Rasmussen, Jon Jarløv; Schou, Morten; Selmer, Christian; Johansen, Marie Louise; Gustafsson, Finn; Frystyk, Jan; Dela, Flemming; Faber, Jens; Kistorp, Caroline

2017-09-01

Abuse of anabolic androgenic steroids (AAS) is prevalent among young men, but information regarding effects on insulin sensitivity and fat distribution is limited. The objective was to investigate insulin sensitivity in relation to fat distribution and adipocytokines among current and former AAS abusers compared with controls. Cross-sectional study among men involved in recreational strength training. Current and former AAS abusers (n=37 and n=33) and controls (n=30) volunteered from the community. We assessed insulin sensitivity by Matsuda index (oral glucose tolerance test). Using overnight fasting blood samples, adiponectin and leptin were measured. Body composition and fat distribution, including visceral adipose tissue (VAT), were assessed by dual energy X-ray absorptiometry. Current and former AAS abusers displayed lower Matsuda index than controls (%-difference (95%CI) from controls, -26% (-45; -1) and -39% (-55; -18)). Testosterone was markedly higher among current AAS abusers and subnormal among former AAS abusers compared with controls. Current AAS abusers displayed higher mean VAT than controls (388 (17) vs 293 (12) cm 3 , P<.001) whereas body fat %, adiponectin and leptin concentrations were lower. In contrast, former AAS abusers showed highest leptin concentrations and body fat %. Multivariate linear regressions identified VAT as independent predictor of lower Matsuda index among current AAS abusers compared with controls; while body fat % independently predicted lower Matsuda index among former AAS abusers. Both current and former AAS abusers displayed lower insulin sensitivity which could be mediated by higher VAT and total body fat %, respectively. © 2017 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Assessment of insulin sensitivity/resistance and their relations with leptin concentrations and anthropometric measures in a pregnant population with and without gestational diabetes mellitus.

Science.gov (United States)

Yilmaz, Ozgur; Kucuk, Mert; Ilgin, Aydin; Dagdelen, Muride

2010-01-01

Fifty-six pregnant women with gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) and 42 normal glucose tolerant (NGT) pregnant women between 26 and 36 gestational weeks were included in the study prospectively. The body fat percentage (BFP) was calculated using the Siri formula from skinfold thickness (SFT) measurements. Both groups were comparable for gestational age, height, weight, and body mass index (P>.05). Insulin resistance assessed by homeostasis model assessment for insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) method was significantly higher in GDM patients compared to their NGT weight-matched control group. In contrast, the insulin sensitivity calculated from quantitative insulin sensitivity check index (QUICKI-IS) equation was significantly lower in GDM group. Calculated lean body mass was found to be similar in between both groups. Body fat percentage derived from SFT parameters was significantly higher in women with GDM. Women with GDM had significantly higher levels of serum insulin and leptin concentrations when compared with the NGT group. All SFT measurements were higher in GDM group when compared to those in NGT women. We did not find any correlation between leptin levels and insulin resistance; we found negative correlation between leptin levels and insulin sensitivity. Thus, we observed that leptin may contribute development of GDM by decreasing insulin sensitivity but not increasing insulin resistance. Also, we observed that the BFP estimated by the Siri formula from SFT measurements correlated significantly with HOMA-IR and QUICKI-IS and leptin concentrations in pregnant women. We suggest that by simply evaluating SFT, we may hold a view about BFP and leptin concentrations and insulin sensitivity in pregnant women.

Anxiety sensitivity in adolescents with somatoform autonomic dysfunction and adolescents with insulin dependent diabetes mellitus.

Science.gov (United States)

Pisarić, Maja; Nisević, Sanja

2011-01-01

Anxiety sensitivity is defined as a belief that anxiety or fear may cause illness, embarrassment, or additional anxiety. The main purpose of this study was to find out if there were differences among adolescents with insulin dependent diabetes mellitus, adolescents with somatoform autonomic dysfunction and their healthy peers in different aspects of psychological functioning and anxiety sensitivity. The sample consisted of 93 subjects, aged 12 to 16. Hamburg Neuroticism and Extraversion Scale, Child Behaviour Checklist and Childhood Anxiety Sensitivity Index were administrated. The adolescents with somatoform autonomic dysfunction had significantly higher scores on neuroticism scale, different Child Behaviour Checklist subscales, and on anxiety sensitivity. Both groups with diagnosed illness had lower scores on extraversion scale compared to healthy peers. This study has shown that the adolescents with somatoform autonomic dysfunction are more prone to fears regarding bodily functioning, and that they are at a higher risk of developing an anxiety disorder.

Comparing higher order models for the EORTC QLQ-C30

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Gundy, Chad M; Fayers, Peter M; Grønvold, Mogens

2012-01-01

To investigate the statistical fit of alternative higher order models for summarizing the health-related quality of life profile generated by the EORTC QLQ-C30 questionnaire.......To investigate the statistical fit of alternative higher order models for summarizing the health-related quality of life profile generated by the EORTC QLQ-C30 questionnaire....

Advantages of chemical exchange-sensitive spin-lock (CESL) over chemical exchange saturation transfer (CEST) for hydroxyl- and amine-water proton exchange studies.

Science.gov (United States)

Jin, Tao; Kim, Seong-Gi

2014-11-01

The chemical exchange (CE) rate of endogenous hydroxyl and amine protons with water is often comparable to the difference in their chemical shifts. These intermediate exchange processes have been imaged by the CE saturation transfer (CEST) approach with low-power and long-duration irradiation. However, the sensitivity is not optimal and, more importantly, the signal is contaminated by slow magnetization transfer processes. Here, the properties of CEST signals are compared with those of a CE-sensitive spin-lock (CESL) technique irradiating at the labile proton frequency. First, using a higher power and shorter irradiation in CE-MRI, we obtain: (i) an increased selectivity to faster CE rates via a higher sensitivity to faster CEs and a lower sensitivity to slower CEs and magnetization transfer processes; and (ii) a decreased in vivo asymmetric magnetization transfer contrast measured at ±15 ppm. The sensitivity gain of CESL over CEST is higher for a higher power and shorter irradiation. Unlike CESL, CEST signals oscillate at a very high power and short irradiation. Second, time-dependent CEST and CESL signals are well modeled by analytical solutions of CE-MRI with an asymmetric population approximation, which can be used for quantitative CE-MRI and validated by simulations of Bloch-McConnell equations and phantom experiments. Finally, the in vivo amine-water proton exchange contrast measured at 2.5 ppm with ω1 = 500 Hz is 18% higher in sensitivity for CESL than CEST at 9.4 T. Overall, CESL provides better exchange rate selectivity and sensitivity than CEST; therefore, CESL is more suitable for CE-MRI of intermediate exchange protons. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Funding Systems for Higher Education and Their Impacts on Institutional Strategies and Academia: A Comparative Perspective

Science.gov (United States)

Frolich, Nicoline; Kalpazidou Schmidt, Evanthia; Rosa, Maria J.

2010-01-01

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to discuss how funding systems influence higher education institutions and their strategies and core tasks. Design/methodology/approach: Taking the results of a comparative study between Denmark, Norway and Portugal as a point of departure, the paper identifies and analyses the main features of these state…

Finnish Teachers’ Ethical Sensitivity

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Elina Kuusisto

2012-01-01

Full Text Available The study examined the ethical sensitivity of Finnish teachers (=864 using a 28-item Ethical Sensitivity Scale Questionnaire (ESSQ. The psychometric qualities of this instrument were analyzed, as were the differences in self-reported ethical sensitivity between practicing and student teachers and teachers of different subjects. The results showed that the psychometric qualities of the ESSQ were satisfactory and enabled the use of an explorative factor analysis. All Finnish teachers rated their level of ethical sensitivity as high, which indicates that they had internalized the ethical professionalism of teaching. However, practicing teachers’ assessments were higher than student teachers’. Moreover, science as a subject was associated with lower self-ratings of ethical sensitivity.

"Second Chance" Routes into Higher Education: Sweden, Norway and Germany Compared

Science.gov (United States)

Orr, Dominic; Hovdhaugen, Elisabeth

2014-01-01

Widening access to higher education is clearly part of the European policy agenda. Higher education ministers in the Bologna countries, as well as the European Commission, have all expressed a wish to make higher education more representative of national populations. This policy objective has been echoed at national level. One approach to widening…

Aspartame sensitivity? A double blind randomised crossover study.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Thozhukat Sathyapalan

Full Text Available Aspartame is a commonly used intense artificial sweetener, being approximately 200 times sweeter than sucrose. There have been concerns over aspartame since approval in the 1980s including a large anecdotal database reporting severe symptoms. The objective of this study was to compare the acute symptom effects of aspartame to a control preparation.This was a double-blind randomized cross over study conducted in a clinical research unit in United Kingdom. Forty-eight individual who has self reported sensitivity to aspartame were compared to 48 age and gender matched aspartame non-sensitive individuals. They were given aspartame (100mg-containing or control snack bars randomly at least 7 days apart. The main outcome measures were acute effects of aspartame measured using repeated ratings of 14 symptoms, biochemistry and metabonomics.Aspartame sensitive and non-sensitive participants differed psychologically at baseline in handling feelings and perceived stress. Sensitive participants had higher triglycerides (2.05 ± 1.44 vs. 1.26 ± 0.84mmol/L; p value 0.008 and lower HDL-C (1.16 ± 0.34 vs. 1.35 ± 0.54 mmol/L; p value 0.04, reflected in 1H NMR serum analysis that showed differences in the baseline lipid content between the two groups. Urine metabonomic studies showed no significant differences. None of the rated symptoms differed between aspartame and control bars, or between sensitive and control participants. However, aspartame sensitive participants rated more symptoms particularly in the first test session, whether this was placebo or control. Aspartame and control bars affected GLP-1, GIP, tyrosine and phenylalanine levels equally in both aspartame sensitive and non-sensitive subjects.Using a comprehensive battery of psychological tests, biochemistry and state of the art metabonomics there was no evidence of any acute adverse responses to aspartame. This independent study gives reassurance to both regulatory bodies and the public that

Aspartame sensitivity? A double blind randomised crossover study.

Science.gov (United States)

Sathyapalan, Thozhukat; Thatcher, Natalie J; Hammersley, Richard; Rigby, Alan S; Courts, Fraser L; Pechlivanis, Alexandros; Gooderham, Nigel J; Holmes, Elaine; le Roux, Carel W; Atkin, Stephen L

2015-01-01

Aspartame is a commonly used intense artificial sweetener, being approximately 200 times sweeter than sucrose. There have been concerns over aspartame since approval in the 1980s including a large anecdotal database reporting severe symptoms. The objective of this study was to compare the acute symptom effects of aspartame to a control preparation. This was a double-blind randomized cross over study conducted in a clinical research unit in United Kingdom. Forty-eight individual who has self reported sensitivity to aspartame were compared to 48 age and gender matched aspartame non-sensitive individuals. They were given aspartame (100mg)-containing or control snack bars randomly at least 7 days apart. The main outcome measures were acute effects of aspartame measured using repeated ratings of 14 symptoms, biochemistry and metabonomics. Aspartame sensitive and non-sensitive participants differed psychologically at baseline in handling feelings and perceived stress. Sensitive participants had higher triglycerides (2.05 ± 1.44 vs. 1.26 ± 0.84mmol/L; p value 0.008) and lower HDL-C (1.16 ± 0.34 vs. 1.35 ± 0.54 mmol/L; p value 0.04), reflected in 1H NMR serum analysis that showed differences in the baseline lipid content between the two groups. Urine metabonomic studies showed no significant differences. None of the rated symptoms differed between aspartame and control bars, or between sensitive and control participants. However, aspartame sensitive participants rated more symptoms particularly in the first test session, whether this was placebo or control. Aspartame and control bars affected GLP-1, GIP, tyrosine and phenylalanine levels equally in both aspartame sensitive and non-sensitive subjects. Using a comprehensive battery of psychological tests, biochemistry and state of the art metabonomics there was no evidence of any acute adverse responses to aspartame. This independent study gives reassurance to both regulatory bodies and the public that acute ingestion of

Analytical Study of the Effect of the System Geometry on Photon Sensitivity and Depth of Interaction of Positron Emission Mammography

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Pablo Aguiar

2012-01-01

Full Text Available Positron emission mammography (PEM cameras are novel-dedicated PET systems optimized to image the breast. For these cameras it is essential to achieve an optimum trade-off between sensitivity and spatial resolution and therefore the main challenge for the novel cameras is to improve the sensitivity without degrading the spatial resolution. We carry out an analytical study of the effect of the different detector geometries on the photon sensitivity and the angle of incidence of the detected photons which is related to the DOI effect and therefore to the intrinsic spatial resolution. To this end, dual head detectors were compared to box and different polygon-detector configurations. Our results showed that higher sensitivity and uniformity were found for box and polygon-detector configurations compared to dual-head cameras. Thus, the optimal configuration in terms of sensitivity is a PEM scanner based on a polygon of twelve (dodecagon or more detectors. We have shown that this configuration is clearly superior to dual-head detectors and slightly higher than box, octagon, and hexagon detectors. Nevertheless, DOI effects are increased for this configuration compared to dual head and box scanners and therefore an accurate compensation for this effect is required.

Improved sensitivity and specificity for resting state and task fMRI with multiband multi-echo EPI compared to multi-echo EPI at 7T.

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Boyacioglu, R.; Schulz, J.; Koopmans, P.J.; Barth, M.; Norris, David Gordon

2015-01-01

A multiband multi-echo (MBME) sequence is implemented and compared to a matched standard multi-echo (ME) protocol to investigate the potential improvement in sensitivity and spatial specificity at 7 T for resting state and task fMRI. ME acquisition is attractive because BOLD sensitivity is less

Identifying airway sensitizers: cytokine mRNA profiles induced by various anhydrides

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Plitnick, L.M.; Loveless, S.E.; Ladics, G.S.; Holsapple, M.P.; Smialowicz, R.J.; Woolhiser, M.R.; Anderson, P.K.; Smith, C.; Selgrade, M.J.K.

2003-01-01

Exposure to low molecular weight (LMW) chemicals in the workplace has been linked to a variety of respiratory effects. Within the LMW chemicals, one of the major classes involved in these effects are the acid anhydrides. The immunological basis of respiratory hypersensitivity involves CD4+ cells. By virtue of their induction of cytokines typical of CD4+ T-helper type 2 (Th2) cells--interleukin (IL)-4, 10, and 13--respiratory sensitizers may be identified and differentiated from contact sensitizers which induce Th1 cytokines (IL-2 and IFN-γ). Our previous work suggested that the ribonuclease protection assay (RPA) was useful in identifying the respiratory sensitizer, trimellitic anhydride (TMA), based on quantitative differences in Th2 cytokine mRNA as compared to the contact sensitizer dinitrochlorobenzene (DNCB). Therefore, the purpose of the studies described in this report was to expand the chemicals tested in the RPA. To this end, four acid anhydrides with known respiratory sensitization potential, TMA, maleic anhydride (MA), phthalic anhydride (PA) and hexahydrophthalic anhydride (HHPA), were tested. Although previously determined to induce immunologically equivalent responses in a local lymph node assay (LLNA), the initial dose chosen (2.5%) failed to induce Th2 cytokine mRNA expression. To determine if the lack of cytokine expression was related to dose, LLNAs were conducted at higher doses for each of the anhydrides. The highest doses evaluated (four- to six-fold higher than those used in the initial RPA) gave equivalent proliferative responses for the various anhydrides and were used for subsequent RPA testing. At these higher doses, significant increases in Th2 versus Th1 cytokine mRNA were observed for all anhydrides tested. These results suggest that the RPA has the potential to serve as a screen for the detection of LMW airway sensitizing chemicals. However, the basis for selecting immunologically equivalent doses may require some modification

Comparative study on fashion & textile design higher education system, Pakistan vs UK

Science.gov (United States)

Hameed, Umer; Umer, Saima

2017-10-01

of higher education and it also highlight the different pathway that leads to the different type of man power in this domain. Presented research will focus on the study of different modules of textile & Apparel Design Higher Education in Pakistan & UK. Its relation and comparison will be an important area of study. Research work document the Educational modules, its implementation and impact on industry. Afterwards this data was used for comparative study between higher education systems in Textile & Fashion Design

Male circumcision decreases penile sensitivity as measured in a large cohort.

Science.gov (United States)

Bronselaer, Guy A; Schober, Justine M; Meyer-Bahlburg, Heino F L; T'Sjoen, Guy; Vlietinck, Robert; Hoebeke, Piet B

2013-05-01

later indicated less sexual pleasure at the glans penis, and a higher percentage of them reported discomfort or pain and unusual sensations at the penile shaft. This study confirms the importance of the foreskin for penile sensitivity, overall sexual satisfaction, and penile functioning. Furthermore, this study shows that a higher percentage of circumcised men experience discomfort or pain and unusual sensations as compared with the uncircumcised population. Before circumcision without medical indication, adult men, and parents considering circumcision of their sons, should be informed of the importance of the foreskin in male sexuality. © 2013 BJU International.

Systematic comparative and sensitivity analyses of additive and outranking techniques for supporting impact significance assessments

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cloquell-Ballester, Vicente-Agustin; Monterde-Diaz, Rafael; Cloquell-Ballester, Victor-Andres; Santamarina-Siurana, Maria-Cristina

2007-01-01

Assessing the significance of environmental impacts is one of the most important and all together difficult processes of Environmental Impact Assessment. This is largely due to the multicriteria nature of the problem. To date, decision techniques used in the process suffer from two drawbacks, namely the problem of compensation and the problem of identification of the 'exact boundary' between sub-ranges. This article discusses these issues and proposes a methodology for determining the significance of environmental impacts based on comparative and sensitivity analyses using the Electre TRI technique. An application of the methodology for the environmental assessment of a Power Plant project within the Valencian Region (Spain) is presented, and its performance evaluated. It is concluded that contrary to other techniques, Electre TRI automatically identifies those cases where allocation of significance categories is most difficult and, when combined with sensitivity analysis, offers greatest robustness in the face of variation in weights of the significance attributes. Likewise, this research demonstrates the efficacy of systematic comparison between Electre TRI and sum-based techniques, in the solution of assignment problems. The proposed methodology can therefore be regarded as a successful aid to the decision-maker, who will ultimately take the final decision

Comparative seed germination traits in alpine and subalpine grasslands: higher elevations are associated with warmer germination temperatures.

Science.gov (United States)

Fernández-Pascual, E; Jiménez-Alfaro, B; Bueno, Á

2017-01-01

Seed germination traits in alpine grasslands are poorly understood, despite the sensitivity of these communities to climate change. We hypothesise that germination traits predict species occurrence along the alpine-subalpine elevation gradient. Phylogenetic comparative analyses were performed using fresh seeds of 22 species from alpine and subalpine grasslands (1600-2400 m) of the Cantabrian Mountains, Spain (43° N, 5° W). Laboratory experiments were conducted to characterise germinability, optimum germination temperature and effect of cold and warm stratification on dormancy breaking. Variability in these traits was reduced by phylogenetic principal component analysis (phyl.PCA). Phylogenetic generalised least squares regression (PGLS) was used to fit a model in which species average elevation was predicted from their position on the PCA axes. Most subalpine species germinated in snow-like conditions, whereas most alpine species needed accumulation of warm temperatures. Phylogenetic signal was low. PCA1 ordered species according to overall germinability, whilst PCA2 ordered them according to preference for warm or cold germination. PCA2 significantly predicted species occurrence in the alpine-subalpine gradient, as higher elevation species tended to have warmer germination preferences. Our results show that germination traits in high-mountain grasslands are closely linked to the alpine-subalpine gradient. Alpine species, especially those from stripped and wind-edge communities, prefer warmer germination niches, suggesting that summer emergence prevents frost damage during seedling establishment. In contrast, alpine snowfield and subalpine grassland plants have cold germination niches, indicating that winter emergence may occur under snow to avoid drought stress. © 2016 German Botanical Society and The Royal Botanical Society of the Netherlands.

Fast and sensitive taxonomic classification for metagenomics with Kaiju

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Menzel, Peter; Ng, Kim Lee; Krogh, Anders

2016-01-01

heuristic. We show in a genome exclusion study that Kaiju can classify more reads with higher sensitivity and similar precision compared to fast k-mer based classifiers, especially in genera that are underrepresented in reference databases. We also demonstrate that Kaiju classifies more than twice as many...... reads in ten real metagenomes compared to programs based on genomic k-mers. Kaiju can process up to millions of reads per minute, and its memory footprint is below 5 GB of RAM, allowing the analysis on a standard PC. The program is available under the GPL3 license at: github.com/bioinformatics-centre/kaiju...

Teaching religions in Indonesia Islamic Higher education: from comparative religion to Religious Studies

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Media Zainul Bahri

2014-12-01

Full Text Available This article focuses on how the study of Comparative Religion conducted in Indonesian Islamic higher institutions, i.e. on both UIN Yogyakarta and Jakartasince the beginning of the New Order (1960s to Reform era (2014. The focus of the study was on models/approaches and main issues. In general, for more than half a century, the comparative study of religion is not been done for academic purposes an sich. Just within the new last decade that theoretical studies of Comparative Religion began developed. Another important thing that the study of Comparative Religion in Indonesia, although mostly referring to the methodological sources of the West and the Middle East, but ithas always been associated with religious and cultural context of Indonesia.Therefore, the study on both UIN Yogyakarta and Jakarta always deliver courseson religions that live in Indonesia alongside with Indonesian contemporary issues. In the reform era, though still using Comparative Religion’s term, butit looks religious studies such as used in the West. Thus, its “form” or “clothes”is Comparative Religion but it is religious studies. Artikel ini fokus pada bagaimana studi Perbandingan Agama yang dilakukan di lembaga-lembaga pendidikan tinggi Islam Indonesia, yaitu pada UIN Yogyakarta dan Jakarta sejak awal Orde Baru (1960 Reformasi era (2014. Fokus penelitian adalah pada model/pendekatan dan isu-isu utama. Secara umum, selama lebih dari setengah abad, studi perbandingan agama tidak dilakukan untuk tujuan akademik an sich. Hanya dalam dekade terakhir studi teoritis Perbandingan Agama mulai dikembangkan. Hal lain yang penting bahwa studi Perbandingan Agama di Indonesia, meskipun sebagian besar mengacu padasumber-sumber metodologi Barat dan Timur Tengah, tetapi selalu dikaitkan dengan konteks agama dan budaya Indonesia. Oleh karena itu, penelitian pada kedua UIN Yogyakarta dan Jakarta selalu memberikan kursus tentang agamayang hidup di Indonesia bersama dengan isu

A study of the enhanced sensitizing capacity of a contact allergen in lipid vesicle formulations

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Simonsson, Carl; Madsen, Jakob Torp; Graneli, Annette

2011-01-01

, an indicator of a compounds sensitizing capacity, increased when RBITC was applied in lipid vesicles as compared to an ethanol:water (Et:W) solution. Micro-scale vesicles showed a slightly higher cell proliferative response compared to nano-scale vesicles. TPM imaging revealed that the vesicle formulations...... improved the skin penetration of RBITC compared to the Et:W solution. A strong fluorescent region in the stratum corneum and upper epidermis implies elevated association of RBITC to these skin layers when formulated in lipid vesicles. In conclusion, the results indicate that there could be an elevated risk...... of sensitization when haptens are delivered in vehicles containing lipid vesicles. Although the size of the vesicles seems to be of minor importance, further studies are needed before a more generalized conclusion can be drawn. It is likely that the enhanced sensitizing capacity is a consequence of the improved...

Time-dependent climate sensitivity and the legacy of anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions.

Science.gov (United States)

Zeebe, Richard E

2013-08-20

Climate sensitivity measures the response of Earth's surface temperature to changes in forcing. The response depends on various climate processes that feed back on the initial forcing on different timescales. Understanding climate sensitivity is fundamental to reconstructing Earth's climatic history as well as predicting future climate change. On timescales shorter than centuries, only fast climate feedbacks including water vapor, lapse rate, clouds, and snow/sea ice albedo are usually considered. However, on timescales longer than millennia, the generally higher Earth system sensitivity becomes relevant, including changes in ice sheets, vegetation, ocean circulation, biogeochemical cycling, etc. Here, I introduce the time-dependent climate sensitivity, which unifies fast-feedback and Earth system sensitivity. I show that warming projections, which include a time-dependent climate sensitivity, exhibit an enhanced feedback between surface warming and ocean CO2 solubility, which in turn leads to higher atmospheric CO2 levels and further warming. Compared with earlier studies, my results predict a much longer lifetime of human-induced future warming (23,000-165,000 y), which increases the likelihood of large ice sheet melting and major sea level rise. The main point regarding the legacy of anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions is that, even if the fast-feedback sensitivity is no more than 3 K per CO2 doubling, there will likely be additional long-term warming from slow climate feedbacks. Time-dependent climate sensitivity also helps explaining intense and prolonged warming in response to massive carbon release as documented for past events such as the Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum.

The prevalence of coeliac disease is significantly higher in children compared with adults.

Science.gov (United States)

Mariné, M; Farre, C; Alsina, M; Vilar, P; Cortijo, M; Salas, A; Fernández-Bañares, F; Rosinach, M; Santaolalla, R; Loras, C; Marquès, T; Cusí, V; Hernández, M I; Carrasco, A; Ribes, J; Viver, J M; Esteve, M

2011-02-01

Some limited studies of coeliac disease have shown higher frequency of coeliac disease in infancy and adolescence than in adulthood. This finding has remained unnoticed and not adequately demonstrated. To assess whether there are age and gender differences in coeliac disease prevalence. A total of 4230 subjects were included consecutively (1 to ≥80 years old) reproducing the reference population by age and gender. Sample size was calculated assuming a population-based coeliac disease prevalence of 1:250. After an interim analysis, the paediatric sample was expanded (2010 children) due to high prevalence in this group. Anti-transglutaminase and antiendomysial antibodies were determined and duodenal biopsy was performed if positive. Log-linear models were fitted to coeliac disease prevalence by age allowing calculation of percentage change of prevalence. Differences between groups were compared using Chi-squared test. Twenty-one subjects had coeliac disease (male/female 1:2.5). Coeliac disease prevalence in the total population was 1:204. Coeliac disease prevalence was higher in children (1:71) than in adults (1:357) (P = 0.00005). A significant decrease of prevalence in older generations was observed [change of prevalence by age of -5% (95% CI: -7.58 to -2.42%)]. In the paediatric expanded group (1-14 years), a decrease of coeliac disease prevalence was also observed [prevalence change: -17% (95% CI: -25.02 to -6.10)]. The prevalence of coeliac disease in childhood was five times higher than in adults. Whether this difference is due to environmental factors influencing infancy, or latency of coeliac disease in adulthood, remains to be demonstrated in prospective longitudinal studies. © 2010 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

Selective Intercultural Sensitivity to Different Sources of Cultural Identity: Study of Intercultural Sensitivity of Students at Teacher Education Programs of Georgia

Science.gov (United States)

Tabatadze, Shalva; Gorgadze, Natia

2018-01-01

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to assess the intercultural sensitivity of students in teacher educational programs at higher education institutes (HEIs) in Georgia. Design/methodology/approach: This research explored the intercultural sensitivity among 355 randomly selected students in teacher education programs at higher education…

Differential regulation of proton-sensitive ion channels by phospholipids: a comparative study between ASICs and TRPV1.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hae-Jin Kweon

Full Text Available Protons are released in pain-generating pathological conditions such as inflammation, ischemic stroke, infection, and cancer. During normal synaptic activities, protons are thought to play a role in neurotransmission processes. Acid-sensing ion channels (ASICs are typical proton sensors in the central nervous system (CNS and the peripheral nervous system (PNS. In addition to ASICs, capsaicin- and heat-activated transient receptor potential vanilloid 1 (TRPV1 channels can also mediate proton-mediated pain signaling. In spite of their importance in perception of pH fluctuations, the regulatory mechanisms of these proton-sensitive ion channels still need to be further investigated. Here, we compared regulation of ASICs and TRPV1 by membrane phosphoinositides, which are general cofactors of many receptors and ion channels. We observed that ASICs do not require membrane phosphatidylinositol 4-phosphate (PI(4P or phosphatidylinositol 4,5-bisphosphate (PI(4,5P2 for their function. However, TRPV1 currents were inhibited by simultaneous breakdown of PI(4P and PI(4,5P2. By using a novel chimeric protein, CF-PTEN, that can specifically dephosphorylate at the D3 position of phosphatidylinositol 3,4,5-trisphosphate (PI(3,4,5P3, we also observed that neither ASICs nor TRPV1 activities were altered by depletion of PI(3,4,5P3 in intact cells. Finally, we compared the effects of arachidonic acid (AA on two proton-sensitive ion channels. We observed that AA potentiates the currents of both ASICs and TRPV1, but that they have different recovery aspects. In conclusion, ASICs and TRPV1 have different sensitivities toward membrane phospholipids, such as PI(4P, PI(4,5P2, and AA, although they have common roles as proton sensors. Further investigation about the complementary roles and respective contributions of ASICs and TRPV1 in proton-mediated signaling is necessary.

Hypermutability of a UV-sensitive aphidicolin-resistant mutant of Chinese hamster fibroblasts

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Liu, P.K.; Chang, C.; Trosko, J.E.

1982-01-01

An ultraviolet light (UV)-sensitive thymidine auxotroph of Chinese hamster V79 cells that exhibits pleiotropic effects such as a high level of deoxycytidine triphosphate, slow growth, sensitivity to cytidine, and high frequencies of site-specific bromodeoxyuridine-dependent chromosomal aberrations was selected by its resistance to aphidicolin. The UV-induced mutability of this mutant and one of its revertants, which retains some of the phenotypes listed above, was studied in 3 mutation assay systems. The results showed that the mutant was hypermutable for ouabain and diphtheria-toxin-resistant mutations compared to wild-type V79 cells at the same UV dose or the same survival level. The mutant exhibits a delayed expression of maximal frequency of induced 6-thioguanine-resistant mutants. When maximal frequencies are compared at the same UV dose, the mutant also has higher mutation frequencies at the hypoxanthine-guanine phosphoribosyl transferase locus. The revertant was similar to the wild-type in UV sensitivity and mutability. (orig./AJ)

Relationship between Inflammation markers, Coagulation Activation and Impaired Insulin Sensitivity in Obese Healthy Women

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Soliman, S.Et; Shousha, M.A.

2011-01-01

Obesity, insulin resistance syndrome, and atherosclerosis are closely linked phenomena, often connected with a chronic low grade inflammatory state and pro thrombotic hypo fibrinolytic condition. This study investigated the relationship between impaired insulin sensitivity and selected markers of inflammation and thrombin generation in obese healthy women. The study included 36 healthy obese women (body mass index ≥ 30), with normal insulin sensitivity (NIS, n = 18) or impaired insulin sensitivity (IIS, n 18), and 10 non obese women (body mass index < 25).Impaired insulin sensitivity patients had significantly higher levels of high sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP), transforming growth factor -β1(TGF-β1), plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 (PAI-1), activated factor VII (VIIa), and prothrombin fragments 1 + 2 (F1 + 2) compared with either control subjects or normal insulin sensitivity patients. On the other hand, NIS patients had higher hs-CRP, TGF-β1, PAI-1, and factor VIIa, but not F1 + 2, levels than controls. Significant inverse correlations were observed between the insulin sensitivity index and TGF-β1, hs-CRP, PAI-1; factor VIIa, and F1 + 2 levels. Moreover, significant direct correlations were noted between TGF-β1 and CRP, PAI-1, factor VIIa, and F1 + 2 concentrations. Finally, multiple regressions revealed that TGF-β1 and the insulin sensitivity index were independently related to F1 + 2. These results document an in vivo relationship between insulin sensitivity and coagulation activation in obesity. Here we report that obesity is associated with higher TGF-β, PAI-1, prothrombin fragments 1 and 2 (F1 + 2), and activated factor VII (VIIa) plasma levels, and that insulin resistance exacerbates these alterations. The elevated TGF-β1 levels detected in the obese population may provide a biochemical link between insulin resistance and an increased risk for cardiovascular disease

High sensitivity, high surface area Enzyme-linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA).

Science.gov (United States)

Singh, Harpal; Morita, Takahiro; Suzuki, Yuma; Shimojima, Masayuki; Le Van, An; Sugamata, Masami; Yang, Ming

2015-01-01

Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISA) are considered the gold standard in the demonstration of various immunological reactions with an application in the detection of infectious diseases such as during outbreaks or in patient care. This study aimed to produce an ELISA-based diagnostic with an increased sensitivity of detection compared to the standard 96-well method in the immunologic diagnosis of infectious diseases. A '3DStack' was developed using readily available, low cost fabrication technologies namely nanoimprinting and press stamping with an increased surface area of 4 to 6 times more compared to 96-well plates. This was achieved by stacking multiple nanoimprinted polymer sheets. The flow of analytes between the sheets was enhanced by rotating the 3DStack and confirmed by Finite-Element (FE) simulation. An Immunoglobulin G (IgG) ELISA for the detection of antibodies in human serum raised against Rubella virus was performed for validation. An improved sensitivity of up to 1.9 folds higher was observed using the 3DStack compared to the standard method. The increased surface area of the 3DStack developed using nanoimprinting and press stamping technologies, and the flow pattern between sheets generated by rotating the 3DStack were potential contributors to a more sensitive ELISA-based diagnostic device.

Increased insulin sensitivity in intrauterine growth retarded newborns--do thyroid hormones play a role?

Science.gov (United States)

Setia, Sajita; Sridhar, M G; Koner, B C; Bobby, Zachariah; Bhat, Vishnu; Chaturvedula, Lata

2007-02-01

Thyroid hormones are necessary for normal brain development. We studied thyroid hormone profile and insulin sensitivity in intrauterine growth retarded (IUGR) newborns to find correlation between insulin sensitivity and thyroid status in IUGR newborns. Fifty IUGR and fifty healthy control infants were studied at birth. Cord blood was collected for determination of T(3), T(4), TSH, glucose and insulin levels. IUGR newborns had significantly lower insulin, mean+/-S.D., 5.25+/-2.81 vs. 11.02+/-1.85microU/ml, but significantly higher insulin sensitivity measured as glucose to insulin ratio (G/I), 9.80+/-2.91 vs. 6.93+/-1.08 compared to healthy newborns. TSH was also significantly higher 6.0+/-2.70 vs. 2.99+/-1.05microU/ml with significantly lower T(4), 8.65+/-1.95 vs. 9.77+/-2.18microg/dl, but similar T(3) levels, 100.8+/-24.36 vs. 101.45+/-23.45ng/dl. On stepwise linear regression analysis in IUGR infants, insulin sensitivity was found to have a significant negative association with T(4) and significant positive association with TSH. Thyroid hormones may play a role in increased insulin sensitivity at birth in IUGR.

Comparative analysis of DNA methylation polymorphism in drought sensitive (HPKC2) and tolerant (HPK4) genotypes of horse Gram (Macrotyloma uniflorum).

Science.gov (United States)

Bhardwaj, Jyoti; Mahajan, Monika; Yadav, Sudesh Kumar

2013-08-01

DNA methylation is known as an epigenetic modification that affects gene expression in plants. Variation in CpG methylation behavior was studied in two natural horse gram (Macrotyloma uniflorum [Lam.] Verdc.) genotypes, HPKC2 (drought-sensitive) and HPK4 (drought-tolerant). The methylation pattern in both genotypes was studied through methylation-sensitive amplified polymorphism. The results revealed that methylation was higher in HPKC2 (10.1%) than in HPK4 (8.6%). Sequencing demonstrated sequence homology with the DRE binding factor (cbf1), the POZ/BTB protein, and the Ty1-copia retrotransposon among some of the polymorphic fragments showing alteration in methylation behavior. Differences in DNA methylation patterns could explain the differential drought tolerance and the epigenetic signature of these two horse gram genotypes.

Towards a Theoretical Framework for the Comparative Understanding of Globalisation, Higher Education, the Labour Market and Inequality

Science.gov (United States)

Kupfer, Antonia

2011-01-01

This paper is a theoretical examination of three major empirical trends that affect many people: globalisation, increasingly close relations between higher education (HE) and labour markets, and increasing social inequality. Its aim is to identify key theoretical resources and their contribution to the development of a comparative theoretical…

Higher cardiovascular disease prevalence and mortality among younger blacks compared to whites.

Science.gov (United States)

Jolly, Stacey; Vittinghoff, Eric; Chattopadhyay, Arpita; Bibbins-Domingo, Kirsten

2010-09-01

Blacks have higher rates of cardiovascular disease than whites. The age at which these differential rates emerge has not been fully examined. We examined cardiovascular disease prevalence and mortality among black and white adults across the adult age spectrum and explored potential mediators of these differential disease prevalence rates. We conducted a cross-sectional analysis of National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey data from 1999-2006. We estimated age-adjusted and age-specific prevalence ratios (PR) for cardiovascular disease (heart failure, stroke, or myocardial infarction) for blacks versus whites in adults aged 35 years and older and examined potential explanatory factors. From the National Compressed Mortality File 5-year aggregate file of 1999-2003, we determined age-specific cardiovascular disease mortality rates. In young adulthood, cardiovascular disease prevalence was higher in blacks than whites (35-44 years PR 1.9; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.1-3.4). The black-white PR decreased with each decade of advancing age (P for trend=.04), leading to a narrowing of the racial gap at older ages (65-74 years PR 1.2; 95% CI, 0.8-1.6; > or =75 years PR 1.0; 95% CI, 0.7-1.4). Clinical and socioeconomic factors mediated some, but not all, of the excess cardiovascular disease prevalence among young to middle-aged blacks. Over a quarter (28%) of all cardiovascular disease deaths among blacks occurred in those aged <65 years, compared with 13% among whites. Reducing black/white disparities in cardiovascular disease will require a focus on young and middle-aged blacks.

Low-threshold potassium currents stabilize IID-sensitivity in the inferior colliculus.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Anita eKarcz

2012-08-01

Full Text Available The inferior colliculus (IC is a midbrain nucleus that exhibits sensitivity to differences in interaural time and intensity (ITDs and IIDs and integrates information from the auditory brainstem to provide an unambiguous representation of sound location across the azimuth. Further upstream, in the lateral superior olive (LSO, absence of low-threshold potassium currents in Kcna1-/- mice interfered with response onset timing and restricted IID-sensitivity to the hemifield of the excitatory ear. Assuming the IID-sensitivity in the IC to be at least partly inherited from LSO neurons, the IC IID-encoding was compared between wild-type (Kcna1+/+ and Kcna1-/- mice. We asked whether the effect observed in the Kcna1-/- LSO was (I simply propagated into the IC, (II is enhanced and amplified or, (III alternatively, was compensated and so no longer detectable. Our results show that general IC response properties as well as the distribution of IID-functions were comparable in Kcna1-/- and Kcna1+/+ mice. In agreement with the literature IC neurons exhibited a higher level-invariance of IID-sensitivity compared to LSO neurons. However, manipulating the timing between the inputs of the two ears caused significantly larger shifts of IID-sensitivity in Kcna1-/- mice, whereas in the wild-type IC the IID functions were stable and less sensitive to changes of the temporal relationship between the binaural inputs. We conclude that the IC not only inherits IID-sensitivity from the LSO, but that the convergence with other, non-olivary inputs in the wild-type IC acts to quality-control, consolidate and stabilize IID representation; this necessary integration of inputs is impaired in the absence of the low-threshold potassium currents mediated by Kv1.1.

Comparative Analysis of Intercultural Sensitivity among Teachers Working with Refugees

Science.gov (United States)

Strekalova-Hughes, Ekaterina

2017-01-01

The unprecedented global refugee crisis and the accompanying political discourse places added pressures on teachers working with children who are refugees in resettling countries. Given the increased chances of having a refugee child in one's classroom, it is critical to explore how interculturally sensitive teachers are and if working with…

Comparative analysis of methicillin-sensitive and resistant Staphylococcus aureus exposed to emodin based on proteomic profiling.

Science.gov (United States)

Ji, Xiaoyu; Liu, Xiaoqiang; Peng, Yuanxia; Zhan, Ruoting; Xu, Hui; Ge, Xijin

2017-12-09

Emodin has a strong antibacterial activity, including methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). However, the mechanism by which emodin induces growth inhibition against MRSA remains unclear. In this study, the isobaric tags for relative and absolute quantitation (iTRAQ) proteomics approach was used to investigate the modes of action of emodin on a MRSA isolate and methicillin-sensitive S. aureus ATCC29213(MSSA). Proteomic analysis showed that expression levels of 145 and 122 proteins were changed significantly in MRSA and MSSA, respectively, after emodin treatment. Comparative analysis of the functions of differentially expressed proteins between the two strains was performed via bioinformatics tools blast2go and STRING database. Proteins related to pyruvate pathway imbalance induction, protein synthesis inhibition, and DNA synthesis suppression were found in both methicillin-sensitive and resistant strains. Moreover, Interference proteins related to membrane damage mechanism were also observed in MRSA. Our findings indicate that emodin is a potential antibacterial agent targeting MRSA via multiple mechanisms. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Higher transport and metabolism of glucose in astrocytes compared with neurons: a multiphoton study of hippocampal and cerebellar tissue slices.

Science.gov (United States)

Jakoby, Patrick; Schmidt, Elke; Ruminot, Iván; Gutiérrez, Robin; Barros, L Felipe; Deitmer, Joachim W

2014-01-01

Glucose is the most important energy substrate for the brain, and its cellular distribution is a subject of great current interest. We have employed fluorescent glucose probes, the 2-deoxy-D-glucose derivates 6- and 2-([N-(7-nitrobenz-2-oxa-1,3-diazol-4-yl) amino]-2-deoxy-D-glucose) (2-NBDG), to measure transport and metabolism of glucose in acute slices of mouse hippocampus and cerebellum. In the hippocampus, 6-NBDG, which is not metabolized and hence indicates glucose transport, was taken up faster in astrocyte-rich layers (Stratum radiatum [S.r.], Stratum oriens [S.o.]) than in pyramidal cells. Metabolizable 2-NBDG showed larger signals in S.r. and S.o. than in Stratum pyramidale, suggesting faster glucose utilization rate in the astrocyte versus the neuronal compartment. Similarly, we found higher uptake and temperature-sensitive metabolism of 2-NBDG in Bergmann glia when compared with adjacent Purkinje neurons of cerebellar slices. A comparison between 6-NBDG transport and glucose transport in cultured cells using a fluorescence resonance energy transfer nanosensor showed that relative to glucose, 6-NBDG is transported better by neurons than by astrocytes. These results indicate that the preferential transport and metabolism of glucose by glial cells versus neurons proposed for the hippocampus and cerebellum by ourselves (in vitro) and for the barrel cortex by Chuquet et al. (in vivo) is more pronounced than anticipated.

The prevalence of peanut sensitization and the association to pollen sensitization in a cohort of unselected adolescents

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Mørtz, Charlotte G; Andersen, Klaus Ejner; Bindslev-Jensen, Carsten

2005-01-01

In the last decade an increased occurrence of peanut hypersensitivity and severe anaphylactic reactions to peanut have been reported. However, few prevalence studies have been performed in unselected populations. This study evaluated the point prevalence of peanut hypersensitivity in Danish...... adolescents. The point prevalence of peanut allergy confirmed by oral challenge was estimated to 0.5%. The number of adolescents sensitized to peanut by specific immunoglobulin E (IgE) (CAP FEIA) and skin prick test (SPT) were higher (5.8% resp. 3.4%). In adolescents without clinically relevant peanut...... sensitization most cases were sensitized to grass pollen and the IgE class for grass was higher than for peanut. A correlation between peanut and pollen (grass) sensitization is therefore plausible. Before a positive SPT or specific IgE measurement to peanut is considered clinically relevant in a patient...

Reduced Baroreflex Sensitivity in Cluster Headache Patients

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Barloese, Mads C J; Mehlsen, Jesper; Brinth, Louise

2015-01-01

by baroreflex sensitivity (BRS) in CH patients. METHODS: Twenty-six active CH patients and an equal number of age-, sex-, and BMI-matched controls underwent head-up tilt table test and BRS was determined by the sequence method. RESULTS: Compared with controls, patients exhibited a blunted reactivity of RR...... patients who had not (n = 13, 16.0 ms/mmHg, P = .1523). In the tilted position, the drop in SBP at the carotid sinuses was higher in patients who had recently suffered an attack. Despite this, they exhibited a less marked shortening of RR intervals when compared with patients who had been attack free...... of the autonomic nervous system or in the central relay of impulses from the baroreceptors....

Measuring sensitivity in pharmacoeconomic studies. Refining point sensitivity and range sensitivity by incorporating probability distributions.

Science.gov (United States)

Nuijten, M J

1999-07-01

The aim of the present study is to describe a refinement of a previously presented method, based on the concept of point sensitivity, to deal with uncertainty in economic studies. The original method was refined by the incorporation of probability distributions which allow a more accurate assessment of the level of uncertainty in the model. In addition, a bootstrap method was used to create a probability distribution for a fixed input variable based on a limited number of data points. The original method was limited in that the sensitivity measurement was based on a uniform distribution of the variables and that the overall sensitivity measure was based on a subjectively chosen range which excludes the impact of values outside the range on the overall sensitivity. The concepts of the refined method were illustrated using a Markov model of depression. The application of the refined method substantially changed the ranking of the most sensitive variables compared with the original method. The response rate became the most sensitive variable instead of the 'per diem' for hospitalisation. The refinement of the original method yields sensitivity outcomes, which greater reflect the real uncertainty in economic studies.

The selectively bred high alcohol sensitivity (HAS) and low alcohol sensitivity (LAS) rats differ in sensitivity to nicotine.

Science.gov (United States)

de Fiebre, NancyEllen C; Dawson, Ralph; de Fiebre, Christopher M

2002-06-01

Studies in rodents selectively bred to differ in alcohol sensitivity have suggested that nicotine and ethanol sensitivities may cosegregate during selective breeding. This suggests that ethanol and nicotine sensitivities may in part be genetically correlated. Male and female high alcohol sensitivity (HAS), control alcohol sensitivity, and low alcohol sensitivity (LAS) rats were tested for nicotine-induced alterations in locomotor activity, body temperature, and seizure activity. Plasma and brain levels of nicotine and its primary metabolite, cotinine, were measured in these animals, as was the binding of [3H]cytisine, [3H]epibatidine, and [125I]alpha-bungarotoxin in eight brain regions. Both replicate HAS lines were more sensitive to nicotine-induced locomotor activity depression than the replicate LAS lines. No consistent HAS/LAS differences were seen on other measures of nicotine sensitivity; however, females were more susceptible to nicotine-induced seizures than males. No HAS/LAS differences in nicotine or cotinine levels were seen, nor were differences seen in the binding of nicotinic ligands. Females had higher levels of plasma cotinine and brain nicotine than males but had lower brain cotinine levels than males. Sensitivity to a specific action of nicotine cosegregates during selective breeding for differential sensitivity to a specific action of ethanol. The differential sensitivity of the HAS/LAS rats is due to differences in central nervous system sensitivity and not to pharmacokinetic differences. The differential central nervous system sensitivity cannot be explained by differences in the numbers of nicotinic receptors labeled in ligand-binding experiments. The apparent genetic correlation between ethanol and nicotine sensitivities suggests that common genes modulate, in part, the actions of both ethanol and nicotine and may explain the frequent coabuse of these agents.

Context Sensitive Modeling of Cancer Drug Sensitivity.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Bo-Juen Chen

Full Text Available Recent screening of drug sensitivity in large panels of cancer cell lines provides a valuable resource towards developing algorithms that predict drug response. Since more samples provide increased statistical power, most approaches to prediction of drug sensitivity pool multiple cancer types together without distinction. However, pan-cancer results can be misleading due to the confounding effects of tissues or cancer subtypes. On the other hand, independent analysis for each cancer-type is hampered by small sample size. To balance this trade-off, we present CHER (Contextual Heterogeneity Enabled Regression, an algorithm that builds predictive models for drug sensitivity by selecting predictive genomic features and deciding which ones should-and should not-be shared across different cancers, tissues and drugs. CHER provides significantly more accurate models of drug sensitivity than comparable elastic-net-based models. Moreover, CHER provides better insight into the underlying biological processes by finding a sparse set of shared and type-specific genomic features.

Authors attain comparable or slightly higher rates of citation publishing in an open access journal (CytoJournal compared to traditional cytopathology journals - A five year (2007-2011 experience

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Nora K Frisch

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Background: The era of Open Access (OA publication, a platform which serves to better disseminate scientific knowledge, is upon us, as more OA journals are in existence than ever before. The idea that peer-reviewed OA publication leads to higher rates of citation has been put forth and shown to be true in several publications. This is a significant benefit to authors and is in addition to another relatively less obvious but highly critical component of the OA charter, i.e. retention of the copyright by the authors in the public domain. In this study, we analyzed the citation rates of OA and traditional non-OA publications specifically for authors in the field of cytopathology. Design: We compared the citation patterns for authors who had published in both OA and traditional non-OA peer-reviewed, scientific, cytopathology journals. Citations in an OA publication (CytoJournal were analyzed comparatively with traditional non-OA cytopathology journals (Acta Cytologica, Cancer Cytopathology, Cytopathology, and Diagnostic Cytopathology using the data from web of science citation analysis site (based on which the impact factors (IF are calculated. After comparing citations per publication, as well as a time adjusted citation quotient (which takes into account the time since publication, we also analyzed the statistics after excluding the data for meeting abstracts. Results: Total 28 authors published 314 publications as articles and meeting abstracts (25 authors after excluding the abstracts. The rate of citation and time adjusted citation quotient were higher for OA in the group where abstracts were included (P < 0.05 for both. The rates were also slightly higher for OA than non-OA when the meeting abstracts were excluded, but the difference was statistically insignificant (P = 0.57 and P = 0.45. Conclusion : We observed that for the same author, the publications in the OA journal attained a higher rate of citation than the publications in the

Thermoluminescence in fluorite: sensitization mechanism

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cruz, M.T. da; Watanabe, S.; Mayhugh, M.R.

1974-01-01

The sensitization of the major glow peaks (approximately to 100 and 200 0 C) in fluorite correlates with population of traps causing higher temperature glow peaks. When considered with supralinearity results, it is concluded that either the sensitization results from an increase in trap-filling efficiencies, or the deeper traps are not filled during irradiation

Investigating shape representation using sensitivity to part- and axis-based transformations.

Science.gov (United States)

Denisova, Kristina; Feldman, Jacob; Su, Xiaotao; Singh, Manish

2016-09-01

Part- and axis-based approaches organize shape representations in terms of simple parts and their spatial relationships. Shape transformations that alter qualitative part structure have been shown to be more detectable than those that preserve it. We compared sensitivity to various transformations that change quantitative properties of parts and their spatial relationships, while preserving qualitative part structure. Shape transformations involving changes in length, width, curvature, orientation and location were applied to a small part attached to a larger base of a two-part shape. Increment thresholds were estimated for each transformation using a 2IFC procedure. Thresholds were converted into common units of shape difference to enable comparisons across transformations. Higher sensitivity was consistently found for transformations involving a parameter of a single part (length, width, curvature) than those involving spatial relations between two parts (relative orientation and location), suggesting a single-part superiority effect. Moreover, sensitivity to shifts in part location - a biomechanically implausible shape transformation - was consistently poorest. The influence of region-based geometry was investigated via stereoscopic manipulation of figure and ground. Sensitivity was compared across positive parts (protrusions) and negative parts (indentations) for transformations involving a change in orientation or location. For changes in part orientation (biomechanically plausible), sensitivity was better for positive than negative parts; whereas for changes in part location (biomechanically implausible), no systematic difference was observed. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Identification of contact and respiratory sensitizers using flow cytometry

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Goutet, Michele; Pepin, Elsa; Langonne, Isabelle; Huguet, Nelly; Ban, Masarin

2005-01-01

Identification of the chemicals responsible for respiratory and contact allergies in the industrial area is an important occupational safety issue. This study was conducted in mice to determine whether flow cytometry is an appropriate method to analyze and differentiate the specific immune responses to the respiratory sensitizer trimellitic anhydride (TMA) and to the contact sensitizer dinitrochlorobenzene (DNCB) used at concentrations with comparable immunogenic potential. Mice were exposed twice on the flanks (days 0, 5) to 10% TMA or 1% DNCB and challenged three times on the ears (days 10, 11, 12) with 2.5% TMA or 0.25% DNCB. Flow cytometry analyses were conducted on draining lymph node cells harvested on days 13 and 18. Comparing TMA and DNCB immune responses on day 13, we found obvious differences that persisted for most of them on day 18. An increased proportion of IgE+ cells correlated to total serum IgE level and an enhancement of MHC II molecule expression were observed in the lymph node B lymphocytes from TMA-treated mice. The percentage of IL-4-producing CD4+ lymphocytes and the IL-4 receptor expression were clearly higher following TMA exposure. In contrast, higher proportions of IL-2-producing cells were detected in CD4+ and CD8+ cells from DNCB-treated mice. Both chemicals induced a significant increase in the percentage of IFN-γ-producing cells among CD8+ lymphocytes but to a greater proportion following TMA treatment. In conclusion, this study encourages the use of flow cytometry to discriminate between contact and respiratory sensitizers by identifying divergent expression of immune response parameters

Comparative sensitivity of European native (Anodonta anatina) and exotic (Corbicula fluminea) bivalves to mercury

Science.gov (United States)

Oliveira, Patrícia; Lopes-Lima, Manuel; Machado, Jorge; Guilhermino, Lúcia

2015-12-01

Pollution is believed to be an important factor modulating the competition between exotic invasive bivalves and their native competitors. Thus, the objective of the present study was to compare the sensitivity of the European native Anodonta anatina and the exotic invasive species Corbicula fluminea to mercury, a ubiquitous environmental contaminant of high concern. In laboratory acute bioassays, adult organisms of both species were exposed independently to mercury for 96 h (31-500 μg/L). The criteria indicative of toxicity were mortality and biomarkers of oxidative stress and damage, neurotoxicity, and energy production changes. Mercury induced mortality in A. anatina (72 h-LC10 and 72 h-LC50 of 14.0 μg/L and 49.6 μg/L, respectively) but not in C. fluminea. The ability of C. fluminea to maintaining the shell closed for considerable periods of time when exposed to high concentrations of mercury and the effective activation (up to 63 μg/L) of mechanisms against the oxidative stress caused by mercury may have contributed to its relatively low sensitivity. In the range of concentrations tested, mercury had no significant effects on the other parameters analysed in C. fluminea. Overall, the findings of the present study, suggest that in real scenarios of competition between C. fluminea and A. anatina populations, the presence of mercury may modulate the process, acting in favour of the exotic species because it is less sensitive to this environmental contaminant than the native bivalve. The results of the present study highlight the need of further investigation on the effects of mercury on the competition between exotic invasive species and their native competitors, especially the effects potentially induced by long-term exposure to low concentrations of this metal, the mechanisms involved in the tolerance to mercury-induced stress, and the potential post-exposure recovery of both exotic invasive and native bivalves. This knowledge is most important for

Monte Carlo sensitivity analysis of an Eulerian large-scale air pollution model

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dimov, I.; Georgieva, R.; Ostromsky, Tz.

2012-01-01

Variance-based approaches for global sensitivity analysis have been applied and analyzed to study the sensitivity of air pollutant concentrations according to variations of rates of chemical reactions. The Unified Danish Eulerian Model has been used as a mathematical model simulating a remote transport of air pollutants. Various Monte Carlo algorithms for numerical integration have been applied to compute Sobol's global sensitivity indices. A newly developed Monte Carlo algorithm based on Sobol's quasi-random points MCA-MSS has been applied for numerical integration. It has been compared with some existing approaches, namely Sobol's ΛΠ τ sequences, an adaptive Monte Carlo algorithm, the plain Monte Carlo algorithm, as well as, eFAST and Sobol's sensitivity approaches both implemented in SIMLAB software. The analysis and numerical results show advantages of MCA-MSS for relatively small sensitivity indices in terms of accuracy and efficiency. Practical guidelines on the estimation of Sobol's global sensitivity indices in the presence of computational difficulties have been provided. - Highlights: ► Variance-based global sensitivity analysis is performed for the air pollution model UNI-DEM. ► The main effect of input parameters dominates over higher-order interactions. ► Ozone concentrations are influenced mostly by variability of three chemical reactions rates. ► The newly developed MCA-MSS for multidimensional integration is compared with other approaches. ► More precise approaches like MCA-MSS should be applied when the needed accuracy has not been achieved.

Review on the Gender Sensitive Women Education- Legal Revolution in Higher Education

OpenAIRE

Pradeep M. D

2017-01-01

Education spreads parallel with the life span of a person starting from his birth to death. Education is known to be the instrument which fills human actions with the essence of values, dignity, ethics and human virtues. Life progress along with the process of civilization equipped with social, moral, cultural attributes in the path of education. The Educational system should be gender sensitive to impart knowledge and disseminate skills to the marginalized sections of the society. The countr...

Bipolar Disorder and the TCI: Higher Self-Transcendence in Bipolar Disorder Compared to Major Depression.

Science.gov (United States)

Harley, James A; Wells, J Elisabeth; Frampton, Christopher M A; Joyce, Peter R

2011-01-01

Personality traits are potential endophenotypes for genetic studies of psychiatric disorders. One personality theory which demonstrates strong heritability is Cloninger's psychobiological model measured using the temperament and character inventory (TCI). 277 individuals who completed the TCI questionnaire as part of the South Island Bipolar Study were also interviewed to assess for lifetime psychiatric diagnoses. Four groups were compared, bipolar disorder (BP), type 1 and 2, MDD (major depressive disorder), and nonaffected relatives of a proband with BP. With correction for mood state, total harm avoidance (HA) was higher than unaffected in both MDD and BP groups, but the mood disorder groups did not differ from each other. However, BP1 individuals had higher self-transcendence (ST) than those with MDD and unaffected relatives. HA may reflect a trait marker of mood disorders whereas high ST may be specific to BP. As ST is heritable, genes that affect ST may be of relevance for vulnerability to BP.

Delay discounting, risk-taking, and rejection sensitivity among individuals with Internet and Video Gaming Disorders.

Science.gov (United States)

Weinstein, Aviv; Abu, Hodaya Ben; Timor, Ayelet; Mama, Yaniv

2016-12-01

Background and aims There is a previous evidence for impulsivity in individuals with Internet and Video Gaming Disorders. The aim of this study was to examine whether Internet and video game addictions are associated with experiential delay discounting, risk-taking, and sensitivity to social rejection using computerized tasks and questionnaires. Methods Twenty participants (mean age 24, SD = 1.55) with high score on the Problematic Online Gaming Questionnaire (POGQ) were compared with 20 participants (mean age 24.8, SD = 1.34) with low score on the POGQ. They performed on computerized Balloon Analog Risk Task and Experiential Delay discounting Task (EDT), and filled in the sensitivity to social rejection questionnaire. Results Participants with high POGQ scores had lower measures of delay discounting, higher measures of risk-taking, and higher measures of sensitivity to social rejection compared with participants with low POGQ scores. Discussion The results of this study support the previous evidence of risk-taking and provide new evidence for difficulties in delay discounting and sensitivity to social rejection among those who score high on Internet and video games. Conclusions The results suggest that Internet- and video game-addicted individuals seek immediate gratification and cannot wait for later reward. Furthermore, these individuals spend time in the virtual world, where they feel safe, and avoid social interactions presumably due to fears of social rejection.

Thermoluminescence in fluorite: sensitization mechanism

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Cruz, M.T. da; Watanabe, S; Mayhugh, M R

1974-11-01

The sensitization of the major glow peaks (approximately to 100 and 200/sup 0/ C) in fluorite correlates with population of traps causing higher temperature glow peaks. When considered with supralinearity results, it is concluded that either the sensitization results from an increase in trap-filling efficiencies, or the deeper traps are not filled during irradiation.

A Comparative Assessment of Higher Education Financing in Six Arab Countries

Science.gov (United States)

El-Araby, Ashraf

2011-01-01

This study analyses the policies for financing higher education in six Arab countries: Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco, Syria, and Tunisia. It assesses the adequacy of spending on higher education, the efficiency with which resources are utilized, and the equity implications of resource allocations. Based on six detailed case studies, this…

Refractive Outcomes, Contrast Sensitivity, HOAs, and Patient Satisfaction in Moderate Myopia: Wavefront-Optimized Versus Tissue-Saving PRK.

Science.gov (United States)

Nassiri, Nader; Sheibani, Kourosh; Azimi, Abbas; Khosravi, Farinaz Mahmoodi; Heravian, Javad; Yekta, Abasali; Moghaddam, Hadi Ostadi; Nassiri, Saman; Yasseri, Mehdi; Nassiri, Nariman

2015-10-01

To compare refractive outcomes, contrast sensitivity, higher-order aberrations (HOAs), and patient satisfaction after photorefractive keratectomy for correction of moderate myopia with two methods: tissue saving versus wavefront optimized. In this prospective, comparative study, 152 eyes (80 patients) with moderate myopia with and without astigmatism were randomly divided into two groups: the tissue-saving group (Technolas 217z Zyoptix laser; Bausch & Lomb, Rochester, NY) (76 eyes of 39 patients) or the wavefront-optimized group (WaveLight Allegretto Wave Eye-Q laser; Alcon Laboratories, Inc., Fort Worth, TX) (76 eyes of 41 patients). Preoperative and 3-month postoperative refractive outcomes, contrast sensitivity, HOAs, and patient satisfaction were compared between the two groups. The mean spherical equivalent was -4.50 ± 1.02 diopters. No statistically significant differences were detected between the groups in terms of uncorrected and corrected distance visual acuity and spherical equivalent preoperatively and 3 months postoperatively. No statistically significant differences were seen in the amount of preoperative to postoperative contrast sensitivity changes between the two groups in photopic and mesopic conditions. HOAs and Q factor increased in both groups postoperatively (P = .001), with the tissue-saving method causing more increases in HOAs (P = .007) and Q factor (P = .039). Patient satisfaction was comparable between both groups. Both platforms were effective in correcting moderate myopia with or without astigmatism. No difference in refractive outcome, contrast sensitivity changes, and patient satisfaction between the groups was observed. Postoperatively, the tissue-saving method caused a higher increase in HOAs and Q factor compared to the wavefront-optimized method, which could be due to larger optical zone sizes in the tissue-saving group. Copyright 2015, SLACK Incorporated.

Higher theta and alpha1 coherence when listening to Vedic recitation compared to coherence during Transcendental Meditation practice.

Science.gov (United States)

Travis, Frederick; Parim, Niyazi; Shrivastava, Amrita

2017-03-01

This study compared subjective experiences and EEG patterns in 37 subjects when listening to live Vedic recitation and when practicing Transcendental Meditation (TM). Content analysis of experiences when listening to Vedic recitation yielded three higher-order code. Experiences during Vedic recitation were: (1) deeper than during TM practice; (2) experienced as an inner process; and (3) characterized by lively silence. EEG patterns support these higher-order codes. Theta2 and alpha1 frontal, parietal, and frontal-parietal coherence were significantly higher when listening to Vedic recitation, than during TM practice. Theta2 coherence is seen when attending to internal mental processes. Higher theta2 coherence supports subjects' descriptions that the Vedic recitations were "not external sounds but internal vibrations." Alpha1 coherence is reported during pure consciousness experiences during TM practice. Higher alpha1 coherence supports subjects' descriptions that they "experienced a depth of experience, rarely experienced even during deep TM practice." These data support the utility of listening to Vedic recitation to culture deep inner experiences. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Moral judgment modulation by disgust is bi-directionally moderated by individual sensitivity

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

How Hwee eOng

2014-03-01

Full Text Available Modern theories of moral judgment predict that both conscious reasoning and unconscious emotional influences affect the way people decide about right and wrong. In a series of experiments, we tested the effect of subliminal and conscious priming of disgust facial expressions on moral dilemmas. Trolley-car-type scenarios were used, with subjects rating how acceptable they found the utilitarian course of action to be. On average, subliminal priming of disgust facial expressions resulted in higher rates of utilitarian judgments compared to neutral facial expressions. Further, in replication, we found that individual change in moral acceptability ratings due to disgust priming was modulated by individual sensitivity to disgust, revealing a bi-directional function. Our second replication extended this result to show that the function held for both subliminally and consciously presented stimuli. Combined across these experiments, we show a reliable bi-directional function, with presentation of disgust expression primes to individuals with higher disgust sensitivity resulting in more utilitarian judgments (i.e., number-based and presentations to individuals with lower sensitivity resulting in more deontological judgments (i.e., rules-based. Our results may reconcile previous conflicting reports of disgust modulation of moral judgment by modeling how individual sensitivity to disgust determines the direction and degree of this effect.

Moral judgment modulation by disgust is bi-directionally moderated by individual sensitivity

Science.gov (United States)

Ong, How Hwee; Mullette-Gillman, O’Dhaniel A.; Kwok, Kenneth; Lim, Julian

2014-01-01

Modern theories of moral judgment predict that both conscious reasoning and unconscious emotional influences affect the way people decide about right and wrong. In a series of experiments, we tested the effect of subliminal and conscious priming of disgust facial expressions on moral dilemmas. “Trolley-car”-type scenarios were used, with subjects rating how acceptable they found the utilitarian course of action to be. On average, subliminal priming of disgust facial expressions resulted in higher rates of utilitarian judgments compared to neutral facial expressions. Further, in replication, we found that individual change in moral acceptability ratings due to disgust priming was modulated by individual sensitivity to disgust, revealing a bi-directional function. Our second replication extended this result to show that the function held for both subliminally and consciously presented stimuli. Combined across these experiments, we show a reliable bi-directional function, with presentation of disgust expression primes to individuals with higher disgust sensitivity resulting in more utilitarian judgments (i.e., number-based) and presentations to individuals with lower sensitivity resulting in more deontological judgments (i.e., rules-based). Our results may reconcile previous conflicting reports of disgust modulation of moral judgment by modeling how individual sensitivity to disgust determines the direction and degree of this effect. PMID:24639665

Altered sensitization patterns to sweet food stimuli in patients recovered from anorexia and bulimia nervosa.

Science.gov (United States)

Wagner, Angela; Simmons, Alan N; Oberndorfer, Tyson A; Frank, Guido K W; McCurdy-McKinnon, Danyale; Fudge, Julie L; Yang, Tony T; Paulus, Martin P; Kaye, Walter H

2015-12-30

Recent studies show that higher-order appetitive neural circuitry may contribute to restricted eating in anorexia nervosa (AN) and overeating in bulimia nervosa (BN). The purpose of this study was to determine whether sensitization effects might underlie pathologic eating behavior when a taste stimulus is administered repeatedly. Recovered AN (RAN, n=14) and BN (RBN, n=15) subjects were studied in order to avoid the confounding effects of altered nutritional state. Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) measured higher-order brain response to repeated tastes of sucrose (caloric) and sucralose (non-caloric). To test sensitization, the neuronal response to the first and second administration was compared. RAN patients demonstrated a decreased sensitization to sucrose in contrast to RBN patients who displayed the opposite pattern, increased sensitization to sucrose. However, the latter was not as pronounced as in healthy control women (n=13). While both eating disorder subgroups showed increased sensitization to sucralose, the healthy controls revealed decreased sensitization. These findings could reflect on a neuronal level the high caloric intake of RBN during binges and the low energy intake for RAN. RAN seem to distinguish between high energy and low energy sweet stimuli while RBN do not. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Higher Performance of DSSC with Dyes from Cladophora sp. as Mixed Cosensitizer through Synergistic Effect.

Science.gov (United States)

Lim, Andery; Haji Manaf, Noramaliyana; Tennakoon, Kushan; Chandrakanthi, R L N; Lim, Linda Biaw Leng; Bandara, J M R Sarath; Ekanayake, Piyasiri

2015-01-01

Chlorophyll and xanthophyll dyes extracted from a single source of filamentous freshwater green algae (Cladophora sp.) were used to sensitize dye sensitized solar cells and their performances were investigated. A more positive interaction is expected as the derived dyes come from a single natural source because they work mutually in nature. Cell sensitized with mixed chlorophyll and xanthophyll showed synergistic activity with improved cell performance of 1.5- to 2-fold higher than that sensitized with any individual dye. The effect of temperature and the stability of these dyes were also investigated. Xanthophyll dye was found to be more stable compared to chlorophyll that is attributed in the ability of xanthophyll to dissipate extra energy via reversible structural changes. Mixing the dyes resulted to an increase in effective electron life time and reduced the process of electron recombination during solar cell operation, hence exhibiting a synergistic effect.

Cultivation of shear stress sensitive microorganisms in disposable bag reactor systems.

Science.gov (United States)

Jonczyk, Patrick; Takenberg, Meike; Hartwig, Steffen; Beutel, Sascha; Berger, Ralf G; Scheper, Thomas

2013-09-20

Technical scale (≥5l) cultivations of shear stress sensitive microorganisms are often difficult to perform, as common bioreactors are usually designed to maximize the oxygen input into the culture medium. This is achieved by mechanical stirrers, causing high shear stress. Examples for shear stress sensitive microorganisms, for which no specific cultivation systems exist, are many anaerobic bacteria and fungi, such as basidiomycetes. In this work a disposable bag bioreactor developed for cultivation of mammalian cells was investigated to evaluate its potential to cultivate shear stress sensitive anaerobic Eubacterium ramulus and shear stress sensitive basidiomycetes Flammulina velutipes and Pleurotus sapidus. All cultivations were compared with conventional stainless steel stirred tank reactors (STR) cultivations. Good growth of all investigated microorganisms cultivated in the bag reactor was found. E. ramulus showed growth rates of μ=0.56 h⁻¹ (bag) and μ=0.53 h⁻¹ (STR). Differences concerning morphology, enzymatic activities and growth in fungal cultivations were observed. In the bag reactor growth in form of small, independent pellets was observed while STR cultivations showed intense aggregation. F. velutipes reached higher biomass concentrations (21.2 g l⁻¹ DCW vs. 16.8 g l⁻¹ DCW) and up to 2-fold higher peptidolytic activities in comparison to cell cultivation in stirred tank reactors. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Computer-Assisted, Self-Interviewing (CASI) Compared to Face-to-Face Interviewing (FTFI) with Open-Ended, Non-Sensitive Questions

OpenAIRE

John Fairweather PhD; Tiffany Rinne PhD; Gary Steel PhD

2012-01-01

This article reports results from research on cultural models, and assesses the effects of computers on data quality by comparing open-ended questions asked in two formats—face-to-face interviewing (FTFI) and computer-assisted, self-interviewing (CASI). We expected that for our non-sensitive topic, FTFI would generate fuller and richer accounts because the interviewer could facilitate the interview process. Although the interviewer indeed facilitated these interviews, which resulted in more w...

Comparative DNA microarray analysis of human monocyte derived dendritic cells and MUTZ-3 cells exposed to the moderate skin sensitizer cinnamaldehyde

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Python, Francois; Goebel, Carsten; Aeby, Pierre

2009-01-01

The number of studies involved in the development of in vitro skin sensitization tests has increased since the adoption of the EU 7th amendment to the cosmetics directive proposing to ban animal testing for cosmetic ingredients by 2013. Several studies have recently demonstrated that sensitizers induce a relevant up-regulation of activation markers such as CD86, CD54, IL-8 or IL-1β in human myeloid cell lines (e.g., U937, MUTZ-3, THP-1) or in human peripheral blood monocyte-derived dendritic cells (PBMDCs). The present study aimed at the identification of new dendritic cell activation markers in order to further improve the in vitro evaluation of the sensitizing potential of chemicals. We have compared the gene expression profiles of PBMDCs and the human cell line MUTZ-3 after a 24-h exposure to the moderate sensitizer cinnamaldehyde. A list of 80 genes modulated in both cell types was obtained and a set of candidate marker genes was selected for further analysis. Cells were exposed to selected sensitizers and non-sensitizers for 24 h and gene expression was analyzed by quantitative real-time reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction. Results indicated that PIR, TRIM16 and two Nrf2-regulated genes, CES1 and NQO1, are modulated by most sensitizers. Up-regulation of these genes could also be observed in our recently published DC-activation test with U937 cells. Due to their role in DC activation, these new genes may help to further refine the in vitro approaches for the screening of the sensitizing properties of a chemical.

Quality control of X-ray films with blue spectral sensitivity: comparative study

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Carrasco, F.; Ruiz Cruces, R.; Sendra, F.; Diez de los rios, A.

1994-01-01

In this work, seven X-ray films with blue-ultraviolet spectral sensitivity have been studied by means of light sensitometry, x-ray sensitometry and spatial resolution test. Three screens of different composition and speed were use. Only the films HPX44 and RG showed a high base plus for (>0,30), the remaining films maintained their values between 0,21 and 0,26. When blue light sensitometry was substituted by green light sensitometry, base plus fog practically did not show variations and gradient and speed changed less than 4% and 10% respectively. Speed and Gradient must be calculated from the relation between exposition and optical density, avoiding parameters referred to type optical density of a given step of the wedge. Two films with high speed (RG and HPX 44), four films with medium speed (Curix RP2, NewRX, Cronex 4 and X-Omat S) and one film with low speed but high resolution (Cronex 7) have been found. The obtained results present useful comparative data to select and adequate film according to the characteristic of the x-ray examination and the available screens. (Author)

Comparative study of imaging at 3.0 T versus 1.5 T of the knee

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wong, Scott [University of California, San Francisco, Department of Radiology, San Francisco, CA (United States); University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, Miami, FL (United States); Steinbach, Lynne; Zhao, Jian; Link, Thomas M. [University of California, Department of Radiology, San Francisco, CA (United States); Stehling, Christoph [University of California, Department of Radiology, San Francisco, CA (United States); University of Muenster, Department of Radiology, Muenster (Germany); Ma, C.B. [University of California San Francisco, Department of Orthopedic Surgery, San Francisco, CA (United States)

2009-08-15

The objectives of the study were to compare MR imaging at 1.5 and 3.0 T in the same patients concerning image quality and visualization of cartilage pathology and to assess diagnostic performance using arthroscopy as a standard of reference. Twenty-six patients were identified retrospectively as having comparative 1.5 and 3.0 T MR studies of the knee within an average of 102 days. Standard protocols included T1-weighted and fat-saturated intermediate-weighted fast spin-echo sequences in three planes; sequence parameters had been adjusted to account for differences in relaxation at 3.0 T. Arthroscopy was performed in 19 patients. Four radiologists reviewed each study independently, scored image quality, and analyzed pathological findings. Sensitivities, specificities, and accuracies in diagnosing cartilage lesions were calculated in the 19 patients with arthroscopy, and differences between 1.5 and 3.0 T exams were compared using paired Student's t tests with a significance threshold of p<0.05. Each radiologist scored the 3.0 T studies higher than those obtained at 1.5 T in visualizing anatomical structures and abnormalities (p<0.05). Using arthroscopy as a standard of reference, diagnosis of cartilage abnormalities was improved at 3.0 T with higher sensitivity (75.7% versus 70.6%), accuracy (88.2% versus 86.4%), and correct grading of cartilage lesions (51.3% versus 42.9%). Diagnostic confidence scores were higher at 3.0 than 1.5 T (p<0.05) and signal-to-noise ratio at 3.0 T was approximately twofold higher than at 1.5 T. MRI at 3.0 T improved visualization of anatomical structures and improved diagnostic confidence compared to 1.5 T. This resulted in significantly better sensitivity and grading of cartilage lesions at the knee. (orig.)

Comparative study of imaging at 3.0 T versus 1.5 T of the knee

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wong, Scott; Steinbach, Lynne; Zhao, Jian; Link, Thomas M.; Stehling, Christoph; Ma, C.B.

2009-01-01

The objectives of the study were to compare MR imaging at 1.5 and 3.0 T in the same patients concerning image quality and visualization of cartilage pathology and to assess diagnostic performance using arthroscopy as a standard of reference. Twenty-six patients were identified retrospectively as having comparative 1.5 and 3.0 T MR studies of the knee within an average of 102 days. Standard protocols included T1-weighted and fat-saturated intermediate-weighted fast spin-echo sequences in three planes; sequence parameters had been adjusted to account for differences in relaxation at 3.0 T. Arthroscopy was performed in 19 patients. Four radiologists reviewed each study independently, scored image quality, and analyzed pathological findings. Sensitivities, specificities, and accuracies in diagnosing cartilage lesions were calculated in the 19 patients with arthroscopy, and differences between 1.5 and 3.0 T exams were compared using paired Student's t tests with a significance threshold of p<0.05. Each radiologist scored the 3.0 T studies higher than those obtained at 1.5 T in visualizing anatomical structures and abnormalities (p<0.05). Using arthroscopy as a standard of reference, diagnosis of cartilage abnormalities was improved at 3.0 T with higher sensitivity (75.7% versus 70.6%), accuracy (88.2% versus 86.4%), and correct grading of cartilage lesions (51.3% versus 42.9%). Diagnostic confidence scores were higher at 3.0 than 1.5 T (p<0.05) and signal-to-noise ratio at 3.0 T was approximately twofold higher than at 1.5 T. MRI at 3.0 T improved visualization of anatomical structures and improved diagnostic confidence compared to 1.5 T. This resulted in significantly better sensitivity and grading of cartilage lesions at the knee. (orig.)

The relevance of basophil allergen sensitivity testing to distinguish between severe and mild peanut-allergic children.

Science.gov (United States)

Homšak, Matjaž; Silar, Mira; Berce, Vojko; Tomazin, Maja; Skerbinjek-Kavalar, Maja; Celesnik, Nina; Košnik, Mitja; Korošec, Peter

2013-01-01

Peanut sensitization is common in children. However, it is difficult to assess which children will react mildly and which severely. This study evaluated the relevance of basophil allergen sensitivity testing to distinguish the severity of peanut allergy in children. Twenty-seven peanut-sensitized children with symptoms varying from mild symptoms to severe anaphylaxis underwent peanut CD63 dose-response curve analysis with the inclusion of basophil allergen sensitivity calculation (CD-sens) and peanut component immunoglobulin E (IgE) testing. Eleven children who had experienced anaphylaxis to peanuts showed a markedly higher peanut CD63 response at submaximal allergen concentrations and CD-sens (median 1,667 vs. 0.5; p < 0.0001) than 16 children who experienced a milder reaction. Furthermore, a negative or low CD-sens to peanuts unambiguously excluded anaphylactic peanut allergy. Children with anaphylaxis have higher levels of Ara h 1, 2, 3 and 9 IgE, but comparable levels of IgE to Ara h 8 and whole-peanut extract. The diagnostic specificity calculated with a receiver operating characteristic analysis reached 100% for CD-sens and 73% for Ara h 2. We demonstrated that severe peanut allergy is significantly associated with higher basophil allergen sensitivity. This cellular test should facilitate a more accurate diagnosis of peanut allergy. © 2013 S. Karger AG, Basel.

Women, men and creativity in higher education sector – comparative studies of leading EU and ECE countries

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Anna Zachorowska-Mazurkiewicz

2017-10-01

Full Text Available The focus in the article is on creativity in the higher education sector in terms of gender perspective. The question posed concerns the relation between women’s and men’s patent activities and R&D expenditures. The paper is based on the data from the European Patent Office, 1999-2013 concerning creative activities performed by women and men in the higher education sector. The paper looks into the dynamics of changes in terms of the number of women and men researchers, R&D personnel and inventors, and combines them with the changes in R&D expenditures in the higher education sector. The analysis is conducted for the two groups of leading EU countries in the light of their patent activities. The objective of this exercise is to present the correlation between R&D expenditures and women and men in the R&D sectors, comparing these two groups of the EU countries.

Viability, biofilm formation, and MazEF expression in drug-sensitive and drug-resistant Mycobacterium tuberculosis strains circulating in Xinjiang, China.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhao, Ji-Li; Liu, Wei; Xie, Wan-Ying; Cao, Xu-Dong; Yuan, Li

2018-01-01

Tuberculosis (TB) caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MTB) is one of the most common chronic infectious amphixenotic diseases worldwide. Prevention and control of TB are greatly difficult, due to the increase in drug-resistant TB, particularly multidrug-resistant TB. We speculated that there were some differences between drug-sensitive and drug-resistant MTB strains and that mazEF 3,6,9 toxin-antitoxin systems (TASs) were involved in MTB viability. This study aimed to investigate differences in viability, biofilm formation, and MazEF expression between drug-sensitive and drug-resistant MTB strains circulating in Xinjiang, China, and whether mazEF 3,6,9 TASs contribute to MTB viability under stress conditions. Growth profiles and biofilm-formation abilities of drug-sensitive, drug-resistant MTB strains and the control strain H37Rv were monitored. Using molecular biology experiments, the mRNA expression of the mazF 3, 6, and 9 toxin genes, the mazE 3, 6, and 9 antitoxin genes, and expression of the MazF9 protein were detected in the different MTB strains, H37RvΔ mazEF 3,6,9 mutants from the H37Rv parent strain were generated, and mutant viability was tested. Ex vivo culture analyses demonstrated that drug-resistant MTB strains exhibit higher survival rates than drug-sensitive strains and the control strain H37Rv. However, there was no statistical difference in biofilm-formation ability in the drug-sensitive, drug-resistant, and H37Rv strains. mazE 3,6 mRNA-expression levels were relatively reduced in the drug-sensitive and drug-resistant strains compared to H37Rv. Conversely, mazE 3,9 expression was increased in drug-sensitive strains compared to drug-resistant strains. Furthermore, compared with the H37Rv strain, mazF 3,6 expression was increased in drug-resistant strains, mazF 9 expression was increased in drug-sensitive strains, and mazF 9 exhibited reduced expression in drug-resistant strains compared with drug-sensitive strains. Protein expression of mazF9

Species With Greater Aerial Maneuverability Have Higher Frequency of Collisions With Aircraft: A Comparative Study

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Esteban Fernández-Juricic

2018-03-01

Full Text Available Antipredator responses may appear unsuccessful when animals are exposed to approaching vehicles, often resulting in mortality. Recent studies have addressed whether certain biological traits are associated with variation in collision risk with cars, but not with higher speed-vehicles like aircraft. Our goal was to establish the association between different species traits (i.e., body mass, eye size, brain size, wing loading, wing aspect ratio and the frequency of bird collisions with aircraft (hereafter, bird strikes using a comparative approach controlling for the effects of shared ancestry. We proposed directional predictions as to how each of the species traits would affect the frequency of bird strikes. Considering 39 bird species with all traits represented, the model containing wing loading had the best fit to account for the variance in bird strikes across species. In another model with 54 species exploring the fit to different polynomial models but considering only wing loading, we found that wing loading was negatively and linearly associated with the frequency of bird strikes. Counterintuitively, species with lower wing loading (hence, greater maneuverability had a higher frequency of bird strikes. We discuss potential non-mutually exclusive explanations (e.g., high wing loading species fly faster, thus gaining some extra time to avoid the aircraft flight path; high wing loading species are hazed more intensively at airports, which could lower collisions, etc.. Ultimately, our findings uncovered that species with low wing loading get struck at a higher rate at airports, which reduces the safety risk for humans because these species tend not to cause damaging strikes, but the ecological consequences of their potentially higher local mortality are unknown.

Distance and Campus Universities: Tensions and Interactions. A Comparative Study of Five Countries. Issues in Higher Education Series.

Science.gov (United States)

Guri-Rosenblit, Sarah

This book compares the emergence and development of autonomous, fully fledged distance teaching universities in the higher education systems of the United Kingdom, Germany, Spain, Canada, and Israel. It examines the evolution and functional roles of these universities and outlines their commonalties and divergences. Main lessons are synthesized…

Quality Assurance in an International Higher Education Area: A Summary of a Case-Study Approach and Comparative Analysis

Science.gov (United States)

Bernhard, Andrea

2012-01-01

Transparency and comparability of higher education institutions especially in terms of their academic programmes and research activities are important issues for today's working environment. This paper is an overview of a recently completed PhD thesis which outlines examples of selected Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development…

Sibship size, sibling cognitive sensitivity, and children's receptive vocabulary.

Science.gov (United States)

Prime, Heather; Pauker, Sharon; Plamondon, André; Perlman, Michal; Jenkins, Jennifer

2014-02-01

The aim of the current study was to examine the relationship between sibship size and children's vocabulary as a function of quality of sibling interactions. It was hypothesized that coming from a larger sibship (ie, 3+ children) would be related to lower receptive vocabulary in children. However, we expected this association to be moderated by the level of cognitive sensitivity shown by children's next-in-age older siblings. Data on 385 children (mean age = 3.15 years) and their next-in-age older siblings (mean age = 5.57 years) were collected and included demographic questionnaires, direct testing of children's receptive vocabulary, and videos of mother-child and sibling interactions. Sibling dyads were taped engaging in a cooperative building task and tapes were coded for the amount of cognitive sensitivity the older sibling exhibited toward the younger sibling. Hierarchical regression analyses were conducted and showed an interaction between sibship size and sibling cognitive sensitivity in the prediction of children's receptive vocabulary; children exposed to large sibships whose next-in-age older sibling exhibited higher levels of cognitive sensitivity were less likely to show low vocabulary skills when compared with those children exposed to large sibships whose siblings showed lower levels of cognitive sensitivity. Children who show sensitivity to the cognitive needs of their younger siblings provide a rich environment for language development. The negative impact of large sibships on language development is moderated by the presence of an older sibling who shows high cognitive sensitivity.

Sensitive beam-bunch phase detector

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Takeuchi, S; Shepard, K W

1984-11-15

A sensitive heavy-ion beam-bunch phase detector has been developed by first examining the relationship between the sensitivity of an rf resonant cavity as a particle bunch detector and the shunt impedance of the same cavity as an accelerating structure. Then the various high shunt impedance rf cavities previously developed for accelerating heavy ions were evaluated for use as bunch detectors. A spiral-loaded geometry was chosen, built, and tested with beam. The sensitivity obtained, 14 V per electrical nA of beam, is a factor 3 higher than previously reported. (orig.).

Sensitive beam-bunch phase detector

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Takeuchi, S; Shepard, K W [Argonne National Lab., IL (USA). Physics Div.

1984-11-15

A sensitive heavy-ion beam-bunch phase detector has been developed by first examining the relationship between the sensitivity of an RF resonant cavity as a particle bunch detector and the shunt impedance of the same cavity as an accelerating structure. Then the various high shunt impedance RF cavities previously developed for accelerating heavy ions were evaluated for use as bunch detectors. A spiral-loaded geometry was chosen, built, and tested with beam. The sensitivity obtained, 14 ..mu.. V per electrical nA of beam, is a factor 3 higher than previously reported.

Insulin-Sensitizers, Polycystic Ovary Syndrome and Gynaecological Cancer Risk

Science.gov (United States)

Lauretta, Rosa; Lanzolla, Giulia; Vici, Patrizia; Mariani, Luciano; Moretti, Costanzo

2016-01-01

Preclinical, early phase clinical trials and epidemiological evidence support the potential role of insulin-sensitizers in cancer prevention and treatment. Insulin-sensitizers improve the metabolic and hormonal profile in PCOS patients and may also act as anticancer agents, especially in cancers associated with hyperinsulinemia and oestrogen dependent cancers. Several lines of evidence support the protection against cancer exerted by dietary inositol, in particular inositol hexaphosphate. Metformin, thiazolidinediones, and myoinositol postreceptor signaling may exhibit direct inhibitory effects on cancer cell growth. AMPK, the main molecular target of metformin, is emerging as a target for cancer prevention and treatment. PCOS may be correlated to an increased risk for developing ovarian and endometrial cancer (up to threefold). Several studies have demonstrated an increase in mortality rate from ovarian cancer among overweight/obese PCOS women compared with normal weight women. Long-term use of metformin has been associated with lower rates of ovarian cancer. Considering the evidence supporting a higher risk of gynaecological cancer in PCOS women, we discuss the potential use of insulin-sensitizers as a potential tool for chemoprevention, hypothesizing a possible rationale through which insulin-sensitizers may inhibit tumourigenesis. PMID:27725832

Bromocriptine and insulin sensitivity in lean and obese subjects

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

L Bahler

2016-11-01

Full Text Available Bromocriptine is a glucose-lowering drug, which was shown to be effective in obese subjects with insulin resistance. It is usually administered in the morning. The exact working mechanism of bromocriptine still has to be elucidated. Therefore, in this open-label randomized prospective cross-over mechanistic study, we assessed whether the timing of bromocriptine administration (morning vs evening results in different effects and whether these effects differ between lean and obese subjects. We studied the effect of bromocriptine on insulin sensitivity in 8 lean and 8 overweight subjects using an oral glucose tolerance test. The subjects used bromocriptine in randomized cross-over order for 2 weeks in the morning and 2 weeks in the evening. We found that in lean subjects, bromocriptine administration in the evening resulted in a significantly higher post-prandial insulin sensitivity as compared with the pre-exposure visit (glucose area under the curve (AUC 742 mmol/L * 120 min (695–818 vs 641 (504–750, P = 0.036, AUC for insulin did not change, P = 0.575. In obese subjects, both morning and evening administration of bromocriptine resulted in a significantly higher insulin sensitivity: morning administration in obese: insulin AUC (55,900 mmol/L * 120 min (43,236–96,831 vs 36,448 (25,213–57,711, P = 0.012 and glucose AUC P = 0.069; evening administration in obese: glucose AUC (735 mmol/L * 120 min (614–988 vs 644 (568–829, P = 0.017 and insulin AUC, P = 0.208. In conclusion, bromocriptine increases insulin sensitivity in both lean and obese subjects. In lean subjects, this effect only occurred when bromocriptine was administrated in the evening, whereas in the obese, insulin sensitivity increased independent of the timing of bromocriptine administration.

Cone dystrophy with "supernormal" rod ERG: psychophysical testing shows comparable rod and cone temporal sensitivity losses with no gain in rod function.

Science.gov (United States)

Stockman, Andrew; Henning, G Bruce; Michaelides, Michel; Moore, Anthony T; Webster, Andrew R; Cammack, Jocelyn; Ripamonti, Caterina

2014-02-10

We report a psychophysical investigation of 5 observers with the retinal disorder "cone dystrophy with supernormal rod ERG," caused by mutations in the gene KCNV2 that encodes a voltage-gated potassium channel found in rod and cone photoreceptors. We compared losses for rod- and for cone-mediated vision to further investigate the disorder and to assess whether the supernormal ERG is associated with any visual benefit. L-cone, S-cone, and rod temporal acuity (critical flicker fusion frequency) were measured as a function of target irradiance; L-cone temporal contrast sensitivity was measured as a function of temporal frequency. Temporal acuity measures revealed that losses for vision mediated by rods, S-cones, and L-cones are roughly equivalent. Further, the gain in rod function implied by the supernormal ERG provides no apparent benefit to near-threshold rod-mediated visual performance. The L-cone temporal contrast sensitivity function in affected observers was similar in shape to the mean normal function but only after the mean function was compressed by halving the logarithmic sensitivities. The name of this disorder is potentially misleading because the comparable losses found across rod and cone vision suggest that the disorder is a generalized cone-rod dystrophy. Temporal acuity and temporal contrast sensitivity measures are broadly consistent with the defect in the voltage-gated potassium channel producing a nonlinear distortion of the photoreceptor response but after otherwise normal transduction processes.

Dissociation of in vitro sensitivities of glucose transport and antilipolysis to insulin in NIDDM

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yki-Jaervinen, H.; Kubo, K.; Zawadzki, J.; Lillioja, S.; Young, A.; Abbott, W.; Foley, J.E.

1987-01-01

It is unclear from previous studies whether qualitative or only quantitative differences exist in insulin action in adipocytes obtained from obese subjects with non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM) when compared with equally obese nondiabetic subjects. In addition, the role of changes in insulin binding as a cause of insulin resistance in NIDDM is still controversial. The authors compared the sensitivities of [ 14 C]-glucose transport and antilipolysis to insulin and measured [ 125 I]-insulin binding in abdominal adipocytes obtained from 45 obese nondiabetic, obese diabetic, and 15 nonobese female southwestern American Indians. Compared with the nonobese group, the sensitivities of glucose transport antilipolysis were reduced in both the obese nondiabetic and obese diabetic groups. Compared with the obese nondiabetic subjects, the ED 50 for stimulation of glucose transport was higher in the obese patients with NIDDM. In contrast, the ED 50 S for antilipolysis were similar in obese diabetic patients and obese nondiabetic subjects. No differences was found in insulin binding in patients with NIDDM when compared with the equally obese nondiabetic subjects. These data indicate 1) the mechanism of insulin resistance differs in NIDDM and obesity, and 2) the selective loss of insulin sensitivity in NIDDM precludes changes in insulin binding as a cause of insulin resistance in this disorder

Wavefront-guided versus wavefront-optimized laser in situ keratomileusis: contralateral comparative study.

Science.gov (United States)

Padmanabhan, Prema; Mrochen, Michael; Basuthkar, Subam; Viswanathan, Deepa; Joseph, Roy

2008-03-01

To compare the outcomes of wavefront-guided and wavefront-optimized treatment in fellow eyes of patients having laser in situ keratomileusis (LASIK) for myopia. Medical and Vision Research Foundation, Tamil Nadu, India. This prospective comparative study comprised 27 patients who had wavefront-guided LASIK in 1 eye and wavefront-optimized LASIK in the fellow eye. The Hansatome (Bausch & Lomb) was used to create a superior-hinged flap and the Allegretto laser (WaveLight Laser Technologie AG), for photoablation. The Allegretto wave analyzer was used to measure ocular wavefront aberrations and the Functional Acuity Contrast Test chart, to measure contrast sensitivity before and 1 month after LASIK. The refractive and visual outcomes and the changes in aberrations and contrast sensitivity were compared between the 2 treatment modalities. One month postoperatively, 92% of eyes in the wavefront-guided group and 85% in the wavefront-optimized group had uncorrected visual acuity of 20/20 or better; 93% and 89%, respectively, had a postoperative spherical equivalent refraction of +/-0.50 diopter. The differences between groups were not statistically significant. Wavefront-guided LASIK induced less change in 18 of 22 higher-order Zernike terms than wavefront-optimized LASIK, with the change in positive spherical aberration the only statistically significant one (P= .01). Contrast sensitivity improved at the low and middle spatial frequencies (not statistically significant) and worsened significantly at high spatial frequencies after wavefront-guided LASIK; there was a statistically significant worsening at all spatial frequencies after wavefront-optimized LASIK. Although both wavefront-guided and wavefront-optimized LASIK gave excellent refractive correction results, the former induced less higher-order aberrations and was associated with better contrast sensitivity.

Sensitivity of Billing Claims for Cardiovascular Disease Events among Kidney Transplant Recipients

Science.gov (United States)

Lentine, Krista L.; Schnitzler, Mark A.; Abbott, Kevin C.; Bramesfeld, Kosha; Buchanan, Paula M.; Brennan, Daniel C.

2009-01-01

Background and objectives: Billing claims are increasingly examined beyond administrative functions as outcomes measures in observational research. Few studies have described the performance of billing claims as surrogate measures of clinical events among kidney transplant recipients. Design, setting, participants, & measurements: We investigated the sensitivity of Medicare billing claims for clinically verified cardiovascular diagnoses (five categories) and procedures (four categories) in a novel database linking Medicare claims to electronic medical records of one transplant program. Cardiovascular events identified in medical records for 571 Medicare-insured transplant recipients in 1991 through 2002 served as reference measures. Results: Within a claims-ascertainment period spanning ±30 d of clinically recorded dates, aggregate sensitivity of single claims was higher for case definitions incorporating Medicare Parts A and B for diagnoses and procedures (90.9%) compared with either Part A (82.3%) or Part B (84.6%) alone. Perfect capture of the four procedures was possible within ±30 d or with short claims window expansion, but sensitivity for the diagnoses trended lower with all study algorithms (91.2% with window up to ±90 d). Requirement for additional confirmatory diagnosis claims did not appreciably reduce sensitivity. Sensitivity patterns were similar in the early compared with late periods of the study. Conclusions: Combined use of Medicare Parts A and B billing claims composes a sensitive measure of cardiovascular events after kidney transplant. Further research is needed to define algorithms that maximize specificity as well as sensitivity of claims from Medicare and other insurers as research measures in this population. PMID:19541817

A High-Sensitivity Current Sensor Utilizing CrNi Wire and Microfiber Coils

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Xiaodong Xie

2014-05-01

Full Text Available We obtain an extremely high current sensitivity by wrapping a section of microfiber on a thin-diameter chromium-nickel wire. Our detected current sensitivity is as high as 220.65 nm/A2 for a structure length of only 35 μm. Such sensitivity is two orders of magnitude higher than the counterparts reported in the literature. Analysis shows that a higher resistivity or/and a thinner diameter of the metal wire may produce higher sensitivity. The effects of varying the structure parameters on sensitivity are discussed. The presented structure has potential for low-current sensing or highly electrically-tunable filtering applications.

A Sensitive Dynamic and Active Pixel Vision Sensor for Color or Neural Imaging Applications.

Science.gov (United States)

Moeys, Diederik Paul; Corradi, Federico; Li, Chenghan; Bamford, Simeon A; Longinotti, Luca; Voigt, Fabian F; Berry, Stewart; Taverni, Gemma; Helmchen, Fritjof; Delbruck, Tobi

2018-02-01

Applications requiring detection of small visual contrast require high sensitivity. Event cameras can provide higher dynamic range (DR) and reduce data rate and latency, but most existing event cameras have limited sensitivity. This paper presents the results of a 180-nm Towerjazz CIS process vision sensor called SDAVIS192. It outputs temporal contrast dynamic vision sensor (DVS) events and conventional active pixel sensor frames. The SDAVIS192 improves on previous DAVIS sensors with higher sensitivity for temporal contrast. The temporal contrast thresholds can be set down to 1% for negative changes in logarithmic intensity (OFF events) and down to 3.5% for positive changes (ON events). The achievement is possible through the adoption of an in-pixel preamplification stage. This preamplifier reduces the effective intrascene DR of the sensor (70 dB for OFF and 50 dB for ON), but an automated operating region control allows up to at least 110-dB DR for OFF events. A second contribution of this paper is the development of characterization methodology for measuring DVS event detection thresholds by incorporating a measure of signal-to-noise ratio (SNR). At average SNR of 30 dB, the DVS temporal contrast threshold fixed pattern noise is measured to be 0.3%-0.8% temporal contrast. Results comparing monochrome and RGBW color filter array DVS events are presented. The higher sensitivity of SDAVIS192 make this sensor potentially useful for calcium imaging, as shown in a recording from cultured neurons expressing calcium sensitive green fluorescent protein GCaMP6f.

Refractive index sensing based on higher-order mode reflection of a microfiber Bragg grating.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Yu; Lin, Bo; Tjin, Swee Chuan; Zhang, Han; Wang, Guanghui; Shum, Ping; Zhang, Xinliang

2010-12-06

A fiber Bragg grating written in a photosensitive microfiber using KrF excimer laser via a uniform phase mask is demonstrated. We have successfully fabricated two Bragg gratings in microfibers having different diameters. In the reflection spectrum of a microfiber Bragg grating (MFBG), we observed two reflection peaks,which agrees with our numerical simulation results. Compared with the fundamental mode reflection, the higher-order reflection mode is more sensitive to the refractive index (RI) variation of the surrounding fluid due to its larger evanescent field. The measured maximum sensitivity is ~102 nm/RIU (RI unit) at an RI value of 1.378 in an MFBG with a diameter of 6 μm.

Authors attain comparable or slightly higher rates of citation publishing in an open access journal (CytoJournal) compared to traditional cytopathology journals - A five year (2007-2011) experience.

Science.gov (United States)

Frisch, Nora K; Nathan, Romil; Ahmed, Yasin K; Shidham, Vinod B

2014-01-01

The era of Open Access (OA) publication, a platform which serves to better disseminate scientific knowledge, is upon us, as more OA journals are in existence than ever before. The idea that peer-reviewed OA publication leads to higher rates of citation has been put forth and shown to be true in several publications. This is a significant benefit to authors and is in addition to another relatively less obvious but highly critical component of the OA charter, i.e. retention of the copyright by the authors in the public domain. In this study, we analyzed the citation rates of OA and traditional non-OA publications specifically for authors in the field of cytopathology. We compared the citation patterns for authors who had published in both OA and traditional non-OA peer-reviewed, scientific, cytopathology journals. Citations in an OA publication (CytoJournal) were analyzed comparatively with traditional non-OA cytopathology journals (Acta Cytologica, Cancer Cytopathology, Cytopathology, and Diagnostic Cytopathology) using the data from web of science citation analysis site (based on which the impact factors (IF) are calculated). After comparing citations per publication, as well as a time adjusted citation quotient (which takes into account the time since publication), we also analyzed the statistics after excluding the data for meeting abstracts. Total 28 authors published 314 publications as articles and meeting abstracts (25 authors after excluding the abstracts). The rate of citation and time adjusted citation quotient were higher for OA in the group where abstracts were included (P citation than the publications in the traditional non-OA journals in the field of cytopathology over a 5 year period (2007-2011). However, this increase was statistically insignificant if the meeting abstracts were excluded from the analysis. Overall, the rates of citation for OA and non-OA were slightly higher to comparable.

Comparative analysis for the measured and the predicted relative sensitivity of rhodium In core detector

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Moon, Sang Rae; Cha, Kyoon Ho; Bae, Seong Man

2012-01-01

Self-powered neutron detector (SPND) is widely used as in-core flux monitoring in nuclear power plants. OPR1000 has applied a rhodium (Rh) as the emitter of the SPND. The SPND contains a neutron-sensitive metallic emitter surrounded by a ceramic insulator. When capturing a neutron, the Rh will be decayed by emitting some electrons which is crossing the sheath and produce current. This current can be measured externally using pico-ammeter. The sensitivity of detectors is closely related with the geometry and material of the detectors. The lifetime of in-core detector is determined by calculating the relative sensitivity of Rh detector. It is required that the Rh detector should be replaced before the burn-up of Rh detector has reached 66% of its original compositions. To predict Rh detector's relative sensitivity ANC code, advanced nodal code capable of two-dimensional and three-dimensional calculations, is used. It is determined that the Rh detectors should be replaced on the basis of the predicted sensitivity value calculated by ANC code. When evaluating the life of Rh detectors using ANC code, it is assumed that the uncertainty of the sensitivity calculation include the measurement error of 5%. As a result of the analysis of measured and predicted data for the Rh detector's relative sensitivity, it is possible to reduce the assumed uncertainty

Comparative analysis for the measured and the predicted relative sensitivity of rhodium In core detector

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Moon, Sang Rae; Cha, Kyoon Ho; Bae, Seong Man [Nuclear Reactor Safety Lab., KHNP Central Research Institute, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

2012-10-15

Self-powered neutron detector (SPND) is widely used as in-core flux monitoring in nuclear power plants. OPR1000 has applied a rhodium (Rh) as the emitter of the SPND. The SPND contains a neutron-sensitive metallic emitter surrounded by a ceramic insulator. When capturing a neutron, the Rh will be decayed by emitting some electrons which is crossing the sheath and produce current. This current can be measured externally using pico-ammeter. The sensitivity of detectors is closely related with the geometry and material of the detectors. The lifetime of in-core detector is determined by calculating the relative sensitivity of Rh detector. It is required that the Rh detector should be replaced before the burn-up of Rh detector has reached 66% of its original compositions. To predict Rh detector's relative sensitivity ANC code, advanced nodal code capable of two-dimensional and three-dimensional calculations, is used. It is determined that the Rh detectors should be replaced on the basis of the predicted sensitivity value calculated by ANC code. When evaluating the life of Rh detectors using ANC code, it is assumed that the uncertainty of the sensitivity calculation include the measurement error of 5%. As a result of the analysis of measured and predicted data for the Rh detector's relative sensitivity, it is possible to reduce the assumed uncertainty.

Probabilistic sensitivity analysis incorporating the bootstrap: an example comparing treatments for the eradication of Helicobacter pylori.

Science.gov (United States)

Pasta, D J; Taylor, J L; Henning, J M

1999-01-01

Decision-analytic models are frequently used to evaluate the relative costs and benefits of alternative therapeutic strategies for health care. Various types of sensitivity analysis are used to evaluate the uncertainty inherent in the models. Although probabilistic sensitivity analysis is more difficult theoretically and computationally, the results can be much more powerful and useful than deterministic sensitivity analysis. The authors show how a Monte Carlo simulation can be implemented using standard software to perform a probabilistic sensitivity analysis incorporating the bootstrap. The method is applied to a decision-analytic model evaluating the cost-effectiveness of Helicobacter pylori eradication. The necessary steps are straightforward and are described in detail. The use of the bootstrap avoids certain difficulties encountered with theoretical distributions. The probabilistic sensitivity analysis provided insights into the decision-analytic model beyond the traditional base-case and deterministic sensitivity analyses and should become the standard method for assessing sensitivity.

Comparative transcriptional profiling of tildipirosin-resistant and sensitive Haemophilus parasuis.

Science.gov (United States)

Lei, Zhixin; Fu, Shulin; Yang, Bing; Liu, Qianying; Ahmed, Saeed; Xu, Lei; Xiong, Jincheng; Cao, Jiyue; Qiu, Yinsheng

2017-08-08

Numerous studies have been conducted to examine the molecular mechanism of Haemophilus parasuis resistance to antibiotic, but rarely to tildipirosin. In the current study, transcriptional profiling was applied to analyse the variation in gene expression of JS0135 and tildipirosin-resistant JS32. The growth curves showed that JS32 had a higher growth rate but fewer bacteria than JS0135. The cell membranes of JS32 and a resistant clinical isolate (HB32) were observed to be smoother than those of JS0135. From the comparative gene expression profile 349 up- and 113 downregulated genes were observed, covering 37 GO and 63 KEGG pathways which are involved in biological processes (11), cellular components (17), molecular function (9), cellular processes (1), environmental information processing (4), genetic information processing (9) and metabolism (49) affected in JS32. In addition, the relative overexpression of genes of the metabolism pathway (HAPS_RS09315, HAPS_RS09320), ribosomes (HAPS_RS07815) and ABC transporters (HAPS_RS10945) was detected, particularly the metabolism pathway, and verified with RT-qPCR. Collectively, the gene expression profile in connection with tildipirosin resistance factors revealed unique and highly resistant determinants of H. parasuis to macrolides that warrant further attention due to the significant threat of bacterial resistance.

Enhanced olfactory sensitivity in autism spectrum conditions.

Science.gov (United States)

Ashwin, Chris; Chapman, Emma; Howells, Jessica; Rhydderch, Danielle; Walker, Ian; Baron-Cohen, Simon

2014-01-01

People with autism spectrum conditions (ASC) report heightened olfaction. Previous sensory experiments in people with ASC have reported hypersensitivity across visual, tactile, and auditory domains, but not olfaction. The aims of the present study were to investigate olfactory sensitivity in ASC, and to test the association of sensitivity to autistic traits. We recruited 17 adult males diagnosed with ASC and 17 typical adult male controls and tested their olfactory sensitivity using the Alcohol Sniff Test (AST), a standardised clinical evaluation of olfactory detection. The AST involves varying the distance between subject and stimulus until an odour is barely detected. Participants with ASC also completed the Autism Spectrum Quotient (AQ) as a measure of autism traits. The ASC group detected the odour at a mean distance of 24.1 cm (SD =11.5) from the nose, compared to the control group, who detected it at a significantly shorter mean distance of 14.4 cm (SD =5.9). Detection distance was independent of age and IQ for both groups, but showed a significant positive correlation with autistic traits in the ASC group (r =0.522). This is the first experimental demonstration, as far as the authors are aware, of superior olfactory perception in ASC and showing that greater olfactory sensitivity is correlated with a higher number of autistic traits. This is consistent with results from previous findings showing hypersensitivity in other sensory domains and may help explain anecdotal and questionnaire accounts of heightened olfactory sensitivity in ASC. Results are discussed in terms of possible underlying neurophysiology.

Cu,Zn-superoxide dismutase is lower and copper chaperone CCS is higher in erythrocytes of copper-deficient rats and mice.

Science.gov (United States)

West, Elizabeth C; Prohaska, Joseph R

2004-09-01

Discovery of a sensitive blood biochemical marker of copper status would be valuable for assessing marginal copper intakes. Rodent models were used to investigate whether erythrocyte concentrations of copper,zinc-superoxide dismutase (SOD), and the copper metallochaperone for SOD (CCS) were sensitive to dietary copper changes. Several models of copper deficiency were studied in postweanling male Holtzman rats, male Swiss Webster mice offspring, and both rat and mouse dams. Treatment resulted in variable but significantly altered copper status as evaluated by the presence of anemia, and lower liver copper and higher liver iron concentrations in copper-deficient compared with copper-adequate animals. Associated with this copper deficiency were consistent reductions in immunoreactive SOD and robust enhancements in CCS. In most cases, the ratio of CCS:SOD was several-fold higher in red blood cell extracts from copper-deficient compared with copper-adequate rodents. Determination of red cell CCS:SOD may be useful for assessing copper status of humans.

Spectral envelope sensitivity of musical instrument sounds.

Science.gov (United States)

Gunawan, David; Sen, D

2008-01-01

It is well known that the spectral envelope is a perceptually salient attribute in musical instrument timbre perception. While a number of studies have explored discrimination thresholds for changes to the spectral envelope, the question of how sensitivity varies as a function of center frequency and bandwidth for musical instruments has yet to be addressed. In this paper a two-alternative forced-choice experiment was conducted to observe perceptual sensitivity to modifications made on trumpet, clarinet and viola sounds. The experiment involved attenuating 14 frequency bands for each instrument in order to determine discrimination thresholds as a function of center frequency and bandwidth. The results indicate that perceptual sensitivity is governed by the first few harmonics and sensitivity does not improve when extending the bandwidth any higher. However, sensitivity was found to decrease if changes were made only to the higher frequencies and continued to decrease as the distorted bandwidth was widened. The results are analyzed and discussed with respect to two other spectral envelope discrimination studies in the literature as well as what is predicted from a psychoacoustic model.

Comparative analysis of Dye-Sensitized Solar Cells (DSSC) having different nanocrystalline TiO2 layer structures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Forcade, Fresnel; Gonzalez, Bernardo; Vigil, Elena; Jennings, James R.; Duna, Halina; Wang, Hongxia; Peter, Laurence M.

2009-01-01

Full text: Dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSC) are very prospective because of their low cost and comparatively not so low efficiency. This represents an advantage together with the innocuous character of the constituent materials. We study different types of DSSC. The procedure for making them has been the same except for the TiO 2 layer structure. This layer must be porous and nanocrystalline in order to increase light absorption by the sensitizer. On the other hand, this condition causes that the electrolyte contacts the transparent conducting oxide (TCO) underneath the TiO 2 originating undesired recombinations. Also the electrical contact of the Tio to the TCO depends on the technology used to deposit the TiO 2 . In order to avoid possible leakage currents caused by recombinations from the TCO to the electrolyte and improve TiO 2 -TCO electrical contact, a thin TiO 2 film is placed in between the porous TiO 2 layer and the TCO. Different structures are obtained using different technologies to obtain the thin TiO 2 film. These structures are analyzed from their volt-amperic characteristic, external quantum efficiency spectra and voltage decay observed when light is suppressed. Results obtained allow making recommendations regarding nanocrystalline TiO 2 structure to be used in DSSC. (author)

Pressure Sensitive Sensors Based on Carbon Nanotubes, Graphene, and Its Composites

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Asar Ali

2018-01-01

Full Text Available Carbon nanotubes (CNTs and graphene have attracted a great deal of interest due to their outstanding mechanical, optical, electrical, and structural properties. Most of the scientists and researchers have investigated the optical and electrical properties of these materials. However, due to unique electromechanical properties of these materials, it is required to explore the piezoresistive properties of bulk nanostructured CNTs, graphene, and CNT-graphene composites. We investigated and compared the sensitivities and piezoresistive properties of sandwich-type pure CNT, pure graphene, and CNT-graphene composite pressure sensors. For all the samples, increase in pressure from 0 to 0.183 kNm−2 results in a decrease in the impedance and direct current (DC resistance. Sensitivity and percentage decrease in resistance and impedance of CNT-graphene composite were lower than pure CNT while being higher than pure graphene based sample. Moreover, under the same external applied pressure, the sensitivity and percentage decrease in impedance for pure CNT, pure graphene, and CNT-graphene composite were smaller than the corresponding sensitivity and percentage decrease in resistance. The achieved experimental results of the composite sample were compared with simulated results which exhibit reasonable agreement with each other. The deviations of simulated resistance-pressure and impedance-pressure curves from experimental graphs were 0.029% and 0.105%, respectively.

Puromycin-sensitive aminopeptidase: an antiviral prodrug activating enzyme.

Science.gov (United States)

Tehler, Ulrika; Nelson, Cara H; Peterson, Larryn W; Provoda, Chester J; Hilfinger, John M; Lee, Kyung-Dall; McKenna, Charles E; Amidon, Gordon L

2010-03-01

Cidofovir (HPMPC) is a broad-spectrum antiviral agent, currently used to treat AIDS-related human cytomegalovirus retinitis. Cidofovir has recognized therapeutic potential for orthopox virus infections, although its use is hampered by its inherent low oral bioavailability. Val-Ser-cyclic HPMPC (Val-Ser-cHPMPC) is a promising peptide prodrug which has previously been shown by us to improve the permeability and bioavailability of the parent compound in rodent models (Eriksson et al., 2008. Molecular Pharmaceutics 5, 598-609). Puromycin-sensitive aminopeptidase was partially purified from Caco-2 cell homogenates and identified as a prodrug activating enzyme for Val-Ser-cHPMPC. The prodrug activation process initially involves an enzymatic step where the l-Valine residue is removed by puromycin-sensitive aminopeptidase, a step that is bestatin-sensitive. Subsequent chemical hydrolysis results in the generation of cHPMPC. A recombinant puromycin-sensitive aminopeptidase was generated and its substrate specificity investigated. The k(cat) for Val-pNA was significantly lower than that for Ala-pNA, suggesting that some amino acids are preferred over others. Furthermore, the three-fold higher k(cat) for Val-Ser-cHPMPC as compared to Val-pNA suggests that the leaving group may play an important role in determining hydrolytic activity. In addition to its ability to hydrolyze a variety of substrates, these observations strongly suggest that puromycin-sensitive aminopeptidase is an important enzyme for activating Val-Ser-cHPMPC in vivo. Taken together, our data suggest that puromycin-sensitive aminopeptidase makes an attractive target for future prodrug design.

Effect of training on insulin sensitivity of glucose uptake and lipolysis in human adipose tissue

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Stallknecht, B; Larsen, J J; Mikines, K J

2000-01-01

Training increases insulin sensitivity of both whole body and muscle in humans. To investigate whether training also increases insulin sensitivity of adipose tissue, we performed a three-step hyperinsulinemic, euglycemic clamp in eight endurance-trained (T) and eight sedentary (S) young men...... (glucose only). Adipose tissue blood flow was measured by (133)Xe washout. In the basal state, adipose tissue blood flow tended to be higher in T compared with S subjects, and in both groups blood flow was constant during the clamp. The change from basal in arterial-interstitial glucose concentration......-time: T, 44 +/- 9 min (n = 7); S, 102 +/- 23 min (n = 5); P training enhances insulin sensitivity of glucose uptake in subcutaneous adipose tissue and in skeletal muscle. Furthermore, interstitial glycerol data suggest that training also increases insulin sensitivity of lipolysis...

Comparing the effect of a desensitizing material and a self-etch adhesive on dentin sensitivity after periodontal surgery: a randomized clinical trial

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hila Hajizadeh

2017-07-01

Full Text Available Objectives This double-blind randomized placebo-controlled clinical trial evaluated the ability of a desensitizing agent and a self-etch adhesive on cervical dentin sensitivity (CDS after periodontal surgery. Materials and Methods Ninety hypersensitive teeth of 13 subjects were included in the study. After periodontal surgery, the teeth of each posterior sextant treated with one of the following materials: G1: Clearfil S3 Bond (Kuraray Dental, G2: Gluma Desensitizer (Heraeus Kulzer, and G3: placebo (water. The sensitivity was assessed using evaporative stimuli before treatment (baseline, T0, 1 day after treatment (T1, after 1 week (T2, and after 1 month (T3 according to visual analog scale (VAS. Results Following the treatment, all the 3 groups showed significant reduction of CDS in T1 compared to T0. Reduction of CDS between T1 and T2 was observed only in G1 but there was no significant difference between T2 and T3 in this group. Although we observed a significant difference in T3 compared to T1 and T2 in G2 and G3, comparison of treatment groups in each assessment time showed a significant difference only in T3. According to paired comparison, this was due to the difference between G2 and G3. Conclusions Dentin sensitivity following periodontal surgery will decrease spontaneously over time, but treating the sensitive teeth with Gluma Desensitizer and Clearfil S3 Bond can have some benefits.

Novelionic Polymer Electrolytes for Dye Sensitized Solar Cell

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

Li Wang; Shibi Fang; Yuan Lin

2005-01-01

@@ 1Introduction In recent years, dye-sensitized solar cells(DSC) based on nanocrystalline porous TiO2 films have attracted much attention because of their relatively higher efficiency and low cost compared with conventional inorganic photovoltaic devices[1]. This type of solar cell has achieved an impressive photo-to-energy conversion efficiency of over 10% where the electrolyte is volatile organic liquid solvents containing I-/I-3- as redox couple. Because of high volatilities, solvent losses occur during long-term operations, resulting in lowered DSC performances.And leakage of liquid electrolyte also limits the durability of DSC.

Assessment of the risk of respiratory sensitization from fragrance allergens released by air fresheners.

Science.gov (United States)

ter Burg, Wouter; Bouma, Krista; Schakel, Durk J; Wijnhoven, Susan W P; van Engelen, Jacqueline; van Loveren, Henk; Ezendam, Janine

2014-04-01

Consumers using air fresheners are exposed to the emitted ingredients, including fragrances, via the respiratory tract. Several fragrances are known skin sensitizers, but it is unknown whether inhalation exposure to these chemicals can induce respiratory sensitization. Effects on the immune system were assessed by testing a selection of five fragrance allergens in the respiratory local lymph node assay (LLNA). The probability and extent of exposure were assessed by measuring concentrations of the 24 known fragrance allergens in 109 air fresheners. It was shown that the most frequently used fragrances in air fresheners were D-limonene and linalool. In the respiratory LLNA, these fragrances were negative. Of the other tested chemicals, only isoeugenol induced a statistically significant increase in cell proliferation. Consumer exposure was assessed in more detail for D-limonene, linalool, and isoeugenol by using exposure modeling tools. It was shown that the most frequently used fragrances in air fresheners, D-limonene, and linalool gave rise to a higher consumer exposure compared with isoeugenol. To evaluate whether the consumer exposure to these fragrances is low or high, these levels were compared with measured air concentrations of diisocyanates, known human respiratory sensitizers. This comparison showed that consumer exposure from air fresheners to D-limonene, linalool, and isoeugenol is considerably lower than occupational exposure to diisocyanates. By combing this knowledge on sensitizing potency with the much lower exposure compared to diisocyanates it seems highly unlikely that isoeugenol can induce respiratory sensitization in consumers using air fresheners.

Sensitivity Analysis to Control the Far-Wake Unsteadiness Behind Turbines

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Esteban Ferrer

2017-10-01

Full Text Available We explore the stability of wakes arising from 2D flow actuators based on linear momentum actuator disc theory. We use stability and sensitivity analysis (using adjoints to show that the wake stability is controlled by the Reynolds number and the thrust force (or flow resistance applied through the turbine. First, we report that decreasing the thrust force has a comparable stabilising effect to a decrease in Reynolds numbers (based on the turbine diameter. Second, a discrete sensitivity analysis identifies two regions for suitable placement of flow control forcing, one close to the turbines and one far downstream. Third, we show that adding a localised control force, in the regions identified by the sensitivity analysis, stabilises the wake. Particularly, locating the control forcing close to the turbines results in an enhanced stabilisation such that the wake remains steady for significantly higher Reynolds numbers or turbine thrusts. The analysis of the controlled flow fields confirms that modifying the velocity gradient close to the turbine is more efficient to stabilise the wake than controlling the wake far downstream. The analysis is performed for the first flow bifurcation (at low Reynolds numbers which serves as a foundation of the stabilization technique but the control strategy is tested at higher Reynolds numbers in the final section of the paper, showing enhanced stability for a turbulent flow case.

On the modulation of oxygen sensitivity of In{sub 2}O{sub 3} thin films: effects of moisture and dc bias

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zhu, Yihao; Koley, Goutam [Department of Electrical Engineering, University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC (United States)

2014-11-15

Oxygen sensing characteristics of In{sub 2}O{sub 3} thin film at room temperature have been investigated through conductivity measurements using interdigitated metal finger patterned devices. We observed that the O{sub 2} sensitivity gets affected very significantly in presence of moisture, as well as with applied dc bias. The O{sub 2} sensitivity was found to increase several times in moist ambient compared to dry ambient condition. Higher dc bias also dramatically improved the sensitivity, which varied more than two orders of magnitude as the dc bias was increased from 0.5 to 10 V. We propose that the observed increase in sensitivity in presence of moisture is caused by enhanced surface electron density on In{sub 2}O{sub 3} thin film resulting from the donation of electrons caused by the chemisorbed water molecules. The adsorption of O{sub 2} molecules, which subsequently formed O{sub 2}{sup -} ions, leads to chemical gating of the sensor devices, which under larger dc bias produced a higher fractional change in current leading to higher sensitivity. (copyright 2014 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH and Co. KGaA, Weinheim)

Higher persistence with valsartan compared with enalapril in daily practice

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Satu J Siiskonen

2008-01-01

Full Text Available Satu J Siiskonen1, Nancy S Breekveldt-Postma1, Gábor Vincze2, Zeba M Khan3, Joëlle A Erkens1, Ron MC Herings11PHARMO Institute for Drug Outcomes Research, Utrecht, The Netherlands; 2Novartis Pharma AG, Basel, Switzerland; 3Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation, East Hanover, NJ, USAObjective: To compare persistence with valsartan and enalapril in daily practice.Methods: The PHARMO Record Linkage System includes various data registries including drug dispensing and hospitalizations for ≥2 million subjects in the Netherlands. Patients newly treated with valsartan or enalapril in the period of 1999–2002 were selected. Persistence was calculated by summing up the number of days of continuous treatment. Patients who remained on therapy with valsartan or enalapril for 12 or 24 months were defined as persistent at 1 or 2 years, respectively.Results: 3364 patients received valsartan and 9103 patients received enalapril. About 62% of patients treated with valsartan and 55% of patients treated with enalapril remained on therapy at 12 months after the initial dispensing, while 48% of patients treated with valsartan and 43% of patients treated with enalapril were persistent at 24 months. Patients treated with valsartan were about 20% more likely to stay on treatment than patients treated with enalapril (1 year RRadj: 1.23, 95% CI: 1.16–1.32; 2 years RRadj: 1.16, 95% CI: 1.11–1.23.Conclusions: Real-life persistence is higher with valsartan than with enalapril. The results of this and other studies on persistence in daily practice should be taken into account when deciding upon drug treatment for hypertension.Keywords: persistence, antihypertensive, valsartan, enalapril, angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors, angiotensin-2-receptor blockers

Ataques de nervios in relation to anxiety sensitivity among island Puerto Ricans.

Science.gov (United States)

Cintrón, Jennifer A; Carter, Michele M; Sbrocco, Tracy

2005-12-01

This study investigated the symptom profile of ataques de nervios (ADN) among Puerto Rican volunteers from the community who self-identified as having experienced at least one ataque. As expected, the most commonly reported ataques-specific symptoms were crying, anger, nervousness, and becoming hysterical. Comparing the responses of those with ADN to those with no history of ADN but who reported elevated anxiety sensitivity (AS) indicated that both groups were comparable on measures of depression, state and trait anxiety, and associated panic symptoms. As expected, both groups scored significantly higher on all measures than did participants with no history of ADN and low AS with the exception of the measure of state anxiety. It is unclear, however, whether the overlap in symptom severity between those with ADN and those with elevated anxiety sensitivity indicates that ADN and AS are the same or distinct conditions.

Higher Education Institutions in India and its Management

OpenAIRE

Niradhar Dey

2011-01-01

Managing higher education institutions in India is just like a junction, how to show the path to the future nation builder of our country. There are very hue and cry situations/difficulties in present Indian higher education about what to do and what not to do. It becomes so sensitive that it creates conflict in inter and intra management of higher education institutions. In recent years there have been debates and controversies regarding management of higher education institutions so as to i...

Comparative analysis of skin sensitization potency of acrylates (methyl acrylate, ethyl acrylate, butyl acrylate, and ethylhexyl acrylate) using the local lymph node assay.

Science.gov (United States)

Dearman, Rebecca J; Betts, Catherine J; Farr, Craig; McLaughlin, James; Berdasco, Nancy; Wiench, Karin; Kimber, Ian

2007-10-01

There are currently available no systematic experimental data on the skin sensitizing properties of acrylates that are of relevance in occupational settings. Limited information from previous guinea-pig tests or from the local lymph node assay (LLNA) is available; however, these data are incomplete and somewhat contradictory. For those reasons, we have examined in the LLNA 4 acrylates: butyl acrylate (BA), ethyl acrylate (EA), methyl acrylate (MA), and ethylhexyl acrylate (EHA). The LLNA data indicated that all 4 compounds have some potential to cause skin sensitization. In addition, the relative potencies of these acrylates were measured by derivation from LLNA dose-response analyses of EC3 values (the effective concentration of chemical required to induce a threefold increase in proliferation of draining lymph node cells compared with control values). On the basis of 1 scheme for the categorization of skin sensitization potency, BA, EA, and MA were each classified as weak sensitizers. Using the same scheme, EHA was considered a moderate sensitizer. However, it must be emphasized that the EC3 value for this chemical of 9.7% is on the borderline between moderate (10%) categories. Thus, the judicious view is that all 4 chemicals possess relatively weak skin sensitizing potential.

An Exploratory Comparative Case Study of Employee Engagement in Christian Higher Education

Science.gov (United States)

Daniels, Jessica R.

2016-01-01

Numerous studies have identified a positive correlation between employee engagement and overall organizational performance. However, research on employee engagement specifically within higher education is limited, and even less attention has been focused on engagement within the context of Christian higher education. An exploratory comparative…

Gastrointestinal sensitivity to soy and milk proteins in patients with IgA nephropathy.

Science.gov (United States)

Kloster Smerud, H; Fellström, B; Hällgren, R; Osagie, S; Venge, P; Kristjánsson, G

2010-11-01

sensitivity to food antigens has been postulated as a contributing factor to the pathogenesis of IgA nephropathy (IgAN). in this study we used a recently developed mucosal patch technique to evaluate rectal mucosal sensitivity to soy and cow's milk (CM) proteins in IgAN patients (n = 28) compared to healthy subjects (n = 18). The rectal mucosal production of nitric oxide (NO) and release of myeloperoxidase (MPO) and eosinophil cationic protein (ECP) were measured. Serum samples were analyzed for IgA and IgG antibodies to alpha-lactalbumin, beta-lactoglobulin, casein and soy. 14 of 28 (14/28) patients experienced a rectal mucosal reaction, measured by increased NO and/or MPO levels, upon rectal challenge with soy and/or cow's milk proteins. The levels of IgG antibodies to alpha-lactalbumin, beta-lactoglobulin and casein were significantly higher in CM sensitive as compared with non-sensitive IgAN patients, whereas the mean serum levels of IgA antibodies were similar. No differences were seen in serum levels of IgA or IgG antibodies to soy. it is concluded that approximately half of our IgAN patients have a rectal mucosal sensitivity to soy or CM, and that an immune reactivity against antigens may be involved in the pathogenesis of IgAN in this subgroup of patients.

Comparing Alternative Instruments to Measure Service Quality in Higher Education

Science.gov (United States)

Brochado, Ana

2009-01-01

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to examine the performance of five alternative measures of service quality in the high education sector--service quality (SERVQUAL), importance-weighted SERVQUAL, service performance (SERVPERF), importance-weighted SERVPERF, and higher education performance (HEdPERF). Design/methodology/approach: Data were…

An in vitro drug sensitivity test using a higher 3H-TdR incorporation and a modified human tumor stem cell assay

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wang Enzhong

1991-01-01

An in vitro drug sensitivity test was developed to evaluate the lethal effects of drugs on human pulmonary carcinoma cells (HPCC). This method was a variant and combination of Human Tumor Stem (HTSCA) and a short-term test using 3 H-TdR incorporation. It consisted of a cell containing liquid top layer and a soft agar bottom layer in 24-well microplates. The medium was RPMI 1640 supplemented with 20% malignant pleural effusion, which could enhance 3 H-TdR incorporation into malignant cells. When 50%, 40%, 30% and 30% of cell survival rate defined as sensitivity-threshold for VCR, MMC, DDP and ADM respectively, in the vitro effectiveness were close to those of clinical single-drug treatment in HPCC by Wright et al. This method was also compared with HTSCA in ten human lung cancer cell lines and four pulmonary carcinoma tissues. The agreement rates were 83% and 100% respectively. Thus we presume this system is more useful for oncological clinics than the others

Tuned cavity magnetometer sensitivity.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Okandan, Murat; Schwindt, Peter

2009-09-01

We have developed a high sensitivity (compared to systems using SQUIDs which require liquid Helium temperatures and associated overhead to achieve similar sensitivity levels.

Energy implications of mechanical and mechanical–biological treatment compared to direct waste-to-energy

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Cimpan, Ciprian; Wenzel, Henrik

2013-01-01

achieved the highest savings, on the condition of SRF co-combustion. As a sensitivity scenario, alternative utilisation of SRF in cement kilns was modelled. It supported similar or higher net savings for all pre-treatment systems compared to mass combustion WtE, except when WtE CHP was possible...

Enhancing the sensitivity of slow light MZI biosensors through multi-hole defects

Science.gov (United States)

Qin, Kun; Zhao, Yiliang; Hu, Shuren; Weiss, Sharon M.

2018-02-01

We demonstrate enhanced detection sensitivity of a slow light Mach-Zehnder interferometer (MZI) sensor by incorporating multi-hole defects (MHDs). Slow light MZI biosensors with a one-dimensional photonic crystal in one arm have been previously shown to improve the performance of traditional MZI sensors based on the increased lightmatter interaction that takes place in the photonic crystal region of the structure. Introducing MHDs in the photonic crystal region increases the available surface area for molecular attachment and further increases the enhanced lightmatter interaction capability of slow light MZIs. The MHDs allow analyte to interact with a greater fraction of the guided wave in the MZI. For a slow light MHD MZI sensor with a 16 μm long sensing arm, a bulk sensitivity of 151,000 rad/RIU-cm is demonstrated experimentally, which is approximately two-fold higher than our previously reported slow light MZI sensors and thirteen-fold higher than traditional MZI biosensors with millimeter length sensing regions. For the label-free detection of nucleic acids, the slow light MZI with MHDs also exhibits a two-fold sensitivity improvement in experiment compared to the slow light MZI without MHDs. Because the detection sensitivity of slow light MHD MZIs scales with the length of the sensing arm, the tradeoff between detection limit and device size can be appropriately mitigated for different applications. All experimental results presented in this work are in good agreement with finite difference-time domain-calculations. Overall, the slow light MZI biosensors with MHDs are a promising platform for highly sensitive and multiplexed lab-on-chip systems.

A study of the enhanced sensitizing capacity of a contact allergen in lipid vesicle formulations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Simonsson, Carl; Madsen, Jakob Torp; Graneli, Annette; Andersen, Klaus E.; Karlberg, Ann-Therese; Jonsson, Charlotte A.; Ericson, Marica B.

2011-01-01

The growing focus on nanotechnology and the increased use of nano-sized structures, e.g. vesicles, in topical formulations has led to safety concerns. We have investigated the sensitizing capacity and penetration properties of a fluorescent model compound, rhodamine B isothiocyanate (RBITC), when administered in micro- and nano-scale vesicle formulations. The sensitizing capacity of RBITC was studied using the murine local lymph node assay (LLNA) and the skin penetration properties were compared using diffusion cells in combination with two-photon microscopy (TPM). The lymph node cell proliferation, an indicator of a compounds sensitizing capacity, increased when RBITC was applied in lipid vesicles as compared to an ethanol:water (Et:W) solution. Micro-scale vesicles showed a slightly higher cell proliferative response compared to nano-scale vesicles. TPM imaging revealed that the vesicle formulations improved the skin penetration of RBITC compared to the Et:W solution. A strong fluorescent region in the stratum corneum and upper epidermis implies elevated association of RBITC to these skin layers when formulated in lipid vesicles. In conclusion, the results indicate that there could be an elevated risk of sensitization when haptens are delivered in vehicles containing lipid vesicles. Although the size of the vesicles seems to be of minor importance, further studies are needed before a more generalized conclusion can be drawn. It is likely that the enhanced sensitizing capacity is a consequence of the improved penetration and increased formation of hapten-protein complexes in epidermis when RBITC is delivered in ethosomal formulations. - Graphical Abstract: Display Omitted

Comparison of sensitivity of quantiferon-tb gold test and tuberculin skin test in active pulmonary tuberculosis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Khalil, K.F.; Ambreen, A.; Butt, T.

2013-01-01

Objective: To compare the sensitivity of tuberculin skin test (TST) and quantiFERON-TB gold test (QFT-G) in active pulmonary tuberculosis. Study Design: Analytical study. Place and Duration of Study: Department of Pulmonology, Fauji Foundation Hospital, Rawalpindi, from July 2011 to January 2012. Methodology: QuantiFERON-TB gold test (QFT-G) was evaluated and compared it with tuberculin skin test (TST) in 50 cases of active pulmonary tuberculosis, in whom tuberculous infection was suspected on clinical, radiological and microbiological grounds. Sensitivity was determined against positive growth for Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Results: Out of 50 cases, 43 were females and 7 were males. The mean age was 41.84 A+- 19.03 years. Sensitivity of QFT-G was 80% while that of TST was 28%. Conclusion: QFT-G has much higher sensitivity than TST for active pulmonary tuberculosis. It is unaffected by prior BCG administration and prior exposure to atypical mycobacteria. A positive QFT-G result can be an adjunct to diagnosis in patients having clinical and radiological data compatible with pulmonary tuberculosis. (author)

complexes as sensitizers for dye sensitized solar cells

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

Compared to N719, H112 sensitizer showed enhanced molar extinction coefficient and relatively better monochromatic incident photon-to-current conversion efficiency (IPCE) across the spectral range of 400 to 800 nm with solar energy-to-electrical conversion efficiency () of 2.43% [open circuit photovoltage (VOC) ...

Comparing Episodes of Mathematics Teaching for Higher Achievers in England and Germany

Science.gov (United States)

Kelly, Peter; Kotthoff, Hans-Georg

2016-01-01

To illustrate similarities and differences in lower secondary level mathematics teaching with higher achievers and thereby explore privileging processes, we contrast a teaching episode in Baden-Württemberg, Germany with one in South West England. These have been selected from a larger study as typical within each region for higher achieving…

Sensitization to Aspergillus fumigatus as a risk factor for bronchiectasis in COPD

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Everaerts S

2017-08-01

Full Text Available Stephanie Everaerts,1,2 Katrien Lagrou,3,4 Adriana Dubbeldam,5 Natalie Lorent,1 Kristina Vermeersch,2 Erna Van Hoeyveld,3 Xavier Bossuyt,3,4 Lieven J Dupont,1,2 Bart M Vanaudenaerde,2 Wim Janssens1,2 1Department of Respiratory Diseases, University Hospitals Leuven, 2Laboratory of Respiratory Diseases, Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, KU Leuven, 3Department of Laboratory Medicine, University Hospitals Leuven, 4Department of Microbiology and Immunology, KU Leuven, 5Department of Radiology, University Hospitals Leuven, Leuven, Belgium Background: Bronchiectasis–chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD overlap presents a possible clinical phenotype of COPD, but it is unclear why it develops in a subset of patients. We hypothesized that sensitization to Aspergillus fumigatus (A fum is associated with bronchiectasis in COPD and occurs more frequently in vitamin D-deficient patients.Methods: This observational study investigated sensitization to A fum in an outpatient clinical cohort of 300 COPD patients and 50 (ex- smoking controls. Total IgE, A fum-specific IgE against the crude extract and against the recombinant antigens and A fum IgG were measured using ImmunoCAP fluoroenzyme immunoassay. Vitamin D was measured by radioimmunoassay, and computed tomography images of the lungs were scored using the modified Reiff score.Results: Sensitization to A fum occurred in 18% of COPD patients compared to 4% of controls (P=0.0110. In all, 31 COPD patients (10% were sensitized to the crude extract and 24 patients (8% had only IgE against recombinant antigens. A fum IgG levels were significantly higher in the COPD group (P=0.0473. Within COPD, A fum-sensitized patients were more often male (P=0.0293 and more often had bronchiectasis (P=0.0297. Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Serratia marcescens were more prevalent in historical sputum samples of A fum-sensitized COPD patients compared to A fum-non-sensitized COPD patients (P=0.0436. Vitamin D

Sensitivity to synchronicity of biological motion in normal and amblyopic vision

Science.gov (United States)

Luu, Jennifer Y.; Levi, Dennis M.

2017-01-01

Amblyopia is a developmental disorder of spatial vision that results from abnormal early visual experience usually due to the presence of strabismus, anisometropia, or both strabismus and anisometropia. Amblyopia results in a range of visual deficits that cannot be corrected by optics because the deficits reflect neural abnormalities. Biological motion refers to the motion patterns of living organisms, and is normally displayed as points of lights positioned at the major joints of the body. In this experiment, our goal was twofold. We wished to examine whether the human visual system in people with amblyopia retained the higher-level processing capabilities to extract visual information from the synchronized actions of others, therefore retaining the ability to detect biological motion. Specifically, we wanted to determine if the synchronized interaction of two agents performing a dancing routine allowed the amblyopic observer to use the actions of one agent to predict the expected actions of a second agent. We also wished to establish whether synchronicity sensitivity (detection of synchronized versus desynchronized interactions) is impaired in amblyopic observers relative to normal observers. The two aims are differentiated in that the first aim looks at whether synchronized actions result in improved expected action predictions while the second aim quantitatively compares synchronicity sensitivity, or the ratio of desynchronized to synchronized detection sensitivities, to determine if there is a difference between normal and amblyopic observers. Our results show that the ability to detect biological motion requires more samples in both eyes of amblyopes than in normal control observers. The increased sample threshold is not the result of low-level losses but may reflect losses in feature integration due to undersampling in the amblyopic visual system. However, like normal observers, amblyopes are more sensitive to synchronized versus desynchronized interactions

Gravitropism in higher plant shoots. VI. Changing sensitivity to auxin in gravistimulated soybean hypocotyls

Science.gov (United States)

Rorabaugh, P. A.; Salisbury, F. B.

1989-01-01

Although the Cholodny-Went model of auxin redistribution has been used to explain the transduction phase of gravitropism for over 60 years, problems are apparent, especially with dicot stems. An alternative to an auxin gradient is a physiological gradient in which lower tissues of a horizontal stem become more sensitive than upper tissues to auxin already present. Changes in tissue sensitivity to auxin were tested by immersing marked Glycine max Merrill (soybean) hypocotyl sections in buffered auxin solutions (0, 10(-8) to 10(-2) molar indoleacetic acid) and observing bending and growth of upper and lower surfaces. The two surfaces of horizontal hypocotyl sections responded differently to the same applied auxin stimulus; hypocotyls bent up (lower half grew more) in buffer alone or in low auxin levels, but bent down (upper half grew more) in high auxin. Dose-response curves were evaluated with Michaelis-Menten kinetics, with auxin-receptor binding analogous to enzyme-substrate binding. Vmax for the lower half was usually greater than that for the upper half, which could indicate more binding sites in the lower half. Km of the upper half was always greater than that of the lower half (unmeasurably low), which could indicate that upper-half binding sites had a much lower affinity for auxin than lower-half sites. Dose-response curves were also obtained for sections scrubbed' (cuticle abraded) on top or bottom before immersion in auxin, and gravitropic memory' experiments of L. Brauner and A. Hagar (1958 Planta 51: 115-147) were duplicated. [1-14C]Indoleacetic acid penetration was equal into the two halves, and endogenous plus exogenously supplied (not radiolabeled) free auxin in the two halves (by gas chromatography-selected ion monitoring-mass spectrometry) was also equal. Thus, differential growth occurred without free auxin redistribution, contrary to Cholodny-Went but in agreement with a sensitivity model.

Musical training and empathy positively impact adults’ sensitivity to infant distress

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Christine E Parsons

2014-12-01

Full Text Available Crying is the most powerful auditory signal of infant need. Adults’ ability to perceive and respond to crying is important for infant survival and in the provision of care. This study investigated a number of listener variables that might impact on adults’ perception of infant cry distress, namely parental status, musical training and empathy. Sensitivity to infant distress was tested using a previously validated task, which experimentally manipulated distress by varying the pitch of infant cries. Parents with musical training showed a significant advantage on this task when compared with parents without. The extent of the advantage was correlated with the amount of self-reported musical training. For non-parents, individual differences in empathy were associated with task performance, with higher empathy scores corresponding to greater sensitivity to infant distress. We suggest that sensitivity to infant distress can be impacted by a number of listener variables, and may be amenable to training.

Low Cotinine Glucuronidation Results in Higher Serum and Saliva Cotinine in African American Compared to White Smokers.

Science.gov (United States)

Murphy, Sharon E; Sipe, Christopher J; Choi, Kwangsoo; Raddatz, Leah M; Koopmeiners, Joseph S; Donny, Eric C; Hatsukami, Dorothy K

2017-07-01

Background: Tobacco exposure is often quantified by serum or saliva concentrations of the primary nicotine metabolite, cotinine. However, average cotinine concentrations are higher in African Americans (AA) compared with Whites with similar smoking levels. Cotinine is metabolized by UGT2B10 and CYP2A6, and low UGT2B10 activity is common in AA, due to the prevalence of a UGT2B10 splice variant. Methods: UGT2B10 activity was phenotyped in 1,446 smokers (34% AA) by measuring the percentage of cotinine excreted as a glucuronide. Urinary total nicotine equivalents (TNE), the sum of nicotine and 6 metabolites, were determined to quantify smoking dose, and cotinine and 3'-hydroxycotinine were quantified in saliva (study 1) or serum (study 2). Results: Ninety-seven smokers (78% AA) were null for UGT2B10 activity, and the saliva and serum cotinine levels, after adjustment for TNE and cigarettes per day (CPD), were 68% and 48% higher in these smokers compared with nonnull smokers ( P smokers, but with additional adjustment for UGT2B10 activity, there were no significant differences in saliva and serum cotinine concentrations between these two groups. Conclusions: UGT2B10 activity significantly influences plasma cotinine levels, and higher cotinine concentrations in AA versus White smokers (after adjustment for smoking dose) result from lower levels of UGT2B10-catalyzed cotinine glucuronidation by AA. Impact: UGT2B10 activity or genotype should be considered when using cotinine as a tobacco exposure biomarker, particularly in populations such as AA with high frequencies of UGT2B10 nonfunctional variants. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev; 26(7); 1093-9. ©2017 AACR . ©2017 American Association for Cancer Research.

Chemical exchange-sensitive spin-lock MRI of glucose analog 3-O-methyl-d-glucose in normal and ischemic brain.

Science.gov (United States)

Jin, Tao; Mehrens, Hunter; Wang, Ping; Kim, Seong-Gi

2018-05-01

Glucose transport is important for understanding brain glucose metabolism. We studied glucose transport with a presumably non-toxic and non-metabolizable glucose analog, 3-O-methyl-d-glucose, using a chemical exchange-sensitive spin-lock MRI technique at 9.4 Tesla. 3-O-methyl-d-glucose showed comparable chemical exchange properties with d-glucose and 2-deoxy-d-glucose in phantoms, and higher and lower chemical exchange-sensitive spin-lock sensitivity than Glc and 2-deoxy-d-glucose in in vivo experiments, respectively. The changes of the spin-lattice relaxation rate in the rotating frame (Δ R 1 ρ) in normal rat brain peaked at ∼15 min after the intravenous injection of 1 g/kg 3-O-methyl-d-glucose and almost maintained a plateau for >1 h. Doses up to 4 g/kg 3-O-methyl-d-glucose were linearly correlated with Δ R 1 ρ. In rats with focal ischemic stroke, chemical exchange-sensitive spin-lock with 3-O-methyl-d-glucose injection at 1 h after stroke onset showed reduced Δ R 1 ρ in the ischemic core but higher Δ R 1 ρ in the peri-core region compared to normal tissue, which progressed into the ischemic core at 3 h after stroke onset. This suggests that the hyper-chemical exchange-sensitive spin-lock region observed at 1 h is the ischemic penumbra at-risk of infarct. In summary, 3-O-methyl-d-glucose-chemical exchange-sensitive spin-lock can be a sensitive MRI technique to probe the glucose transport in normal and ischemic brains.

Biased and less sensitive: A gamified approach to delay discounting in heroin addiction.

Science.gov (United States)

Scherbaum, Stefan; Haber, Paul; Morley, Kirsten; Underhill, Dylan; Moustafa, Ahmed A

2018-03-01

People with addiction will continue to use drugs despite adverse long-term consequences. We hypothesized (a) that this deficit persists during substitution treatment, and (b) that this deficit might be related not only to a desire for immediate gratification, but also to a lower sensitivity for optimal decision making. We investigated how individuals with a history of heroin addiction perform (compared to healthy controls) in a virtual reality delay discounting task. This novel task adds to established measures of delay discounting an assessment of the optimality of decisions, especially in how far decisions are influenced by a general choice bias and/or a reduced sensitivity to the relative value of the two alternative rewards. We used this measure of optimality to apply diffusion model analysis to the behavioral data to analyze the interaction between decision optimality and reaction time. The addiction group consisted of 25 patients with a history of heroin dependency currently participating in a methadone maintenance program; the control group consisted of 25 healthy participants with no history of substance abuse, who were recruited from the Western Sydney community. The patient group demonstrated greater levels of delay discounting compared to the control group, which is broadly in line with previous observations. Diffusion model analysis yielded a reduced sensitivity for the optimality of a decision in the patient group compared to the control group. This reduced sensitivity was reflected in lower rates of information accumulation and higher decision criteria. Increased discounting in individuals with heroin addiction is related not only to a generally increased bias to immediate gratification, but also to reduced sensitivity for the optimality of a decision. This finding is in line with other findings about the sensitivity of addicts in distinguishing optimal from nonoptimal choice options.

Comparison of high-sensitivity C-reactive protein and fetuin-A levels before and after treatment for subjects with subclinical hyperthyroidism.

Science.gov (United States)

Bilgir, Oktay; Bilgir, Ferda; Topcuoglu, Tuba; Calan, Mehmet; Calan, Ozlem

2014-03-01

This study was designed to show the effect of propylthiouracil treatment on sCD40L, high-sensitivity C-reactive protein, and fetuin-A levels on subjects with subclinical hyperthyroidism. After checking sCD40L, high-sensitivity C-reactive protein, and fetuin-A levels of 35 patients with subclinical hyperthyroidism, each was given 50 mg tablets of propylthiouracil three times daily. After 3 months, sCD40L, high-sensitivity C-reactive protein, and fetuin-A levels were then compared to the levels before treatment. Although high-sensitivity C-reactive protein and sCD40L levels were normal in the subclinical hyperthyroidism patients compared to the healthy controls, fetuin-A levels were statistically significantly higher (*p = 0.022). After treatment, fetuin-A levels of subclinical hyperthyroidism patients decreased statistically significantly compared to the levels before treatment (**p = 0.026). sCD40L and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein levels did not have a statistically significant difference compared to the control group and post-propylthiouracil treatment. In subclinical hyperthyroidism patients, high fetuin-A levels before propylthiouracil treatment and decreases in these levels after treatment in cases with subclinical hyperthyroidism indicated the possibility of preventing long-term cardiac complications with propylthiouracil treatment.

Women undergoing aortic surgery are at higher risk for unplanned readmissions compared with men especially when discharged home.

Science.gov (United States)

Flink, Benjamin J; Long, Chandler A; Duwayri, Yazan; Brewster, Luke P; Veeraswamy, Ravi; Gallagher, Katherine; Arya, Shipra

2016-06-01

Women undergoing vascular surgery have higher morbidity and mortality. Our study explores gender-based differences in patient-centered outcomes such as readmission, length of stay (LOS), and discharge destination (home vs nonhome facility) in aortic aneurysm surgery. Patients were identified from the American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Project database (2011-2013) undergoing abdominal, thoracic, and thoracoabdominal aortic aneurysms (N = 17,763), who were discharged and survived their index hospitalization. The primary outcome was unplanned readmission, and secondary outcomes were discharge to a nonhome facility, LOS, and reasons for unplanned readmission. Univariate, multivariate, and stratified analyses based on gender and discharge destination were used. Overall, 1541 patients (8.7%) experienced an unplanned readmission, with a significantly higher risk in women vs men (10.8% vs 8%; P women compared with men persisted in multivariate analysis after controlling for covariates (odds ratio [OR], 1.21; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.05-1.4). Similarly, the rate of discharge to a nonhome facility was nearly double in women compared with men (20.6% vs 10.7%; P women compared with men occurred in patients who were discharged home (OR, 1.2; 95% CI, 1.02-1.4) but not in those who were discharged to a nonhome facility (OR, 1.06; 95% CI, 0.8-1.4). Significant differences in LOS were seen in patients who were discharged home. No gender differences were found in reasons for readmission with the three most common reasons being thromboembolic events, wound infections, and pneumonia. Gender disparity exists in the risk of unplanned readmission among aortic aneurysm surgery patients. Women who were discharged home have a higher likelihood of unplanned readmission despite longer LOS than men. These data suggest that further study into the discharge planning processes, social factors, and use of rehabilitation services is needed for women

Why are freeform telescopes less alignment sensitive than a traditional unobscured TMA?

Science.gov (United States)

Thompson, Kevin P.; Schiesser, Eric; Rolland, Jannick P.

2015-10-01

As freeform optical systems emerge as interesting and innovative solutions for imaging in 3D packages there is an assumption they are going to be more sensitive particularly at assembly. While it is true that the clocking of the component becomes a relatively weak new tolerance, for the most effective new class of freeform systems the alignment sensitivity is actually lower in most cases than for a comparable traditional unobscured three mirror anastigmatic (TMA) telescope. Traditional unobscured TMA telescopes, whose designs emerged in the mid-70s and which begin to appear as hardware in the literature in the early 90s, are based on using increasingly offset apertures with otherwise coaxial rotationally symmetric mirrors. The mirrors (typically 3 to correct spherical, coma, and astigmatism) have evolved to contain more high order terms as the designs are pushed to more compact and wider field packages - the NIRCAM camera for the JWST is an excellent example of this [1]. As the higher order terms are added, the mirrors become increasingly sensitive to decenters and tilts. An emerging class of freeform telescopes that provide wider field of view and/or faster f/numbers than the traditional TMA are based on a strategy where the surface shape remains a low order Zernike-type surface even in compact, unobscured packages. This optical design strategy results in an optical form that is not only higher performance but simultaneously less sensitive to alignment.

Correlation of radiation sensitivity and nitrofurantoin sensitivity of Escherichia coli K-12

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kloeck, K.

1981-01-01

The Uvr- and rec-mutants of E.coli K-12 have been tested with a view to their radiation- and nitrofuration sensitivity. The tests showed that all mutants tested were more radiation- and NF-sensitive than the wild type AB 1157. When the NF-sensitivity had been compared to the UV- and X-ray sensitivity it became obvious that the NF-sensitivity is correlated to the UV-sensitivity. Studies carried out with regard to the time dependence of the NF-effect on E.coli showed that the effect of NF on E. Coli became weaker after about 1 1/2 to 2 hours. That is possibly caused by the fact that the E. coli bacteria succeed in reducing the NF to an inactive form. By means of nitrosoguanidine mutants of E-coli AB 1157 had been induced and by means of the Replicite Plating Method, NF-sensible mutants had been isolated from the plutonium mixture. Among the mutants which had been isolated by this method, 74% had been more UV-sensitive than the wild type and 55% more X-ray sensitive. Thus NF-sensitive mutants have not necessarily to be considered as rec-mutants as there are also uvr-mutants in the mixture. (orig.) [de

High hunger state increases olfactory sensitivity to neutral but not food odors.

Science.gov (United States)

Stafford, Lorenzo D; Welbeck, Kimberley

2011-01-01

Understanding how hunger state relates to olfactory sensitivity has become more urgent due to their possible role in obesity. In 2 studies (within-subjects: n = 24, between-subjects: n = 40), participants were provided with lunch before (satiated state) or after (nonsatiated state) testing and completed a standardized olfactory threshold test to a neutral odor (Experiments 1 and 2) and discrimination test to a food odor (Experiment 2). Experiment 1 revealed that olfactory sensitivity was greater in the nonsatiated versus satiated state, with additionally increased sensitivity for the low body mass index (BMI) compared with high BMI group. Experiment 2 replicated this effect for neutral odors, but in the case of food odors, those in a satiated state had greater acuity. Additionally, whereas the high BMI group had higher acuity to food odors in the satiated versus nonsatiated state, no such differences were found for the low BMI group. The research here is the first to demonstrate how olfactory acuity changes as a function of hunger state and relatedness of odor to food and that BMI can predict differences in olfactory sensitivity.

Pakistanis living in Oslo have lower serum 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D levels but higher serum ionized calcium levels compared with ethnic Norwegians. The Oslo Health Study

Science.gov (United States)

Holvik, Kristin; Meyer, Haakon E; Søgaard, Anne Johanne; Haug, Egil; Falch, Jan A

2007-01-01

Background Persons of Pakistani origin living in Oslo have a much higher prevalence of vitamin D deficiency and secondary hyperparathyroidism but similar bone mineral density compared with ethnic Norwegians. Our objective was to investigate whether Pakistani immigrants living in Oslo have an altered vitamin D metabolism by means of compensatory higher serum levels of 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D (s-1,25(OH)2D) compared with ethnic Norwegians; and whether serum levels of ionized calcium (s-Ca2+) differ between Pakistanis and Norwegians. Methods In a cross-sectional, population-based study venous serum samples were drawn from 94 Pakistani men and 67 Pakistani women aged 30–60 years, and 290 Norwegian men and 270 Norwegian women aged 45–60 years; in total 721 subjects. Results Pakistanis had lower s-1,25(OH)2D compared with Norwegians (p Oslo with low vitamin D status and secondary hyperparathyroidism have lower s-1,25(OH)2D compared with ethnic Norwegians. However, the Pakistanis have higher s-Ca2+. The cause of the higher s-Ca2+ in Pakistanis in spite of their higher iPTH remains unclear. PMID:17945003

Hierarchical Nanogold Labels to Improve the Sensitivity of Lateral Flow Immunoassay

Science.gov (United States)

Serebrennikova, Kseniya; Samsonova, Jeanne; Osipov, Alexander

2018-06-01

Lateral flow immunoassay (LFIA) is a widely used express method and offers advantages such as a short analysis time, simplicity of testing and result evaluation. However, an LFIA based on gold nanospheres lacks the desired sensitivity, thereby limiting its wide applications. In this study, spherical nanogold labels along with new types of nanogold labels such as gold nanopopcorns and nanostars were prepared, characterized, and applied for LFIA of model protein antigen procalcitonin. It was found that the label with a structure close to spherical provided more uniform distribution of specific antibodies on its surface, indicative of its suitability for this type of analysis. LFIA using gold nanopopcorns as a label allowed procalcitonin detection over a linear range of 0.5-10 ng mL-1 with the limit of detection of 0.1 ng mL-1, which was fivefold higher than the sensitivity of the assay with gold nanospheres. Another approach to improve the sensitivity of the assay included the silver enhancement method, which was used to compare the amplification of LFIA for procalcitonin detection. The sensitivity of procalcitonin determination by this method was 10 times better the sensitivity of the conventional LFIA with gold nanosphere as a label. The proposed approach of LFIA based on gold nanopopcorns improved the detection sensitivity without additional steps and prevented the increased consumption of specific reagents (antibodies).

Gold leaf counter electrodes for dye-sensitized solar cells

Science.gov (United States)

Shimada, Kazuhiro; Toyoda, Takeshi

2018-03-01

In this study, a gold leaf 100 nm thin film is used as the counter electrode in dye-sensitized solar cells. The traditional method of hammering gold foil to obtain a thin gold leaf, which requires only small amounts of gold, was employed. The gold leaf was then attached to the substrate using an adhesive to produce the gold electrode. The proposed approach for fabricating counter electrodes is demonstrated to be facile and cost-effective, as opposed to existing techniques. Compared with electrodes prepared with gold foil and sputtered gold, the gold leaf counter electrode demonstrates higher catalytic activity with a cobalt-complex electrolyte and higher cell efficiency. The origin of the improved performance was investigated by surface morphology examination (scanning electron microscopy), various electrochemical analyses (cyclic voltammetry, linear sweep voltammetry, and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy), and crystalline analysis (X-ray diffractometry).

Comparative assessment of spent nuclear fuel transportation routes using risk factors and a geographic information system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Toth, D.M.

1996-01-01

The assessment of potential alternative routes was simplified through the use of six comparative risk factors evaluated using detailed, route-specific data. The route and environmental attributes varied strongly with location and were developed from national, state, and local sources. The six comparative factors were risk measures of incident-free transportation radiation exposure, radiological accident population exposure, nonradiological accidents, contamination of environmental sensitive areas, environmental justice for minority populations, and environmental justice for low-income populations. An assessment of four real North-Central Florida routes provided a sample implementation of the analysis tools and risk factors. The assessment routes, consisting of common beginning and end locations, included an interstate highway, a rural highway, a mostly urban highway, and a combination interstate highway with rural bypass. This route comparative assessment study predicted that the interstate highway, despite a higher population density, greater traffic volume, and greater number of vehicular fatality accidents, would present the lowest cumulative risk. On the contrary, the rural highway route, characterized as having the lowest population density, minimal vehicle traffic volume, and the lowest percentages of minority and low-income populations, displayed the highest cumulative risk measure. Factors contributing to the high risk for the rural highway route included greater route length, higher vehicular fatality accident rates per vehicle mile traveled, and the close proximity to environmentally sensitive areas. This route comparative assessment study predicted that the interstate highway, despite a higher population density, greater traffic volume, and greater number of vehicular fatality accidents, would present the lowest cumulative risk. On the contrary, the rural highway route, characterized as having the lowest population density, minimal vehicle traffic volume

"It's the Method, Stupid." Interrelations between Methodological and Theoretical Advances: The Example of Comparing Higher Education Systems Internationally

Science.gov (United States)

Hoelscher, Michael

2017-01-01

This article argues that strong interrelations between methodological and theoretical advances exist. Progress in, especially comparative, methods may have important impacts on theory evaluation. By using the example of the "Varieties of Capitalism" approach and an international comparison of higher education systems, it can be shown…

Sensitivity of thallium scintigraphy in the detection of individual coronary artery disease

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Khan, A.; Rehman, A.; Wiqar, M.A.; Khan, Z.A.; Ahmad, S.A.

1988-01-01

In this study we randomly selected 45 patients whose coronary angiograms were abnormals i.e. showing triple, double and single vessel disease. Out of 80 patients who had undergone stress thallium imaging and coronary angiography during the one year. Majority of these patients were males and their ages ranged between 34-54 years. Fifteen patients had suffered inferior myocardial infraction and 5 had sustained anterior myocardial infraction in the fast. We analysed their coronary angiograms and compared them with the scintigraphic findings. It is concluded that although thallium scanning has high sensitivity for detection of coronary artery disease in general, it has only moderate sensitivity for detection of stenosis in individual coronary arteries. In this study thallium scan identified 75% of RCA lesions, 66% of LAD lesions and 38% circumflex lesions. Thallium scan sometimes fails to identify the less serve lesions in presence of more severe coronary lesions in the some patients. The sensitivity is much higher in single vessel coronary artery disease. (author)

Nanoantennas for surface enhanced infrared spectroscopy: Effects of interaction and higher order resonant excitations

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

J. Aizpurua

2011-09-01

Full Text Available The sensitivity in surface enhanced infrared spectroscopy (SEIRS strongly depends on where the resonant excitation is spectrally located compared to the molecular vibration that is to be enhanced. In this contribution, we study the effect of coupling in the electromagnetic properties of 2D gold nanorod arrays in the IR. We also study the SEIRS activity of higher order resonant excitations in long nanoantennas to identify polaritonic signals of a supporting SiO2 layer with nanometer thickness (3 nm on a silicon substrate.

Gamma radiation induced sensitization and photo-transfer in Mg2SiO4:Tb TLD phosphor

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lakshmanan, A.R.; Vohra, K.G.

1979-01-01

Mg 2 SiO 4 :Tb TLD phosphor was found to show enhanced TL sensitivity to both gamma and UV radiations after high pre-gamma exposures (>100 R) and a post-annealing treatment at 300 0 C for 1 h. Maximum sensitization factors of 2.8 and 55 were obtained at the pre-expsoure levels of 5.2x10 1 C/kg and 1.3x10 3 C/kg for gamma and UV test radiations respectively. The near constancy of the intensity of the residual TL (RTL) peak at 500 0 C for the sensitized sample with increasing test-gamma exposures has ruled out the re-trapping model proposed earlier for the gamma radiation induced sensitization in this phosphor. The Tsub(max) for the sensitized phosphor was found to occur at a higher temperature compared to that for the virgin phosphor. The dependence of sensitization on RTL was explained qualitatively on the basis of competition between sensitization traps (having higher energy than the dosimetry traps) and RTL traps while capturing the charge carriers generated during the test-gamma exposure. The sensitization observed in this phosphor to UV test radiation was found to be a consequence of the photo-transfer of charge carriers from deep (RTL) traps to the shallow (dosimetry) traps. The reduction in RTL peak (500 0 C) intensity of the sensitized sample with increasing test-UV exposure has demonstrated the photo-transfer mechanism in this phosphor. The TL response of the virgin Mg 2 SiO 4 :Tb phosphor was found to be supralinear to both gamma and UV radiations. The TL response of the sensitized phosphor was found to be linear to gamma radiation and sublinear to UV radiation. (Auth.)

Comparative effects of indium/ytterbium doping on, mechanical and gas-sensitivity-related morphological, properties of sprayed ZnO compounds

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Boukhachem, A.; Fridjine, S.; Amlouk, A.; Boubaker, K.; Bouhafs, M.; Amlouk, M.

2010-01-01

In this study, conducting and transparent indium-doped zinc oxide (ZnO) thin films have been deposited on glass substrates by the micro-spray technique. First, zinc oxide layers were obtained by spaying a solution of propanol and zinc acetate in acidified medium. Alternatively, some of the obtained films were doped with indium (In) at the molar rates of: 1%, 2% and 3%. In addition to the classical structural investigated using XRD, AFM and SEM techniques, microhardness Vickers (Hv) measurements have been carried out along with comparative morphological prospecting. The specific gases sensitivity-related surface morphology of the doped ZnO compounds was favorably different from that of the non-doped ones, and showed a thin overlay structure. Results were compared to those recorded for similar ytterbium-doped material.

Self-powered detectors sensitivity determination

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Surkov, V.; Soares, A.J.

1994-01-01

The determination of the initial sensitivity of Self Powered Detectors (SPDs) was performed. Measurements of thermal, epithermal and to gamma flux sensitivities were made with Vanadium, Cobalt, Rhodium, Silver and Platinum SPDs and, when possible, the values are compared with the ones from the existing literature. The determination of neutron sensitivity was realized using the IEA-R1 Reactor from IPEN. The thermal and epithermal neutron flux were determined with bare and Cadmium covered activation foils. (GOLD). (author)

Cluster subgroups based on overall pressure pain sensitivity and psychosocial factors in chronic musculoskeletal pain: Differences in clinical outcomes.

Science.gov (United States)

Almeida, Suzana C; George, Steven Z; Leite, Raquel D V; Oliveira, Anamaria S; Chaves, Thais C

2018-05-17

We aimed to empirically derive psychosocial and pain sensitivity subgroups using cluster analysis within a sample of individuals with chronic musculoskeletal pain (CMP) and to investigate derived subgroups for differences in pain and disability outcomes. Eighty female participants with CMP answered psychosocial and disability scales and were assessed for pressure pain sensitivity. A cluster analysis was used to derive subgroups, and analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used to investigate differences between subgroups. Psychosocial factors (kinesiophobia, pain catastrophizing, anxiety, and depression) and overall pressure pain threshold (PPT) were entered into the cluster analysis. Three subgroups were empirically derived: cluster 1 (high pain sensitivity and high psychosocial distress; n = 12) characterized by low overall PPT and high psychosocial scores; cluster 2 (high pain sensitivity and intermediate psychosocial distress; n = 39) characterized by low overall PPT and intermediate psychosocial scores; and cluster 3 (low pain sensitivity and low psychosocial distress; n = 29) characterized by high overall PPT and low psychosocial scores compared to the other subgroups. Cluster 1 showed higher values for mean pain intensity (F (2,77)  = 10.58, p cluster 3, and cluster 1 showed higher values for disability (F (2,77)  = 3.81, p = 0.03) compared with both clusters 2 and 3. Only cluster 1 was distinct from cluster 3 according to both pain and disability outcomes. Pain catastrophizing, depression, and anxiety were the psychosocial variables that best differentiated the subgroups. Overall, these results call attention to the importance of considering pain sensitivity and psychosocial variables to obtain a more comprehensive characterization of CMP patients' subtypes.

Sensitive Detection of Biomolecules by Surface Enhanced Raman Scattering using Plant Leaves as Natural Substrates

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sharma Vipul

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Detection of biomolecules is highly important for biomedical and other biological applications. Although several methods exist for the detection of biomolecules, surface enhanced Raman scattering (SERS has a unique role in greatly enhancing the sensitivity. In this work, we have demonstrated the use of natural plant leaves as facile, low cost and eco-friendly SERS substrates for the sensitive detection of biomolecules. Specifically, we have investigated the influence of surface topography of five different plant leaf based substrates, deposited with Au, on the SERS performance by using L-cysteine as a model biomolecule. In addition, we have also compared the effect of sputter deposition of Au thin film with dropcast deposition of Au nanoparticles on the leaf substrates. Our results indicate that L-cysteine could be detected with high sensitivity using these plant leaf based substrates and the leaf possessing hierarchical micro/nanostructures on its surface shows higher SERS enhancement compared to a leaf having a nearplanar surface. Furthermore, leaves with drop-casted Au nanoparticle clusters performed better than the leaves sputter deposited with a thin Au film.

From Molecular Design to Co-sensitization; High performance indole based photosensitizers for dye-sensitized solar cells

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Babu, Dickson D.; Su, Rui; El-Shafei, Ahmed; Adhikari, Airody Vasudeva

2016-01-01

Highlights: • First report on the effect of anchoring groups on co-sensitization performance. • Two novel co-adsorbers have been designed and synthesized. • Barbituric acid has emerged as a good anchoring group for co-sensitizers. • Co-sensitized device displayed an enhanced efficiency of 8.06%. - Abstract: Herein, we report the molecular design and synthesis of two novel organic co-adsorbers DBA-1((Z)-2-cyano-3-(5-(4-(cyclohexa-1,5-dien-3-ynyl(phenyl)amino)phenyl) -1-hexyl-1H-indol-3-yl)acrylic acid) and (DBA-2) 5-((5-(4-(diphenylamino)phenyl)-1-hexyl-1H-indol-3-yl)methylene) pyrimidine-2,4,6(1H,3H,5H)-trione with D-D-A (donor-donor-acceptor) architecture. We have combined the strong electron donating triphenylamine group with indole moiety attached to different acceptors/anchoring groups, as co-adsorbers for dye-sensitized solar cells and we present for the first time, the role of anchoring/acceptor unit on their co-adsorption properties. In this study, cyanoacetic acid and barbituric acid are employed as anchoring groups in the co-sensitizers DBA-1 and DBA-2, respectively_. Their electrochemical and photo-physical properties along with molecular geometries, obtained from Density Functional Theory (DFT) are employed to vindicate the effect of co-sensitizer structures on photovoltaic properties of DSSCs. We have demonstrated that the co-sensitization effect is profoundly dependent upon the anchoring/acceptor unit in the co-adsorber molecule. Devices co-sensitized using DBA-1 and DBA-2 along with HD-2 (Ru-complex of 4, 4'-bis-(1,4-benzodioxan-5-yl-vinyl)-[2,2']bipyridine), displayed higher power conversion efficiencies (PCEs) than the device sensitized using only HD-2. In the present work, ruthenium based sensitizer, HD-2, has been chosen due to its better solar-to-power conversion efficiency and impressively higher photocurrent densities than that of standard N719. Among them, co-adsorber DBA-2, containing barbituric acid as the acceptor/anchoring group

Detection of high-sensitivity troponin in outpatients with stable pulmonary hypertension identifies a subgroup at higher risk of adverse outcomes.

Science.gov (United States)

Roy, Andrew K; McCullagh, Brian N; Segurado, Ricardo; McGorrian, Catherine; Keane, Elizabeth; Keaney, John; Fitzgibbon, Maria N; Mahon, Niall G; Murray, Patrick T; Gaine, Sean P

2014-01-01

The detection of elevations in cardiorenal biomarkers, such as troponins, B-type natriuretic peptides (BNPs), and neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalins, are associated with poor outcomes in patients hospitalized with acute heart failure. Less is known about the association of these markers with adverse events in chronic right ventricular dysfunction due to pulmonary hypertension, or whether their measurement may improve risk assessment in the outpatient setting. We performed a cohort study of 108 patients attending the National Pulmonary Hypertension Unit in Dublin, Ireland, from 2007 to 2009. Cox proportional hazards analysis and receiver operating characteristic curves were used to determine predictors of mortality and hospitalization. Death or hospitalization occurred in 50 patients (46.3%) during the median study period of 4.1 years. Independent predictors of mortality were: 1) decreasing 6-minute walk test (6MWT; hazard ratio [HR] 12.8; P < .001); 2) BNP (HR 6.68; P < .001); and 3) highly sensitive troponin (hsTnT; HR 5.48; P < .001). Adjusted hazard analyses remained significant when hsTnT was added to a model with BNP and 6MWT (HR 9.26, 95% CI 3.61-23.79), as did the predictive ability of the model for death and rehospitalization (area under the receiver operating characteristic curve 0.81, 95% CI 0.73-0.90). Detection of troponin using a highly sensitive assay identifies a pulmonary hypertension subgroup with a poorer prognosis. hsTnT may also be used in a risk prediction model to identify patients at higher risk who may require escalation of targeted pulmonary vasodilator therapies and closer clinical surveillance. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Clinical Characteristics of Fungal Sensitization in Children with Allergic Respiratory Diseases

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Pınar Uysal

2016-08-01

Full Text Available Objective: The aim of the study was to evaluate the prevelance of fungal sensitization among school-aged children with allergic respiratory diseases who attended our outpatient clinic and to evaluate its clinical impact on disease severity. Materials and Methods: Children with allergic symptoms during mould season, who attended our outpatient clinic between January 2014 and August 2015, were evaluated for allergic respiratory diseases. Skin prick testing with fungal and other commercial standardized solutions of aeroallergens was performed in all children. Spirometry was performed in children with asthma. Serum total immunoglobulin E (IgE and aeroallergen specific IgE (sIgE levels were measured. Results: A total of 112 children were included in the study. The prevelance of fungal sensitization was 6.4%. Alternaria alterna was the most common fungal allergen in both mono and polysensitized groups (p=0.002, p=0.004, respectively. Alternaria alterna sensitization was significantly higher in patients with persistent allergic rhinitis compared to those with intermittant allergic rhinitis (p=0.002. The patients with mild asthma were mostly monosensitized (p=0.003, but cases with severe asthma (SA were polysensitized (p=0.007. In polysensitized cases, Alternaria alterna and Cladosporium spp. coexistance was the most common combination compared to other fungal combinations (p<0.001. The sensitivity rate of sIgE was found to be 88%. In spirometric analysis, forced expiratory volume in 1 second (FEV1 and FEV1/forced vital capacity values were lower in polysensitized children with asthma and in children with asthma coexisting allergic rhinitis compared to children with allergic rhinitis only (p=0.004, p=0.001, respectively. Conclusion: The most common fungal allergen was Alternaria alterna in children with mono or polysensitization. Polysensitization with fungal allergens was closely associated with SA and lower spirometric parameters.

The tradeoff between signal detection and recognition rules auditory sensitivity under variable background noise conditions.

Science.gov (United States)

Lugli, Marco

2015-12-07

Animal acoustic communication commonly takes place under masked conditions. For instance, sound signals relevant for mating and survival are very often masked by background noise, which makes their detection and recognition by organisms difficult. Ambient noise (AN) varies in level and shape among different habitats, but also remarkable variations in time and space occurs within the same habitat. Variable AN conditions mask hearing thresholds of the receiver in complex and unpredictable ways, thereby causing distortions in sound perception. When communication takes place in a noisy environment, a highly sensitive system might confer no advantage to the receiver compared to a less sensitive one. The effects of noise masking on auditory thresholds and hearing-related functions are well known, and the potential role of AN in the evolution of the species' auditory sensitivity has been recognized by few authors. The mechanism of the underlying selection process has never been explored, however. Here I present a simple fitness model that seeks for the best sensitivity of a hearing system performing the detection and recognition of the sound under variable AN conditions. The model predicts higher sensitivity (i.e. lower hearing thresholds) as best strategy for species living in quiet habitats and lower sensitivity (i.e. higher hearing thresholds) as best strategy for those living in noisy habitats provided the cost of incorrect recognition is not low. The tradeoff between detection and recognition of acoustic signals appears to be a key factor determining the best level of hearing sensitivity of a species when acoustic communication is corrupted by noise. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

A comparative study of planar, SPECT, x-ray CT and angiographic imaging in the detectability of space occupying lesion (SOL) of liver

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Manabe, Takao; Oda, Junro; Kamino, Toshio

1986-01-01

Planar, SPECT, X-CT, and angiography were compared in 47 patients with suspected SOL in the liver. SPECT had greater sensitivity and specificity in detecting SOLs than planar. Especially the detection of SOL less than 3 cm was improved, and the smallest SOL detected by SPECT was 1.0 cm in diameter. SPECT appears reliable procedure for screening SOLs in the liver. Compared with X-CT, SPECT had nearly equal sensitivity in detecting SOLs more than 3 cm, and X-CT had higher sensitivity in detecting SOLs less than 3 cm. But in some cases, for example isodensity SOL, SPECT could detect the SOL which was missed by X-CT. (author)

Comparative sensitivities of functional MRI sequences in detection of local recurrence of prostate carcinoma after radical prostatectomy or external-beam radiotherapy.

Science.gov (United States)

Roy, Catherine; Foudi, Fatah; Charton, Jeanne; Jung, Michel; Lang, Hervé; Saussine, Christian; Jacqmin, Didier

2013-04-01

The aim of this retrospective study was to determine the respective accuracies of three types of functional MRI sequences-diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI), dynamic contrast-enhanced (DCE) MRI, and 3D (1)H-MR spectroscopy (MRS)-in the depiction of local prostate cancer recurrence after two different initial therapy options. From a cohort of 83 patients with suspicion of local recurrence based on prostate-specific antigen (PSA) kinetics who were imaged on a 3-T MRI unit using an identical protocol including the three functional sequences with an endorectal coil, we selected 60 patients (group A, 28 patients who underwent radical prostatectomy; group B, 32 patients who underwent external-beam radiation) who had local recurrence ascertained on the basis of a transrectal ultrasound-guided biopsy results and a reduction in PSA level after salvage therapy. All patients presented with a local relapse. Sensitivity with T2-weighted MRI and 3D (1)H-MRS sequences was 57% and 53%, respectively, for group A and 71% and 78%, respectively, for group B. DCE-MRI alone showed a sensitivity of 100% and 96%, respectively, for groups A and B. DWI alone had a higher sensitivity for group B (96%) than for group A (71%). The combination of T2-weighted imaging plus DWI plus DCE-MRI provided a sensitivity as high as 100% in group B. The performance of functional imaging sequences for detecting recurrence is different after radical prostatectomy and external-beam radiotherapy. DCE-MRI is a valid and efficient tool to detect prostate cancer recurrence in radical prostatectomy as well as in external-beam radiotherapy. The combination of DCE-MRI and DWI is highly efficient after radiation therapy. Three-dimensional (1)H-MRS needs to be improved. Even though it is not accurate enough, T2-weighted imaging remains essential for the morphologic analysis of the area.

Aortic Baroreceptors Display Higher Mechanosensitivity than Carotid Baroreceptors

OpenAIRE

Lau, Eva On-Chai; Lo, Chun-Yin; Yao, Yifei; Mak, Arthur Fuk-Tat; Jiang, Liwen; Huang, Yu; Yao, Xiaoqiang

2016-01-01

Arterial baroreceptors are mechanical sensors that detect blood pressure changes. It has long been suggested that the two arterial baroreceptors, aortic and carotid baroreceptors, have different pressure sensitivities. However, there is no consensus as to which of the arterial baroreceptors are more sensitive to changes in blood pressure. In the present study, we employed independent methods to compare the pressure sensitivity of the two arterial baroreceptors. Firstly, pressure-activated act...

Multifunctional pH-sensitive superparamagnetic iron-oxide nanocomposites for targeted drug delivery and MR imaging.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhu, Lijuan; Wang, Dali; Wei, Xuan; Zhu, Xinyuan; Li, Jianqi; Tu, Chunlai; Su, Yue; Wu, Jieli; Zhu, Bangshang; Yan, Deyue

2013-08-10

A multifunctional pH-sensitive superparamagnetic iron-oxide (SPIO) nanocomposite system was developed for simultaneous tumor magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and therapy. Small-size SPIO nanoparticles were chemically bonded with antitumor drug doxorubicin (DOX) and biocompatible poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) through pH-sensitive acylhydrazone linkages, resulting in the formation of SPIO nanocomposites with magnetic targeting and pH-sensitive properties. These DOX-conjugated SPIO nanocomposites exhibited not only good stability in aqueous solution but also high saturation magnetizations. Under an acidic environment, the DOX was quickly released from the SPIO nanocomposites due to the cleavage of pH-sensitive acylhydrazone linkages. With the help of magnetic field, the DOX-conjugated SPIO nanocomposites showed high cellular uptake, indicating their magnetic targeting property. Comparing to free DOX, the DOX-conjugated SPIO nanocomposites showed better antitumor effect under magnetic field. At the same time, the relaxivity value of these SPIO nanocomposites was higher than 146s(-1)mM(-1) Fe, leading to ~4 times enhancement compared to that of free SPIO nanoparticles. As a negative contrast agent, these SPIO nanocomposites illustrated high resolution in MRI diagnosis of tumor-bearing mice. All of these results confirm that these pH-sensitive SPIO nanocomposites are promising hybrid materials for synergistic MRI diagnosis and tumor therapy. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Sensitivity of gravitational wave searches to the full signal of intermediate-mass black hole binaries during the first observing run of Advanced LIGO

Science.gov (United States)

Calderón Bustillo, Juan; Salemi, Francesco; Dal Canton, Tito; Jani, Karan P.

2018-01-01

The sensitivity of gravitational wave searches for binary black holes is estimated via the injection and posterior recovery of simulated gravitational wave signals in the detector data streams. When a search reports no detections, the estimated sensitivity is then used to place upper limits on the coalescence rate of the target source. In order to obtain correct sensitivity and rate estimates, the injected waveforms must be faithful representations of the real signals. Up to date, however, injected waveforms have neglected radiation modes of order higher than the quadrupole, potentially biasing sensitivity and coalescence rate estimates. In particular, higher-order modes are known to have a large impact in the gravitational waves emitted by intermediate-mass black holes binaries. In this work, we evaluate the impact of this approximation in the context of two search algorithms run by the LIGO Scientific Collaboration in their search for intermediate-mass black hole binaries in the O1 LIGO Science Run data: a matched filter-based pipeline and a coherent unmodeled one. To this end, we estimate the sensitivity of both searches to simulated signals for nonspinning binaries including and omitting higher-order modes. We find that omission of higher-order modes leads to biases in the sensitivity estimates which depend on the masses of the binary, the search algorithm, and the required level of significance for detection. In addition, we compare the sensitivity of the two search algorithms across the studied parameter space. We conclude that the most recent LIGO-Virgo upper limits on the rate of coalescence of intermediate-mass black hole binaries are conservative for the case of highly asymmetric binaries. However, the tightest upper limits, placed for nearly equal-mass sources, remain unchanged due to the small contribution of higher modes to the corresponding sources.

Introduction to Special Section: "Perspectives on Comparative Higher Education."

Science.gov (United States)

Rhoades, Gary

2001-01-01

Discusses how in this issue's special section, three leading scholars in the comparative study of education explore research questions and methods from three social science frameworks: postmodernism, feminism, and political economy/political sociology. Describes the articles and asserts that these analyses address significant gaps in the existing…

The effects of Valeriana officinalis L. hydro-alcoholic extract on depression like behavior in ovalbumin sensitized rats

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ali Neamati

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Background: Neuroimmune factors have been considered as contributors to the pathogenesis of depression. Beside other therapeutic effects, Valeriana officinalis L., have been suggested to have anti-inflammatory effects. In the present study, the effects of V. officinalis L. hydro alcoholic extract was investigated on depression like behavior in ovalbumin sensitized rats. Materials and Methods: A total of 50 Wistar rats were divided into five groups: Group 1 (control group received saline instead of Valeriana officinalis L. extract. The animals in group 2 (sensitized were treated by saline instead of the extract and were sensitized using the ovalbumin. Groups 3-5 (Sent - Ext 50, (Sent - Ext 100 and (Sent - Ext 200 were treated by 50, 100 and 200 mg/kg of V. officinalis L. hydro-alcoholic extract respectively, during the sensitization protocol. Forced swimming test was performed for all groups and immobility time was recorded. Finally, the animals were placed in the open-field apparatus and the crossing number on peripheral and central areas was observed. Results: The immobility time in the sensitized group was higher than that in the control group (P < 0.01. The animals in Sent-Ext 100 and Sent-Ext 200 groups had lower immobility times in comparison with sensitized group (P < 0.05 and P < 0.01. In the open field test, the crossed number in peripheral by the sensitized group was higher than that of the control one (P < 0.01 while, the animals of Sent-Ext 50, Sent-Ext 100 and Sent-Ext 200 groups had lower crossing number in peripheral compared with the sensitized group (P < 0.05 and P < 0.01 respectively. Furthermore, in the sensitized group, the central crossing number was lower than that of the control group (P < 0.001. In the animals treated by 200 mg/kg of the extract, the central crossing number was higher than that of the sensitized group (P < 0. 05. Conclusions: The results of the present study showed that the hydro-alcoholic extract of V

Temperature sensitivity analysis of polarity controlled electrostatically doped tunnel field-effect transistor

Science.gov (United States)

Nigam, Kaushal; Pandey, Sunil; Kondekar, P. N.; Sharma, Dheeraj

2016-09-01

The conventional tunnel field-effect transistors (TFETs) have shown potential to scale down in sub-22 nm regime due to its lower sub-threshold slope and robustness against short-channel effects (SCEs), however, sensitivity towards temperature variation is a major concern. Therefore, for the first time, we investigate temperature sensitivity analysis of a polarity controlled electrostatically doped tunnel field-effect transistor (ED-TFET). Different performance metrics and analog/RF figure-of-merits were considered and compared for both devices, and simulations were performed using Silvaco ATLAS device tool. We found that the variation in ON-state current in ED-TFET is almost temperature independent due to electrostatically doped mechanism, while, it increases in conventional TFET at higher temperature. Above room temperature, the variation in ION, IOFF, and SS sensitivity in ED-TFET are only 0.11%/K, 2.21%/K, and 0.63%/K, while, in conventional TFET the variations are 0.43%/K, 2.99%/K, and 0.71%/K, respectively. However, below room temperature, the variation in ED-TFET ION is 0.195%/K compared to 0.27%/K of conventional TFET. Moreover, it is analysed that the incomplete ionization effect in conventional TFET severely affects the drive current and the threshold voltage, while, ED-TFET remains unaffected. Hence, the proposed ED-TFET is less sensitive towards temperature variation and can be used for cryogenics as well as for high temperature applications.

Sensitive periods in human development: evidence from musical training.

Science.gov (United States)

Penhune, Virginia B

2011-10-01

One of the primary goals of cognitive neuroscience is to understand the interaction between genes, development and specific experience. A particularly fascinating example of this interaction is a sensitive period - a time during development when experience has a differential effect on behavior and the brain. Behavioral and brain imaging studies in musicians have provided suggestive evidence for a possible sensitive period for musical training; showing that musicians who began training early show better task performance and greater changes in auditory and motor regions of the brain. However, these studies have not controlled for likely differences between early- (ET) and late-trained (LT) musicians in the number of years of musical experience. This review presents behavioral work from our laboratory comparing the performance of ET (before age seven) and LT musicians who were matched for years of experience on the ability to tap in synchrony with auditory and visual rhythms. The results demonstrate the existence of a possible sensitive period for musical training that has its greatest impact on measures of sensorimotor integration. Work on motor learning in children and how this might relate to the observed sensitive period effect is also reviewed. These studies are described in the context of what is currently known about sensitive periods in animals and humans; drawing on evidence from anatomy and physiology, studies of deafness, as well as structural and functional neuroimaging studies in trained musicians. The possible mechanisms underlying sensitive periods for musical training are discussed based on current theories describing the influence of both low-level features of sensory experience and higher-level cognitive processing. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Srl. All rights reserved.

Kinesthetic sensitivity and related measures of hand sensitivity in children with nonproficient handwriting.

Science.gov (United States)

Brink, Anne O'Leary; Jacobs, Anne Burleigh

2011-01-01

This study compared measures of hand sensitivity and handwriting quality in children aged 10 to 12 years identified by their teachers as having nonproficient or proficient handwriting. We hypothesized that children with nonproficient handwriting have decreased kinesthetic sensitivity of the hands and digits. Sixteen subjects without documented motor or cognitive concerns were tested for kinesthetic sensitivity, discriminate tactile awareness, diadochokinesia, stereognosis, and graphesthesia. Eight children were considered to have nonproficient handwriting; 8 had proficient handwriting. Nonparametric Mann-Whitney U tests were used to identify differences between groups on sensory tests. The 2 groups showed a statistically significant difference in handwriting legibility (P = .018). No significant difference was found on tests of kinesthetic sensitivity or other measures of sensation. Children presenting with handwriting difficulty as the only complaint have similar sensitivity in hands and digits as those with proficient handwriting. Failure to detect differences may result from a small sample size.

Association between atopic dermatitis and contact sensitization

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hamann, Carsten R; Hamann, Dathan; Egeberg, Alexander

2017-01-01

BACKGROUND: It is unclear whether patients with atopic dermatitis (AD) have an altered prevalence or risk for contact sensitization. Increased exposure to chemicals in topical products together with impaired skin barrier function suggest a higher risk, whereas the immune profile suggests a lower...... contact dermatitis is suspected....... risk. OBJECTIVE: To perform a systematic review and meta-analysis of the association between AD and contact sensitization. METHODS: The PubMed/Medline, Embase, and Cochrane databases were searched for articles that reported on contact sensitization in individuals with and without AD. RESULTS...

Reward/punishment sensitivities among internet addicts: Implications for their addictive behaviors.

Science.gov (United States)

Dong, Guangheng; Hu, Yanbo; Lin, Xiao

2013-10-01

Internet addiction disorder (IAD) has raised widespread public health concerns. In this study, we used a gambling task to simulate extreme win/lose situations to find the reward/punishment sensitivities after continuous wins and losses. FMRI data were collected from 16 IAD subjects (21.4±3.1years) and 15 healthy controls (HC, 22.1±3.6years). Group comparisons showed higher superior frontal gyrus activations after continuous wins for IAD subjects than for HC. The brain activities in IAD subjects were not disturbed by their losses. In addition, IAD participants showed decreased posterior cingulate activation compared to HC after continuous losses. These results indicated that IAD participants showed preference to win while neglecting their losses. Therefore they engaged less executive endeavor to control their frustration after continuous losses. Taken together, we concluded that IAD subjects showed enhanced sensitivity to win and decreased sensitivity to lose. This can help us understand why IAD subjects continue playing online even after noticing the severe negative consequences of their behaviors. © 2013.

Shrub encroachment alters sensitivity of soil respiration to temperature and moisture

Science.gov (United States)

Cable, Jessica M.; Barron-Gafford, Greg A.; Ogle, Kiona; Pavao-Zuckerman, Mitchell; Scott, Russell L.; Williams, David G.; Huxman, Travis E.

2012-03-01

A greater abundance of shrubs in semiarid grasslands affects the spatial patterns of soil temperature, moisture, and litter, resulting in fertile islands with potentially enhanced soil metabolic activity. The goal of this study was to quantify the microsite specificity of soil respiration in a semiarid riparian ecosystem experiencing shrub encroachment. We quantified the response of soil respiration to different microsite conditions created by big mesquite shrubs (near the trunk and the canopy edge), medium-sized mesquite, sacaton bunchgrasses, and open spaces. We hypothesized that soil respiration would be more temperature sensitive and less moisture sensitive and have a greater magnitude in shrub microsites compared with grass and open microsites. Field and incubation soil respiration data were simultaneously analyzed in a Bayesian framework to quantify the microsite-specific temperature and moisture sensitivities and magnitude of respiration. The analysis showed that shrub expansion increases the heterogeneity of respiration. Respiration has greater temperature sensitivity near the shrub canopy edge, and respiration rates are higher overall under big mesquite compared with those of the other microsites. Respiration in the microsites beneath medium-sized mesquites does not behave like a downscaled version of big mesquite microsites. The grass microsites show more similarity to big mesquite microsites than medium-sized shrubs. This study shows there can be a great deal of fine-scale spatial heterogeneity that accompanies shifts in vegetation structure. Such complexity presents a challenge in scaling soil respiration fluxes to the landscape for systems experiencing shrub encroachment, but quantifying this complexity is significantly important in determining overall ecosystem metabolic behavior.

Position-sensitive superconductor detectors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kurakado, M.; Taniguchi, K.

2016-01-01

Superconducting tunnel junction (STJ) detectors and superconducting transition- edge sensors (TESs) are representative superconductor detectors having energy resolutions much higher than those of semiconductor detectors. STJ detectors are thin, thereby making it suitable for detecting low-energy X rays. The signals of STJ detectors are more than 100 times faster than those of TESs. By contrast, TESs are microcalorimeters that measure the radiation energy from the change in the temperature. Therefore, signals are slow and their time constants are typically several hundreds of μs. However, TESs possess excellent energy resolutions. For example, TESs have a resolution of 1.6 eV for 5.9-keV X rays. An array of STJs or TESs can be used as a pixel detector. Superconducting series-junction detectors (SSJDs) comprise multiple STJs and a single-crystal substrate that acts as a radiation absorber. SSJDs are also position sensitive, and their energy resolutions are higher than those of semiconductor detectors. In this paper, we give an overview of position-sensitive superconductor detectors.

Three-Dimensional Porous Nitrogen-Doped NiO Nanostructures as Highly Sensitive NO2 Sensors

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Van Hoang Luan

2017-10-01

Full Text Available Nickel oxide has been widely used in chemical sensing applications, because it has an excellent p-type semiconducting property with high chemical stability. Here, we present a novel technique of fabricating three-dimensional porous nitrogen-doped nickel oxide nanosheets as a highly sensitive NO2 sensor. The elaborate nanostructure was prepared by a simple and effective hydrothermal synthesis method. Subsequently, nitrogen doping was achieved by thermal treatment with ammonia gas. When the p-type dopant, i.e., nitrogen atoms, was introduced in the three-dimensional nanostructures, the nickel-oxide-nanosheet-based sensor showed considerable NO2 sensing ability with two-fold higher responsivity and sensitivity compared to non-doped nickel-oxide-based sensors.

Screening Test for Detection of Leptinotarsa decemlineata (Say Sensitivity to Insecticides

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Dušanka Inđić

2012-01-01

Full Text Available In 2009, the sensitivity of 15 field populations of Colorado potato beetle (Leptinotarsadecemlineata Say. - CPB was assessed to chlorpyrifos, cypermethrin, thiamethoxam and fipronil,four insecticides which are mostly used for its control in Serbia. Screening test that allows rapidassessment of sensitivity of overwintered adults to insecticides was performed. Insecticideswere applied at label rates, and two, five and 10 fold higher rates by soaking method (5 sec.Mortality was assessed after 72h. From 15 monitored populations of CPB, two were sensitiveto label rate of chlorpyrifos, one was slightly resistant, 11 were resistant and one populationwas highly resistant. Concerning cypermethrin, two populations were sensitive, two slightlyresistant, five were resistant and six highly resistant. Highly sensitive to thiamethoxam labelrate were 12 populations, while three were sensitive. In the case of fipronil applied at label rate,two populations were highly sensitive, six sensitive, one slightly resistant and six were resistant.The application of insecticides at higher rates (2, 5 and 10 fold, that is justified only in bioassays,provided a rapid insight into sensitivity of field populations of CPB to insecticides.

Highly Sensitive and Selective Gas Sensor Using Hydrophilic and Hydrophobic Graphenes

Science.gov (United States)

Some, Surajit; Xu, Yang; Kim, Youngmin; Yoon, Yeoheung; Qin, Hongyi; Kulkarni, Atul; Kim, Taesung; Lee, Hyoyoung

2013-01-01

New hydrophilic 2D graphene oxide (GO) nanosheets with various oxygen functional groups were employed to maintain high sensitivity in highly unfavorable environments (extremely high humidity, strong acidic or basic). Novel one-headed polymer optical fiber sensor arrays using hydrophilic GO and hydrophobic reduced graphene oxide (rGO) were carefully designed, leading to the selective sensing of volatile organic gases for the first time. The two physically different surfaces of GO and rGO could provide the sensing ability to distinguish between tetrahydrofuran (THF) and dichloromethane (MC), respectively, which is the most challenging issue in the area of gas sensors. The eco-friendly physical properties of GO allowed for faster sensing and higher sensitivity when compared to previous results for rGO even under extreme environments of over 90% humidity, making it the best choice for an environmentally friendly gas sensor. PMID:23736838

A novel hypothesis on the sensitivity of the fecal occult blood test: Results of a joint analysis of 3 randomized controlled trials.

Science.gov (United States)

Lansdorp-Vogelaar, Iris; van Ballegooijen, Marjolein; Boer, Rob; Zauber, Ann; Habbema, J Dik F

2009-06-01

Estimates of the fecal occult blood test (FOBT) (Hemoccult II) sensitivity differed widely between screening trials and led to divergent conclusions on the effects of FOBT screening. We used microsimulation modeling to estimate a preclinical colorectal cancer (CRC) duration and sensitivity for unrehydrated FOBT from the data of 3 randomized controlled trials of Minnesota, Nottingham, and Funen. In addition to 2 usual hypotheses on the sensitivity of FOBT, we tested a novel hypothesis where sensitivity is linked to the stage of clinical diagnosis in the situation without screening. We used the MISCAN-Colon microsimulation model to estimate sensitivity and duration, accounting for differences between the trials in demography, background incidence, and trial design. We tested 3 hypotheses for FOBT sensitivity: sensitivity is the same for all preclinical CRC stages, sensitivity increases with each stage, and sensitivity is higher for the stage in which the cancer would have been diagnosed in the absence of screening than for earlier stages. Goodness-of-fit was evaluated by comparing expected and observed rates of screen-detected and interval CRC. The hypothesis with a higher sensitivity in the stage of clinical diagnosis gave the best fit. Under this hypothesis, sensitivity of FOBT was 51% in the stage of clinical diagnosis and 19% in earlier stages. The average duration of preclinical CRC was estimated at 6.7 years. Our analysis corroborated a long duration of preclinical CRC, with FOBT most sensitive in the stage of clinical diagnosis. (c) 2009 American Cancer Society.

High Sensitive pH Sensor Based on AlInN/GaN Heterostructure Transistor

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yan Dong

2018-04-01

Full Text Available The AlInN/GaN high-electron-mobility-transistor (HEMT indicates better performances compared with the traditional AlGaN/GaN HEMTs. The present work investigated the pH sensor functionality of an analogous HEMT AlInN/GaN device with an open gate. It was shown that the Al0.83In0.17N/GaN device demonstrates excellent pH sense functionality in aqueous solutions, exhibiting higher sensitivity (−30.83 μA/pH for AlInN/GaN and −4.6 μA/pH for AlGaN/GaN and a faster response time, lower degradation and good stability with respect to the AlGaN/GaN device, which is attributed to higher two-dimensional electron gas (2DEG density and a thinner barrier layer in Al0.83In0.17N/GaN owning to lattice matching. On the other hand, the open gate geometry was found to affect the pH sensitivity obviously. Properly increasing the width and shortening the length of the open gate area could enhance the sensitivity. However, when the open gate width is too larger or too small, the pH sensitivity would be suppressed conversely. Designing an optimal ratio of the width to the length is important for achieving high sensitivity. This work suggests that the AlInN/GaN-based 2DEG carrier modulated devices would be good candidates for high-performance pH sensors and other related applications.

High Sensitive pH Sensor Based on AlInN/GaN Heterostructure Transistor.

Science.gov (United States)

Dong, Yan; Son, Dong-Hyeok; Dai, Quan; Lee, Jun-Hyeok; Won, Chul-Ho; Kim, Jeong-Gil; Chen, Dunjun; Lee, Jung-Hee; Lu, Hai; Zhang, Rong; Zheng, Youdou

2018-04-24

The AlInN/GaN high-electron-mobility-transistor (HEMT) indicates better performances compared with the traditional AlGaN/GaN HEMTs. The present work investigated the pH sensor functionality of an analogous HEMT AlInN/GaN device with an open gate. It was shown that the Al 0.83 In 0.17 N/GaN device demonstrates excellent pH sense functionality in aqueous solutions, exhibiting higher sensitivity (−30.83 μA/pH for AlInN/GaN and −4.6 μA/pH for AlGaN/GaN) and a faster response time, lower degradation and good stability with respect to the AlGaN/GaN device, which is attributed to higher two-dimensional electron gas (2DEG) density and a thinner barrier layer in Al 0.83 In 0.17 N/GaN owning to lattice matching. On the other hand, the open gate geometry was found to affect the pH sensitivity obviously. Properly increasing the width and shortening the length of the open gate area could enhance the sensitivity. However, when the open gate width is too larger or too small, the pH sensitivity would be suppressed conversely. Designing an optimal ratio of the width to the length is important for achieving high sensitivity. This work suggests that the AlInN/GaN-based 2DEG carrier modulated devices would be good candidates for high-performance pH sensors and other related applications.

Relationships among depression, anxiety, anxiety sensitivity, and perceived social support in adolescents with conversion disorder.

Science.gov (United States)

Yılmaz, Savaş; Bilgiç, Ayhan; Akça, Ömer Faruk; Türkoğlu, Serhat; Hergüner, Sabri

2016-01-01

This study aimed to assess the relationships of depression, anxiety, anxiety sensitivity, and perceived social support with conversion symptoms in adolescents with conversion disorder (CD). Fifty outpatients, aged 8-18 years, who had been diagnosed with CD and members of a control group were assessed using the psychological questionnaires. Compared with controls, adolescents with CD scored higher on the Child Depression Inventory (CDI), Screen for Child Anxiety-related Emotional Disorders (SCARED), Childhood Anxiety Sensitivity Index (CASI) total, CASI physical and cognitive subscales, and Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support family subscale. Multiple regression analysis showed that CDI, CASI total, and CASI cognitive scores predicted the Somatoform Dissociation Questionnaire (SDQ) scores and that CDI and CASI total scores predicted the Children's Somatization Inventory (CSI) scores of subjects. This study suggest that adolescents with CD had poor psychosocial well-being, and depression, global anxiety sensitivity and anxiety sensitivity cognitive concerns are related to conversion symptoms.

Design and optimization of stress centralized MEMS vector hydrophone with high sensitivity at low frequency

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Guojun; Ding, Junwen; Xu, Wei; Liu, Yuan; Wang, Renxin; Han, Janjun; Bai, Bing; Xue, Chenyang; Liu, Jun; Zhang, Wendong

2018-05-01

A micro hydrophone based on piezoresistive effect, "MEMS vector hydrophone" was developed for acoustic detection application. To improve the sensitivity of MEMS vector hydrophone at low frequency, we reported a stress centralized MEMS vector hydrophone (SCVH) mainly used in 20-500 Hz. Stress concentration area was actualized in sensitive unit of hydrophone by silicon micromachining technology. Then piezoresistors were placed in stress concentration area for better mechanical response, thereby obtaining higher sensitivity. Static analysis was done to compare the mechanical response of three different sensitive microstructure: SCVH, conventional micro-silicon four-beam vector hydrophone (CFVH) and Lollipop-shaped vector hydrophone (LVH) respectively. And fluid-structure interaction (FSI) was used to analyze the natural frequency of SCVH for ensuring the measurable bandwidth. Eventually, the calibration experiment in standing wave field was done to test the property of SCVH and verify the accuracy of simulation. The results show that the sensitivity of SCVH has nearly increased by 17.2 dB in contrast to CFVH and 7.6 dB in contrast to LVH during 20-500 Hz.

Insulin sensitivity and β-cell function in normoglycemic offspring of individuals with type 2 diabetes mellitus: Impact of line of inheritance

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Edavan P Praveen

2012-01-01

Full Text Available Aims: The aim was to study the effect of family history of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM on insulin sensitivity and b-cell function in normoglycemic offspring. Material and Methods: Offspring of T2DM patients (cases and individuals without family history of T2DM (controls were the subjects for this cross-sectional study. All participants underwent 75 g OGTT and samples were collected for plasma insulin, C-peptide, and proinsulin at 0, 30, 60, and 120 minutes. Results: A total of 271 cases (age 22 ± 10 years; 53% males and 259 controls (28 ± 10 years, 66% males were enrolled for the study. BMI, plasma insulin, C-peptide, proinsulin, HOMA-IR, and insulinogenic index (0-120 were significantly higher and whole-body insulin sensitivity (WBISI and disposition index (0-120 [DI 120] were lower in cases compared to controls. After adjusting for BMI, proinsulin at 120 minutes, area under the curve (AUC of proinsulin (during OGTT and AUC proinsulin/AUC C-peptide were significantly higher in cases. Cases were subdivided into four groups according to inheritance pattern; paternal DM (PDM, maternal DM (MDM, grandparental DM (GPDM, and both parents DM (BPDM. The magnitude of differences varied with relationship (greater when both parents and grandparents were affected. Mean HOMA-IR was higher by 127% and 50% and DI 120 was lower by 33% and 18% (adjusted for age and gender in the BPDM and GPDM groups respectively compared to controls. Conclusions: We observed higher BMI, plasma insulin, C-peptide, and proinsulin and lower insulin sensitivity and b-cell compensation in normoglycemic offspring of T2DM subjects compared to controls. Differences were greater when both parents and grandparents had T2DM.

Acid sensitization of esophageal mucosal afferents: implication for symptom perception in patients across the gastroesophageal reflux disease spectrum.

Science.gov (United States)

Szczesniak, Michal Marcin; Fuentealba, Sergio Enrique; Cook, Ian J

2013-01-01

Sensitization of esophageal chemoreceptors, either directly by intermittent acid exposure or indirectly through esophagitis-associated inflammatory mediators, is likely to be the mechanism underlying the perception of heartburn. To compare basal esophageal sensitivity with electrical stimulation and acid, and to compare the degree of acid-induced sensitization in controls and in patient groups across the entire spectrum of gastroesophageal reflux disease: erosive oesophagitis (EO), nonerosive reflux disease (NERD), and functional heartburn (FH). Esophageal sensory and pain thresholds to electrical stimulation were measured before, 30, and 60 minutes after an intraesophageal infusion of saline or HCl. Patients received a 30-minute infusion of 0.15 M HCl and controls were randomized to receive either HCl (n = 11) or saline (n = 10). After electrical sensory threshold testing, participants received another 30-minute infusion of HCl to determine whether sensitivity to acid is increased by prior acid exposure All patient groups had higher basal sensory thresholds than healthy controls (controls, 13 ± 1.4 mA; FH, 20 ± 5.1 mA; NERD, 21 ± 5.1 mA; EO, 23 ± 5.4 mA; P acid exposure reduced sensory thresholds to electrical stimulation in FH and NERD patients (P acid sensitivity during the first HCl infusion was comparable between all patient groups and controls. The secondary infusion caused increased discomfort in all participants (P acid-induced sensitization to HCl was significantly elevated in the patient groups ( P acid infusion sensitizes it to subsequent electrical and chemical stimulation. (2) The acid-related sensitization is greater in gastroesophageal reflux disease than in controls and may influence in part symptom perception in this population. (3) Acid-related sensitization within the gastroesophageal reflux disease population is not dependant on mucosal inflammation.

Association between atopic dermatitis and contact sensitization: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Hamann, Carsten R; Hamann, Dathan; Egeberg, Alexander; Johansen, Jeanne D; Silverberg, Jonathan; Thyssen, Jacob P

2017-07-01

It is unclear whether patients with atopic dermatitis (AD) have an altered prevalence or risk for contact sensitization. Increased exposure to chemicals in topical products together with impaired skin barrier function suggest a higher risk, whereas the immune profile suggests a lower risk. To perform a systematic review and meta-analysis of the association between AD and contact sensitization. The PubMed/Medline, Embase, and Cochrane databases were searched for articles that reported on contact sensitization in individuals with and without AD. The literature search yielded 10,083 citations; 417 were selected based on title and abstract screening and 74 met inclusion criteria. In a pooled analysis, no significant difference in contact sensitization between AD and controls was evident (random effects model odds ratio [OR] = 0.891; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.771-1.03). There was a positive correlation in studies that compared AD patients with individuals from the general population (OR 1.50, 95% CI 1.23-1.93) but an inverse association when comparing with referred populations (OR 0.753, 95% CI 0.63-0.90). Included studies used different tools to diagnose AD and did not always provide information on current or past disease. Patch test allergens varied between studies. No overall relationship between AD and contact sensitization was found. We recommend that clinicians consider patch testing AD patients when allergic contact dermatitis is suspected. Copyright © 2017 American Academy of Dermatology, Inc. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Comparing non-specific physical symptoms in environmentally sensitive patients: prevalence, duration, functional status and illness behavior.

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Baliatsas, C.; Kamp, I. van; Hooiveld, M.; Yzermans, J.; Lebret, E.

2014-01-01

Objective: Little is known about the potential clinical relevance of non-specific physical symptoms (NSPS) reported by patients with self-reported environmental sensitivities. This study aimed to assess NSPS in people with general environmental sensitivity (GES) and idiopathic environmental

Investing the temporal and spatial scale variations of luminescence sensitivity of loess in the Chinese Loess Plateau since the last interglacial

Science.gov (United States)

Lv, T.; Sun, J.; Gong, Z.

2017-12-01

The provenance of the eolian deposits on the Loess Plateau has long been one of the most important issues. Although the luminescence sensitivity of the quartz grains of desert sands has been used in tracing provenance, and the vertical variation of OSL sensitivity of Loess in the central Chinese Loess plateau (CLP) has been studied, it still remains uncertain about the temporal and spatial scale variations of luminescence sensitivity of loess. This paper chose the eolian deposits of Shimao (SM) section in the northern margin of the Chinese Loess Plateau and of Luochuan (LC) section in the central Chinese Loess Plateau. Firstly, the temporal scale variations of luminescence sensitivity of different quartz grians (38-64 and 64-90μm) from sand/loess of SM section have been studied respectively. Our results indicate that they both have similar trend in the strength of luminescence sensitivity, characterized by lower values in sand/loess beds and higher values in soils. The OSL sensitivity of quartz grains of the sand-loess-soil sequence shows very similar trend to the magnetic susceptibility fluctuations. Secondly, the spatial scale variations of luminescence sensitivity of loess in the Chinese Loess Plateau since the last interglacial were studied by comparing the values of SM section and LC section. The OSL sensitivity of quartz grains from the two sections since the last interglacial change synchronously. However, the OSL sensitivity values of quartz grains from the same loess/paleosol beds of LC section are higher than these values of SM section. We suggest that the temporal variation of OSL sensitivity of SM is main influenced by the retreat-advance of deserts. The spatial variation of OSL sensitivity mainly is due to the different sedimentary history, containing of repeated erosion, transport and deposition cycles which controlled by cyclic climatic change. The higher OSL sensitivity values of quartz grains in LC section relates of longer transport distance and

Comparative Study of 17-AAG and NVP-AUY922 in Pancreatic and Colorectal Cancer Cells: Are There Common Determinants of Sensitivity?

Science.gov (United States)

Mayor-López, Leticia; Tristante, Elena; Carballo-Santana, Mar; Carrasco-García, Estefanía; Grasso, Silvina; García-Morales, Pilar; Saceda, Miguel; Luján, Juan; García-Solano, José; Carballo, Fernando; de Torre, Carlos; Martínez-Lacaci, Isabel

2014-10-01

The use of heat shock protein 90 (Hsp90) inhibitors is an attractive antineoplastic therapy. We wanted to compare the effects of the benzoquinone 17-allylamino-17-demethoxygeldanamycin (17-AAG, tanespimycin) and the novel isoxazole resorcinol-based Hsp90 inhibitor NVP-AUY922 in a panel of pancreatic and colorectal carcinoma cell lines and in colorectal primary cultures derived from tumors excised to patients. PANC-1, CFPAC-1, and Caco-2 cells were intrinsically resistant to 17-AAG but sensitive to NVP-AUY922. Other cellular models were sensitive to both inhibitors. Human epidermal growth factor receptor receptors and their downstream signaling pathways were downregulated in susceptible cellular models, and concurrently, Hsp70 was induced. Intrinsic resistance to 17-AAG did not correlate with expression of ATP-binding cassette transporters involved in multidrug resistance. Some 17-AAG-resistant, NVP-AUY922-sensitive cell lines lacked quinone oxidoreductase 1 (NQO1) enzyme and activity. However, colorectal LoVo cells still responded to both drugs in spite of having undetectable levels and activity of NQO1. Pharmacological and biologic inhibition of NQO1 did not confer resistance to 17-AAG in sensitive cell lines. Therefore, even though 17-AAG sensitivity is related to NQO1 protein levels and enzymatic activity, the absence of NQO1 does not necessarily convey resistance to 17-AAG in these cellular models. Moreover, NVP-AUY922 does not require NQO1 for its action and is a more potent inhibitor than 17-AAG in these cells. More importantly, we show in this report that NVP-AUY922 potentiates the inhibitory effects of chemotherapeutic agents, such as gemcitabine or oxaliplatin, and other drugs that are currently being evaluated in clinical trials as antitumor agents.

The Impact of Health Literacy Status on the Comparative Validity and Sensitivity of an Interactive Multimedia Beverage Intake Questionnaire

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lucy P. Hooper

2016-12-01

Full Text Available Self-reported dietary assessment methods can be challenging to validate, and reporting errors for those with lower health literacy (HL may be augmented. Interactive multimedia (IMM based questionnaires could help overcome these limitations. The objectives of this investigation are to assess the comparative validity and sensitivity to change of an IMM beverage intake questionnaire (IMM-BEVQ as compared to dietary recalls and determine the impact of HL. Adults completed three 24-h dietary recalls and the IMM-BEVQ at baseline and after a six-month intervention targeting either sugar-sweetened beverages (SSB or physical activity. Correlations and paired-samples t-tests are presented. For validity (n = 273, intake of SSB (mean difference = 10.6 fl oz and total beverage consumption (mean difference = 16.0 fl oz were significantly different (p ≤ 0.001 at baseline between the IMM-BEVQ and dietary recalls for all participants. However, the differences in intake were generally greater in low HL participants than in adequate HL participants. For sensitivity (n = 162, change in SSB intake (mean difference = 7.2 fl oz was significantly different (p ≤ 0.01 between pre-/post-IMM-BEVQ and pre-/post-dietary recalls, but not total beverage intake (mean difference = 7.6 fl oz for all participants. Changes in SSB and total beverage intake were not significantly different for those with adequate HL. The IMM-BEVQ is a valid dietary assessment tool that is as responsive to detecting changes in beverage intake as dietary recalls. However, adults with lower HL may need additional guidance when completing the IMM-BEVQ.

Effect of water pipe tobacco smoking on plasma high sensitivity C reactive protein level and endothelial function compared to cigarette smoking

OpenAIRE

Osama Ali Diab; Elzahraa Mohamed Abdelrahim; Mohamed Esmail

2015-01-01

Background: Cigarette smoking is a well known risk factor for cardiovascular disease, however, little is known regarding water pipe (WP) smoking. High sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) and flow mediated dilatation (FMD) are well recognized methods to assess cardiovascular risks. Objectives: To study the effect of WP smoking on hs-CRP level and endothelial function compared to cigarette smoking. Methods: The study included 77 male subjects (30 WP smokers, 30 cigarette smokers, and ...

Determination of Chlorinated Hydrocarbons in Water Using Highly Sensitive Mid-Infrared Sensor Technology

Science.gov (United States)

Lu, Rui; Mizaikoff, Boris; Li, Wen-Wei; Qian, Chen; Katzir, Abraham; Raichlin, Yosef; Sheng, Guo-Ping; Yu, Han-Qing

2013-08-01

Chlorinated aliphatic hydrocarbons and chlorinated aromatic hydrocarbons (CHCs) are toxic and carcinogenic contaminants commonly found in environmental samples, and efficient online detection of these contaminants is still challenging at the present stage. Here, we report an advanced Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy-attenuated total reflectance (FTIR-ATR) sensor for in-situ and simultaneous detection of multiple CHCs, including monochlorobenzene, 1,2-dichlorobenzene, 1,3-dichlorobenzene, trichloroethylene, perchloroethylene, and chloroform. The polycrystalline silver halide sensor fiber had a unique integrated planar-cylindric geometry, and was coated with an ethylene/propylene copolymer membrane to act as a solid phase extractor, which greatly amplified the analytical signal and contributed to a higher detection sensitivity compared to the previously reported sensors. This system exhibited a high detection sensitivity towards the CHCs mixture at a wide concentration range of 5~700 ppb. The FTIR-ATR sensor described in this study has a high potential to be utilized as a trace-sensitive on-line device for water contamination monitoring.

Adipose tissue (P)RR regulates insulin sensitivity, fat mass and body weight.

Science.gov (United States)

Shamansurova, Zulaykho; Tan, Paul; Ahmed, Basma; Pepin, Emilie; Seda, Ondrej; Lavoie, Julie L

2016-10-01

We previously demonstrated that the handle-region peptide, a prorenin/renin receptor [(P)RR] blocker, reduces body weight and fat mass and may improve insulin sensitivity in high-fat fed mice. We hypothesized that knocking out the adipose tissue (P)RR gene would prevent weight gain and insulin resistance. An adipose tissue-specific (P)RR knockout (KO) mouse was created by Cre-loxP technology using AP2-Cre recombinase mice. Because the (P)RR gene is located on the X chromosome, hemizygous males were complete KO and had a more pronounced phenotype on a normal diet (ND) diet compared to heterozygous KO females. Therefore, we challenged the female mice with a high-fat diet (HFD) to uncover certain phenotypes. Mice were maintained on either diet for 9 weeks. KO mice had lower body weights compared to wild-types (WT). Only hemizygous male KO mice presented with lower total fat mass, higher total lean mass as well as smaller adipocytes compared to WT mice. Although food intake was similar between genotypes, locomotor activity during the active period was increased in both male and female KO mice. Interestingly, only male KO mice had increased O2 consumption and CO2 production during the entire 24-hour period, suggesting an increased basal metabolic rate. Although glycemia during a glucose tolerance test was similar, KO males as well as HFD-fed females had lower plasma insulin and C-peptide levels compared to WT mice, suggesting improved insulin sensitivity. Remarkably, all KO animals exhibited higher circulating adiponectin levels, suggesting that this phenotype can occur even in the absence of a significant reduction in adipose tissue weight, as observed in females and, thus, may be a specific effect related to the (P)RR. (P)RR may be an important therapeutic target for the treatment of obesity and its associated complications such as type 2 diabetes.

[Test and programme sensitivities of screening for colorectal cancer in Reggio Emilia].

Science.gov (United States)

Campari, Cinzia; Sassatelli, Romano; Paterlini, Luisa; Camellini, Lorenzo; Menozzi, Patrizia; Cattani, Antonella

2011-01-01

to estimate the sensitivity of the immunochemical test for faecal occult blood (FOBT) and the sensitivity of the colorectal tumour screening programme in the province of Reggio Emilia. retrospective cohort study, including a sample of 80,357 people of both genders, aged 50-69, who underwent FOBT, during the first round of the screening programme in the province of Reggio Emilia, from April 2005 to December 2007. incidence of interval cancer. The proportional incidence method was used to estimate the sensitivity of FOBT and of the screening programme. Data were stratified according to gender, age and year of interval. the overall sensitivity of FOBT was 73.2% (95%IC 63.8-80.7). The sensitivity of FOBT was lower in females (70.5% vs 75.1%), higher in the 50-59 age group (78.6% vs 70.2%) and higher in the colon than rectum (75.1% vs 68.9%). The test had a significantly higher sensitivity in the 1st year of interval than in the 2nd (84.4% vs 60.5%; RR=0.39, 95%IC 0.22-0.70), a difference which was confirmed, also when data were stratified according to gender. The overall sensitivity of the programme is 70.9% (95%IC 61.5-78.5). No statistically significant differences were shown, if data were stratified according to gender, age or site. Again the sensitivity in the 1st year was significantly higher than in the 2nd year of interval (83.2% vs 57.0%; RR=0.41, 95%IC 0.24-0.69). Overall our data confirmed the findings of similar Italian studies, despite subgroup analysis showed some differences in sensitivity in our study.

Detecting determinism with improved sensitivity in time series: rank-based nonlinear predictability score.

Science.gov (United States)

Naro, Daniel; Rummel, Christian; Schindler, Kaspar; Andrzejak, Ralph G

2014-09-01

The rank-based nonlinear predictability score was recently introduced as a test for determinism in point processes. We here adapt this measure to time series sampled from time-continuous flows. We use noisy Lorenz signals to compare this approach against a classical amplitude-based nonlinear prediction error. Both measures show an almost identical robustness against Gaussian white noise. In contrast, when the amplitude distribution of the noise has a narrower central peak and heavier tails than the normal distribution, the rank-based nonlinear predictability score outperforms the amplitude-based nonlinear prediction error. For this type of noise, the nonlinear predictability score has a higher sensitivity for deterministic structure in noisy signals. It also yields a higher statistical power in a surrogate test of the null hypothesis of linear stochastic correlated signals. We show the high relevance of this improved performance in an application to electroencephalographic (EEG) recordings from epilepsy patients. Here the nonlinear predictability score again appears of higher sensitivity to nonrandomness. Importantly, it yields an improved contrast between signals recorded from brain areas where the first ictal EEG signal changes were detected (focal EEG signals) versus signals recorded from brain areas that were not involved at seizure onset (nonfocal EEG signals).

The Higher the Insulin Resistance the Lower the Cardiac Output in Men with Type 1 Diabetes During the Maximal Exercise Test.

Science.gov (United States)

Niedzwiecki, Pawel; Naskret, Dariusz; Pilacinski, Stanislaw; Pempera, Maciej; Uruska, Aleksandra; Adamska, Anna; Zozulinska-Ziolkiewicz, Dorota

2017-06-01

The aim of this study was to assess the hemodynamic parameters analyzed in bioimpedance cardiography during maximal exercise in patients with type 1 diabetes differing in insulin resistance. The study group consisted of 40 men with type 1 diabetes. Tissue sensitivity to insulin was assessed on the basis of the glucose disposal rate (GDR) analyzed during hyperinsulinemic-euglycemic clamp. Patients were divided into groups with GDR insulin sensitivity) and GDR ≥4.5 mg/kg/min (G2 group-higher insulin sensitivity). During the exercise test, the heart rate, systolic volume, cardiac output, cardiac index were measured by the impedance meter (PhysioFlow). Compared with the G2 group, the G1 group had a lower cardiac output (CO): during exercise 8.6 (IQR 7.7-10.0) versus 12.8 (IQR 10.8-13.7) L/min; P insulin resistance is associated with cardiac hemodynamic parameters assessed during and after exercise. The higher the insulin resistance the lower the cardiac output during maximal exercise in men with type 1 diabetes.

Higher cigarette prices influence cigarette purchase patterns.

Science.gov (United States)

Hyland, A; Bauer, J E; Li, Q; Abrams, S M; Higbee, C; Peppone, L; Cummings, K M

2005-04-01

To examine cigarette purchasing patterns of current smokers and to determine the effects of cigarette price on use of cheaper sources, discount/generic cigarettes, and coupons. Higher cigarette prices result in decreased cigarette consumption, but price sensitive smokers may seek lower priced or tax-free cigarette sources, especially if they are readily available. This price avoidance behaviour costs states excise tax money and dampens the health impact of higher cigarette prices. Telephone survey data from 3602 US smokers who were originally in the COMMIT (community intervention trial for smoking cessation) study were analysed to assess cigarette purchase patterns, use of discount/generic cigarettes, and use of coupons. 59% reported engaging in a high price avoidance strategy, including 34% who regularly purchase from a low or untaxed venue, 28% who smoke a discount/generic cigarette brand, and 18% who report using cigarette coupons more frequently that they did five years ago. The report of engaging in a price avoidance strategy was associated with living within 40 miles of a state or Indian reservation with lower cigarette excise taxes, higher average cigarette consumption, white, non-Hispanic race/ethnicity, and female sex. Data from this study indicate that most smokers are price sensitive and seek out measures to purchase less expensive cigarettes, which may decrease future cessation efforts.

Analysis on the effect of polysulfide electrolyte composition for higher performance of Si quantum dot-sensitized solar cells

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Seo, Hyunwoong; Wang, Yuting; Uchida, Giichiro; Kamataki, Kunihiro; Itagaki, Naho; Koga, Kazunori; Shiratani, Masaharu

2013-01-01

Quantum dot-sensitized solar cell (QDSC) based on multiple exciton generation of QD has been expected to realize high efficiency. This work focused on Si QD instead of conventional QD materials because of their toxicity and scarcity. Si QDs were fabricated by multi-hollow discharge plasma chemical vapor deposition. General QDSCs use polysulfide electrolyte because it is suitable for stabilizing QDs and its redox reaction is the best as compared with other redox systems. The improvement of redox reaction which is one of the slowest reactions in the kinetic analysis is closely connected with the enhancement of performance. For the enhancement on the overall performance of Si QDSC, the performance dependence on electrolyte composition was investigated. The concentrations of Na 2 S and S were varied for the activation of redox reaction and KCl concentration was optimized for the improvement of electrolyte characteristics. Consequently, the best performance of Si QDSC was obtained with 1 M Na 2 S, 2 M S, and 0.4 M KCl polysulfide electrolyte

An effective algorithm for computing global sensitivity indices (EASI)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Plischke, Elmar

2010-01-01

We present an algorithm named EASI that estimates first order sensitivity indices from given data using Fast Fourier Transformations. Hence it can be used as a post-processing module for pre-computed model evaluations. Ideas for the estimation of higher order sensitivity indices are also discussed.

Insulin sensitivity deteriorates after short-term lifestyle intervention in the insulin sensitive phenotype of obesity.

Science.gov (United States)

Gilardini, Luisa; Vallone, Luciana; Cottafava, Raffaella; Redaelli, Gabriella; Croci, Marina; Conti, Antonio; Pasqualinotto, Lucia; Invitti, Cecilia

2012-01-01

To investigate the effects of a 3-month lifestyle intervention on insulin sensitivity and its related cardiometabolic factors in obese patients. Anthropometry, body composition, oral glucose tolerance test, lipids, alanine aminotransferase, insulin sensitivity (insulinogenic index (ISI), homeostasis model assessment, β-cell performance (disposition index)) were evaluated in 263 obese women and 93 obese men before and after 3 months of hypocaloric low fat/high protein diet associated with physical activity 30 min/day. Patients were divided into 3 groups according to the intervention-induced ISI changes: group 1 (decrease), group 2 (stability) and group 3 (increase). Insulin sensitivity and the disposition index were significantly higher before the intervention in group 1 than in group 3. BMI, waist circumference, and fat mass significantly decreased in groups 1 and 3 in both sexes. β-cell performance decreased in group 1 and increased in group 3. Metabolic variables improved in group 3, whereas glucose levels increased in women of group 1. The post-intervention insulin sensitivity was lower in group 1 than in group 3. Lifestyle intervention induces changes in insulin sensitivity and metabolic factors that depend on the pre-intervention degree of insulin sensitivity. Weight loss leads to metabolic benefits in insulin-resistant, obese patients, whereas it may paradoxically worsen the metabolic conditions in the insulin-sensitive phenotype of obesity. Copyright © 2012 S. Karger GmbH, Freiburg.

The Effect of UV-Irradiation (under Short-Circuit Condition) on Dye-Sensitized Solar Cells Sensitized with a Ru-Complex Dye Functionalized with a (diphenylamino)Styryl-Thio phen Group

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nonomura, K.; Xu, Y.; Marinado, T.; Hagberg, D.P.; Sun, L.; Boschloo, G.; Hagfeldt, A.; Rong Zhang, R.; Boschloo, G.; Hagfeldt, A.

2009-01-01

A new ruthenium complex, cis-di(thiocyanato)(2,2'-bipyridine-4,4'-dicarboxylic acid)(4,4'-bis (2-(5-(2-(4-diphenylaminophenyl)ethenyl) -thiophen-2-yl)ethenyl)-2,2'-bipyridine)ruthenium(II) (named E322) has been synthesized for use in dye-sensitized solar cells (DSCs). Higher extinction coefficient and a broader absorption compared to the standard Ru-dye, N719, were aimed. DSCs were fabricated with E322, and the efficiency was 0.12% initially. (4.06% for N719, as reference). The efficiency was enhanced to 1.83% by exposing the cell under simulated sunlight containing UV-irradiation at short-circuit condition. The reasons of this enhancement are (1) enhanceing electron injection from sensitizer to TiO 2 following a shift toward positive potentials of the conduction band of TiO 2 by the adsorption of protons or cations from the sensitizer, or from the redox electrolyte and (2) improving the regeneration reaction of the oxidized dye by the redox electrolyte by the dissolution of aggregated dye from the surface of TiO 2 following the treatment.

Influence of aspheric intraocular lens on frequency doubling technology and contrast sensitivity: a fellow eye study

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rodrigo França de Espíndola

2014-12-01

Full Text Available Purpose: To evaluate whether implantation of an aspheric intraocular lens (IOL results in reduced ocular aberrations and improved contrast sensitivity after cataract surgery and, therefore, changes on frequency-doubling technology (FDT testing. Methods: The present prospective clinical study enrolled 25 patients with bilateral cataract (50 eyes, who randomly received either an aspheric (Akreos AO or a spherical (Akreos Fit IOL in one eye and the other IOL in the second eye. Assessment 12 months postoperatively included photopic and mesopic contrast sensitivity testing. Higher-order aberrations (HOAs were computed. FDT testing was divided into four areas to evaluate the variation of the values at different points. The median values of the local pattern thresholds (median area contrast sensitivity [MACS] obtained with that division were calculated. Results: The Akreos AO group obtained statistically significantly lower values of HOAs and spherical aberration compared with the Akreos Fit group. There was a statistically significant between-group difference in contrast sensitivity under mesopic conditions at all spatial frequencies. No statistically significant differences were observed in mean deviation and pattern standard deviation. The aspheric IOL exhibited higher MACS in all areas, although a statistically significant difference was reached only in the 20-degree field area (P=0.043. Conclusion: Aspheric IOLs significantly reduced spherical aberration and HOAs, improving mesopic contrast sensitivity. Although there was a trend toward slightly improved FDT in the aspheric IOL group, it was not statistically significant.

Sensitivity analysis in life cycle assessment

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Groen, E.A.; Heijungs, R.; Bokkers, E.A.M.; Boer, de I.J.M.

2014-01-01

Life cycle assessments require many input parameters and many of these parameters are uncertain; therefore, a sensitivity analysis is an essential part of the final interpretation. The aim of this study is to compare seven sensitivity methods applied to three types of case stud-ies. Two

Effects of symbiotic bacteria on chemical sensitivity of Daphnia magna.

Science.gov (United States)

Manakul, Patcharaporn; Peerakietkhajorn, Saranya; Matsuura, Tomoaki; Kato, Yasuhiko; Watanabe, Hajime

2017-07-01

The crustacean zooplankton Daphnia magna has been widely used for chemical toxicity tests. Although abiotic factors have been well documented in ecotoxicological test protocols, biotic factors that may affect the sensitivity to chemical compounds remain limited. Recently, we identified symbiotic bacteria that are critical for the growth and reproduction of D. magna. The presence of symbiotic bacteria on Daphnia raised the question as to whether these bacteria have a positive or negative effect on toxicity tests. In order to evaluate the effects of symbiotic bacteria on toxicity tests, bacteria-free Daphnia were prepared, and their chemical sensitivities were compared with that of Daphnia with symbiotic bacteria based on an acute immobilization test. The Daphnia with symbiotic bacteria showed higher chemical resistance to nonylphenol, fenoxycarb, and pentachlorophenol than bacteria-free Daphnia. These results suggested potential roles of symbiotic bacteria in the chemical resistance of its host Daphnia. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Chemical-exchange-sensitive MRI of amide, amine and NOE at 9.4 T versus 15.2 T.

Science.gov (United States)

Chung, Julius Juhyun; Choi, Wonmin; Jin, Tao; Lee, Jung Hee; Kim, Seong-Gi

2017-09-01

Chemical exchange (CE)-sensitive MRI benefits greatly from stronger magnetic fields; however, field effects on CE-sensitive imaging have not yet been studied well in vivo. We have compared CE-sensitive Z-spectra and maps obtained at the fields of 9.4 T and 15.2 T in phantoms and rats with off-resonance chemical-exchange-sensitive spin lock (CESL), which is similar to conventional chemical exchange saturation transfer. At higher fields, the background peak at water resonance has less spread and the exchange rate relative to chemical shift decreases, thus CESL intensity is dependent on B 0 . For the in vivo amide and nuclear Overhauser enhancement (NOE) composite resonances of rat brains, intensities were similar for both magnetic fields, but effective amide proton transfer and NOE values obtained with three-point quantification or a curve fitting method were larger at 15.2 T due to the reduced spread of attenuation at the direct water resonance. When using intermediate exchange-sensitive irradiation parameters, the amine proton signal was 65% higher at 15.2 T than at 9.4 T due to a reduced ratio of exchange rate to chemical shift. In summary, increasing magnetic field provides enhancements to CE-sensitive signals in the intermediate exchange regime and reduces contamination from background signals in the slow exchange regime. Consequently, ultrahigh magnetic field is advantageous for CE-sensitive MRI, especially for amine and hydroxyl protons. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Super-resolution and ultra-sensitivity of angular rotation measurement based on SU(1,1) interferometers using homodyne detection

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Jun; Li, Shitao; Wei, Dong; Gao, Hong; Li, Fuli

2018-02-01

We theoretically explore the angular rotation measurement sensitivity of SU(1,1) interferometers with a coherent beam and a vacuum beam input by using orbital angular momentum (OAM). Compared with the OAM in an SU(2) interferometer, the SU(1,1) interferometer employing homodyne detection can further surpass the angular rotation shot noise limit \\tfrac{1}{2l\\sqrt{N}} and improve the resolution and sensitivity of angular rotation measurement. Two models are considered, one is that OAM is carried by a probe beam and the other one is a pump beam with the OAM. The sensitivity can be improved by higher OAM and nonlinear process with a large gain. The resolution can be enhanced in the case that the pump beam has OAM. Moreover, we present a brief discussion on the variation of resolution and sensitivity in the presence of photon loss.

Submergence sensitivity of durum wheat, bread wheat and barley at the germination stage

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Iduna Arduini

2016-06-01

Full Text Available Soil waterlogging at initial growth stages can cause heavy yield losses of winter cereals. Therefore, the screening for submergence tolerance traits in seeds of commercial varieties is of high concern worldwide. Ten Italian varieties of durum wheat (Triticum durum Desf., bread wheat (T. aestivum L. and barley (Hordeum vulgare L. were investigated for their ability to germinate in submerged conditions and to recover after submergence periods of three to 15 days. Submergence prevented germination and decreased germinability, at rates that increased with duration of submergence. Sensitivity ranked in the order: barley >durum wheat >bread wheat. We related the higher sensitivity of barley to its slower germination and slightly higher leakage of electrolytes, whereas the percentage of abnormal seedlings was lower than in other species. It was less than 4%, compared to less than 15 and 8% in durum wheat and bread wheat, respectively. Wide varietal differences were found in all species. According to variety, after 6-day submergence, germinability ranged from 2 to 42% in barley, from 5 to 80% in durum wheat, and from 30 to 77% in bread wheat. Varieties with more than 40% seed survival were three, six and seven per species, in the same order. The differential submergence sensitivity of varieties indicates a potential to select for waterlogging tolerance within Italian genotypes of winter cereal crops.

Estimation and analysis of the sensitivity of monoenergetic electron radiography of composite materials with fluctuating composition

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rudenko, V.N.; Yunda, N.T.

1978-01-01

A sensitivity analysis of the electron defectoscopy method for composite materials with fluctuating composition has been carried out. Quantitative evaluations of the testing sensitivity depending on inspection conditions have been obtained, and calculations of the instrumental error are shown. Based on numerical calculations, a comparison of error has been carried out between high-energy electron and X-ray testings. It is shown that when testing composite materials with a surface density of up to 7-10 g/cm 2 , the advantage of the electron defectoscopy method as compared to the X-ray one is the higher sensitivity and lower instrumental error. The advantage of the electron defectoscopy method over the X-ray one as regards the sensitivity is greater when a light-atom component is predomenant in the composition. A monoenergetic electron beam from a betatron with an energy of up to 30 MeV should be used for testing materials with a surface density of up to 15 g/cm 2

Interindividual differences in stress sensitivity: basal and stress-induced cortisol levels differentially predict neural vigilance processing under stress.

Science.gov (United States)

Henckens, Marloes J A G; Klumpers, Floris; Everaerd, Daphne; Kooijman, Sabine C; van Wingen, Guido A; Fernández, Guillén

2016-04-01

Stress exposure is known to precipitate psychological disorders. However, large differences exist in how individuals respond to stressful situations. A major marker for stress sensitivity is hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal (HPA)-axis function. Here, we studied how interindividual variance in both basal cortisol levels and stress-induced cortisol responses predicts differences in neural vigilance processing during stress exposure. Implementing a randomized, counterbalanced, crossover design, 120 healthy male participants were exposed to a stress-induction and control procedure, followed by an emotional perception task (viewing fearful and happy faces) during fMRI scanning. Stress sensitivity was assessed using physiological (salivary cortisol levels) and psychological measures (trait questionnaires). High stress-induced cortisol responses were associated with increased stress sensitivity as assessed by psychological questionnaires, a stronger stress-induced increase in medial temporal activity and greater differential amygdala responses to fearful as opposed to happy faces under control conditions. In contrast, high basal cortisol levels were related to relative stress resilience as reflected by higher extraversion scores, a lower stress-induced increase in amygdala activity and enhanced differential processing of fearful compared with happy faces under stress. These findings seem to reflect a critical role for HPA-axis signaling in stress coping; higher basal levels indicate stress resilience, whereas higher cortisol responsivity to stress might facilitate recovery in those individuals prone to react sensitively to stress. © The Author (2015). Published by Oxford University Press. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Forecasting hypoxia in the Chesapeake Bay and Gulf of Mexico: model accuracy, precision, and sensitivity to ecosystem change

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Evans, Mary Anne; Scavia, Donald

2011-01-01

Increasing use of ecological models for management and policy requires robust evaluation of model precision, accuracy, and sensitivity to ecosystem change. We conducted such an evaluation of hypoxia models for the northern Gulf of Mexico and Chesapeake Bay using hindcasts of historical data, comparing several approaches to model calibration. For both systems we find that model sensitivity and precision can be optimized and model accuracy maintained within reasonable bounds by calibrating the model to relatively short, recent 3 year datasets. Model accuracy was higher for Chesapeake Bay than for the Gulf of Mexico, potentially indicating the greater importance of unmodeled processes in the latter system. Retrospective analyses demonstrate both directional and variable changes in sensitivity of hypoxia to nutrient loads.

Comparing sensitivity and specificity of screening mammography in the United States and Denmark

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kemp Jacobsen, Katja; O'Meara, Ellen S; Key, Dustin

2015-01-01

Delivery of screening mammography differs substantially between the United States (US) and Denmark. We evaluated whether there are differences in screening sensitivity and specificity. We included screens from women screened at age 50-69 years during 1996-2008/2009 in the US Breast Cancer...

Comparative sensitivity of field and laboratory populations of Hyalella azteca to the pyrethroid insecticides bifenthrin and cypermethrin.

Science.gov (United States)

Clark, Stephen L; Ogle, R Scott; Gantner, Andrew; Hall, Lenwood W; Mitchell, Gary; Giddings, Jeffrey; McCoole, Matthew; Dobbs, Michael; Henry, Kevin; Valenti, Ted

2015-10-01

Hyalella azteca are epibenthic invertebrates that are widely used for toxicity studies. They are reported to be more sensitive to pyrethroid insecticides than most other test species, which has prompted considerable use of this species in toxicity testing of ambient surface waters where the presence of pyrethroids is suspected. However, resident H. azteca have been found in some ambient water bodies reported to contain surface water and/or sediment pyrethroid concentrations that are toxic to laboratory reared H. azteca. This observation suggests differences in the sensitivities of laboratory reared and field populations of H. azteca to pyrethroids. The goal of the present study was to determine the sensitivities of laboratory reared and field populations of H. azteca to the pyrethroids bifenthrin and cypermethrin. Specimens of H. azteca were collected from resident populations at field sites that are subject to varied land-use activities as well as from laboratory populations. These organisms were exposed to bifenthrin- or cypermethrin-spiked water in 96-h water-only toxicity tests. The resulting data demonstrated that: 1) field-collected populations in urban and agricultural settings can be >2 orders of magnitude less sensitive to the pyrethroids than laboratory reared organisms; 2) field-collected organisms varied in their sensitivity (possibly based on land-use activities), with organisms collected from undeveloped sites exhibiting sensitivities similar to laboratory reared organisms; and 3) the sensitivity of field-collected "tolerant" organisms increased in subsequent generations reared under laboratory conditions. Potential mechanisms for these differences are discussed. © 2015 SETAC.

What Climate Sensitivity Index Is Most Useful for Projections?

Science.gov (United States)

Grose, Michael R.; Gregory, Jonathan; Colman, Robert; Andrews, Timothy

2018-02-01

Transient climate response (TCR), transient response at 140 years (T140), and equilibrium climate sensitivity (ECS) indices are intended as benchmarks for comparing the magnitude of climate response projected by climate models. It is generally assumed that TCR or T140 would explain more variability between models than ECS for temperature change over the 21st century, since this timescale is the realm of transient climate change. Here we find that TCR explains more variability across Coupled Model Intercomparison Project phase 5 than ECS for global temperature change since preindustrial, for 50 or 100 year global trends up to the present, and for projected change under representative concentration pathways in regions of delayed warming such as the Southern Ocean. However, unexpectedly, we find that ECS correlates higher than TCR for projected change from the present in the global mean and in most regions. This higher correlation does not relate to aerosol forcing, and the physical cause requires further investigation.

Contrast sensitivity abnormalities in deaf individuals

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Masoud Khorrami-Nejad

2018-01-01

Conclusion: Hearing impaired boys are at a greater risk for contrast sensitivity abnormalities than boys with normal hearing. The larger frequency of contrast sensitivity abnormalities in high spatial frequencies than in other frequencies may demonstrate greater defects in the central visual system compared with the periphery in individuals with hearing loss.

Predicting chemically-induced skin reactions. Part I: QSAR models of skin sensitization and their application to identify potentially hazardous compounds

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Alves, Vinicius M. [Laboratory of Molecular Modeling and Design, Faculty of Pharmacy, Federal University of Goiás, Goiânia, GO 74605-220 (Brazil); Laboratory for Molecular Modeling, Division of Chemical Biology and Medicinal Chemistry, Eshelman School of Pharmacy, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC 27599 (United States); Muratov, Eugene [Laboratory for Molecular Modeling, Division of Chemical Biology and Medicinal Chemistry, Eshelman School of Pharmacy, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC 27599 (United States); Laboratory of Theoretical Chemistry, A.V. Bogatsky Physical-Chemical Institute NAS of Ukraine, Odessa 65080 (Ukraine); Fourches, Denis [Laboratory for Molecular Modeling, Division of Chemical Biology and Medicinal Chemistry, Eshelman School of Pharmacy, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC 27599 (United States); Strickland, Judy; Kleinstreuer, Nicole [ILS/Contractor Supporting the NTP Interagency Center for the Evaluation of Alternative Toxicological Methods (NICEATM), P.O. Box 13501, Research Triangle Park, NC 27709 (United States); Andrade, Carolina H. [Laboratory of Molecular Modeling and Design, Faculty of Pharmacy, Federal University of Goiás, Goiânia, GO 74605-220 (Brazil); Tropsha, Alexander, E-mail: alex_tropsha@unc.edu [Laboratory for Molecular Modeling, Division of Chemical Biology and Medicinal Chemistry, Eshelman School of Pharmacy, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC 27599 (United States)

2015-04-15

Repetitive exposure to a chemical agent can induce an immune reaction in inherently susceptible individuals that leads to skin sensitization. Although many chemicals have been reported as skin sensitizers, there have been very few rigorously validated QSAR models with defined applicability domains (AD) that were developed using a large group of chemically diverse compounds. In this study, we have aimed to compile, curate, and integrate the largest publicly available dataset related to chemically-induced skin sensitization, use this data to generate rigorously validated and QSAR models for skin sensitization, and employ these models as a virtual screening tool for identifying putative sensitizers among environmental chemicals. We followed best practices for model building and validation implemented with our predictive QSAR workflow using Random Forest modeling technique in combination with SiRMS and Dragon descriptors. The Correct Classification Rate (CCR) for QSAR models discriminating sensitizers from non-sensitizers was 71–88% when evaluated on several external validation sets, within a broad AD, with positive (for sensitizers) and negative (for non-sensitizers) predicted rates of 85% and 79% respectively. When compared to the skin sensitization module included in the OECD QSAR Toolbox as well as to the skin sensitization model in publicly available VEGA software, our models showed a significantly higher prediction accuracy for the same sets of external compounds as evaluated by Positive Predicted Rate, Negative Predicted Rate, and CCR. These models were applied to identify putative chemical hazards in the Scorecard database of possible skin or sense organ toxicants as primary candidates for experimental validation. - Highlights: • It was compiled the largest publicly-available skin sensitization dataset. • Predictive QSAR models were developed for skin sensitization. • Developed models have higher prediction accuracy than OECD QSAR Toolbox. • Putative

Predicting chemically-induced skin reactions. Part I: QSAR models of skin sensitization and their application to identify potentially hazardous compounds

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Alves, Vinicius M.; Muratov, Eugene; Fourches, Denis; Strickland, Judy; Kleinstreuer, Nicole; Andrade, Carolina H.; Tropsha, Alexander

2015-01-01

Repetitive exposure to a chemical agent can induce an immune reaction in inherently susceptible individuals that leads to skin sensitization. Although many chemicals have been reported as skin sensitizers, there have been very few rigorously validated QSAR models with defined applicability domains (AD) that were developed using a large group of chemically diverse compounds. In this study, we have aimed to compile, curate, and integrate the largest publicly available dataset related to chemically-induced skin sensitization, use this data to generate rigorously validated and QSAR models for skin sensitization, and employ these models as a virtual screening tool for identifying putative sensitizers among environmental chemicals. We followed best practices for model building and validation implemented with our predictive QSAR workflow using Random Forest modeling technique in combination with SiRMS and Dragon descriptors. The Correct Classification Rate (CCR) for QSAR models discriminating sensitizers from non-sensitizers was 71–88% when evaluated on several external validation sets, within a broad AD, with positive (for sensitizers) and negative (for non-sensitizers) predicted rates of 85% and 79% respectively. When compared to the skin sensitization module included in the OECD QSAR Toolbox as well as to the skin sensitization model in publicly available VEGA software, our models showed a significantly higher prediction accuracy for the same sets of external compounds as evaluated by Positive Predicted Rate, Negative Predicted Rate, and CCR. These models were applied to identify putative chemical hazards in the Scorecard database of possible skin or sense organ toxicants as primary candidates for experimental validation. - Highlights: • It was compiled the largest publicly-available skin sensitization dataset. • Predictive QSAR models were developed for skin sensitization. • Developed models have higher prediction accuracy than OECD QSAR Toolbox. • Putative

Decoding facial expressions based on face-selective and motion-sensitive areas.

Science.gov (United States)

Liang, Yin; Liu, Baolin; Xu, Junhai; Zhang, Gaoyan; Li, Xianglin; Wang, Peiyuan; Wang, Bin

2017-06-01

Humans can easily recognize others' facial expressions. Among the brain substrates that enable this ability, considerable attention has been paid to face-selective areas; in contrast, whether motion-sensitive areas, which clearly exhibit sensitivity to facial movements, are involved in facial expression recognition remained unclear. The present functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) study used multi-voxel pattern analysis (MVPA) to explore facial expression decoding in both face-selective and motion-sensitive areas. In a block design experiment, participants viewed facial expressions of six basic emotions (anger, disgust, fear, joy, sadness, and surprise) in images, videos, and eyes-obscured videos. Due to the use of multiple stimulus types, the impacts of facial motion and eye-related information on facial expression decoding were also examined. It was found that motion-sensitive areas showed significant responses to emotional expressions and that dynamic expressions could be successfully decoded in both face-selective and motion-sensitive areas. Compared with static stimuli, dynamic expressions elicited consistently higher neural responses and decoding performance in all regions. A significant decrease in both activation and decoding accuracy due to the absence of eye-related information was also observed. Overall, the findings showed that emotional expressions are represented in motion-sensitive areas in addition to conventional face-selective areas, suggesting that motion-sensitive regions may also effectively contribute to facial expression recognition. The results also suggested that facial motion and eye-related information played important roles by carrying considerable expression information that could facilitate facial expression recognition. Hum Brain Mapp 38:3113-3125, 2017. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Is socially integrated community day care for people with dementia associated with higher user satisfaction and a higher job satisfaction of staff compared to nursing home-based day care?

Science.gov (United States)

Marijke van Haeften-van Dijk, A; Hattink, Bart J J; Meiland, Franka J M; Bakker, Ton J E M; Dröes, Rose-Marie

2017-06-01

To investigate whether community-based (CO) day care with carer support according to the proven effective Meeting Centres Support Programme model is associated with higher satisfaction of people with dementia (PwD) and their informal caregivers (CG) and with a higher job satisfaction among care staff compared to traditional nursing home-based (NH) day care. Data were collected in 11 NH day care centres and 11 CO day care centres. User satisfaction of PwD and CG was evaluated in the 11 NH day care centres (n PwD = 41, n CG = 39) and 11 CO day care centres (n PwD = 28, n CG = 36) with a survey after six months of participation. Job satisfaction was measured only in the six NH day care centres that recently transformed to CO day care, with two standard questionnaires before (n STAFF = 35), and six months after the transition (n STAFF = 35). PwD were more positive about the communication and listening skills of staff and the atmosphere and activities at the CO day care centre. Also, CG valued the communication with, and expertise of, staff in CO day care higher, and were more satisfied with the received emotional, social and practical support. After the transition, satisfaction of staff with the work pace increased, but satisfaction with learning opportunities decreased. PwD and CG were more satisfied about the communication with the staff and the received support in CO day care than in NH day care. Overall job satisfaction was not higher, except satisfaction about work pace.

ASS and SULT2A1 are Novel and Sensitive Biomarkers of Acute Hepatic Injury-A Comparative Study in Animal Models.

Science.gov (United States)

Prima, Victor; Cao, Mengde; Svetlov, Stanislav I

2013-01-10

Liver and kidney damage associated with polytrauma, endotoxic shock/sepsis, and organ transplantation, are among the leading causes of the multiple organ failure. Development of novel sensitive biomarkers that detect early stages of liver and kidney injury is vital for the effective diagnostics and treatment of these life-threatening conditions. Previously, we identified several hepatic proteins, including Argininosuccinate Synthase (ASS) and sulfotransferases which were degraded in the liver and rapidly released into circulation during Ischemia/Reperfusion (I/R) injury. Here we compared sensitivity and specificity of the newly developed sandwich ELISA assays for ASS and the sulfotransferase isoform SULT2A1 with the standard clinical liver and kidney tests Alanine Aminotransferase (ALT) and Aspartate Transaminase (AST) in various pre-clinical models of acute injury. Our data suggest that ASS and SULT2A1 have superior characteristics for liver and kidney health assessment in endotoxemia, Ischemia/Reperfusion (I/R), chemical and drug-induced liver injury and may be of high potential value for clinical applications.

Rapid and sensitive detection of Bordetella bronchiseptica by loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hui Zhang

2013-10-01

Full Text Available Bordetella bronchiseptica causes acute and chronic respiratory infections in diverse animal species and occasionally in humans. In this study, we described the establishment of a simple, sensitive and cost-efficient loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP assay for the detection of B. bronchiseptica. A set of primers towards a 235 bp region within the flagellum gene of B. bronchiseptica was designed with online software.. The specificity of the LAMP assay was examined by using 6 porcine pathogens and 100 nasal swabs collected from healthy pigs and suspect infected pigs. The results indicated that positive reactions were confirmed for all B. bronchiseptica and no cross-reactivity was observed from other non-B. bronchiseptica. In sensitivity evaluations, the technique successfully detected a serial dilutions of extracted B. bronchiseptica DNA with a detection limit of 9 copies, which was 10 times more sensitive than that of PCR. Compared with conventional PCR, the higher sensitivity of LAMP method and no need for the complex instrumentation make this LAMP assay a promising alternative for the diagnosis of B. bronchiseptica in rural areas and developing countries where there lacks of complex laboratory services.

Low temperature carving of ZnO nanorods into nanotubes for dye-sensitized solar cell application

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Dehghan Nayeri, Fatemeh, E-mail: F.d.nayeri@ut.ac.ir; Kolahdouz, Mohammadreza; Asl-Soleimani, Ebrahim; Mohajerzadeh, S.

2015-06-05

Highlights: • Large scale arrays of highly oriented ZnO NTs have been fabricated and investigated. • The DSSCs made of these 2.5 μm NRs and NTs resulted in conversion efficiencies of 0.34% and 0.9%, respectively. • EIS measurements have demonstrated that the NTs could acquire a higher electron lifetime compared to NRs. • Twofold electron lifetime electron accompanied by half electron transport time for ZnO NTs compared to NRs. - Abstract: High aspect ratio zinc oxide (ZnO) nanotubes (NT) were synthesized based on a two-steps approach. In the first step, ZnO nanorod (NR) arrays were prepared by chemical bath deposition from an aqueous of zinc nitrate. In the second step, the cores of ZnO NRs were carved selectively in a KCl solution, resulting in the formation of a tubular structure. The influence of KCL concentration, temperature, and immersion time on the ZnO NT formation process was completely characterized and investigated. 12.5 μm NRs and NTs have been utilized to manufacture dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) and as a result, conversion efficiencies of 1.06% and 2.87% were obtained, respectively. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy measurements have demonstrated that the NTs could acquire a higher electron lifetime compared to NRs which causes a faster electron collection. The overall improvement in NT-based DSSC performance demonstrates a new approach to enhance the efficiency of dye-sensitized solar cells.

Imaging of human breast tissue using polarization sensitive optical coherence tomography

Science.gov (United States)

Verma, Y.; Gautam, M.; Divakar Rao, K.; Swami, M. K.; Gupta, P. K.

2011-12-01

We report a study on the use of polarization sensitive optical coherence tomography (PSOCT) for discriminating malignant (invasive ductal carcinoma), benign (fibroadenoma) and normal (adipocytes) breast tissue sites. The results show that while conventional OCT, that utilizes only the intensity of light back-scattered from tissue microstructures, is able to discriminate breast tissues as normal (adipocytes) and abnormal (malignant and benign) tissues, PS-OCT helps in discriminating between malignant and benign tissue sites also. The estimated values of birefringence obtained from the PSOCT imaging show that benign breast tissue samples have significantly higher birefringence as compared to the malignant tissue samples.

Compared sensitivity of two nuclear sites: case of farming production contaminated by foliar way (chronicle release) S.E.N.S.I.B. project

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mercat, C.; Vassas, C.

2005-01-01

This study joins within the framework of the S.E.N.S.I.B. project. The principle is to set up a step which allows to compare the sensitivity of two sites in case of radioisotopes releases; as illustration the sites of Marcoule and La Hague are considered. We are interested here in the case of the agricultural productions contaminated by foliar way during an atmospheric chronic release. Every site is characterized by specific vegetable and animal productions. The calculations of activities give an information about the sensitivity of products (mass and surface activities) and on the sensitivity of the Communes ( total activities). The contamination is supposed to be only made about foliar transfer. The studied radioisotopes are the cesium 137 , the cobalt 60 , the strontium 90 and the iodine 131 . For the cesium 137 and the cobalt 60 , the agricultural environment of the site of Marcoule seems globally more sensitive than that of La Hague, in the mean where the total activity in becquerels exported by the agricultural productions produced on the zone of 10 km around the site is more important for Marcoule than for La Hague. For the strontium 90 and for the iodine 131 , both agricultural environments are globally equivalent. This study which privileged the consideration of the regional specificities shows that the key factors of sensitivity are respectively the topographic situation for the deposit, the factor of translocation and the farming output for the vegetable productions and the daily food ration and the factor of transfer for the animal productions. (N.C.)

Comparative study of polymer and liquid electrolytes in quantum dot sensitized solar cells

Science.gov (United States)

Poudyal, Uma; Wang, Wenyong

We present the study of CdS/CdSe quantum dot sensitized solar cells (QDSSCs) in which Zn2SnO4\\ nanowires on the conductive glass are used as photoanode. The CdS/CdSe quantum dots (QDs) are deposited in the Zn2SnO4 photoanode by the Successive Ionic Layer Adsorption and Reaction (SILAR) method. CdS is first deposited on the nanowires after which it is further coated with 5 cycles of CdSe QDs. Finally, ZnS is coated on the QDs as a passivation layer. The QD sensitized photoanode are then used to assemble a solar device with the polymer and liquid electrolytes. The Incident Photon to Current Efficiency (IPCE) spectra are obtained for the CdS/CdSe coated nanowires. Further, a stability test of these devices is performed, using the polymer and liquid electrolytes, which provides insight to determine the better working electrolyte in the CdS/CdSe QDSSCs. Department of Energy.

Mixing-model Sensitivity to Initial Conditions in Hydrodynamic Predictions

Science.gov (United States)

Bigelow, Josiah; Silva, Humberto; Truman, C. Randall; Vorobieff, Peter

2017-11-01

Amagat and Dalton mixing-models were studied to compare their thermodynamic prediction of shock states. Numerical simulations with the Sandia National Laboratories shock hydrodynamic code CTH modeled University of New Mexico (UNM) shock tube laboratory experiments shocking a 1:1 molar mixture of helium (He) and sulfur hexafluoride (SF6) . Five input parameters were varied for sensitivity analysis: driver section pressure, driver section density, test section pressure, test section density, and mixture ratio (mole fraction). We show via incremental Latin hypercube sampling (LHS) analysis that significant differences exist between Amagat and Dalton mixing-model predictions. The differences observed in predicted shock speeds, temperatures, and pressures grow more pronounced with higher shock speeds. Supported by NNSA Grant DE-0002913.

Sensitivity of Global Methane Bayesian Inversion to Surface Observation Data Sets and Chemical-Transport Model Resolution

Science.gov (United States)

Lew, E. J.; Butenhoff, C. L.; Karmakar, S.; Rice, A. L.; Khalil, A. K.

2017-12-01

Methane is the second most important greenhouse gas after carbon dioxide. In efforts to control emissions, a careful examination of the methane budget and source strengths is required. To determine methane surface fluxes, Bayesian methods are often used to provide top-down constraints. Inverse modeling derives unknown fluxes using observed methane concentrations, a chemical transport model (CTM) and prior information. The Bayesian inversion reduces prior flux uncertainties by exploiting information content in the data. While the Bayesian formalism produces internal error estimates of source fluxes, systematic or external errors that arise from user choices in the inversion scheme are often much larger. Here we examine model sensitivity and uncertainty of our inversion under different observation data sets and CTM grid resolution. We compare posterior surface fluxes using the data product GLOBALVIEW-CH4 against the event-level molar mixing ratio data available from NOAA. GLOBALVIEW-CH4 is a collection of CH4 concentration estimates from 221 sites, collected by 12 laboratories, that have been interpolated and extracted to provide weekly records from 1984-2008. Differently, the event-level NOAA data records methane mixing ratios field measurements from 102 sites, containing sampling frequency irregularities and gaps in time. Furthermore, the sampling platform types used by the data sets may influence the posterior flux estimates, namely fixed surface, tower, ship and aircraft sites. To explore the sensitivity of the posterior surface fluxes to the observation network geometry, inversions composed of all sites, only aircraft, only ship, only tower and only fixed surface sites, are performed and compared. Also, we investigate the sensitivity of the error reduction associated with the resolution of the GEOS-Chem simulation (4°×5° vs 2°×2.5°) used to calculate the response matrix. Using a higher resolution grid decreased the model-data error at most sites, thereby

Comparing communities of inquiry of Portuguese higher education students: one for all or one for each?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jose António Moreira

2013-05-01

Full Text Available The purpose of this study was to report evidence obtained in a survey based on the Community of Inquiry (CoI framework (Garrison, Anderson & Archer, 1991; 2000 carried out in different groups. The study comprised 510 higher education students enrolled in blended online courses offered through Moodle platform during one semester. It considered students from different private and public Portuguese polytechnic schools and universities. Moreira & Almeida (2011 have suggested that CoI framework is a valid, reliable, and efficient measure of its dimensions within the Portuguese population. Although similarities in aspects of social presence were discovered among polytechnic and universities students, the two groups showed some differences. In particular, it was observed that the polytechnic students appear to be a more robust community when compared to university students.

Females are sensitive to unpleasant human emotions regardless of the emotional context of photographs.

Science.gov (United States)

Kato, Ryousuke; Takeda, Yuji

2017-06-09

Previous studies have demonstrated that females exhibit higher sensitivity than males to the emotional state of a person in a photograph. The present study examined whether such females' sensitivity to human emotions could be observed even when the background emotional contexts were incongruent with facial expressions. The late positive potential (LPP) was measured while 19-female and 15-male participants viewed a photograph of a face with varied emotional expressions (pleasant, neutral, or unpleasant) superimposed on a background photograph with varied valences (pleasant, neutral, or unpleasant). The results showed that unpleasant background photographs elicited a larger LPP compared to pleasant and neutral background photographs in both female and male participants. In contrast, a larger LPP for the unpleasant face photographs was observed only in female participants. Furthermore, the effect of face photographs did not interact with the effect of background photographs. These results suggest that females are sensitive to human emotions regardless of the emotional context. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Detection of CO{sub 2} using CNT-based sensors: Role of Fe catalyst on sensitivity and selectivity

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Tit, Nacir, E-mail: ntit@uaeu.ac.ae [Physics Department, UAE University, P.O. Box 15551, Al-Ain (United Arab Emirates); Ezzi, Mohammed M. Al; Abdullah, Hasan M. [Physics Department, King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals, P.O. Box 1690, Dhahran, 31261 (Saudi Arabia); Yusupov, Maksudbek [Research Group PLASMANT, Department of Chemistry, University of Antwerp, Universiteitsplein 1, BE-2610, Wilrijk-Antwerp (Belgium); Kouser, Summayya [Theoretical Sciences Unit, Jawaharlal Nehru Center for Advanced Scientific Research, Jakkur, Bangalore (India); Bahlouli, Hocine [Physics Department, King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals, P.O. Box 1690, Dhahran, 31261 (Saudi Arabia); Yamani, Zain H. [Physics Department, King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals, P.O. Box 1690, Dhahran, 31261 (Saudi Arabia); Center for Research Excellence in Nanotechnology, KFUPM, P.O. Box 5040, Dhahran 31261 (Saudi Arabia)

2017-01-15

The adsorption of CO{sub 2} on surfaces of graphene and carbon nanotubes (CNTs), decorated with Fe atoms, are investigated using the self-consistent-charge density-functional tight-binding (SCC-DFTB) method, neglecting the heat effects. Fe ad-atoms are more stable when they are dispersed on hollow sites. They introduce a large density of states at the Fermi level (N{sub F}); where keeping such density low would help in gas sensing. Furthermore, the Fe ad-atom can weaken the C=O double bonds of the chemisorbed CO{sub 2} molecule, paving the way for oxygen atoms to drain more charges from Fe. Consequently, chemisorption of CO{sub 2} molecules reduces both N{sub F} and the conductance while it enhances the sensitivity with the increasing gas dose. Conducting armchair CNTs (ac-CNTs) have higher sensitivity than graphene and semiconducting zigzag CNTs (zz-CNTs). Comparative study of sensitivity of ac-CNT-Fe composite towards various gases (e.g., O{sub 2}, N{sub 2}, H{sub 2}, H{sub 2}O, CO and CO{sub 2}) has shown high sensitivity and selectivity towards CO, CO{sub 2} and H{sub 2}O gases. - Highlights: • DFTB is used to study Adsorptions of CO{sub 2} molecule on pG and CNT, with Fe catalyst. • Armchair CNT-Fe has higher sensitivity to detect CO{sub 2} than zigzag CNT-Fe and pG-Fe. • Ac-CNT-Fe is highly sensitive and selective towards CO, CO{sub 2} and H{sub 2}O gases. • Keeping Fe ad-atoms dispersed and with low density enhances sensitivity. • Our theoretical results corroborate the experimental findings of Ref. .

Impact of Greenland and Antarctic ice sheet interactions on climate sensitivity

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Goelzer, H.; Huybrechts, P. [Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Earth System Sciences and Departement Geografie, Brussels (Belgium); Loutre, M.F.; Goosse, H.; Fichefet, T. [Universite Catholique de Louvain, Georges Lemaitre Centre for Earth and Climate Research (TECLIM), Earth and Life Institute, Louvain-la-Neuve (Belgium); Mouchet, A. [Universite de Liege, Laboratoire de Physique Atmospherique et Planetaire, Liege (Belgium)

2011-09-15

We use the Earth system model of intermediate complexity LOVECLIM to show the effect of coupling interactive ice sheets on the climate sensitivity of the model on a millennial time scale. We compare the response to a 2 x CO{sub 2} warming scenario between fully coupled model versions including interactive Greenland and Antarctic ice sheet models and model versions with fixed ice sheets. For this purpose an ensemble of different parameter sets have been defined for LOVECLIM, covering a wide range of the model's sensitivity to greenhouse warming, while still simulating the present-day climate and the climate evolution over the last millennium within observational uncertainties. Additional freshwater fluxes from the melting ice sheets have a mitigating effect on the model's temperature response, leading to generally lower climate sensitivities of the fully coupled model versions. The mitigation is effectuated by changes in heat exchange within the ocean and at the sea-air interface, driven by freshening of the surface ocean and amplified by sea-ice-related feedbacks. The strength of the effect depends on the response of the ice sheets to the warming and on the model's climate sensitivity itself. The effect is relatively strong in model versions with higher climate sensitivity due to the relatively large polar amplification of LOVECLIM. With the ensemble approach in this study we cover a wide range of possible model responses. (orig.)

Hydraulic head interpolation using ANFIS—model selection and sensitivity analysis

Science.gov (United States)

Kurtulus, Bedri; Flipo, Nicolas

2012-01-01

The aim of this study is to investigate the efficiency of ANFIS (adaptive neuro fuzzy inference system) for interpolating hydraulic head in a 40-km 2 agricultural watershed of the Seine basin (France). Inputs of ANFIS are Cartesian coordinates and the elevation of the ground. Hydraulic head was measured at 73 locations during a snapshot campaign on September 2009, which characterizes low-water-flow regime in the aquifer unit. The dataset was then split into three subsets using a square-based selection method: a calibration one (55%), a training one (27%), and a test one (18%). First, a method is proposed to select the best ANFIS model, which corresponds to a sensitivity analysis of ANFIS to the type and number of membership functions (MF). Triangular, Gaussian, general bell, and spline-based MF are used with 2, 3, 4, and 5 MF per input node. Performance criteria on the test subset are used to select the 5 best ANFIS models among 16. Then each is used to interpolate the hydraulic head distribution on a (50×50)-m grid, which is compared to the soil elevation. The cells where the hydraulic head is higher than the soil elevation are counted as "error cells." The ANFIS model that exhibits the less "error cells" is selected as the best ANFIS model. The best model selection reveals that ANFIS models are very sensitive to the type and number of MF. Finally, a sensibility analysis of the best ANFIS model with four triangular MF is performed on the interpolation grid, which shows that ANFIS remains stable to error propagation with a higher sensitivity to soil elevation.

Altered reward sensitivity in female offspring of cocaine-exposed fathers.

Science.gov (United States)

Fischer, Delaney K; Rice, Richard C; Martinez Rivera, Arlene; Donohoe, Mary; Rajadhyaksha, Anjali M

2017-08-14

Recent rodent studies have demonstrated that parental cocaine exposure can influence offspring behavior, supporting the idea that environmental insults can impact subsequent generations. However, studies on the effects of paternal cocaine exposure are limited and multiple inconsistencies exist. In the current study, we behaviorally characterize the effects of paternal cocaine exposure in a C57BL/6J intergenerational mouse model. Male sires were administered cocaine hydrochloride (20mg/kg) or saline (0.01mL/g) once a day for 75days, and bred with drug naïve females twenty-four hours after the final injection. Offspring, separated by sex, were tested in a battery of behaviors. We found that paternal cocaine exposure altered sensitivity to the rewarding and stimulant effects of psychostimulants and natural reward (sucrose) in female offspring; female cocaine-sired offspring showed blunted cocaine preference using cocaine conditioned place preference (CPP) at a low dose (5mg/kg), but displayed similar preference at a higher dose (10mg/kg) compared to saline-sired controls. Additionally, cocaine-sired female offspring exhibited higher psychomotor sensitivity to cocaine (10mg/kg) and amphetamine (2mg/kg) and consumed more sucrose. Cocaine-sired males exhibited increased psychomotor effects of cocaine and amphetamine. Male offspring also displayed an anxiety-like phenotype. No effect of paternal cocaine exposure was observed on depressive-like, learning and memory or social behavior in male or female offspring. Collectively, our findings show that paternal, chronic cocaine exposure induces intergenerational behavioral effects in male and female offspring with greatest impact on sensitivity to psychostimulants and sucrose in females. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

A rapid enhancement of locomotor sensitization to amphetamine by estradiol in female rats.

Science.gov (United States)

Zovkic, Iva B; McCormick, Cheryl M

2017-11-14

Estradiol moderates the effects of drugs of abuse in both humans and rodents. Estradiol's enhancement of behavioral effects resulting from high (>2.5mg/kg) doses of amphetamine is established in rats; there is less evidence for the role of estradiol in locomotor effects elicited by lower doses, which are less aversive, increase incentive motivation, involve different neural mechanisms than higher doses, and often more readily reveal group differences than do higher doses. Further, the extent to which estradiol is required for the induction versus the expression of sensitization is unknown. To establish a protocol, we replicated the effects of estradiol on locomotor sensitization to amphetamine reported in a previous study that involved a high locomotor-activating dose (1.5mg/kg) of amphetamine, but with a lower dose. Ovariectomized female rats received 5μg of estradiol benzoate (EB) or OIL 30min before each of 5 treatments of 1.0mg/kg amphetamine or saline; all received a 0.5mg/kg challenge dose three days later. Compared with results for OIL, EB enhanced the locomotor-activating effects of repeated 1.0mg/kg amphetamine across treatment days. In contrast, on challenge day, there was no difference between EB-saline and EB-amphetamine to the lower dose (i.e., no sensitization). Experiments 2 and 3 involved a shorter induction (2days) and a lengthier withdrawal (9days) before the challenge test for the expression of sensitization to better differentiate the induction phase from the expression phase. In Expt2, EB-, and not OIL-, treated rats showed sensitization to 0.5mg/kg amphetamine; neither group showed sensitization to 1.5mg/kg amphetamine (ceiling effect?). In Expt3, rats were treated with EB either in both the induction and expression phases, in one of the phases only, or in neither phase. There was an effect of hormone treatment on challenge day and not on induction day; rats given EB on Challenge day showed sensitization to 0.5mg/kg amphetamine; OIL rats did

CONSTRUCTION SENSITIVITY IN PINGYAO TONE SANDHI

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hui-shan Lin

2012-06-01

Full Text Available This paper investigates tone sandhi phenomena in Pingyao, a Jin dialect spoken in Shanxi province in China. Pingyao tone sandhi is special in that tone sandhi in bi-syllabic strings is construction sensitive, but tone sandhi in tri-syllabic strings is not fully conditioned by construction types. Based on Optimality Theory (OT, this paper proposes analyses for bi-tonal and tri-tonal sandhi in Pingyao. We show that while bi-tonal sandhi can be accounted for by assuming that there are different grammars associated with different construction types, the lack of construction sensitivity in certain tri-syllabic strings suggests that the association between construction types and phonological grammars can be sacrificed to comply with a higher demand. In Pingyao, the higher demand is to avoid having a tri-tonal string with marked tone sandhi domain from being associated with conflicting grammars.

Slice sensitivity profiles and pixel noise of multi-slice CT in comparison with single-slice CT

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Schorn, C.; Obenauer, S.; Funke, M.; Hermann, K.P.; Kopka, L.; Grabbe, E.

1999-01-01

Purpose: Presentation and evaluation of slice sensitivity profile and pixel noise of multi-slice CT in comparison to single-slice CT. Methods: Slice sensitivity profiles and pixel noise of a multi-slice CT equiped with a 2D matrix detector array and of a single-slice CT were evaluated in phantom studies. Results: For the single-slice CT the width of the slice sensitivity profiles increased with increasing pitch. In spite of a much higher table speed the slice sensitivity profiles of multi-slice CT were narrower and did not increase with higher pitch. Noise in single-slice CT was independent of pitch. For multi-slice CT noise increased with higher pitch and for the higher pitch decreased slightly with higher detector row collimation. Conclusions: Multi-slice CT provides superior z-resolution and higher volume coverage speed. These qualities fulfill one of the prerequisites for improvement of 3D postprocessing. (orig.) [de

Pilot evaluation of short-term changes in macular pigment and retinal sensitivity in different phenotypes of early age-related macular degeneration after carotenoid supplementation.

Science.gov (United States)

Corvi, Federico; Souied, Eric H; Falfoul, Yousra; Georges, Anouk; Jung, Camille; Querques, Lea; Querques, Giuseppe

2017-06-01

To investigate the response of carotenoid supplementation in different phenotypes of early age-related macular degeneration (AMD) by measuring macular pigment optical density (MPOD) and retinal sensitivity. Consecutive patients with only medium/large drusen and only reticular pseudodrusen (RPD) and age-matched and sex-matched controls were enrolled. At baseline, participants underwent a complete ophthalmological examination including measurement of best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA), MPOD and retinal sensitivity. Patients were put on vitamin supplementation (lutein 10 mg/day, zeaxanthin 2 mg/day) and 3 months later underwent a repeated ophthalmological examination. Twenty patients with medium/large drusen, 19 with RPD and 15 control subjects were included. At baseline, in controls, mean MPOD and BCVA were significantly higher compared with RPD (p=0.001 and p=0.01) but similar to medium/large drusen (p=0.9 and p=0.4). Mean retinal sensitivity was significantly higher in controls compared with RPD and medium/large drusen (for all p<0.0001). After 3 months of carotenoid supplementation the mean MPOD significantly increased in RPD (p=0.002), thus showing no more difference compared with controls (p=0.3); no significant changes were found in mean retinal sensitivity and BCVA (p=0.3 and p=0.7). Medium/large drusen did not show significant changes on MPOD, retinal sensitivity and BCVA (p=0.5, p=0.7 and p=0.7, respectively). Patients with early AMD, especially RPD phenotype, show lower macular sensitivity and MPOD than controls. After supplementation, MPOD significantly increased in RPD. These results suggest different pathophysiology for RPD as compared with medium/large drusen and may open new ways to identifying further therapeutic targets in this phenotype of early AMD. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://www.bmj.com/company/products-services/rights-and-licensing/.

Adipose tissue (PRR regulates insulin sensitivity, fat mass and body weight

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Zulaykho Shamansurova

2016-10-01

Full Text Available Objective: We previously demonstrated that the handle-region peptide, a prorenin/renin receptor [(PRR] blocker, reduces body weight and fat mass and may improve insulin sensitivity in high-fat fed mice. We hypothesized that knocking out the adipose tissue (PRR gene would prevent weight gain and insulin resistance. Methods: An adipose tissue-specific (PRR knockout (KO mouse was created by Cre-loxP technology using AP2-Cre recombinase mice. Because the (PRR gene is located on the X chromosome, hemizygous males were complete KO and had a more pronounced phenotype on a normal diet (ND diet compared to heterozygous KO females. Therefore, we challenged the female mice with a high-fat diet (HFD to uncover certain phenotypes. Mice were maintained on either diet for 9 weeks. Results: KO mice had lower body weights compared to wild-types (WT. Only hemizygous male KO mice presented with lower total fat mass, higher total lean mass as well as smaller adipocytes compared to WT mice. Although food intake was similar between genotypes, locomotor activity during the active period was increased in both male and female KO mice. Interestingly, only male KO mice had increased O2 consumption and CO2 production during the entire 24-hour period, suggesting an increased basal metabolic rate. Although glycemia during a glucose tolerance test was similar, KO males as well as HFD-fed females had lower plasma insulin and C-peptide levels compared to WT mice, suggesting improved insulin sensitivity. Remarkably, all KO animals exhibited higher circulating adiponectin levels, suggesting that this phenotype can occur even in the absence of a significant reduction in adipose tissue weight, as observed in females and, thus, may be a specific effect related to the (PRR. Conclusions: (PRR may be an important therapeutic target for the treatment of obesity and its associated complications such as type 2 diabetes. Keywords: (Prorenin receptor, Renin-angiotensin system, Adipose

The clinical relevance of sensitization to pollen-related fruits and vegetables in unselected pollen-sensitized adults

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Osterballe, M.; Hansen, T.K.; Mørtz, Charlotte G

2005-01-01

BACKGROUND: Previous studies have described cross-reactivity between fresh fruits, vegetables and pollen. However, no data demonstrates the clinical relevance of sensitization to pollen-related fruits and vegetables in unselected pollen-sensitized adults with and without symptoms in the pollen...... season. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to estimate the clinical relevance of sensitization to pollen-related fruits and vegetables in unselected pollen-sensitized adults and to examine the diagnostic value of skin-prick test (SPT), histamine release and specific IgE compared with the outcome...... of oral challenge. METHODS: In total, 936 unselected adults (female : male 479 : 457, median age 33.7 years) were examined for pollen sensitization and clinical cross-reactivity with pollen-related fruits and vegetables by questionnaire, SPT, histamine release, specific IgE and oral challenge. RESULTS...

Two bee-pollinated plant species show higher seed production when grown in gardens compared to arable farmland.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

John Cussans

2010-07-01

Full Text Available Insect pollinator abundance, in particular that of bees, has been shown to be high where there is a super-abundance of floral resources; for example in association with mass-flowering crops and also in gardens where flowering plants are often densely planted. Since land management affects pollinator numbers, it is also likely to affect the resultant pollination of plants growing in these habitats. We hypothesised that the seed or fruit set of two plant species, typically pollinated by bumblebees and/or honeybees might respond in one of two ways: 1 pollination success could be reduced when growing in a floriferous environment, via competition for pollinators, or 2 pollination success could be enhanced because of increased pollinator abundance in the vicinity.We compared the pollination success of experimental plants of Glechoma hederacea L. and Lotus corniculatus L. growing in gardens and arable farmland. On the farms, the plants were placed either next to a mass-flowering crop (oilseed rape, Brassica napus L. or field beans, Vicia faba L. or next to a cereal crop (wheat, Triticum spp.. Seed set of G. hederacea and fruit set of L. corniculatus were significantly higher in gardens compared to arable farmland. There was no significant difference in pollination success of G. hederacea when grown next to different crops, but for L. corniculatus, fruit set was higher in the plants growing next to oilseed rape when the crop was in flower.The results show that pollination services can limit fruit set of wild plants in arable farmland, but there is some evidence that the presence of a flowering crop can facilitate their pollination (depending on species and season. We have also demonstrated that gardens are not only beneficial to pollinators, but also to the process of pollination.

Comparing Academic Library Spending with Public Libraries, Public K-12 Schools, Higher Education Public Institutions, and Public Hospitals between 1998-2008

Science.gov (United States)

Regazzi, John J.

2012-01-01

This study compares the overall spending trends and patterns of growth of Academic Libraries with Public Libraries, K-12 schools, higher education institutions, and hospitals in the period of 1998 to 2008. Academic Libraries, while showing a growth of 13% over inflation for the period, far underperformed the growth of the other public institutions…

Comparative study of the sensitivity of ADC value and T{sub 2} relaxation time for early detection of Wallerian degeneration

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zhang Fan [Department of Radiology, Nanjing Jinling Hospital, Clinical School of Medical College of Nanjing University, Nanjing 210002 (China); Lu Guangming, E-mail: cjr.luguangming@vip.163.com [Department of Radiology, Nanjing Jinling Hospital, Clinical School of Medical College of Nanjing University, Nanjing 210002 (China); Zee Chishing, E-mail: chishing@usc.edu [Department of Radiology, USC Keck School of Medicine (United States)

2011-07-15

Background and purpose: Wallerian degeneration (WD), the secondary degeneration of axons from cortical and subcortical injuries, is associated with poor neurological outcome. There is some quantitative MR imaging techniques used to estimate the biologic changes secondary to delayed neuronal and axonal losses. Our purpose is to assess the sensitivity of ADC value and T{sub 2} relaxation time for early detection of WD. Methods: Ten male Sprague-Dawley rats were used to establish in vivo Wallerian degeneration model of CNS by ipsilateral motor-sensory cortex ablation. 5 days after cortex ablation, multiecho-T{sub 2} relaxometry and multi-b value DWI were acquired by using a 7 T MR imaging scanner. ADC-map and T{sub 2}-map were reconstructed by post-processing. ROIs are selected according to pathway of corticospinal tract from cortex, internal capsule, cerebral peduncle, pons, medulla oblongata to upper cervical spinal cord to measure ADC value and T{sub 2} relaxation time of healthy side and affected side. The results were compared between the side with cortical ablation and the side without ablation. Results: Excluding ablated cortex, ADC values of the corticospinal tract were significantly increased (P < 0.05) in affected side compared to the unaffected, healthy side; no difference in T{sub 2} relaxation time was observed between the affected and healthy sides. Imaging findings were correlated with histological examinations. Conclusion: As shown in this animal experiment, ADC values could non-invasively demonstrate the secondary degeneration involving descending white matter tracts. ADC values are more sensitive indicators for detection of early WD than T{sub 2} relaxation time.

Risk Sensitive Filtering with Poisson Process Observations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Malcolm, W. P.; James, M. R.; Elliott, R. J.

2000-01-01

In this paper we consider risk sensitive filtering for Poisson process observations. Risk sensitive filtering is a type of robust filtering which offers performance benefits in the presence of uncertainties. We derive a risk sensitive filter for a stochastic system where the signal variable has dynamics described by a diffusion equation and determines the rate function for an observation process. The filtering equations are stochastic integral equations. Computer simulations are presented to demonstrate the performance gain for the risk sensitive filter compared with the risk neutral filter

Dysfunctional parenting styles increase interpersonal sensitivity in healthy subjects.

Science.gov (United States)

Otani, Koichi; Suzuki, Akihito; Shibuya, Naoshi; Matsumoto, Yoshihiko; Kamata, Mitsuhiro

2009-12-01

The effects of dysfunctional parenting styles on interpersonal sensitivity were studied in 640 Japanese volunteers. Interpersonal sensitivity was assessed by the Interpersonal Sensitivity Measure (IPSM), and perceived parental rearing was evaluated by the Parental Bonding Instrument (PBI), which is consisted of care and protection factors. Parental rearing was classified into 4 types, i.e., optimal parenting (high care/low protection), affectionate constraint (high care/high protection), neglectful parenting (low care/low protection), and affectionless control (low care/high protection). Males with paternal affectionless control showed higher total IPSM scores than those with paternal optimal parenting (p = 0.022). Females with maternal affectionate constraint (p = 0.001), neglectful parenting (p = 0.022), and affectionless control (p = 0.003) showed higher total IPSM scores than those with maternal optimal parenting. In males and females, dysfunctional parenting styles by the opposite-sex parents did not affected total IPSM scores. The present study suggests that in both males and females interpersonal sensitivity is increased by dysfunctional parenting styles by the same-sex parents.

INFLUENCE OF MODIFIED BIOFLAVONOIDS UPON EFFECTOR LYMPHOCYTES IN MURINE MODEL OF CONTACT SENSITIVITY

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

D. Z. Albegova

2015-01-01

Full Text Available Contact sensitivity reaction (CSR to 2,4-dinitrofluorobenzene (DNFB in mice is a model of in vivo immune response, being an experimental analogue to contact dermatitis in humans. CSR sensitization phase begins after primary contact with antigen, lasting for 10-15 days in humans, and 5-7 days, in mice. Repeated skin exposure to the sensitizing substance leads to its recognition and triggering immune inflammatory mechanisms involving DNFB-specific effector T lymphocytes. The CSR reaches its maximum 18-48 hours after re-exposure to a hapten. There is only scarce information in the literature about effects of flavonoids on CSR, including both stimulatory and inhibitory effects. Flavonoids possessed, predominantly, suppressive effects against the CSR development. In our laboratory, a model of contact sensitivity was reproduced in CBA mice by means of cutaneous sensitization by 2,4-dinitrofluorobenzene. The aim of the study was to identify the mechanisms of immunomodulatory action of quercetin dihydrate and modified bioflavonoids, using the method of adoptive transfer contact sensitivity by splenocytes and T-lymphocytes. As shown in our studies, a 30-min pre-treatment of splenocytes and T-lymphocytes from sensitized mice with modified bioflavonoids before the cell transfer caused complete prevention of contact sensitivity reaction in syngeneic recipient mice. Meanwhile, this effect was not associated with cell death induction due to apoptosis or cytotoxicity. Quercetin dihydrate caused only partially suppression the activity of adaptively formed T-lymphocytes, the contact sensitivity effectors. It was shown that the modified bioflavonoid more stronger suppress adoptive transfer of contact sensitivity in comparison with quercetin dehydrate, without inducing apoptosis of effector cells. Thus, the modified bioflavonoid is a promising compound for further studies in a model of contact sensitivity, due to its higher ability to suppress transfer of CSR with

Sexual dimorphism in hepatic, adipose tissue and peripheral tissue insulin sensitivity in obese humans

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kasper W. ter Horst

2015-11-01

Full Text Available Glucose and lipid metabolism differ between men and women, and women tend to have better whole-body or muscle insulin sensitivity. This may be explained, in part, by differences in sex hormones and adipose tissue distribution. Few studies have investigated gender differences in hepatic, adipose tissue and whole-body insulin sensitivity between severely obese men and women. In this study, we aimed to determine the differences in glucose metabolism between severely obese men and women using tissue-specific measurements of insulin sensitivity. Insulin sensitivity was compared between age and body mass index (BMI-matched obese men and women by a two-step euglycemic hyperinsulinemic clamp with infusion of [6,6-2H2]glucose. Basal endogenous glucose production and insulin sensitivity of the liver, adipose tissue and peripheral tissues were assessed. Liver fat content was assessed by proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy in a subset of included subjects. We included 46 obese men and women (age, 48±2 vs 46±2 years, p=0.591; BMI, 41±1 vs 41±1 kg/m2, p=0.832. There was no difference in basal endogenous glucose production (14.4±1.0 vs 15.3±0.5 µmol•kg fat-free mass-1•min-1, p=0.410, adipose tissue insulin sensitivity (insulin-mediated suppression of free fatty acids, 71.6±3.6 vs 76.1±2.6%, p=0.314 or peripheral insulin sensitivity (insulin-stimulated rate of disappearance of glucose, 26.2±2.1 vs 22.7±1.7 µmol•kg-1•min-1, p=0.211. Obese men were characterized by lower hepatic insulin sensitivity (insulin-mediated suppression of endogenous glucose production, 61.7±4.1 vs 72.8±2.5% in men vs women, resp., p=0.028. Finally, these observations could not be explained by differences in liver fat content (men vs women, 16.5±3.1 vs 16.0±2.5%, p=0.913, n=27.We conclude that obese men have lower hepatic, but comparable adipose tissue and peripheral tissue, insulin sensitivity compared to similarly obese women. Hepatic insulin resistance may

Species differences in the sensitivity of avian embryos to methylmercury

Science.gov (United States)

Heinz, G.H.; Hoffman, D.J.; Klimstra, J.D.; Stebbins, K.R.; Kondrad, S.L.; Erwin, C.A.

2009-01-01

We injected doses of methylmercury into the air cells of eggs of 26 species of birds and examined the dose-response curves of embryo survival. For 23 species we had adequate data to calculate the median lethal concentration (LC50). Based on the dose-response curves and LC50s, we ranked species according to their sensitivity to injected methylmercury. Although the previously published embryotoxic threshold of mercury in game farm mallards (Anas platyrhynchos) has been used as a default value to protect wild species of birds, we found that, relative to other species, mallard embryos are not very sensitive to injected methylmercury; their LC50 was 1.79 ug/g mercury on a wet-weight basis. Other species we categorized as also exhibiting relatively low sensitivity to injected methylmercury (their LC50s were 1 ug/g mercury or higher) were the hooded merganser (Lophodytes cucullatus), lesser scaup (Aythya affinis), Canada goose (Branta canadensis), double-crested cormorant (Phalacrocorax auritus), and laughing gull (Larus atricilla). Species we categorized as having medium sensitivity (their LC50s were greater than 0.25 ug/g mercury but less than 1 ug/g mercury) were the clapper rail (Rallus longirostris), sandhill crane (Grus canadensis), ring-necked pheasant (Phasianus colchicus), chicken (Gallus gallus), common grackle (Quiscalus quiscula), tree swallow (Tachycineta bicolor), herring gull (Larus argentatus), common tern (S terna hirundo), royal tern (Sterna maxima), Caspian tern (Sterna caspia), great egret (Ardea alba), brown pelican (Pelecanus occidentalis), and anhinga (Anhinga anhinga). Species we categorized as exhibiting high sensitivity (their LC50s were less than 0.25 ug/g mercury) were the American kestrel (Falco sparverius), osprey (Pandion haliaetus), white ibis (Eudocimus albus), snowy egret (Egretta thula), and tri-colored heron (Egretta tricolor). For mallards, chickens, and ring-necked pheasants (all species for which we could compare the toxicity of our

Sensitization to palladium in Europe

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Muris, Joris; Goossens, An; Gonçalo, Margarida

2015-01-01

BACKGROUND: Recently, sodium tetrachloropalladate (Na2 PdCl4 ) was found to be a more sensitive palladium patch test allergen than palladium dichloride (PdCl2 ). OBJECTIVES: To determine the optimal test concentration of Na2 PdCl4 , to evaluate the prevalence of palladium sensitization with Na2 P...... patch test concentration. Sensitization to palladium is almost as prevalent as sensitization to nickel. The sex distribution is different between nickel-sensitized and palladium-sensitized patients, suggesting different sources of exposure.......Cl4 and PdCl2 , and to compare the results with nickel sensitization in a European multicentre study. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In addition to the European or national baseline series including NiSO4 ·6H2 0 5% pet., consecutive patients were tested with PdCl2 and Na2 PdCl4 2%, 3% and 4% pet. in eight...... European dermatology clinics. The age and sex distributions were also evaluated in patients sensitized to nickel and palladium. RESULTS: In total, 1651 patients were tested. Relative to 3% Na2 PdCl4 , 4% Na2 PdCl4 did not add any information. Two per cent Na2 PdCl4 resulted in more doubtful reactions...

Comparing sensitivity of ecotoxicological effect endpoints between laboratory and field

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Selck, H.; Riemann, B.; Christoffersen, K.

2002-01-01

multispecies field tests using tributyltin (TBT) and linear alkylbenzene sulfonates (LAS) were compared with published laboratory single-species test results and measured in situ concentrations. Extrapolation methods were evaluated by comparing predicted no-effect concentrations (PNECs), calculated by AF...

Oxygen-sensitive 3He-MRI in bronchiolitis obliterans after lung transplantation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gast, Klaus K.; Biedermann, Alexander; Herweling, Annette; Schreiber, Wolfgang G.; Schmiedeskamp, Joerg; Mayer, Eckhard; Heussel, Claus P.; Markstaller, Klaus; Eberle, Balthasar; Kauczor, Hans-Ulrich

2008-01-01

Oxygen-sensitive 3 He-MRI was studied for the detection of differences in intrapulmonary oxygen partial pressure (pO 2 ) between patients with normal lung transplants and those with bronchiolitis obliterans syndrome (BOS). Using software developed in-house, oxygen-sensitive 3 He-MRI datasets from patients with normal lung grafts (n = 8) and with BOS (n = 6) were evaluated quantitatively. Datasets were acquired on a 1.5-T system using a spoiled gradient echo pulse sequence. Underlying diseases were pulmonary emphysema (n 10 datasets) and fibrosis (n = 4). BOS status was verified by pulmonary function tests. Additionally, 3 He-MRI was assessed blindedly for ventilation defects. Median intrapulmonary pO 2 in patients with normal lung grafts was 146 mbar compared with 108 mbar in patients with BOS. Homogeneity of pO2 distribution was greater in normal grafts (standard deviation pO2 34 versus 43 mbar). Median oxygen decrease rate during breath hold was higher in unaffected patients (-1.75 mbar/s versus -0.38 mbar/s). Normal grafts showed fewer ventilation defects (5% versus 28%, medians). Oxygen-sensitive 3 He-MRI appears capable of demonstrating differences of intrapulmonary pO2 between normal lung grafts and grafts affected by BOS. Oxygen-sensitive 3 He-MRI may add helpful regional information to other diagnostic techniques for the assessment and follow-up of lung transplant recipients. (orig.)

Diffusion-weighted and T2-weighted MR imaging for colorectal liver metastases detection in a rat model at 7 T: a comparative study using histological examination as reference

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wagner, Mathilde; Ronot, Maxime; Vilgrain, Valerie; Beers, Bernard E. van [University Paris Diderot, Sorbonne Paris Cite, INSERM UMR 773, University Hospitals Paris Nord Val de Seine, Beaujon, Assistance Publique- Hopitaux de Paris, Laboratory of Physiological and Molecular Imaging of the Abdomen (IPMA) and Department of Radiology, Clichy Cedex (France); Maggiori, Leon; Panis, Yves [University Paris Diderot, Sorbonne Paris Cite, INSERM UMR 773, University Hospitals Paris Nord Val de Seine, Beaujon, Assistance Publique-Hopitaux de Paris, Department of Colorectal Surgery, Clichy (France); Paradis, Valerie [University Paris Diderot, Sorbonne Paris Cite, INSERM UMR 773, University Hospitals Paris Nord Val de Seine, Beaujon, Assistance Publique-Hopitaux de Paris, Department of Pathology, Clichy (France)

2013-08-15

To compare diffusion-weighted (DW) and T2-weighted MR imaging in detecting colorectal liver metastases in a rat model, using histological examination as a reference method. Eighteen rats had four liver injections of colon cancer cells. MR examinations at 7 T included FSE-T2-weighted imaging and SE-DW MR imaging (b = 0, 20 and 150 s/mm{sup 2}) and were analysed by two independent readers. Histological examination was performed on 0.4-mm slices. McNemar's test was used to compare the sensitivities and the Wilcoxon matched pairs test to compare the average number of false-positives per rat. One hundred and sixty-six liver metastases were identified on histological examination. The sensitivity in detecting liver metastases was significantly higher on DW MR than on T2-weighted images (99/166 (60 %) (reader 1) and 92/166 (55 %) (reader 2) versus 77/166 (46 %), P {<=} 0.001), without an increase in false-positives per rat (P = 0.773/P = 0.850). After stratification according to metastasis diameter, DW MR imaging had a significantly higher sensitivity than T2-weighted imaging only for metastases with a diameter (0.6-1.2 mm) similar to that of the spatial resolution of MR imaging in the current study. This MR study with histological correlations shows the higher sensitivity of DW relative to T2-weighted imaging at 7 T for detecting liver metastases, especially small ones. (orig.)

Novel diyne-bridged dyes for efficient dye-sensitized solar cells

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Fang, Jing-Kun, E-mail: fjk@njust.edu.cn [Department of Chemistry, School of Chemical Engineering, Nanjing University of Science and Technology, Xiaolingwei Street No. 200, Nanjing, 210094 (China); Sun, Tengxiao [Department of Chemistry, School of Chemical Engineering, Nanjing University of Science and Technology, Xiaolingwei Street No. 200, Nanjing, 210094 (China); Tian, Yi [Advanced Institute for Materials Research, Tohoku University, 2-1-1 Katahira, Aoba-ku, Sendai, 980-8577 (Japan); Zhang, Yingjun, E-mail: ZhangYingjun@hec.cn [HEC Pharm Group, HEC R& D Center, Dongguan, 523871 (China); Jin, Chuanfei [HEC Pharm Group, HEC R& D Center, Dongguan, 523871 (China); Xu, Zhimin; Fang, Yu; Hu, Xiangyu; Wang, Haobin [Department of Chemistry, School of Chemical Engineering, Nanjing University of Science and Technology, Xiaolingwei Street No. 200, Nanjing, 210094 (China)

2017-07-01

Three new metal free organic dyes (FSD101-103) were synthesized to investigate the influence of diyne unit on dye molecules. FSD101 and FSD102 with diyne unit and FSD103 with monoyne unit were applied as sensitizers in the dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs). The optical and electrochemical properties, theoretical studies, and photovoltaic parameters of DSSCs sensitized by these dyes were systematically investigated. By replacing the monoyne unit with a diyne unit, FSD101 exhibited broader absorption spectrum, lower IP, higher EA, lower band gap energy, higher oscillator strength, more efficient electron injection ability, broader IPCE response range and higher τ{sub e} in comparison with FSD103. Hence, DSSC sensitized by FSD101 showed higher J{sub sc} and V{sub oc} values, and demonstrated a power conversion efficiency of 3.12%, about 2-fold as that of FSD103 (1.55%). FSD102 showed similar results as FSD101, with a power conversion efficiency of 2.98%, despite a stronger electron withdraw cyanoacrylic acid group was introduced. This may be due to the lower efficiency of the electron injection from dye to TiO{sub 2} and lower τ{sub e} of FSD102 than that of FSD101. These results indicate that the performance of DSSCs can be significantly improved by introducing a diyne unit into this type of organic dyes. - Highlights: • Diyne-bridge was introduced into dye molecules by a transition-metal-free protocol. • Power conversion efficiency grows from 1.55% to 3.12% by replacing monoyne unit with diyne unit. • FSD101 with diyne unit shows the highest electron lifetime resulting in a higher V{sub oc}.

Sensitivity of aerosol loading and properties to cloudiness

Science.gov (United States)

Iversen, T.; Seland, O.; Kirkevag, A.; Kristjansson, J. E.

2005-12-01

Clouds influence aerosols in various ways. Sulfate is swiftly produced in liquid phase provided there is both sulfur dioxide and oxidants available. Nucleation and Aitken mode aerosol particles efficiently grow in size by collision and coagulation with cloud droplets. When precipitation is formed, aerosol and precursor gases may be quickly removed bay rainout. The dynamics associated with clouds in some cases may swiftly mix aerosols deeply into the troposphere. In some cases Aitken-mode particles may be formed in cloud droplets by splitting agglomerates of particulate matter such as black carbon In this presentation we will discuss how global cloudiness may influence the burden, residence time, and spatial distribution of sulfate, black carbon and particulate organic matter. A similar physico-chemical scheme for there compounds has been implemented in three generations of the NCAR community climate model (CCM3, CAM2 and CAM3). The scheme is documented in the literature and is a part of the Aerocom-intercomparison. There are many differences between these models. With respect to aerosols, a major difference is that CAM3 has a considerably higher global cloud volume and more then twice the amount of cloud water than CAM2 and CCM3. Atmospheric simulations have been made with prescribed ocean temperatures. It is slightly surprising to discover that certain aspects of the aerosols are not particularly sensitive to these differences in cloud availability. This sensitivity will be compared to sensitivities with respect to processing in deep convective clouds.

Comparing the Sensitivity Performance of the Sallen-Key and the Delyiannis-Friend Biquad

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Gaunholt, Hans; Guldbrandsen, Birthe; Gaunholt, Hans

1997-01-01

In this paper it is shown, that even in the high-Q and medium-Q case it is possible to design the Sallen-Key bandpass biquad with just as small active as well as passive sensitivities as those for the Delyiannis-Friend biquad, which generally is considered to be the most versatile single amplifie...

QSAR models of human data can enrich or replace LLNA testing for human skin sensitization

Science.gov (United States)

Alves, Vinicius M.; Capuzzi, Stephen J.; Muratov, Eugene; Braga, Rodolpho C.; Thornton, Thomas; Fourches, Denis; Strickland, Judy; Kleinstreuer, Nicole; Andrade, Carolina H.; Tropsha, Alexander

2016-01-01

Skin sensitization is a major environmental and occupational health hazard. Although many chemicals have been evaluated in humans, there have been no efforts to model these data to date. We have compiled, curated, analyzed, and compared the available human and LLNA data. Using these data, we have developed reliable computational models and applied them for virtual screening of chemical libraries to identify putative skin sensitizers. The overall concordance between murine LLNA and human skin sensitization responses for a set of 135 unique chemicals was low (R = 28-43%), although several chemical classes had high concordance. We have succeeded to develop predictive QSAR models of all available human data with the external correct classification rate of 71%. A consensus model integrating concordant QSAR predictions and LLNA results afforded a higher CCR of 82% but at the expense of the reduced external dataset coverage (52%). We used the developed QSAR models for virtual screening of CosIng database and identified 1061 putative skin sensitizers; for seventeen of these compounds, we found published evidence of their skin sensitization effects. Models reported herein provide more accurate alternative to LLNA testing for human skin sensitization assessment across diverse chemical data. In addition, they can also be used to guide the structural optimization of toxic compounds to reduce their skin sensitization potential. PMID:28630595

Salivary leptin and TAS1R2/TAS1R3 polymorphisms are related to sweet taste sensitivity and carbohydrate intake from a buffet meal in healthy young adults.

Science.gov (United States)

Han, Pengfei; Keast, Russell S J; Roura, Eugeni

2017-11-01

The influence of sweet taste sensitivity on food intake is not well understood. We investigated the involvement of salivary leptin and SNP of the sweet taste receptor genes (TAS1R2/TAS1R3) on sweet taste sensitivity, sensory-specific satiety (SSS) and macronutrient intake in healthy human adults. In all, nineteen high sweet sensitivity (HS) and eleven low sweet sensitivity (LS) subjects were classified based on the sweetness perception of one solution (9 mm sucrose) forced-choice triangle test. All participants completed a randomised crossover design experiment where they consumed one of three iso-energetic soup preloads differing in primary taste quality (sweet, non-sweet taste-control or no-taste energy-control). A period of 1 h after the preload, participants were offered a buffet meal consisting of foods varying in taste (sweet or non-sweet) and fat content. Subjective measures included hunger/fullness and SSS for sweetness. Saliva and buccal cells were collected to measure leptin level and to study the TAS1R2/TAS1R3 specific SNP, respectively. Salivary leptin concentrations were significantly higher in LS than HS participants (P<0·05). In addition, HS showed stronger sweet SSS compared with LH participants (P<0·05), and consumed less carbohydrate (% energy) and more non-sweet foods than LS (P<0·01 and P<0·05, respectively). Alleles from each TAS1R2 locus (GG compared with AA alleles of rs12033832, and CT/CC compared with TT alleles of rs35874116) were related to higher consumption of carbohydrates (% energy) and higher amount of sweet foods, respectively (P<0·05). In contrast, no associations were found for the TAS1R3 alleles. These results contribute to understand the links between taste sensitivity, macronutrient appetite and food consumption.

Comparative Evaluation of Tubex TF (Inhibition Magnetic Binding Immunoassay) for Typhoid Fever in Endemic Area.

Science.gov (United States)

Khanna, Ashish; Khanna, Menka; Gill, Karamjit Singh

2015-11-01

Typhoid fever remains a significant health problem in endemic countries like India. Various serological tests for the diagnosis of typhoid fever are available commercially. We assessed the usefulness of rapid test based on magnetic particle separation to detect Immunoglobulin against Salmonella typhi O9 lipopolysaccharide. Aim of this study was to compare the sensitivity and specificity of widal test, typhidot and tubex TF test for the diagnosis of typhoid fever in an endemic country like India. Serum samples collected from 50 patients of typhoid fever, 50 patients of non typhoid fever and 100 normal healthy individuals residing in Amritsar were subjected to widal test, typhidot test and tubex TF test as per manufacturer's instructions. Data collected was assessed to find sensitivity and specificity of these tests in an endemic area. Significant widal test results were found positive in 68% of patients of typhoid fever and only 4% of non typhoid fever patients. Typhidot (IgM or IgG) was positive in 72% of typhoid fever patients and 10% and 6% in non typhoid fever and normal healthy individuals respectively. Tubex TF showed higher sensitivity of 76% and specificity of 96-99% which was higher than typhidot and comparable to widal test. This was the first evaluation of rapid tubex TF test in northern India. In countries which can afford high cost of test, tubex TF should be recommended for the diagnosis in acute stage of the disease in clinical setting. However, there is urgent need for a highly specific and sensitive test for the diagnosis of typhoid fever in clinical settings in endemic areas.

Salt stress-induced changes in antioxidative defense system and proteome profiles of salt-tolerant and sensitive Frankia strains.

Science.gov (United States)

Srivastava, Amrita; Singh, Anumeha; Singh, Satya S; Mishra, Arun K

2017-04-16

An appreciation of comparative microbial survival is most easily done while evaluating their adaptive strategies during stress. In the present experiment, antioxidative and whole cell proteome variations based on spectrophotometric analysis and SDS-PAGE and 2-dimensional gel electrophoresis have been analysed among salt-tolerant and salt-sensitive Frankia strains. This is the first report of proteomic basis underlying salt tolerance in these newly isolated Frankia strains from Hippophae salicifolia D. Don. Salt-tolerant strain HsIi10 shows higher increment in the contents of superoxide dismutase, catalase and ascorbate peroxidase as compared to salt-sensitive strain HsIi8. Differential 2-DGE profile has revealed differential profiles for salt-tolerant and salt-sensitive strains. Proteomic confirmation of salt tolerance in the strains with inbuilt efficiency of thriving in nitrogen-deficient locales is a definite advantage for these microbes. This would be equally beneficial for improvement of soil nitrogen status. Efficient protein regulation in HsIi10 suggests further exploration for its potential use as biofertilizer in saline soils.

Nitrogen-doped graphene as transparent counter electrode for efficient dye-sensitized solar cells

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wang, Guiqiang; Fang, Yanyan; Lin, Yuan; Xing, Wei; Zhuo, Shuping

2012-01-01

Graphical abstract: Display Omitted Highlights: ► NG sheets are prepared through a hydrothermal reduction of graphite oxide. ► The transparent NG counter electrodes of DSCs are fabricated at room temperature. ► Transparent NG electrode exhibits excellent catalytic activity for the reduction of I 3 − . ► The DSC with NG electrode achieves a comparable efficiency to that of the Pt-based cell. ► The efficiency of rear illumination is about 85% that of front illumination. -- Abstract: Nitrogen-doped graphene sheets are prepared through a hydrothermal reduction of graphite oxide in the presence of ammonia and applied to fabricate the transparent counter electrode of dye-sensitized solar cells. The atomic percentage of nitrogen in doped graphene sample is about 2.5%, and the nitrogen bonds display pyridine and pyrrole-like configurations. Cyclic voltammetry studies demonstrate a much higher electrocatalytic activity toward I − /I 3 − redox reaction for nitrogen-doped graphene, as compared with pristine graphene. The dye-sensitized solar cell with this transparent nitrogen-doped graphene counter electrode shows conversion efficiencies of 6.12% and 5.23% corresponding to front-side and rear-side illumination, respectively. Meanwhile, the cell with a Pt counter electrode shows a conversion efficiency of 6.97% under the same experimental condition. These promising results highlight the potential application of nitrogen-doped graphene in cost-effective, transparent dye-sensitized solar cells.

Fuel reprocessing plant: No qualitative differences as compared to other sensitive process plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Schweinoch, J.

1986-01-01

Nuclear power plants like the fuel reprocessing plant belong to the highly sensitive installations in respect of safety, but involve the same risks qualitatively as liquid-gas plants or chemical plants. Therefore no consequences for basic rights are discernible. The police can take adequate preventive measures. The regulations governing police action provide proper and sufficient warrants. (DG) [de

Attachment Style and Rejection Sensitivity: The Mediating Effect of Self-Esteem and Worry Among Iranian College Students

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Samira Khoshkam

2012-08-01

Full Text Available The present study evaluated the relations between anxious attachment styles and rejection sensitivity, and the potential mediating role of self-esteem and worry. A sample of 125 Iranian college students completed surveys assessing rejection sensitivity, attachment style, worry and self-esteem. Structural Equation Modeling (SEM analyses were conducted. Results show that there is a significant positive relationship between anxious attachment styles and rejection sensitivity. The study suggests that a higher score in anxious attachment styles is associated with a higher level of worry and lower level of self-esteem and it is also associated with higher level of rejection sensitivity. Furthermore, there is a positive significant relationship between worry and rejection sensitivity and there is a negative significant relationship between self-esteem and rejection sensitivity. Results indicate that self-esteem and worry mediate the relationship between anxious attachment styles and rejection sensitivity.

Enhanced detection of gametocytes by magnetic deposition microscopy predicts higher potential for Plasmodium falciparum transmission

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Zborowski Maciej

2008-04-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Aggregated haemozoin crystals within malaria-infected erythrocytes confer susceptibility of parasitized cells to a magnetic field. Here the utility of this method for diagnosis of human malaria is evaluated in a malaria-endemic region of Papua New Guinea (PNG. Methods and findings Individuals with Plasmodium falciparum malaria symptoms (n = 55 provided samples for conventional blood smear (CBS and magnetic deposition microscopy (MDM diagnosis. Standard Giemsa staining and light microscopy was performed to evaluate all preparations. Plasmodium falciparum parasitaemia observed on MDM slides was consistently higher than parasitaemia observed by (CBS for ring (CBS = 2.6 vs. MDM = 3.4%; t-test P-value = 0.13, trophozoite (CBS = 0.5 vs. MDM = 1.6%; t-test P-value = 0.01, schizont (CBS = 0.003 vs. MDM = 0.1%; t-test P-value = 0.08 and gametocyte (CBS = 0.001 vs. MDM = 0.4%; t-test P-value = 0.0002 parasitaemias. Gametocyte prevalence determined by CBS compared to MDM increased from 7.3% to 45%, respectively. Conclusion MDM increased detection sensitivity of P. falciparum-infected, haemozoin-containing erythrocytes from infected humans while maintaining detection of ring-stage parasites. Gametocyte prevalence five-fold higher than observed by CBS suggests higher malaria transmission potential in PNG endemic sites compared to previous estimates.

Androgens increase lws opsin expression and red sensitivity in male three-spined sticklebacks.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yi Ta Shao

Full Text Available Optomotor studies have shown that three-spined sticklebacks (Gasterosteus aculeatus are more sensitive to red during summer than winter, which may be related to the need to detect the red breeding colour of males. This study aimed to determine whether this change of red light sensitivity is specifically related to reproductive physiology. The mRNA levels of opsin genes were examined in the retinae of sexually mature and immature fish, as well as in sham-operated males, castrated control males, or castrated males implanted with androgen 11-ketoandrostenedione (11 KA, maintained under stimulatory (L16:D8 or inhibitory (L8:D16 photoperiods. In both sexes, red-sensitive opsin gene (lws mRNA levels were higher in sexually mature than in immature fish. Under L16:D8, lws mRNA levels were higher in intact than in castrated males, and were up-regulated by 11 KA treatment in castrated males. Moreover, electroretinogram data confirmed that sexual maturation resulted in higher relative red spectral sensitivity. Mature males under L16:D8 were more sensitive to red light than males under L8:D16. Red light sensitivity under L16:D8 was diminished by castration, but increased by 11 KA treatment. Thus, in sexually mature male sticklebacks, androgen is a key factor in enhancing sensitivity to red light via regulation of opsin gene expression. This is the first study to demonstrate that sex hormones can regulate spectral vision sensitivity.

Sensitivity of 3D gradient recalled echo susceptibility-weighted imaging technique compared to computed tomography angiography for detection of middle cerebral artery thrombus in acute stroke

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Amit Agarwal

2014-11-01

Full Text Available We aimed at comparing the sensitivity of magnetic resonance (MR susceptibility-weighted imaging (SWI with computed tomography angiography (CTA in the detection of middle cerebral artery (MCA thrombus in acute stroke. Seventy-nine patients with acute MCA stroke was selected using our search engine software; only the ones showing restricted diffusion in the MCA territory on diffusion-weighted images were included. We finally selected 35 patients who had done both MRI (including SWI and CTA. Twenty random subjects with completely normal MRI (including SWI exam were selected as control. Two neuroradiologists (blinded to the presence or absence of stroke reviewed the SW images and then compared the findings with CT angiogram (in patients with stroke. The number of MCA segments showing thrombus in each patient was tabulated to estimate the thrombus burden. Thrombus was detected on SWI in one or more MCA segments in 30 out of 35 patients, on the first review. Of the 30, SWI showed thrombus in more than one MCA segments in 7 patients. CTA depicted branch occlusion in 31 cases. Thrombus was seen on both SWI and CTA in 28 patients. Thrombus was noted in two patients on SWI only, with no corresponding abnormality seen on CTA. Two patients with acute MCA showed no vascular occlusion or thrombus on either CTA or SWI. Only two case of false-positive thrombus was reported in normal control subjects. Susceptibility-weighted images had sensitivity and specificity of 86% and 90% respectively, with positive predictive value 94%. Sensitivity was 86% for SWI, compared with 89% for CTA, and this difference was statistically insignificant (P>0.05. Of all the positive cases on CTA (31 corresponding thrombus was seen on SWI in 90% of subjects (28 of 31. Susceptibility-weighted imaging has high sensitivity for detection of thrombus in acute MCA stroke. Moreover, SWI is a powerful technique for estimation of thrombus burden, which can be challenging on CTA.

Blood pressure and pain sensitivity in children and adolescents.

Science.gov (United States)

Drouin, Sammantha; McGrath, Jennifer J

2013-06-01

Elevated blood pressure is associated with diminished pain sensitivity. While this finding is well established in adults, it is less clear when the relation between blood pressure and pain sensitivity emerges across the life course. Evidence suggests this phenomenon may exist during childhood. Children (N = 309; 56% boys) aged 10-15 years and their parents participated. Blood pressure readings were taken during a resting baseline. Maximum pain intensity was rated using a visual analogue scale (rated 0-10) in response to a finger prick pain induction. Parent-measured resting blood pressure was inversely associated with boys' pain ratings only. Cross-sectionally, lower pain ratings were related to higher SBP, univariately. Longitudinally, pain ratings predicted higher DBP, even after controlling for covariates. Determining when and how the relation between blood pressure and pain sensitivity emerges may elucidate the pathophysiology of hypertension. Copyright © 2013 Society for Psychophysiological Research.

An ESDIRK Method with Sensitivity Analysis Capabilities

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kristensen, Morten Rode; Jørgensen, John Bagterp; Thomsen, Per Grove

2004-01-01

of the sensitivity equations. A key feature is the reuse of information already computed for the state integration, hereby minimizing the extra effort required for sensitivity integration. Through case studies the new algorithm is compared to an extrapolation method and to the more established BDF based approaches...

Quasi Solid-State Dye-Sensitized Solar Cell Incorporating Highly Conducting Polythiophene-Coated Carbon Nanotube Composites in Ionic Liquid

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mohammad Rezaul Karim

2011-01-01

Full Text Available Conducting polythiophene (PTh composites with the host filler multiwalled carbon nanotube (MWNT have been used, for the first time, in the dye-sensitized solar cells (DSCs. A quasi solid-state DSCs with the hybrid MWNT-PTh composites, an ionic liquid of 1-methyl-3-propyl imidazolium iodide (PMII, was placed between the dye-sensitized porous TiO2 and the Pt counter electrode without adding iodine and higher cell efficiency (4.76% was achieved, as compared to that containing bare PMII (0.29%. The MWNT-PTh nanoparticles are exploited as the extended electron transfer materials and serve simultaneously as catalyst for the electrochemical reduction of I−3.

Closing the gap between the inside and the outside: interoceptive sensitivity and social distances.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Francesca Ferri

Full Text Available Humans' ability to represent their body state from within through interoception has been proposed to predict different aspects of human cognition and behaviour. We focused on the possible contribution of interoceptive sensitivity to social behaviour as mediated by adaptive modulation of autonomic response. We, thus, investigated whether interoceptive sensitivity to one's heartbeat predicts participants' autonomic response at different social distances. We measured respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA during either a Social or a Non-social task. In the Social task each participant viewed an experimenter performing a caress-like movement at different distances from their hand. In the Non-social task a metal stick was moved at the same distances from the participant's hand. We found a positive association between interoceptive sensitivity and autonomic response only for the social setting. Moreover, only good heartbeat perceivers showed higher autonomic response 1 in the social compared to the non-social setting, 2 specifically, when the experimenter's hand was moving at boundary of their peripersonal space (20 cm from the participant's hand. Our findings suggest that interoceptive sensitivity might contribute to interindividual differences concerning social attitudes and interpersonal space representation via recruitment of different adaptive autonomic response strategies.

High Temperature and High Sensitive NOx Gas Sensor with Hetero-Junction Structure using Laser Ablation Method

Science.gov (United States)

Gao, Wei; Shi, Liqin; Hasegawa, Yuki; Katsube, Teruaki

In order to develop a high temperature (200°C˜400°C) and high sensitive NOx gas sensor, we developed a new structure of SiC-based hetero-junction device Pt/SnO2/SiC/Ni, Pt/In2O3/SiC/Ni and Pt/WO3/SiC/Ni using a laser ablation method for the preparation of both metal (Pt) electrode and metal-oxide film. It was found that Pt/In2O3/SiC/Ni sensor shows higher sensitivity to NO2 gas compared with the Pt/SnO2/SiC/Ni and Pt/WO3/SiC/Ni sensor, whereas the Pt/WO3/SiC/Ni sensor had better sensitivity to NO gas. These results suggest that selective detection of NO and NO2 gases may be obtained by choosing different metal oxide films.

Household mold and dust allergens: Exposure, sensitization and childhood asthma morbidity

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gent, Janneane F.; Kezik, Julie M.; Hill, Melissa E.; Tsai, Eling; Li, De-Wei; Leaderer, Brian P.

2012-01-01

Background: Few studies address concurrent exposures to common household allergens, specific allergen sensitization and childhood asthma morbidity. Objective: To identify levels of allergen exposures that trigger asthma exacerbations in sensitized individuals. Methods: We sampled homes for common indoor allergens (fungi, dust mites (Der p 1, Der f 1), cat (Fel d 1), dog (Can f 1) and cockroach (Bla g 1)) for levels associated with respiratory responses among school-aged children with asthma (N=1233) in a month-long study. Blood samples for allergy testing and samples of airborne fungi and settled dust were collected at enrollment. Symptoms and medication use were recorded on calendars. Combined effects of specific allergen sensitization and level of exposure on wheeze, persistent cough, rescue medication use and a 5-level asthma severity score were examined using ordered logistic regression. Results: Children sensitized and exposed to any Penicillium experienced increased risk of wheeze (odds ratio [OR] 2.12 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.12, 4.04), persistent cough (OR 2.01 95% CI 1.05, 3.85) and higher asthma severity score (OR 1.99 95% CI 1.06, 3.72) compared to those not sensitized or sensitized but unexposed. Children sensitized and exposed to pet allergen were at significantly increased risk of wheeze (by 39% and 53% for Fel d 1>0.12 μg/g and Can f 1>1.2 μg/g, respectively). Increased rescue medication use was significantly associated with sensitization and exposure to Der p 1>0.10 μg/g (by 47%) and Fel d 1>0.12 μg/g (by 32%). Conclusion: Asthmatic children sensitized and exposed to low levels of common household allergens Penicillium, Der p 1, Fel d 1 and Can f 1 are at significant risk for increased morbidity. - Highlights: ► Few studies address concurrent allergen exposures, sensitization and asthma morbidity. ► Children with asthma were tested for sensitivity to common indoor allergens. ► Homes were sampled for these allergens and asthma

Occupational Stress in UK Higher Education Institutions: A Comparative Study of All Staff Categories

Science.gov (United States)

Tytherleigh, M. Y.; Webb, C.; Cooper, C. L.; Ricketts, C.

2005-01-01

The higher education sector in the UK continues to experience significant change. This includes restructuring, use of short-term contracts, external scrutiny and accountability, and major reductions in funding. In line with this, reports of stress at work in higher education institutions have also increased. The study reported here was carried out…

Establishment of EMab-134, a Sensitive and Specific Anti-Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor Monoclonal Antibody for Detecting Squamous Cell Carcinoma Cells of the Oral Cavity.

Science.gov (United States)

Itai, Shunsuke; Yamada, Shinji; Kaneko, Mika K; Chang, Yao-Wen; Harada, Hiroyuki; Kato, Yukinari

2017-12-01

Epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR), a receptor tyrosine kinase, activates downstream signaling cascades in many tumors. In this study, we established novel anti-EGFR monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) and characterized their efficacy in flow cytometry, Western blot, and immunohistochemical analyses. We immunized mice with a combination of the extracellular domain of EGFR and EGFR-overexpressing LN229 glioblastoma cells (LN229/EGFR) and performed the first screening using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Next, we selected mAbs using flow cytometry. Among 156 established clones, two mAbs, EMab-51 (IgG 1 , kappa) and EMab-134 (IgG 1 , kappa), reacted with EGFR in Western blot analysis; EMab-134 showed a much higher sensitivity compared with EMab-51. We compared the binding affinities of EMab-51 and EMab-134 using flow cytometry; the calculated K D values for EMab-51 and EMab-134 against SAS cells/HSC-2 cells were 9.2 × 10 -9 M/9.9 × 10 -9 M and 2.6 × 10 -9 M/8.3 × 10 -9 M, respectively, indicating that EMab-134 has a higher affinity to EGFR-expressing cells. Immunohistochemical analysis of EMab-51 and EMab-134 showed sensitive and specific reactions against oral cancer cells; EMab-134 demonstrated a much higher sensitivity (36/38 cases; 94.7%) to oral squamous cell carcinomas compared with EMab-51 (6/38 cases; 15.8%). This novel anti-EGFR mAb, EMab-134, could be advantageous for detecting EGFR in the pathological analysis of EGFR-expressing cancers.

Changing Boundaries in Israeli Higher Education.

Science.gov (United States)

Guri-Rosenblit, Sarah

1999-01-01

Analyzes changes that have occurred in Israeli's higher education system over the decades, accounting for the reconstruction of its external and internal boundaries. Provides a conceptual framework for comparing national higher education systems. Examines developments characterizing the restructuring of Israeli higher education from a…

Relative sensitivity of conventional and real-time PCR assays for detection of SFG Rickettsia in blood and tissue samples from laboratory animals.

Science.gov (United States)

Zemtsova, Galina E; Montgomery, Merrill; Levin, Michael L

2015-01-01

Studies on the natural transmission cycles of zoonotic pathogens and the reservoir competence of vertebrate hosts require methods for reliable diagnosis of infection in wild and laboratory animals. Several PCR-based applications have been developed for detection of infections caused by Spotted Fever group Rickettsia spp. in a variety of animal tissues. These assays are being widely used by researchers, but they differ in their sensitivity and reliability. We compared the sensitivity of five previously published conventional PCR assays and one SYBR green-based real-time PCR assay for the detection of rickettsial DNA in blood and tissue samples from Rickettsia- infected laboratory animals (n = 87). The real-time PCR, which detected rickettsial DNA in 37.9% of samples, was the most sensitive. The next best were the semi-nested ompA assay and rpoB conventional PCR, which detected as positive 18.4% and 14.9% samples respectively. Conventional assays targeting ompB, gltA and hrtA genes have been the least sensitive. Therefore, we recommend the SYBR green-based real-time PCR as a tool for the detection of rickettsial DNA in animal samples due to its higher sensitivity when compared to more traditional assays.

Are female healthcare workers at higher risk of occupational injury?

Science.gov (United States)

Alamgir, Hasanat; Yu, Shicheng; Drebit, Sharla; Fast, Catherine; Kidd, Catherine

2009-05-01

Differential risks of occupational injuries by gender have been examined across various industries. With the number of employees in healthcare rising and an overwhelming proportion of this workforce being female, it is important to address this issue in this growing sector. To determine whether compensated work-related injuries among females are higher than their male colleagues in the British Columbia healthcare sector. Incidents of occupational injury resulting in compensated days lost from work over a 1-year period for all healthcare workers were extracted from a standardized operational database and the numbers of productive hours were obtained from payroll data. Injuries were grouped into all injuries and musculoskeletal injuries (MSIs). Detailed analysis was conducted using Poisson regression modelling. A total of 42 332 employees were included in the study of whom 11% were male and 89% female. When adjusted for age, occupation, sub-sector, employment category, health region and facility, female workers had significantly higher risk of all injuries [rate ratio (95% CI) = 1.58 (1.24-2.01)] and MSIs [1.43 (1.11-1.85)] compared to their male colleagues. Occupational health and safety initiatives should be gender sensitive and developed accordingly.

The Politics of Access to Higher Education in Argentina and Brazil: A Comparative Analysis

Science.gov (United States)

Fernandes Nogueira, Jaana Flavia

2013-01-01

Historically, higher education has played an important role in the development of societies. Indeed, this has been the case in both Argentina and Brazil. The overall goal of this dissertation is to examine the historical development and the current situation of higher education in Argentina and Brazil. In relation to history, it discusses the…

IDH1-mutant cancer cells are sensitive to cisplatin and an IDH1-mutant inhibitor counteracts this sensitivity.

Science.gov (United States)

Khurshed, Mohammed; Aarnoudse, Niels; Hulsbos, Renske; Hira, Vashendriya V V; van Laarhoven, Hanneke W M; Wilmink, Johanna W; Molenaar, Remco J; van Noorden, Cornelis J F

2018-06-07

Isocitrate dehydrogenase ( IDH1)-1 is mutated in various types of human cancer, and the presence of this mutation is associated with improved responses to irradiation and chemotherapy in solid tumor cells. Mutated IDH1 (IDH1 MUT ) enzymes consume NADPH to produce d-2-hydroxyglutarate (d-2HG) resulting in the decreased reducing power needed for detoxification of reactive oxygen species (ROS), for example. The objective of the current study was to investigate the mechanism behind the chemosensitivity of the widely-used anticancer agent cisplatin in IDH1 MUT cancer cells. Oxidative stress, DNA damage, and mitochondrial dysfunction caused by cisplatin treatment were monitored in IDH1 MUT HCT116 colorectal cancer cells and U251 glioma cells. We found that exposure to cisplatin induced higher levels of ROS, DNA double-strand breaks (DSBs), and cell death in IDH1 MUT cancer cells, as compared with IDH1 wild-type ( IDH1 WT ) cells. Mechanistic investigations revealed that cisplatin treatment dose dependently reduced oxidative respiration in IDH1 MUT cells, which was accompanied by disturbed mitochondrial proteostasis, indicative of impaired mitochondrial activity. These effects were abolished by the IDH1 MUT inhibitor AGI-5198 and were restored by treatment with d-2HG. Thus, our study shows that altered oxidative stress responses and a vulnerable oxidative metabolism underlie the sensitivity of IDH1 MUT cancer cells to cisplatin.-Khurshed, M., Aarnoudse, N., Hulsbos, R., Hira, V. V. V., van Laarhoven, H. W. M., Wilmink, J. W., Molenaar, R. J., van Noorden, C. J. F. IDH1-mutated cancer cells are sensitive to cisplatin and an IDH1-mutant inhibitor counteracts this sensitivity.

Effect of electrolytes on the photovoltaic performance of a hybrid dye sensitized ZnO solar cell

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Suri, Poonam; Mehra, R.M. [Department of Electronic Science, University of Delhi South Campus, New Delhi 110021 (India)

2007-03-23

The efficiency of dye sensitized solar cell depends on the number of factors such as impedance due to anions in the electrolytes, oxidation-reduction process of anions and size of cations of the electrolyte. This paper reports the effect of electrolytes on the photovoltaic performance of hybrid dye sensitized ZnO solar cells based on Eosin Y dye. The size of the cations has been varied by choosing different electrolytes such as LiBr+Br{sub 2}, LiI+I{sub 2}, tetrapropylammonium iodide +I{sub 2} in mixed solvent of acetronitrile and ethylene carbonate. The impedance of anions has been determined by electrochemical impedance spectra. It is observed that Br{sup -}/Br{sub 3}{sup -} offers high impedance as compared to I{sup -}/I{sub 3}{sup -} couple. The oxidation-reduction reactions of electrolytes are measured by linear sweep voltammogram. It is found that Br{sup -}/Br{sub 3}{sup -} is more suitable than an I{sup -}/I{sub 3}{sup -} couple in dye sensitized solar cell (DSSC) in terms of higher open-circuit photovoltage production and higher overall energy conversion efficiency. This is attributed to more positive potential of the dye sensitizer than that of Br{sup -}/Br{sub 3}{sup -}. The gain in V{sub oc} was due to the enlarged energy level difference between the redox potential of the electrolyte and the Fermi level (E{sub f}) of ZnO and the suppressed charge recombination as well. (author)

Comparative analysis of biological activities of Der p I-derived peptides on Fc epsilon receptor-bearing cells from Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus-sensitive patients.

Science.gov (United States)

Jeannin, P; Pestel, J; Bossus, M; Lassalle, P; Tartar, A; Tonnel, A B

1993-01-01

The ability of four uncoupled synthetic peptides (p52-71, p117-133, p176-187, p188-199) derived from Der p I, a major allergen from the house dust mite Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus (Dpt) to stimulate Fc epsilon R+ cells from Dpt-sensitive patients was comparatively analysed. Each free peptide may specifically stimulate basophils (Fc epsilon RI+ cells) and platelets (Fc epsilon RII+ cells) from patients with significant levels of anti-Der p I IgE antibodies; p52-71 and p117-133 appear the best cell stimulation inducers. Both concentration-dependent biological activities of Der p I-peptide on Fc epsilon R+ cells are enhanced by coupling peptide to a carrier (as human serum albumin). Interestingly each Der p I-sensitive patient tested presents an individual pattern of response to peptide. Thus, from our results it appears that different Der p I sequences could be involved in the immune response to Der p I. PMID:7682161

Comparative analysis of biological activities of Der p I-derived peptides on Fc epsilon receptor-bearing cells from Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus-sensitive patients.

Science.gov (United States)

Jeannin, P; Pestel, J; Bossus, M; Lassalle, P; Tartar, A; Tonnel, A B

1993-04-01

The ability of four uncoupled synthetic peptides (p52-71, p117-133, p176-187, p188-199) derived from Der p I, a major allergen from the house dust mite Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus (Dpt) to stimulate Fc epsilon R+ cells from Dpt-sensitive patients was comparatively analysed. Each free peptide may specifically stimulate basophils (Fc epsilon RI+ cells) and platelets (Fc epsilon RII+ cells) from patients with significant levels of anti-Der p I IgE antibodies; p52-71 and p117-133 appear the best cell stimulation inducers. Both concentration-dependent biological activities of Der p I-peptide on Fc epsilon R+ cells are enhanced by coupling peptide to a carrier (as human serum albumin). Interestingly each Der p I-sensitive patient tested presents an individual pattern of response to peptide. Thus, from our results it appears that different Der p I sequences could be involved in the immune response to Der p I.

Tactual sensitivity in hypochondriasis.

Science.gov (United States)

Haenen, M A; Schmidi, A J; Schoenmakers, M; van den Hout, M A

1997-01-01

In his article on amplification, somatization and somatoform disorders Barsky [Psychosomatics 1992; 33:28-34] pointed out the importance of studying the perception and processing of somatic and visceral symptoms. Subsequently, it was demonstrated that hypochondriacal patients are not more accurately aware of cardiac activity than a group of non-hypochondriacal patients. Authors concluded that hypochondriacal somatic complaints do not result from an unusually fine discriminative ability to detect normal physiological sensations that non-hypochondriacal patients are unable to perceive. The aim of the present study was to investigate tactual sensitivity to non-painful stimuli in hypochondriacal patients and healthy subjects. Twenty-seven outpatients with DSM-III-R hypochondriasis and 27 healthy control subjects were compared. In all subjects the two-point discrimination threshold was measured, as well as subjective sensitivity to harmless bodily sensations as measured by the Somatosensory Amplification Scale. It was found that hypochondriacal patients reported more distress and discomfort with benign bodily sensations. The two-point discrimination threshold of hypochondriacal patients was not significantly lower in patients as compared to controls. Hypochondriacal subjects considered themselves more sensitive to benign bodily sensations without being better able to discriminate between two tactual bodily signals. These findings of the present study correspond quite closely to those reported earlier.

Sensitivity of permanent meadows areas. Preliminary report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pourcelot, L.