Doctoral research on architecture in Nigeria: Exploring domains, extending boundaries

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Adetokunbo Oluwole Ilesanmi

2016-03-01

Full Text Available This paper explored through a literature review, the domains of research in Architecture and the nature of doctoral research, with a view to contributing to the evolving research agenda in the Nigerian context. The research method involved a descriptive and thematic analysis of the titles and abstracts of completed doctoral theses in Architecture in Nigeria, in the last 26 years (1990–2015, complemented by semi-structured interviews with six key informants. The study revealed an emphasis on Housing-related topics (34% relative to other research modules, such as׳ History and Theory׳ (20% and ׳Design and Production׳ (18%. It also reflected the limited coverage and scope of current research, relative to the global terrain, as evidenced in the article titles and contents of 45 Architecture-related Journals. The results of the interviews indicated the strong influence of supervisors׳ areas of interest in the choices of thesis titles. It highlighted reasons for the perceived focus on Housing, which reflect its unique place and multi-disciplinary nature. It concluded that extending the boundaries of architectural research at the doctoral level could be beneficial to the discipline and profession in Nigeria in order to align with global trends, while keeping cognizance of the local contexts.

Ecological Automation Design, Extending Work Domain Analysis

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Amelink, M.H.J.

2010-01-01

In high–risk domains like aviation, medicine and nuclear power plant control, automation has enabled new capabilities, increased the economy of operation and has greatly contributed to safety. However, automation increases the number of couplings in a system, which can inadvertently lead to more

Identification of an evolutionary conserved SURF-6 domain in a family of nucleolar proteins extending from human to yeast

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Polzikov, Mikhail; Zatsepina, Olga; Magoulas, Charalambos

2005-01-01

The mammalian SURF-6 protein is localized in the nucleolus, yet its function remains elusive in the recently characterized nucleolar proteome. We discovered by searching the Protein families database that a unique evolutionary conserved SURF-6 domain is present in the carboxy-terminal of a novel family of eukaryotic proteins extending from human to yeast. By using the enhanced green fluorescent protein as a fusion protein marker in mammalian cells, we show that proteins from distantly related taxonomic groups containing the SURF-6 domain are localized in the nucleolus. Deletion sequence analysis shows that multiple regions of the SURF-6 protein are capable of nucleolar targeting independently of the evolutionary conserved domain. We identified that the Saccharomyces cerevisiae member of the SURF-6 family, named rrp14 or ykl082c, has been categorized in yeast databases to interact with proteins involved in ribosomal biogenesis and cell polarity. These results classify SURF-6 as a new family of nucleolar proteins in the eukaryotic kingdom and point out that SURF-6 has a distinct domain within the known nucleolar proteome that may mediate complex protein-protein interactions for analogous processes between yeast and mammalian cells

Beyond cross-domain learning: Multiple-domain nonnegative matrix factorization

KAUST Repository

Wang, Jim Jing-Yan; Gao, Xin

2014-01-01

Traditional cross-domain learning methods transfer learning from a source domain to a target domain. In this paper, we propose the multiple-domain learning problem for several equally treated domains. The multiple-domain learning problem assumes that samples from different domains have different distributions, but share the same feature and class label spaces. Each domain could be a target domain, while also be a source domain for other domains. A novel multiple-domain representation method is proposed for the multiple-domain learning problem. This method is based on nonnegative matrix factorization (NMF), and tries to learn a basis matrix and coding vectors for samples, so that the domain distribution mismatch among different domains will be reduced under an extended variation of the maximum mean discrepancy (MMD) criterion. The novel algorithm - multiple-domain NMF (MDNMF) - was evaluated on two challenging multiple-domain learning problems - multiple user spam email detection and multiple-domain glioma diagnosis. The effectiveness of the proposed algorithm is experimentally verified. © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Beyond cross-domain learning: Multiple-domain nonnegative matrix factorization

KAUST Repository

Wang, Jim Jing-Yan

2014-02-01

Traditional cross-domain learning methods transfer learning from a source domain to a target domain. In this paper, we propose the multiple-domain learning problem for several equally treated domains. The multiple-domain learning problem assumes that samples from different domains have different distributions, but share the same feature and class label spaces. Each domain could be a target domain, while also be a source domain for other domains. A novel multiple-domain representation method is proposed for the multiple-domain learning problem. This method is based on nonnegative matrix factorization (NMF), and tries to learn a basis matrix and coding vectors for samples, so that the domain distribution mismatch among different domains will be reduced under an extended variation of the maximum mean discrepancy (MMD) criterion. The novel algorithm - multiple-domain NMF (MDNMF) - was evaluated on two challenging multiple-domain learning problems - multiple user spam email detection and multiple-domain glioma diagnosis. The effectiveness of the proposed algorithm is experimentally verified. © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Clinical and diagnostic approach to patients with hypopituitarism due to traumatic brain injury (TBI), subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH), and ischemic stroke (IS).

Science.gov (United States)

Karamouzis, Ioannis; Pagano, Loredana; Prodam, Flavia; Mele, Chiara; Zavattaro, Marco; Busti, Arianna; Marzullo, Paolo; Aimaretti, Gianluca

2016-06-01

The hypothalamic-pituitary dysfunction attributable to traumatic brain injury (TBI), aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH), and ischemic stroke (IS) has been lately highlighted. The diagnosis of TBI-induced-hypopituitarism, defined as a deficient secretion of one or more pituitary hormones, is made similarly to the diagnosis of classical hypopituitarism because of hypothalamic/pituitary diseases. Hypopituitarism is believed to contribute to TBI-associated morbidity and to functional and cognitive final outcome, and quality-of-life impairment. Each pituitary hormone must be tested separately, since there is a variable pattern of hormone deficiency among patients with TBI-induced-hypopituitarism. Similarly, the SAH and IS may lead to pituitary dysfunction although the literature in this field is limited. The drive to diagnose hypopituitarism is the suspect that the secretion of one/more pituitary hormone may be subnormal. This suspicion can be based upon the knowledge that the patient has an appropriate clinical context in which hypopituitarism can be present, or a symptom known as caused by hypopituitarism. Hypopituitarism should be diagnosed as a combination of low peripheral and inappropriately normal/low pituitary hormones although their basal evaluation may be not distinctive due to pulsatile, circadian, or situational secretion of some hormones. Evaluation of the somatotroph and corticotroph axes require dynamic stimulation test (ITT for both axes, GHRH + arginine test for somatotroph axis) in order to clearly separate normal from deficient responses.

Prediction of cerebral ischemia due to cerebral vasospasm in SAH using SPECT and 123I-IMP with acetazolamide test

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nakagawara, Jyoji; Wada, Keiji; Takeda, Rihei; Usami, Takashi; Hashimoto, Ikuo; Shimazaki, Mitsuteru; Tanaka, Chiharu; Nakamura, Jun-ichi; Suematsu, Katsumi.

1989-01-01

To investigate the possibility of predicting cerebral ischemia due to cerebral vasospasm in subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH), serial evaluation of the cerebral vasodilatory capacity by the acetazolamide test was conducted, using single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) and N-isopropyl 123 I-p-iodoamphetamine (IMP), in 17 patients with cerebral vasospasm following early surgery for ruptured aneurysms. The degree of vasospasm measured on the angiograms was classified into the following three types; mild degree (25%>stenosis), moderate degree (25∼50% stenosis), and severe degree(50%SAH by the acetazolamide test might predict the appearance and continuation of potential ischemia of the brain caused by the reduction of perfusion pressure due to cerebral vasospasm. (J.P.N.)

Helical CT for emergency patients with cerebrovascular diseases. Diagnosis of cerebral aneurysms with subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) by three-dimensional CT angiography (3D-CTA)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Matsumoto, Masato; Satoh, Naoki; Kobayashi, Touru; Kodama, Namio; Nakano, Masayuki; Watanabe, Youichi; Fujii, Masayuki

1996-01-01

Recently, the usefulness of three-dimensional CT angiography (3D-CTA) using helical CT has been reported. Although 3D-CTA has been applied for neurosurgical diseases, especially for surgical planning, it has not done for emergency patients because of the long time required for image reconstruction and location of a helical CT scanner. We studied emergency patients with SAH, and compared the 3D-CTA with angiography and surgical findings, using TOSHIBA X vigor. Twenty-two patients with SAH were evaluated. The helical CT was performed for 55 seconds with a bolus injection of 90 ml non-ionic, iodinated contrast medium at a rate of 3 ml/sec with a delay of 20 sec. Angiography was carried out immediately after the helical CT. Eighteen of 22 cases were operated on urgently. We were able to create the 3D-CTA in about 7 minutes, and diagnose aneurysms by the 3D-CTA before angiography. The 3D-CTA was able to demonstrate 30 of 31 aneurysms including 9 unruptured aneurysms. An unruptured internal carotid-posterior communicating artery aneurysm 1.3 mm in diameter and associated with a ruptured aneurysm was not detected by either the 3D-CTA or angiography. On the other hand, an unruptured Acom aneurysm 0.8 mm in diameter and associated with a ruptured aneurysm could be detected by the: 3D-CTA, but not by angiography. The 3D-CTA gave us useful information concerning the anatomical relationship of the aneurysm, its neck and parent artery, and the surrounding branches. There were no complications or side effects associated with the helical CT scan. Although the 3D-CTA requires further development of visualization of small arteries less than 1 mm in diameter, such as perforating arteries, subtraction technique of bony structure, and a method for checking cervical arteries, it is useful for diagnosis of emergency patients with SAH and urgent operations. We believe that an operation might be performed by only the 3D-CTA without the angiography in the near future. (author)

Helical CT for emergency patients with cerebrovascular diseases. Diagnosis of cerebral aneurysms with subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) by three-dimensional CT angiography (3D-CTA)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Matsumoto, Masato; Satoh, Naoki; Kobayashi, Touru; Kodama, Namio; Nakano, Masayuki; Watanabe, Youichi; Fujii, Masayuki [Fukushima Medical School (Japan)

1996-05-01

Recently, the usefulness of three-dimensional CT angiography (3D-CTA) using helical CT has been reported. Although 3D-CTA has been applied for neurosurgical diseases, especially for surgical planning, it has not done for emergency patients because of the long time required for image reconstruction and location of a helical CT scanner. We studied emergency patients with SAH, and compared the 3D-CTA with angiography and surgical findings, using TOSHIBA X vigor. Twenty-two patients with SAH were evaluated. The helical CT was performed for 55 seconds with a bolus injection of 90 ml non-ionic, iodinated contrast medium at a rate of 3 ml/sec with a delay of 20 sec. Angiography was carried out immediately after the helical CT. Eighteen of 22 cases were operated on urgently. We were able to create the 3D-CTA in about 7 minutes, and diagnose aneurysms by the 3D-CTA before angiography. The 3D-CTA was able to demonstrate 30 of 31 aneurysms including 9 unruptured aneurysms. An unruptured internal carotid-posterior communicating artery aneurysm 1.3 mm in diameter and associated with a ruptured aneurysm was not detected by either the 3D-CTA or angiography. On the other hand, an unruptured Acom aneurysm 0.8 mm in diameter and associated with a ruptured aneurysm could be detected by the: 3D-CTA, but not by angiography. The 3D-CTA gave us useful information concerning the anatomical relationship of the aneurysm, its neck and parent artery, and the surrounding branches. There were no complications or side effects associated with the helical CT scan. Although the 3D-CTA requires further development of visualization of small arteries less than 1 mm in diameter, such as perforating arteries, subtraction technique of bony structure, and a method for checking cervical arteries, it is useful for diagnosis of emergency patients with SAH and urgent operations. We believe that an operation might be performed by only the 3D-CTA without the angiography in the near future. (author)

Prediction of cerebral ischemia due to cerebral vasospasm in SAH using SPECT and sup 123 I-IMP with acetazolamide test

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Nakagawara, Jyoji; Wada, Keiji; Takeda, Rihei; Usami, Takashi; Hashimoto, Ikuo; Shimazaki, Mitsuteru; Tanaka, Chiharu; Nakamura, Jun-ichi (Nakamura Memorial Hospital, Sapporo (Japan)); Suematsu, Katsumi

1989-11-01

To investigate the possibility of predicting cerebral ischemia due to cerebral vasospasm in subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH), serial evaluation of the cerebral vasodilatory capacity by the acetazolamide test was conducted, using single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) and N-isopropyl {sup 123}I-p-iodoamphetamine (IMP), in 17 patients with cerebral vasospasm following early surgery for ruptured aneurysms. The degree of vasospasm measured on the angiograms was classified into the following three types; mild degree (25%>stenosis), moderate degree (25{approx}50% stenosis), and severe degree(50%SAH by the acetazolamide test might predict the appearance and continuation of potential ischemia of the brain caused by the reduction of perfusion pressure due to cerebral vasospasm. (J.P.N.).

Extended-range high-resolution dynamical downscaling over a continental-scale spatial domain with atmospheric and surface nudging

Science.gov (United States)

Husain, S. Z.; Separovic, L.; Yu, W.; Fernig, D.

2014-12-01

Extended-range high-resolution mesoscale simulations with limited-area atmospheric models when applied to downscale regional analysis fields over large spatial domains can provide valuable information for many applications including the weather-dependent renewable energy industry. Long-term simulations over a continental-scale spatial domain, however, require mechanisms to control the large-scale deviations in the high-resolution simulated fields from the coarse-resolution driving fields. As enforcement of the lateral boundary conditions is insufficient to restrict such deviations, large scales in the simulated high-resolution meteorological fields are therefore spectrally nudged toward the driving fields. Different spectral nudging approaches, including the appropriate nudging length scales as well as the vertical profiles and temporal relaxations for nudging, have been investigated to propose an optimal nudging strategy. Impacts of time-varying nudging and generation of hourly analysis estimates are explored to circumvent problems arising from the coarse temporal resolution of the regional analysis fields. Although controlling the evolution of the atmospheric large scales generally improves the outputs of high-resolution mesoscale simulations within the surface layer, the prognostically evolving surface fields can nevertheless deviate from their expected values leading to significant inaccuracies in the predicted surface layer meteorology. A forcing strategy based on grid nudging of the different surface fields, including surface temperature, soil moisture, and snow conditions, toward their expected values obtained from a high-resolution offline surface scheme is therefore proposed to limit any considerable deviation. Finally, wind speed and temperature at wind turbine hub height predicted by different spectrally nudged extended-range simulations are compared against observations to demonstrate possible improvements achievable using higher spatiotemporal

Extended reactance domain algorithms for DoA estimation onto an ESPAR antennas

Science.gov (United States)

Harabi, F.; Akkar, S.; Gharsallah, A.

2016-07-01

Based on an extended reactance domain (RD) covariance matrix, this article proposes new alternatives for directions of arrival (DoAs) estimation of narrowband sources through an electronically steerable parasitic array radiator (ESPAR) antennas. Because of the centro symmetry of the classic ESPAR antennas, an unitary transformation is applied to the collected data that allow an important reduction in both computational cost and processing time and, also, an enhancement of the resolution capabilities of the proposed algorithms. Moreover, this article proposes a new approach for eigenvalues estimation through only some linear operations. The developed DoAs estimation algorithms based on this new approach has illustrated a good behaviour with less calculation cost and processing time as compared to other schemes based on the classic eigenvalues approach. The conducted simulations demonstrate that high-precision and high-resolution DoAs estimation can be reached especially in very closely sources situation and low sources power as compared to the RD-MUSIC algorithm and the RD-PM algorithm. The asymptotic behaviours of the proposed DoAs estimators are analysed in various scenarios and compared with the Cramer-Rao bound (CRB). The conducted simulations testify the high-resolution of the developed algorithms and prove the efficiently of the proposed approach.

Extending NGOMSL Model for Human-Humanoid Robot Interaction in the Soccer Robotics Domain

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rajesh Elara Mohan

2008-01-01

Full Text Available In the field of human-computer interaction, the Natural Goals, Operators, Methods, and Selection rules Language (NGOMSL model is one of the most popular methods for modelling knowledge and cognitive processes for rapid usability evaluation. The NGOMSL model is a description of the knowledge that a user must possess to operate the system represented as elementary actions for effective usability evaluations. In the last few years, mobile robots have been exhibiting a stronger presence in commercial markets and very little work has been done with NGOMSL modelling for usability evaluations in the human-robot interaction discipline. This paper focuses on extending the NGOMSL model for usability evaluation of human-humanoid robot interaction in the soccer robotics domain. The NGOMSL modelled human-humanoid interaction design of Robo-Erectus Junior was evaluated and the results of the experiments showed that the interaction design was able to find faults in an average time of 23.84 s. Also, the interaction design was able to detect the fault within the 60 s in 100% of the cases. The Evaluated Interaction design was adopted by our Robo-Erectus Junior version of humanoid robots in the RoboCup 2007 humanoid soccer league.

Extended HSR/CARD domain mediates AIRE binding to DNA

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Maslovskaja, Julia, E-mail: julia.maslovskaja@ut.ee; Saare, Mario; Liiv, Ingrid; Rebane, Ana; Peterson, Pärt

2015-12-25

Autoimmune regulator (AIRE) activates the transcription of many genes in an unusual promiscuous and stochastic manner. The mechanism by which AIRE binds to the chromatin and DNA is not fully understood, and the regulatory elements that AIRE target genes possess are not delineated. In the current study, we demonstrate that AIRE activates the expression of transiently transfected luciferase reporters that lack defined promoter regions, as well as intron and poly(A) signal sequences. Our protein-DNA interaction experiments with mutated AIRE reveal that the intact homogeneously staining region/caspase recruitment domain (HSR/CARD) and amino acids R113 and K114 are key elements involved in AIRE binding to DNA. - Highlights: • Promoter and mRNA processing elements are not important for AIRE to activate gene expression from reporter plasmids. • AIRE protein fragment aa 1–138 mediates direct binding to DNA. • Integrity of the HSR/CARD domain is needed for AIRE binding to DNA.

Extended HSR/CARD domain mediates AIRE binding to DNA

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Maslovskaja, Julia; Saare, Mario; Liiv, Ingrid; Rebane, Ana; Peterson, Pärt

2015-01-01

Autoimmune regulator (AIRE) activates the transcription of many genes in an unusual promiscuous and stochastic manner. The mechanism by which AIRE binds to the chromatin and DNA is not fully understood, and the regulatory elements that AIRE target genes possess are not delineated. In the current study, we demonstrate that AIRE activates the expression of transiently transfected luciferase reporters that lack defined promoter regions, as well as intron and poly(A) signal sequences. Our protein-DNA interaction experiments with mutated AIRE reveal that the intact homogeneously staining region/caspase recruitment domain (HSR/CARD) and amino acids R113 and K114 are key elements involved in AIRE binding to DNA. - Highlights: • Promoter and mRNA processing elements are not important for AIRE to activate gene expression from reporter plasmids. • AIRE protein fragment aa 1–138 mediates direct binding to DNA. • Integrity of the HSR/CARD domain is needed for AIRE binding to DNA.

Draft genome sequence of the extremely halophilic Halorubrum sp. SAH-A6 isolated from rock salts of the Danakil depression, Ethiopia

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ashagrie Gibtan

2016-12-01

Full Text Available The draft genome sequence of Halorubrum sp. SAH-A6, isolated from commercial rock salts of the Danakil depression, Ethiopia. The genome comprised 3,325,770 bp, with the G + C content of 68.0%. The strain has many genes which are responsible for secondary metabolites biosynthesis, transport and catabolism as compared to other Halorubrum archaea members. Abundant genes responsible for numerous transport systems, solute accumulation, and aromatic/sulfur decomposition were detected. The first genomic analysis encourages further research on comparative genomics, and biotechnological applications. The NCBI accession number for this genome is SAMN04278861 and ID: 4278861 and strain deposited with accession number KCTC 43215.

Rational extended thermodynamics

CERN Document Server

Müller, Ingo

1998-01-01

Ordinary thermodynamics provides reliable results when the thermodynamic fields are smooth, in the sense that there are no steep gradients and no rapid changes. In fluids and gases this is the domain of the equations of Navier-Stokes and Fourier. Extended thermodynamics becomes relevant for rapidly varying and strongly inhomogeneous processes. Thus the propagation of high­ frequency waves, and the shape of shock waves, and the regression of small-scale fluctuation are governed by extended thermodynamics. The field equations of ordinary thermodynamics are parabolic while extended thermodynamics is governed by hyperbolic systems. The main ingredients of extended thermodynamics are • field equations of balance type, • constitutive quantities depending on the present local state and • entropy as a concave function of the state variables. This set of assumptions leads to first order quasi-linear symmetric hyperbolic systems of field equations; it guarantees the well-posedness of initial value problems and f...

Domain structure of human complement C4b extends with increasing NaCl concentration: implications for its regulatory mechanism.

Science.gov (United States)

Fung, Ka Wai; Wright, David W; Gor, Jayesh; Swann, Marcus J; Perkins, Stephen J

2016-12-01

During the activation of complement C4 to C4b, the exposure of its thioester domain (TED) is crucial for the attachment of C4b to activator surfaces. In the C4b crystal structure, TED forms an Arg 104 -Glu 1032 salt bridge to tether its neighbouring macroglobulin (MG1) domain. Here, we examined the C4b domain structure to test whether this salt bridge affects its conformation. Dual polarisation interferometry of C4b immobilised at a sensor surface showed that the maximum thickness of C4b increased by 0.46 nm with an increase in NaCl concentration from 50 to 175 mM NaCl. Analytical ultracentrifugation showed that the sedimentation coefficient s 20,w of monomeric C4b of 8.41 S in 50 mM NaCl buffer decreased to 7.98 S in 137 mM NaCl buffer, indicating that C4b became more extended. Small angle X-ray scattering reported similar R G values of 4.89-4.90 nm for C4b in 137-250 mM NaCl. Atomistic scattering modelling of the C4b conformation showed that TED and the MG1 domain were separated by 4.7 nm in 137-250 mM NaCl and this is greater than that of 4.0 nm in the C4b crystal structure. Our data reveal that in low NaCl concentrations, both at surfaces and in solution, C4b forms compact TED-MG1 structures. In solution, physiologically relevant NaCl concentrations lead to the separation of the TED and MG1 domain, making C4b less capable of binding to its complement regulators. These conformational changes are similar to those seen previously for complement C3b, confirming the importance of this salt bridge for regulating both C4b and C3b. © 2016 The Author(s).

Inhibition of SAH-hydrolase during tobacco seeds germination induced by treatment by DHPA leads to mitotically heritable DNA hypomethylation, ectopic expression of floral genes and floral whorl malformations

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Fulneček, Jaroslav; Matyášek, Roman; Kabáthová, E.; Votruba, Ivan; Holý, Antonín; Kovařík, Aleš

2013-01-01

Roč. 280, Suppl. 1 (2013), s. 522-522 ISSN 1742-464X. [Congress of the Federation of European Biochemical Societies (FEBS) /38./. 06.07.2013-11.07.2013, Saint Petersburg] R&D Projects: GA ČR GBP501/12/G090; GA ČR GA206/09/1751; GA ČR GA13-10057S Institutional support: RVO:68081707 ; RVO:61388963 Keywords : SAH-hydrolase * DNA hypomethylation * DHPA Subject RIV: CE - Biochemistry

Extended Gersgorin Theorem-Based Parameter Feasible Domain to Prevent Harmonic Resonance in Power Grid

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Tao Lin

2017-10-01

Full Text Available Harmonic resonance may cause abnormal operation and even damage of power facilities, further threatening normal and safe operation of power systems. For renewable energy generations, controlled loads and parallel reactive power compensating equipment, their operating statuses can vary frequently. Therefore, the parameters of equivalent fundamental and harmonic admittance/impedance of these components exist in uncertainty, which will change the elements and eigenvalues of harmonic network admittance matrix. Consequently, harmonic resonance in power grid is becoming increasingly more complex. Hence, intense research about prevention and suppression of harmonic resonance, particularly the parameter feasible domain (PFD which can keep away from harmonic resonance, are needed. For rapid online evaluation of PFD, a novel method without time-consuming pointwise precise eigenvalue computations is proposed. By analyzing the singularity of harmonic network admittance matrix, the explicit sufficient condition that the matrix elements should meet to prevent harmonic resonance is derived by the extended Gersgorin theorem. Further, via the non-uniqueness of similar transformation matrix (STM, a strategy to determine the appropriate STM is proposed to minimize the conservation of the obtained PFD. Eventually, the availability and advantages in computation efficiency and conservation of the method, are demonstrated through four different scale benchmarks.

Structural basis for recognition of S-adenosylhomocysteine by riboswitches

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Edwards, A.L.; Heroux, A.; Reyes, F. E.; Batey, R. T.

2010-11-01

S-adenosyl-(L)-homocysteine (SAH) riboswitches are regulatory elements found in bacterial mRNAs that up-regulate genes involved in the S-adenosyl-(L)-methionine (SAM) regeneration cycle. To understand the structural basis of SAH-dependent regulation by RNA, we have solved the structure of its metabolite-binding domain in complex with SAH. This structure reveals an unusual pseudoknot topology that creates a shallow groove on the surface of the RNA that binds SAH primarily through interactions with the adenine ring and methionine main chain atoms and discriminates against SAM through a steric mechanism. Chemical probing and calorimetric analysis indicate that the unliganded RNA can access bound-like conformations that are significantly stabilized by SAH to direct folding of the downstream regulatory switch. Strikingly, we find that metabolites bearing an adenine ring, including ATP, bind this aptamer with sufficiently high affinity such that normal intracellular concentrations of these compounds may influence regulation of the riboswitch.

Structural Basis for Recognition of S-adenosylhomocysteine by Riboswitches

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

A Edwards; F Reyes; A Heroux; R Batey

2011-12-31

S-adenosyl-(L)-homocysteine (SAH) riboswitches are regulatory elements found in bacterial mRNAs that up-regulate genes involved in the S-adenosyl-(L)-methionine (SAM) regeneration cycle. To understand the structural basis of SAH-dependent regulation by RNA, we have solved the structure of its metabolite-binding domain in complex with SAH. This structure reveals an unusual pseudoknot topology that creates a shallow groove on the surface of the RNA that binds SAH primarily through interactions with the adenine ring and methionine main chain atoms and discriminates against SAM through a steric mechanism. Chemical probing and calorimetric analysis indicate that the unliganded RNA can access bound-like conformations that are significantly stabilized by SAH to direct folding of the downstream regulatory switch. Strikingly, we find that metabolites bearing an adenine ring, including ATP, bind this aptamer with sufficiently high affinity such that normal intracellular concentrations of these compounds may influence regulation of the riboswitch.

Socially Extended Cognition and Shared Intentionality

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Holger Lyre

2018-05-01

Full Text Available The paper looks at the intersection of extended cognition and social cognition. The central claim is that the mechanisms of shared intentionality can equally be considered as coupling mechanisms of cognitive extension into the social domain. This claim will be demonstrated by investigating a detailed example of cooperative action, and it will be argued that such cases imply that socially extended cognition is not only about cognitive vehicles, but that content must additionally be taken into account. It is finally outlined how social content externalism can in principle be grounded in socially extended cognition.

The Distributed-SDF Domain

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Cuadrado, Daniel Lázaro; Ravn, Anders Peter; Koch, Peter

2005-01-01

The purpose of the Distributed-SDF domain for Ptolemy II is to allow distributed simulation of SDF models. It builds on top of the existing SDF domain by extending it. From the user’s point of view, using the Distributed-SDF director is sufficient to run the distributed version. It provides optio...... distributed nature. First of all, known memory bounds of the JVM can be overcome. Second, it yields smaller simulation times, mainly for models with high degree of parallelism and granularity....

Localized fermions on domain walls and extended supersymmetric quantum mechanics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Oikonomou, V K

2014-01-01

We study fermionic fields localized on topologically unstable domain walls bounded by strings in a grand unified theory theoretical framework. Particularly, we found that the localized fermionic degrees of freedom, which are up and down-quarks as well as charged leptons, are connected to three independent N = 2, d = 1 supersymmetric quantum mechanics algebras. As we demonstrate, these algebras can be combined to form higher order representations of N = 2, d = 1 supersymmetry. Due to the uniform coupling of the domain wall solutions to the down-quarks and leptons, we also show that a higher order N = 2, d = 1 representation of the down-quark–lepton system is invariant under a duality transformation between the couplings. In addition, the two N = 2, d = 1 supersymmetries of the down-quark–lepton system, combine at the coupling unification scale to form an N = 4, d = 1 supersymmetry. Furthermore, we present the various extra geometric and algebraic attributes that the fermionic systems acquire, owing to the underlying N = 2, d = 1 algebras. (paper)

Extended mind and after: socially extended mind and actor-network.

Science.gov (United States)

Kono, Tetsuya

2014-03-01

The concept of extended mind has been impressively developed over the last 10 years by many philosophers and cognitive scientists. The extended mind thesis (EM) affirms that the mind is not simply ensconced inside the head, but extends to the whole system of brain-body-environment. Recently, some philosophers and psychologists try to adapt the idea of EM to the domain of social cognition research. Mind is socially extended (SEM). However, EM/SEM theory has problems to analyze the interactions among a subject and its surroundings with opposition, antagonism, or conflict; it also tends to think that the environment surrounding the subject is passive or static, and to neglect the power of non-human actants to direct and regulate the human subject. In these points, actor-network theory (ANT) proposed by Latour and Callon is more persuasive, while sharing some important ideas with EM/SEM theory. Actor-network is a hybrid community which is composed of a series of heterogeneous elements, animate and inanimate for a certain period of time. I shall conclude that EM/SEM could be best analyzed as a special case of actor-network. EM/SEM is a system which can be controlled by a human agent alone. In order to understand collective behavior, philosophy and psychology have to study the actor-network in which human individuals are situated.

Kinematics of reflections in subsurface offset and angle-domain image gathers

Science.gov (United States)

Dafni, Raanan; Symes, William W.

2018-05-01

Seismic migration in the angle-domain generates multiple images of the earth's interior in which reflection takes place at different scattering-angles. Mechanically, the angle-dependent reflection is restricted to happen instantaneously and at a fixed point in space: Incident wave hits a discontinuity in the subsurface media and instantly generates a scattered wave at the same common point of interaction. Alternatively, the angle-domain image may be associated with space-shift (regarded as subsurface offset) extended migration that artificially splits the reflection geometry. Meaning that, incident and scattered waves interact at some offset distance. The geometric differences between the two approaches amount to a contradictory angle-domain behaviour, and unlike kinematic description. We present a phase space depiction of migration methods extended by the peculiar subsurface offset split and stress its profound dissimilarity. In spite of being in radical contradiction with the general physics, the subsurface offset reveals a link to some valuable angle-domain quantities, via post-migration transformations. The angle quantities are indicated by the direction normal to the subsurface offset extended image. They specifically define the local dip and scattering angles if the velocity at the split reflection coordinates is the same for incident and scattered wave pairs. Otherwise, the reflector normal is not a bisector of the opening angle, but of the corresponding slowness vectors. This evidence, together with the distinguished geometry configuration, fundamentally differentiates the angle-domain decomposition based on the subsurface offset split from the conventional decomposition at a common reflection point. An asymptotic simulation of angle-domain moveout curves in layered media exposes the notion of split versus common reflection point geometry. Traveltime inversion methods that involve the subsurface offset extended migration must accommodate the split geometry

Enhanced UXO Discrimination Using Frequency-Domain Electromagnetic Induction

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Nelson, H. H; Steinhurst, D. A; Barrow, B; Bell, T; Khadar, N; SanFilipo, B; Won, I. J

2007-01-01

.... With support from the Environmental Security Technology Certification Program, we have developed a frequency-domain electromagnetic induction sensor array to extend the discrimination capabilities of the MTADS...

Single channel speech enhancement in the modulation domain: New insights in the modulation channel selection framework

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Boldt, Jesper B.; Bertelsen, Andreas Thelander; Gran, Fredrik

2015-01-01

Recently, the ideal binary mask has been introduced in the modulation domain by extending the ideal channel selection method to modulation channel selection [1]. This new method shows substantial improvement in speech intelligibility but less than its predecessor despite the higher complexity. Here......, we extend the previous finding from [1] and provide a more direct comparison of binary masking in the modulation domain with binary masking in the time-frequency domain. Subjective and objective evaluations are performed and provide additional insight into modulation domain processing....

Individual globular domains and domain unfolding visualized in overstretched titin molecules with atomic force microscopy.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Zsolt Mártonfalvi

Full Text Available Titin is a giant elastomeric protein responsible for the generation of passive muscle force. Mechanical force unfolds titin's globular domains, but the exact structure of the overstretched titin molecule is not known. Here we analyzed, by using high-resolution atomic force microscopy, the structure of titin molecules overstretched with receding meniscus. The axial contour of the molecules was interrupted by topographical gaps with a mean width of 27.7 nm that corresponds well to the length of an unfolded globular (immunoglobulin and fibronectin domain. The wide gap-width distribution suggests, however, that additional mechanisms such as partial domain unfolding and the unfolding of neighboring domain multimers may also be present. In the folded regions we resolved globules with an average spacing of 5.9 nm, which is consistent with a titin chain composed globular domains with extended interdomain linker regions. Topographical analysis allowed us to allocate the most distal unfolded titin region to the kinase domain, suggesting that this domain systematically unfolds when the molecule is exposed to overstretching forces. The observations support the prediction that upon the action of stretching forces the N-terminal ß-sheet of the titin kinase unfolds, thus exposing the enzyme's ATP-binding site and hence contributing to the molecule's mechanosensory function.

Traumatic midline subarachnoid hemorrhage on initial computed tomography as a marker of severe diffuse axonal injury.

Science.gov (United States)

Mata-Mbemba, Daddy; Mugikura, Shunji; Nakagawa, Atsuhiro; Murata, Takaki; Ishii, Kiyoshi; Kushimoto, Shigeki; Tominaga, Teiji; Takahashi, Shoki; Takase, Kei

2018-01-05

OBJECTIVE The objective of this study was to test the hypothesis that midline (interhemispheric or perimesencephalic) traumatic subarachnoid hemorrhage (tSAH) on initial CT may implicate the same shearing mechanism that underlies severe diffuse axonal injury (DAI). METHODS The authors enrolled 270 consecutive patients (mean age [± SD] 43 ± 23.3 years) with a history of head trauma who had undergone initial CT within 24 hours and brain MRI within 30 days. Six initial CT findings, including intraventricular hemorrhage (IVH) and tSAH, were used as candidate predictors of DAI. The presence of tSAH was determined at the cerebral convexities, sylvian fissures, sylvian vallecula, cerebellar folia, interhemispheric fissure, and perimesencephalic cisterns. Following MRI, patients were divided into negative and positive DAI groups, and were assigned to a DAI stage: 1) stage 0, negative DAI; 2) stage 1, DAI in lobar white matter or cerebellum; 3) stage 2, DAI involving the corpus callosum; and 4) stage 3, DAI involving the brainstem. Glasgow Outcome Scale-Extended (GOSE) scores were obtained in 232 patients. RESULTS Of 270 patients, 77 (28.5%) had DAI; tSAH and IVH were independently associated with DAI (p GOSE score at both hospital discharge and after 6 months. CONCLUSIONS Midline tSAH could implicate the same shearing mechanism that underlies severe DAI, for which midline tSAH on initial CT is a probable surrogate.

Restrictions and satisfaction with participation in patients who are ADL-independent after an aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage.

Science.gov (United States)

Huenges Wajer, Irene M C; Visser-Meily, Johanna M A; Greebe, Paut; Post, Marcel W M; Rinkel, Gabriel J E; van Zandvoort, Martine J E

2017-03-01

Most survivors of an aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage (aSAH) are ADL-independent, but they often experience restrictions in (social) activities and, therefore, cannot regain their pre-morbid level of participation. In this study, participation restrictions and participation satisfaction experienced after aSAH were assessed. Moreover, possible predictors of participation after aSAH were examined to identify goals for rehabilitation. Participation restrictions experienced by a series of 67 patients visiting our SAH outpatient clinic were assessed as part of standard clinical care using the Participation Restrictions and Satisfaction sections of the Utrecht Scale for Evaluation of Rehabilitation Participation (USER-Participation) 6 months after aSAH. Cognitive impairments, cognitive and emotional complaints, and symptoms of depression and anxiety, assessed 10 weeks after aSAH, were examined as possible predictors of participation by means of linear regression analysis. Although patients were ADL-independent, 64% reported one or more participation restrictions and 60% were dissatisfied in one or more participation domains. Most commonly experienced restrictions concerned housekeeping, chores in and around the house, and physical exercise. Dissatisfaction was most often reported about outdoor activities, mobility, and work/housekeeping. The main predictors of participation restrictions as well as satisfaction with participation were cognitive complaints (subjective) (β = -.30, p = .03 and β = -.40, p = .002, respectively) and anxiety (β = .32, p = .02 and β = -.34, p = .007, respectively). Almost two-thirds of the ADL-independent patients experienced problems of participation 6 months after aSAH. Cognitive complaints (subjective) and anxiety symptoms showed the strongest association with participation restrictions and satisfaction. Cognitive rehabilitation and anxiety-reducing interventions may help to optimize rehabilitation and increase

Magnetic domains the analysis of magnetic microstructures

CERN Document Server

Hubert, Alex

1998-01-01

The book gives a systematic and comprehensive survey of the complete area of magnetic microstructures. It reaches from micromagnetism of nanoparticles to complex structures of extended magnetic materials. The book starts with a comprehensive evaluation of traditional and modern experimental methods for the observation of magnetic domains and continues with the treatment of important methods for the theoretical analysis of magnetic microcstructures. A survey of the necessary techniques in materials characterization is given. The book offers an observation and analysis of magnetic domains in all

Método simplificado para el diagnóstico del síndrome de apnea-hipopnea del sueño (SAHS: A propósito de una serie de casos empleando el polígrafo respiratorio BREAS SC-20.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jorge Rey de Castro Mujica

2007-04-01

Full Text Available Objetivo: Presentar una serie de casos con diagnóstico de síndrome apnea hipopnea del Sueño (SAHS establecido con un polígrafo respiratorio (PR. Materiales y métodos: Se presentan 53 PRs realizadas entre enero 2005 y octubre 2006 en pacientes con sospecha de trastornos respiratorios del sueño. Se utilizó el polígrafo respiratorio BREAS SC-20 validado por nosotros anteriormente. La prueba fue implementada a lo largo de la noche en el domicilio del paciente y sin supervisión de personal técnico. En 32 (60% casos la PR fue instalada en el consultorio y el resto en el domicilio del paciente. Resultados: Se analizaron 53 PRs, realizadas en el mismo número de pacientes. El equipo falló en seis (11% ocasiones; las seis pruebas fueron repetidas obteniéndose buenos resultados para el análisis. El Tiempo de registro fue 7,7±1,1 [5,5-10,7] horas, índice de apnea-hipopnea 35,5±20 [0-82], tiempo porcentual de registro con SatO2Hb menor de 90% (T90 9,8±15,2 [0-62] % y desaturación máxima de oxígeno (DesMax 73±14,8 [38-91] %. Los principales diagnósticos fueron: SAHS 46 (86%, apnea central con patrón periódico Cheyne Stokes 3 (6%, ronquido primario benigno 2 (4% y prueba normal 2 (4%. El procedimiento fue bien tolerado y no hubo efectos secundarios relacionados. Conclusiones: Con los resultados obtenidos, consideramos que el sistema BREAS SC-20 bajo supervisión de médicos entrenados en los trastornos respiratorios del sueño; es una herramienta útil, práctica y económica para el diagnóstico del SAHS.(Rev Med Hered 2007;18:59-67.

A frequency domain subspace algorithm for mixed causal, anti-causal LTI systems

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Fraanje, Rufus; Verhaegen, Michel; Verdult, Vincent; Pintelon, Rik

2003-01-01

The paper extends the subspacc identification method to estimate state-space models from frequency response function (FRF) samples, proposed by McKelvey et al. (1996) for mixed causal/anti-causal systems, and shows that other frequency domain subspace algorithms can be extended similarly. The method

Modeling of VSC-Based Power Systems in The Extended Harmonic Domain

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Esparza, Miguel; Segundo-Ramirez, Juan; Kwon, Jun Bum

2017-01-01

Averaged modeling is a commonly used approach used to obtain mathematical representations of VSC-based systems. However, essential characteristics mainly related to the modulation process and the harmonic distortion of the signals are not able to be accurately captured and analyzed. The extended ...... on simulations and experimental case studies. The obtained results show that the resulting EHD models are accurate and reliable, while the memory and computation time are improved with the proposed model order reductions....

Polar Domain Discovery with Sparkler

Science.gov (United States)

Duerr, R.; Khalsa, S. J. S.; Mattmann, C. A.; Ottilingam, N. K.; Singh, K.; Lopez, L. A.

2017-12-01

The scientific web is vast and ever growing. It encompasses millions of textual, scientific and multimedia documents describing research in a multitude of scientific streams. Most of these documents are hidden behind forms which require user action to retrieve and thus can't be directly accessed by content crawlers. These documents are hosted on web servers across the world, most often on outdated hardware and network infrastructure. Hence it is difficult and time-consuming to aggregate documents from the scientific web, especially those relevant to a specific domain. Thus generating meaningful domain-specific insights is currently difficult. We present an automated discovery system (Figure 1) using Sparkler, an open-source, extensible, horizontally scalable crawler which facilitates high throughput and focused crawling of documents pertinent to a particular domain such as information about polar regions. With this set of highly domain relevant documents, we show that it is possible to answer analytical questions about that domain. Our domain discovery algorithm leverages prior domain knowledge to reach out to commercial/scientific search engines to generate seed URLs. Subject matter experts then annotate these seed URLs manually on a scale from highly relevant to irrelevant. We leverage this annotated dataset to train a machine learning model which predicts the `domain relevance' of a given document. We extend Sparkler with this model to focus crawling on documents relevant to that domain. Sparkler avoids disruption of service by 1) partitioning URLs by hostname such that every node gets a different host to crawl and by 2) inserting delays between subsequent requests. With an NSF-funded supercomputer Wrangler, we scaled our domain discovery pipeline to crawl about 200k polar specific documents from the scientific web, within a day.

DC-SIGN neck domain is a pH-sensor controlling oligomerization: SAXS and hydrodynamic studies of extracellular domain.

Science.gov (United States)

Tabarani, Georges; Thépaut, Michel; Stroebel, David; Ebel, Christine; Vivès, Corinne; Vachette, Patrice; Durand, Dominique; Fieschi, Franck

2009-08-07

DC-SIGN is a C-type lectin receptor of dendritic cells and is involved in the early stages of numerous infectious diseases. DC-SIGN is organized into a tetramer enabling multivalent interaction with pathogens. Once formed, the DC-SIGN-pathogen complex can be internalized into compartments of increasing acidity. We have studied the pH dependence of the oligomerization state and conformation of the entire extracellular domain and neck region. We present evidence for equilibrium between the monomeric and tetrameric states of the extracellular domain, which exhibits a marked dependence with respect to both pH and ionic strength. Using solution x-ray scattering we have obtained a molecular envelope of the extracellular domain in which a model has been built. Our results highlight the central role of the neck domain in the pH-sensitive control of the oligomerization state, in the extended conformation of the protein, and in carbohydrate recognition domain organization and presentation. This work opens new insight into the molecular mechanism of ligand release and points to new avenues to block the first step of this important infection pathway.

Short consensus repeat domains extend the E-selectin structure in order to grab cells out of flow

KAUST Repository

Aleisa, Fajr A

2017-01-08

Selectins are key adhesion molecules responsible for initiating a multistep process that leads a cell out of the blood circulation and into a tissue or organ. They are composed of an N-terminal extracellular C-type lectin like domain, followed by an Endothelial Growth Factor like domain (EGF), a defined number of short consensus repeats SCR (also called “sushi” domains), a transmembrane domain and a C-terminal cytoplasmic tail. The adhesion of cells (expressing ligands) to the endothelium (expressing the selection i.e., E-selectin) occurs through the interaction between the lectin domain of selectins and sLeX presenting ligands. Structural/function studies to date have mainly focused on investigating the influence of the lectin domain of E-selectin on its ability to bind its ligands while other domains received less atention. We prepared a number of different recombinant E-selectin proteins with changes in the SCR units. Specifically we generated wild-type E-selectin proteins as monomeric or dimeric structures, mutant proteins with varied numbers of SCRs as well as proteins where strategic residues were mutated to change the conformation of the selectin. Using a novel real time immunoprecipitation surface plasmon resonance (SPR)-based in vitro binding study developed in our lab, the interaction of recombinant E-selectin proteins with immunoprecipitated endogenous ligands (i.e. CD44) captured on a CM-5 chip was assessed. These studies provided quantitative binding kinetics with on and off rates of selectin-ligand interactions and suggested that robust binding is dependent on the presence of the SCRs and oligomerization. These results provide significant implications on the functional mechanism of E-selectin binding to its ligands.

Short consensus repeat domains extend the E-selectin structure in order to grab cells out of flow

KAUST Repository

Aleisa, Fajr A; Sakashita, Kosuke; Lee, Jaeman; Abu Samra, Dina Bashir Kamil; Habuchi, Satoshi; Kusakabe, Takahiro; Merzaban, Jasmeen

2017-01-01

Selectins are key adhesion molecules responsible for initiating a multistep process that leads a cell out of the blood circulation and into a tissue or organ. They are composed of an N-terminal extracellular C-type lectin like domain, followed by an Endothelial Growth Factor like domain (EGF), a defined number of short consensus repeats SCR (also called “sushi” domains), a transmembrane domain and a C-terminal cytoplasmic tail. The adhesion of cells (expressing ligands) to the endothelium (expressing the selection i.e., E-selectin) occurs through the interaction between the lectin domain of selectins and sLeX presenting ligands. Structural/function studies to date have mainly focused on investigating the influence of the lectin domain of E-selectin on its ability to bind its ligands while other domains received less atention. We prepared a number of different recombinant E-selectin proteins with changes in the SCR units. Specifically we generated wild-type E-selectin proteins as monomeric or dimeric structures, mutant proteins with varied numbers of SCRs as well as proteins where strategic residues were mutated to change the conformation of the selectin. Using a novel real time immunoprecipitation surface plasmon resonance (SPR)-based in vitro binding study developed in our lab, the interaction of recombinant E-selectin proteins with immunoprecipitated endogenous ligands (i.e. CD44) captured on a CM-5 chip was assessed. These studies provided quantitative binding kinetics with on and off rates of selectin-ligand interactions and suggested that robust binding is dependent on the presence of the SCRs and oligomerization. These results provide significant implications on the functional mechanism of E-selectin binding to its ligands.

A difference-equation formalism for the nodal domains of separable billiards

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Manjunath, Naren; Samajdar, Rhine [Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore 560012 (India); Jain, Sudhir R., E-mail: srjain@barc.gov.in [Nuclear Physics Division, Bhabha Atomic Research Centre, Mumbai 400085 (India)

2016-09-15

Recently, the nodal domain counts of planar, integrable billiards with Dirichlet boundary conditions were shown to satisfy certain difference equations in Samajdar and Jain (2014). The exact solutions of these equations give the number of domains explicitly. For complete generality, we demonstrate this novel formulation for three additional separable systems and thus extend the statement to all integrable billiards.

Different functional modes of BAR domain proteins in formation and plasticity of mammalian postsynapses.

Science.gov (United States)

Kessels, Michael M; Qualmann, Britta

2015-09-01

A plethora of cell biological processes involve modulations of cellular membranes. By using extended lipid-binding interfaces, some proteins have the power to shape membranes by attaching to them. Among such membrane shapers, the superfamily of Bin-Amphiphysin-Rvs (BAR) domain proteins has recently taken center stage. Extensive structural work on BAR domains has revealed a common curved fold that can serve as an extended membrane-binding interface to modulate membrane topologies and has allowed the grouping of the BAR domain superfamily into subfamilies with structurally slightly distinct BAR domain subtypes (N-BAR, BAR, F-BAR and I-BAR). Most BAR superfamily members are expressed in the mammalian nervous system. Neurons are elaborately shaped and highly compartmentalized cells. Therefore, analyses of synapse formation and of postsynaptic reorganization processes (synaptic plasticity) - a basis for learning and memory formation - has unveiled important physiological functions of BAR domain superfamily members. These recent advances, furthermore, have revealed that the functions of BAR domain proteins include different aspects. These functions are influenced by the often complex domain organization of BAR domain proteins. In this Commentary, we review these recent insights and propose to classify BAR domain protein functions into (1) membrane shaping, (2) physical integration, (3) action through signaling components, and (4) suppression of other BAR domain functions. © 2015. Published by The Company of Biologists Ltd.

Europlexus: a domain decomposition method in explicit dynamics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Faucher, V.; Hariddh, Bung; Combescure, A.

2003-01-01

Explicit time integration methods are used in structural dynamics to simulate fast transient phenomena, such as impacts or explosions. A very fine analysis is required in the vicinity of the loading areas but extending the same method, and especially the same small time-step, to the whole structure frequently yields excessive calculation times. We thus perform a dual Schur domain decomposition, to divide the global problem into several independent ones, to which is added a reduced size interface problem, to ensure connections between sub-domains. Each sub-domain is given its own time-step and its own mesh fineness. Non-matching meshes at the interfaces are handled. An industrial example demonstrates the interest of our approach. (authors)

Learning from Experts: Fostering Extended Thinking in the Early Phases of the Design Process

Science.gov (United States)

Haupt, Grietjie

2015-01-01

Empirical evidence on the way in which expert designers from different domains cognitively connect their internal processes with external resources is presented in the context of an extended cognition model. The article focuses briefly on the main trends in the extended design cognition theory and in particular on recent trends in information…

Poincaré analysis of an overnight arterial oxygen saturation signal applied to the diagnosis of sleep apnea hypopnea syndrome

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Morillo, Daniel S; Rojas, Juan L; Crespo, Luis F; León, Antonio; Gross, Nicole

2009-01-01

The analysis of oxygen desaturations is a basic variable in polysomnographic studies for the diagnosis of sleep apnea. Several algorithms operating in the time domain already exist for sleep apnea detection via pulse oximetry, but in a disadvantageous way—they achieve either a high sensitivity or a high specificity. The aim of this study was to assess whether an alternative analysis of arterial oxygen saturation (SaO 2 ) signals from overnight pulse oximetry could yield essential information on the diagnosis of sleep apnea hypopnea syndrome (SAHS). SaO 2 signals from 117 subjects were analyzed. The population was divided into a learning dataset (70 patients) and a test set (47 patients). The learning set was used for tuning thresholds among the applied Poincaré quantitative descriptors. Results showed that the presence of apnea events in SAHS patients caused an increase in the SD 1 Poincaré parameter. This conclusion was assessed prospectively using the test dataset. 90.9% sensitivity and 84.0% specificity were obtained in the test group. We conclude that Poincaré analysis could be useful in the study of SAHS, contributing to reduce the demand for polysomnographic studies in SAHS screening

Time-domain Green's Function Method for three-dimensional nonlinear subsonic flows

Science.gov (United States)

Tseng, K.; Morino, L.

1978-01-01

The Green's Function Method for linearized 3D unsteady potential flow (embedded in the computer code SOUSSA P) is extended to include the time-domain analysis as well as the nonlinear term retained in the transonic small disturbance equation. The differential-delay equations in time, as obtained by applying the Green's Function Method (in a generalized sense) and the finite-element technique to the transonic equation, are solved directly in the time domain. Comparisons are made with both linearized frequency-domain calculations and existing nonlinear results.

Thermal domains in inhomogeneous current-carrying superconductors. Current-voltage characteriscs and dynamics of domain formation after current jumps

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bezuglyj, A.I.; Shklovskij, V.A.

1984-01-01

The static and dynamic behavior of thermal domains in inhomogeneous superconducting films, where the inhomogeneity behaves like a portion of the film with a reduced critical current, have been studied theoretically within the framework of the phenomenological approach, using the heat balance equation and the dependence of the superconductor critical current on temperature. Depending on the size of the inhomogeneity (local or extended) and on the relative values of parameters of the homogeneous and inhomogeneous regions, different types of current-voltage characteristics are obtained. The nonstationary problem of thermal domain formation near the inhomogeneity after a current jump has been solved, and the domain boundary (kink) dynamics at a distance from the inhomogeneity has been analyzed. A combination of the results allows one to describe the whole process of normal phase formation and its spread throughout the superconducting film

Large exchange-dominated domain wall velocities in antiferromagnetically coupled nanowires

Science.gov (United States)

Kuteifan, Majd; Lubarda, M. V.; Fu, S.; Chang, R.; Escobar, M. A.; Mangin, S.; Fullerton, E. E.; Lomakin, V.

2016-04-01

Magnetic nanowires supporting field- and current-driven domain wall motion are envisioned for methods of information storage and processing. A major obstacle for their practical use is the domain-wall velocity, which is traditionally limited for low fields and currents due to the Walker breakdown occurring when the driving component reaches a critical threshold value. We show through numerical and analytical modeling that the Walker breakdown limit can be extended or completely eliminated in antiferromagnetically coupled magnetic nanowires. These coupled nanowires allow for large domain-wall velocities driven by field and/or current as compared to conventional nanowires.

Rating knowledge sharing in cross-domain collaborative filtering.

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Bin; Zhu, Xingquan; Li, Ruijiang; Zhang, Chengqi

2015-05-01

Cross-domain collaborative filtering (CF) aims to share common rating knowledge across multiple related CF domains to boost the CF performance. In this paper, we view CF domains as a 2-D site-time coordinate system, on which multiple related domains, such as similar recommender sites or successive time-slices, can share group-level rating patterns. We propose a unified framework for cross-domain CF over the site-time coordinate system by sharing group-level rating patterns and imposing user/item dependence across domains. A generative model, say ratings over site-time (ROST), which can generate and predict ratings for multiple related CF domains, is developed as the basic model for the framework. We further introduce cross-domain user/item dependence into ROST and extend it to two real-world cross-domain CF scenarios: 1) ROST (sites) for alleviating rating sparsity in the target domain, where multiple similar sites are viewed as related CF domains and some items in the target domain depend on their correspondences in the related ones; and 2) ROST (time) for modeling user-interest drift over time, where a series of time-slices are viewed as related CF domains and a user at current time-slice depends on herself in the previous time-slice. All these ROST models are instances of the proposed unified framework. The experimental results show that ROST (sites) can effectively alleviate the sparsity problem to improve rating prediction performance and ROST (time) can clearly track and visualize user-interest drift over time.

Structure of a two-CAP-domain protein from the human hookworm parasite Necator americanus

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Asojo, Oluwatoyin A., E-mail: oasojo@unmc.edu [Pathology and Microbiology Department, 986495 Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, NE 68198-6495 (United States)

2011-05-01

The first structure of a two-CAP-domain protein, Na-ASP-1, from the major human hookworm parasite N. americanus refined to a resolution limit of 2.2 Å is presented. Major proteins secreted by the infective larval stage hookworms upon host entry include Ancylostoma secreted proteins (ASPs), which are characterized by one or two CAP (cysteine-rich secretory protein/antigen 5/pathogenesis related-1) domains. The CAP domain has been reported in diverse phylogenetically unrelated proteins, but has no confirmed function. The first structure of a two-CAP-domain protein, Na-ASP-1, from the major human hookworm parasite Necator americanus was refined to a resolution limit of 2.2 Å. The structure was solved by molecular replacement (MR) using Na-ASP-2, a one-CAP-domain ASP, as the search model. The correct MR solution could only be obtained by truncating the polyalanine model of Na-ASP-2 and removing several loops. The structure reveals two CAP domains linked by an extended loop. Overall, the carboxyl-terminal CAP domain is more similar to Na-ASP-2 than to the amino-terminal CAP domain. A large central cavity extends from the amino-terminal CAP domain to the carboxyl-terminal CAP domain, encompassing the putative CAP-binding cavity. The putative CAP-binding cavity is a characteristic cavity in the carboxyl-terminal CAP domain that contains a His and Glu pair. These residues are conserved in all single-CAP-domain proteins, but are absent in the amino-terminal CAP domain. The conserved His residues are oriented such that they appear to be capable of directly coordinating a zinc ion as observed for CAP proteins from reptile venoms. This first structure of a two-CAP-domain ASP can serve as a template for homology modeling of other two-CAP-domain proteins.

Structure of a two-CAP-domain protein from the human hookworm parasite Necator americanus

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Asojo, Oluwatoyin A.

2011-01-01

The first structure of a two-CAP-domain protein, Na-ASP-1, from the major human hookworm parasite N. americanus refined to a resolution limit of 2.2 Å is presented. Major proteins secreted by the infective larval stage hookworms upon host entry include Ancylostoma secreted proteins (ASPs), which are characterized by one or two CAP (cysteine-rich secretory protein/antigen 5/pathogenesis related-1) domains. The CAP domain has been reported in diverse phylogenetically unrelated proteins, but has no confirmed function. The first structure of a two-CAP-domain protein, Na-ASP-1, from the major human hookworm parasite Necator americanus was refined to a resolution limit of 2.2 Å. The structure was solved by molecular replacement (MR) using Na-ASP-2, a one-CAP-domain ASP, as the search model. The correct MR solution could only be obtained by truncating the polyalanine model of Na-ASP-2 and removing several loops. The structure reveals two CAP domains linked by an extended loop. Overall, the carboxyl-terminal CAP domain is more similar to Na-ASP-2 than to the amino-terminal CAP domain. A large central cavity extends from the amino-terminal CAP domain to the carboxyl-terminal CAP domain, encompassing the putative CAP-binding cavity. The putative CAP-binding cavity is a characteristic cavity in the carboxyl-terminal CAP domain that contains a His and Glu pair. These residues are conserved in all single-CAP-domain proteins, but are absent in the amino-terminal CAP domain. The conserved His residues are oriented such that they appear to be capable of directly coordinating a zinc ion as observed for CAP proteins from reptile venoms. This first structure of a two-CAP-domain ASP can serve as a template for homology modeling of other two-CAP-domain proteins

A crystal structure of the Dengue virus NS5 protein reveals a novel inter-domain interface essential for protein flexibility and virus replication.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yongqian Zhao

2015-03-01

Full Text Available Flavivirus RNA replication occurs within a replication complex (RC that assembles on ER membranes and comprises both non-structural (NS viral proteins and host cofactors. As the largest protein component within the flavivirus RC, NS5 plays key enzymatic roles through its N-terminal methyltransferase (MTase and C-terminal RNA-dependent-RNA polymerase (RdRp domains, and constitutes a major target for antivirals. We determined a crystal structure of the full-length NS5 protein from Dengue virus serotype 3 (DENV3 at a resolution of 2.3 Å in the presence of bound SAH and GTP. Although the overall molecular shape of NS5 from DENV3 resembles that of NS5 from Japanese Encephalitis Virus (JEV, the relative orientation between the MTase and RdRp domains differs between the two structures, providing direct evidence for the existence of a set of discrete stable molecular conformations that may be required for its function. While the inter-domain region is mostly disordered in NS5 from JEV, the NS5 structure from DENV3 reveals a well-ordered linker region comprising a short 310 helix that may act as a swivel. Solution Hydrogen/Deuterium Exchange Mass Spectrometry (HDX-MS analysis reveals an increased mobility of the thumb subdomain of RdRp in the context of the full length NS5 protein which correlates well with the analysis of the crystallographic temperature factors. Site-directed mutagenesis targeting the mostly polar interface between the MTase and RdRp domains identified several evolutionarily conserved residues that are important for viral replication, suggesting that inter-domain cross-talk in NS5 regulates virus replication. Collectively, a picture for the molecular origin of NS5 flexibility is emerging with profound implications for flavivirus replication and for the development of therapeutics targeting NS5.

Multiple hypothesis tracking for the cyber domain

Science.gov (United States)

Schwoegler, Stefan; Blackman, Sam; Holsopple, Jared; Hirsch, Michael J.

2011-09-01

This paper discusses how methods used for conventional multiple hypothesis tracking (MHT) can be extended to domain-agnostic tracking of entities from non-kinematic constraints such as those imposed by cyber attacks in a potentially dense false alarm background. MHT is widely recognized as the premier method to avoid corrupting tracks with spurious data in the kinematic domain but it has not been extensively applied to other problem domains. The traditional approach is to tightly couple track maintenance (prediction, gating, filtering, probabilistic pruning, and target confirmation) with hypothesis management (clustering, incompatibility maintenance, hypothesis formation, and Nassociation pruning). However, by separating the domain specific track maintenance portion from the domain agnostic hypothesis management piece, we can begin to apply the wealth of knowledge gained from ground and air tracking solutions to the cyber (and other) domains. These realizations led to the creation of Raytheon's Multiple Hypothesis Extensible Tracking Architecture (MHETA). In this paper, we showcase MHETA for the cyber domain, plugging in a well established method, CUBRC's INFormation Engine for Real-time Decision making, (INFERD), for the association portion of the MHT. The result is a CyberMHT. We demonstrate the power of MHETA-INFERD using simulated data. Using metrics from both the tracking and cyber domains, we show that while no tracker is perfect, by applying MHETA-INFERD, advanced nonkinematic tracks can be captured in an automated way, perform better than non-MHT approaches, and decrease analyst response time to cyber threats.

Transverse field-induced nucleation pad switching modes during domain wall injection

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bryan, M. T.; Fry, P. W.; Schrefl, T.; Gibbs, M. R. J.; Allwood, D. A.; Im, M.-Y.; Fischer, P.

2010-03-12

We have used magnetic transmission X-ray microscopy (M-TXM) to image in-field magnetization configurations of patterned Ni{sub 80}Fe{sub 20} domain wall 'injection pads' and attached planar nanowires. Comparison with micromagnetic simulations suggests that the evolution of magnetic domains in rectangular injection pads depends on the relative orientation of closure domains in the remanent state. The magnetization reversal pathway is also altered by the inclusion of transverse magnetic fields. These different modes explain previous results of domain wall injection into nanowires. Even more striking was the observation of domain walls injecting halfway across the width of wider (>400 nm wide) wires but over wire lengths of several micrometers. These extended Neel walls can interact with adjacent nanowires and cause a switching in the side of the wire undergoing reversal as the domain wall continues to expand.

Beta oscillations define discrete perceptual cycles in the somatosensory domain.

Science.gov (United States)

Baumgarten, Thomas J; Schnitzler, Alfons; Lange, Joachim

2015-09-29

Whether seeing a movie, listening to a song, or feeling a breeze on the skin, we coherently experience these stimuli as continuous, seamless percepts. However, there are rare perceptual phenomena that argue against continuous perception but, instead, suggest discrete processing of sensory input. Empirical evidence supporting such a discrete mechanism, however, remains scarce and comes entirely from the visual domain. Here, we demonstrate compelling evidence for discrete perceptual sampling in the somatosensory domain. Using magnetoencephalography (MEG) and a tactile temporal discrimination task in humans, we find that oscillatory alpha- and low beta-band (8-20 Hz) cycles in primary somatosensory cortex represent neurophysiological correlates of discrete perceptual cycles. Our results agree with several theoretical concepts of discrete perceptual sampling and empirical evidence of perceptual cycles in the visual domain. Critically, these results show that discrete perceptual cycles are not domain-specific, and thus restricted to the visual domain, but extend to the somatosensory domain.

FY1995 ultrafast photonic devices using dielectric domain superlattice; 1995 nendo yudentai domain chokoshi wo mochiita chokosoku photonic device

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1997-03-31

All optical wavelength conversion around 1550nm is of great importance for the wavelength division multiplexing optical communication system. A dielectric domain superlattice, which has a periodically domain inverted structure, has a wide potential for the various nonlinear interactions such as second harmonic generation (SHG) and difference frequency generation (DFG). The purpose of our research is to establish the theoretical bases and fabrication processes of the guided-wave wavelength converter based on the DFG by domain-inverted LiTaO{sub 3}. We have investigated basic characteristics of guided-wave DFG devices and developed the domain-inversion process by an electric field poling utilizing a liquid electrolyte consisting of LiCI in deionized water as a electrode for applying the electric field to LiTaO{sub 3} substrate. By controlling the injection current for the domain inversion precisely, we fabricated successfully uniform domain-inverted structures. 0.5mm-thick domain-inverted LiTaO{sub 3} of 7.8, 17.2 and 21.3 {mu}m periods and 0.5 duty ratio were obtained by optimizing electrode structure and the domain-inversion process. Waveguide structures can increase the conversion efficiency of DFG by several orders of magnitude over bulk interactions. We have also developed waveguide fabrication process for the domain-inverted LiTaO{sub 3} substrate. Low loss proton-exchanged waveguides were formed by annealed proton exchange technique without a degradation of the domain inversion structure. Domain-controlled nonlinear optics by designing the ferroelectric domain structure of LiTaO{sub 3} and LiNbO{sub 3} make it possible to extend all the spectral range from ultra-violet to far-infrared and THz wave region. (NEDO)

A test of the domain-specific acculturation strategy hypothesis.

Science.gov (United States)

Miller, Matthew J; Yang, Minji; Lim, Robert H; Hui, Kayi; Choi, Na-Yeun; Fan, Xiaoyan; Lin, Li-Ling; Grome, Rebekah E; Farrell, Jerome A; Blackmon, Sha'kema

2013-01-01

Acculturation literature has evolved over the past several decades and has highlighted the dynamic ways in which individuals negotiate experiences in multiple cultural contexts. The present study extends this literature by testing M. J. Miller and R. H. Lim's (2010) domain-specific acculturation strategy hypothesis-that individuals might use different acculturation strategies (i.e., assimilated, bicultural, separated, and marginalized strategies; J. W. Berry, 2003) across behavioral and values domains-in 3 independent cluster analyses with Asian American participants. Present findings supported the domain-specific acculturation strategy hypothesis as 67% to 72% of participants from 3 independent samples using different strategies across behavioral and values domains. Consistent with theory, a number of acculturation strategy cluster group differences emerged across generational status, acculturative stress, mental health symptoms, and attitudes toward seeking professional psychological help. Study limitations and future directions for research are discussed.

Domain decomposition methods for fluid dynamics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Clerc, S.

1995-01-01

A domain decomposition method for steady-state, subsonic fluid dynamics calculations, is proposed. The method is derived from the Schwarz alternating method used for elliptic problems, extended to non-linear hyperbolic problems. Particular emphasis is given on the treatment of boundary conditions. Numerical results are shown for a realistic three-dimensional two-phase flow problem with the FLICA-4 code for PWR cores. (from author). 4 figs., 8 refs

On Gauss-Green theorem and boundaries of a class of Hölder domains

OpenAIRE

Lyons, TJ; Yam, PSC

2006-01-01

The purpose of this paper is to show that, if α > 1/3 and ε > 0, the boundary of an α-Hölder domain is a 1 α + ε geometric rough path; and as a direct application, we extend the classical Green-Gauss' formula to this class of fractal domains. © 2005 Elsevier SAS. All rights reserved.

First experience with the new .cern Top Level Domain

Science.gov (United States)

Alvarez, E.; Malo de Molina, M.; Salwerowicz, M.; Silva De Sousa, B.; Smith, T.; Wagner, A.

2017-10-01

In October 2015, CERN’s core website has been moved to a new address, http://home.cern, marking the launch of the brand new top-level domain .cern. In combination with a formal governance and registration policy, the IT infrastructure needed to be extended to accommodate the hosting of Web sites in this new top level domain. We will present the technical implementation in the framework of the CERN Web Services that allows to provide virtual hosting, a reverse proxy solution and that also includes the provisioning of SSL server certificates for secure communications.

Therapeutic monitoring of intracerebral perfusion disturbances secondary to subarachnoid haemorrhage (SAH) by means of Tc-99m-HMPAO SPECT

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Locher, J.T.; Bruehlmeier, M.; Landolt, H.

2002-01-01

Aim: Aneurysmal SAH is a devastating illness as two-thirds of the patients are disabled or die. Modern concepts of treatment include the prevention of the most serious complications after a surgical intervention (clipping, coiling) such as re-bleeding, vasospasms and stroke. The follow-up of cerebral perfusion could provide an objective basis for treatment. Material and Methods: In order to control the recently developed ''3H-therapy'' (hypertension-hypervolemia-hemodilution) we use the diagnostic possibilities of trans-cranial Doppler sonography (TCD), Tc-99m-HMPAO SPET (with semiquantitative parametric display) and angiography. Our algorithm includes a daily TCD, and, as a routine, the perfusion SPET on postoperative days 2/3, 8/10 and/or in case of a worsening of TCD results or neurological state. Results: In 20 consecutive cases 51 perfusion SPETs have been performed. Although, in general, a moderate 3H-therapy will be implemented postoperatively even without vasospasms or clinical signs the corrections of dosage highly depends on the TCD and SPET results. Vasospasms were the common reason for increased flow velocities measured by TCD and a (graduate) hypoperfusion on SPET (15 cases), but in three cases SPET showed a local or contra-lateral luxury perfusion indicative for stroke and, therefore, implicating a reduction/termination of the 3H-therapy. Conclusion: Our experiences with the new concept demonstrate not only a diagnostic performance of the used techniques but also an improved effectiveness of cost and benefit

Caractérisation des peuplements ligneux des parcs à Faidherbia ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

SARAH

31 oct. 2015 ... Objectif : cette étude vise à caractériser les peuplements ligneux des parcs à Faidherbia albida .... domaine Sud-Sahélien Central dominé par les ... caractériser le climat. ..... Surface terrière (St) : La surface terrière globale ou.

Dynamique de la teneur en carbone et en azote des sols dans les ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

SARAH

30 nov. 2014 ... INTRODUCTION. L'étude de la dynamique de carbone et de l'azote dans le ... climatique et l'autre de dimension locale, la fertilité des sols. ... situe à la limite méridionale du domaine sahélien, le ..... Soils and global change.

Finite difference time domain modelling of particle accelerators

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jurgens, T.G.; Harfoush, F.A.

1989-03-01

Finite Difference Time Domain (FDTD) modelling has been successfully applied to a wide variety of electromagnetic scattering and interaction problems for many years. Here the method is extended to incorporate the modelling of wake fields in particle accelerators. Algorithmic comparisons are made to existing wake field codes, such as MAFIA T3. 9 refs., 7 figs

Conformational determinants of phosphotyrosine peptides complexed with the Src SH2 domain.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Joseph Nachman

2010-06-01

Full Text Available The inhibition of specific SH2 domain mediated protein-protein interactions as an effective chemotherapeutic approach in the treatment of diseases remains a challenge. That different conformations of peptide-ligands are preferred by different SH2 domains is an underappreciated observation from the structural analysis of phosphotyrosine peptide binding to SH2 domains that may aid in future drug design. To explore the nature of ligand binding, we use simulated annealing (SA to sample the conformational space of phosphotyrosine-containing peptides complexed with the Src SH2 domain. While in good agreement with the crystallographic and NMR studies of high-affinity phosphopeptide-SH2 domain complexes, the results suggest that the structural basis for phopsphopeptide- Src SH2 interactions is more complex than the "two-pronged plug two-hole socket" model. A systematic study of peptides of type pYEEX, where pY is phosphotyrosine and X is a hydrophobic residue, indicates that these peptides can assume two conformations, one extended and one helical, representing the balance between the interaction of residue X with the hydrophobic hole on the surface of the Src SH2 domain, and its contribution to the inherent tendency of the two glutamic acids to form an alpha-helix. In contrast, a beta-turn conformation, almost identical to that observed in the crystal structure of pYVNV bound to the Grb2 SH2 domain, predominates for pYXNX peptides, even in the presence of isoleucine at the third position. While peptide binding affinities, as measured by fluorescence polarization, correlate with the relative proportion of extended peptide conformation, these results suggest a model where all three residues C-terminal to the phosphotyrosine determine the conformation of the bound phosphopeptide. The information obtained in this work can be used in the design of specific SH2 domain inhibitors.

Magnesium therapy after aneurysmal subarachnoid haemorrhage a dose-finding study for long term treatment

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van den Bergh, W. M.; Albrecht, K. W.; Berkelbach van der Sprenkel, J. W.; Rinkel, G. J. E.

2003-01-01

BACKGROUND: Magnesium is a neuroprotective agent which might prevent or reverse delayed cerebral ischemia (DCI) after aneurysmal subarachnoid haemorrhage (SAH). Although the dosage for short-term magnesium therapy is well established, there is lack of knowledge on the dosage for extended use of

Time domain analysis of thin-wire antennas over lossy ground using the reflection-coefficient approximation

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Fernández Pantoja, M.; Yarovoy, A.G.; Rubio Bretones, A.; González García, S.

2009-01-01

This paper presents a procedure to extend the methods of moments in time domain for the transient analysis of thin-wire antennas to include those cases where the antennas are located over a lossy half-space. This extended technique is based on the reflection coefficient (RC) approach, which

Novel Exenatide Analogs with Peptidic Albumin Binding Domains: Potent Anti-Diabetic Agents with Extended Duration of Action

Science.gov (United States)

Levy, Odile E.; Jodka, Carolyn M.; Ren, Shijun Steven; Mamedova, Lala; Sharma, Abhinandini; Samant, Manoj; D’Souza, Lawrence J.; Soares, Christopher J.; Yuskin, Diane R.; Jin, Li Jenny; Parkes, David G.; Tatarkiewicz, Krystyna; Ghosh, Soumitra S.

2014-01-01

The design, synthesis and pharmacology of novel long-acting exenatide analogs for the treatment of metabolic diseases are described. These molecules display enhanced pharmacokinetic profile and potent glucoregulatory and weight lowering actions compared to native exenatide. [Leu14]exenatide-ABD is an 88 residue peptide amide incorporating an Albumin Binding Domain (ABD) scaffold. [Leu14]exenatide-ABP is a 53 residue peptide incorporating a short Albumin Binding Peptide (ABP). [Leu14]exenatide-ABD and [Leu14]exenatide-ABP exhibited nanomolar functional GLP-1 receptor potency and were metabolically stable in vitro in human plasma and in a pancreatic digestive enzyme mixture. Both molecules displayed picomolar and nanomolar binding association with albumin across multiple species and circulating half lives of 16 and 11 hours, respectively, post a single IV dose in rats. Unlike exenatide, both molecules elicited robust glucose lowering when injected 1 day prior to an oral glucose tolerance test, indicative of their extended duration of action. [Leu14]exenatide-ABD was compared to exenatide in a Lep ob/ob mouse model of diabetes. Twice-weekly subcutaneously dosed [Leu14]exenatide-ABD displayed superior glucose lowering and weight loss in diabetic mice when compared to continuously infused exenatide at the same total weekly dose. A single oral administration of each molecule via an enteric coated capsule to cynomolgus monkeys showed superior pharmacokinetics for [Leu14]exenatide-ABD as compared to [Leu14]exenatide-ABP with detectable exposure longer than 14 days. These studies support the potential use of these novel long acting exenatide analogs with different routes of administration for the treatment of type 2 diabetes. PMID:24503632

An extended Fourier modal method for plane-wave scattering from finite structures

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Pisarenco, M.; Maubach, J.M.L.; Setija, I.D.; Mattheij, R.M.M.

2010-01-01

This paper extends the area of application of the Fourier modal method from periodic structures to aperiodic ones, in particular for plane-wave illumination at arbitrary angles. This is achieved by placing perfectly matched layers at the lateral sides of the computational domain and reformulating

Pivotal role of extended linker 2 in the activation of Gα by G protein-coupled receptor.

Science.gov (United States)

Huang, Jianyun; Sun, Yutong; Zhang, J Jillian; Huang, Xin-Yun

2015-01-02

G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) relay extracellular signals mainly to heterotrimeric G-proteins (Gαβγ) and they are the most successful drug targets. The mechanisms of G-protein activation by GPCRs are not well understood. Previous studies have revealed a signal relay route from a GPCR via the C-terminal α5-helix of Gα to the guanine nucleotide-binding pocket. Recent structural and biophysical studies uncover a role for the opening or rotating of the α-helical domain of Gα during the activation of Gα by a GPCR. Here we show that β-adrenergic receptors activate eight Gαs mutant proteins (from a screen of 66 Gαs mutants) that are unable to bind Gβγ subunits in cells. Five of these eight mutants are in the αF/Linker 2/β2 hinge region (extended Linker 2) that connects the Ras-like GTPase domain and the α-helical domain of Gαs. This extended Linker 2 is the target site of a natural product inhibitor of Gq. Our data show that the extended Linker 2 is critical for Gα activation by GPCRs. We propose that a GPCR via its intracellular loop 2 directly interacts with the β2/β3 loop of Gα to communicate to Linker 2, resulting in the opening and closing of the α-helical domain and the release of GDP during G-protein activation. © 2015 by The American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Inc.

Wavefield Extrapolation in Pseudo-depth Domain

KAUST Repository

Ma, Xuxin

2011-12-11

Wave-equation based seismic migration and inversion tools are widely used by the energy industry to explore hydrocarbon and mineral resources. By design, most of these techniques simulate wave propagation in a space domain with the vertical axis being depth measured from the surface. Vertical depth is popular because it is a straightforward mapping of the subsurface space. It is, however, not computationally cost-effective because the wavelength changes with local elastic wave velocity, which in general increases with depth in the Earth. As a result, the sampling per wavelength also increases with depth. To avoid spatial aliasing in deep fast media, the seismic wave is oversampled in shallow slow media and therefore increase the total computation cost. This issue is effectively tackled by using the vertical time axis instead of vertical depth. This is because in a vertical time representation, the "wavelength" is essentially time period for vertical rays. This thesis extends the vertical time axis to the pseudo-depth axis, which features distance unit while preserving the properties of the vertical time representation. To explore the potentials of doing wave-equation based imaging in the pseudo-depth domain, a Partial Differential Equation (PDE) is derived to describe acoustic wave in this new domain. This new PDE is inherently anisotropic because the use of a constant vertical velocity to convert between depth and vertical time. Such anisotropy results in lower reflection coefficients compared with conventional space domain modeling results. This feature is helpful to suppress the low wavenumber artifacts in reverse-time migration images, which are caused by the widely used cross-correlation imaging condition. This thesis illustrates modeling acoustic waves in both conventional space domain and pseudo-depth domain. The numerical tool used to model acoustic waves is built based on the lowrank approximation of Fourier integral operators. To investigate the potential

525-IJBCS-Article-Dr Kossi Adjonou

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Dr Gatsing

Etude de la dynamique spatiale et structure des forêts denses sèches reliques du Togo: .... Elle jouit d'un climat ... d'étude. Un GPS (Global Positioning System) a été utilisé pour localiser les points ...... des domaines sahélien et soudanien qui.

Decoding rule search domain in the left inferior frontal gyrus

Science.gov (United States)

Babcock, Laura; Vallesi, Antonino

2018-01-01

Traditionally, the left hemisphere has been thought to extract mainly verbal patterns of information, but recent evidence has shown that the left Inferior Frontal Gyrus (IFG) is active during inductive reasoning in both the verbal and spatial domains. We aimed to understand whether the left IFG supports inductive reasoning in a domain-specific or domain-general fashion. To do this we used Multi-Voxel Pattern Analysis to decode the representation of domain during a rule search task. Thirteen participants were asked to extract the rule underlying streams of letters presented in different spatial locations. Each rule was either verbal (letters forming words) or spatial (positions forming geometric figures). Our results show that domain was decodable in the left prefrontal cortex, suggesting that this region represents domain-specific information, rather than processes common to the two domains. A replication study with the same participants tested two years later confirmed these findings, though the individual representations changed, providing evidence for the flexible nature of representations. This study extends our knowledge on the neural basis of goal-directed behaviors and on how information relevant for rule extraction is flexibly mapped in the prefrontal cortex. PMID:29547623

An Integrated Framework to Specify Domain-Specific Modeling Languages

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Zarrin, Bahram; Baumeister, Hubert

2018-01-01

, a logic-based specification language. The drawback of MS DSL Tools is it does not provide a formal and rigorous approach for semantics specifications. In this framework, we use Microsoft DSL Tools to define the metamodel and graphical notations of DSLs, and an extended version of ForSpec as a formal......In this paper, we propose an integrated framework that can be used by DSL designers to implement their desired graphical domain-specific languages. This framework relies on Microsoft DSL Tools, a meta-modeling framework to build graphical domain-specific languages, and an extension of ForSpec...... language to define their semantics. Integrating these technologies under the umbrella of Microsoft Visual Studio IDE allows DSL designers to utilize a single development environment for developing their desired domain-specific languages....

Domain decomposition methods for mortar finite elements

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Widlund, O.

1996-12-31

In the last few years, domain decomposition methods, previously developed and tested for standard finite element methods and elliptic problems, have been extended and modified to work for mortar and other nonconforming finite element methods. A survey will be given of work carried out jointly with Yves Achdou, Mario Casarin, Maksymilian Dryja and Yvon Maday. Results on the p- and h-p-version finite elements will also be discussed.

Scalable domain decomposition solvers for stochastic PDEs in high performance computing

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Desai, Ajit; Pettit, Chris; Poirel, Dominique; Sarkar, Abhijit

2017-01-01

Stochastic spectral finite element models of practical engineering systems may involve solutions of linear systems or linearized systems for non-linear problems with billions of unknowns. For stochastic modeling, it is therefore essential to design robust, parallel and scalable algorithms that can efficiently utilize high-performance computing to tackle such large-scale systems. Domain decomposition based iterative solvers can handle such systems. And though these algorithms exhibit excellent scalabilities, significant algorithmic and implementational challenges exist to extend them to solve extreme-scale stochastic systems using emerging computing platforms. Intrusive polynomial chaos expansion based domain decomposition algorithms are extended here to concurrently handle high resolution in both spatial and stochastic domains using an in-house implementation. Sparse iterative solvers with efficient preconditioners are employed to solve the resulting global and subdomain level local systems through multi-level iterative solvers. We also use parallel sparse matrix–vector operations to reduce the floating-point operations and memory requirements. Numerical and parallel scalabilities of these algorithms are presented for the diffusion equation having spatially varying diffusion coefficient modeled by a non-Gaussian stochastic process. Scalability of the solvers with respect to the number of random variables is also investigated.

Going from microscopic to macroscopic on nonuniform growing domains.

Science.gov (United States)

Yates, Christian A; Baker, Ruth E; Erban, Radek; Maini, Philip K

2012-08-01

Throughout development, chemical cues are employed to guide the functional specification of underlying tissues while the spatiotemporal distributions of such chemicals can be influenced by the growth of the tissue itself. These chemicals, termed morphogens, are often modeled using partial differential equations (PDEs). The connection between discrete stochastic and deterministic continuum models of particle migration on growing domains was elucidated by Baker, Yates, and Erban [Bull. Math. Biol. 72, 719 (2010)] in which the migration of individual particles was modeled as an on-lattice position-jump process. We build on this work by incorporating a more physically reasonable description of domain growth. Instead of allowing underlying lattice elements to instantaneously double in size and divide, we allow incremental element growth and splitting upon reaching a predefined threshold size. Such a description of domain growth necessitates a nonuniform partition of the domain. We first demonstrate that an individual-based stochastic model for particle diffusion on such a nonuniform domain partition is equivalent to a PDE model of the same phenomenon on a nongrowing domain, providing the transition rates (which we derive) are chosen correctly and we partition the domain in the correct manner. We extend this analysis to the case where the domain is allowed to change in size, altering the transition rates as necessary. Through application of the master equation formalism we derive a PDE for particle density on this growing domain and corroborate our findings with numerical simulations.

Extending product modeling methods for integrated product development

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bonev, Martin; Wörösch, Michael; Hauksdóttir, Dagný

2013-01-01

Despite great efforts within the modeling domain, the majority of methods often address the uncommon design situation of an original product development. However, studies illustrate that development tasks are predominantly related to redesigning, improving, and extending already existing products...... and PVM methods, in a presented Product Requirement Development model some of the individual drawbacks of each method could be overcome. Based on the UML standard, the model enables the representation of complex hierarchical relationships in a generic product model. At the same time it uses matrix....... Updated design requirements have then to be made explicit and mapped against the existing product architecture. In this paper, existing methods are adapted and extended through linking updated requirements to suitable product models. By combining several established modeling techniques, such as the DSM...

Low resolution solution structure of HAMLET and the importance of its alpha-domains in tumoricidal activity.

Science.gov (United States)

Ho, C S James; Rydstrom, Anna; Manimekalai, Malathy Sony Subramanian; Svanborg, Catharina; Grüber, Gerhard

2012-01-01

HAMLET (Human Alpha-lactalbumin Made LEthal to Tumor cells) is the first member in a new family of protein-lipid complexes with broad tumoricidal activity. Elucidating the molecular structure and the domains crucial for HAMLET formation is fundamental for understanding its tumoricidal function. Here we present the low-resolution solution structure of the complex of oleic acid bound HAMLET, derived from small angle X-ray scattering data. HAMLET shows a two-domain conformation with a large globular domain and an extended part of about 2.22 nm in length and 1.29 nm width. The structure has been superimposed into the related crystallographic structure of human α-lactalbumin, revealing that the major part of α-lactalbumin accommodates well in the shape of HAMLET. However, the C-terminal residues from L105 to L123 of the crystal structure of the human α-lactalbumin do not fit well into the HAMLET structure, resulting in an extended conformation in HAMLET, proposed to be required to form the tumoricidal active HAMLET complex with oleic acid. Consistent with this low resolution structure, we identified biologically active peptide epitopes in the globular as well as the extended domains of HAMLET. Peptides covering the alpha1 and alpha2 domains of the protein triggered rapid ion fluxes in the presence of sodium oleate and were internalized by tumor cells, causing rapid and sustained changes in cell morphology. The alpha peptide-oleate bound forms also triggered tumor cell death with comparable efficiency as HAMLET. In addition, shorter peptides corresponding to those domains are biologically active. These findings provide novel insights into the structural prerequisites for the dramatic effects of HAMLET on tumor cells.

Regulation of the heavy metal pump AtHMA4 by a metal-binding autoinhibitory domain

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bækgaard, Lone; Roed, Maria Dalgaard; Zhang, Yang

Heavy metal pumps, or P1B ATPases, are important for heavy metal homeostasis in most cells. In general, these pumps contain extended N- and/or C-termini with one or more metal-binding domains (MBDs), but the role of the extended termini is still not clear. The Arabidopsis thaliana Zn2+-ATPase At......HMA4 contains a very long C-terminus with 13 cysteine pairs and an 11 amino acid residue long histidine stretch at the end. To ascertain the role of the potentially metal-binding domains in the C-terminus of AtHMA4, the C-terminal region alone was expressed in yeast. This resulted in increased Zn...

Prospective SAH Study in Japan, 2005(Prospective SAH Study)

OpenAIRE

塩川, 芳昭; 栗田, 浩樹; 藤井, 清孝; Yoshiaki, SHIOKAWA; Hiroki, KURITA; Kiyotaka, FUJII; 杏林大学脳神経外科; 杏林大学脳神経外科; 北里大学脳神経外科; Department of Neurosurgery, Kyorin University School of Medicine; Department of Neurosurgery, Kyorin University School of Medicine

2009-01-01

To clarify current treatment status of ruptured cerebral aneurysms in Japan, a prospective multicenter observational study on the treatment results for aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage was conducted over calendar year 2005 and final 1-year outcomes were collected. Studied centers were selected from among institutes of committee member of Japanese stroke surgery organization or symposium of vasospasm in Japan. A total of 927 patients were enrolled in this study and treatment policies were le...

Domain wall solitons and Hopf algebraic translational symmetries in noncommutative field theories

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sasai, Yuya; Sasakura, Naoki

2008-01-01

Domain wall solitons are the simplest topological objects in field theories. The conventional translational symmetry in a field theory is the generator of a one-parameter family of domain wall solutions, and induces a massless moduli field which propagates along a domain wall. We study similar issues in braided noncommutative field theories possessing Hopf algebraic translational symmetries. As a concrete example, we discuss a domain wall soliton in the scalar φ 4 braided noncommutative field theory in Lie-algebraic noncommutative space-time, [x i ,x j ]=2iκε ijk x k (i,j,k=1,2,3), which has a Hopf algebraic translational symmetry. We first discuss the existence of a domain wall soliton in view of Derrick's theorem, and construct explicitly a one-parameter family of solutions in perturbation of the noncommutativity parameter κ. We then find the massless moduli field which propagates on the domain wall soliton. We further extend our analysis to the general Hopf algebraic translational symmetry

Improving developer productivity with C++ embedded domain specific languages

Science.gov (United States)

Kozacik, Stephen; Chao, Evenie; Paolini, Aaron; Bonnett, James; Kelmelis, Eric

2017-05-01

Domain-specific languages are a useful tool for productivity allowing domain experts to program using familiar concepts and vocabulary while benefiting from performance choices made by computing experts. Embedding the domain specific language into an existing language allows easy interoperability with non-domain-specific code and use of standard compilers and build systems. In C++, this is enabled through the template and preprocessor features. C++ embedded domain specific languages (EDSLs) allow the user to write simple, safe, performant, domain specific code that has access to all the low-level functionality that C and C++ offer as well as the diverse set of libraries available in the C/C++ ecosystem. In this paper, we will discuss several tools available for building EDSLs in C++ and show examples of projects successfully leveraging EDSLs. Modern C++ has added many useful new features to the language which we have leveraged to further extend the capability of EDSLs. At EM Photonics, we have used EDSLs to allow developers to transparently benefit from using high performance computing (HPC) hardware. We will show ways EDSLs combine with existing technologies and EM Photonics high performance tools and libraries to produce clean, short, high performance code in ways that were not previously possible.

Domain walls in the extensions of the Standard Model

Science.gov (United States)

Krajewski, Tomasz; Lalak, Zygmunt; Lewicki, Marek; Olszewski, Paweł

2018-05-01

Our main interest is the evolution of domain walls of the Higgs field in the early Universe. The aim of this paper is to understand how dynamics of Higgs domain walls could be influenced by yet unknown interactions from beyond the Standard Model. We assume that the Standard Model is valid up to certain, high, energy scale Λ and use the framework of the effective field theory to describe physics below that scale. Performing numerical simulations with different values of the scale Λ we are able to extend our previous analysis [1]. Our recent numerical simulations show that evolution of Higgs domain walls is rather insensitive to interactions beyond the Standard Model as long as masses of new particles are grater than 1012 GeV. For lower values of Λ the RG improved effective potential is strongly modified at field strengths crucial to the evolution of domain walls. However, we find that even for low values of Λ, Higgs domain walls decayed shortly after their formation for generic initial conditions. On the other hand, in simulations with specifically chosen initial conditions Higgs domain walls can live longer and enter the scaling regime. We also determine the energy spectrum of gravitational waves produced by decaying domain walls of the Higgs field. For generic initial field configurations the amplitude of the signal is too small to be observed in planned detectors.

Structural Basis for Endosomal Targeting by the Bro1 Domain

Science.gov (United States)

Kim, Jaewon; Sitaraman, Sujatha; Hierro, Aitor; Beach, Bridgette M.; Odorizzi, Greg; Hurley, James H.

2010-01-01

Summary Proteins delivered to the lysosome or the yeast vacuole via late endosomes are sorted by the ESCRT complexes and by associated proteins, including Alix and its yeast homolog Bro1. Alix, Bro1, and several other late endosomal proteins share a conserved 160 residue Bro1 domain whose boundaries, structure, and function have not been characterized. The crystal structure of the Bro1 domain of Bro1 reveals a folded core of 367 residues. The extended Bro1 domain is necessary and sufficient for binding to the ESCRT-III subunit Snf7 and for the recruitment of Bro1 to late endosomes. The structure resembles a boomerang with its concave face filled in and contains a triple tetratricopeptide repeat domain as a substructure. Snf7 binds to a conserved hydrophobic patch on Bro1 that is required for protein complex formation and for the protein-sorting function of Bro1. These results define a conserved mechanism whereby Bro1 domain-containing proteins are targeted to endosomes by Snf7 and its orthologs. PMID:15935782

Constricted nanowire with stabilized magnetic domain wall

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sbiaa, R.; Al Bahri, M.

2016-01-01

Domain wall (DW)-based magnetic memory offers the possibility for increasing the storage capacity. However, stability of DW remains the major drawback of this scheme. In this letter, we propose a stepped nanowire for pinning DW in a desirable position. From micromagnetic simulation, the proposed design applied to in-plane magnetic anisotropy materials shows that by adjusting the nanowire step size and its width it is possible to stabilize DW for a desirable current density range. In contrast, only a movement of DW could be seen for conventional nanowire. An extension to a multi-stepped nanowire could be used for multi-bit per cell magnetic memory. - Highlights: • A stepped nanowire is proposed to pin domain wall in desired position. • The new structure can be made by a simple off set of two single nanowires. • The critical current for moving domain wall from one state to the other could be tuned by adjusting the geometry of the device. • The device could be used for multi-bit per cell memory by extending the steps in the device.

Microbial F-type lectin domains with affinity for blood group antigens.

Science.gov (United States)

Mahajan, Sonal; Khairnar, Aasawari; Bishnoi, Ritika; Ramya, T N C

2017-09-23

F-type lectins are fucose binding lectins with characteristic fucose binding and calcium binding motifs. Although they occur with a selective distribution in viruses, prokaryotes and eukaryotes, most biochemical studies have focused on vertebrate F-type lectins. Recently, using sensitive bioinformatics search techniques on the non-redundant database, we had identified many microbial F-type lectin domains with diverse domain organizations. We report here the biochemical characterization of F-type lectin domains from Cyanobium sp. PCC 7001, Myxococcus hansupus and Leucothrix mucor. We demonstrate that while all these three microbial F-type lectin domains bind to the blood group H antigen epitope on fucosylated glycans, there are fine differences in their glycan binding specificity. Cyanobium sp. PCC 7001 F-type lectin domain binds exclusively to extended H type-2 motif, Myxococcus hansupus F-type lectin domain binds to B, H type-1 and Lewis b motifs, and Leucothrix mucor F-type lectin domain binds to a wide range of fucosylated glycans, including A, B, H and Lewis antigens. We believe that these microbial lectins will be useful additions to the glycobiologist's toolbox for labeling, isolating and visualizing glycans. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Expression, purification, crystallization and preliminary X-ray analysis of the olfactomedin domain from the sea urchin cell-adhesion protein amassin

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hillier, Brian J.; Sundaresan, Vidyasankar; Stout, C. David; Vacquier, Victor D.

2005-01-01

The olfactomedin (OLF) domain from the sea urchin cell-adhesion protein amassin has been crystallized. A native data set extending to 2.7 Å has been collected using an in-house X-ray source. A family of animal proteins is emerging which contain a conserved protein motif known as an olfactomedin (OLF) domain. Novel extracellular protein–protein interactions occur through this domain. The OLF-family member amassin, from the sea urchin Strongylocentrotus purpuratus, has previously been identified to mediate a rapid cell-adhesion event resulting in a large aggregation of coelomocytes, the circulating immune cells. In this work, heterologous expression and purification of the OLF domain from amassin was carried out and initial crystallization trials were performed. A native data set has been collected, extending to 2.7 Å under preliminary cryoconditions, using an in-house generator. This work leads the way to the determination of the first structure of an OLF domain

Mass spectrometric identification of proteins that interact through specific domains of the poly(A) binding protein

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Richardson, Roy; Denis, Clyde L; Zhang, Chongxu

2012-01-01

previously known direct interactions with specific PAB1 domains were either confirmed, delimited, or extended. The remaining nine proteins that interacted through a specific PAB1 domain were CBF5, SLF1, UPF1, CBC1, SSD1, NOP77, yGR250c, NAB6, and GBP2. In further study, UPF1, involved in nonsense...

Ultrabroadband THz time-domain spectroscopy of biomolecular crystals

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kaltenecker, Korbinian J.; Engelbrecht, Sebastian; Iwaszczuk, Krzysztof

2016-01-01

Ultrabroadband THz time-domain spectroscopy based on two-color plasma generation and air biased coherent detection is used for the investigation of molecular dynamics of crystalline materials in the frequency range from 0.3 THz to 20 THz. We show that the spectral features in this extended...... frequency range are a result of inter- and intramolecular vibrations which are identified by means of simulations of the crystalline materials....

Adaptive software synthesis from extended dataflow specifications = Síntese de Software Adaptativo baseada em Especificações Extended Dataflow

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ivanilton Polato

2005-07-01

Full Text Available Embedded software development approaches used models of computationsuch as dataflow, discrete events, synchronous/reactive, among others. Due to the specialization of the existing models, each one can be better applied to a specific application domain. Nevertheless, when there is no solution for applications in a specific domain,heterogeneous models have been used. In this context, this paper discusses a heterogeneous model called Extended Dataflow. It is an extension of the dataflow model with support to event handling. This paper also addresses how software can be synthesized from extendeddataflow specifications and discusses the development of a code generation tool prototype. This takes into account the possibility of component reuse for developing digital signal processing applications. A case study of adaptative applications using digital filters is used to illustrate our approach.As abordagens de desenvolvimento de software embutido têm feito o uso de modelos de computação, tais como fluxo de dados, eventos discretos, síncrono/reativo, dentre outros. A especialização desses modelos faz com que sejam apropriados a um domínio específico de aplicações. Entretanto, quando não existe uma solução adequada paradeterminada aplicação, os modelos heterogêneos têm sido utilizados. Neste contexto, este artigo discute um modelo heterogêneo, chamado Extended Dataflow, que é uma extensão do modelo de fluxo de dados com suporte ao tratamento de eventos. O artigo mostra ainda como um software pode ser obtido a partir de especificações usando Extended Dataflow e discute o desenvolvimento de um protótipo de ferramenta de geração de código. Isso leva em consideração a possibilidade de reuso de componentes em aplicações de processamento digital de sinais. Um estudo de caso sobre aplicações adaptativas envolvendo filtros digitais é utilizado para ilustrar o trabalho.

Broadband absorption through extended resonance modes in random metamaterials

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hao, J.; Niemiec, R.; Lheurette, É.; Lippens, D.; Burgnies, L.

2016-01-01

The properties of disordered metamaterial absorbers are analyzed on the basis of numerical simulations and experimental characterizations. A broadening of the absorption spectrum is clearly evidenced. This effect is the consequence of both the coupling between nearby resonators leading to the occurrence of extended magnetic resonance modes and the interconnection of elementary particles yielding the definition of resonating clusters. The angular robustness of the absorbing structure under oblique incidence is also demonstrated for a wide domain of angles.

LysM domains mediate lipochitin-oligosaccharide recognition and Nfr genes extend the symbiotic host range

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Radutoiu, Simona; Madsen, Lene H; Madsen, Esben B

2007-01-01

and Nfr5 Nod-factor receptor genes in Medicago truncatula and L. filicaulis, extends their host range to include bacterial strains, Mesorhizobium loti or DZL, normally infecting L. japonicus. As a result, the symbiotic program is induced, nodules develop and infection threads are formed. Using L...

Prediction of Cancer Proteins by Integrating Protein Interaction, Domain Frequency, and Domain Interaction Data Using Machine Learning Algorithms

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Chien-Hung Huang

2015-01-01

Full Text Available Many proteins are known to be associated with cancer diseases. It is quite often that their precise functional role in disease pathogenesis remains unclear. A strategy to gain a better understanding of the function of these proteins is to make use of a combination of different aspects of proteomics data types. In this study, we extended Aragues’s method by employing the protein-protein interaction (PPI data, domain-domain interaction (DDI data, weighted domain frequency score (DFS, and cancer linker degree (CLD data to predict cancer proteins. Performances were benchmarked based on three kinds of experiments as follows: (I using individual algorithm, (II combining algorithms, and (III combining the same classification types of algorithms. When compared with Aragues’s method, our proposed methods, that is, machine learning algorithm and voting with the majority, are significantly superior in all seven performance measures. We demonstrated the accuracy of the proposed method on two independent datasets. The best algorithm can achieve a hit ratio of 89.4% and 72.8% for lung cancer dataset and lung cancer microarray study, respectively. It is anticipated that the current research could help understand disease mechanisms and diagnosis.

A mutational analysis of the endophilin-A N-BAR domain performed in living flies

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jung, Anita G; Mønsted, Christina Labarrera; Jansen, Anna M

2010-01-01

BAR domain clearly affected adult flies, larval endophilin function was surprisingly resistant to mutagenesis. Previous reports have stressed the importance of a central appendage on the convex BAR surface, which forms a hydrophobic ridge able to directly insert into the lipid bilayer. We found......-function studies of the endophilin-A BAR domain have almost exclusively been made in reduced systems, either in vitro or ex vivo in cultured cells. To extend and complement this work, we have analyzed the role played by the structural features of the endophilin-A BAR domain in Drosophila in vivo. METHODOLOGY...

Evaluation Codes from Order Domain Theory

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Andersen, Henning Ejnar; Geil, Hans Olav

2008-01-01

bound is easily extended to deal with any generalized Hamming weights. We interpret our methods into the setting of order domain theory. In this way we fill in an obvious gap in the theory of order domains. [28] T. Shibuya and K. Sakaniwa, A Dual of Well-Behaving Type Designed Minimum Distance, IEICE......The celebrated Feng-Rao bound estimates the minimum distance of codes defined by means of their parity check matrices. From the Feng-Rao bound it is clear how to improve a large family of codes by leaving out certain rows in their parity check matrices. In this paper we derive a simple lower bound...... on the minimum distance of codes defined by means of their generator matrices. From our bound it is clear how to improve a large family of codes by adding certain rows to their generator matrices. The new bound is very much related to the Feng-Rao bound as well as to Shibuya and Sakaniwa's bound in [28]. Our...

Evidence of benzenoid domains in nanographenes.

Science.gov (United States)

Baldoni, Matteo; Mercuri, Francesco

2015-01-21

Calculations based on density functional theory demonstrate the occurrence of local deformations of the perfect honeycomb lattice in nanographenes to form arrangements, with triangular symmetry, composed of six-membered ring patterns. The formation of these locally regular superstructures, which can be considered as benzenoid-like domains on the 2D graphene lattice, is ascribed to the gain in resonance energy deriving from aromaticity. The relationship between the atomic morphology of nanographenes and details of the relaxed structure is rationalized in terms of Clar's theory of the aromatic sextet and by extending concepts borrowed from valence bond theory to 2D carbon nanostructures. Namely, two regular arrangements can be evidenced, defined as Clar (fully benzenoid) and Kekulé domains, which correspond to two different regular bond patterns in sets of adjacent six-membered rings. Our findings are compatible with recent experiments and have potentially relevant consequences in the development of novel electronic devices based on graphene materials.

The extended RBAC model based on grid computing

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

CHEN Jian-gang; WANG Ru-chuan; WANG Hai-yan

2006-01-01

This article proposes the extended role-based access control (RBAC) model for solving dynamic and multidomain problems in grid computing, The formulated description of the model has been provided. The introduction of context and the mapping relations of context-to-role and context-to-permission help the model adapt to dynamic property in grid environment.The multidomain role inheritance relation by the authorization agent service realizes the multidomain authorization amongst the autonomy domain. A function has been proposed for solving the role inheritance conflict during the establishment of the multidomain role inheritance relation.

Distributed Dynamic State Estimation with Extended Kalman Filter

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Du, Pengwei; Huang, Zhenyu; Sun, Yannan; Diao, Ruisheng; Kalsi, Karanjit; Anderson, Kevin K.; Li, Yulan; Lee, Barry

2011-08-04

Increasing complexity associated with large-scale renewable resources and novel smart-grid technologies necessitates real-time monitoring and control. Our previous work applied the extended Kalman filter (EKF) with the use of phasor measurement data (PMU) for dynamic state estimation. However, high computation complexity creates significant challenges for real-time applications. In this paper, the problem of distributed dynamic state estimation is investigated. One domain decomposition method is proposed to utilize decentralized computing resources. The performance of distributed dynamic state estimation is tested on a 16-machine, 68-bus test system.

Mechanistic insights into phosphoprotein-binding FHA domains.

Science.gov (United States)

Liang, Xiangyang; Van Doren, Steven R

2008-08-01

[Structure: see text]. FHA domains are protein modules that switch signals in diverse biological pathways by monitoring the phosphorylation of threonine residues of target proteins. As part of the effort to gain insight into cellular avoidance of cancer, FHA domains involved in the cellular response to DNA damage have been especially well-characterized. The complete protein where the FHA domain resides and the interaction partners determine the nature of the signaling. Thus, a key biochemical question is how do FHA domains pick out their partners from among thousands of alternatives in the cell? This Account discusses the structure, affinity, and specificity of FHA domains and the formation of their functional structure. Although FHA domains share sequence identity at only five loop residues, they all fold into a beta-sandwich of two beta-sheets. The conserved arginine and serine of the recognition loops recognize the phosphorylation of the threonine targeted. Side chains emanating from loops that join beta-strand 4 with 5, 6 with 7, or 10 with 11 make specific contacts with amino acids of the ligand that tailor sequence preferences. Many FHA domains choose a partner in extended conformation, somewhat according to the residue three after the phosphothreonine in sequence (pT + 3 position). One group of FHA domains chooses a short carboxylate-containing side chain at pT + 3. Another group chooses a long, branched aliphatic side chain. A third group prefers other hydrophobic or uncharged polar side chains at pT + 3. However, another FHA domain instead chooses on the basis of pT - 2, pT - 3, and pT + 1 positions. An FHA domain from a marker of human cancer instead chooses a much longer protein fragment that adds a beta-strand to its beta-sheet and that presents hydrophobic residues from a novel helix to the usual recognition surface. This novel recognition site and more remote sites for the binding of other types of protein partners were predicted for the entire family

Generating Dynamic Persistence in the Time Domain

Science.gov (United States)

Guerrero, A.; Smith, L. A.; Smith, L. A.; Kaplan, D. T.

2001-12-01

Many dynamical systems present long-range correlations. Physically, these systems vary from biological to economical, including geological or urban systems. Important geophysical candidates for this type of behaviour include weather (or climate) and earthquake sequences. Persistence is characterised by slowly decaying correlation function; that, in theory, never dies out. The Persistence exponent reflects the degree of memory in the system and much effort has been expended creating and analysing methods that successfully estimate this parameter and model data that exhibits persistence. The most widely used methods for generating long correlated time series are not dynamical systems in the time domain, but instead are derived from a given spectral density. Little attention has been drawn to modelling persistence in the time domain. The time domain approach has the advantage that an observation at certain time can be calculated using previous observations which is particularly suitable when investigating the predictability of a long memory process. We will describe two of these methods in the time domain. One is a traditional approach using fractional ARIMA (autoregressive and moving average) models; the second uses a novel approach to extending a given series using random Fourier basis functions. The statistical quality of the two methods is compared, and they are contrasted with weather data which shows, reportedly, persistence. The suitability of this approach both for estimating predictability and for making predictions is discussed.

Time domain passivity controller for 4-channel time-delay bilateral teleoperation.

Science.gov (United States)

Rebelo, Joao; Schiele, Andre

2015-01-01

This paper presents an extension of the time-domain passivity control approach to a four-channel bilateral controller under the effects of time delays. Time-domain passivity control has been used successfully to stabilize teleoperation systems with position-force and position-position controllers; however, the performance with such control architectures is sub-optimal both with and without time delays. This work extends the network representation of the time-domain passivity controller to the four-channel architecture, which provides perfect transparency to the user without time delay. The proposed architecture is based on modelling the controllers as dependent voltage sources and using only series passivity controllers. The obtained results are shown on a one degree-of-freedom setup and illustrate the stabilization behaviour of the proposed controller when time delay is present in the communication channel.

Habitual Cognitive Reappraisal Was Negatively Related to Perceived Immorality in the Harm and Fairness Domains

OpenAIRE

Li, Zhongquan; Wu, Xiaoyuan; Zhang, Lisong; Zhang, Ziyuan

2017-01-01

Emotion plays an important role in moral judgment, and people always use emotion regulation strategies to modulate emotion, consciously or unconsciously. Previous studies had investigated only the relationship between emotion regulation strategies and moral judgment in the Harm domain, and revealed divergent results. Based on Moral Foundations Theory, the present study extended the investigation into moral judgment in all five moral domains and used a set of standardized moral vignettes. Two ...

Interdependence of the rad50 hook and globular domain functions.

Science.gov (United States)

Hohl, Marcel; Kochańczyk, Tomasz; Tous, Cristina; Aguilera, Andrés; Krężel, Artur; Petrini, John H J

2015-02-05

Rad50 contains a conserved Zn(2+) coordination domain (the Rad50 hook) that functions as a homodimerization interface. Hook ablation phenocopies Rad50 deficiency in all respects. Here, we focused on rad50 mutations flanking the Zn(2+)-coordinating hook cysteines. These mutants impaired hook-mediated dimerization, but recombination between sister chromatids was largely unaffected. This may reflect that cohesin-mediated sister chromatid interactions are sufficient for double-strand break repair. However, Mre11 complex functions specified by the globular domain, including Tel1 (ATM) activation, nonhomologous end joining, and DNA double-strand break end resection were affected, suggesting that dimerization exerts a broad influence on Mre11 complex function. These phenotypes were suppressed by mutations within the coiled-coil and globular ATPase domains, suggesting a model in which conformational changes in the hook and globular domains are transmitted via the extended coils of Rad50. We propose that transmission of spatial information in this manner underlies the regulation of Mre11 complex functions. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Small Molecule Inhibitors That Selectively Block Dengue Virus Methyltransferase*

Science.gov (United States)

Lim, Siew Pheng; Sonntag, Louis Sebastian; Noble, Christian; Nilar, Shahul H.; Ng, Ru Hui; Zou, Gang; Monaghan, Paul; Chung, Ka Yan; Dong, Hongping; Liu, Boping; Bodenreider, Christophe; Lee, Gladys; Ding, Mei; Chan, Wai Ling; Wang, Gang; Jian, Yap Li; Chao, Alexander Theodore; Lescar, Julien; Yin, Zheng; Vedananda, T. R.; Keller, Thomas H.; Shi, Pei-Yong

2011-01-01

Crystal structure analysis of Flavivirus methyltransferases uncovered a flavivirus-conserved cavity located next to the binding site for its cofactor, S-adenosyl-methionine (SAM). Chemical derivatization of S-adenosyl-homocysteine (SAH), the product inhibitor of the methylation reaction, with substituents that extend into the identified cavity, generated inhibitors that showed improved and selective activity against dengue virus methyltransferase (MTase), but not related human enzymes. Crystal structure of dengue virus MTase with a bound SAH derivative revealed that its N6-substituent bound in this cavity and induced conformation changes in residues lining the pocket. These findings demonstrate that one of the major hurdles for the development of methyltransferase-based therapeutics, namely selectivity for disease-related methyltransferases, can be overcome. PMID:21147775

Dp spaces on bounded symmetric domains of Cn

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shi Jihuai.

1989-06-01

In this paper, the space D p (Ω) of functions holomorphic on bounded symmetric domain of C m is defined. We prove that H p (Ω) is contained in D p (Ω) if 0 p (Ω) is contained in H p (Ω) if p ≥2, and both inclusions are proper. Further we find that some theorems on H p (Ω) can be extended to the wider class D p (Ω) for 0 < p ≤ 2. (author). 12 refs

Space and power: young mothers' management of smoking in extended families in China.

Science.gov (United States)

Mao, Aimei

2013-05-01

Multigenerational co-residence is a widespread phenomenon in China but there is little knowledge about the impact of power dynamics on smoking behaviors among extended family residents. Using a gender lens, this ethnographic study explored how young mothers in extended families in mainland China managed the smoking of their husbands and other family members. Analysis of data resulted in a model of 'two units-three domains' to reflect gendered relationships between young mothers and other family members, and young mothers' participation in family management. Exploration of the mothers' efforts to deal with household smoking using the model provided an explanation for why the young mothers had limited control over household space and could only impose partial restrictions on home smoking in the extended family. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Impaired Work Productivity After Aneurysmal Subarachnoid Hemorrhage.

Science.gov (United States)

Crago, Elizabeth A; Price, Thomas J; Bender, Catherine M; Ren, Dianxu; Poloyac, Samuel M; Sherwood, Paula R

2016-10-01

Aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage (aSAH) is a sudden debilitating condition affecting individuals during the most productive times of their lives. Treatment advances have reduced mortality rates but increased the number of survivors facing deficits in physical and neuropsychological function. This study examined associations between neuropsychological function and work productivity after aSAH. Fifty-two patients with aSAH, employed before hemorrhage, were recruited from an ongoing National Institutes of Health study. Work Limitations Questionnaire (WLQ), neuropsychological tests (executive function, psychomotor speed, attention and mental flexibility, memory), and Patient Assessment of Own Function were completed at 3 and 12 months after aSAH. Subjects in this analysis reported some level of difficulty in work productivity at 3 and 12 months (35% and 30%, respectively) after hemorrhage. Lower WLQ scores in time management and mental/interpersonal subscales were associated with poorer performance in psychomotor function (r = .5, p = .04 and r = .42, p = .09). Poorer mental flexibility and working memory correlated with time management difficulty at 3 months (r = -.4, p = .09 and r = .54, p = .02). Patients performing poorly on story recall tests were more likely to report difficulty with job physical performance (r = -.42, p = .09) and completing work effectively (r = .61, p = .009). Poorer working memory performance was associated with lower scores on mental/interpersonal WLQ subscales (r = .45, p = .05) and overall health-related work productivity loss (r = .47, p = .04). WLQ areas also correlated with participants' perception of their neuropsychological function after aSAH. These results suggest that neuropsychological deficits impact work quality after hemorrhage and provide strong impetus for future studies so that domain-specific interventions can be implemented to improve outcomes that affect quality of life including work productivity.

Molecular Mechanics of the α-Actinin Rod Domain: Bending, Torsional, and Extensional Behavior

Science.gov (United States)

Golji, Javad; Collins, Robert; Mofrad, Mohammad R. K.

2009-01-01

α-Actinin is an actin crosslinking molecule that can serve as a scaffold and maintain dynamic actin filament networks. As a crosslinker in the stressed cytoskeleton, α-actinin can retain conformation, function, and strength. α-Actinin has an actin binding domain and a calmodulin homology domain separated by a long rod domain. Using molecular dynamics and normal mode analysis, we suggest that the α-actinin rod domain has flexible terminal regions which can twist and extend under mechanical stress, yet has a highly rigid interior region stabilized by aromatic packing within each spectrin repeat, by electrostatic interactions between the spectrin repeats, and by strong salt bridges between its two anti-parallel monomers. By exploring the natural vibrations of the α-actinin rod domain and by conducting bending molecular dynamics simulations we also predict that bending of the rod domain is possible with minimal force. We introduce computational methods for analyzing the torsional strain of molecules using rotating constraints. Molecular dynamics extension of the α-actinin rod is also performed, demonstrating transduction of the unfolding forces across salt bridges to the associated monomer of the α-actinin rod domain. PMID:19436721

Vibration sensing in flexible structures using a distributed-effect modal domain optical fiber sensor

Science.gov (United States)

Reichard, Karl M.; Lindner, Douglas K.; Claus, Richard O.

1991-01-01

Modal domain optical fiber sensors have recently been employed in the implementation of system identification algorithms and the closed-loop control of vibrations in flexible structures. The mathematical model of the modal domain optical fiber sensor used in these applications, however, only accounted for the effects of strain in the direction of the fiber's longitudinal axis. In this paper, we extend this model to include the effects of arbitrary stress. Using this sensor model, we characterize the sensor's sensitivity and dynamic range.

Minimum-domain impulse theory for unsteady aerodynamic force

Science.gov (United States)

Kang, L. L.; Liu, L. Q.; Su, W. D.; Wu, J. Z.

2018-01-01

We extend the impulse theory for unsteady aerodynamics from its classic global form to finite-domain formulation then to minimum-domain form and from incompressible to compressible flows. For incompressible flow, the minimum-domain impulse theory raises the finding of Li and Lu ["Force and power of flapping plates in a fluid," J. Fluid Mech. 712, 598-613 (2012)] to a theorem: The entire force with discrete wake is completely determined by only the time rate of impulse of those vortical structures still connecting to the body, along with the Lamb-vector integral thereof that captures the contribution of all the rest disconnected vortical structures. For compressible flows, we find that the global form in terms of the curl of momentum ∇ × (ρu), obtained by Huang [Unsteady Vortical Aerodynamics (Shanghai Jiaotong University Press, 1994)], can be generalized to having an arbitrary finite domain, but the formula is cumbersome and in general ∇ × (ρu) no longer has discrete structures and hence no minimum-domain theory exists. Nevertheless, as the measure of transverse process only, the unsteady field of vorticity ω or ρω may still have a discrete wake. This leads to a minimum-domain compressible vorticity-moment theory in terms of ρω (but it is beyond the classic concept of impulse). These new findings and applications have been confirmed by our numerical experiments. The results not only open an avenue to combine the theory with computation-experiment in wide applications but also reveal a physical truth that it is no longer necessary to account for all wake vortical structures in computing the force and moment.

Distinct ubiquitin binding modes exhibited by SH3 domains: molecular determinants and functional implications.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jose L Ortega Roldan

Full Text Available SH3 domains constitute a new type of ubiquitin-binding domains. We previously showed that the third SH3 domain (SH3-C of CD2AP binds ubiquitin in an alternative orientation. We have determined the structure of the complex between first CD2AP SH3 domain and ubiquitin and performed a structural and mutational analysis to decipher the determinants of the SH3-C binding mode to ubiquitin. We found that the Phe-to-Tyr mutation in CD2AP and in the homologous CIN85 SH3-C domain does not abrogate ubiquitin binding, in contrast to previous hypothesis and our findings for the first two CD2AP SH3 domains. The similar alternative binding mode of the SH3-C domains of these related adaptor proteins is characterised by a higher affinity to C-terminal extended ubiquitin molecules. We conclude that CD2AP/CIN85 SH3-C domain interaction with ubiquitin constitutes a new ubiquitin-binding mode involved in a different cellular function and thus changes the previously established mechanism of EGF-dependent CD2AP/CIN85 mono-ubiquitination.

Ferroelectric and ferroelastic domain structures in piezoelectric ceramics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bursill, L.A.; Julin Peng.

1990-01-01

A discussion of the results of conventional and high-resolution high-voltage electron microscopic studies of two ferroelectrics, barium sodium niobate and lead zirconium titanate is presented. It is shown that a rich variety of information such as ferroelectric and/or ferroelastic domains discommensurations versus antiphase boundaries, extended versus localized chemical defects and multiphase versus grain boundaries, become accessible in both single crystal and polycrystalline piezoelectrics, when a combination of high-resolution and conventional electron optical techniques is used. 15 refs., 8 figs

Domains and domain loss

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Haberland, Hartmut

2005-01-01

politicians and in the media, especially in the discussion whether some languages undergo ‘domain loss’ vis-à-vis powerful international languages like English. An objection that has been raised here is that domains, as originally conceived, are parameters of language choice and not properties of languages...

Amino-terminal domain of classic cadherins determines the specificity of the adhesive interactions

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Klingelhöfer, Jörg; Troyanovsky, R B; Laur, O Y

2000-01-01

Classic cadherins are transmembrane receptors involved in cell type-specific calcium-dependent intercellular adhesion. The specificity of adhesion is mediated by homophilic interactions between cadherins extending from opposing cell surfaces. In addition, classic cadherins can self-associate form......Classic cadherins are transmembrane receptors involved in cell type-specific calcium-dependent intercellular adhesion. The specificity of adhesion is mediated by homophilic interactions between cadherins extending from opposing cell surfaces. In addition, classic cadherins can self....... To study lateral and adhesive intercadherin interactions, we examined interactions between two classic cadherins, E- and P-cadherins, in epithelial A-431 cells co-producing both proteins. We showed that these cells exhibited heterocomplexes consisting of laterally assembled E- and P....... The specificity of adhesive interaction was localized to the amino-terminal (EC1) domain of both cadherins. Thus, EC1 domain of classic cadherins exposes two determinants responsible for nonspecific lateral and cadherin type-specific adhesive dimerization....

Improving the performance of DomainDiscovery of protein domain boundary assignment using inter-domain linker index

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Zomaya Albert Y

2006-12-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Knowledge of protein domain boundaries is critical for the characterisation and understanding of protein function. The ability to identify domains without the knowledge of the structure – by using sequence information only – is an essential step in many types of protein analyses. In this present study, we demonstrate that the performance of DomainDiscovery is improved significantly by including the inter-domain linker index value for domain identification from sequence-based information. Improved DomainDiscovery uses a Support Vector Machine (SVM approach and a unique training dataset built on the principle of consensus among experts in defining domains in protein structure. The SVM was trained using a PSSM (Position Specific Scoring Matrix, secondary structure, solvent accessibility information and inter-domain linker index to detect possible domain boundaries for a target sequence. Results Improved DomainDiscovery is compared with other methods by benchmarking against a structurally non-redundant dataset and also CASP5 targets. Improved DomainDiscovery achieves 70% accuracy for domain boundary identification in multi-domains proteins. Conclusion Improved DomainDiscovery compares favourably to the performance of other methods and excels in the identification of domain boundaries for multi-domain proteins as a result of introducing support vector machine with benchmark_2 dataset.

Baryogenesis in extended inflation. I. Baryogenesis via production and decay of supermassive bosons

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Barrow, J.D.; Copeland, E.J.; Kolb, E.W.; Liddle, A.R.

1991-01-01

We consider baryogenesis occurring during the thermalization stage at the end of extended inflation. In extended inflation, the Universe passes through a first-order phase transition via bubble nucleation; inflation comes to an end when bubbles collide and their collisions convert energy stored in the bubble walls into particles. This naturally provides conditions well out of thermal equilibrium in which baryon-number-violating processes may proceed; we estimate the amount of baryon asymmetry which may be produced this way. The avoidance of a monopole or domain-wall problem can also be ensured and isothermal density perturbations may arise as a remnant of spatial variation in the baryon asymmetry

Genetic Epidemiology of Spontaneous Subarachnoid Hemorrhage

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Korja, Miikka; Silventoinen, Karri; McCarron, Peter

2010-01-01

and 1 opposite sex) and 492 discordant twin pairs for SAH. The concordance for SAH in monozygotic twins was 3.1% compared with 0.27% in dizygotic twins, suggesting at most a modest role for genetic factors in the etiology of SAH. The population-based probability estimate for SAH in dizygotic siblings...... of a patient with SAH is 0.54%, and only 1 of 185 full siblings experience familial SAH. The corresponding risk of SAH in monozygotic twins is 5.9%. Model-fitting, which was based on the comparison of the few monozygotic and dizygotic pairs, suggested that the estimated heritability of SAH is 41%. CONCLUSIONS...

Thick domain wall spacetimes with and without reflection symmetry

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Melfo, Alejandra; Pantoja, Nelson; Skirzewski, Aureliano

2003-01-01

We show that different thick domain wall spacetimes, for which the scalar field configuration and the potential are the same, can be found as solutions to the coupled Einstein-scalar field equations, depending on whether or not reflection symmetry on the wall is imposed. Spacetimes with reflection symmetry may be dynamic or static, while the asymmetric ones are static. Asymmetric walls are asymptotically flat on one side and reduce to the Taub spacetime on the other. Examples of asymmetric thick walls in D-dimensional spacetimes are given, and previous analysis on the distributional thin-wall limit of the dynamic symmetric thick walls are extended to the asymmetric case. A new family of reflection symmetric, static thick domain wall spacetimes, including previously known Bogomol'nyi-Prasad-Sommerfield walls, is presented

Distribution of PASTA domains in penicillin-binding proteins and serine/threonine kinases of Actinobacteria.

Science.gov (United States)

Ogawara, Hiroshi

2016-09-01

PASTA domains (penicillin-binding protein and serine/threonine kinase-associated domains) have been identified in penicillin-binding proteins and serine/threonine kinases of Gram-positive Firmicutes and Actinobacteria. They are believed to bind β-lactam antibiotics, and be involved in peptidoglycan metabolism, although their biological function is not definitively clarified. Actinobacteria, especially Streptomyces species, are distinct in that they undergo complex cellular differentiation and produce various antibiotics including β-lactams. This review focuses on the distribution of PASTA domains in penicillin-binding proteins and serine/threonine kinases in Actinobacteria. In Actinobacteria, PASTA domains are detectable exclusively in class A but not in class B penicillin-binding proteins, in sharp contrast to the cases in other bacteria. In penicillin-binding proteins, PASTA domains distribute independently from taxonomy with some distribution bias. Particularly interesting thing is that no Streptomyces species have penicillin-binding protein with PASTA domains. Protein kinases in Actinobacteria possess 0 to 5 PASTA domains in their molecules. Protein kinases in Streptomyces can be classified into three groups: no PASTA domain, 1 PASTA domain and 4 PASTA domain-containing groups. The 4 PASTA domain-containing groups can be further divided into two subgroups. The serine/threonine kinases in different groups may perform different functions. The pocket region in one of these subgroup is more dense and extended, thus it may be involved in binding of ligands like β-lactams more efficiently.

Genoarchitecture of the extended amygdala in zebra finch, and expression of FoxP2 in cell corridors of different genetic profile.

Science.gov (United States)

Vicario, Alba; Mendoza, Ezequiel; Abellán, Antonio; Scharff, Constance; Medina, Loreta

2017-01-01

We used a battery of genes encoding transcription factors (Pax6, Islet1, Nkx2.1, Lhx6, Lhx5, Lhx9, FoxP2) and neuropeptides to study the extended amygdala in developing zebra finches. We identified different components of the central extended amygdala comparable to those found in mice and chickens, including the intercalated amygdalar cells, the central amygdala, and the lateral bed nucleus of the stria terminalis. Many cells likely originate in the dorsal striatal domain, ventral striatal domain, or the pallidal domain, as is the case in mice and chickens. Moreover, a cell subpopulation of the central extended amygdala appears to originate in the prethalamic eminence. As a general principle, these different cells with specific genetic profiles and embryonic origin form separate or partially intermingled cell corridors along the extended amygdala, which may be involved in different functional pathways. In addition, we identified the medial amygdala of the zebra finch. Like in the chickens and mice, it is located in the subpallium and is rich in cells of pallido-preoptic origin, containing minor subpopulations of immigrant cells from the ventral pallium, alar hypothalamus and prethalamic eminence. We also proposed that the medial bed nucleus of the stria terminalis is composed of several parallel cell corridors with different genetic profile and embryonic origin: preoptic, pallidal, hypothalamic, and prethalamic. Several of these cell corridors with distinct origin express FoxP2, a transcription factor implicated in synaptic plasticity. Our results pave the way for studies using zebra finches to understand the neural basis of social behavior, in which the extended amygdala is involved.

Domain analysis of computational science - Fifty years of a scientific computing group

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Tanaka, M.

2010-02-23

I employed bibliometric- and historical-methods to study the domain of the Scientific Computing group at Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL) for an extended period of fifty years, from 1958 to 2007. I noted and confirmed the growing emergence of interdisciplinarity within the group. I also identified a strong, consistent mathematics and physics orientation within it.

Extended timescale atomistic modeling of crack tip behavior in aluminum

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Baker, K L; Warner, D H

2012-01-01

Traditional molecular dynamics (MD) simulations are limited not only by their spatial domain, but also by the time domain that they can examine. Considering that many of the events associated with plasticity are thermally activated, and thus rare at atomic timescales, the limited time domain of traditional MD simulations can present a significant challenge when trying to realistically model the mechanical behavior of materials. A wide variety of approaches have been developed to address the timescale challenge, each having their own strengths and weaknesses dependent upon the specific application. Here, we have simultaneously applied three distinct approaches to model crack tip behavior in aluminum at timescales well beyond those accessible to traditional MD simulation. Specifically, we combine concurrent multiscale modeling (to reduce the degrees of freedom in the system), parallel replica dynamics (to parallelize the simulations in time) and hyperdynamics (to accelerate the exploration of phase space). Overall, the simulations (1) provide new insight into atomic-scale crack tip behavior at more typical timescales and (2) illuminate the potential of common extended timescale techniques to enable atomic-scale modeling of fracture processes at typical experimental timescales. (paper)

On the use of transition matrix methods with extended ensembles.

Science.gov (United States)

Escobedo, Fernando A; Abreu, Charlles R A

2006-03-14

Different extended ensemble schemes for non-Boltzmann sampling (NBS) of a selected reaction coordinate lambda were formulated so that they employ (i) "variable" sampling window schemes (that include the "successive umbrella sampling" method) to comprehensibly explore the lambda domain and (ii) transition matrix methods to iteratively obtain the underlying free-energy eta landscape (or "importance" weights) associated with lambda. The connection between "acceptance ratio" and transition matrix methods was first established to form the basis of the approach for estimating eta(lambda). The validity and performance of the different NBS schemes were then assessed using as lambda coordinate the configurational energy of the Lennard-Jones fluid. For the cases studied, it was found that the convergence rate in the estimation of eta is little affected by the use of data from high-order transitions, while it is noticeably improved by the use of a broader window of sampling in the variable window methods. Finally, it is shown how an "elastic" window of sampling can be used to effectively enact (nonuniform) preferential sampling over the lambda domain, and how to stitch the weights from separate one-dimensional NBS runs to produce a eta surface over a two-dimensional domain.

MPEG-2 Compressed-Domain Algorithms for Video Analysis

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hesseler Wolfgang

2006-01-01

Full Text Available This paper presents new algorithms for extracting metadata from video sequences in the MPEG-2 compressed domain. Three algorithms for efficient low-level metadata extraction in preprocessing stages are described. The first algorithm detects camera motion using the motion vector field of an MPEG-2 video. The second method extends the idea of motion detection to a limited region of interest, yielding an efficient algorithm to track objects inside video sequences. The third algorithm performs a cut detection using macroblock types and motion vectors.

Quasi-exact evaluation of time domain MFIE MOT matrix elements

KAUST Repository

Shi, Yifei; Bagci, Hakan; Shanker, Balasubramaniam; Lu, Mingyu; Michielssen, Eric

2013-01-01

A previously proposed quasi-exact scheme for evaluating matrix elements resulting from the marching-on-in-time (MOT) discretization of the time domain electric field integral equation (EFIE) is extended to matrix entries resulting from the discretization of its magnetic field integral equation (MFIE) counterpart. Numerical results demonstrate the accuracy of the scheme as well as the late-time stability of the resulting MOT-MFIE solver. © 2013 IEEE.

Quasi-exact evaluation of time domain MFIE MOT matrix elements

KAUST Repository

Shi, Yifei

2013-07-01

A previously proposed quasi-exact scheme for evaluating matrix elements resulting from the marching-on-in-time (MOT) discretization of the time domain electric field integral equation (EFIE) is extended to matrix entries resulting from the discretization of its magnetic field integral equation (MFIE) counterpart. Numerical results demonstrate the accuracy of the scheme as well as the late-time stability of the resulting MOT-MFIE solver. © 2013 IEEE.

Structures of the NLRP14 pyrin domain reveal a conformational switch mechanism regulating its molecular interactions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Eibl, Clarissa; Hessenberger, Manuel; Wenger, Julia; Brandstetter, Hans

2014-01-01

Pyrin domains (PYDs) recruit downstream effector molecules in NLR signalling. A specific charge-relay system suggests a the formation of a signalling complex involving a PYD dimer. The cytosolic tripartite NLR receptors serve as important signalling platforms in innate immunity. While the C-terminal domains act as sensor and activation modules, the N-terminal death-like domain, e.g. the CARD or pyrin domain, is thought to recruit downstream effector molecules by homotypic interactions. Such homotypic complexes have been determined for all members of the death-domain superfamily except for pyrin domains. Here, crystal structures of human NLRP14 pyrin-domain variants are reported. The wild-type protein as well as the clinical D86V mutant reveal an unexpected rearrangement of the C-terminal helix α6, resulting in an extended α5/6 stem-helix. This reordering mediates a novel symmetric pyrin-domain dimerization mode. The conformational switching is controlled by a charge-relay system with a drastic impact on protein stability. How the identified charge relay allows classification of NLRP receptors with respect to distinct recruitment mechanisms is discussed

Oracle, a novel PDZ-LIM domain protein expressed in heart and skeletal muscle.

Science.gov (United States)

Passier, R; Richardson, J A; Olson, E N

2000-04-01

In order to identify novel genes enriched in adult heart, we performed a subtractive hybridization for genes expressed in mouse heart but not in skeletal muscle. We identified two alternative splicing variants of a novel PDZ-LIM domain protein, which we named Oracle. Both variants contain a PDZ domain at the amino-terminus and three LIM domains at the carboxy-terminus. Highest homology of Oracle was found with the human and rat enigma proteins in the PDZ domain (62 and 61%, respectively) and in the LIM domains (60 and 69%, respectively). By Northern hybridization analysis, we showed that expression is highest in adult mouse heart, low in skeletal muscle and undetectable in other adult mouse tissues. In situ hybridization in mouse embryos confirmed and extended these data by showing high expression of Oracle mRNA in atrial and ventricular myocardial cells from E8.5. From E9.5 low expression of Oracle mRNA was detectable in myotomes. These data suggest a role for Oracle in the early development and function of heart and skeletal muscle.

Domain structure of a NHEJ DNA repair ligase from Mycobacterium tuberculosis.

Science.gov (United States)

Pitcher, Robert S; Tonkin, Louise M; Green, Andrew J; Doherty, Aidan J

2005-08-19

A prokaryotic non-homologous end-joining (NHEJ) system for the repair of DNA double-strand breaks (DSBs), composed of a Ku homodimer (Mt-Ku) and a multidomain multifunctional ATP-dependent DNA ligase (Mt-Lig), has been described recently in Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Mt-Lig exhibits polymerase and nuclease activity in addition to DNA ligation activity. These functions were ascribed to putative polymerase, nuclease and ligase domains that together constitute a monomeric protein. Here, the separate polymerase, nuclease and ligase domains of Mt-Lig were cloned individually, over-expressed and the soluble proteins purified to homogeneity. The polymerase domain demonstrated DNA-dependent RNA primase activity, catalysing the synthesis of unprimed oligoribonucleotides on single-stranded DNA templates. The polymerase domain can also extend DNA in a template-dependent manner. This activity was eliminated when the catalytic aspartate residues were replaced with alanine. The ligase domain catalysed the sealing of nicked double-stranded DNA designed to mimic a DSB, consistent with the role of Mt-Lig in NHEJ. Deletion of the active-site lysine residue prevented the formation of an adenylated ligase complex and consequently thwarted ligation. The nuclease domain did not function independently as a 3'-5' exonuclease. DNA-binding assays revealed that both the polymerase and ligase domains bind DNA in vitro, the latter with considerably higher affinity. Mt-Ku directly stimulated the polymerase and nuclease activities of Mt-Lig. The polymerase domain bound Mt-Ku in vitro, suggesting it may recruit Mt-Lig to Ku-bound DNA in vivo. Consistent with these data, Mt-Ku stimulated the primer extension activity of the polymerase domain, suggestive of a functional interaction relevant to NHEJ-mediated DSB repair processes.

Time domain analysis of thin-wire antennas over lossy ground using the reflection-coefficient approximation

Science.gov (United States)

FernáNdez Pantoja, M.; Yarovoy, A. G.; Rubio Bretones, A.; GonzáLez GarcíA, S.

2009-12-01

This paper presents a procedure to extend the methods of moments in time domain for the transient analysis of thin-wire antennas to include those cases where the antennas are located over a lossy half-space. This extended technique is based on the reflection coefficient (RC) approach, which approximates the fields incident on the ground interface as plane waves and calculates the time domain RC using the inverse Fourier transform of Fresnel equations. The implementation presented in this paper uses general expressions for the RC which extend its range of applicability to lossy grounds, and is proven to be accurate and fast for antennas located not too near to the ground. The resulting general purpose procedure, able to treat arbitrarily oriented thin-wire antennas, is appropriate for all kind of half-spaces, including lossy cases, and it has turned out to be as computationally fast solving the problem of an arbitrary ground as dealing with a perfect electric conductor ground plane. Results show a numerical validation of the method for different half-spaces, paying special attention to the influence of the antenna to ground distance in the accuracy of the results.

The transmembrane collagen COL-99 guides longitudinally extending axons in C. elegans.

Science.gov (United States)

Taylor, Jesse; Unsoeld, Thomas; Hutter, Harald

2018-06-01

We have identified the transmembrane collagen, COL-99, in a genetic screen for novel genes involved in axon guidance in the nematode C. elegans. COL-99 is similar to transmembrane collagens type XIII, XXIII and XXV in vertebrates. col-99 mutants exhibit guidance defects in axons extending along the major longitudinal axon tracts, most prominently the left ventral nerve cord (VNC). COL-99 is expressed in the hypodermis during the time of axon outgrowth. We provide evidence that a furin cleavage site in COL-99 is essential for function, suggesting that COL-99 is released from the cells producing it. Vertebrate homologs of COL-99 have been shown to be expressed in mammalian nervous systems and linked to various neurological disease but have not been associated with guidance of extending neurons. col-99 acts genetically with the discoidin domain receptors ddr-1 and ddr-2, which are expressed by neurons affected in col-99 mutants. Discoidin domain receptors are activated by collagens in vertebrates. DDR-1 and DDR-2 may function as receptors for COL-99. Our results establish a novel role for a transmembrane collagen in axonal guidance and asymmetry establishment of the VNC. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Protein sorting by lipid phase-like domains supports emergent signaling function in B lymphocyte plasma membranes.

Science.gov (United States)

Stone, Matthew B; Shelby, Sarah A; Núñez, Marcos F; Wisser, Kathleen; Veatch, Sarah L

2017-02-01

Diverse cellular signaling events, including B cell receptor (BCR) activation, are hypothesized to be facilitated by domains enriched in specific plasma membrane lipids and proteins that resemble liquid-ordered phase-separated domains in model membranes. This concept remains controversial and lacks direct experimental support in intact cells. Here, we visualize ordered and disordered domains in mouse B lymphoma cell membranes using super-resolution fluorescence localization microscopy, demonstrate that clustered BCR resides within ordered phase-like domains capable of sorting key regulators of BCR activation, and present a minimal, predictive model where clustering receptors leads to their collective activation by stabilizing an extended ordered domain. These results provide evidence for the role of membrane domains in BCR signaling and a plausible mechanism of BCR activation via receptor clustering that could be generalized to other signaling pathways. Overall, these studies demonstrate that lipid mediated forces can bias biochemical networks in ways that broadly impact signal transduction.

Indicators of Subarachnoid Hemorrhage as a Cause of Sudden Cardiac Arrest

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Joseph Zachariah

2016-03-01

Full Text Available Subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH may present with cardiac arrest (SAH-CA. We report a case of SAH-CA to assist providers in distinguishing SAH as an etiology of cardiac arrest despite electrocardiogram findings that may be suggestive of a cardiac etiology. SAH-CA is associated with high rates of return of spontaneous circulation, but overall poor outcome. An initially non-shockable cardiac rhythm and the absence of brain stem reflexes are important clues in indentifying SAH-CA.

CCR+: Metadata Based Extended Personal Health Record Data Model Interoperable with the ASTM CCR Standard.

Science.gov (United States)

Park, Yu Rang; Yoon, Young Jo; Jang, Tae Hun; Seo, Hwa Jeong; Kim, Ju Han

2014-01-01

Extension of the standard model while retaining compliance with it is a challenging issue because there is currently no method for semantically or syntactically verifying an extended data model. A metadata-based extended model, named CCR+, was designed and implemented to achieve interoperability between standard and extended models. Furthermore, a multilayered validation method was devised to validate the standard and extended models. The American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) Community Care Record (CCR) standard was selected to evaluate the CCR+ model; two CCR and one CCR+ XML files were evaluated. In total, 188 metadata were extracted from the ASTM CCR standard; these metadata are semantically interconnected and registered in the metadata registry. An extended-data-model-specific validation file was generated from these metadata. This file can be used in a smartphone application (Health Avatar CCR+) as a part of a multilayered validation. The new CCR+ model was successfully evaluated via a patient-centric exchange scenario involving multiple hospitals, with the results supporting both syntactic and semantic interoperability between the standard CCR and extended, CCR+, model. A feasible method for delivering an extended model that complies with the standard model is presented herein. There is a great need to extend static standard models such as the ASTM CCR in various domains: the methods presented here represent an important reference for achieving interoperability between standard and extended models.

Extended Impact of Pin1 Catalytic Loop Phosphorylation Revealed by S71E Phosphomimetic.

Science.gov (United States)

Mahoney, Brendan J; Zhang, Meiling; Zintsmaster, John S; Peng, Jeffrey W

2018-03-02

Pin1 is a two-domain human protein that catalyzes the cis-trans isomerization of phospho-Ser/Thr-Pro (pS/T-P) motifs in numerous cell-cycle regulatory proteins. These pS/T-P motifs bind to Pin1's peptidyl-prolyl isomerase (PPIase) domain in a catalytic pocket, between an extended catalytic loop and the PPIase domain core. Previous studies showed that post-translational phosphorylation of S71 in the catalytic loop decreases substrate binding affinity and isomerase activity. To define the origins for these effects, we investigated a phosphomimetic Pin1 mutant, S71E-Pin1, using solution NMR. We find that S71E perturbs not only its host loop but also the nearby PPIase core. The perturbations identify a local network of hydrogen bonds and salt bridges that is more extended than previously thought, and includes interactions between the catalytic loop and the α2/α3 turn in the PPIase core. Explicit-solvent molecular dynamics simulations and phylogenetic analysis suggest that these interactions act as conserved "latches" between the loop and PPIase core that enhance binding of phosphorylated substrates, as they are absent in PPIases lacking pS/T-P specificity. Our results suggest that S71 is a hub residue within an electrostatic network primed for phosphorylation, and may illustrate a common mechanism of phosphorylation-mediated allostery. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Magnetic switching, relaxation, and domain structure of a Co/Si(111) film

Science.gov (United States)

Baird, M. J.; Bland, J. A. C.; Gu, E.; Ives, A. J. R.; Schumann, F. O.; Hughes, H. P.

1993-11-01

We have used scanning magneto-optic Kerr effect (MOKE) microscopy to investigate the magnetic relaxation of a polycrystalline hcp 125 Å Co/Si(111) film with planar uniaxial anisotropy, on time scales between 10 and 2400 s and with a spatial resolution of 15 μm. In a static magnetic field slightly less than the coercive field and applied along the easy axis direction, domains develop and the magnetization reversal proceeds via displacements of 180° domain walls. Microscopic images of this metastable state allow the 180° domains to be identified by calibration of the MOKE signal with respect to that for the saturated magnetization states. The 180° reversed domains are observed to grow in the direction of the field in the form of narrow fingers, extending via short Barkhausen jumps, randomly spaced in time over the entire time-scale range investigated, with typical distances between pinning sites of the order of microns. This reversal behavior is qualitatively similar to that reported for Au/Co perpendicular anisotropy films a few monolayers thick.

Successful application of frequency-domain airborne electromagnetic system with a grounded electric source

Science.gov (United States)

Kang, L.; Lin, J.; Liu, C.; Zhou, H.; Ren, T.; Yao, Y.

2017-12-01

A new frequency-domain AEM system with a grounded electric source, which was called ground-airborne frequency-domain electromagnetic (GAFEM) system, was proposed to extend penetration depth without compromising the resolution and detection efficiency. In GAFEM system, an electric source was placed on the ground to enlarge the strength of response signals. UVA was chosen as aircraft to reduce interaction noise and improve its ability to adapt to complex terrain. Multi-source and multi-frequency emission method has been researched and applied to improve the efficiency of GAFEM system. 2n pseudorandom sequence was introduced as transmitting waveform, to ensure resolution and detection efficiency. Inversion-procedure based on full-space apparent resistivity formula was built to realize GAFEM method and extend the survey area to non-far field. Based on GAFEM system, two application was conducted in Changchun, China, to map the deep conductive structure. As shown in the results of this exploration, GAFEM system shows its effectiveness to conductive structure, obtaining a depth of about 1km with a source-receiver distance of over 6km. And it shows the same level of resolution with CSAMT method with an over 10 times of efficiency. This extended a range of important applications where the terrain is too complex to be accessed or large penetration depth is required in a large survey area.

Comparative analysis of glutaredoxin domains from bacterial opportunistic pathogens

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Leeper, Thomas; Zhang, Suxin; Van Voorhis, Wesley C.; Myler, Peter J.; Varani, Gabriele

2011-01-01

NMR structures of the glutaredoxin (GLXR) domains from Br. melitensis and Ba. henselae have been determined as part of the SSGCID initiative. Comparison of the domains with known structures reveals overall structural similarity between these proteins and previously determined E. coli GLXR structures, with minor changes associated with the position of helix 1 and with regions that diverge from similar structures found in the closest related human homolog. Glutaredoxin proteins (GLXRs) are essential components of the glutathione system that reductively detoxify substances such as arsenic and peroxides and are important in the synthesis of DNA via ribonucleotide reductases. NMR solution structures of glutaredoxin domains from two Gram-negative opportunistic pathogens, Brucella melitensis and Bartonella henselae, are presented. These domains lack the N-terminal helix that is frequently present in eukaryotic GLXRs. The conserved active-site cysteines adopt canonical proline/tyrosine-stabilized geometries. A difference in the angle of α-helix 2 relative to the β-sheet surface and the presence of an extended loop in the human sequence suggests potential regulatory regions and/or protein–protein interaction motifs. This observation is consistent with mutations in this region that suppress defects in GLXR–ribonucleotide reductase interactions. These differences between the human and bacterial forms are adjacent to the dithiol active site and may permit species-selective drug design

Extended Kalman filtering for the detection of damage in linear mechanical structures

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, X.; Escamilla-Ambrosio, P. J.; Lieven, N. A. J.

2009-09-01

This paper addresses the problem of assessing the location and extent of damage in a vibrating structure by means of vibration measurements. Frequency domain identification methods (e.g. finite element model updating) have been widely used in this area while time domain methods such as the extended Kalman filter (EKF) method, are more sparsely represented. The difficulty of applying EKF in mechanical system damage identification and localisation lies in: the high computational cost, the dependence of estimation results on the initial estimation error covariance matrix P(0), the initial value of parameters to be estimated, and on the statistics of measurement noise R and process noise Q. To resolve these problems in the EKF, a multiple model adaptive estimator consisting of a bank of EKF in modal domain was designed, each filter in the bank is based on different P(0). The algorithm was iterated by using the weighted global iteration method. A fuzzy logic model was incorporated in each filter to estimate the variance of the measurement noise R. The application of the method is illustrated by simulated and real examples.

TOPDOM: database of conservatively located domains and motifs in proteins.

Science.gov (United States)

Varga, Julia; Dobson, László; Tusnády, Gábor E

2016-09-01

The TOPDOM database-originally created as a collection of domains and motifs located consistently on the same side of the membranes in α-helical transmembrane proteins-has been updated and extended by taking into consideration consistently localized domains and motifs in globular proteins, too. By taking advantage of the recently developed CCTOP algorithm to determine the type of a protein and predict topology in case of transmembrane proteins, and by applying a thorough search for domains and motifs as well as utilizing the most up-to-date version of all source databases, we managed to reach a 6-fold increase in the size of the whole database and a 2-fold increase in the number of transmembrane proteins. TOPDOM database is available at http://topdom.enzim.hu The webpage utilizes the common Apache, PHP5 and MySQL software to provide the user interface for accessing and searching the database. The database itself is generated on a high performance computer. tusnady.gabor@ttk.mta.hu Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online. © The Author 2016. Published by Oxford University Press.

Frequency-Domain Joint Motion and Disparity Estimation Using Steerable Filters

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Dimitrios Alexiadis

2018-02-01

Full Text Available In this paper, the problem of joint disparity and motion estimation from stereo image sequences is formulated in the spatiotemporal frequency domain, and a novel steerable filter-based approach is proposed. Our rationale behind coupling the two problems is that according to experimental evidence in the literature, the biological visual mechanisms for depth and motion are not independent of each other. Furthermore, our motivation to study the problem in the frequency domain and search for a filter-based solution is based on the fact that, according to early experimental studies, the biological visual mechanisms can be modelled based on frequency-domain or filter-based considerations, for both the perception of depth and the perception of motion. The proposed framework constitutes the first attempt to solve the joint estimation problem through a filter-based solution, based on frequency-domain considerations. Thus, the presented ideas provide a new direction of work and could be the basis for further developments. From an algorithmic point of view, we additionally extend state-of-the-art ideas from the disparity estimation literature to handle the joint disparity-motion estimation problem and formulate an algorithm that is evaluated through a number of experimental results. Comparisons with state-of-the-art-methods demonstrate the accuracy of the proposed approach.

A Third-Order Item Response Theory Model for Modeling the Effects of Domains and Subdomains in Large-Scale Educational Assessment Surveys

Science.gov (United States)

Rijmen, Frank; Jeon, Minjeong; von Davier, Matthias; Rabe-Hesketh, Sophia

2014-01-01

Second-order item response theory models have been used for assessments consisting of several domains, such as content areas. We extend the second-order model to a third-order model for assessments that include subdomains nested in domains. Using a graphical model framework, it is shown how the model does not suffer from the curse of…

Crystal Structure of a Complex of the Intracellular Domain of Interferon λ Receptor 1 (IFNLR1) and the FERM/SH2 Domains of Human JAK1.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Di; Wlodawer, Alexander; Lubkowski, Jacek

2016-11-20

The crystal structure of a construct consisting of the FERM and SH2-like domains of the human Janus kinase 1 (JAK1) bound to a fragment of the intracellular domain of the interferon-λ receptor 1 (IFNLR1) has been determined at the nominal resolution of 2.1Å. In this structure, the receptor peptide forms an 85-Å-long extended chain, in which both the previously identified box1 and box2 regions bind simultaneously to the FERM and SH2-like domains of JAK1. Both domains of JAK1 are generally well ordered, with regions not seen in the crystal structure limited to loops located away from the receptor-binding regions. The structure provides a much more complete and accurate picture of the interactions between JAK1 and IFNLR1 than those given in earlier reports, illuminating the molecular basis of the JAK-cytokine receptor association. A glutamate residue adjacent to the box2 region in IFNLR1 mimics the mode of binding of a phosphotyrosine in classical SH2 domains. It was shown here that a deletion of residues within the box1 region of the receptor abolishes stable interactions with JAK1, although it was previously shown that box2 alone is sufficient to stabilize a similar complex of the interferon-α receptor and TYK2. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Cognitive ability, academic achievement and academic self-concept: extending the internal/external frame of reference model.

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Ssu-Kuang; Hwang, Fang-Ming; Yeh, Yu-Chen; Lin, Sunny S J

2012-06-01

Marsh's internal/external (I/E) frame of reference model depicts the relationship between achievement and self-concept in specific academic domains. Few efforts have been made to examine concurrent relationships among cognitive ability, achievement, and academic self-concept (ASC) within an I/E model framework. To simultaneously examine the influences of domain-specific cognitive ability and grades on domain self-concept in an extended I/E model, including the indirect effect of domain-specific cognitive ability on domain self-concept via grades. Tenth grade respondents (628 male, 452 female) to a national adolescent survey conducted in Taiwan. Respondents completed surveys designed to measure maths and verbal aptitudes. Data on Maths and Chinese class grades and self-concepts were also collected. Statistically significant and positive path coefficients were found between cognitive ability and self-concept in the same domain (direct effect) and between these two constructs via grades (indirect effect). The cross-domain effects of either ability or grades on ASC were negatively significant. Taiwanese 10th graders tend to evaluate their ASCs based on a mix of ability and achievement, with achievement as a mediator exceeding ability as a predictor. In addition, the cross-domain effects suggest that Taiwanese students are likely to view Maths and verbal abilities and achievements as distinctly different. ©2011 The British Psychological Society.

Fourier phase in Fourier-domain optical coherence tomography

Science.gov (United States)

Uttam, Shikhar; Liu, Yang

2015-01-01

Phase of an electromagnetic wave propagating through a sample-of-interest is well understood in the context of quantitative phase imaging in transmission-mode microscopy. In the past decade, Fourier-domain optical coherence tomography has been used to extend quantitative phase imaging to the reflection-mode. Unlike transmission-mode electromagnetic phase, however, the origin and characteristics of reflection-mode Fourier phase are poorly understood, especially in samples with a slowly varying refractive index. In this paper, the general theory of Fourier phase from first principles is presented, and it is shown that Fourier phase is a joint estimate of subresolution offset and mean spatial frequency of the coherence-gated sample refractive index. It is also shown that both spectral-domain phase microscopy and depth-resolved spatial-domain low-coherence quantitative phase microscopy are special cases of this general theory. Analytical expressions are provided for both, and simulations are presented to explain and support the theoretical results. These results are further used to show how Fourier phase allows the estimation of an axial mean spatial frequency profile of the sample, along with depth-resolved characterization of localized optical density change and sample heterogeneity. Finally, a Fourier phase-based explanation of Doppler optical coherence tomography is also provided. PMID:26831383

Fourier phase in Fourier-domain optical coherence tomography.

Science.gov (United States)

Uttam, Shikhar; Liu, Yang

2015-12-01

Phase of an electromagnetic wave propagating through a sample-of-interest is well understood in the context of quantitative phase imaging in transmission-mode microscopy. In the past decade, Fourier-domain optical coherence tomography has been used to extend quantitative phase imaging to the reflection-mode. Unlike transmission-mode electromagnetic phase, however, the origin and characteristics of reflection-mode Fourier phase are poorly understood, especially in samples with a slowly varying refractive index. In this paper, the general theory of Fourier phase from first principles is presented, and it is shown that Fourier phase is a joint estimate of subresolution offset and mean spatial frequency of the coherence-gated sample refractive index. It is also shown that both spectral-domain phase microscopy and depth-resolved spatial-domain low-coherence quantitative phase microscopy are special cases of this general theory. Analytical expressions are provided for both, and simulations are presented to explain and support the theoretical results. These results are further used to show how Fourier phase allows the estimation of an axial mean spatial frequency profile of the sample, along with depth-resolved characterization of localized optical density change and sample heterogeneity. Finally, a Fourier phase-based explanation of Doppler optical coherence tomography is also provided.

Tert-butylhydroquinone alleviates early brain injury and cognitive dysfunction after experimental subarachnoid hemorrhage: role of Keap1/Nrf2/ARE pathway.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Zhong Wang

Full Text Available Tert-butylhydroquinone (tBHQ, an Nrf2 activator, has demonstrated neuroprotection against brain trauma and ischemic stroke in vivo. However, little work has been done with respect to its effect on early brain injury (EBI after subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH. At the same time, as an oral medication, it may have extensive clinical applications for the treatment of SAH-induced cognitive dysfunction. This study was undertaken to evaluate the influence of tBHQ on EBI, secondary deficits of learning and memory, and the Keap1/Nrf2/ARE pathway in a rat SAH model. SD rats were divided into four groups: (1 Control group (n=40; (2 SAH group (n=40; (3 SAH+vehicle group (n=40; and (4 SAH+tBHQ group (n=40. All SAH animals were subjected to injection of autologous blood into the prechiasmatic cistern once in 20 s. In SAH+tBHQ group, tBHQ was administered via oral gavage at a dose of 12.5 mg/kg at 2 h, 12 h, 24 h, and 36 h after SAH. In the first set of experiments, brain samples were extracted and evaluated 48 h after SAH. In the second set of experiments, changes in cognition and memory were investigated in a Morris water maze. Results shows that administration of tBHQ after SAH significantly ameliorated EBI-related problems, such as brain edema, blood-brain barrier (BBB impairment, clinical behavior deficits, cortical apoptosis, and neurodegeneration. Learning deficits induced by SAH was markedly alleviated after tBHQ therapy. Treatment with tBHQ markedly up-regulated the expression of Keap1, Nrf2, HO-1, NQO1, and GSTα1 after SAH. In conclusion, the administration of tBHQ abated the development of EBI and cognitive dysfunction in this SAH model. Its action was probably mediated by activation of the Keap1/Nrf2/ARE pathway.

An extension of the talbot-ogden hydrology model to an affine multi-dimensional moisture content domain

KAUST Repository

Yu, Han

2013-09-01

The Talbot-Ogden hydrology model provides a fast mass conservative method to compute infiltration in unsaturated soils. As a replacement for a model based on Richards equation, it separates the groundwater movement into infiltration and redistribution for every time step. The typical feature making this method fast is the discretization of the moisture content domain rather than the spatial one. The Talbot-Ogden model rapidly determines how well ground water and aquifers are recharged only. Hence, it differs from models based on advanced reservoir modeling that are uniformly far more expensive computationally since they determine where the water moves in space instead, a completely different and more complex problem.According to the pore-size distribution curve for many soils, this paper extends the one dimensional moisture content domain into a two dimensional one by keeping the vertical spatial axis. The proposed extension can describe any pore-size or porosity distribution as an important soil feature. Based on this extension, infiltration and redistribution are restudied. The unconditional conservation of mass in the Talbot-Ogden model is inherited in this extended model. A numerical example is given for the extended model.

Dimers in Piecewise Temperleyan Domains

Science.gov (United States)

Russkikh, Marianna

2018-03-01

We study the large-scale behavior of the height function in the dimer model on the square lattice. Richard Kenyon has shown that the fluctuations of the height function on Temperleyan discretizations of a planar domain converge in the scaling limit (as the mesh size tends to zero) to the Gaussian Free Field with Dirichlet boundary conditions. We extend Kenyon's result to a more general class of discretizations. Moreover, we introduce a new factorization of the coupling function of the double-dimer model into two discrete holomorphic functions, which are similar to discrete fermions defined in Smirnov (Proceedings of the international congress of mathematicians (ICM), Madrid, Spain, 2006; Ann Math (2) 172:1435-1467, 2010). For Temperleyan discretizations with appropriate boundary modifications, the results of Kenyon imply that the expectation of the double-dimer height function converges to a harmonic function in the scaling limit. We use the above factorization to extend this result to the class of all polygonal discretizations, that are not necessarily Temperleyan. Furthermore, we show that, quite surprisingly, the expectation of the double-dimer height function in the Temperleyan case is exactly discrete harmonic (for an appropriate choice of Laplacian) even before taking the scaling limit.

Controversies and Evolving New Mechanisms in Subarachnoid Hemorrhage

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Sheng; Feng, Hua; Sherchan, Prativa; Klebe, Damon; Zhao, Gang; Sun, Xiaochuan; Zhang, Jianmin; Tang, Jiping; Zhang, John H.

2013-01-01

Despite decades of study, subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) continues to be a serious and significant health problem in the United States and worldwide. The mechanisms contributing to brain injury after SAH remain unclear. Traditionally, most in vivo research has heavily emphasized the basic mechanisms of SAH over the pathophysiological or morphological changes of delayed cerebral vasospasm after SAH. Unfortunately, the results of clinical trials based on this premise have mostly been disappointing, implicating some other pathophysiological factors, independent of vasospasm, as contributors to poor clinical outcomes. Delayed cerebral vasospasm is no longer the only culprit. In this review, we summarize recent data from both experimental and clinical studies of SAH and discuss the vast array of physiological dysfunctions following SAH that ultimately lead to cell death. Based on the progress in neurobiological understanding of SAH, the terms “early brain injury” and “delayed brain injury” are used according to the temporal progression of SAH-induced brain injury. Additionally, a new concept of the vasculo-neuronal-glia triad model for SAH study is highlighted and presents the challenges and opportunities of this model for future SAH applications. PMID:24076160

Dynamic Hippocampal and Prefrontal Contributions to Memory Processes and Representations Blur the Boundaries of Traditional Cognitive Domains

OpenAIRE

Rachael D. Rubin; Hillary Schwarb; Heather D. Lucas; Michael R. Dulas; Neal J. Cohen

2017-01-01

The hippocampus has long been known to be a critical component of the memory system involved in the formation and use of long-term declarative memory. However, recent findings have revealed that the reach of hippocampal contributions extends to a variety of domains and tasks that require the flexible use of cognitive and social behavior, including domains traditionally linked to prefrontal cortex (PFC), such as decision-making. In addition, the prefrontal cortex (PFC) has gained traction as a...

Eternal extended inflation and graceful exit from old inflation without Jordan-Brans-Dicke

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Linde, A.

1990-01-01

Recently a possible solution to the graceful exit problem of the old inflation was proposed in the context of the Jordan-Brans-Dicke theory (extended inflation). In this paper we will argue that inflation in this theory occurs in a most natural way if it starts near the Planck density, as in the standard version of chaotic inflation. With most natural initial conditions, the inflationary universe in the JBD theory enters the stage of permanent reproduction of new inflationary domains (eternal extended inflation). In order to realize the extended inflation scenario at least two classical scalar fields driving inflation are necessary, as distinct from the simplest versions of new and chaotic inflation. It is shown that in the theory of two scalar fields one can solve the graceful exit problem even without modifying the Einstein gravity theory, due to the possibility that the decay rate of the false vacuum in old inflation depends on the value of the second scalar field and hence on time. (orig.)

Fido, a novel AMPylation domain common to fic, doc, and AvrB.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lisa N Kinch

2009-06-01

Full Text Available The Vibrio parahaemolyticus type III secreted effector VopS contains a fic domain that covalently modifies Rho GTPase threonine with AMP to inhibit downstream signaling events in host cells. The VopS fic domain includes a conserved sequence motif (HPFx[D/E]GN[G/K]R that contributes to AMPylation. Fic domains are found in a variety of species, including bacteria, a few archaea, and metazoan eukaryotes.We show that the AMPylation activity extends to a eukaryotic fic domain in Drosophila melanogaster CG9523, and use sequence and structure based computational methods to identify related domains in doc toxins and the type III effector AvrB. The conserved sequence motif that contributes to AMPylation unites fic with doc. Although AvrB lacks this motif, its structure reveals a similar topology to the fic and doc folds. AvrB binds to a peptide fragment of its host virulence target in a similar manner as fic binds peptide substrate. AvrB also orients a phosphate group from a bound ADP ligand near the peptide-binding site and in a similar position as a bound fic phosphate.The demonstrated eukaryotic fic domain AMPylation activity suggests that the VopS effector has exploited a novel host posttranslational modification. Fic domain-related structures give insight to the AMPylation active site and to the VopS fic domain interaction with its host GTPase target. These results suggest that fic, doc, and AvrB stem from a common ancestor that has evolved to AMPylate protein substrates.

Extended causal modeling to assess Partial Directed Coherence in multiple time series with significant instantaneous interactions.

Science.gov (United States)

Faes, Luca; Nollo, Giandomenico

2010-11-01

The Partial Directed Coherence (PDC) and its generalized formulation (gPDC) are popular tools for investigating, in the frequency domain, the concept of Granger causality among multivariate (MV) time series. PDC and gPDC are formalized in terms of the coefficients of an MV autoregressive (MVAR) model which describes only the lagged effects among the time series and forsakes instantaneous effects. However, instantaneous effects are known to affect linear parametric modeling, and are likely to occur in experimental time series. In this study, we investigate the impact on the assessment of frequency domain causality of excluding instantaneous effects from the model underlying PDC evaluation. Moreover, we propose the utilization of an extended MVAR model including both instantaneous and lagged effects. This model is used to assess PDC either in accordance with the definition of Granger causality when considering only lagged effects (iPDC), or with an extended form of causality, when we consider both instantaneous and lagged effects (ePDC). The approach is first evaluated on three theoretical examples of MVAR processes, which show that the presence of instantaneous correlations may produce misleading profiles of PDC and gPDC, while ePDC and iPDC derived from the extended model provide here a correct interpretation of extended and lagged causality. It is then applied to representative examples of cardiorespiratory and EEG MV time series. They suggest that ePDC and iPDC are better interpretable than PDC and gPDC in terms of the known cardiovascular and neural physiologies.

The BRCT domain is a phospho-protein binding domain.

Science.gov (United States)

Yu, Xiaochun; Chini, Claudia Christiano Silva; He, Miao; Mer, Georges; Chen, Junjie

2003-10-24

The carboxyl-terminal domain (BRCT) of the Breast Cancer Gene 1 (BRCA1) protein is an evolutionarily conserved module that exists in a large number of proteins from prokaryotes to eukaryotes. Although most BRCT domain-containing proteins participate in DNA-damage checkpoint or DNA-repair pathways, or both, the function of the BRCT domain is not fully understood. We show that the BRCA1 BRCT domain directly interacts with phosphorylated BRCA1-Associated Carboxyl-terminal Helicase (BACH1). This specific interaction between BRCA1 and phosphorylated BACH1 is cell cycle regulated and is required for DNA damage-induced checkpoint control during the transition from G2 to M phase of the cell cycle. Further, we show that two other BRCT domains interact with their respective physiological partners in a phosphorylation-dependent manner. Thirteen additional BRCT domains also preferentially bind phospho-peptides rather than nonphosphorylated control peptides. These data imply that the BRCT domain is a phospho-protein binding domain involved in cell cycle control.

Analytic regularity and collocation approximation for elliptic PDEs with random domain deformations

KAUST Repository

Castrillon, Julio

2016-03-02

In this work we consider the problem of approximating the statistics of a given Quantity of Interest (QoI) that depends on the solution of a linear elliptic PDE defined over a random domain parameterized by N random variables. The elliptic problem is remapped onto a corresponding PDE with a fixed deterministic domain. We show that the solution can be analytically extended to a well defined region in CN with respect to the random variables. A sparse grid stochastic collocation method is then used to compute the mean and variance of the QoI. Finally, convergence rates for the mean and variance of the QoI are derived and compared to those obtained in numerical experiments.

HangOut: generating clean PSI-BLAST profiles for domains with long insertions.

Science.gov (United States)

Kim, Bong-Hyun; Cong, Qian; Grishin, Nick V

2010-06-15

Profile-based similarity search is an essential step in structure-function studies of proteins. However, inclusion of non-homologous sequence segments into a profile causes its corruption and results in false positives. Profile corruption is common in multidomain proteins, and single domains with long insertions are a significant source of errors. We developed a procedure (HangOut) that, for a single domain with specified insertion position, cleans erroneously extended PSI-BLAST alignments to generate better profiles. HangOut is implemented in Python 2.3 and runs on all Unix-compatible platforms. The source code is available under the GNU GPL license at http://prodata.swmed.edu/HangOut/. Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.

Fibre Bragg grating based accelerometer with extended bandwidth

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Basumallick, Nandini; Biswas, Palas; Dasgupta, Kamal; Bandyopadhyay, Somnath; Chakraborty, Rajib; Chakraborty, Sushanta

2016-01-01

We have shown experimentally that the operable bandwidth of a fibre Bragg grating (FBG) based accelerometer can be extended significantly, without compromising its sensitivity, using a post-signal processing technique which involves frequency domain weighting. It has been demonstrated that using the above technique acceleration can be correctly interpreted even when the operating frequency encroaches on the region where the frequency response of the sensor is non-uniform. Two different excitation signals, which we often encounter in structural health monitoring applications, e.g. (i) a signal composed of multi-frequency components and (ii) a sinusoidal excitation with a frequency sweep, have been considered in our experiment. The results obtained have been compared with a piezo accelerometer. (paper)

Monte Carlo Simulation of Ferroelectric Domain Structure and Applied Field Response in Two Dimensions

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Potter, Jr., B.G.; Tikare, V.; Tuttle, B.A.

1999-06-30

A 2-D, lattice-Monte Carlo approach was developed to simulate ferroelectric domain structure. The model currently utilizes a Hamiltonian for the total energy based only upon electrostatic terms involving dipole-dipole interactions, local polarization gradients and the influence of applied electric fields. The impact of boundary conditions on the domain configurations obtained was also examined. In general, the model exhibits domain structure characteristics consistent with those observed in a tetragonally distorted ferroelectric. The model was also extended to enable the simulation of ferroelectric hysteresis behavior. Simulated hysteresis loops were found to be very similar in appearance to those observed experimentally in actual materials. This qualitative agreement between the simulated hysteresis loop characteristics and real ferroelectric behavior was also confirmed in simulations run over a range of simulation temperatures and applied field frequencies.

Parametric Study on the Thermal Performance and Optimal Design Elements of Solar Air Heater Enhanced with Jet Impingement on a Corrugated Absorber Plate

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alsanossi M. Aboghrara

2018-01-01

Full Text Available Previous works revealed that cross-corrugated absorber plate design and jet impingement on a flat absorber plate resulted in a significant increase in the performance of a solar air heater (SAH. Involving these two designs into one continuous design to improve the SAH performance remains absent in the literature. This study aimed to evaluate the achieved enhancement on performance parameters of a SAH with jet impingement on a corrugated absorber plate. An energy balance model was developed to compare the performance parameters of the proposed SAH with the other two SAHs. At a clear sky day and a mass flow rate of 0.04 kg/s, the hourly results revealed that the max fluid outlet temperatures for the proposed SAH, jet-to-flat plate SAH, and cross-corrugated plate SAH are 321, 317, and 313 K, respectively; the max absorber plate temperatures are 323.5, 326.5, and 328 K, respectively; the maximum temperature differences between the absorber plate and fluid outlet are ~3, 9, and 15 K, respectively; the max efficiencies are 65.7, 64.8, and 60%, respectively. Statistical t-test results confirmed significant differences between the mean efficiency of the proposed SAH and SAH with jet-to-flat plate. Hence, the proposed design is considered superior in improving the performance parameters of SAH compared to other designs.

A new scaling approach for the mesoscale simulation of magnetic domain structures using Monte Carlo simulations

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Radhakrishnan, B., E-mail: radhakrishnb@ornl.gov; Eisenbach, M.; Burress, T.A.

2017-06-15

Highlights: • Developed new scaling technique for dipole–dipole interaction energy. • Developed new scaling technique for exchange interaction energy. • Used scaling laws to extend atomistic simulations to micrometer length scale. • Demonstrated transition from mono-domain to vortex magnetic structure. • Simulated domain wall width and transition length scale agree with experiments. - Abstract: A new scaling approach has been proposed for the spin exchange and the dipole–dipole interaction energy as a function of the system size. The computed scaling laws are used in atomistic Monte Carlo simulations of magnetic moment evolution to predict the transition from single domain to a vortex structure as the system size increases. The width of a 180° – domain wall extracted from the simulated structures is in close agreement with experimentally values for an F–Si alloy. The transition size from a single domain to a vortex structure is also in close agreement with theoretically predicted and experimentally measured values for Fe.

Domain analysis

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hjørland, Birger

2017-01-01

The domain-analytic approach to knowledge organization (KO) (and to the broader field of library and information science, LIS) is outlined. The article reviews the discussions and proposals on the definition of domains, and provides an example of a domain-analytic study in the field of art studies....... Varieties of domain analysis as well as criticism and controversies are presented and discussed....

An Extended System Frequency Response Model Considering Wind Power Participation in Frequency Regulation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yi Tang

2017-11-01

Full Text Available With increasing penetration of wind power into the power system, wind power participation in frequency regulation is regarded as a beneficial strategy to improve the dynamic frequency response characteristics of power systems. The traditional power system frequency response (SFR model, which only includes synchronous generators, is no longer suitable for power systems with high penetrated wind power. An extended SFR model, based on the reduced-order model of wind turbine generator (WTG and the traditional SFR model, is presented in this paper. In the extended SFR model, the reduced-order model of WTG with combined frequency control is deduced by employing small signal analysis theory. Afterwards, the stability analysis of a closed-loop control system for the extended SFR model is carried out. Time-domain simulations using a test system are performed to validate the effectiveness of the extended SFR model; this model can provide a simpler, clearer and faster way to analyze the dynamic frequency response characteristic for a high-wind integrated power systems. The impact of additional frequency control parameters and wind speed disturbances on the system dynamic frequency response characteristics are investigated.

Inferring domain-domain interactions from protein-protein interactions with formal concept analysis.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Susan Khor

Full Text Available Identifying reliable domain-domain interactions will increase our ability to predict novel protein-protein interactions, to unravel interactions in protein complexes, and thus gain more information about the function and behavior of genes. One of the challenges of identifying reliable domain-domain interactions is domain promiscuity. Promiscuous domains are domains that can occur in many domain architectures and are therefore found in many proteins. This becomes a problem for a method where the score of a domain-pair is the ratio between observed and expected frequencies because the protein-protein interaction network is sparse. As such, many protein-pairs will be non-interacting and domain-pairs with promiscuous domains will be penalized. This domain promiscuity challenge to the problem of inferring reliable domain-domain interactions from protein-protein interactions has been recognized, and a number of work-arounds have been proposed. This paper reports on an application of Formal Concept Analysis to this problem. It is found that the relationship between formal concepts provides a natural way for rare domains to elevate the rank of promiscuous domain-pairs and enrich highly ranked domain-pairs with reliable domain-domain interactions. This piggybacking of promiscuous domain-pairs onto less promiscuous domain-pairs is possible only with concept lattices whose attribute-labels are not reduced and is enhanced by the presence of proteins that comprise both promiscuous and rare domains.

Inferring Domain-Domain Interactions from Protein-Protein Interactions with Formal Concept Analysis

Science.gov (United States)

Khor, Susan

2014-01-01

Identifying reliable domain-domain interactions will increase our ability to predict novel protein-protein interactions, to unravel interactions in protein complexes, and thus gain more information about the function and behavior of genes. One of the challenges of identifying reliable domain-domain interactions is domain promiscuity. Promiscuous domains are domains that can occur in many domain architectures and are therefore found in many proteins. This becomes a problem for a method where the score of a domain-pair is the ratio between observed and expected frequencies because the protein-protein interaction network is sparse. As such, many protein-pairs will be non-interacting and domain-pairs with promiscuous domains will be penalized. This domain promiscuity challenge to the problem of inferring reliable domain-domain interactions from protein-protein interactions has been recognized, and a number of work-arounds have been proposed. This paper reports on an application of Formal Concept Analysis to this problem. It is found that the relationship between formal concepts provides a natural way for rare domains to elevate the rank of promiscuous domain-pairs and enrich highly ranked domain-pairs with reliable domain-domain interactions. This piggybacking of promiscuous domain-pairs onto less promiscuous domain-pairs is possible only with concept lattices whose attribute-labels are not reduced and is enhanced by the presence of proteins that comprise both promiscuous and rare domains. PMID:24586450

Atmospheric Pressure Variation is a Delayed Trigger for Aneurysmal Subarachnoid Hemorrhage.

Science.gov (United States)

van Donkelaar, Carlina E; Potgieser, Adriaan R E; Groen, Henk; Foumani, Mahrouz; Abdulrahman, Herrer; Sluijter, Rob; van Dijk, J Marc C; Groen, Rob J M

2018-04-01

There is an ongoing search for conditions that induce spontaneous subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH). The seasonal pattern of SAH is shown in a large meta-analysis of the literature, but its explanation remains undecided. There is a clear need for sound meteorologic data to further elucidate the seasonal influence on SAH. Because of the stable and densely monitored atmospheric situation in the north of the Netherlands, we reviewed our unique cohort on the seasonal incidence of SAH and the association between SAH and local atmospheric changes. Our observational cohort study included 1535 patients with spontaneous SAH admitted to our neurovascular center in the north of the Netherlands between 2000 and 2015. Meteorologic data could be linked to the day of the ictus. To compare SAH incidences over the year and to test the association with meteorologic conditions, incidence rate ratios (IRRs) with corresponding 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were used, calculated by Poisson regression analyses. Atmospheric pressure variations were significantly associated with aneurysmal SAH. In particular, the pressure change on the second and third day before the ictus was independently correlated to a higher incidence of aneurysmal SAH (IRR, 1.11; 95% CI, 1.00-1.23). The IRR for aneurysmal SAH in July was calculated 0.67 (95% CI, 0.49-0.92) after adjustment for temperature and atmospheric pressure changes. Atmospheric pressure variations are a delayed trigger for aneurysmal SAH. Also, a significantly decreased incidence of aneurysmal SAH was noted in July. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Fast Convolutional Sparse Coding in the Dual Domain

KAUST Repository

Affara, Lama Ahmed; Ghanem, Bernard; Wonka, Peter

2017-01-01

Convolutional sparse coding (CSC) is an important building block of many computer vision applications ranging from image and video compression to deep learning. We present two contributions to the state of the art in CSC. First, we significantly speed up the computation by proposing a new optimization framework that tackles the problem in the dual domain. Second, we extend the original formulation to higher dimensions in order to process a wider range of inputs, such as color inputs, or HOG features. Our results show a significant speedup compared to the current state of the art in CSC.

Fast Convolutional Sparse Coding in the Dual Domain

KAUST Repository

Affara, Lama Ahmed

2017-09-27

Convolutional sparse coding (CSC) is an important building block of many computer vision applications ranging from image and video compression to deep learning. We present two contributions to the state of the art in CSC. First, we significantly speed up the computation by proposing a new optimization framework that tackles the problem in the dual domain. Second, we extend the original formulation to higher dimensions in order to process a wider range of inputs, such as color inputs, or HOG features. Our results show a significant speedup compared to the current state of the art in CSC.

Domain Wall Motion in Magnetic Nanostrips under the Influence of Rashba Field

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Vito Puliafito

2012-01-01

Full Text Available Spin-orbit Rashba effect applies a torque on the magnetization of a ferromagnetic nanostrip in the case of structural inversion asymmetry, also affecting the steady domain wall motion induced by a spin-polarized current. This influence is here analytically studied in the framework of the extended Landau-Lifshitz-Gilbert equation, including the Rashba effect as an additive term of the effective field. Results of previous micromagnetic simulations and experiments have shown that this field yields an increased value of the Walker breakdown current together with an enlargement of the domain wall width. In order to analytically describe these results, the standard travelling wave ansatz for the steady domain wall motion is here adopted. Results of our investigations reveal the impossibility to reproduce, at the same time, the previous features and suggest the need of a more sophisticated model whose development requires, in turn, additional information to be extracted from ad hoc micromagnetic simulations.

Structural landscape of the proline-rich domain of Sos1 nucleotide exchange factor.

Science.gov (United States)

McDonald, Caleb B; Bhat, Vikas; Kurouski, Dmitry; Mikles, David C; Deegan, Brian J; Seldeen, Kenneth L; Lednev, Igor K; Farooq, Amjad

2013-01-01

Despite its key role in mediating a plethora of cellular signaling cascades pertinent to health and disease, little is known about the structural landscape of the proline-rich (PR) domain of Sos1 guanine nucleotide exchange factor. Herein, using a battery of biophysical tools, we provide evidence that the PR domain of Sos1 is structurally disordered and adopts an extended random coil-like conformation in solution. Of particular interest is the observation that while chemical denaturation of PR domain results in the formation of a significant amount of polyproline II (PPII) helices, it has little or negligible effect on its overall size as measured by its hydrodynamic radius. Our data also show that the PR domain displays a highly dynamic conformational basin in agreement with the knowledge that the intrinsically unstructured proteins rapidly interconvert between an ensemble of conformations. Collectively, our study provides new insights into the conformational equilibrium of a key signaling molecule with important consequences on its physiological function. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

International Conference eXtended Discretization MethodS

CERN Document Server

Benvenuti, Elena

2016-01-01

This book gathers selected contributions on emerging research work presented at the International Conference eXtended Discretization MethodS (X-DMS), held in Ferrara in September 2015. It highlights the most relevant advances made at the international level in the context of expanding classical discretization methods, like finite elements, to the numerical analysis of a variety of physical problems. The improvements are intended to achieve higher computational efficiency and to account for special features of the solution directly in the approximation space and/or in the discretization procedure. The methods described include, among others, partition of unity methods (meshfree, XFEM, GFEM), virtual element methods, fictitious domain methods, and special techniques for static and evolving interfaces. The uniting feature of all contributions is the direct link between computational methodologies and their application to different engineering areas.

Blockage of mitochondrial calcium uniporter prevents iron accumulation in a model of experimental subarachnoid hemorrhage

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Yan, Huiying [Department of Neurosurgery, Jinling Hospital, School of Medicine, Nanjing University, 305 East Zhongshan Road, Nanjing 210002, Jiangsu Province (China); Hao, Shuangying; Sun, Xiaoyan [Jiangsu Key Laboratory for Molecular Medicine, Medical School of Nanjing University, 22 Hankou Road, Nanjing 210093, Jiangsu Province (China); Zhang, Dingding; Gao, Xin; Yu, Zhuang [Department of Neurosurgery, Jinling Hospital, School of Medicine, Nanjing University, 305 East Zhongshan Road, Nanjing 210002, Jiangsu Province (China); Li, Kuanyu, E-mail: likuanyu@nju.edu.cn [Jiangsu Key Laboratory for Molecular Medicine, Medical School of Nanjing University, 22 Hankou Road, Nanjing 210093, Jiangsu Province (China); Hang, Chun-Hua, E-mail: hang_neurosurgery@163.com [Department of Neurosurgery, Jinling Hospital, School of Medicine, Nanjing University, 305 East Zhongshan Road, Nanjing 210002, Jiangsu Province (China)

2015-01-24

Highlights: • Iron accumulation was involved in the acute phase following SAH. • Blockage of MCU could attenuate cellular iron accumulation following SAH. • Blockage of MCU could decrease ROS generation and improve cell energy supply following SAH. • Blockage of MCU could alleviate apoptosis and brain injury following SAH. - Abstract: Previous studies have shown that iron accumulation is involved in the pathogenesis of brain injury following subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) and chelation of iron reduced mortality and oxidative DNA damage. We previously reported that blockage of mitochondrial calcium uniporter (MCU) provided benefit in the early brain injury after experimental SAH. This study was undertaken to identify whether blockage of MCU could ameliorate iron accumulation-associated brain injury following SAH. Therefore, we used two reagents ruthenium red (RR) and spermine (Sper) to inhibit MCU. Sprague–Dawley (SD) rats were randomly divided into four groups including sham, SAH, SAH + RR, and SAH + Sper. Biochemical analysis and histological assays were performed. The results confirmed the iron accumulation in temporal lobe after SAH. Interestingly, blockage of MCU dramatically reduced the iron accumulation in this area. The mechanism was revealed that inhibition of MCU reversed the down-regulation of iron regulatory protein (IRP) 1/2 and increase of ferritin. Iron–sulfur cluster dependent-aconitase activity was partially conserved when MCU was blocked. In consistence with this and previous report, ROS levels were notably reduced and ATP supply was rescued; levels of cleaved caspase-3 dropped; and integrity of neurons in temporal lobe was protected. Taken together, our results indicated that blockage of MCU could alleviate iron accumulation and the associated injury following SAH. These findings suggest that the alteration of calcium and iron homeostasis be coupled and MCU be considered to be a therapeutic target for patients suffering from SAH.

How Far Can Extended Knowledge Be Extended?

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Wray, K. Brad

2018-01-01

by an artifact, like a notebook or telescope. The chapter illustrates this by applying Pritchard’s account of extended knowledge to collaborating scientists. The beliefs acquired through collaborative research cannot satisfy both of Pritchard’s conditions of creditability. Further, there is evidence......Duncan Pritchard (2010) has developed a theory of extended knowledge based on the notion of extended cognition initially developed by Clark and Chalmers (1998). Pritchard’s account gives a central role to the notion of creditability, which requires the following two conditions to be met: (i...... that scientists are not prepared to take responsibility for the actions of the scientists with whom they collaborate....

Characterizing Functional Domains for TIM-Mediated Enveloped Virus Entry

Science.gov (United States)

Moller-Tank, Sven; Albritton, Lorraine M.; Rennert, Paul D.

2014-01-01

ABSTRACT T-cell immunoglobulin and mucin domain 1 (TIM-1) and other TIM family members were recently identified as phosphatidylserine (PtdSer)-mediated virus entry-enhancing receptors (PVEERs). These proteins enhance entry of Ebola virus (EBOV) and other viruses by binding PtdSer on the viral envelope, concentrating virus on the cell surface, and promoting subsequent internalization. The PtdSer-binding activity of the immunoglobulin-like variable (IgV) domain is essential for both virus binding and internalization by TIM-1. However, TIM-3, whose IgV domain also binds PtdSer, does not effectively enhance virus entry, indicating that other domains of TIM proteins are functionally important. Here, we investigate the domains supporting enhancement of enveloped virus entry, thereby defining the features necessary for a functional PVEER. Using a variety of chimeras and deletion mutants, we found that in addition to a functional PtdSer-binding domain PVEERs require a stalk domain of sufficient length, containing sequences that promote an extended structure. Neither the cytoplasmic nor the transmembrane domain of TIM-1 is essential for enhancing virus entry, provided the protein is still plasma membrane bound. Based on these defined characteristics, we generated a mimic lacking TIM sequences and composed of annexin V, the mucin-like domain of α-dystroglycan, and a glycophosphatidylinositol anchor that functioned as a PVEER to enhance transduction of virions displaying Ebola, Chikungunya, Ross River, or Sindbis virus glycoproteins. This identification of the key features necessary for PtdSer-mediated enhancement of virus entry provides a basis for more effective recognition of unknown PVEERs. IMPORTANCE T-cell immunoglobulin and mucin domain 1 (TIM-1) and other TIM family members are recently identified phosphatidylserine (PtdSer)-mediated virus entry-enhancing receptors (PVEERs). These proteins enhance virus entry by binding the phospholipid, PtdSer, present on the viral

Frequency domain, waveform inversion of laboratory crosswell radar data

Science.gov (United States)

Ellefsen, Karl J.; Mazzella, Aldo T.; Horton, Robert J.; McKenna, Jason R.

2010-01-01

A new waveform inversion for crosswell radar is formulated in the frequency-domain for a 2.5D model. The inversion simulates radar waves using the vector Helmholtz equation for electromagnetic waves. The objective function is minimized using a backpropagation method suitable for a 2.5D model. The inversion is tested by processing crosswell radar data collected in a laboratory tank. The estimated model is consistent with the known electromagnetic properties of the tank. The formulation for the 2.5D model can be extended to inversions of acoustic and elastic data.

Multi-domain, higher order level set scheme for 3D image segmentation on the GPU

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Sharma, Ojaswa; Zhang, Qin; Anton, François

2010-01-01

to evaluate level set surfaces that are $C^2$ continuous, but are slow due to high computational burden. In this paper, we provide a higher order GPU based solver for fast and efficient segmentation of large volumetric images. We also extend the higher order method to multi-domain segmentation. Our streaming...

Small Molecule Inhibitors That Selectively Block Dengue Virus Methyltransferase*

OpenAIRE

Lim, Siew Pheng; Sonntag, Louis Sebastian; Noble, Christian; Nilar, Shahul H.; Ng, Ru Hui; Zou, Gang; Monaghan, Paul; Chung, Ka Yan; Dong, Hongping; Liu, Boping; Bodenreider, Christophe; Lee, Gladys; Ding, Mei; Chan, Wai Ling; Wang, Gang

2010-01-01

Crystal structure analysis of Flavivirus methyltransferases uncovered a flavivirus-conserved cavity located next to the binding site for its cofactor, S-adenosyl-methionine (SAM). Chemical derivatization of S-adenosyl-homocysteine (SAH), the product inhibitor of the methylation reaction, with substituents that extend into the identified cavity, generated inhibitors that showed improved and selective activity against dengue virus methyltransferase (MTase), but not related human enzymes. Crysta...

Nonaneurysmal "Pseudo-Subarachnoid Hemorrhage" Computed Tomography Patterns: Challenges in an Acute Decision-Making Heuristics.

Science.gov (United States)

Hasan, Tasneem F; Duarte, Walter; Akinduro, Oluwaseun O; Goldstein, Eric D; Hurst, Rebecca; Haranhalli, Neil; Miller, David A; Wharen, Robert E; Tawk, Rabih G; Freeman, William D

2018-06-05

Acute aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) is a medical and neurosurgical emergency from ruptured brain aneurysm. Aneurysmal SAH is identified on brain computed tomography (CT) as increased density of basal cisterns and subarachnoid spaces from acute blood products. Aneurysmal SAH-like pattern on CT appears as an optical illusion effect of hypodense brain parenchyma and/or hyperdense surrounding cerebral cisterns and blood vessels termed as "pseudo-subarachnoid hemorrhage" (pseudo-SAH). We reviewed clinical, laboratory, and radiographic data of all SAH diagnoses between January 2013 and January 2018, and found subsets of nonaneurysmal SAH, originally suspected to be aneurysmal in origin. We performed a National Library of Medicine search methodology using terms "subarachnoid hemorrhage," "pseudo," and "non-aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage" singly and in combination to understand the sensitivity, specificity, and precision of pseudo-SAH. Over 5 years, 230 SAH cases were referred to our tertiary academic center and only 7 (3%) met the definition of pseudo-SAH. Searching the National Library of Medicine using subarachnoid hemorrhage yielded 27,402 results. When subarachnoid hemorrhage and pseudo were combined, this yielded 70 results and sensitivity was 50% (n = 35). Similarly, search precision was relatively low (26%) as only 18 results fit the clinical description similar to the 7 cases discussed in our series. Aneurysmal SAH pattern on CT is distinct from nonaneurysmal and pseudo-SAH patterns. The origin of pseudo-SAH terminology appears mostly tied to comatose cardiac arrest patients with diffuse dark brain Hounsfield units and cerebral edema, and is a potential imaging pitfall in acute medical decision-making. Copyright © 2018 National Stroke Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

The YARHG domain: an extracellular domain in search of a function.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Penny Coggill

Full Text Available We have identified a new bacterial protein domain that we hypothesise binds to peptidoglycan. This domain is called the YARHG domain after the most highly conserved sequence-segment. The domain is found in the extracellular space and is likely to be composed of four alpha-helices. The domain is found associated with protein kinase domains, suggesting it is associated with signalling in some bacteria. The domain is also found associated with three different families of peptidases. The large number of different domains that are found associated with YARHG suggests that it is a useful functional module that nature has recombined multiple times.

On the wave equations with memory in noncylindrical domains

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Mauro de Lima Santos

2007-10-01

Full Text Available In this paper we prove the exponential and polynomial decays rates in the case $n > 2$, as time approaches infinity of regular solutions of the wave equations with memory $$ u_{tt}-Delta u+int^{t}_{0}g(t-sDelta u(sds=0 quad mbox{in } widehat{Q} $$ where $widehat{Q}$ is a non cylindrical domains of $mathbb{R}^{n+1}$, $(nge1$. We show that the dissipation produced by memory effect is strong enough to produce exponential decay of solution provided the relaxation function $g$ also decays exponentially. When the relaxation function decay polynomially, we show that the solution decays polynomially with the same rate. For this we introduced a new multiplier that makes an important role in the obtaining of the exponential and polynomial decays of the energy of the system. Existence, uniqueness and regularity of solutions for any $n ge 1$ are investigated. The obtained result extends known results from cylindrical to non-cylindrical domains.

.Gov Domains API

Data.gov (United States)

General Services Administration — This dataset offers the list of all .gov domains, including state, local, and tribal .gov domains. It does not include .mil domains, or other federal domains outside...

Novel functions of CCM1 delimit the relationship of PTB/PH domains.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Jun; Dubey, Pallavi; Padarti, Akhil; Zhang, Aileen; Patel, Rinkal; Patel, Vipulkumar; Cistola, David; Badr, Ahmed

2017-10-01

relationship of PTB, PH and FERM domains has been proposed, which extends the importance of the NPXY-PTB/PH interaction on the CSC signaling and/or other cell receptors with great potential pointing to new therapeutic strategies. The study provides new insight into the structural characteristics of PTB/PH domains, essential structural elements of PTB/PH domain required for NPXY motif-binding, and function and relationship among PTB, PH and FERM domains. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

The Utility of the Extended Images in Ambient Seismic Wavefield Migration

Science.gov (United States)

Girard, A. J.; Shragge, J. C.

2015-12-01

Active-source 3D seismic migration and migration velocity analysis (MVA) are robust and highly used methods for imaging Earth structure. One class of migration methods uses extended images constructed by incorporating spatial and/or temporal wavefield correlation lags to the imaging conditions. These extended images allow users to directly assess whether images focus better with different parameters, which leads to MVA techniques that are based on the tenets of adjoint-state theory. Under certain conditions (e.g., geographical, cultural or financial), however, active-source methods can prove impractical. Utilizing ambient seismic energy that naturally propagates through the Earth is an alternate method currently used in the scientific community. Thus, an open question is whether extended images are similarly useful for ambient seismic migration processing and verifying subsurface velocity models, and whether one can similarly apply adjoint-state methods to perform ambient migration velocity analysis (AMVA). Herein, we conduct a number of numerical experiments that construct extended images from ambient seismic recordings. We demonstrate that, similar to active-source methods, there is a sensitivity to velocity in ambient seismic recordings in the migrated extended image domain. In synthetic ambient imaging tests with varying degrees of error introduced to the velocity model, the extended images are sensitive to velocity model errors. To determine the extent of this sensitivity, we utilize acoustic wave-equation propagation and cross-correlation-based migration methods to image weak body-wave signals present in the recordings. Importantly, we have also observed scenarios where non-zero correlation lags show signal while zero-lags show none. This may be a valuable missing piece for ambient migration techniques that have yielded largely inconclusive results, and might be an important piece of information for performing AMVA from ambient seismic recordings.

An Exemplar-Based Multi-View Domain Generalization Framework for Visual Recognition.

Science.gov (United States)

Niu, Li; Li, Wen; Xu, Dong; Cai, Jianfei

2018-02-01

In this paper, we propose a new exemplar-based multi-view domain generalization (EMVDG) framework for visual recognition by learning robust classifier that are able to generalize well to arbitrary target domain based on the training samples with multiple types of features (i.e., multi-view features). In this framework, we aim to address two issues simultaneously. First, the distribution of training samples (i.e., the source domain) is often considerably different from that of testing samples (i.e., the target domain), so the performance of the classifiers learnt on the source domain may drop significantly on the target domain. Moreover, the testing data are often unseen during the training procedure. Second, when the training data are associated with multi-view features, the recognition performance can be further improved by exploiting the relation among multiple types of features. To address the first issue, considering that it has been shown that fusing multiple SVM classifiers can enhance the domain generalization ability, we build our EMVDG framework upon exemplar SVMs (ESVMs), in which a set of ESVM classifiers are learnt with each one trained based on one positive training sample and all the negative training samples. When the source domain contains multiple latent domains, the learnt ESVM classifiers are expected to be grouped into multiple clusters. To address the second issue, we propose two approaches under the EMVDG framework based on the consensus principle and the complementary principle, respectively. Specifically, we propose an EMVDG_CO method by adding a co-regularizer to enforce the cluster structures of ESVM classifiers on different views to be consistent based on the consensus principle. Inspired by multiple kernel learning, we also propose another EMVDG_MK method by fusing the ESVM classifiers from different views based on the complementary principle. In addition, we further extend our EMVDG framework to exemplar-based multi-view domain

Same but not alike: Structure, flexibility and energetics of domains in multi-domain proteins are influenced by the presence of other domains.

Science.gov (United States)

Vishwanath, Sneha; de Brevern, Alexandre G; Srinivasan, Narayanaswamy

2018-02-01

The majority of the proteins encoded in the genomes of eukaryotes contain more than one domain. Reasons for high prevalence of multi-domain proteins in various organisms have been attributed to higher stability and functional and folding advantages over single-domain proteins. Despite these advantages, many proteins are composed of only one domain while their homologous domains are part of multi-domain proteins. In the study presented here, differences in the properties of protein domains in single-domain and multi-domain systems and their influence on functions are discussed. We studied 20 pairs of identical protein domains, which were crystallized in two forms (a) tethered to other proteins domains and (b) tethered to fewer protein domains than (a) or not tethered to any protein domain. Results suggest that tethering of domains in multi-domain proteins influences the structural, dynamic and energetic properties of the constituent protein domains. 50% of the protein domain pairs show significant structural deviations while 90% of the protein domain pairs show differences in dynamics and 12% of the residues show differences in the energetics. To gain further insights on the influence of tethering on the function of the domains, 4 pairs of homologous protein domains, where one of them is a full-length single-domain protein and the other protein domain is a part of a multi-domain protein, were studied. Analyses showed that identical and structurally equivalent functional residues show differential dynamics in homologous protein domains; though comparable dynamics between in-silico generated chimera protein and multi-domain proteins were observed. From these observations, the differences observed in the functions of homologous proteins could be attributed to the presence of tethered domain. Overall, we conclude that tethered domains in multi-domain proteins not only provide stability or folding advantages but also influence pathways resulting in differences in

Endogenous sphingomyelin segregates into submicrometric domains in the living erythrocyte membrane[S

Science.gov (United States)

Carquin, Mélanie; Pollet, Hélène; Veiga-da-Cunha, Maria; Cominelli, Antoine; Van Der Smissen, Patrick; N’kuli, Francisca; Emonard, Hervé; Henriet, Patrick; Mizuno, Hideaki; Courtoy, Pierre J.; Tyteca, Donatienne

2014-01-01

We recently reported that trace insertion of exogenous fluorescent (green BODIPY) analogs of sphingomyelin (SM) into living red blood cells (RBCs), partially spread onto coverslips, labels submicrometric domains, visible by confocal microscopy. We here extend this feature to endogenous SM, upon binding of a SM-specific nontoxic (NT) fragment of the earthworm toxin, lysenin, fused to the red monomeric fluorescent protein, mCherry [construct named His-mCherry-NT-lysenin (lysenin*)]. Specificity of lysenin* binding was verified with composition-defined liposomes and by loss of 125I-lysenin* binding to erythrocytes upon SM depletion by SMase. The 125I-lysenin* binding isotherm indicated saturation at 3.5 × 106 molecules/RBC, i.e., ∼3% of SM coverage. Nonsaturating lysenin* concentration also labeled sub­micrometric domains on the plasma membrane of partially spread erythrocytes, colocalizing with inserted green BODIPY-SM, and abrogated by SMase. Lysenin*-labeled domains were stable in time and space and were regulated by temperature and cholesterol. The abundance, size, positioning, and segregation of lysenin*-labeled domains from other lipids (BODIPY-phosphatidylcholine or -glycosphingolipids) depended on membrane tension. Similar lysenin*-labeled domains were evidenced in RBCs gently suspended in 3D-gel. Taken together, these data demonstrate submicrometric compartmentation of endogenous SM at the membrane of a living cell in vitro, and suggest it may be a genuine feature of erythrocytes in vivo. PMID:24826836

Neuroprotective effect of curcumin in an experimental rat model of subarachnoid hemorrhage.

Science.gov (United States)

Kuo, Chang-Po; Lu, Chueng-He; Wen, Li-Li; Cherng, Chen-Hwan; Wong, Chih-Shung; Borel, Cecil O; Ju, Da-Tong; Chen, Chun-Mei; Wu, Ching-Tang

2011-12-01

Subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) causes a high mortality rate and morbidity. It was suggested that oxidant stress plays an important role in neuronal injury after SAH. Therefore, we assessed the effect of curcumin on reducing cerebral vasospasm and neurologic injury in a SAH model in rat. A double-hemorrhage model was used to induce SAH in rats. Groups of animals were treated with intraperitoneal injection of 20 mg/kg curcumin (curcumin group, n = 24) or dimethyl sulfoxide (vehicle group, n = 33), normal saline (SAH group, n = 34) or normal saline (sham group, n = 22), 3 h after SAH induction and daily for 6 days. Glutamate was measured before SAH induction and once daily for 7 days. Glutamate transporter-1, wall thickness and the perimeter of the basilar artery, neurologic scores, neuronal degeneration, malondialdehyde, superoxide dismutase, and catalase activities were assessed. Changes of glutamate levels were lower in the curcumin group versus the SAH and vehicle groups, especially on day 1 (56 folds attenuation vs. vehicle). Correspondingly, glutamate transporter-1 was preserved after SAH in curcumin-treated rats. In the hippocampus and the cortex, malondialdehyde was attenuated (30% and 50%, respectively). Superoxide dismutase (35% and 64%) and catalase (34% and 38%) activities were increased in the curcumin rats compared with the SAH rats. Mortality rate (relative risk: 0.59), wall thickness (30%) and perimeter (31%) of the basilar artery, neuron degeneration scores (39%), and neurologic scores (31%) were improved in curcumin-treated rats. Curcumin in multiple doses is effective against glutamate neurotoxicity and oxidative stress and improves the mortality rate in rats with SAH.

Movement, drivers and bimodality of the South Asian High

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

M. Nützel

2016-11-01

Full Text Available The South Asian High (SAH is an important component of the summer monsoon system in Asia. In this study we investigate the location and drivers of the SAH at 100 hPa during the boreal summers of 1979 to 2014 on interannual, seasonal and synoptic timescales using seven reanalyses and observational data. Our comparison of the different reanalyses focuses especially on the bimodality of the SAH, i.e. the two preferred modes of the SAH centre location: the Iranian Plateau to the west and the Tibetan Plateau to the east. We find that only the National Centers for Environmental Prediction–National Center of Atmospheric Research (NCEP–NCAR reanalysis shows a clear bimodal structure of the SAH centre distribution with respect to daily and pentad (5 day mean data. Furthermore, the distribution of the SAH centre location is highly variable from year to year. As in simple model studies, which connect the SAH to heating in the tropics, we find that the mean seasonal cycle of the SAH and its centre are dominated by the expansion of convection in the South Asian region (70–130° E  ×  15–30° N on the south-eastern border of the SAH. A composite analysis of precipitation and outgoing long-wave radiation data with respect to the location of the SAH centre reveals that a more westward (eastward location of the SAH is related to stronger (weaker convection and rainfall over India and weaker (stronger precipitation over the western Pacific.

Eternal extended inflation and graceful exit from old inflation without Jordan-Brans-Dicke

Science.gov (United States)

Linde, Andrei

1990-10-01

Recently a possible solution to the graceful exit problem of the old inflation was proposed in the context of the Jordan-Brans-Dicke theory (extended inflation). In this paper we will argue that inflation in this theory occurs in a most natural way if it starts near the Planck density, as in the standard version of chaotic inflation. With most natural initial conditions, the inflationary universe in the JBD theory enters the stage of permanent reproduction of new inflationary domains (eternal extended inflation). In order to realize the extended inflation scenario at least two classical scalar fields driving inflation are necessary, as distinct from the simplest versions of new and chaotic inflation. It is shown that in the theory of two scalar fields one can solve the graceful exit problem even without modifying the Einstein gravity theory, due to the possibility that the decay rate of the false rate vacuum in old inflation depends on the value of the second scalar field and hence on time. Address after 1 September 1990: Physics Department, Stanford University, Varian Building, Stanford, CA 94305, USA.

Effects of deferoxamine on blood-brain barrier disruption after subarachnoid hemorrhage.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yanjiang Li

Full Text Available Blood brain barrier (BBB disruption is a key mechanism of subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH-induced brain injury. This study examined the mechanism of iron-induced BBB disruption after SAH and investigated the potential therapeutic effect of iron chelation on SAH. Male adult Sprague-Dawley rats had an endovascular perforation of left internal carotid artery bifurcation or sham operation. The rats were treated with deferoxamine (DFX or vehicle (100mg/kg for a maximum of 7 days. Brain edema, BBB leakage, behavioral and cognitive impairment were examined. In SAH rat, the peak time of brain edema and BBB impairment in the cortex was at day 3 after SAH. SAH resulted in a significant increase in ferritin expression in the cortex. The ferritin positive cells were colocalized with endothelial cells, pericytes, astrocytes, microglia and neurons. Compared with vehicle, DFX caused less ferritin upregulation, brain water content, BBB impairment, behavioral and cognitive deficits in SAH rats. The results suggest iron overload could be a therapeutic target for SAH induced BBB damage.

Extended objects

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Creutz, M.

1976-01-01

After some disconnected comments on the MIT bag and string models for extended hadrons, I review current understanding of extended objects in classical conventional relativistic field theories and their quantum mechanical interpretation

A binomial modeling approach for upscaling colloid transport under unfavorable conditions: organic prediction of extended tailing

Science.gov (United States)

Hilpert, Markus; Rasmuson, Anna; Johnson, William

2017-04-01

Transport of colloids in saturated porous media is significantly influenced by colloidal interactions with grain surfaces. Near-surface fluid domain colloids experience relatively low fluid drag and relatively strong colloidal forces that slow their down-gradient translation relative to colloids in bulk fluid. Near surface fluid domain colloids may re-enter into the bulk fluid via diffusion (nanoparticles) or expulsion at rear flow stagnation zones, they may immobilize (attach) via strong primary minimum interactions, or they may move along a grain-to-grain contact to the near surface fluid domain of an adjacent grain. We introduce a simple model that accounts for all possible permutations of mass transfer within a dual pore and grain network. The primary phenomena thereby represented in the model are mass transfer of colloids between the bulk and near-surface fluid domains and immobilization onto grain surfaces. Colloid movement is described by a sequence of trials in a series of unit cells, and the binomial distribution is used to calculate the probabilities of each possible sequence. Pore-scale simulations provide mechanistically-determined likelihoods and timescales associated with the above pore-scale colloid mass transfer processes, whereas the network-scale model employs pore and grain topology to determine probabilities of transfer from up-gradient bulk and near-surface fluid domains to down-gradient bulk and near-surface fluid domains. Inter-grain transport of colloids in the near surface fluid domain can cause extended tailing.

Module theory, extending modules and generalizations

CERN Document Server

Tercan, Adnan

2016-01-01

The main focus of this monograph is to offer a comprehensive presentation of known and new results on various generalizations of CS-modules and CS-rings. Extending (or CS) modules are generalizations of injective (and also semisimple or uniform) modules. While the theory of CS-modules is well documented in monographs and textbooks, results on generalized forms of the CS property as well as dual notions are far less present in the literature. With their work the authors provide a solid background to module theory, accessible to anyone familiar with basic abstract algebra. The focus of the book is on direct sums of CS-modules and classes of modules related to CS-modules, such as relative (injective) ejective modules, (quasi) continuous modules, and lifting modules. In particular, matrix CS-rings are studied and clear proofs of fundamental decomposition results on CS-modules over commutative domains are given, thus complementing existing monographs in this area. Open problems round out the work and establish the...

Neutrophil depletion after subarachnoid hemorrhage improves memory via NMDA receptors.

Science.gov (United States)

Provencio, Jose Javier; Swank, Valerie; Lu, Haiyan; Brunet, Sylvain; Baltan, Selva; Khapre, Rohini V; Seerapu, Himabindu; Kokiko-Cochran, Olga N; Lamb, Bruce T; Ransohoff, Richard M

2016-05-01

Cognitive deficits after aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) are common and disabling. Patients who experience delayed deterioration associated with vasospasm are likely to have cognitive deficits, particularly problems with executive function, verbal and spatial memory. Here, we report neurophysiological and pathological mechanisms underlying behavioral deficits in a murine model of SAH. On tests of spatial memory, animals with SAH performed worse than sham animals in the first week and one month after SAH suggesting a prolonged injury. Between three and six days after experimental hemorrhage, mice demonstrated loss of late long-term potentiation (L-LTP) due to dysfunction of the NMDA receptor. Suppression of innate immune cell activation prevents delayed vasospasm after murine SAH. We therefore explored the role of neutrophil-mediated innate inflammation on memory deficits after SAH. Depletion of neutrophils three days after SAH mitigates tissue inflammation, reverses cerebral vasoconstriction in the middle cerebral artery, and rescues L-LTP dysfunction at day 6. Spatial memory deficits in both the short and long-term are improved and associated with a shift of NMDA receptor subunit composition toward a memory sparing phenotype. This work supports further investigating suppression of innate immunity after SAH as a target for preventative therapies in SAH. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Enhanced Therapeutic Potential of Nano-Curcumin Against Subarachnoid Hemorrhage-Induced Blood-Brain Barrier Disruption Through Inhibition of Inflammatory Response and Oxidative Stress.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Zong-Yong; Jiang, Ming; Fang, Jie; Yang, Ming-Feng; Zhang, Shuai; Yin, Yan-Xin; Li, Da-Wei; Mao, Lei-Lei; Fu, Xiao-Yan; Hou, Ya-Jun; Fu, Xiao-Ting; Fan, Cun-Dong; Sun, Bao-Liang

2017-01-01

Curcumin and nano-curcumin both exhibit neuroprotective effects in early brain injury (EBI) after experimental subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH). However, the mechanism that whether curcumin and its nanoparticles affect the blood-brain barrier (BBB) following SAH remains unclear. This study investigated the effect of curcumin and the poly(lactide-co-glycolide) (PLGA)-encapsulated curcumin nanoparticles (Cur-NPs) on BBB disruption and evaluated the possible mechanism underlying BBB dysfunction in EBI using the endovascular perforation rat SAH model. The results indicated that Cur-NPs showed enhanced therapeutic effects than that of curcumin in improving neurological function, reducing brain water content, and Evans blue dye extravasation after SAH. Mechanically, Cur-NPs attenuated BBB dysfunction after SAH by preventing the disruption of tight junction protein (ZO-1, occludin, and claudin-5). Cur-NPs also up-regulated glutamate transporter-1 and attenuated glutamate concentration of cerebrospinal fluid following SAH. Moreover, inhibition of inflammatory response and microglia activation both contributed to Cur-NPs' protective effects. Additionally, Cur-NPs markedly suppressed SAH-mediated oxidative stress and eventually reversed SAH-induced cell apoptosis in rats. Our findings revealed that the strategy of using Cur-NPs could be a promising way in improving neurological function in EBI after experimental rat SAH.

Phosphorylation of Akt by SC79 Prevents Iron Accumulation and Ameliorates Early Brain Injury in a Model of Experimental Subarachnoid Hemorrhage

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Shuangying Hao

2016-03-01

Full Text Available Previous studies have demonstrated that activation of Akt may alleviate early brain injury (EBI following subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH. This study is undertaken to determine whether iron metabolism is involved in the beneficial effect of Akt activation after SAH. Therefore, we used a novel molecule, SC79, to activate Akt in an experimental Sprague–Dawley rat model of SAH. Rats were randomly divided into four groups as follows: sham, SAH, SAH + vehicle, SAH + SC79. The results confirmed that SC79 effectively enhanced the defense against oxidative stress and alleviated EBI in the temporal lobe after SAH. Interestingly, we found that phosphorylation of Akt by SC79 reduced cell surface transferrin receptor-mediated iron uptake and promoted ferroportin-mediated iron transport after SAH. As a result, SC79 administration diminished the iron content in the brain tissue. Moreover, the impaired Fe-S cluster biogenesis was recovered and loss of the activities of the Fe-S cluster-containing enzymes were regained, indicating that injured mitochondrial functions are restored to healthy levels. These findings suggest that disrupted iron homeostasis could contribute to EBI and Akt activation may regulate iron metabolism to relieve iron toxicity, further protecting neurons from EBI after SAH.

Roles of Pannexin-1 Channels in Inflammatory Response through the TLRs/NF-Kappa B Signaling Pathway Following Experimental Subarachnoid Hemorrhage in Rats

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Ling-Yun Wu

2017-06-01

Full Text Available Background: Accumulating evidence suggests that neuroinflammation plays a critical role in early brain injury after subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH. Pannexin-1 channels, as a member of gap junction proteins located on the plasma membrane, releases ATP, ions, second messengers, neurotransmitters, and molecules up to 1 kD into the extracellular space, when activated. Previous studies identified that the opening of Pannexin-1 channels is essential for cellular migration, apoptosis and especially inflammation, but its effects on inflammatory response in SAH model have not been explored yet.Methods: Adult male Sprague-Dawley rats were divided into six groups: sham group (n = 20, SAH group (n = 20, SAH + LV-Scramble-ShRNA group (n = 20, SAH + LV-ShRNA-Panx1 group (n = 20, SAH + LV-NC group (n = 20, and SAH + LV-Panx1-EGFP group (n = 20. The rat SAH model was induced by injection of 0.3 ml fresh arterial, non-heparinized blood into the prechiasmatic cistern in 20 s. In SAH + LV-ShRNA-Panx1 group and SAH + LV-Panx1-EGFP group, lentivirus was administered via intracerebroventricular injection (i.c.v. at 72 h before the induction of SAH. The Quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction, electrophoretic mobility shift assay, enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, immunofluorescence staining, and western blotting were performed to explore the potential interactive mechanism between Pannexin-1 channels and TLR2/TLR4/NF-κB-mediated signaling pathway. Cognitive and memory changes were investigated by the Morris water maze test.Results: Administration with LV-ShRNA-Panx1 markedly decreased the expression levels of TLR2/4/NF-κB pathway-related agents in the brain cortex and significantly ameliorated neurological cognitive and memory deficits in this SAH model. On the contrary, administration of LV-Panx1-EGFP elevated the expressions of TLR2/4/NF-κB pathway-related agents, which correlated with augmented neuronal apoptosis.Conclusion: Pannexin-1 channels may

Functional response of cerebral blood flow induced by somatosensory stimulation in rats with subarachnoid hemorrhage

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Zhiguo; Huang, Qin; Liu, Peng; Li, Pengcheng; Ma, Lianting; Lu, Jinling

2015-09-01

Subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) is often accompanied by cerebral vasospasm (CVS), which is the phenomenon of narrowing of large cerebral arteries, and then can produce delayed ischemic neurological deficit (DIND) such as lateralized sensory dysfunction. CVS was regarded as a major contributor to DIND in patients with SAH. However, therapy for preventing vasospasm after SAH to improve the outcomes may not work all the time. It is important to find answers to the relationship between CVS and DIND after SAH. How local cerebral blood flow (CBF) is regulated during functional activation after SAH still remains poorly understood, whereas, the regulation of CBF may play an important role in weakening the impact of CVS on cortex function. Therefore, it is worthwhile to evaluate the functional response of CBF in the activated cortex in an SAH animal model. Most evaluation of the effect of SAH is presently carried out by neurological behavioral scales. The functional imaging of cortical activation during sensory stimulation may help to reflect the function of the somatosensory cortex more locally than the behavioral scales do. We investigated the functional response of CBF in the somatosensory cortex induced by an electrical stimulation to contralateral forepaw via laser speckle imaging in a rat SAH model. Nineteen Sprague-Dawley rats from two groups (control group, n=10 and SAH group, n=9) were studied. SAH was induced in rats by double injection of autologous blood into the cisterna magna after CSF aspiration. The same surgical procedure was applied in the control group without CSF aspiration or blood injection. Significant CVS was found in the SAH group. Meanwhile, we observed a delayed peak of CBF response in rats with SAH compared with those in the control group, whereas no significant difference was found in magnitude, duration, and areas under curve of relative CBF changes between the two groups. The results suggest that the regulation function of local CBF during

Inhibition of αIIbβ3 Ligand Binding by an αIIb Peptide that Clasps the Hybrid Domain to the βI Domain of β3.

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Wen Hwa Lee

Full Text Available Agonist-stimulated platelet activation triggers conformational changes of integrin αIIbβ3, allowing fibrinogen binding and platelet aggregation. We have previously shown that an octapeptide, p1YMESRADR8, corresponding to amino acids 313-320 of the β-ribbon extending from the β-propeller domain of αIIb, acts as a potent inhibitor of platelet aggregation. Here we have performed in silico modelling analysis of the interaction of this peptide with αIIbβ3 in its bent and closed (not swing-out conformation and show that the peptide is able to act as a substitute for the β-ribbon by forming a clasp restraining the β3 hybrid and βI domains in a closed conformation. The involvement of species-specific residues of the β3 hybrid domain (E356 and K384 and the β1 domain (E297 as well as an intrapeptide bond (pE315-pR317 were confirmed as important for this interaction by mutagenesis studies of αIIbβ3 expressed in CHO cells and native or substituted peptide inhibitory studies on platelet functions. Furthermore, NMR data corroborate the above results. Our findings provide insight into the important functional role of the αIIb β-ribbon in preventing integrin αIIbβ3 head piece opening, and highlight a potential new therapeutic approach to prevent integrin ligand binding.

[Curcumin alleviates early brain injury following subarachnoid hemorrhage in rats by inhibiting JNK/c-Jun signal pathway].

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Li, Xia; Zhu, Ji

2018-03-01

Objective To investigate the inhibitory effect of curcumin on early brain injury following subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) by inhibiting JNK/ c-Jun signal pathway. Methods Sixty adult male SD rats were randomly divided into four groups: sham operation group (sham group), SAH group, SAH group treated with 100 mg/(kg.d) curcumin and SAH group treated with 200 mg/(kg.d) curcumin, with 15 rats in each group. Endovascular puncture was used to induce SAH model. Nissl staining was used to test whether neurons were broken. TUNEL staining was used to detect apoptosis. Immunohistochemistry was used to investigate the expression of caspase-3. Western blot analysis was used to detect the expressions of p-JNK, JNK, p-c-Jun, c-Jun, and caspase-3. Results Nissl staining indicated the decrease of Nissl bodies in SAH group, but increase of Nissl bodies in SAH group treated with curcumin. TUNEL staining showed that there were more apoptotic neurons in SAH group compared with sham group, while apoptotic neurons decreased after the treatment with curcumin, more obviously in the group treated with 200 mg/(kg.d) curcumin. The expressions of p-JNK, JNK, p-c-Jun, c-Jun, and caspase-3 were up-regulated in SAH group compared with sham group. However, the expressions of those proteins were down-regulated after the treatment with curcumin, especially by higher-dose curcumin treatment. Conclusion Curcumin might suppress early brain injury after SAH by inhibiting JNK/c-Jun signal pathway and neuron apoptosis.

Self-Assembly of Narrowly Dispersed Brush Diblock Copolymers with Domain Spacing more than 100 nm

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Gu, Weiyin; Sveinbjornsson, Benjamin; Hong, Sung Woo; Grubbs, Robert; Russell, Thomas

2012-02-01

Self-assembled structures of high molecular weight (MW), narrow molecular weight distribution brush block copolymers containing polylactic acid (PLA) and polystyrene (PS) side chains with similar MWs were studied in both the melt and thin films. The polynorbornene-backbone-based brush diblock copolymers containing approximately equal volume fractions of each block self-assembled into highly ordered lamellae with domain spacing over 100 nm, as revealed by SAXS, GISAXS and AFM. The domain size increased approximately linearly with backbone length, which indicated an extended conformation of the backbone in the ordered state. The length of side chains also played a significant role in terms of controlling the domain size. As the degree of polymerization (DP) increased, the symmetric brush diblock copolymers with longer side chains tended to form larger lamellar microdomains in comparison to those that have the same DP but shorter side chains.

Crystal Structure of the HEAT Domain from the Pre-mRNA Processing Factor Symplekin

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Kennedy, Sarah A.; Frazier, Monica L.; Steiniger, Mindy; Mast, Ann M.; Marzluff, William F.; Redinbo, Matthew R.; (UNC)

2010-09-30

The majority of eukaryotic pre-mRNAs are processed by 3'-end cleavage and polyadenylation, although in metazoa the replication-dependent histone mRNAs are processed by 3'-end cleavage but not polyadenylation. The macromolecular complex responsible for processing both canonical and histone pre-mRNAs contains the {approx} 1160-residue protein Symplekin. Secondary-structural prediction algorithms identified putative HEAT domains in the 300 N-terminal residues of all Symplekins of known sequence. The structure and dynamics of this domain were investigated to begin elucidating the role Symplekin plays in mRNA maturation. The crystal structure of the Drosophila melanogaster Symplekin HEAT domain was determined to 2.4 {angstrom} resolution with single-wavelength anomalous dispersion phasing methods. The structure exhibits five canonical HEAT repeats along with an extended 31-amino-acid loop (loop 8) between the fourth and fifth repeat that is conserved within closely related Symplekin sequences. Molecular dynamics simulations of this domain show that the presence of loop 8 dampens correlated and anticorrelated motion in the HEAT domain, therefore providing a neutral surface for potential protein-protein interactions. HEAT domains are often employed for such macromolecular contacts. The Symplekin HEAT region not only structurally aligns with several established scaffolding proteins, but also has been reported to contact proteins essential for regulating 3'-end processing. Together, these data support the conclusion that the Symplekin HEAT domain serves as a scaffold for protein-protein interactions essential to the mRNA maturation process.

Domain Engineering

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Bjørner, Dines

Before software can be designed we must know its requirements. Before requirements can be expressed we must understand the domain. So it follows, from our dogma, that we must first establish precise descriptions of domains; then, from such descriptions, “derive” at least domain and interface requirements; and from those and machine requirements design the software, or, more generally, the computing systems.

Goal-Based Domain Modeling as a Basis for Cross-Disciplinary Systems Engineering

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Jarke, Matthias; Nissen, Hans W.; Rose, Thomas; Schmitz, Dominik

Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are important drivers for innovation. In particular, project-driven SMEs that closely cooperate with their customers have specific needs in regard to information engineering of their development process. They need a fast requirements capture since this is most often included in the (unpaid) offer development phase. At the same time, they need to maintain and reuse the knowledge and experiences they have gathered in previous projects extensively as it is their core asset. The situation is complicated further if the application field crosses disciplinary boundaries. To bridge the gaps and perspectives, we focus on shared goals and dependencies captured in models at a conceptual level. Such a model-based approach also offers a smarter connection to subsequent development stages, including a high share of automated code generation. In the approach presented here, the agent- and goal-oriented formalism i * is therefore extended by domain models to facilitate information organization. This extension permits a domain model-based similarity search, and a model-based transformation towards subsequent development stages. Our approach also addresses the evolution of domain models reflecting the experiences from completed projects. The approach is illustrated with a case study on software-intensive control systems in an SME of the automotive domain.

Optimal Couple Projections for Domain Adaptive Sparse Representation-based Classification.

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Zhang, Guoqing; Sun, Huaijiang; Porikli, Fatih; Liu, Yazhou; Sun, Quansen

2017-08-29

In recent years, sparse representation based classification (SRC) is one of the most successful methods and has been shown impressive performance in various classification tasks. However, when the training data has a different distribution than the testing data, the learned sparse representation may not be optimal, and the performance of SRC will be degraded significantly. To address this problem, in this paper, we propose an optimal couple projections for domain-adaptive sparse representation-based classification (OCPD-SRC) method, in which the discriminative features of data in the two domains are simultaneously learned with the dictionary that can succinctly represent the training and testing data in the projected space. OCPD-SRC is designed based on the decision rule of SRC, with the objective to learn coupled projection matrices and a common discriminative dictionary such that the between-class sparse reconstruction residuals of data from both domains are maximized, and the within-class sparse reconstruction residuals of data are minimized in the projected low-dimensional space. Thus, the resulting representations can well fit SRC and simultaneously have a better discriminant ability. In addition, our method can be easily extended to multiple domains and can be kernelized to deal with the nonlinear structure of data. The optimal solution for the proposed method can be efficiently obtained following the alternative optimization method. Extensive experimental results on a series of benchmark databases show that our method is better or comparable to many state-of-the-art methods.

An extended framework for adaptive playback-based video summarization

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Peker, Kadir A.; Divakaran, Ajay

2003-11-01

In our previous work, we described an adaptive fast playback framework for video summarization where we changed the playback rate using the motion activity feature so as to maintain a constant "pace." This method provides an effective way of skimming through video, especially when the motion is not too complex and the background is mostly still, such as in surveillance video. In this paper, we present an extended summarization framework that, in addition to motion activity, uses semantic cues such as face or skin color appearance, speech and music detection, or other domain dependent semantically significant events to control the playback rate. The semantic features we use are computationally inexpensive and can be computed in compressed domain, yet are robust, reliable, and have a wide range of applicability across different content types. The presented framework also allows for adaptive summaries based on preference, for example, to include more dramatic vs. action elements, or vice versa. The user can switch at any time between the skimming and the normal playback modes. The continuity of the video is preserved, and complete omission of segments that may be important to the user is avoided by using adaptive fast playback instead of skipping over long segments. The rule-set and the input parameters can be further modified to fit a certain domain or application. Our framework can be used by itself, or as a subsequent presentation stage for a summary produced by any other summarization technique that relies on generating a sub-set of the content.

Subarachnoid Hemorrhage due to Spinal Cord Schwannoma Presenting Findings Mimicking Meningitis.

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Zhang, Hong-Mei; Zhang, Yin-Xi; Zhang, Qing; Song, Shui-Jiang; Liu, Zhi-Rong

2016-08-01

Subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) of spinal origin is uncommon in clinical practice, and spinal schwannomas associated with SAH are even more rarely reported. We report an unusual case of spinal SAH mimicking meningitis with normal brain computed tomography (CT)/magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and negative CT angiography. Cerebrospinal fluid examination results were consistent with the manifestation of SAH. Spinal MRI performed subsequently showed an intradural extramedullary mass. The patient received surgery and was finally diagnosed with spinal cord schwannoma. A retrospective chart review of the patient was performed. We describe a case of SAH due to spinal cord schwannoma. Our case highlights the importance of careful history taking and complete evaluation. We emphasize that spinal causes should always be ruled out in patients with angionegative SAH and that schwannoma should be considered in the differential diagnosis of SAH etiologies even though rare. Copyright © 2016 National Stroke Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Neurocardiac protection with milrinone for restoring acute cerebral hypoperfusion and delayed ischemic injury after experimental subarachnoid hemorrhage.

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Mutoh, Tomoko; Mutoh, Tatsushi; Sasaki, Kazumasu; Nakamura, Kazuhiro; Tatewaki, Yasuko; Ishikawa, Tatsuya; Taki, Yasuyuki

2017-02-15

Acute cerebral hypoperfusion following subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) is highly related to the pathogenesis of delayed cerebral ischemia (DCI), but the therapeutic option is poorly available. This study aimed to clarify the effect of milrinone (MIL) on cerebral blood flow (CBF) and related outcomes after experimental SAH. Twenty-seven male C57BL/6 mice were assigned to either sham surgery (SAH-sham; n=6), SAH induced by endovascular perforation (control; n=10), or SAH followed by cardiac support with intravenous MIL (n=11) performed 1.5-h after SAH induction. CBF, neurobehavioral function, occurrence of DCI were assessed by MR-continuous arterial spin labeling, daily neurological score testing, and diffusion- and T2-weighted MR images on days 1 and 3, respectively. Initial global CBF depression was notable in mice of control and MIL groups as compared to the SAH-sham group (Pprotective agent against EBI. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Molecular dynamics simulations of site point mutations in the TPR domain of cyclophilin 40 identify conformational states with distinct dynamic and enzymatic properties

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Gur, Mert; Blackburn, Elizabeth A.; Ning, Jia; Narayan, Vikram; Ball, Kathryn L.; Walkinshaw, Malcolm D.; Erman, Burak

2018-04-01

Cyclophilin 40 (Cyp40) is a member of the immunophilin family that acts as a peptidyl-prolyl-isomerase enzyme and binds to the heat shock protein 90 (Hsp90). Its structure comprises an N-terminal cyclophilin domain and a C-terminal tetratricopeptide (TPR) domain. Cyp40 is overexpressed in prostate cancer and certain T-cell lymphomas. The groove for Hsp90 binding on the TPR domain includes residues Lys227 and Lys308, referred to as the carboxylate clamp, and is essential for Cyp40-Hsp90 binding. In this study, the effect of two mutations, K227A and K308A, and their combinative mutant was investigated by performing a total of 5.76 μs of all-atom molecular dynamics (MD) simulations in explicit solvent. All simulations, except the K308A mutant, were found to adopt two distinct (extended or compact) conformers defined by different cyclophilin-TPR interdomain distances. The K308A mutant was only observed in the extended form which is observed in the Cyp40 X-ray structure. The wild-type, K227A, and combined mutant also showed bimodal distributions. The experimental melting temperature, Tm, values of the mutants correlate with the degree of compactness with the K308A extended mutant having a marginally lower melting temperature. Another novel measure of compactness determined from the MD data, the "coordination shell volume," also shows a direct correlation with Tm. In addition, the MD simulations show an allosteric effect with the mutations in the remote TPR domain having a pronounced effect on the molecular motions of the enzymatic cyclophilin domain which helps rationalise the experimentally observed increase in enzyme activity measured for all three mutations.

Analysis of unknown cause subarachnoid hemorrhage with repeated negative angiogram

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fujii, Mutsumi; Takasato, Yoshio; Masaoka, Hiroyuki; Ohta, Yoshihisa; Hayakawa, Takanori; Honma, Masato

2006-01-01

Seven hundred and fifty five cases of acute non-traumatic subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) were admitted to the department of neurosurgery of our hospital from July, 1995 to March, 2004. In 555 patients cerebral angiography was conducted but initial angiography was negative in 30 patients. Except 10 general condition poor patients, in 20 initial angiogram-negative patients were undergone repeated angiography. The cause of SAH could not be demonstrated in 13 cases. The SAH in perimesencephalic and non-perimesencephalic cisturns was seen in 7 and 6 cases, respectively. Occipital and/or neck pain on admission was statistically more common among patients with perimesencephalic SAH than those with non-perimesencephalic SAH (p=0.029), and the prognosis of perimesencephalic SAH was good. We conclude that repeat angiography should not be recommended in patients with perimesencephalic SAH. Patients with non-perimesencephalic SAH had a higher rate of complication. In the non-perimesencephalic group, 3 patients developed hydrocephalus and 3 patients had vasospasm, which were found by repeated angiography. Therefore, repeated angiography is recommended for better clinical outcome by early detection and management of serious complications in this group of patients. (author)

Domain decomposition method for solving elliptic problems in unbounded domains

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Khoromskij, B.N.; Mazurkevich, G.E.; Zhidkov, E.P.

1991-01-01

Computational aspects of the box domain decomposition (DD) method for solving boundary value problems in an unbounded domain are discussed. A new variant of the DD-method for elliptic problems in unbounded domains is suggested. It is based on the partitioning of an unbounded domain adapted to the given asymptotic decay of an unknown function at infinity. The comparison of computational expenditures is given for boundary integral method and the suggested DD-algorithm. 29 refs.; 2 figs.; 2 tabs

[Curcumin improves learning and memory function through decreasing hippocampal TNF-α and iNOS levels after subarachnoid hemorrhage in rats].

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Qiu, Zhenwei; Yue, Shuangzhu

2016-03-01

To investigate the effect of curcumin on learning and memory function of rats with subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) and the possible mechanism. A total of 30 male Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly divided into three groups: Sham group, SAH group and curcumin (Cur) therapy group. Experimental SAH rat models were established by injecting autologous blood into the cisterna magna. Neurological deficits of rats were examined at different time points. Spatial learning and memory abilities were tested by Morris water maze test. The hippocampal tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) and inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) were detected by ELISA. RESULTS Experimental SAH rat models were established successfully. Neurological scores of the SAH rats were significantly lower than those of the sham group. Curcumin therapy obviously improved the neurological deficits of rats compared with the SAH rats. Morris water maze test showed that SAH caused significant cognitive impairment with longer escape latency compared with the sham group. After treatment with curcumin for 4 weeks, the escape latency decreased significantly. The levels of TNF-α and iNOS in the curcumin-treated group were significantly lower than those of the SAH group. SAH can cause learning and memory impairment in rats. Curcumin can recover learning and memory function through down-regulating hippocampal TNF-α and iNOS levels.

Subarachnoid Haemorrhage and Sports.

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Sousa Nanji, Liliana; Melo, Teresa P; Canhão, Patrícia; Fonseca, Ana Catarina; Ferro, José Manuel

2015-01-01

Some cases of subarachnoid haemorrhage (SAH) have been associated with vigorous physical activity, including sports. Our research aimed to describe the association between SAH and sports and to identify the types of sports that were more frequently found as precipitating factors in a tertiary single-centre SAH register. We retrieved information from a prospectively collected SAH registry and reviewed discharge notes of acute SAH patients admitted to the Stroke Unit of Hospital de Santa Maria, Lisbon, between 1995 and 2014. Out of 738 patients included in the analysis, 424 (57.5%) cases of SAH were preceded by physical activity. Nine cases (1.2%) were associated with sports, namely running (2 cases), aerobics (2 cases), cycling, body balance, dance, surf and windsurf. Patients with SAH while practicing sports were younger than controls (average age 43.1 vs. 57.0 years; p = 0.007). In 1 patient, there was a report of trauma to the neck. Patients in the sports group only had Hunt and Hess scale grades 1 (11.1%) or 2 (88.9%) at admission, while patients in the control group had a wider distribution in severity. Our findings indicate that SAH precipitated by sports is not very frequent and is uncommonly related to trauma. Patients who suffered SAH associated with sports were younger and apparently had a milder clinical presentation.

Habitual Cognitive Reappraisal Was Negatively Related to Perceived Immorality in the Harm and Fairness Domains

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Zhongquan Li

2017-10-01

Full Text Available Emotion plays an important role in moral judgment, and people always use emotion regulation strategies to modulate emotion, consciously or unconsciously. Previous studies had investigated only the relationship between emotion regulation strategies and moral judgment in the Harm domain, and revealed divergent results. Based on Moral Foundations Theory, the present study extended the investigation into moral judgment in all five moral domains and used a set of standardized moral vignettes. Two hundred and six college students filled in the Emotion Regulation Questionnaire and completed emotional ratings and moral judgment on moral vignettes from Moral Foundations Vignettes. Correlation analysis indicated that habitual cognitive reappraisal was negatively related to immorality rating in Harm, Fairness, and Loyalty domains. Regression analysis revealed that after controlling the effect of other variables, cognitive reappraisal negatively predicted immorality ratings in the Harm and Fairness domains. Further mediation analysis showed that emotional valence only partially explained the association between cognitive reappraisal and moral judgment in Harm area. Some other factors beyond emotional valence were suggested for future studies.

Habitual Cognitive Reappraisal Was Negatively Related to Perceived Immorality in the Harm and Fairness Domains.

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Zhongquan; Wu, Xiaoyuan; Zhang, Lisong; Zhang, Ziyuan

2017-01-01

Emotion plays an important role in moral judgment, and people always use emotion regulation strategies to modulate emotion, consciously or unconsciously. Previous studies had investigated only the relationship between emotion regulation strategies and moral judgment in the Harm domain, and revealed divergent results. Based on Moral Foundations Theory, the present study extended the investigation into moral judgment in all five moral domains and used a set of standardized moral vignettes. Two hundred and six college students filled in the Emotion Regulation Questionnaire and completed emotional ratings and moral judgment on moral vignettes from Moral Foundations Vignettes. Correlation analysis indicated that habitual cognitive reappraisal was negatively related to immorality rating in Harm, Fairness, and Loyalty domains. Regression analysis revealed that after controlling the effect of other variables, cognitive reappraisal negatively predicted immorality ratings in the Harm and Fairness domains. Further mediation analysis showed that emotional valence only partially explained the association between cognitive reappraisal and moral judgment in Harm area. Some other factors beyond emotional valence were suggested for future studies.

Perspectives on extended Deterrence

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tertrais, Bruno; Yost, David S.; Bunn, Elaine; Lee, Seok-soo; Levite, Ariel e.; Russell, James A.; Hokayem, Emile; Kibaroglu, Mustafa; Schulte, Paul; Thraenert, Oliver; Kulesa, Lukasz

2010-05-01

In November 2009, the Foundation for Strategic Research (Fondation pour la recherche strategique, FRS) convened a workshop on 'The Future of extended Deterrence', which included the participation of some of the best experts of this topic, from the United States, Europe, the Middle East and East Asia, as well as French and NATO officials. This document brings together the papers prepared for this seminar. Several of them were updated after the publication in April 2010 of the US Nuclear Posture Review. The seminar was organized with the support of the French Atomic energy Commission (Commissariat a l'energie atomique - CEA). Content: 1 - The future of extended deterrence: a brainstorming paper (Bruno Tertrais); 2 - US extended deterrence in NATO and North-East Asia (David S. Yost); 3 - The future of US extended deterrence (Elaine Bunn); 4 - The future of extended deterrence: a South Korean perspective (Seok-soo Lee); 5 - Reflections on extended deterrence in the Middle East (Ariel e. Levite); 6 - extended deterrence, security guarantees and nuclear weapons: US strategic and policy conundrums in the Gulf (James A. Russell); 7 - extended deterrence in the Gulf: a bridge too far? (Emile Hokayem); 8 - The future of extended deterrence: the case of Turkey (Mustafa Kibaroglu); 9 - The future of extended deterrence: a UK view (Paul Schulte); 10 - NATO and extended deterrence (Oliver Thraenert); 11 - extended deterrence and assurance in Central Europe (Lukasz Kulesa)

Spontaneous subarachnoid hemorrhage as manifestation of an acoustic neurinoma

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mironov, A.; Voigt, K.; Peiffer, J.; Rios Nogales Carces, L.

1986-01-01

Subarachnoid hemorrhages (SAH) due to intracranial tumors are very rare. We report the clinical, neuroradiological and histological findings of an acoustic neurinoma, the initial and manifestating symptom of which was an acute SAH. In the literature we found only eight further cases of acoustic neurinomas with spontaneous SAH. The causes of the SAH are discussed; and we compare our findings to those in the literature. (orig.) [de

Short forms of the Utrecht-Management of Identity Commitments Scale (U-MICS) with the domains of job, romantic relationship, and region.

Science.gov (United States)

Schubach, Elisabeth; Zimmermann, Julia; Noack, Peter; Neyer, Franz J

2017-01-01

The U-MICS is a self-report questionnaire designed to assess the identity dimensions from a domain-specific perspective. The present study reports on the development of a short-form version for the domains of job and romantic relationship in young adults from Germany and extends this scale to include the domain of region (n Sample1  = 95, 84% female, mean age 22.45 years; n Sample2  = 1,795, 71% female, mean age 24.53 years). We found the short form to possess adequate psychometric properties and to demonstrate a factor structure congruent to the long-form version. Regarding validity, the small correlations across domains within dimensions support a domain-specific approach to identity. The associations between the different identity domains with personality traits are similar, indicating a consistent pattern of convergent validity for all domains. We conclude that "region" provides a valuable complement to the established domains that can all be reliably assessed with the U-MICS-Short Form. Copyright © 2016 The Foundation for Professionals in Services for Adolescents. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Flat-panel detector volumetric CT for visualization of subarachnoid hemorrhage and ventricles: preliminary results compared to conventional CT

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Doelken, M.; Struffert, T.; Richter, G.; Engelhorn, T.; Doerfler, A.; Nimsky, C.; Ganslandt, O.; Hammen, T.

2008-01-01

The aim of this study was to compare flat-panel volumetric CT (VCT) to conventional CT (cCT) in the visualization of the extent of subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) and the width of the ventricles in patients with acute SAH. Included in the study were 22 patients with an acutely ruptured cerebral aneurysm who received VCT during coil embolization. VCT image quality, the extent of SAH (using a modified Fisher score and total slice number with SAH visible) and the width of the ventricles (Evans index) were evaluated by two experienced neuroradiologists (RAD1 and RAD2) and compared to the findings on cCT. Ten patients undergoing VCT for reasons other than SAH served as negative controls. Interobserver agreement in rating image quality was excellent for cCT (Kendall W value 0.94) and good for VCT (0.74). SAH was identified by RAD1 and RAD2 on VCT images in all patients. The modified Fisher scores underestimated the extent of SAH on VCT images in comparison with cCT images. Pearson's correlation coefficient (r) regarding the number of image slices with SAH visible on cCT images compared with the number on VCT images was 0.85 for RAD1 and 0.84 for RAD2. The r value for the degree of interobserver agreement for the number of slices with SAH visible was 0.99 for cCT, and 0.95 for VCT images (n 19), respectively. The width of the ventricles measured in terms of the Evans Index showed excellent concordance between the modalities (r = 0.81 vs. 0.82). Our preliminary results indicate that VCT is helpful in evaluating SAH in the angiography suite. Additionally, reliable evaluation of ventricle width is feasible. However, there are limitations with regard to the visibility of SAH on VCT images in comparison to cCT images. (orig.)

The SHOCT domain: a widespread domain under-represented in model organisms.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ruth Y Eberhardt

Full Text Available We have identified a new protein domain, which we have named the SHOCT domain (Short C-terminal domain. This domain is widespread in bacteria with over a thousand examples. But we found it is missing from the most commonly studied model organisms, despite being present in closely related species. It's predominantly C-terminal location, co-occurrence with numerous other domains and short size is reminiscent of the Gram-positive anchor motif, however it is present in a much wider range of species. We suggest several hypotheses about the function of SHOCT, including oligomerisation and nucleic acid binding. Our initial experiments do not support its role as an oligomerisation domain.

Navigation-assisted trans-inferotemporal cortex selective amygdalohippocampectomy for mesial temporal lobe epilepsy; preserving the temporal stem.

Science.gov (United States)

Kishima, Haruhiko; Kato, Amami; Oshino, Satoru; Tani, Naoki; Maruo, Tomoyuki; Khoo, Hui Ming; Yanagisawa, Takufumi; Edakawa, Kotaro; Kobayashi, Maki; Tanaka, Masataka; Hosomi, Koichi; Hirata, Masayuki; Yoshimine, Toshiki

2017-03-01

Selective amygdalohippocampectomy (SAH) can be used to obtain satisfactory seizure control in patients with mesial temporal lobe epilepsy (MTLE). Several SAH procedures have been reported to achieve satisfactory outcomes for seizure control, but none yield fully satisfactory outcomes for memory function. We hypothesized that preserving the temporal stem might play an important role. To preserve the temporal stem, we developed a minimally invasive surgical procedure, 'neuronavigation-assisted trans-inferotemporal cortex SAH' (TITC-SAH). TITC-SAH was performed in 23 patients with MTLE (MTLE on the language-non-dominant hemisphere, n = 11). The inferior horn of the lateral ventricle was approached via the inferior or middle temporal gyrus along the inferior temporal sulcus under neuronavigation guidance. The hippocampus was dissected in a subpial manner and resected en bloc together with the parahippocampal gyrus. Seizure control at one year and memory function at 6 months postoperatively were evaluated. One year after TITC-SAH, 20 of the 23 patients were seizure-free (ILAE class 1), 2 were class 2, and 1 was class 3. Verbal memory improved significantly in 13 patients with a diagnosis of hippocampal sclerosis, for whom WMS-R scores were available both pre- and post-operatively. Improvements were seen regardless of whether the SAH was on the language-dominant or non-dominant hemisphere. No major complication was observed. Navigation-assisted TITC-SAH performed for MTLE offers a simple, minimally invasive procedure that appears to yield excellent outcomes in terms of seizure control and preservation of memory function, because this procedure does not damage the temporal stem. TITC-SAH should be one of the feasible surgical procedures for MTLE. SAH: Amygdalohippocampectomy; MTLE: Mesial temporal lobe epilepsy (MTLE); TITC-SAH: Ttrans-inferotemporal cortex SAH; ILAE: International League Against Epilepsy (ILAE); MRI: Magnetic resonance imaging; EEG

Extended Emotions

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Krueger, Joel; Szanto, Thomas

2016-01-01

beyond the neurophysiological confines of organisms; some even argue that emotions can be socially extended and shared by multiple agents. Call this the extended emotions thesis (ExE). In this article, we consider different ways of understanding ExE in philosophy, psychology, and the cognitive sciences...

Domain-to-domain coupling in voltage-sensing phosphatase.

Science.gov (United States)

Sakata, Souhei; Matsuda, Makoto; Kawanabe, Akira; Okamura, Yasushi

2017-01-01

Voltage-sensing phosphatase (VSP) consists of a transmembrane voltage sensor and a cytoplasmic enzyme region. The enzyme region contains the phosphatase and C2 domains, is structurally similar to the tumor suppressor phosphatase PTEN, and catalyzes the dephosphorylation of phosphoinositides. The transmembrane voltage sensor is connected to the phosphatase through a short linker region, and phosphatase activity is induced upon membrane depolarization. Although the detailed molecular characteristics of the voltage sensor domain and the enzyme region have been revealed, little is known how these two regions are coupled. In addition, it is important to know whether mechanism for coupling between the voltage sensor domain and downstream effector function is shared among other voltage sensor domain-containing proteins. Recent studies in which specific amino acid sites were genetically labeled using a fluorescent unnatural amino acid have enabled detection of the local structural changes in the cytoplasmic region of Ciona intestinalis VSP that occur with a change in membrane potential. The results of those studies provide novel insight into how the enzyme activity of the cytoplasmic region of VSP is regulated by the voltage sensor domain.

Decreasing Risk of Fatal Subarachnoid Hemorrhage and Other Epidemiological Trends in the Era of Coiling Implementation in Australia

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John Mark Worthington

2017-08-01

Full Text Available Background and purposeSubarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH is associated with a high risk of mortality and disability in survivors. We examined the epidemiology and burden of SAH in our population during a time services were re-organized to facilitate access to evidence-based endovascular coiling and neurosurgical care.MethodsSAH hospitalizations from 2001 to 2009, in New South Wales, Australia, were linked to death registrations to June 30, 2010. We assessed the variability of admission rates, fatal SAH rates and case fatality over time and according to patient demographic characteristics.ResultsThere were 4,945 eligible patients admitted to hospital with SAH. The risk of fatal SAH significantly decreased by 2.7% on average per year (95% CI = 0.3–4.9%. Case fatality at 2, 30, 90, and 365 days significantly declined over time. The average annual percentage reduction in mortality ranged from 4.4% for 30-day mortality (95% CI −6.1 to −2.7 (P < 0.001 to 4.7% for mortality within 2 days (−7.1 to −2.2 (P < 0.001 (Table 3. Three percent of patients received coiling at the start of the study period, increasing to 28% at the end (P-value for trend <0.001. Females were significantly more likely to be hospitalized for a SAH compared to males [incident rate ratio (IRR = 1.33, 95% CI = 1.23–1.44] (P < 0.001 and to die from SAH (IRR = 1.40, 95% CI = 1.24–1.59 (P < 0.001. People born in South-East Asia and the Oceania region had a significantly increased risk of SAH, while the risk of fatal SAH was greater in South-East and North-East Asian born residents. People residing in areas of least disadvantage had the lowest risk of hospitalization (IRR = 0.83, 95% CI = 0.74–0.92 and also the lowest risk of fatal SAH (0.81, 95% CI = 0.66–1.00 (P < 0.001 and P = 0.003, respectively. For every 100 SAH admissions, 20 and 15 might be avoided in males and females, respectively, if the risk of SAH in our

2D acoustic-elastic coupled waveform inversion in the Laplace domain

KAUST Repository

Bae, Hoseuk

2010-04-01

Although waveform inversion has been intensively studied in an effort to properly delineate the Earth\\'s structures since the early 1980s, most of the time- and frequency-domain waveform inversion algorithms still have critical limitations in their applications to field data. This may be attributed to the highly non-linear objective function and the unreliable low-frequency components. To overcome the weaknesses of conventional waveform inversion algorithms, the acoustic Laplace-domain waveform inversion has been proposed. The Laplace-domain waveform inversion has been known to provide a long-wavelength velocity model even for field data, which may be because it employs the zero-frequency component of the damped wavefield and a well-behaved logarithmic objective function. However, its applications have been confined to 2D acoustic media.We extend the Laplace-domain waveform inversion algorithm to a 2D acoustic-elastic coupled medium, which is encountered in marine exploration environments. In 2D acoustic-elastic coupled media, the Laplace-domain pressures behave differently from those of 2D acoustic media, although the overall features are similar to each other. The main differences are that the pressure wavefields for acoustic-elastic coupled media show negative values even for simple geological structures unlike in acoustic media, when the Laplace damping constant is small and the water depth is shallow. The negative values may result from more complicated wave propagation in elastic media and at fluid-solid interfaces.Our Laplace-domain waveform inversion algorithm is also based on the finite-element method and logarithmic wavefields. To compute gradient direction, we apply the back-propagation technique. Under the assumption that density is fixed, P- and S-wave velocity models are inverted from the pressure data. We applied our inversion algorithm to the SEG/EAGE salt model and the numerical results showed that the Laplace-domain waveform inversion

MIT domain of Vps4 is a Ca2+-dependent phosphoinositide-binding domain.

Science.gov (United States)

Iwaya, Naoko; Takasu, Hirotoshi; Goda, Natsuko; Shirakawa, Masahiro; Tanaka, Toshiki; Hamada, Daizo; Hiroaki, Hidekazu

2013-05-01

The microtubule interacting and trafficking (MIT) domain is a small protein module that is conserved in proteins of diverged function, such as Vps4, spastin and sorting nexin 15 (SNX15). The molecular function of the MIT domain is protein-protein interaction, in which the domain recognizes peptides containing MIT-interacting motifs. Recently, we identified an evolutionarily related domain, 'variant' MIT domain at the N-terminal region of the microtubule severing enzyme katanin p60. We found that the domain was responsible for binding to microtubules and Ca(2+). Here, we have examined whether the authentic MIT domains also bind Ca(2+). We found that the loop between the first and second α-helices of the MIT domain binds a Ca(2+) ion. Furthermore, the MIT domains derived from Vps4b and SNX15a showed phosphoinositide-binding activities in a Ca(2+)-dependent manner. We propose that the MIT domain is a novel membrane-associating domain involved in endosomal trafficking.

Integral formula for elliptic SOS models with domain walls and a reflecting end

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lamers, Jules, E-mail: j.lamers@uu.nl

2015-12-15

In this paper we extend previous work of Galleas and the author to elliptic SOS models. We demonstrate that the dynamical reflection algebra can be exploited to obtain a functional equation characterizing the partition function of an elliptic SOS model with domain-wall boundaries and one reflecting end. Special attention is paid to the structure of the functional equation. Through this approach we find a novel multiple-integral formula for that partition function.

Conversion of Dielectric Data from the Time Domain to the Frequency Domain

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Vladimir Durman

2005-01-01

Full Text Available Polarisation and conduction processes in dielectric systems can be identified by the time domain or the frequency domain measurements. If the systems is a linear one, the results of the time domain measurements can be transformed into the frequency domain, and vice versa. Commonly, the time domain data of the absorption conductivity are transformed into the frequency domain data of the dielectric susceptibility. In practice, the relaxation are mainly evaluated by the frequency domain data. In the time domain, the absorption current measurement were prefered up to now. Recent methods are based on the recovery voltage measurements. In this paper a new method of the recovery data conversion from the time the frequency domain is proposed. The method is based on the analysis of the recovery voltage transient based on the Maxwell equation for the current density in a dielectric. Unlike the previous published solutions, the Laplace fransform was used to derive a formula suitable for practical purposes. the proposed procedure allows also calculating of the insulation resistance and separating the polarisation and conduction losses.

Predicting detection performance with model observers: Fourier domain or spatial domain?

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Baiyu; Yu, Lifeng; Leng, Shuai; Kofler, James; Favazza, Christopher; Vrieze, Thomas; McCollough, Cynthia

2016-02-27

The use of Fourier domain model observer is challenged by iterative reconstruction (IR), because IR algorithms are nonlinear and IR images have noise texture different from that of FBP. A modified Fourier domain model observer, which incorporates nonlinear noise and resolution properties, has been proposed for IR and needs to be validated with human detection performance. On the other hand, the spatial domain model observer is theoretically applicable to IR, but more computationally intensive than the Fourier domain method. The purpose of this study is to compare the modified Fourier domain model observer to the spatial domain model observer with both FBP and IR images, using human detection performance as the gold standard. A phantom with inserts of various low contrast levels and sizes was repeatedly scanned 100 times on a third-generation, dual-source CT scanner at 5 dose levels and reconstructed using FBP and IR algorithms. The human detection performance of the inserts was measured via a 2-alternative-forced-choice (2AFC) test. In addition, two model observer performances were calculated, including a Fourier domain non-prewhitening model observer and a spatial domain channelized Hotelling observer. The performance of these two mode observers was compared in terms of how well they correlated with human observer performance. Our results demonstrated that the spatial domain model observer correlated well with human observers across various dose levels, object contrast levels, and object sizes. The Fourier domain observer correlated well with human observers using FBP images, but overestimated the detection performance using IR images.

Optimized waveform relaxation domain decomposition method for discrete finite volume non stationary convection diffusion equation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Berthe, P.M.

2013-01-01

In the context of nuclear waste repositories, we consider the numerical discretization of the non stationary convection diffusion equation. Discontinuous physical parameters and heterogeneous space and time scales lead us to use different space and time discretizations in different parts of the domain. In this work, we choose the discrete duality finite volume (DDFV) scheme and the discontinuous Galerkin scheme in time, coupled by an optimized Schwarz waveform relaxation (OSWR) domain decomposition method, because this allows the use of non-conforming space-time meshes. The main difficulty lies in finding an upwind discretization of the convective flux which remains local to a sub-domain and such that the multi domain scheme is equivalent to the mono domain one. These difficulties are first dealt with in the one-dimensional context, where different discretizations are studied. The chosen scheme introduces a hybrid unknown on the cell interfaces. The idea of up winding with respect to this hybrid unknown is extended to the DDFV scheme in the two-dimensional setting. The well-posedness of the scheme and of an equivalent multi domain scheme is shown. The latter is solved by an OSWR algorithm, the convergence of which is proved. The optimized parameters in the Robin transmission conditions are obtained by studying the continuous or discrete convergence rates. Several test-cases, one of which inspired by nuclear waste repositories, illustrate these results. (author) [fr

A proof-of-principle for frequency-domain vibration analysis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mobley, R.K.

1987-01-01

The economic and regulatory pressures on operating utilities to improve efficiency, availability, and reliability and to extend the effective operating life of existing electric power generating plants have created a real need for instrumentation, systems, and programs that can monitor, analyze, and provide the means to correct incipient machine and process problems. Predictive maintenance programs, properly utilized, can be one key to achieving these goals. Recent developments in microprocessor technology have provided the ability to routinely monitor the actual mechanical condition of all rotating and reciprocating machinery and process variables (i.e., pressure, temperature, flow, etc.) of other process equipment within an operating electric power generating plant. This direct correlation between frequency-domain vibration and actual mechanical condition of machinery and trending process variables of nonrotating equipment can provide the key to improving availability, reliability, and thermal efficiency and can provide the baseline information necessary for developing a realistic plan for extending the useful life of power plants. The premise of utilizing microprocessor-based predictive maintenance to improve power plant operation has been proven by a number of utilities

Chirality correlation within Dirac eigenvectors from domain wall fermions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Blum, T.; Christ, N.; Cristian, C.; Liao, X.; Liu, G.; Mawhinney, R.; Wu, L.; Zhestkov, Y.; Dawson, C.

2002-01-01

In the dilute instanton gas model of the QCD vacuum, one expects a strong spatial correlation between chirality and the maxima of the Dirac eigenvectors with small eigenvalues. Following Horvath et al. we examine this question using lattice gauge theory within the quenched approximation. We extend the work of those authors by using weaker coupling, β=6.0, larger lattices, 16 4 , and an improved fermion formulation, domain wall fermions. In contrast with this earlier work, we find a striking correlation between the magnitudes of the chirality density, |ψ † (x)γ 5 ψ(x)|, and the normal density, ψ † (x)ψ(x), for the low-lying Dirac eigenvectors

Neuropsychological function after endovascular and neurosurgical treatment of subarachnoid hemorrhage: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Egeto, Peter; Loch Macdonald, R; Ornstein, Tisha J; Schweizer, Tom A

2018-03-01

OBJECTIVE Subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) is treated with either surgical clipping or endovascular coiling, though the latter is the preferred treatment method given its more favorable functional outcomes. However, neuropsychological functioning after treatment is rarely taken into account. In this meta-analysis, the authors synthesized relevant data from the literature and compared neuropsychological functioning in patients after coiling and clipping of SAH. They hypothesized that the coiled patients would outperform the clipped patients; that group differences would be greater with higher posterior circulation rupture rates, in older patients, and in more recent publications; that group differences would be smaller with greater rates of middle cerebral artery (MCA) rupture; and that anterior communicating artery (ACoA) rupture rates would not influence effect sizes. METHODS The MEDLINE, Embase, and PsycINFO databases were searched for clinical studies that compared neuropsychological functioning after either endovascular coiling or surgical clipping for SAH. Hedge's g and 95% confidence intervals were calculated using random effects models. Patients who had undergone coiling or clipping were compared on test performance in 8 neuropsychological domains: executive functions, language, attention/processing speed, verbal memory, visual memory, spatial memory, visuospatial functions, and intelligence. Patients were also compared with healthy controls, and meta-regressions were used to explore the relation between effect sizes and publication year, delay between treatment and neuropsychological testing, mean patient age, and rates of posterior circulation, ACoA, and MCA ruptures. RESULTS Thirteen studies with 396 clipped cases, 314 coiled cases, and 169 healthy controls were included in the study. The coil-treated patients outperformed the clip-treated patients on executive function (g = 0.17, 95% CI 0.08-0.25) and language tests (g = 0.23, 95% CI 0.07-0.39), and all

Spatially resolved mapping of electrical conductivity across individual domain (grain) boundaries in graphene.

Science.gov (United States)

Clark, Kendal W; Zhang, X-G; Vlassiouk, Ivan V; He, Guowei; Feenstra, Randall M; Li, An-Ping

2013-09-24

All large-scale graphene films contain extended topological defects dividing graphene into domains or grains. Here, we spatially map electronic transport near specific domain and grain boundaries in both epitaxial graphene grown on SiC and CVD graphene on Cu subsequently transferred to a SiO2 substrate, with one-to-one correspondence to boundary structures. Boundaries coinciding with the substrate step on SiC exhibit a significant potential barrier for electron transport of epitaxial graphene due to the reduced charge transfer from the substrate near the step edge. Moreover, monolayer-bilayer boundaries exhibit a high resistance that can change depending on the height of substrate step coinciding at the boundary. In CVD graphene, the resistance of a grain boundary changes with the width of the disordered transition region between adjacent grains. A quantitative modeling of boundary resistance reveals the increased electron Fermi wave vector within the boundary region, possibly due to boundary induced charge density variation. Understanding how resistance change with domain (grain) boundary structure in graphene is a crucial first step for controlled engineering of defects in large-scale graphene films.

Rule-Based Classification of MMPI Data of Patients with Mental Disorders: Experiments with Basic and Extended Profiles

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Jerzy Gomula

2011-10-01

Full Text Available In the research presented in the paper, we test the classification potential for different configurations of the MMPI data used for nosological diagnosis of patients with mental disorders. Originally, each patient is described by an MMPI profile consisting of a set of values of thirteen attributes (the so-called scales. A profile can be extended by different specialized indexes defined in the professional domain literature. Each created index has been proposed by practitioners and has a proper meaning from the clinical point of view. Adding such indexes leads to the extension of the attribute space for cases to be classified. In the paper, we present results of experiments with basic (original and extended profiles.

Entrapment of metal clusters in metal-organic framework channels by extended hooks anchored at open metal sites.

Science.gov (United States)

Zheng, Shou-Tian; Zhao, Xiang; Lau, Samuel; Fuhr, Addis; Feng, Pingyun; Bu, Xianhui

2013-07-17

Reported here are the new concept of utilizing open metal sites (OMSs) for architectural pore design and its practical implementation. Specifically, it is shown here that OMSs can be used to run extended hooks (isonicotinates in this work) from the framework walls to the channel centers to effect the capture of single metal ions or clusters, with the concurrent partitioning of the large channel spaces into multiple domains, alteration of the host-guest charge relationship and associated guest-exchange properties, and transfer of OMSs from the walls to the channel centers. The concept of the extended hook, demonstrated here in the multicomponent dual-metal and dual-ligand system, should be generally applicable to a range of framework types.

Clinical Trials in Cardiac Arrest and Subarachnoid Hemorrhage: Lessons from the Past and Ideas for the Future

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Jennifer A. Frontera

2013-01-01

Full Text Available Introduction. Elevated intracranial pressure that occurs at the time of cerebral aneurysm rupture can lead to inadequate cerebral blood flow, which may mimic the brain injury cascade that occurs after cardiac arrest. Insights from clinical trials in cardiac arrest may provide direction for future early brain injury research after subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH. Methods. A search of PubMed from 1980 to 2012 and clinicaltrials.gov was conducted to identify published and ongoing randomized clinical trials in aneurysmal SAH and cardiac arrest patients. Only English, adult, human studies with primary or secondary mortality or neurological outcomes were included. Results. A total of 142 trials (82 SAH, 60 cardiac arrest met the review criteria (103 published, 39 ongoing. The majority of both published and ongoing SAH trials focus on delayed secondary insults after SAH (70%, while 100% of cardiac arrest trials tested interventions within the first few hours of ictus. No SAH trials addressing treatment of early brain injury were identified. Twenty-nine percent of SAH and 13% of cardiac arrest trials showed outcome benefit, though there is no overlap mechanistically. Conclusions. Clinical trials in SAH assessing acute brain injury are warranted and successful interventions identified by the cardiac arrest literature may be reasonable targets of the study.

Arctigenin, a Potent Ingredient of Arctium lappa L., Induces Endothelial Nitric Oxide Synthase and Attenuates Subarachnoid Hemorrhage-Induced Vasospasm through PI3K/Akt Pathway in a Rat Model

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Chih-Zen Chang

2015-01-01

Full Text Available Upregulation of protein kinase B (PKB, also known as Akt is observed within the cerebral arteries of subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH animals. This study is of interest to examine Arctigenin, a potent antioxidant, on endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS and Akt pathways in a SAH in vitro study. Basilar arteries (BAs were obtained to examine phosphatidylinositol-3-kinase (PI3K, phospho-PI3K, Akt, phospho-Akt (Western blot and morphological examination. Endothelins (ETs and eNOS evaluation (Western blot and immunostaining were also determined. Arctigenin treatment significantly alleviates disrupted endothelial cells and tortured internal elastic layer observed in the SAH groups (p<0.01. The reduced eNOS protein and phospho-Akt expression in the SAH groups were relieved by the treatment of Arctigenin (p<0.01. This result confirmed that Arctigenin might exert dural effects in preventing SAH-induced vasospasm through upregulating eNOS expression via the PI3K/Akt signaling pathway and attenuate endothelins after SAH. Arctigenin shows therapeutic promise in the treatment of cerebral vasospasm following SAH.

Heparin and Heparin-Derivatives in Post-Subarachnoid Hemorrhage Brain Injury: A Multimodal Therapy for a Multimodal Disease

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Erik G. Hayman

2017-05-01

Full Text Available Pharmacologic efforts to improve outcomes following aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage (aSAH remain disappointing, likely owing to the complex nature of post-hemorrhage brain injury. Previous work suggests that heparin, due to the multimodal nature of its actions, reduces the incidence of clinical vasospasm and delayed cerebral ischemia that accompany the disease. This narrative review examines how heparin may mitigate the non-vasospastic pathological aspects of aSAH, particularly those related to neuroinflammation. Following a brief review of early brain injury in aSAH and heparin’s general pharmacology, we discuss potential mechanistic roles of heparin therapy in treating post-aSAH inflammatory injury. These roles include reducing ischemia-reperfusion injury, preventing leukocyte extravasation, modulating phagocyte activation, countering oxidative stress, and correcting blood-brain barrier dysfunction. Following a discussion of evidence to support these mechanistic roles, we provide a brief discussion of potential complications of heparin usage in aSAH. Our review suggests that heparin’s use in aSAH is not only safe, but effectively addresses a number of pathologies initiated by aSAH.

Physical optics far field inverse scattering in the time domain

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bleistein, N.

1976-01-01

The physical optics far field inverse scattering (POFFIS) identity relates the phase and range normalized far field back scattering amplitude to the spatial Fourier transform of the characteristic function of the scattering obstacle. The characteristic function is equal to unity in the region occupied by the obstacle and zero elsewhere. The original identity was derived by Bojarski for impulsive point sources. The result is extended to sources of arbitrary time dependence. One obtains an alternative form of Bojarski's POFFIS identity. One also derives a POFFIS identity in the time domain. Numerically synthesized checks on the method are provided

Paravascular pathways contribute to vasculitis and neuroinflammation after subarachnoid hemorrhage independently of glymphatic control.

Science.gov (United States)

Luo, C; Yao, X; Li, J; He, B; Liu, Q; Ren, H; Liang, F; Li, M; Lin, H; Peng, J; Yuan, T F; Pei, Z; Su, H

2016-03-31

Subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) is a devastating disease with high mortality. The mechanisms underlying its pathological complications have not been fully identified. Here, we investigate the potential involvement of the glymphatic system in the neuropathology of SAH. We demonstrate that blood components rapidly enter the paravascular space following SAH and penetrate into the perivascular parenchyma throughout the brain, causing disastrous events such as cerebral vasospasm, delayed cerebral ischemia, microcirculation dysfunction and widespread perivascular neuroinflammation. Clearance of the paravascular pathway with tissue-type plasminogen activator ameliorates the behavioral deficits and alleviates histological injury of SAH. Interestingly, AQP4(-/-) mice showed no improvements in neurological deficits and neuroinflammation at day 7 after SAH compared with WT control mice. In conclusion, our study proves that the paravascular pathway dynamically mediates the pathological complications following acute SAH independently of glymphatic control.

Changes in the level of cardiac troponine and disorders in pulmonary gas exchange as predictors of short- and long-term outcomes of patients with aneurysm subarachnoid haemorrhage.

Science.gov (United States)

Burzyńska, Małgorzata; Uryga, Agnieszka; Kasprowicz, Magdalena; Kędziora, Jarosław; Szewczyk, Ewa; Woźniak, Jowita; Jarmundowicz, Włodzimierz; Kübler, Andrzej

2017-12-01

Cardiopulmonary abnormalities are common after aneurysmal subarachnoid haemorrhage (aSAH). However, the relationship between short- and long-term outcome is poorly understood. In this paper, we present how cardiac troponine elevations (cTnI) and pulmonary disorders are associated with short- and long-term outcomes assessed by the Glasgow Outcome Scale (GOS) and Extended Glasgow Outcome Scale (GOSE). A total of 104 patients diagnosed with aSAH were analysed in the study. The non-parametric U Mann-Whitney test was used to evaluate the difference between good (GOS IV-V, GOSE V-VIII) and poor (GOS I-III, GOSE I-IV) outcomes in relation to cTnI elevation and pulmonary disorders. Outcome was assessed at discharge from the hospital, and then followed up 6 and 12 months later. Pulmonary disorders were determined by the PaO 2 /FiO 2 ratio and radiography. The areas under the ROC curves (AUCs) were used to determine the predictive power of these factors. In the group with good short-term outcomes cTnI elevation on the second day after aSAH was significantly lower (p = .00007) than in patients with poor short-term outcomes. The same trend was observed after 6 months, although there were different results 12 months from the onset (p = .024 and n.s., respectively). A higher peak of cTnI was observed in the group with a pathological X-ray (p = .008) and pathological PaO 2 /FiO 2 ratio (p ≪ .001). cTnI was an accurate predictor of short-term outcomes (AUC = 0.741, p ≪ .001) and the outcome after 6 months (AUC = 0.688, p = .015). The results showed that cardiopulmonary abnormalities perform well as predictive factors for short- and long-term outcomes after aSAH.

Extended synaptotagmins are Ca2+-dependent lipid transfer proteins at membrane contact sites.

Science.gov (United States)

Yu, Haijia; Liu, Yinghui; Gulbranson, Daniel R; Paine, Alex; Rathore, Shailendra S; Shen, Jingshi

2016-04-19

Organelles are in constant communication with each other through exchange of proteins (mediated by trafficking vesicles) and lipids [mediated by both trafficking vesicles and lipid transfer proteins (LTPs)]. It has long been known that vesicle trafficking can be tightly regulated by the second messenger Ca(2+), allowing membrane protein transport to be adjusted according to physiological demands. However, it remains unclear whether LTP-mediated lipid transport can also be regulated by Ca(2+) In this work, we show that extended synaptotagmins (E-Syts), poorly understood membrane proteins at endoplasmic reticulum-plasma membrane contact sites, are Ca(2+)-dependent LTPs. Using both recombinant and endogenous mammalian proteins, we discovered that E-Syts transfer glycerophospholipids between membrane bilayers in the presence of Ca(2+) E-Syts use their lipid-accommodating synaptotagmin-like mitochondrial lipid binding protein (SMP) domains to transfer lipids. However, the SMP domains themselves cannot transport lipids unless the two membranes are tightly tethered by Ca(2+)-bound C2 domains. Strikingly, the Ca(2+)-regulated lipid transfer activity of E-Syts was fully recapitulated when the SMP domain was fused to the cytosolic domain of synaptotagmin-1, the Ca(2+)sensor in synaptic vesicle fusion, indicating that a common mechanism of membrane tethering governs the Ca(2+)regulation of lipid transfer and vesicle fusion. Finally, we showed that microsomal vesicles isolated from mammalian cells contained robust Ca(2+)-dependent lipid transfer activities, which were mediated by E-Syts. These findings established E-Syts as a novel class of LTPs and showed that LTP-mediated lipid trafficking, like vesicular transport, can be subject to tight Ca(2+)regulation.

A novel disulfide bond in the SH2 Domain of the C-terminal Src kinase controls catalytic activity.

Science.gov (United States)

Mills, Jamie E; Whitford, Paul C; Shaffer, Jennifer; Onuchic, Jose N; Adams, Joseph A; Jennings, Patricia A

2007-02-02

The SH2 domain of the C-terminal Src kinase [Csk] contains a unique disulfide bond that is not present in other known SH2 domains. To investigate whether this unusual disulfide bond serves a novel function, the effects of disulfide bond formation on catalytic activity of the full-length protein and on the structure of the SH2 domain were investigated. The kinase activity of full-length Csk decreases by an order of magnitude upon formation of the disulfide bond in the distal SH2 domain. NMR spectra of the fully oxidized and fully reduced SH2 domains exhibit similar chemical shift patterns and are indicative of similar, well-defined tertiary structures. The solvent-accessible disulfide bond in the isolated SH2 domain is highly stable and far from the small lobe of the kinase domain. However, reduction of this bond results in chemical shift changes of resonances that map to a cluster of residues that extend from the disulfide bond across the molecule to a surface that is in direct contact with the small lobe of the kinase domain in the intact molecule. Normal mode analyses and molecular dynamics calculations suggest that disulfide bond formation has large effects on residues within the kinase domain, most notably within the active-site cleft. Overall, the data indicate that reversible cross-linking of two cysteine residues in the SH2 domain greatly impacts catalytic function and interdomain communication in Csk.

Cellular adhesion responses to the heparin-binding (HepII) domain of fibronectin require heparan sulfate with specific properties

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Mahalingam, Yashithra; Gallagher, John T; Couchman, John R

2006-01-01

of fibronectin (HepII domain) through its HS chains. The fine structure of HS is critical to growth factor responses, and whether this extends to matrix ligands is unknown but is suggested from in vitro experiments. Cell attachment to HepII showed that heparin oligosaccharides of >or=14 sugar residues were...

Ratchet Effects and Domain Wall Energy Landscapes in Amorphous Magnetic Films with 2D Arrays of Asymmetric Holes

Science.gov (United States)

Martin, J. I.; Alija, A.; Sobrado, I.; Perez-Junquera, A.; Rodriguez-Rodriguez, G.; Velez, M.; Alameda, J. M.; Marconi, V. I.; Kolton, A. B.; Parrondo, J. M. R.

2009-03-01

The driven motion of domain walls in extended magnetic films patterned with 2D arrays of asymmetric holes has been found to be subject to two different crossed ratchet effects [1] which results in an inversion of the sign of domain wall motion rectification as a function of the applied magnetic field. This effect can be understood in terms of the competition between drive, elasticity and asymmetric pinning as revealed by a simple 4̂-model. In order to optimize the asymmetric hole design, the relevant energy landscapes for domain wall motion across the array of asymmetric holes have been calculated by micromagnetic simulations as a function of array geometrical characteristics. The effects of a transverse magnetic field on these two crossed ratchet effects will also be discussed in terms of the decrease in domain wall energy per unit area and of the modifications in the magnetostatic barriers for domain wall pinning at the asymmetric inclusions. Work supported by Spanish MICINN.[1] A. Perez-Junquera et al, Phys. Rev. Lett. 100 (2008) 037203

MR imaging findings of spinal subarachnoid hemorrhage: a case report

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kim, Jae Hyoung; Park, Eui Dong; Kim, Hyung Jin; Ha, Choong Kun [College of Medicine, Gyeongsang National University, Chinju(Korea, Republic of)

1994-03-15

We report magnetic resonance imaging findings of massive spinal subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) caused by repeated lumbar punctures during spinal anesthesia in a 36-year-old man. The signal intensities of spinal SAH were similar to those of the conus medullaris on both T1-and T2-weighted spin-echo images. Although spinal SAH is hardly recognized on MR, spinal SAH of sufficient amount may cause alteration of the cerebrospinal fluid signal.

A Model of Inter and Multi Disciplinary Domains, and their Mutual Interactions

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Ophir Dan

2014-02-01

Full Text Available The Melvil Dewey Decimal Classification system maps the human knowledge domains into a library classification decimal system, which means that the knowledge is discretized. The domains are countable similarly to how Cantor proved the countability of the fractions' domain. The debate about the "inter-" and "multi-" disciplinary domains may also be extended into "sub-domains" or from another point of view – into "super-domains". However, Science and Technology has rapidly developed after it was classified. If at the beginning, two decimal digits were enough to classify the world's knowledge into a knowledge domain, today we need more digits – about five. This means we are able to display about a million domains of knowledge. The decimal point indicates the sub-division in the zooming-in; the number of such decimal points is unlimited. Thus, the number of hierarchical levels in the knowledge-tree is unlimited. The maximal level is unreachable since it propagates in time. This intriguing issue raises doubts whether the tree is the most appropriate structure in the current state of the knowledge classification. However, I believe that the knowledge tree is a convenient way of expressing various connections between the knowledge domains. There are other models such as multi-level graph-networks that approximate closer to reality. These models can be further visualized by graph diagrams. The knowledge diagram is more complicated, considering the interaction between science and industry relative to each domain. The model of reality might be compared to the object-oriented programming languages approximating reality in order to construct more naturally computer programs that can model the world. The mutual correspondence of the knowledge domains is dynamic. Some examples of relatively new domains are as follows: biotechnology, bioinformatics, nanotechnology, integro-differential equations, data warehouse, data mining, requirements engineering, micro

Concrete domains

OpenAIRE

Kahn, G.; Plotkin, G.D.

1993-01-01

This paper introduces the theory of a particular kind of computation domains called concrete domains. The purpose of this theory is to find a satisfactory framework for the notions of coroutine computation and sequentiality of evaluation.

On the domain of string perturbation theory

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Davis, S.

1989-06-01

For a large class of effectively closed surfaces, it is shown that the only divergences in string scattering amplitudes at each order in perturbation theory are those associated with the coincidence of vertex operators and the boundary of moduli space. This class includes all closed surfaces of finite genus, and infinite-genus surfaces which can be uniformized by a group of Schottky type. While the computation is done explicitly for bosonic strings in their ground states, it can also be extended to excited states and to superstrings. The properties of these amplitudes lead to a definition of the domain of perturbation theory as the set of effectively closed surfaces. The implications of the restriction to effectively closed surfaces on the behavior of the perturbation series are discussed. (author). 20 refs, 6 figs

A Logic for Inclusion of Administrative Domains and Administrators in Multi-domain Authorization

Science.gov (United States)

Iranmanesh, Zeinab; Amini, Morteza; Jalili, Rasool

Authorization policies for an administrative domain or a composition of multiple domains in multi-domain environments are determined by either one administrator or multiple administrators' cooperation. Several logic-based models for multi-domain environments' authorization have been proposed; however, they have not considered administrators and administrative domains in policies' representation. In this paper, we propose the syntax, proof theory, and semantics of a logic for multi-domain authorization policies including administrators and administrative domains. Considering administrators in policies provides the possibility of presenting composite administration having applicability in many collaborative applications. Indeed, administrators and administrative domains stated in policies can be used in authorization. The presented logic is based on modal logic and utilizes two calculi named the calculus of administrative domains and the calculus of administrators. It is also proved that the logic is sound. A case study is presented signifying the logic application in practical projects.

Extending the half-life of a fab fragment through generation of a humanized anti-human serum albumin Fv domain: An investigation into the correlation between affinity and serum half-life.

Science.gov (United States)

Adams, Ralph; Griffin, Laura; Compson, Joanne E; Jairaj, Mark; Baker, Terry; Ceska, Tom; West, Shauna; Zaccheo, Oliver; Davé, Emma; Lawson, Alastair Dg; Humphreys, David P; Heywood, Sam

2016-10-01

We generated an anti-albumin antibody, CA645, to link its Fv domain to an antigen-binding fragment (Fab), thereby extending the serum half-life of the Fab. CA645 was demonstrated to bind human, cynomolgus, and mouse serum albumin with similar affinity (1-7 nM), and to bind human serum albumin (HSA) when it is in complex with common known ligands. Importantly for half-life extension, CA645 binds HSA with similar affinity within the physiologically relevant range of pH 5.0 - pH 7.4, and does not have a deleterious effect on the binding of HSA to neonatal Fc receptor (FcRn). A crystal structure of humanized CA645 Fab in complex with HSA was solved and showed that CA645 Fab binds to domain II of HSA. Superimposition with the crystal structure of FcRn bound to HSA confirmed that CA645 does not block HSA binding to FcRn. In mice, the serum half-life of humanized CA645 Fab is 84.2 h. This is a significant extension in comparison with Fab variant. The Fab-HSA structure was used to design a series of mutants with reduced affinity to investigate the correlation between the affinity for albumin and serum half-life. Reduction in the affinity for MSA by 144-fold from 2.2 nM to 316 nM had no effect on serum half-life. Strikingly, despite a reduction in affinity to 62 µM, an extension in serum half-life of 26.4 h was still obtained. CA645 Fab and the CA645 Fab-HSA complex have been deposited in the Protein Data Bank (PDB) with accession codes, 5FUZ and 5FUO, respectively.

Feature-level domain adaptation

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kouw, Wouter M.; Van Der Maaten, Laurens J P; Krijthe, Jesse H.

2016-01-01

-level domain adaptation (flda), that models the dependence between the two domains by means of a feature-level transfer model that is trained to describe the transfer from source to target domain. Subsequently, we train a domain-adapted classifier by minimizing the expected loss under the resulting transfer...... modeled via a dropout distribution, which allows the classiffier to adapt to differences in the marginal probability of features in the source and the target domain. Our experiments on several real-world problems show that flda performs on par with state-of-the-art domainadaptation techniques.......Domain adaptation is the supervised learning setting in which the training and test data are sampled from different distributions: training data is sampled from a source domain, whilst test data is sampled from a target domain. This paper proposes and studies an approach, called feature...

A framework for assessing frequency domain causality in physiological time series with instantaneous effects.

Science.gov (United States)

Faes, Luca; Erla, Silvia; Porta, Alberto; Nollo, Giandomenico

2013-08-28

We present an approach for the quantification of directional relations in multiple time series exhibiting significant zero-lag interactions. To overcome the limitations of the traditional multivariate autoregressive (MVAR) modelling of multiple series, we introduce an extended MVAR (eMVAR) framework allowing either exclusive consideration of time-lagged effects according to the classic notion of Granger causality, or consideration of combined instantaneous and lagged effects according to an extended causality definition. The spectral representation of the eMVAR model is exploited to derive novel frequency domain causality measures that generalize to the case of instantaneous effects the known directed coherence (DC) and partial DC measures. The new measures are illustrated in theoretical examples showing that they reduce to the known measures in the absence of instantaneous causality, and describe peculiar aspects of directional interaction among multiple series when instantaneous causality is non-negligible. Then, the issue of estimating eMVAR models from time-series data is faced, proposing two approaches for model identification and discussing problems related to the underlying model assumptions. Finally, applications of the framework on cardiovascular variability series and multichannel EEG recordings are presented, showing how it allows one to highlight patterns of frequency domain causality consistent with well-interpretable physiological interaction mechanisms.

Transmission XMCD-PEEM imaging of an engineered vertical FEBID cobalt nanowire with a domain wall

Science.gov (United States)

Wartelle, A.; Pablo-Navarro, J.; Staňo, M.; Bochmann, S.; Pairis, S.; Rioult, M.; Thirion, C.; Belkhou, R.; de Teresa, J. M.; Magén, C.; Fruchart, O.

2018-01-01

Using focused electron-beam-induced deposition, we fabricate a vertical, platinum-coated cobalt nanowire with a controlled three-dimensional structure. The latter is engineered to feature bends along the height: these are used as pinning sites for domain walls, which are obtained at remanence after saturation of the nanostructure in a horizontally applied magnetic field. The presence of domain walls is investigated using x-ray magnetic circular dichroism (XMCD) coupled to photoemission electron microscopy (PEEM). The vertical geometry of our sample combined with the low incidence of the x-ray beam produce an extended wire shadow which we use to recover the wire’s magnetic configuration. In this transmission configuration, the whole sample volume is probed, thus circumventing the limitation of PEEM to surfaces. This article reports on the first study of magnetic nanostructures standing perpendicular to the substrate with XMCD-PEEM. The use of this technique in shadow mode enabled us to confirm the presence of a domain wall without direct imaging of the nanowire.

Extended-bandwidth frequency sweeps of a distributed feedback laser using combined injection current and temperature modulation.

Science.gov (United States)

Hefferman, Gerald; Chen, Zhen; Wei, Tao

2017-07-01

This article details the generation of an extended-bandwidth frequency sweep using a single, communication grade distributed feedback (DFB) laser. The frequency sweep is generated using a two-step technique. In the first step, injection current modulation is employed as a means of varying the output frequency of a DFB laser over a bandwidth of 99.26 GHz. A digital optical phase lock loop is used to lock the frequency sweep speed during current modulation, resulting in a linear frequency chirp. In the second step, the temperature of the DFB laser is modulated, resulting in a shifted starting laser output frequency. A laser frequency chirp is again generated beginning at this shifted starting frequency, resulting in a frequency-shifted spectrum relative to the first recorded data. This process is then repeated across a range of starting temperatures, resulting in a series of partially overlapping, frequency-shifted spectra. These spectra are then aligned using cross-correlation and combined using averaging to form a single, broadband spectrum with a total bandwidth of 510.9 GHz. In order to investigate the utility of this technique, experimental testing was performed in which the approach was used as the swept-frequency source of a coherent optical frequency domain reflectometry system. This system was used to interrogate an optical fiber containing a 20 point, 1-mm pitch length fiber Bragg grating, corresponding to a period of 100 GHz. Using this technique, both the periodicity of the grating in the frequency domain and the individual reflector elements of the structure in the time domain were resolved, demonstrating the technique's potential as a method of extending the sweeping bandwidth of semiconductor lasers for frequency-based sensing applications.

Extended-bandwidth frequency sweeps of a distributed feedback laser using combined injection current and temperature modulation

Science.gov (United States)

Hefferman, Gerald; Chen, Zhen; Wei, Tao

2017-07-01

This article details the generation of an extended-bandwidth frequency sweep using a single, communication grade distributed feedback (DFB) laser. The frequency sweep is generated using a two-step technique. In the first step, injection current modulation is employed as a means of varying the output frequency of a DFB laser over a bandwidth of 99.26 GHz. A digital optical phase lock loop is used to lock the frequency sweep speed during current modulation, resulting in a linear frequency chirp. In the second step, the temperature of the DFB laser is modulated, resulting in a shifted starting laser output frequency. A laser frequency chirp is again generated beginning at this shifted starting frequency, resulting in a frequency-shifted spectrum relative to the first recorded data. This process is then repeated across a range of starting temperatures, resulting in a series of partially overlapping, frequency-shifted spectra. These spectra are then aligned using cross-correlation and combined using averaging to form a single, broadband spectrum with a total bandwidth of 510.9 GHz. In order to investigate the utility of this technique, experimental testing was performed in which the approach was used as the swept-frequency source of a coherent optical frequency domain reflectometry system. This system was used to interrogate an optical fiber containing a 20 point, 1-mm pitch length fiber Bragg grating, corresponding to a period of 100 GHz. Using this technique, both the periodicity of the grating in the frequency domain and the individual reflector elements of the structure in the time domain were resolved, demonstrating the technique's potential as a method of extending the sweeping bandwidth of semiconductor lasers for frequency-based sensing applications.

Solution structure of the N-terminal domain of a replication restart primosome factor, PriC, in Escherichia coli

Science.gov (United States)

Aramaki, Takahiko; Abe, Yoshito; Katayama, Tsutomu; Ueda, Tadashi

2013-01-01

In eubacterial organisms, the oriC-independent primosome plays an essential role in replication restart after the dissociation of the replication DNA-protein complex by DNA damage. PriC is a key protein component in the replication restart primosome. Our recent study suggested that PriC is divided into two domains: an N-terminal and a C-terminal domain. In the present study, we determined the solution structure of the N-terminal domain, whose structure and function have remained unknown until now. The revealed structure was composed of three helices and one extended loop. We also observed chemical shift changes in the heteronuclear NMR spectrum and oligomerization in the presence of ssDNA. These abilities may contribute to the PriC-ssDNA complex, which is important for the replication restart primosome. PMID:23868391

PREFACE: Domain wall dynamics in nanostructures Domain wall dynamics in nanostructures

Science.gov (United States)

Marrows, C. H.; Meier, G.

2012-01-01

Domain structures in magnetic materials are ubiquitous and have been studied for decades. The walls that separate them are topological defects in the magnetic order parameter and have a wide variety of complex forms. In general, their investigation is difficult in bulk materials since only the domain structure on the surface of a specimen is visible. Cutting the sample to reveal the interior causes a rearrangement of the domains into a new form. As with many other areas of magnetism, the study of domain wall physics has been revitalised by the advent of nanotechnology. The ability to fabricate nanoscale structures has permitted the formation of simplified and controlled domain patterns; the development of advanced microscopy methods has permitted them to be imaged and then modelled; subjecting them to ultrashort field and current pulses has permitted their dynamics to be explored. The latest results from all of these advances are described in this special issue. Not only has this led to results of great scientific beauty, but also to concepts of great applicability to future information technologies. In this issue the reader will find the latest results for these domain wall dynamics and the high-speed processes of topological structures such as domain walls and magnetic vortices. These dynamics can be driven by the application of magnetic fields, or by flowing currents through spintronic devices using the novel physics of spin-transfer torque. This complexity has been studied using a wide variety of experimental techniques at the edge of the spatial and temporal resolution currently available, and can be described using sophisticated analytical theory and computational modelling. As a result, the dynamics can be engineered to give rise to finely controlled memory and logic devices with new functionality. Moreover, the field is moving to study not only the conventional transition metal ferromagnets, but also complex heterostructures, novel magnets and even other

Cardiac abnormalities after subarachnoid hemorrhage

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Bilt, I.A.C. van der

2016-01-01

Aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage(aSAH) is a devastating neurological disease. During the course of the aSAH several neurological and medical complications may occur. Cardiac abnormalities after aSAH are observed often and resemble stress cardiomyopathy or Tako-tsubo cardiomyopathy(Broken Heart

Dissection and Manipulation of LRR Domains in Plant Disease Resistance Gene Products.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bent, Andrew [Univ. of Wisconsin, Madison, WI (United States)

2012-11-28

Leucine-rich repeat (LRR) protein domains offer a readily diversifiable platform - literally, an extended protein surface - for specific binding of very diverse ligands. The project addressed the following overlapping research questions: How do leucine-rich repeat proteins recognize their cognate ligands? What are the intra- and inter-molecular transitions that occur that cause transmembrane LRR proteins to switch between off and on states? How do plants use LRR receptor proteins to activate disease resistance? Can we synthetically evolve new LRR proteins that have acquired new ligand specificities?

A hybrid absorbing boundary condition for frequency-domain finite-difference modelling

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ren, Zhiming; Liu, Yang

2013-01-01

Liu and Sen (2010 Geophysics 75 A1–6; 2012 Geophys. Prospect. 60 1114–32) proposed an efficient hybrid scheme to significantly absorb boundary reflections for acoustic and elastic wave modelling in the time domain. In this paper, we extend the hybrid absorbing boundary condition (ABC) into the frequency domain and develop specific strategies for regular-grid and staggered-grid modelling, respectively. Numerical modelling tests of acoustic, visco-acoustic, elastic and vertically transversely isotropic (VTI) equations show significant absorptions for frequency-domain modelling. The modelling results of the Marmousi model and the salt model also demonstrate the effectiveness of the hybrid ABC. For elastic modelling, the hybrid Higdon ABC and the hybrid Clayton and Engquist (CE) ABC are implemented, respectively. Numerical simulations show that the hybrid Higdon ABC gets better absorption than the hybrid CE ABC, especially for S-waves. We further compare the hybrid ABC with the classical perfectly matched layer (PML). Results show that the two ABCs cost the same computation time and memory space for the same absorption width. However, the hybrid ABC is more effective than the PML for the same small absorption width and the absorption effects of the two ABCs gradually become similar when the absorption width is increased. (paper)

Photo dynamics of BLUF domain mutant H44R of AppA from Rhodobacter sphaeroides

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zirak, P.; Penzkofer, A.; Hegemann, P.; Mathes, T.

2007-01-01

The photo-cycle dynamics of the H44R mutant of the BLUF domain of the transcriptional anti-repressor protein AppA (AppA-H44R) from the non-sulfur anoxyphototropic purple bacterium Rhodobacter sphaeroides is studied in order to gain information on the involvement of His44 in the photo-cyclic mechanism of the AppA BLUF domain and to add information to the involved processes. The amino acid residue histidine at position 44 is replaced by arginine. A 12 nm red-shifted signalling state is formed upon blue-light excitation, while in wild-type AppA (AppA-wt) the red-shift is 16 nm. The recovery to the receptor dark state is approximately a factor of 2.5 faster (τ rec ∼ 6.5 min) than the recovery of the wild-type counterpart. Extended light exposure of the mutant causes photo-degradation of flavin (mainly free flavin conversion to lumichrome and re-equilibration between free and non-covalently bound flavin) and protein aggregation (showing up as light scattering). No photo-degradation was observed for AppA-wt. The quantum efficiency of signalling-state formation determined by intensity dependent absorption measurements is found to be φ s ∼ 0.3 (for AppA-wt: φ s ∼ 0.24). A two-component single-exponential fluorescence relaxation was observed, which is interpreted as fast fluorescence quenching to an equilibrium value by photo-induced electron transfer followed by slower fluorescence decay due to charge recombination. Based on the experimental findings, an extended photo-cycle model for BLUF domains is proposed

Photo dynamics of BLUF domain mutant H44R of AppA from Rhodobacter sphaeroides

Science.gov (United States)

Zirak, P.; Penzkofer, A.; Hegemann, P.; Mathes, T.

2007-05-01

The photo-cycle dynamics of the H44R mutant of the BLUF domain of the transcriptional anti-repressor protein AppA (AppA-H44R) from the non-sulfur anoxyphototropic purple bacterium Rhodobacter sphaeroides is studied in order to gain information on the involvement of His44 in the photo-cyclic mechanism of the AppA BLUF domain and to add information to the involved processes. The amino acid residue histidine at position 44 is replaced by arginine. A 12 nm red-shifted signalling state is formed upon blue-light excitation, while in wild-type AppA (AppA-wt) the red-shift is 16 nm. The recovery to the receptor dark state is approximately a factor of 2.5 faster ( τrec ≈ 6.5 min) than the recovery of the wild-type counterpart. Extended light exposure of the mutant causes photo-degradation of flavin (mainly free flavin conversion to lumichrome and re-equilibration between free and non-covalently bound flavin) and protein aggregation (showing up as light scattering). No photo-degradation was observed for AppA-wt. The quantum efficiency of signalling-state formation determined by intensity dependent absorption measurements is found to be ϕs ≈ 0.3 (for AppA-wt: ϕs ≈ 0.24). A two-component single-exponential fluorescence relaxation was observed, which is interpreted as fast fluorescence quenching to an equilibrium value by photo-induced electron transfer followed by slower fluorescence decay due to charge recombination. Based on the experimental findings, an extended photo-cycle model for BLUF domains is proposed.

Time-domain modeling of electromagnetic diffusion with a frequency-domain code

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Mulder, W.A.; Wirianto, M.; Slob, E.C.

2007-01-01

We modeled time-domain EM measurements of induction currents for marine and land applications with a frequency-domain code. An analysis of the computational complexity of a number of numerical methods shows that frequency-domain modeling followed by a Fourier transform is an attractive choice if a

Arctigenin, a Potent Ingredient of Arctium lappa L., Induces Endothelial Nitric Oxide Synthase and Attenuates Subarachnoid Hemorrhage-Induced Vasospasm through PI3K/Akt Pathway in a Rat Model.

Science.gov (United States)

Chang, Chih-Zen; Wu, Shu-Chuan; Chang, Chia-Mao; Lin, Chih-Lung; Kwan, Aij-Lie

2015-01-01

Upregulation of protein kinase B (PKB, also known as Akt) is observed within the cerebral arteries of subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) animals. This study is of interest to examine Arctigenin, a potent antioxidant, on endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS) and Akt pathways in a SAH in vitro study. Basilar arteries (BAs) were obtained to examine phosphatidylinositol-3-kinase (PI3K), phospho-PI3K, Akt, phospho-Akt (Western blot) and morphological examination. Endothelins (ETs) and eNOS evaluation (Western blot and immunostaining) were also determined. Arctigenin treatment significantly alleviates disrupted endothelial cells and tortured internal elastic layer observed in the SAH groups (p Arctigenin (p Arctigenin might exert dural effects in preventing SAH-induced vasospasm through upregulating eNOS expression via the PI3K/Akt signaling pathway and attenuate endothelins after SAH. Arctigenin shows therapeutic promise in the treatment of cerebral vasospasm following SAH.

Serum magnesium levels and clinical outcome of aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage: a study in 60 patients

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Habibi Z

2008-06-01

Full Text Available Background: Hypomagnesemia is commonly encountered in patients with a wide variety of diseases including subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH, cardiovascular emergencies, head trauma, migraine attacks, seizure and preeclampsia. It seems to be associated with a poor clinical outcome. This study considers the prevalence and temporal distribution of hypomagnesemia after aneurysmal SAH and its correlation with the severity of SAH, delayed cerebral ischemia (DCI as well as the neurological outcome after a period of three months.Methods: Between 2003 and 2008, 60 patients were admitted to the emergency ward of Imam Khomeini Hospital with acute SAH. Serum magnesium levels were measured during the first 72 hours, days 4-7, and second and third weeks after SAH. The three-month outcome was assessed according to the Glasgow Outcome Scale (GOS. Clinical SAH grading was performed according to the criteria of the World Federation of Neurological Surgeons (WFNS and the patients were allocated to "Good" (GOS = 4, 5 and "Poor" (GOS= 1-3 outcome groups. The prevalence of hypomagnesemia was assessed in both patient groups. Fisher exact test was used to analyze data.Results: Hypomagnesemia occurred in 22% of patients during the first 72 hours after SAH. It was associated with more prevalent DCI (p<0.05, whereas low serum magnesium levels during days 4-7 17% of patients and the second week (22% of patients after SAH were correlated with poor clinical outcome (p<0.05. No correlation was found between first 72 hour-hypomagnesemia and poor clinical outcome at three months.Conclusion: Hypomagnesemia occurs after aneurysmal SAH and it may predict the occurrence of DCI, while low serum magnesium levels during days 4-7 and within the second week of event predict poor clinical outcome at three months. Treatment of this electrolyte disturbance may have a favourable effect on the clinical outcome of patients with aneurysmal SAH.

Treatment of Spontaneous Subarachnoid Hemorrhage and Self-Reported Neuropsychological Performance at 6 Months - Results of a Prospective Clinical Pilot Study on Good-Grade Patients.

Science.gov (United States)

Bründl, Elisabeth; Schödel, Petra; Bele, Sylvia; Proescholdt, Martin; Scheitzach, Judith; Zeman, Florian; Brawanski, Alexander; Schebesch, Karl-Michael

2018-01-01

Limited focus has been placed on neuropsychological patient profiles after spontaneous subarachnoid hemorrhage (sSAH). We conducted a prospective controlled study in good-grade sSAH patients to evaluate the time course of treatment-specific differences in cognitive processing after sSAH. Twenty-six consecutive sSAH patients were enrolled (drop out n=5). Nine patients received endovascular aneurysm occlusion (EV), 6 patients were treated microsurgically (MS), and 6 patients with perimesencephalic SAH (pSAH) underwent standardized intensive medical care. No patient experienced serious vasospasm-related ischemic or hemorrhagic complications. All patients were subjected to neuropsychological self-report assessment (36-Item Short Form Health Survey and ICD-10-Symptom-Rating questionnaire) subacutely (day 11 - 35) after the onset of bleeding (t1) and at the 6-month follow-up (FU; t 2 ). From t1 to t 2 , MS and EV patients significantly improved in physical functioning (Pfi; p=.001 each) and the physical component summary (p=.010 vs. p=.015). Bodily pain (Pain; MS p=.034) and general health perceptions (EV p=.014) significantly improved, and nutrition disorder (EV p=.008) worsened. At FU, MS patients reported significantly better Pfi (vs. EV p=.046), less Pain (vs. EV p=.040), and more depression (vs. pSAH p=.035). Group-rate analyses of test differences showed a significant alleviation in nutrition disorder in MS (vs. EV p=.009). All sSAH groups reported a significant deterioration in health. Though both MS and EV patients, improved in several physical items over time, our data suggest a better short-term Pfi, less Pain and improved nutrition disorder in surgically treated patients. pSAH patients performed significantly better in various aspects of physical and psychological functioning than patients with aneurysmal SAH.

Decorin alleviated chronic hydrocephalus via inhibiting TGF-β1/Smad/CTGF pathway after subarachnoid hemorrhage in rats.

Science.gov (United States)

Yan, Hui; Chen, Yujie; Li, Lingyong; Jiang, Jiaode; Wu, Guangyong; Zuo, Yuchun; Zhang, John H; Feng, Hua; Yan, Xiaoxin; Liu, Fei

2016-01-01

Chronic hydrocephalus is one of the severe complications after subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH). However, there is no efficient treatment for the prevention of chronic hydrocephalus, partially due to poor understanding of underlying pathogenesis, subarachnoid fibrosis. Transforming growth factor-β1(TGF-β1) is a potent fibrogenic factor implicated in wide range of fibrotic diseases. To investigate whether decorin, a natural antagonist for TGF-β1, protects against subarachnoid fibrosis and chronic hydrocephalus after SAH, two-hemorrhage-injection SAH model was conducted in 6-week-old rats. Recombinant human decorin(rhDecorin) (30ug/2ul) was administered before blood injection and on the 10th day after SAH. TGF-β1, p-Smad2/3, connective tissue growth factor (CTGF), collagen I and pro-collagen I c-terminal propeptide were assessed via western blotting, enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, radioimmunoassay and immunofluorescence. And neurobehavioral tests and Morris water maze were employed to evaluate long-term neurological functions after SAH. We found that SAH induced heightened activation of TGF-β1/Smad/CTGF axis, presenting as a two peak response of TGF-β1 in cerebrospinal fluid, elevation of TGF-β1, p-Smad2/3, CTGF, collagen I in brain parenchyma and pro-collagen I c-terminal propeptide in cerebrospinal fluid, and increased lateral ventricle index. rhDecorin treatment effectively inhibited up-regulation of TGF-β1, p-Smad2/3, CTGF, collagen I and pro-collagen I c-terminal propeptide after SAH. Moreover, rhDecorin treatment significantly reduced lateral ventricular index and incidence of chronic hydrocephalus after SAH. Importantly, rhDecorin improved neurocognitive deficits after SAH. In conclusion, rhDecorin suppresses extracellular matrix accumulation and following subarachnoid fibrosis via inhibiting TGF-β1/Smad/CTGF pathway, preventing development of hydrocephalus and attenuating long-term neurocognitive defects after SAH. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B

Search for Extended Sources in the Galactic Plane Using Six Years of Fermi -Large Area Telescope Pass 8 Data above 10 GeV

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ackermann, M.; Buehler, R.; Ajello, M.; Baldini, L.; Ballet, J.; Barbiellini, G.; Bastieri, D.; Bellazzini, R.; Bissaldi, E.; Caragiulo, M.; Bloom, E. D.; Bottacini, E.; Cameron, R. A.; Bonino, R.; Brandt, T. J.; Castro, D.; Bregeon, J.; Bruel, P.; Caraveo, P. A.; Cavazzuti, E.

2017-01-01

The spatial extension of a γ -ray source is an essential ingredient to determine its spectral properties, as well as its potential multiwavelength counterpart. The capability to spatially resolve γ -ray sources is greatly improved by the newly delivered Fermi -Large Area Telescope (LAT) Pass 8 event-level analysis, which provides a greater acceptance and an improved point-spread function, two crucial factors for the detection of extended sources. Here, we present a complete search for extended sources located within 7° from the Galactic plane, using 6 yr of Fermi -LAT data above 10 GeV. We find 46 extended sources and provide their morphological and spectral characteristics. This constitutes the first catalog of hard Fermi -LAT extended sources, named the Fermi Galactic Extended Source Catalog, which allows a thorough study of the properties of the Galactic plane in the sub-TeV domain.

Search for Extended Sources in the Galactic Plane Using Six Years of Fermi -Large Area Telescope Pass 8 Data above 10 GeV

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ackermann, M.; Buehler, R. [Deutsches Elektronen Synchrotron DESY, D-15738 Zeuthen (Germany); Ajello, M. [Department of Physics and Astronomy, Clemson University, Kinard Lab of Physics, Clemson, SC 29634-0978 (United States); Baldini, L. [Università di Pisa and Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare, Sezione di Pisa I-56127 Pisa (Italy); Ballet, J. [Laboratoire AIM, CEA-IRFU/CNRS/Université Paris Diderot, Service d’Astrophysique, CEA Saclay, F-91191 Gif sur Yvette (France); Barbiellini, G. [Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare, Sezione di Trieste, I-34127 Trieste (Italy); Bastieri, D. [Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare, Sezione di Padova, I-35131 Padova (Italy); Bellazzini, R. [Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare, Sezione di Pisa, I-56127 Pisa (Italy); Bissaldi, E.; Caragiulo, M. [Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare, Sezione di Bari, I-70126 Bari (Italy); Bloom, E. D.; Bottacini, E.; Cameron, R. A. [W. W. Hansen Experimental Physics Laboratory, Kavli Institute for Particle Astrophysics and Cosmology, Department of Physics and SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305 (United States); Bonino, R. [Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare, Sezione di Torino, I-10125 Torino (Italy); Brandt, T. J.; Castro, D. [NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD 20771 (United States); Bregeon, J. [Laboratoire Univers et Particules de Montpellier, Université Montpellier, CNRS/IN2P3, F-34095 Montpellier (France); Bruel, P. [Laboratoire Leprince-Ringuet, École polytechnique, CNRS/IN2P3, F-91128 Palaiseau (France); Caraveo, P. A. [INAF-Istituto di Astrofisica Spaziale e Fisica Cosmica Milano, via E. Bassini 15, I-20133 Milano (Italy); Cavazzuti, E., E-mail: jcohen@astro.umd.edu, E-mail: elizabeth.a.hays@nasa.gov [Agenzia Spaziale Italiana (ASI) Science Data Center, I-00133 Roma (Italy); and others

2017-07-10

The spatial extension of a γ -ray source is an essential ingredient to determine its spectral properties, as well as its potential multiwavelength counterpart. The capability to spatially resolve γ -ray sources is greatly improved by the newly delivered Fermi -Large Area Telescope (LAT) Pass 8 event-level analysis, which provides a greater acceptance and an improved point-spread function, two crucial factors for the detection of extended sources. Here, we present a complete search for extended sources located within 7° from the Galactic plane, using 6 yr of Fermi -LAT data above 10 GeV. We find 46 extended sources and provide their morphological and spectral characteristics. This constitutes the first catalog of hard Fermi -LAT extended sources, named the Fermi Galactic Extended Source Catalog, which allows a thorough study of the properties of the Galactic plane in the sub-TeV domain.

Dislocation dynamics in non-convex domains using finite elements with embedded discontinuities

Science.gov (United States)

Romero, Ignacio; Segurado, Javier; LLorca, Javier

2008-04-01

The standard strategy developed by Van der Giessen and Needleman (1995 Modelling Simul. Mater. Sci. Eng. 3 689) to simulate dislocation dynamics in two-dimensional finite domains was modified to account for the effect of dislocations leaving the crystal through a free surface in the case of arbitrary non-convex domains. The new approach incorporates the displacement jumps across the slip segments of the dislocations that have exited the crystal within the finite element analysis carried out to compute the image stresses on the dislocations due to the finite boundaries. This is done in a simple computationally efficient way by embedding the discontinuities in the finite element solution, a strategy often used in the numerical simulation of crack propagation in solids. Two academic examples are presented to validate and demonstrate the extended model and its implementation within a finite element program is detailed in the appendix.

Dislocation dynamics in non-convex domains using finite elements with embedded discontinuities

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Romero, Ignacio; Segurado, Javier; LLorca, Javier

2008-01-01

The standard strategy developed by Van der Giessen and Needleman (1995 Modelling Simul. Mater. Sci. Eng. 3 689) to simulate dislocation dynamics in two-dimensional finite domains was modified to account for the effect of dislocations leaving the crystal through a free surface in the case of arbitrary non-convex domains. The new approach incorporates the displacement jumps across the slip segments of the dislocations that have exited the crystal within the finite element analysis carried out to compute the image stresses on the dislocations due to the finite boundaries. This is done in a simple computationally efficient way by embedding the discontinuities in the finite element solution, a strategy often used in the numerical simulation of crack propagation in solids. Two academic examples are presented to validate and demonstrate the extended model and its implementation within a finite element program is detailed in the appendix

Theoretical study of optical properties of anti phase domains in GaP

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Tea, E., E-mail: etea.contact@gmail.com [Institute of R and D on Photovoltaic Energy (IRDEP) (UMR 7174, EDF-CNRS-ENSCP), 6 Quai Watier BP 49, 78401 Chatou cedex (France); FOTON INSA-Rennes (UMR 6082 CNRS), Université Européenne de Bretagne, 20 Avenue des Buttes de Coësmes, 35708 Rennes (France); Vidal, J.; Laribi, S.; Guillemoles, J.-F. [Institute of R and D on Photovoltaic Energy (IRDEP) (UMR 7174, EDF-CNRS-ENSCP), 6 Quai Watier BP 49, 78401 Chatou cedex (France); Pedesseau, L.; Cornet, C.; Jancu, J.-M.; Even, J.; Durand, O. [FOTON INSA-Rennes (UMR 6082 CNRS), Université Européenne de Bretagne, 20 Avenue des Buttes de Coësmes, 35708 Rennes (France)

2014-02-14

III-V/Si heterostructures are currently investigated for silicon photonics and solar energy conversion. In particular, dilute nitride alloy GaAsPN grown on a GaP/Si platform exhibits lattice match with Si and an optimal band gap configuration for tandem solar cell devices. However, monolithic “coherent” growth of the GaP thin layer on Si suffers from the nucleation of extended structural defects, which can hamper device operation as well as the GaP/Si interface level and through their propagation inside the overall heterostructure. However, the effect of such structural defects on optical and transport properties is actually not well understood in details. In this letter, we investigate the anti phase domains defect (also called inversion domains) by means of ab initio calculations giving insights into the alteration of optical and transport properties of GaP due to the defective GaP/Si interface.

Extended criteria and predictors in college admission: Exploring the structure of study success and investigating the validity of domain knowledge

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

OLGA KUNINA

2007-06-01

Full Text Available The utility of aptitude tests and intelligence measures in the prediction of the success in college is one of the empirically best supported results in ability research. However, the structure of the criterion “study success” has not been appropriately investigated so far. Moreover, it remains unclear which aspect of intelligence – fluid intelligence or crystallized intelligence – has the major impact on the prediction. In three studies we have investigated the dimensionality of the criterion achievements as well as the relative contributions of competing ability predictors. In the first study, the dimensionality of college grades was explored in a sample of 629 alumni. A measurement model with two correlated latent factors distinguishing undergraduate college grades on the one hand from graduate college grades on the other hand had the best fit to the data. In the second study, a group of 179 graduate students completed a Psychology knowledge test and provided available college grades in undergraduate studies. A model separating a general latent factor for Psychology knowledge from a nested method factor for college grades, and a second nested factor for “experimental orientation” had the best fit to the data. In the third study the predictive power of domain specific knowledge tests in Mathematics, English, and Biology was investigated. A sample of 387 undergraduate students in this prospective study additionally completed a compilation of fluid intelligence tests. The results of this study indicate as expected that: a ability measures are incrementally predictive over school grades in predicting exam grades; and b that knowledge tests from relevant domains were incrementally predictive over fluid intelligence. The results of these studies suggest that criteria for college admission tests deserve and warrant more attention, and that domain specific ability indicators can contribute to the predictive validity of established

Immediate coma and poor outcome in subarachnoid haemorrhage are independently associated with an aneurysmal origin.

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Tsermoulas, Georgios; Flett, Lisa; Gregson, Barbara; Mitchell, Patrick

2013-08-01

Subarachnoid haemorrhage (SAH) may present with coma and this is known to be associated with aneurysmal origin and blood load. Aneurysmal origin is associated with increased blood load and existing data do not allow us to determine if the association between coma and aneurysmal SAH is wholly due to blood load or if aneurysmal origin has an additional independent effect. The objective of our study is to find if an aneurysmal origin is a predictor of acute onset of coma independent of blood load. A series of consecutive patients with spontaneous SAH were divided into two groups: aneurysmal (aSAH) and non-aneurysmal--angiographically negative SAH (naSAH). Blood load was quantified so that the effect of aneurysmal origin could be resolved from the effect of the amount of blood spilled. Non-parametric regression was used to relate blood load to coma and poor outcome rates for aneurysmal bleeds. We analysed a total of 421 patients presenting during the period 2009-2011. Ninety aneurysmal cases presented with coma, seventy immediately in the early phase and seven shortly after rebleeding. None of the naSAH cases presented with immediate coma and 1 developed delayed coma. Delayed coma was associated with acute hydrocephalus in both groups. Aneurysmal origin was found to be an independent determinant of immediate coma (p=0.02) and poor outcome (pcoma and poor outcome in SAH are associated with an aneurysmal origin and do not characterize naSAH. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Frequency and appearance of hemosiderin depositions after aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage treated by endovascular therapy

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Falter, Bernhard; Wiesmann, Martin; Freiherr, Jessica; Nikoubashman, Omid; Mull, Michael [University Hospital Aachen RWTH, Department of Neuroradiology, Aachen (Germany)

2015-10-15

It is still unclear how often subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) leads to chronic hemosiderin depositions. In this study, we aimed to determine the frequency of chronic hemosiderin depositions after aneurysmal SAH in patients who did not undergo surgery. Furthermore, we analyzed typical MRI patterns of chronic SAH and sought to obtain information on the temporal course of MRI signal changes. We retrospectively analyzed 90 patients who had undergone endovascular treatment for acute aneurysmal SAH. In all patients, initial CT studies and at least one T2*-weighted MRI obtained 6 months or later after SAH were analyzed for the presence and anatomical distribution of SAH or chronic hemosiderin depositions. In total, 185 T2*-weighted MRI studies obtained between 2 days and 148 months after SAH were evaluated (mean follow-up 30.2 months). On MRI studies obtained later than 6 months after SAH, subpial hemosiderin depositions were found in 50 patients (55.5 %). Most frequent localizations were the parenchyma adjacent to the frontal and parietal sulci and the insular cisterns. While the appearance of hemosiderin depositions was dynamic within the first 3 months, no changes were found during subsequent follow-up. MR signal changes were not only conclusive with subarachnoid hemosiderin depositions but in many cases also resembled those that have been associated with cortical hemosiderosis. T2*-weighted MRI is an effective means of diagnosing prior SAH. Our study suggests that chronic hemosiderin depositions can be found in a considerable number of patients after a single event of subarachnoid hemorrhage. (orig.)

Sudden death and cervical spine: A new contribution to pathogenesis for sudden death in critical care unit from subarachnoid hemorrhage; first report - An experimental study.

Science.gov (United States)

Kazdal, Hizir; Kanat, Ayhan; Aydin, Mehmet Dumlu; Yazar, Ugur; Guvercin, Ali Riza; Calik, Muhammet; Gundogdu, Betul

2017-01-01

Sudden death from subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) is not uncommon. The goal of this study is to elucidate the effect of the cervical spinal roots and the related dorsal root ganglions (DRGs) on cardiorespiratory arrest following SAH. This was an experimental study conducted on rabbits. This study was conducted on 22 rabbits which were randomly divided into three groups: control ( n = 5), physiologic serum saline (SS; n = 6), SAH groups ( n = 11). Experimental SAH was performed. Seven of 11 rabbits with SAH died within the first 2 weeks. After 20 days, other animals were sacrificed. The anterior spinal arteries, arteriae nervorum of cervical nerve roots (C6-C8), DRGs, and lungs were histopathologically examined and estimated stereologically. Statistical analysis was performed using the PASW Statistics 18.0 for Windows (SPSS Inc., Chicago, Illinois, USA). Intergroup differences were assessed using a one-way ANOVA. The statistical significance was set at P < 0.05. In the SAH group, histopathologically, severe anterior spinal artery (ASA) and arteriae nervorum vasospasm, axonal and neuronal degeneration, and neuronal apoptosis were observed. Vasospasm of ASA did not occur in the SS and control groups. There was a statistically significant increase in the degenerated neuron density in the SAH group as compared to the control and SS groups ( P < 0.05). Cardiorespiratory disturbances, arrest, and lung edema more commonly developed in animals in the SAH group. We noticed interestingly that C6-C8 DRG degenerations were secondary to the vasospasm of ASA, following SAH. Cardiorespiratory disturbances or arrest can be explained with these mechanisms.

Separated matter and antimatter domains with vanishing domain walls

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Dolgov, A.D.; Godunov, S.I.; Rudenko, A.S.; Tkachev, I.I., E-mail: dolgov@fe.infn.it, E-mail: sgodunov@itep.ru, E-mail: a.s.rudenko@inp.nsk.su, E-mail: tkachev@ms2.inr.ac.ru [Physics Department and Laboratory of Cosmology and Elementary Particle Physics, Novosibirsk State University, Pirogova st. 2, Novosibirsk, 630090 (Russian Federation)

2015-10-01

We present a model of spontaneous (or dynamical) C and CP violation where it is possible to generate domains of matter and antimatter separated by cosmologically large distances. Such C(CP) violation existed only in the early universe and later it disappeared with the only trace of generated baryonic and/or antibaryonic domains. So the problem of domain walls in this model does not exist. These features are achieved through a postulated form of interaction between inflaton and a new scalar field, realizing short time C(CP) violation.

Non-traumatic cortical subarachnoid haemorrhage: diagnostic work-up and aetiological background

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Spitzer, C.; Kosinski, C.M. [University Hospital of RWTH Aachen, Department of Neurology, Aachen (Germany); Mull, M. [University Hospital of RWTH Aachen, Department of Neuroradiology, Aachen (Germany); Rohde, V. [University Hospital of RWTH Aachen, Department of Neurosurgery, Aachen (Germany)

2005-07-01

Only 15% of all subarachnoid haemorrhages (SAHs) are not of aneurysmal origin. Among those, circumscribed SAHs along the cortical convexity are rare and have only been described in singular case reports so far. Here, we present a collection of 12 cases of SAH along the convexity, of non-traumatic origin. Over a period of 10 years, 12 cases of circumscribed SAH along the convexity were identified at our clinic. The clinical presentations, neuroradiological SAH characteristics, further diagnostic work-up to identify the underlying aetiologies, the therapy and clinical outcome were analysed. The patients' chief complaints were unspecific cephalgia, focal or generalised seizures and focal neurological deficits. Typical signs of basal SAH, such as nuchal rigidity, thunderclap-headache or alteration of consciousness, were rare. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and digital subtraction angiography (DSA) revealed different aetiologies, namely postpartal posterior encephalopathy (three), cerebral vasculitis (two), dural sinus thrombosis (two), cortical venous thrombosis (one), intracerebral abscesses (one) and cerebral cavernoma (one). Two cases remained unresolved. Treatment of the underlying disease and symptomatic medication led to good clinical outcome in almost all cases. On the basis of these findings, we demonstrate that the clinical presentation, localisation and aetiology of cortical SAH differ clearly from other SAHs. A diagnostic work-up with MRI and eventually DSA is essential. Mostly, the causative disease can be identified, and specific treatment allows a favourable outcome. (orig.)

Entry into the nuclear pore complex is controlled by a cytoplasmic exclusion zone containing dynamic GLFG-repeat nucleoporin domains.

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Fiserova, Jindriska; Spink, Matthew; Richards, Shane A; Saunter, Christopher; Goldberg, Martin W

2014-01-01

Nuclear pore complexes (NPCs) mediate nucleocytoplasmic movement. The central channel contains proteins with phenylalanine-glycine (FG) repeats, or variations (GLFG, glycine-leucine-phenylalanine-glycine). These are 'intrinsically disordered' and often represent weak interaction sites that become ordered upon interaction. We investigated this possibility during nuclear transport. Using electron microscopy of S. cerevisiae, we show that NPC cytoplasmic filaments form a dome-shaped structure enclosing GLFG domains. GLFG domains extend out of this structure and are part of an 'exclusion zone' that might act as a partial barrier to entry of transport-inert proteins. The anchor domain of a GLFG nucleoporin locates exclusively to the central channel. By contrast, the localisation of the GLFG domains varied between NPCs and could be cytoplasmic, central or nucleoplasmic and could stretch up to 80 nm. These results suggest a dynamic exchange between ordered and disordered states. In contrast to diffusion through the NPC, transport cargoes passed through the exclusion zone and accumulated near the central plane. We also show that movement of cargo through the NPC is accompanied by relocation of GLFG domains, suggesting that binding, restructuring and movement of these domains could be part of the translocation mechanism.

Extended icosahedral structures

CERN Document Server

Jaric, Marko V

1989-01-01

Extended Icosahedral Structures discusses the concepts about crystal structures with extended icosahedral symmetry. This book is organized into six chapters that focus on actual modeling of extended icosahedral crystal structures. This text first presents a tiling approach to the modeling of icosahedral quasiperiodic crystals. It then describes the models for icosahedral alloys based on random connections between icosahedral units, with particular emphasis on diffraction properties. Other chapters examine the glassy structures with only icosahedral orientational order and the extent of tra

The Bone Dysplasia Ontology: integrating genotype and phenotype information in the skeletal dysplasia domain

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Groza Tudor

2012-03-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Skeletal dysplasias are a rare and heterogeneous group of genetic disorders affecting skeletal development. Patients with skeletal dysplasias suffer from many complex medical issues including degenerative joint disease and neurological complications. Because the data and expertise associated with this field is both sparse and disparate, significant benefits will potentially accrue from the availability of an ontology that provides a shared conceptualisation of the domain knowledge and enables data integration, cross-referencing and advanced reasoning across the relevant but distributed data sources. Results We introduce the design considerations and implementation details of the Bone Dysplasia Ontology. We also describe the different components of the ontology, including a comprehensive and formal representation of the skeletal dysplasia domain as well as the related genotypes and phenotypes. We then briefly describe SKELETOME, a community-driven knowledge curation platform that is underpinned by the Bone Dysplasia Ontology. SKELETOME enables domain experts to use, refine and extend and apply the ontology without any prior ontology engineering experience--to advance the body of knowledge in the skeletal dysplasia field. Conclusions The Bone Dysplasia Ontology represents the most comprehensive structured knowledge source for the skeletal dysplasias domain. It provides the means for integrating and annotating clinical and research data, not only at the generic domain knowledge level, but also at the level of individual patient case studies. It enables links between individual cases and publicly available genotype and phenotype resources based on a community-driven curation process that ensures a shared conceptualisation of the domain knowledge and its continuous incremental evolution.

Atrial natriuretic peptide secretion following subarachnoid hemorrhage in spontaneously hypertensive rats

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Josko, J.; Hendryk, S.; Jedrzejowska-Szypulka, H.; Gwozdz, B.; Herman, Z.S.; Latka, D.; Kopec, N.

1996-01-01

Atrial natriuretic peptide (ANP) is released excessively in spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR), and vasodepressin is its main effect on the blood vessels. The aim of the study was to investigate the changes in ANP secretion in the cerebral vasospasm following subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) in SHRs. The SAH was induced by the injection of 100 microliters of unheparinized, autologous blood into the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), via a canule formerly inserted into the cisterna magna (CM). In the sham SAH group the SAH was imitated with 0.9% saline injection. The concentrations of ANP in the blood samples obtained in the acute and chronic stages of vasospasm were radioimmunoassayed with commercial RIA kits (Peninsula RIK 9103). It was found that both SAH and sham SAH induced a significant increase in plasma ANP in the chronic phase of vasospasm. No such changes were observed in the acute phase. This shows that the chronic cerebral vasospasm following SAH considerably enhances the ANP secretion in SHRs, probably through the increased endothelin release. These compensatory and regulatory mechanisms help prevent the development of brain oedema and the progression of vasospasm through secondary vasodilation. (author)

Association of Recreational Marijuana Use with Aneurysmal Subarachnoid Hemorrhage.

Science.gov (United States)

Rumalla, Kavelin; Reddy, Adithi Y; Mittal, Manoj K

2016-02-01

Our objective was to evaluate the effect of cannabis use on hospitalizations for aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage (aSAH). The Nationwide Inpatient Sample (2004-2011) was used to identify all patients (age 15-54) with a primary diagnosis of aSAH (International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Edition, Clinical Modification 430). We identified patients testing positive for cannabis use using all available diagnosis fields. The incidence and characteristics of aSAH hospitalizations among cannabis users were examined. Bivariate and multivariate analyses were performed to determine the effect of cannabis use on aSAH and in-hospital outcomes. Prior to adjustment, the incidence of aSAH in the cannabis cohort was slightly increased relative to the noncannabis cohort (relative risk: 1.07, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.02-1.11). Cannabis use in aSAH was more frequent among younger patients (40.44 ± 10.17 versus 43.74 ± 8.68, P recreational marijuana use is independently associated with an 18% increased likelihood of aSAH. Further case-control studies may analyze inpatient outcomes and other understudied mechanisms behind cannabis-associated stroke. Copyright © 2015 National Stroke Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Domain learning naming game for color categorization.

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Doujie; Fan, Zhongyan; Tang, Wallace K S

2017-01-01

Naming game simulates the evolution of vocabulary in a population of agents. Through pairwise interactions in the games, agents acquire a set of vocabulary in their memory for object naming. The existing model confines to a one-to-one mapping between a name and an object. Focus is usually put onto name consensus in the population rather than knowledge learning in agents, and hence simple learning model is usually adopted. However, the cognition system of human being is much more complex and knowledge is usually presented in a complicated form. Therefore, in this work, we extend the agent learning model and design a new game to incorporate domain learning, which is essential for more complicated form of knowledge. In particular, we demonstrate the evolution of color categorization and naming in a population of agents. We incorporate the human perceptive model into the agents and introduce two new concepts, namely subjective perception and subliminal stimulation, in domain learning. Simulation results show that, even without any supervision or pre-requisition, a consensus of a color naming system can be reached in a population solely via the interactions. Our work confirms the importance of society interactions in color categorization, which is a long debate topic in human cognition. Moreover, our work also demonstrates the possibility of cognitive system development in autonomous intelligent agents.

Domain Walls and Matter-Antimatter Domains in the Early Universe

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Dolgov A.D.

2017-01-01

Full Text Available We suggest a scenario of spontaneous (or dynamical C and CP violation according to which it is possible to generate domains of matter and antimatter separated by cosmologically large distances. Such C(CP violation existed only in the early universe and later it disappeared with the only trace of generated matter and antimatter domains. So this scenario does not suffer from the problem of domain walls. According to this scenario the width of the domain wall should grow exponentially to prevent annihilation at the domain boundaries. Though there is a classical result obtained by Basu and Vilenkin that the width of the wall tends to the one of the stationary solution (constant physical width. That is why we considered thick domain walls in a de Sitter universe following paper by Basu and Vilenkin. However, we were interested not only in stationary solutions found therein, but also investigated the general case of domain wall evolution with time. When the wall thickness parameter, δ0 , is smaller than H−1/2 where H is the Hubble parameter in de Sitter space-time, then the stationary solutions exist, and initial field configurations tend with time to the stationary ones. However, there are no stationary solutions for δ0>H−1/2 We have calculated numerically the rate of the wall expansion in this case and have found that the width of the wall grows exponentially fast for δ0≫H−1 An explanation for the critical value δ0c=H−1/2 is also proposed.

Does expert perceptual anticipation transfer to a dissimilar domain?

Science.gov (United States)

Müller, Sean; McLaren, Michelle; Appleby, Brendyn; Rosalie, Simon M

2015-06-01

The purpose of this experiment was to extend theoretical understanding of transfer of learning by investigating whether expert perceptual anticipation skill transfers to a dissimilar domain. The capability of expert and near-expert rugby players as well as novices to anticipate skill type within rugby (learning sport) was first examined using a temporal occlusion paradigm. Participants watched video footage of an opponent performing rugby skill types that were temporally occluded at different points in the opponent's action and then made a written prediction. Thereafter, the capability of participants to transfer their anticipation skill to predict pitch type in baseball (transfer sport) was examined. Participants watched video footage of a pitcher throwing different pitch types that were temporally occluded and made a written prediction. Results indicated that expert and near-expert rugby players anticipated significantly better than novices across all occlusion conditions. However, none of the skill groups were able to transfer anticipation skill to predict pitch type in baseball. The findings of this paper, along with existing literature, support the theoretical prediction that transfer of perceptual anticipation is expertise dependent and restricted to similar domains. (c) 2015 APA, all rights reserved).

RADIANCE DOMAIN COMPOSITING FOR HIGH DYNAMIC RANGE IMAGING

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M.R. Renu

2013-02-01

Full Text Available High dynamic range imaging aims at creating an image with a range of intensity variations larger than the range supported by a camera sensor. Most commonly used methods combine multiple exposure low dynamic range (LDR images, to obtain the high dynamic range (HDR image. Available methods typically neglect the noise term while finding appropriate weighting functions to estimate the camera response function as well as the radiance map. We look at the HDR imaging problem in a denoising frame work and aim at reconstructing a low noise radiance map from noisy low dynamic range images, which is tone mapped to get the LDR equivalent of the HDR image. We propose a maximum aposteriori probability (MAP based reconstruction of the HDR image using Gibb’s prior to model the radiance map, with total variation (TV as the prior to avoid unnecessary smoothing of the radiance field. To make the computation with TV prior efficient, we extend the majorize-minimize method of upper bounding the total variation by a quadratic function to our case which has a nonlinear term arising from the camera response function. A theoretical justification for doing radiance domain denoising as opposed to image domain denoising is also provided.

AL SAHLI, AA; OKOLI, JU

African Journals Online (AJOL)

ADOWIE PERE

area (the control site) showed a high degree of similarity, suggesting that pollen assemblages of ... Standard methods were used for the collection and analysis of soil .... environmental restoration activities (Adekanmbi, .... The refugia forest.

Low-lying Photoexcited States of a One-Dimensional Ionic Extended Hubbard Model

Science.gov (United States)

Yokoi, Kota; Maeshima, Nobuya; Hino, Ken-ichi

2017-10-01

We investigate the properties of low-lying photoexcited states of a one-dimensional (1D) ionic extended Hubbard model at half-filling. Numerical analysis by using the full and Lanczos diagonalization methods shows that, in the ionic phase, there exist low-lying photoexcited states below the charge transfer gap. As a result of comparison with numerical data for the 1D antiferromagnetic (AF) Heisenberg model, it was found that, for a small alternating potential Δ, these low-lying photoexcited states are spin excitations, which is consistent with a previous analytical study [Katsura et al., link ext-link-type="uri" xlink:href="https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.103.177402" xlink:type="simple">Phys. Rev. Lett. 103, 177402 (2009)link>]. As Δ increases, the spectral intensity of the 1D ionic extended Hubbard model rapidly deviates from that of the 1D AF Heisenberg model and it is clarified that this deviation is due to the neutral-ionic domain wall, an elementary excitation near the neutral-ionic transition point.

MiDas: automatic extraction of a common domain of discourse in sleep medicine for multi-center data integration.

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Sahoo, Satya S; Ogbuji, Chimezie; Luo, Lingyun; Dong, Xiao; Cui, Licong; Redline, Susan S; Zhang, Guo-Qiang

2011-01-01

Clinical studies often use data dictionaries with controlled sets of terms to facilitate data collection, limited interoperability and sharing at a local site. Multi-center retrospective clinical studies require that these data dictionaries, originating from individual participating centers, be harmonized in preparation for the integration of the corresponding clinical research data. Domain ontologies are often used to facilitate multi-center data integration by modeling terms from data dictionaries in a logic-based language, but interoperability among domain ontologies (using automated techniques) is an unresolved issue. Although many upper-level reference ontologies have been proposed to address this challenge, our experience in integrating multi-center sleep medicine data highlights the need for an upper level ontology that models a common set of terms at multiple-levels of abstraction, which is not covered by the existing upper-level ontologies. We introduce a methodology underpinned by a Minimal Domain of Discourse (MiDas) algorithm to automatically extract a minimal common domain of discourse (upper-domain ontology) from an existing domain ontology. Using the Multi-Modality, Multi-Resource Environment for Physiological and Clinical Research (Physio-MIMI) multi-center project in sleep medicine as a use case, we demonstrate the use of MiDas in extracting a minimal domain of discourse for sleep medicine, from Physio-MIMI's Sleep Domain Ontology (SDO). We then extend the resulting domain of discourse with terms from the data dictionary of the Sleep Heart and Health Study (SHHS) to validate MiDas. To illustrate the wider applicability of MiDas, we automatically extract the respective domains of discourse from 6 sample domain ontologies from the National Center for Biomedical Ontologies (NCBO) and the OBO Foundry.

Toward understanding non-coding RNA roles in intracranial aneurysms and subarachnoid hemorrhage

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Huang Fengzhen

2017-05-01

Full Text Available Subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH is a common and frequently life-threatening cerebrovascular disease, which is mostly related with a ruptured intracranial aneurysm. Its complications include rebleeding, early brain injury, cerebral vasospasm, delayed cerebral ischemia, chronic hydrocephalus, and also non neurological problems. Non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs, comprising of microRNAs (miRNAs, small interfering RNAs (siRNAs and long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs, play an important role in intracranial aneurysms and SAH. Here, we review the non-coding RNAs expression profile and their related mechanisms in intracranial aneurysms and SAH. Moreover, we suggest that these non-coding RNAs function as novel molecular biomarkers to predict intracranial aneurysms and SAH, and may yield new therapies after SAH in the future.

Sudden death and cervical spine: A new contribution to pathogenesis for sudden death in critical care unit from subarachnoid hemorrhage; first report – An experimental study

Science.gov (United States)

Kazdal, Hizir; Kanat, Ayhan; Aydin, Mehmet Dumlu; Yazar, Ugur; Guvercin, Ali Riza; Calik, Muhammet; Gundogdu, Betul

2017-01-01

Context: Sudden death from subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) is not uncommon. Aims: The goal of this study is to elucidate the effect of the cervical spinal roots and the related dorsal root ganglions (DRGs) on cardiorespiratory arrest following SAH. Settings and Design: This was an experimental study conducted on rabbits. Materials and Methods: This study was conducted on 22 rabbits which were randomly divided into three groups: control (n = 5), physiologic serum saline (SS; n = 6), SAH groups (n = 11). Experimental SAH was performed. Seven of 11 rabbits with SAH died within the first 2 weeks. After 20 days, other animals were sacrificed. The anterior spinal arteries, arteriae nervorum of cervical nerve roots (C6–C8), DRGs, and lungs were histopathologically examined and estimated stereologically. Statistical Analysis Used: Statistical analysis was performed using the PASW Statistics 18.0 for Windows (SPSS Inc., Chicago, Illinois, USA). Intergroup differences were assessed using a one-way ANOVA. The statistical significance was set at P < 0.05. Results: In the SAH group, histopathologically, severe anterior spinal artery (ASA) and arteriae nervorum vasospasm, axonal and neuronal degeneration, and neuronal apoptosis were observed. Vasospasm of ASA did not occur in the SS and control groups. There was a statistically significant increase in the degenerated neuron density in the SAH group as compared to the control and SS groups (P < 0.05). Cardiorespiratory disturbances, arrest, and lung edema more commonly developed in animals in the SAH group. Conclusion: We noticed interestingly that C6–C8 DRG degenerations were secondary to the vasospasm of ASA, following SAH. Cardiorespiratory disturbances or arrest can be explained with these mechanisms. PMID:28250634

Amino Acids in Cerebrospinal Fluid of Patients with Aneurysmal Subarachnoid Haemorrhage: An Observational Study

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Bartosz Sokół

2017-08-01

Full Text Available BackgroundThe authors are aware of only one article investigating amino acid concentrations in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF in patients with ruptured intracranial aneurysms, and this was published 31 years ago. Since then, both management of subarachnoid haemorrhage (SAH and amino acid assay techniques have seen radical alterations, yet the pathophysiology of SAH remains unclear.ObjectiveTo analyse the pattern of concentrations of amino acids and related compounds in patients with different outcomes following aneurysmal SAH.Methods49 CSF samples were collected from 23 patients on days 0–3, 5, and 10 post-SAH. Concentrations of 33 amino acids and related compounds were assayed by liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry in patients with good [Glasgow Outcome Scale (GOS 1–3] and poor (GOS 4–5 outcome.ResultsOf the 33 compounds assayed, only hydroxyproline and 3-aminoisobutyric acid appeared not to increase significantly following SAH. In poor outcome patients, we found significantly higher concentrations of aspartic acid (p = 0.038, glutamic acid (p = 0.038, and seven other compounds on days 0–3 post-SAH; glutamic acid (p = 0.041 on day 5 post-SAH, and 2-aminoadipic acid (p = 0.033 on day 10 post-SAH. The most significant correlation with GOS at 3 months was found for aminoadipic acid on day 10 post-SAH (cc = −0.81.ConclusionAneurysmal rupture leads to a generalised increase of amino acids and related compounds in CSF. The patterns differ between good and poor outcome cases. Increased excitatory amino acids are strongly indicative of poor outcome.

A Dual Super-Element Domain Decomposition Approach for Parallel Nonlinear Finite Element Analysis

Science.gov (United States)

Jokhio, G. A.; Izzuddin, B. A.

2015-05-01

This article presents a new domain decomposition method for nonlinear finite element analysis introducing the concept of dual partition super-elements. The method extends ideas from the displacement frame method and is ideally suited for parallel nonlinear static/dynamic analysis of structural systems. In the new method, domain decomposition is realized by replacing one or more subdomains in a "parent system," each with a placeholder super-element, where the subdomains are processed separately as "child partitions," each wrapped by a dual super-element along the partition boundary. The analysis of the overall system, including the satisfaction of equilibrium and compatibility at all partition boundaries, is realized through direct communication between all pairs of placeholder and dual super-elements. The proposed method has particular advantages for matrix solution methods based on the frontal scheme, and can be readily implemented for existing finite element analysis programs to achieve parallelization on distributed memory systems with minimal intervention, thus overcoming memory bottlenecks typically faced in the analysis of large-scale problems. Several examples are presented in this article which demonstrate the computational benefits of the proposed parallel domain decomposition approach and its applicability to the nonlinear structural analysis of realistic structural systems.

Dimeric structure of the N-terminal domain of PriB protein from Thermoanaerobacter tengcongensis solved ab initio

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Liebschner, Dorothee [National Cancer Institute, Argonne National Laboratory, Argonne, IL 60439 (United States); Brzezinski, Krzysztof [National Cancer Institute, Argonne National Laboratory, Argonne, IL 60439 (United States); University of Bialystok, 15-399 Bialystok (Poland); Dauter, Miroslawa [Argonne National Laboratory, Argonne, IL 60439 (United States); Dauter, Zbigniew, E-mail: dauter@anl.gov [National Cancer Institute, Argonne National Laboratory, Argonne, IL 60439 (United States); Nowak, Marta; Kur, Józef; Olszewski, Marcin, E-mail: dauter@anl.gov [Gdansk University of Technology, 80-952 Gdansk (Poland); National Cancer Institute, Argonne National Laboratory, Argonne, IL 60439 (United States)

2012-12-01

The N-terminal domain of the PriB protein from the thermophilic bacterium T. tengcongensis (TtePriB) was expressed and its crystal structure has been solved at the atomic resolution of 1.09 Å by direct methods. PriB is one of the components of the bacterial primosome, which catalyzes the reactivation of stalled replication forks at sites of DNA damage. The N-terminal domain of the PriB protein from the thermophilic bacterium Thermoanaerobacter tengcongensis (TtePriB) was expressed and its crystal structure was solved at the atomic resolution of 1.09 Å by direct methods. The protein chain, which encompasses the first 104 residues of the full 220-residue protein, adopts the characteristic oligonucleotide/oligosaccharide-binding (OB) structure consisting of a five-stranded β-barrel filled with hydrophobic residues and equipped with four loops extending from the barrel. In the crystal two protomers dimerize, forming a six-stranded antiparallel β-sheet. The structure of the N-terminal OB domain of T. tengcongensis shows significant differences compared with mesophile PriBs. While in all other known structures of PriB a dimer is formed by two identical OB domains in separate chains, TtePriB contains two consecutive OB domains in one chain. However, sequence comparison of both the N-terminal and the C-terminal domains of TtePriB suggests that they have analogous structures and that the natural protein possesses a structure similar to a dimer of two N-terminal domains.

A fuzzy ontology modeling for case base knowledge in diabetes mellitus domain

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Shaker El-Sappagh

2017-06-01

Full Text Available Knowledge-Intensive Case-Based Reasoning Systems (KI-CBR mainly depend on ontologies. Ontology can play the role of case-base knowledge. The combination of ontology and fuzzy logic reasoning is critical in the medical domain. Case-base representation based on fuzzy ontology is expected to enhance the semantic and storage of CBR knowledge-base. This paper provides an advancement to the research of diabetes diagnosis CBR by proposing a novel case-base fuzzy OWL2 ontology (CBRDiabOnto. This ontology can be considered as the first fuzzy case-base ontology in the medical domain. It is based on a case-base fuzzy Extended Entity Relation (EER data model. It contains 63 (fuzzy classes, 54 (fuzzy object properties, 138 (fuzzy datatype properties, and 105 fuzzy datatypes. We populated the ontology with 60 cases and used SPARQL-DL for its query. The evaluation of CBRDiabOnto shows that it is accurate, consistent, and cover terminologies and logic of diabetes mellitus diagnosis.

A higher order space-time Galerkin scheme for time domain integral equations

KAUST Repository

Pray, Andrew J.

2014-12-01

Stability of time domain integral equation (TDIE) solvers has remained an elusive goal formany years. Advancement of this research has largely progressed on four fronts: 1) Exact integration, 2) Lubich quadrature, 3) smooth temporal basis functions, and 4) space-time separation of convolutions with the retarded potential. The latter method\\'s efficacy in stabilizing solutions to the time domain electric field integral equation (TD-EFIE) was previously reported for first-order surface descriptions (flat elements) and zeroth-order functions as the temporal basis. In this work, we develop the methodology necessary to extend the scheme to higher order surface descriptions as well as to enable its use with higher order basis functions in both space and time. These basis functions are then used in a space-time Galerkin framework. A number of results are presented that demonstrate convergence in time. The viability of the space-time separation method in producing stable results is demonstrated experimentally for these examples.

A higher order space-time Galerkin scheme for time domain integral equations

KAUST Repository

Pray, Andrew J.; Beghein, Yves; Nair, Naveen V.; Cools, Kristof; Bagci, Hakan; Shanker, Balasubramaniam

2014-01-01

Stability of time domain integral equation (TDIE) solvers has remained an elusive goal formany years. Advancement of this research has largely progressed on four fronts: 1) Exact integration, 2) Lubich quadrature, 3) smooth temporal basis functions, and 4) space-time separation of convolutions with the retarded potential. The latter method's efficacy in stabilizing solutions to the time domain electric field integral equation (TD-EFIE) was previously reported for first-order surface descriptions (flat elements) and zeroth-order functions as the temporal basis. In this work, we develop the methodology necessary to extend the scheme to higher order surface descriptions as well as to enable its use with higher order basis functions in both space and time. These basis functions are then used in a space-time Galerkin framework. A number of results are presented that demonstrate convergence in time. The viability of the space-time separation method in producing stable results is demonstrated experimentally for these examples.

Extended thermodynamics

CERN Document Server

Müller, Ingo

1993-01-01

Physicists firmly believe that the differential equations of nature should be hyperbolic so as to exclude action at a distance; yet the equations of irreversible thermodynamics - those of Navier-Stokes and Fourier - are parabolic. This incompatibility between the expectation of physicists and the classical laws of thermodynamics has prompted the formulation of extended thermodynamics. After describing the motifs and early evolution of this new branch of irreversible thermodynamics, the authors apply the theory to mon-atomic gases, mixtures of gases, relativistic gases, and "gases" of phonons and photons. The discussion brings into perspective the various phenomena called second sound, such as heat propagation, propagation of shear stress and concentration, and the second sound in liquid helium. The formal mathematical structure of extended thermodynamics is exposed and the theory is shown to be fully compatible with the kinetic theory of gases. The study closes with the testing of extended thermodynamics thro...

Domain Decomposition Solvers for Frequency-Domain Finite Element Equations

KAUST Repository

Copeland, Dylan

2010-10-05

The paper is devoted to fast iterative solvers for frequency-domain finite element equations approximating linear and nonlinear parabolic initial boundary value problems with time-harmonic excitations. Switching from the time domain to the frequency domain allows us to replace the expensive time-integration procedure by the solution of a simple linear elliptic system for the amplitudes belonging to the sine- and to the cosine-excitation or a large nonlinear elliptic system for the Fourier coefficients in the linear and nonlinear case, respectively. The fast solution of the corresponding linear and nonlinear system of finite element equations is crucial for the competitiveness of this method. © 2011 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg.

Domain Decomposition Solvers for Frequency-Domain Finite Element Equations

KAUST Repository

Copeland, Dylan; Kolmbauer, Michael; Langer, Ulrich

2010-01-01

The paper is devoted to fast iterative solvers for frequency-domain finite element equations approximating linear and nonlinear parabolic initial boundary value problems with time-harmonic excitations. Switching from the time domain to the frequency domain allows us to replace the expensive time-integration procedure by the solution of a simple linear elliptic system for the amplitudes belonging to the sine- and to the cosine-excitation or a large nonlinear elliptic system for the Fourier coefficients in the linear and nonlinear case, respectively. The fast solution of the corresponding linear and nonlinear system of finite element equations is crucial for the competitiveness of this method. © 2011 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg.

Cerebrovascular ETB, 5-HT1B, and AT1 receptor upregulation correlates with reduction in regional CBF after subarachnoid hemorrhage

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Ansar, Saema; Vikman, Petter; Nielsen, Marianne

2007-01-01

with the reduction in regional and global cerebral blood flow (CBF) after subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH). SAH was induced by injecting 250 microl blood into the prechiasmatic cistern in rats. The cerebral arteries were removed 0, 1, 3, 6, 12, 24, and 48 h after the SAH for functional and molecular studies...

30-day mortality and readmission after hemorrhagic stroke among Medicare beneficiaries in Joint Commission primary stroke center-certified and noncertified hospitals.

Science.gov (United States)

Lichtman, Judith H; Jones, Sara B; Leifheit-Limson, Erica C; Wang, Yun; Goldstein, Larry B

2011-12-01

Ischemic stroke patients treated at Joint Commission Primary Stroke Center (JC-PSC)-certified hospitals have better outcomes. Data reflecting the impact of JC-PSC status on outcomes after hemorrhagic stroke are limited. We determined whether 30-day mortality and readmission rates after hemorrhagic stroke differed for patients treated at JC-PSC-certified versus noncertified hospitals. The study included all fee-for-service Medicare beneficiaries aged 65 years or older with a primary discharge diagnosis of subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) or intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) in 2006. Covariate-adjusted logistic and Cox proportional hazards regression assessed the effect of care at a JC-PSC-certified hospital on 30-day mortality and readmission. There were 2305 SAH and 8708 ICH discharges from JC-PSC-certified hospitals and 3892 SAH and 22 564 ICH discharges from noncertified hospitals. Unadjusted in-hospital mortality (SAH: 27.5% versus 33.2%, Pmortality (SAH: 35.1% versus 44.0%, Pmortality was 34% lower (odds ratio, 0.66; 95% confidence interval, 0.58-0.76) after SAH and 14% lower (odds ratio, 0.86; 95% confidence interval, 0.80-0.92) after ICH for patients discharged from JC-PSC-certified hospitals. There was no difference in 30-day risk-adjusted readmission rates for SAH or ICH based on JC-PSC status. Patients treated at JC-PSC-certified hospitals had lower risk-adjusted mortality rates for both SAH and ICH but similar 30-day readmission rates as compared with noncertified hospitals.

Cardiovascular risk and obesity in sleep apnea syndrome assessed with the Stop-Bang questionnaire.

Science.gov (United States)

Vicente-Herrero, María Teófila; Capdevila García, Luisa; Bellido Cambrón, María Del Carmen; Ramírez Iñiguez de la Torre, María Victoria; Lladosa Marco, Silvia

2017-12-01

Sleep disorders include a number of different processes, of which the most prevalent is the sleep apnea-hypopnea syndrome (SAHS). Prevalence of SAHS has increased worldwide, and has a significant social and health impact because of the increased cardiometabolic risk attributed to obesity and the associated metabolic syndrome. A cross-sectional epidemiological study of 1110 workers from public service companies in the Spanish Mediterranean area (Balearic Islands and Valencian Community) was conducted between January and December 2015. Cardiovascular risk was calculated using the Castelli, Kannel and TG/HDL indices, and prevalence of obesity using body mass index, waist circumference, waist-height ratio, and visceral fat. SAHS risk was assessed using the Stop-Bang questionnaire. Risk of SAHS was low in 77% of patients and intermediate-high in 23% of patients. All obesity parameters showed a statistically significant association (p value <.001) with intermediate/high risk of SAHS. Obesity prevalence is higher the worse the quality of sleep. There was a statistically significant relationship between risk of SAHS and cardiovascular risk with the atherogenic indexes found. Twenty-three percent of workers had intermediate/high SAHS risk. The results of this study support the relationship of SAHS with an increased CVR and with obesity parameters. Further prospective studies in different productive sectors may be useful to confirm the results of this research. Copyright © 2017 SEEN y SED. Publicado por Elsevier España, S.L.U. All rights reserved.

Adaptation and Validation of the Spanish Version of OSA-18, a Quality of Life Questionnaire for Evaluation of Children with Sleep Apnea-Hypopnea Syndrome.

Science.gov (United States)

Chiner, Eusebi; Landete, Pedro; Sancho-Chust, José Norberto; Martínez-García, Miguel Ángel; Pérez-Ferrer, Patricia; Pastor, Esther; Senent, Cristina; Arlandis, Mar; Navarro, Cristina; Selma, María José

2016-11-01

To analyze the reliability and validity of the Spanish version of the OSA-18 quality of life questionnaire in children with apnea-hypopnea syndrome (SAHS). Children with suspected SAHS were studied with polysomnography (PSG) before and after adenotonsillectomy (AA). Age, gender, clinical data, PSG, anthropometric data, and Mallampati and Brodsky scales were analyzed. OSA-18 was administered at baseline and 3-6months post AA. After translation and backtranslation by bilingual professionals, the internal consistency, reliability, construct validity, concurrent validity, predictive validity and sensitivity to change of the questionnaire was assessed. In total, 45 boys and 15 girls were evaluated, showing BMI 18±4, neck 28±5, Brodsky (0: 7%; 50 to 75%: 6%), AHI 12±7 pre AA. Global Cronbach alpha was 0.91. Correlations between domains were significant except for emotional aspects, although the total scores correlated with all domains (0.50 to 0.90). The factorial analysis was virtually identical to the original structure. The total scores showed good correlation for concurrent validity (0.2-0.45). With regard to predictive validity, the questionnaire adequately differentiated levels of severity according to Mallampati (ANOVA P=.002) and apnea-hypopnea index (ANOVA P=.006). Test-retest reliability was excellent, as was sensitivity to change, both in the total scores (P<.001) and in each domain (P<.001). The Spanish adaptation of the OSA-18 and its psychometric characteristics suggest that the Spanish version is equivalent to the original and can be used in Spanish-speaking countries. Copyright © 2016 SEPAR. Publicado por Elsevier España, S.L.U. All rights reserved.

Extended family medicine training

Science.gov (United States)

Slade, Steve; Ross, Shelley; Lawrence, Kathrine; Archibald, Douglas; Mackay, Maria Palacios; Oandasan, Ivy F.

2016-01-01

Abstract Objective To examine trends in family medicine training at a time when substantial pedagogic change is under way, focusing on factors that relate to extended family medicine training. Design Aggregate-level secondary data analysis based on the Canadian Post-MD Education Registry. Setting Canada. Participants All Canadian citizens and permanent residents who were registered in postgraduate family medicine training programs within Canadian faculties of medicine from 1995 to 2013. Main outcome measures Number and proportion of family medicine residents exiting 2-year and extended (third-year and above) family medicine training programs, as well as the types and numbers of extended training programs offered in 2015. Results The proportion of family medicine trainees pursuing extended training almost doubled during the study period, going from 10.9% in 1995 to 21.1% in 2013. Men and Canadian medical graduates were more likely to take extended family medicine training. Among the 5 most recent family medicine exit cohorts (from 2009 to 2013), 25.9% of men completed extended training programs compared with 18.3% of women, and 23.1% of Canadian medical graduates completed extended training compared with 13.6% of international medical graduates. Family medicine programs vary substantially with respect to the proportion of their trainees who undertake extended training, ranging from a low of 12.3% to a high of 35.1% among trainees exiting from 2011 to 2013. Conclusion New initiatives, such as the Triple C Competency-based Curriculum, CanMEDS–Family Medicine, and Certificates of Added Competence, have emerged as part of family medicine education and credentialing. In acknowledgment of the potential effect of these initiatives, it is important that future research examine how pedagogic change and, in particular, extended training shapes the care family physicians offer their patients. As part of that research it will be important to measure the breadth and uptake of

Changes in children's self-competence and values: gender and domain differences across grades one through twelve.

Science.gov (United States)

Jacobs, Janis E; Lanza, Stephanie; Osgood, D Wayne; Eccles, Jacquelynne S; Wigfield, Allan

2002-01-01

This study extended previous research on changes in children's self-beliefs by documenting domain-specific growth trajectories for 761 children across grades 1 through 12 in a longitudinal study of perceptions of self-competence and task values. Hierarchical Linear Modeling was used to (1) describe changes in beliefs across childhood and adolescence within the domains of mathematics, language arts, and sports; (2) examine the impact of changes in competence beliefs on changes in values over time in the same domains; and (3) describe gender differences in mean levels and trajectories of change in competence beliefs and values. The most striking finding across all domains was that self-perceptions of competence and subjective task values declined as children got older, although the extent and rate of decline varied across domains. For example, in language arts, competence beliefs declined rapidly during the elementary school years, but then leveled off or increased to some extent; whereas the decline in self-competence beliefs in sports accelerated during the high school years. Significant gender differences in beliefs were found in most domains; however, the gender differences in developmental trajectories appeared to be domain specific rather than global. Importantly, the gender differences between boys and girls did not systematically increase with age, as predicted by some socialization perspectives. Adding competence beliefs as an explanatory variable to the model for task values revealed that changes in competence beliefs accounted for much of the age-related decline in task values. In addition, competence beliefs accounted for most of the gender differences in task values for language arts and sports.

Domain shape instabilities and dendrite domain growth in uniaxial ferroelectrics

Science.gov (United States)

Shur, Vladimir Ya.; Akhmatkhanov, Andrey R.

2018-01-01

The effects of domain wall shape instabilities and the formation of nanodomains in front of moving walls obtained in various uniaxial ferroelectrics are discussed. Special attention is paid to the formation of self-assembled nanoscale and dendrite domain structures under highly non-equilibrium switching conditions. All obtained results are considered in the framework of the unified kinetic approach to domain structure evolution based on the analogy with first-order phase transformation. This article is part of the theme issue `From atomistic interfaces to dendritic patterns'.

Scale-invariant extended inflation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Holman, R.; Kolb, E.W.; Vadas, S.L.; Wang, Y.

1991-01-01

We propose a model of extended inflation which makes use of the nonlinear realization of scale invariance involving the dilaton coupled to an inflaton field whose potential admits a metastable ground state. The resulting theory resembles the Jordan-Brans-Dicke version of extended inflation. However, quantum effects, in the form of the conformal anomaly, generate a mass for the dilaton, thus allowing our model to evade the problems of the original version of extended inflation. We show that extended inflation can occur for a wide range of inflaton potentials with no fine-tuning of dimensionless parameters required. Furthermore, we also find that it is quite natural for the extended-inflation period to be followed by an epoch of slow-rollover inflation as the dilaton settles down to the minimum of its induced potential

Increasing numbers of nonaneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage in the last 15 years: antithrombotic medication as reason and prognostic factor?

Science.gov (United States)

Konczalla, Juergen; Kashefiolasl, Sepide; Brawanski, Nina; Senft, Christian; Seifert, Volker; Platz, Johannes

2016-06-01

OBJECT Subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) is usually caused by a ruptured intracranial aneurysm, but in some patients no source of hemorrhage can be detected. More recent data showed increasing numbers of cases of spontaneous nonaneurysmal SAH (NASAH). The aim of this study was to analyze factors, especially the use of antithrombotic medications such as systemic anticoagulation or antiplatelet agents (aCPs), influencing the increasing numbers of cases of NASAH and the clinical outcome. METHODS Between 1999 and 2013, 214 patients who were admitted to the authors' institution suffered from NASAH, 14% of all patients with SAH. Outcome was assessed according to the modified Rankin Scale (mRS) at 6 months. Risk factors were identified based on the outcome. RESULTS The number of patients with NASAH increased significantly in the last 15 years of the study period. There was a statistically significant increase in the rate of nonperimesencephalic (NPM)-SAH occurrence and aCP use, while the proportion of elderly patients remained stable. Favorable outcome (mRS 0-2) was achieved in 85% of cases, but patients treated with aCPs had a significantly higher risk for an unfavorable outcome. Further analysis showed that elderly patients, and especially the subgroup with a Fisher Grade 3 bleeding pattern, had a high risk for an unfavorable outcome, whereas the subgroup of NPM-SAH without a Fisher Grade 3 bleeding pattern had a favorable outcome, similar to perimesencephalic (PM)-SAH. CONCLUSIONS Over the years, a significant increase in the number of patients with NASAH has been observed. Also, the rate of aCP use has increased significantly. Risk factors for an unfavorable outcome were age > 65 years, Fisher Grade 3 bleeding pattern, and aCP use. Both "PM-SAH" and "NPM-SAH without a Fisher Grade 3 bleeding pattern" had excellent outcomes. Patients with NASAH and a Fisher Grade 3 bleeding pattern had a significantly higher risk for an unfavorable outcome and death. Therefore, for further

Preliminary frequency-domain analysis for the reconstructed spatial resolution of muon tomography

Science.gov (United States)

Yu, B.; Zhao, Z.; Wang, X.; Wang, Y.; Wu, D.; Zeng, Z.; Zeng, M.; Yi, H.; Luo, Z.; Yue, X.; Cheng, J.

2014-11-01

Muon tomography is an advanced technology to non-destructively detect high atomic number materials. It exploits the multiple Coulomb scattering information of muon to reconstruct the scattering density image of the traversed object. Because of the statistics of muon scattering, the measurement error of system and the data incompleteness, the reconstruction is always accompanied with a certain level of interference, which will influence the reconstructed spatial resolution. While statistical noises can be reduced by extending the measuring time, system parameters determine the ultimate spatial resolution that one system can reach. In this paper, an effective frequency-domain model is proposed to analyze the reconstructed spatial resolution of muon tomography. The proposed method modifies the resolution analysis in conventional computed tomography (CT) to fit the different imaging mechanism in muon scattering tomography. The measured scattering information is described in frequency domain, then a relationship between the measurements and the original image is proposed in Fourier domain, which is named as "Muon Central Slice Theorem". Furthermore, a preliminary analytical expression of the ultimate reconstructed spatial is derived, and the simulations are performed for validation. While the method is able to predict the ultimate spatial resolution of a given system, it can also be utilized for the optimization of system design and construction.

Preliminary frequency-domain analysis for the reconstructed spatial resolution of muon tomography

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yu, B.; Zhao, Z.; Wang, X.; Wang, Y.; Wu, D.; Zeng, Z.; Zeng, M.; Yi, H.; Luo, Z.; Yue, X.; Cheng, J.

2014-01-01

Muon tomography is an advanced technology to non-destructively detect high atomic number materials. It exploits the multiple Coulomb scattering information of muon to reconstruct the scattering density image of the traversed object. Because of the statistics of muon scattering, the measurement error of system and the data incompleteness, the reconstruction is always accompanied with a certain level of interference, which will influence the reconstructed spatial resolution. While statistical noises can be reduced by extending the measuring time, system parameters determine the ultimate spatial resolution that one system can reach. In this paper, an effective frequency-domain model is proposed to analyze the reconstructed spatial resolution of muon tomography. The proposed method modifies the resolution analysis in conventional computed tomography (CT) to fit the different imaging mechanism in muon scattering tomography. The measured scattering information is described in frequency domain, then a relationship between the measurements and the original image is proposed in Fourier domain, which is named as M uon Central Slice Theorem . Furthermore, a preliminary analytical expression of the ultimate reconstructed spatial is derived, and the simulations are performed for validation. While the method is able to predict the ultimate spatial resolution of a given system, it can also be utilized for the optimization of system design and construction

Photo dynamics of BLUF domain mutant H44R of AppA from Rhodobacter sphaeroides

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zirak, P. [Institut II - Experimentelle und Angewandte Physik, Universitaet Regensburg, Universitaetstrasse 31, D-93053 Regensburg (Germany); Penzkofer, A. [Institut II - Experimentelle und Angewandte Physik, Universitaet Regensburg, Universitaetstrasse 31, D-93053 Regensburg (Germany)], E-mail: alfons.penzkofer@physik.uni-regensburg.de; Hegemann, P.; Mathes, T. [Institut fuer Biologie, Experimentelle Biophysik, Humboldt-Universitaet zu Berlin, Invalidenstr. 42, D-10115 Berlin (Germany)

2007-05-21

The photo-cycle dynamics of the H44R mutant of the BLUF domain of the transcriptional anti-repressor protein AppA (AppA-H44R) from the non-sulfur anoxyphototropic purple bacterium Rhodobacter sphaeroides is studied in order to gain information on the involvement of His44 in the photo-cyclic mechanism of the AppA BLUF domain and to add information to the involved processes. The amino acid residue histidine at position 44 is replaced by arginine. A 12 nm red-shifted signalling state is formed upon blue-light excitation, while in wild-type AppA (AppA-wt) the red-shift is 16 nm. The recovery to the receptor dark state is approximately a factor of 2.5 faster ({tau}{sub rec} {approx} 6.5 min) than the recovery of the wild-type counterpart. Extended light exposure of the mutant causes photo-degradation of flavin (mainly free flavin conversion to lumichrome and re-equilibration between free and non-covalently bound flavin) and protein aggregation (showing up as light scattering). No photo-degradation was observed for AppA-wt. The quantum efficiency of signalling-state formation determined by intensity dependent absorption measurements is found to be {phi}{sub s} {approx} 0.3 (for AppA-wt: {phi}{sub s} {approx} 0.24). A two-component single-exponential fluorescence relaxation was observed, which is interpreted as fast fluorescence quenching to an equilibrium value by photo-induced electron transfer followed by slower fluorescence decay due to charge recombination. Based on the experimental findings, an extended photo-cycle model for BLUF domains is proposed.

The Arctic Marine Pulses Model: Linking Contiguous Domains in the Pacific Arctic Region

Science.gov (United States)

Moore, S. E.; Stabeno, P. J.

2016-02-01

The Pacific Arctic marine ecosystem extends from the northern Bering Sea, across the Chukchi and into the East Siberian and Beaufort seas. Food webs in this domain are short, a simplicity that belies the biophysical complexity underlying trophic linkages from primary production to humans. Existing biophysical models, such as pelagic-benthic coupling and advective processes, provide frameworks for connecting certain aspects of the marine food web, but do not offer a full accounting of events that occur seasonally across the Pacific Arctic. In the course of the Synthesis of Arctic Research (SOAR) project, a holistic Arctic Marine Pulses (AMP) model was developed that depicts seasonal biophysical `pulses' across a latitudinal gradient, and linking four previously-described contiguous domains, including the: (i) Pacific-Arctic domain = the focal region; (ii) seasonal ice zone domain; (iii) Pacific marginal domain; and (iv) riverine coastal domain. The AMP model provides a spatial-temporal framework to guide research on dynamic ecosystem processes during this period of rapid biophysical changes in the Pacific Arctic. Some of the processes included in the model, such as pelagic-benthic coupling in the Northern Bering and Chukchi seas, and advection and upwelling along the Beaufort shelf, are already the focus of sampling via the Distributed Biological Observatory (DBO) and other research programs. Other aspects such as biological processes associated with the seasonal ice zone and trophic responses to riverine outflow have received less attention. The AMP model could be enhanced by the application of visualization tools to provide a means to watch a season unfold in space and time. The capability to track sea ice dynamics and water masses and to move nutrients, prey and upper-trophic predators in space and time would provide a strong foundation for the development of predictive human-inclusive ecosystem models for the Pacific Arctic.

Subarachnoid hemorrhage: tests of association with apolipoprotein E and elastin genes

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sauerbeck Laura

2007-07-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Apolipoprotein E (APOE and elastin (ELN are plausible candidate genes involved in the pathogenesis of stroke. We tested for association of variants in APOE and ELN with subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH in a population-based study. We genotyped 12 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs on APOE and 10 SNPs on ELN in a sample of 309 Caucasian individuals, of whom 107 are SAH cases and 202 are age-, race-, and gender-matched controls from the Greater Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky region. Associations were tested at genotype, allele, and haplotype levels. A genomic control analysis was performed to check for spurious associations resulting from population substructure. Results At the APOE locus, no individual SNP was associated with SAH after correction for multiple comparisons. Haplotype analysis revealed significant association of the major haplotype (Hap1 in APOE with SAH (p = 0.001. The association stemmed from both the 5' promoter and the 3' region of the APOE gene. APOE ε2 and ε 4 were not significantly associated with SAH. No association was observed for ELN at genotype, allele, or haplotype level and our study failed to confirm previous reports of ELN association with aneurysmal SAH. Conclusion This study suggests a role of the APOE gene in the etiology of aneurysmal SAH.

Curcumin attenuates blood-brain barrier disruption after subarachnoid hemorrhage in mice.

Science.gov (United States)

Yuan, Jichao; Liu, Wei; Zhu, Haitao; Zhang, Xuan; Feng, Yang; Chen, Yaxing; Feng, Hua; Lin, Jiangkai

2017-01-01

Early brain injury, one of the most important mechanisms underlying subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH), comprises edema formation and blood-brain barrier (BBB) disruption. Curcumin, an active extract from the rhizomes of Curcuma longa, alleviates neuroinflammation by as yet unknown neuroprotective mechanisms. In this study, we examined whether curcumin treatment ameliorates SAH-induced brain edema and BBB permeability changes, as well as the mechanisms underlying this phenomenon. We induced SAH in mice via endovascular perforation, administered curcumin 15 min after surgery and evaluated neurologic scores, brain water content, Evans blue extravasation, Western blot assay results, and immunohistochemical analysis results 24 h after surgery. Curcumin significantly improved neurologic scores and reduced brain water content in treated mice compared with SAH mice. Furthermore, curcumin decreased Evans blue extravasation, matrix metallopeptidase-9 expression, and the number of Iba-1-positive microglia in treated mice compared with SAH mice. At last, curcumin treatment increased the expression of the tight junction proteins zonula occludens-1 and occludin in treated mice compared with vehicle-treated and sample SAH mice. We demonstrated that curcumin inhibits microglial activation and matrix metallopeptidase-9 expression, thereby reducing brain edema and attenuating post-SAH BBB disruption in mice. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Purpurogallin, a Natural Phenol, Attenuates High-Mobility Group Box 1 in Subarachnoid Hemorrhage Induced Vasospasm in a Rat Model

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Chih-Zen Chang

2014-01-01

Full Text Available High-mobility group box 1 (HMGB1 was shown to be an important extracellular mediator involved in vascular inflammation of animals following subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH. This study is of interest to examine the efficacy of purpurogallin, a natural phenol, on the alternation of cytokines and HMGB1 in a SAH model. A rodent double hemorrhage SAH model was employed. Basilar arteries (BAs were harvested to examine HMGB1 mRNA and protein expression (Western blot. CSF samples were to examine IL-1β, IL-6, IL-8, and TNF-α (rt-PCR. Deformed endothelial wall, tortuous elastic lamina, and necrotic smooth muscle were observed in the vessels of SAH groups but were absent in the purpurogallin group. IL-1β, IL-6, and TNF-α in the SAH only and SAH plus vehicle groups were significantly elevated (P<0.01. Purpurgallin dose-dependently reduced HMGB1 protein expression. Likewise, high dose purpurogallin reduced TNF-α and HMGB1 mRNA levels. In conclusion, purpurogallin exerts its neuroinflammation effect through the dual effect of inhibiting IL-6 and TNF-α mRNA expression and reducing HMGB1 protein and mRNA expression. This study supports purpurogallin could attenuate both proinflammatory cytokines and late-onset inflammasome in SAH induced vasospasm.

Jahn-teller domains and magnetic domains in Mn2FeO4

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Kub, J.; Brabers, V.A.M.; Novák, P.; Gemperle, R.; Simsova, J.

2000-01-01

Elastic (Jahn–Teller) domains and magnetic domains in the tetragonal spinel Mn2FeO4 were studied using X-ray double-crystal topography, X-ray diffractometry and the colloid-SEM method. The Jahn–Teller domains of the measured samples are tetragonal with the [0 0 1] c-axis alternating perpendicularly

Multiscale Seismic Inversion in the Data and Image Domains

KAUST Repository

Zhang, Sanzong

2015-12-01

with both synthetic data and field records reveal both the benefits and limitations of WT. • Generalized Differental Semblance Optimization in the Image Domain (GDSO): We now extend the multiscale physics approach to differential semblance optimization (DSO) in the image domain. That is, we identify the space-lag offset H(x, z, h) in the subsurface-offset domain as an implicit function of velocity. It describes the smoothly varying moveout H(x, z, h) of the migration image m(x, z, h) in the subsurface-offset domain, which is analogous to the smoothly varying traveltime residual ∆τ(x) of a reflection event in a shot gather. The velocity model is found that minimizes the objective function ∑x,z,h H(x, z, h)2m(x, z, h)2, where coherent noise is eliminated everywhere except along the picked curve H(x, z, h). This method is denoted as generalized DSO (GDSO) and mitigates the coherent noise problem with DSO. Numerical examples are presented that empirically demonstrate its effectiveness in providing more accurate velocity models compared to conventional DSO.

SINDROME DE APNEAS/HIPOPNEAS DURANTE EL SUEÑO EN EDAD PEDIÁTRICA

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Navazo Eguía A

2006-08-01

Full Text Available SUMMARY:Sleep disordered breathing (SDB is a common condition in children. Sleep Apnea/Hypopnea syndrome (SAHS in children is a frequent sleep disorder, with a prevalence estimated to be 1 - 3% of all children. The most frequent cause of SAHS in children is the adenotonsillar hypertrophy. SAHS in children can result in severe complications if left untreated such as impaired physical growth, delayed development, poor school performance and in severe cases, hypertension and cor pulmonale, nevertheless, yet it is an under recognized condition. The gold standard diagnostic technique is the nocturnal polysomnography (PSG, guidelines for performing laboratory-based polysomnography in children have been established, the sleep laboratory should be a nonthreatening environment and personnel with pediatric training should record, score and interpret the study. The diagnostic criteria for SAHS in adults is not useful for diagnosis of SAHS in children. Adenotonsillectomy is the most common treatment for children with SAHS.RESUMEN:Los trastornos respiratorios del sueño en los niños, en particular el Síndrome de Apneas/Hipopneas durante el sueño (SAHS, es una patología frecuente, que afecta entre el 1 - 3% de la población infantil, siendo su causa más frecuente la hipertrofia adenoamigdalar. Es una enfermedad infradiagnosticada y que conlleva importantes complicaciones como son alteraciones del crecimiento, alteraciones cognitivas e incluso en casos severos Cor Pulmonale. La polisomnografía nocturna (PSG, es la técnica diagnóstica de elección para el diagnóstico del SAHS en los niños, pero en la población infantil es necesario tener en cuenta una serie de consideraciones, como son la edad de la población que se estudia, entorno adecuado y la necesidad de técnicos entrenados en el cuidado de los niños. Los criterios diagnósticos del SAHS para adultos no son útiles en los niños. El tratamiento de elección en los niños con SAHS es la

Adverse lipid profile elevates risk for subarachnoid hemorrhage: A prospective population-based cohort study.

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Lindbohm, Joni; Korja, Miikka; Jousilahti, Pekka; Salomaa, Veikko; Kaprio, Jaakko

2018-05-05

Studies report that both high and low total cholesterol (TC) elevates SAH risk. There are few prospective studies on high-density lipoproteins (HDL-C) and low-density lipoproteins (LDL-C), and apparently none concerns apolipoproteins A and B. We aimed to clarify the association between lipid profile and SAH risk. The National FINRISK study provided risk-factor data recorded at enrolment between 1972 and 2007. During 1.52 million person-years of follow-up until 2014, 543 individuals suffered from incident hospitalized SAH or outside-hospital-fatal SAH. Cox proportional hazards model was used to calculate the hazard ratios and multiple imputation predicted ApoA1, ApoB, and LDL-C values for cohorts from a time before apolipoprotein-measurement methods were available. One SD elevation (1.28 mmol/l) in TC elevated SAH risk in men (hazard ratio (HR) 1.15 (95% CIs 1.00-1.32)). Low HDL-C levels increased SAH risk, as each SD decrease (0.37 mmol/l) in HDL-C raised the risk in women (HR 1.29 (95% CIs 1.07-1.55)) and men (HR 1.20 (95% CIs 1.14-1.27)). Each SD increase (0.29 g/l) in ApoA1 decreased SAH risk in women (HR 0.85 (95% CIs 0.74-0.97)) and men (HR 0.88 (95% CIs 0.76-1.02)). LDL-C (SD 1.07 mmol/l) and ApoB (SD 0.28 g/l) elevated SAH risk in men with HR 1.15 (95% CIs 1.01-1.31) and HR 1.26 (95% CIs 1.10-1.44) per one SD increase. Age did not change these findings. An adverse lipid profile seems to elevate SAH risk similar to its effect in other cardiovascular diseases, especially in men. Whether SAH incidence diminishes with increasing statin use remains to be studied. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Between-Domain Relations of Students’ Academic Emotions and Their Judgments of School Domain Similarity

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Thomas eGoetz

2014-10-01

Full Text Available With the aim to deepen our understanding of the between-domain relations of academic emotions, a series of three studies was conducted. We theorized that between-domain relations of trait (i.e., habitual emotions reflected students’ judgments of domain similarities, whereas between-domain relations of state (i.e., momentary emotions did not. This supposition was based on the accessibility model of emotional self-report, according to which individuals’ beliefs tend to strongly impact trait, but not state emotions. The aim of Study 1 (interviews; N = 40; 8th and 11th graders was to gather salient characteristics of academic domains from students’ perspective. In Study 2 (N=1709; 8th and 11th graders the 13 characteristics identified in Study 1 were assessed along with academic emotions in four different domains (mathematics, physics, German, and English using a questionnaire-based trait assessment. With respect to the same domains, state emotions were assessed in Study 3 (N = 121; 8th and 11th graders by employing an experience sampling approach. In line with our initial assumptions, between-domain relations of trait but not state academic emotions reflected between-domain relations of domain characteristics. Implications for research and practice are discussed.

Between-domain relations of students' academic emotions and their judgments of school domain similarity

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Goetz, Thomas; Haag, Ludwig; Lipnevich, Anastasiya A.; Keller, Melanie M.; Frenzel, Anne C.; Collier, Antonie P. M.

2014-01-01

With the aim to deepen our understanding of the between-domain relations of academic emotions, a series of three studies was conducted. We theorized that between-domain relations of trait (i.e., habitual) emotions reflected students' judgments of domain similarities, whereas between-domain relations of state (i.e., momentary) emotions did not. This supposition was based on the accessibility model of emotional self-report, according to which individuals' beliefs tend to strongly impact trait, but not state emotions. The aim of Study 1 (interviews; N = 40; 8th and 11th graders) was to gather salient characteristics of academic domains from students' perspective. In Study 2 (N = 1709; 8th and 11th graders) the 13 characteristics identified in Study 1 were assessed along with academic emotions in four different domains (mathematics, physics, German, and English) using a questionnaire-based trait assessment. With respect to the same domains, state emotions were assessed in Study 3 (N = 121; 8th and 11th graders) by employing an experience sampling approach. In line with our initial assumptions, between-domain relations of trait but not state academic emotions reflected between-domain relations of domain characteristics. Implications for research and practice are discussed. PMID:25374547

Spontaneous Subarachnoid Hemorrhage: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis Describing the Diagnostic Accuracy of History, Physical Examination, Imaging, and Lumbar Puncture With an Exploration of Test Thresholds.

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Carpenter, Christopher R; Hussain, Adnan M; Ward, Michael J; Zipfel, Gregory J; Fowler, Susan; Pines, Jesse M; Sivilotti, Marco L A

2016-09-01

Spontaneous subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) is a rare, but serious etiology of headache. The diagnosis of SAH is especially challenging in alert, neurologically intact patients, as missed or delayed diagnosis can be catastrophic. The objective was to perform a diagnostic accuracy systematic review and meta-analysis of history, physical examination, cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) tests, computed tomography (CT), and clinical decision rules for spontaneous SAH. A secondary objective was to delineate probability of disease thresholds for imaging and lumbar puncture (LP). PubMed, Embase, Scopus, and research meeting abstracts were searched up to June 2015 for studies of emergency department patients with acute headache clinically concerning for spontaneous SAH. QUADAS-2 was used to assess study quality and, when appropriate, meta-analysis was conducted using random effects models. Outcomes were sensitivity, specificity, and positive (LR+) and negative (LR-) likelihood ratios. To identify test and treatment thresholds, we employed the Pauker-Kassirer method with Bernstein test indication curves using the summary estimates of diagnostic accuracy. A total of 5,022 publications were identified, of which 122 underwent full-text review; 22 studies were included (average SAH prevalence = 7.5%). Diagnostic studies differed in assessment of history and physical examination findings, CT technology, analytical techniques used to identify xanthochromia, and criterion standards for SAH. Study quality by QUADAS-2 was variable; however, most had a relatively low risk of biases. A history of neck pain (LR+ = 4.1; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 2.2 to 7.6) and neck stiffness on physical examination (LR+ = 6.6; 95% CI = 4.0 to 11.0) were the individual findings most strongly associated with SAH. Combinations of findings may rule out SAH, yet promising clinical decision rules await external validation. Noncontrast cranial CT within 6 hours of headache onset accurately ruled in (LR+ = 230; 95

Utility of ApneaLinkTM for the diagnosis of sleep apnea-hypopnea syndrome Utilidad del ApneaLinkT para el diagnóstico del síndrome apnea-hipopnea del sueño

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Carlos A. Nigro

2010-02-01

Full Text Available Portable sleep studies may play an important role to take decisions on patients referred for suspicion of Sleep Apnea-Hypopnea Syndrome (SAHS. The aim of this study was to evaluate the diagnostic accuracy of automated analysis of ApneaLinkT in patients with suspicion of SAHS. All participants (75 performed the ApneaLink and polysomnography (PSG simultaneously in the sleep laboratory. The two recordings were interpreted blindly. The ApneaLink software calculated: (1 risk indicator (RI-a combination of apnea/hypopnea index (AHI plus inspiratory flow limitation events and (2 the AHI. ApneaLinkT and SAHS were defined in three ways: AHI or respiratory disturbance index (RDI = 5, 10 and 15 respectively. ROC curves analysis was performed. The sensitivity (S, specificity (E and positive and negative likelihood ratio (LR+, LR- for the different thresholds for RI or AHI were calculated; 66 patients were included (47 men, mean age 51, median RDI 10.6, mean BMI 29.3 kg/m². The best cut off points of RI were: SAHS = RDI = 5: RI > 9 (S 80%, E 100%, LR- 0.20; SAHS = RDI = 10: RI > 13 (S 92%, E 93%, LR+ 13.7 LR- 0.089; SAHS = RDI = 15 =: RI > 16 (S 93.5%, E 91%, LR+ 10.9, LR- 0.071. The AHI had a similar diagnostic accuracy to RI for the different definitions of SAHS. The RI and AHI obtained from automated analysis of ApneaLinkT were highly sensitive and specific to diagnose moderate to severe SAHS.Los equipos portátiles para estudios del sueño pueden tener un rol importante para tomar decisiones en pacientes con sospecha de Síndrome Apneas-Hipopneas del Sueño (SAHS. El objetivo del estudio fue evaluar la exactitud diagnóstica del análisis automático del ApneaLinkT en pacientes con sospecha de SAHS. Setenta y cinco sujetos realizaron simultáneamente el ApneaLinkT y una polisomnografía (PSG en el laboratorio de sueño. Los dos registros fueron interpretados en forma ciega. Un programa calculó: (1 el índice apnea/hipopnea (IAH, (2 el indicador de

Expansion of protein domain repeats.

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Asa K Björklund

2006-08-01

Full Text Available Many proteins, especially in eukaryotes, contain tandem repeats of several domains from the same family. These repeats have a variety of binding properties and are involved in protein-protein interactions as well as binding to other ligands such as DNA and RNA. The rapid expansion of protein domain repeats is assumed to have evolved through internal tandem duplications. However, the exact mechanisms behind these tandem duplications are not well-understood. Here, we have studied the evolution, function, protein structure, gene structure, and phylogenetic distribution of domain repeats. For this purpose we have assigned Pfam-A domain families to 24 proteomes with more sensitive domain assignments in the repeat regions. These assignments confirmed previous findings that eukaryotes, and in particular vertebrates, contain a much higher fraction of proteins with repeats compared with prokaryotes. The internal sequence similarity in each protein revealed that the domain repeats are often expanded through duplications of several domains at a time, while the duplication of one domain is less common. Many of the repeats appear to have been duplicated in the middle of the repeat region. This is in strong contrast to the evolution of other proteins that mainly works through additions of single domains at either terminus. Further, we found that some domain families show distinct duplication patterns, e.g., nebulin domains have mainly been expanded with a unit of seven domains at a time, while duplications of other domain families involve varying numbers of domains. Finally, no common mechanism for the expansion of all repeats could be detected. We found that the duplication patterns show no dependence on the size of the domains. Further, repeat expansion in some families can possibly be explained by shuffling of exons. However, exon shuffling could not have created all repeats.

Interoperable domain models : The ISO land administration domain model LADM and its external classes

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Lemmen, C.H.J.; Van Oosterom, P.J.M.; Uitermark, H.T.; Zevenbergen, J.A.; Cooper, A.K.

2011-01-01

This paper provides a brief overview of one of the first spatial domain standards: a standard for the domain of Land Administration (LA). This standard is in the draft stage of development now (May 2011). The development of domain standards is a logical follow up after domain-independent standards,

Consequences and coping strategies six years after a subarachnoid hemorrhage - A qualitative study.

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Hanna C Persson

Full Text Available After a subarachnoid haemorrhage (SAH, continuing impairment is common and may impact the person's life. There is a lack of knowledge regarding long-term consequences experienced.To explore experiences of the care and rehabilitation as well as the consequences and strategies used to cope with everyday life six years post SAH.An explorative interview study with a qualitative design. Individual interviews, with open ended questions, using an interview guide were performed with sixteen participants (mean age 63, 8 men, 8 women six years post SAH. Data was analyzed according to a descriptive thematic analysis, and themes were discovered inductively.Two major themes from the analysis, both including four sub-themes, were identified; these themes were consequences of the SAH and coping strategies. Participants were grateful to have survived the SAH and most were satisfied with their acute medical care. If discharged directly from the neurosurgical unit participants can feel abandoned. In contrast, participants who were referred to a rehabilitation clinic felt supported and informed. Cognitive problems, such as impaired memory and mental fatigue, were reported as still present six years post SAH. Coping strategies were; receiving support from family, society, employers, or technical equipment. At work, talking to colleagues and to taking breaks were common. Participants described hiding their symptoms from employers and friends, as well as trying to continue doing tasks in the same manner as prior to the SAH. If this was not possible, some refrained from doing these tasks. They went through a mourning process, fear, and worries.Participants reported several long-term consequences which impacted on their daily lives post SAH, and different coping strategies were used to cope with these problems. Participants reported lack of awareness regarding the consequences of SAH and stressed the importance of structured multidisciplinary follow-ups, which mostly

Parahippocampectomy as a New Surgical Approach to Mesial Temporal Lobe Epilepsy Caused By Hippocampal Sclerosis: A Pilot Randomized Comparative Clinical Trial.

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Alonso-Vanegas, Mario Arturo; Freire Carlier, Iván D; San-Juan, Daniel; Martínez, Alma Rosa; Trenado, Carlos

2018-02-01

The parahippocampal gyrus plays an important role in the epileptogenic pathways of mesial temporal lobe epilepsy caused by hippocampal sclerosis (mTLE-HS); its resection could prevent epileptic seizures with fewer complications. This study evaluates the initial efficacy and safety of anterior temporal lobectomy (ATL), selective amygdalohipppocampectomy (SAH), and parahippocampectomy (PHC) surgical approaches in mTLE-HS. A randomized comparative pilot clinical trial (2008-2011) was performed that included patients with mTLE-HS who underwent ATL, trans-T3 SAH, and trans-T3 PHC. Their sociodemographic characteristics, visual field profiles, verbal and visual memory profiles, and Engel scale outcome at baseline and at 1 and 5 years are described, using descriptive statistics along with parametric and nonparametric tests. Forty-three patients with a mean age of 35.2 years (18-56 years), 65% female, were analyzed: 14 underwent PHC, 14 ATL, and 15 SAH. The following percentages refer to those patients who were seizure free (Engel class IA) at 1-year and 5-year follow-up, respectively: 42.9% PHC, 71.4% ATL, and 60% SAH (P = 0.304); 28.6% PHC, 50% ATL, and 53.3% SAH (P = 0.353). Postoperative visual field deficits were 0% PHC, 85.7% ATL, and 46.7% SAH (P = 0.001). Verbal and/or visual memory worsening were present in 21.3% PHC, 42.8% ATL, and 33.4% SAH (P = 0.488) and preoperative and postoperative visual memory scores were significantly different in the SAH group only (P = 0.046). PHC, ALT, and SAH show a preliminary similar efficacy in short-term seizure-free rates in patients with mTLE-HS. However, PHC efficacy in the long-term decreases compared with the other surgical techniques. PHC does not produce postoperative visual field deficits. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Socioeconomic Disadvantage Is Associated with a Higher Incidence of Aneurysmal Subarachnoid Hemorrhage.

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Nichols, Linda; Stirling, Christine; Otahal, Petr; Stankovich, Jim; Gall, Seana

2018-03-01

Aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage (aSAH) incidence is not well studied. Varied definitions of "subarachnoid hemorrhage" have led to a lack of clarity regarding aSAH incidence. The impact of area-level socioeconomic disadvantage and geographical location on the incidence of aSAH also remains unclear. Using a population-based statewide study, we examined the incidence of aSAH in relation to socioeconomic disadvantage and geographical location. A retrospective cohort study of nontraumatic subarachnoid hemorrhages from 2010 to 2014 was undertaken. Researchers manually collected data from multiple overlapping sources including statewide administrative databases, individual digital medical records, and death registers. Age-standardized rates (ASRs) per 100,000 person years were calculated using the 2001 Australian population. Differences in incidence rate ratios were calculated by age, sex, area-level socioeconomic status, and geographical location using Poisson regression. The cohort of 237 cases (mean age, 61.0 years) with a female predominance of 166 (70.04%) included 159 confirmed aSAH, 52 community-based deaths, and 26 probable cases. The ASR for aSAH was 9.99 (95% confidence interval [CI], 8.69-11.29). A significant association between area-level socioeconomic disadvantage and incidence was observed, with the rate of aSAH in disadvantaged geographical areas being 1.40 times higher than that in advantaged areas (95% CI, 1.11-1.82; P = .012). This study uses a comprehensive search of multiple data sources to define a new baseline of aSAH within an Australian population. This study presents a higher incidence rate of aSAH with socioeconomic variations. As a key risk factor that may explain this paradox, addressing socioeconomic inequalities is important for effective prevention and management interventions. Copyright © 2018 National Stroke Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Lifetime risks for aneurysmal subarachnoid haemorrhage: multivariable risk stratification.

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Vlak, Monique H M; Rinkel, Gabriel J E; Greebe, Paut; Greving, Jacoba P; Algra, Ale

2013-06-01

The overall incidence of aneurysmal subarachnoid haemorrhage (aSAH) in western populations is around 9 per 100 000 person-years, which confers to a lifetime risk of around half per cent. Risk factors for aSAH are usually expressed as relative risks and suggest that absolute risks vary considerably according to risk factor profiles, but such estimates are lacking. We aimed to estimate incidence and lifetime risks of aSAH according to risk factor profiles. We used data from 250 patients admitted with aSAH and 574 sex-matched and age-matched controls, who were randomly retrieved from general practitioners files. We determined independent prognostic factors with multivariable logistic regression analyses and assessed discriminatory performance using the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve. Based on the prognostic model we predicted incidences and lifetime risks of aSAH for different risk factor profiles. The four strongest independent predictors for aSAH, namely current smoking (OR 6.0; 95% CI 4.1 to 8.6), a positive family history for aSAH (4.0; 95% CI 2.3 to 7.0), hypertension (2.4; 95% CI 1.5 to 3.8) and hypercholesterolaemia (0.2; 95% CI 0.1 to 0.4), were used in the final prediction model. This model had an area under the receiver operating characteristic curve of 0.73 (95% CI 0.69 to 0.76). Depending on sex, age and the four predictors, the incidence of aSAH ranged from 0.4/100 000 to 298/100 000 person-years and lifetime risk between 0.02% and 7.2%. The incidence and lifetime risk of aSAH in the general population varies widely according to risk factor profiles. Whether persons with high risks benefit from screening should be assessed in cost-effectiveness studies.

Recovery from a Subarachnoid Hemorrhage: Days 1 through 22

Science.gov (United States)

Brice, Alejandro E.; Brice, Roanne G.; Wallace, Sarah E.

2016-01-01

Subarachnoid hemorrhages (SAHs) are a serious medical emergency, as 30% to 50% of all SAHs can result in death. Personal accounts and case studies are an important aspect of evidence-based practice. This first article of two presents a review of AB's (patient) condition immediately following an SAH in the intensive care and immediately post…

MRI in acute subarachnoid haemorrhage; findings with a standardised stroke protocol

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fiebach, J.B.; Wilde, P.; Meyer, M.; Sartor, K.; Schellinger, P.D.; Hacke, W.; Geletneky, K.

2004-01-01

There is doubt as to whether acute haemorrhage is visible on MRI. We carried out MRI within 6 h of symptom onset on five patients with minor (low Hunt and Hess grades 1 or 2) subarachnoid haemorrhage (SAH) diagnosed by CT to search for any specific pattern. We used our standard stroke MRI protocol, including multiecho proton density (PD)- and T2-weighted images, echoplanar (EPI) diffusion- (DWI) and perfusion- (PWI) weighted imaging, and MRA. In all cases SAH was clearly visible on PD-weighted images with a short TE. In four patients it caused a low-signal rim on the T2*-weighted source images of PWI, and DWI revealed high signal in SAH. In the fifth patient SAH was perimesencephalic; susceptibility effects from the skull base made it impossible to detect SAH on EPI DWI and T2*-weighted images. Perfusion maps were normal in all cases. MRA and conventional angiography revealed an aneurysm in only one patient. Stroke MRI within 6 h of SAH thus shows a characteristic pattern. (orig.)

Awareness on Sustainable Affordable Housing Among Homebuyers in Malaysia

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Ang Salem

2017-01-01

Full Text Available This paper concerns about the delivery of Sustainable Affordable Housing (SAH in Malaysia. The built environment, operation and demolishment of housing have the profound impact on our nature environment. SAH can be a solution toward sustainability development because it considered from an environmental friendly, socially enhancing, and economically benefits perfectives towards housing development. This paper aims to explore the awareness of homebuyers in Malaysia towards sustainable affordable housing. This research used the method of unstructured interview among homebuyers toward SAH in Malaysia. Based on the finding of the study, the awareness of homebuyers in SAH are relatively inadequate. Respondents are required the brief explanation on concept and elements of SAH for continue the interview. Based on Porter Five Forces Model, homebuyers’ requirements hold the bargaining power of customers to determine the features of housing provided by property provider. The knowledge of homebuyers on SAH is crucial for the sustainable development, because homebuyers are one of the key drivers for implementing the sustainable requirements in housing development.

A binomial modeling approach for upscaling colloid transport under unfavorable conditions: Emergent prediction of extended tailing

Science.gov (United States)

Hilpert, Markus; Rasmuson, Anna; Johnson, William P.

2017-07-01

Colloid transport in saturated porous media is significantly influenced by colloidal interactions with grain surfaces. Near-surface fluid domain colloids experience relatively low fluid drag and relatively strong colloidal forces that slow their downgradient translation relative to colloids in bulk fluid. Near-surface fluid domain colloids may reenter into the bulk fluid via diffusion (nanoparticles) or expulsion at rear flow stagnation zones, they may immobilize (attach) via primary minimum interactions, or they may move along a grain-to-grain contact to the near-surface fluid domain of an adjacent grain. We introduce a simple model that accounts for all possible permutations of mass transfer within a dual pore and grain network. The primary phenomena thereby represented in the model are mass transfer of colloids between the bulk and near-surface fluid domains and immobilization. Colloid movement is described by a Markov chain, i.e., a sequence of trials in a 1-D network of unit cells, which contain a pore and a grain. Using combinatorial analysis, which utilizes the binomial coefficient, we derive the residence time distribution, i.e., an inventory of the discrete colloid travel times through the network and of their probabilities to occur. To parameterize the network model, we performed mechanistic pore-scale simulations in a single unit cell that determined the likelihoods and timescales associated with the above colloid mass transfer processes. We found that intergrain transport of colloids in the near-surface fluid domain can cause extended tailing, which has traditionally been attributed to hydrodynamic dispersion emanating from flow tortuosity of solute trajectories.

Development and initial evaluation of an enhanced measure of boundary flexibility for the work and family domains.

Science.gov (United States)

Matthews, Russell A; Barnes-Farrell, Janet L

2010-07-01

This manuscript reports the development of a measure of work and family domain boundary flexibility. Building on previous research, we propose an expanded definition of boundary flexibility that includes two components-flexibility-ability and flexibility-willingness-and we develop a measure designed to capture this more comprehensive definition of boundary flexibility. Flexibility-ability is conceptualized as an individual's perception of personal and situational constraints that affect boundary management, and flexibility-willingness is conceptualized as an individual difference variable that captures the motivation to engage in boundary flexing. An additional feature of domain boundaries, permeability, is also examined. Data are presented from two studies. Study 1 (N = 244) describes the development of a multiscale measure that extends current conceptual definitions of boundary flexibility. Study 2 (N = 225) describes the refinement and evaluation of this measure. Confirmatory factor analysis, reliability evidence, interscale correlations, and correlations with important work-family constructs (e.g., domain centrality, work-family conflict) provide initial construct validity evidence for the measure.

Radio weak lensing shear measurement in the visibility domain - II. Source extraction

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Rivi, M.; Miller, L.

2018-05-01

This paper extends the method introduced in Rivi et al. (2016b) to measure galaxy ellipticities in the visibility domain for radio weak lensing surveys. In that paper, we focused on the development and testing of the method for the simple case of individual galaxies located at the phase centre, and proposed to extend it to the realistic case of many sources in the field of view by isolating visibilities of each source with a faceting technique. In this second paper, we present a detailed algorithm for source extraction in the visibility domain and show its effectiveness as a function of the source number density by running simulations of SKA1-MID observations in the band 950-1150 MHz and comparing original and measured values of galaxies' ellipticities. Shear measurements from a realistic population of 104 galaxies randomly located in a field of view of 1 \\deg ^2 (i.e. the source density expected for the current radio weak lensing survey proposal with SKA1) are also performed. At SNR ≥ 10, the multiplicative bias is only a factor 1.5 worse than what found when analysing individual sources, and is still comparable to the bias values reported for similar measurement methods at optical wavelengths. The additive bias is unchanged from the case of individual sources, but it is significantly larger than typically found in optical surveys. This bias depends on the shape of the uv coverage and we suggest that a uv-plane weighting scheme to produce a more isotropic shape could reduce and control additive bias.

Domain architecture conservation in orthologs

Science.gov (United States)

2011-01-01

Background As orthologous proteins are expected to retain function more often than other homologs, they are often used for functional annotation transfer between species. However, ortholog identification methods do not take into account changes in domain architecture, which are likely to modify a protein's function. By domain architecture we refer to the sequential arrangement of domains along a protein sequence. To assess the level of domain architecture conservation among orthologs, we carried out a large-scale study of such events between human and 40 other species spanning the entire evolutionary range. We designed a score to measure domain architecture similarity and used it to analyze differences in domain architecture conservation between orthologs and paralogs relative to the conservation of primary sequence. We also statistically characterized the extents of different types of domain swapping events across pairs of orthologs and paralogs. Results The analysis shows that orthologs exhibit greater domain architecture conservation than paralogous homologs, even when differences in average sequence divergence are compensated for, for homologs that have diverged beyond a certain threshold. We interpret this as an indication of a stronger selective pressure on orthologs than paralogs to retain the domain architecture required for the proteins to perform a specific function. In general, orthologs as well as the closest paralogous homologs have very similar domain architectures, even at large evolutionary separation. The most common domain architecture changes observed in both ortholog and paralog pairs involved insertion/deletion of new domains, while domain shuffling and segment duplication/deletion were very infrequent. Conclusions On the whole, our results support the hypothesis that function conservation between orthologs demands higher domain architecture conservation than other types of homologs, relative to primary sequence conservation. This supports the

Effects of sub-domain structure on initial magnetization curve and domain size distribution of stacked media

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sato, S.; Kumagai, S.; Sugita, R.

2015-01-01

In this paper, in order to confirm the sub-domain structure in stacked media demagnetized with in-plane field, initial magnetization curves and magnetic domain size distribution were investigated. Both experimental and simulation results showed that an initial magnetization curve for the medium demagnetized with in-plane field (MDI) initially rose faster than that for the medium demagnetized with perpendicular field (MDP). It is inferred that this is because the MDI has a larger number of domain walls than the MDP due to the existence of the sub-domains, resulting in an increase in the probability of domain wall motion. Dispersion of domain size for the MDI was larger than that for the MDP. This is because sub-domains are formed not only inside the domain but also at the domain boundary region, and they change the position of the domain boundary to affect the domain size. - Highlights: • An initial magnetization curve for MDI initially rose faster than that for MDP. • Dispersion of domain size for the MDI was larger than that for the MDP. • Experimental and simulation results can be explained by existence of sub-domains

The extending lithosphere (Arthur Holmes Medal Lecture)

Science.gov (United States)

Brun, Jean-Pierre

2017-04-01

Extension of the lithosphere gives birth to a wide range of structures, with characteristic widths between 10 and 1000 km, which includes continental rifts, passive margins, oceanic rifts, core complexes, or back-arc basins. Because the rheology of rocks strongly depends on temperature, this variety of extensional structures falls in two broad categories of extending lithospheres according to the initial Moho temperature TM. "Cold extending systems", with TM 750°C and crustal-dominated strength, lead, depending on strain rate, to either wide rifts or metamorphic core complexes. A much less quoted product of extension is the exhumation of high-pressure (HP ) metamorphic rocks occurring in domains of back-arc extension driven by slab rollback (e.g. Aegean; Appennines-Calabrian) or when the subduction upper plate undergoes extension for plate kinematics reasons (e.g. Norwegian Caledonides; Papua New Guinea). In these tectonic environments, well-documented pressure-temperature-time (P - T - t) paths of HP rocks show a two-stage retrogression path whose the first part corresponds to an isothermal large pressure drop ΔP proportional to the maximum pressure Pmax recorded by the rocks. This linear relation between ΔP and Pmax, which likely results from a stress switch between compression and extension at the onset of exhumation, is in fact observed in all HP metamorphism provinces worldwide, suggesting that the exhumation of HP rocks in extension is a general process rather than an uncommon case. In summary, the modes and products of extension are so diverse that, taken all together, they constitute a very versatile natural laboratory to decipher the rheological complexities of the continental lithosphere and their mechanical implications.

A Review of Domain Modelling and Domain Imaging Techniques in Ferroelectric Crystals

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John E. Huber

2011-02-01

Full Text Available The present paper reviews models of domain structure in ferroelectric crystals, thin films and bulk materials. Common crystal structures in ferroelectric materials are described and the theory of compatible domain patterns is introduced. Applications to multi-rank laminates are presented. Alternative models employing phase-field and related techniques are reviewed. The paper then presents methods of observing ferroelectric domain structure, including optical, polarized light, scanning electron microscopy, X-ray and neutron diffraction, atomic force microscopy and piezo-force microscopy. Use of more than one technique for unambiguous identification of the domain structure is also described.

Hierarchical processing in the prefrontal cortex in a variety of cognitive domains

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Hyeon-Ae eJeon

2014-11-01

Full Text Available This review scrutinizes several findings on human hierarchical processing within the prefrontal cortex (PFC in diverse cognitive domains. Converging evidence from previous studies has shown that the PFC, specifically Brodmann area (BA 44, may function as the essential region for hierarchical processing across the domains. In language fMRI studies, BA 44 was significantly activated for the hierarchical processing of center-embedded sentences and this pattern of activations was also observed in artificial grammar. The same pattern was observed in the visuo-spatial domain where BA44 was actively involved in the processing of hierarchy for the visual symbol. Musical syntax, which is the rule-based arrangement of musical sets, has also been construed as hierarchical processing as in the language domain such that the activation in BA44 was observed in a chord sequence paradigm. P600 ERP was also engendered during the processing of musical hierarchy. Along with a longstanding idea that a human’s number faculty is developed as a by-product of language faculty, BA44 was closely involved in hierarchical processing in mental arithmetic. This review extended its discussion of hierarchical processing to hierarchical behavior, that is, human action which has been referred to as being hierarchically composed. Several lesion and TMS studies supported the involvement of BA44 for hierarchical processing in the action domain. Lastly, the hierarchical organization of cognitive controls was discussed within the PFC, forming a cascade of top-down hierarchical processes operating along a posterior-to-anterior axis of the lateral PFC including BA44 within the network. It is proposed that PFC is actively involved in different forms of hierarchical processing and specifically BA44 may play an integral role in the process. Taking levels of proficiency and subcortical areas into consideration may provide further insight into the functional role of BA44 for hierarchical

Chemical Shift Assignments of the C-terminal Eps15 Homology Domain-3 EH Domain*

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Caplan, Steve; Sorgen, Paul L.

2013-01-01

The C-terminal Eps15 homology (EH) domain 3 (EHD3) belongs to a eukaryotic family of endocytic regulatory proteins and is involved in the recycling of various receptors from the early endosome to the endocytic recycling compartment or in retrograde transport from the endosomes to the Golgi. EH domains are highly conserved in the EHD family and function as protein-protein interaction units that bind to Asn-Pro-Phe (NPF) motif-containing proteins. The EH domain of EHD1 was the first C-terminal EH domain from the EHD family to be solved by NMR. The differences observed between this domain and proteins with N-terminal EH domains helped describe a mechanism for the differential binding of NPF-containing proteins. Here, structural studies were expanded to include the EHD3 EH domain. While the EHD1 and EHD3 EH domains are highly homologous, they have different protein partners. A comparison of these structures will help determine the selectivity in protein binding between the EHD family members and lead to a better understanding of their unique roles in endocytic regulation. PMID:23754701

Modification of -Adenosyl--Homocysteine as Inhibitor of Nonstructural Protein 5 Methyltransferase Dengue Virus Through Molecular Docking and Molecular Dynamics Simulation

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Usman Sumo Friend Tambunan

2017-04-01

Full Text Available Dengue fever is still a major threat worldwide, approximately threatening two-fifths of the world’s population in tropical and subtropical countries. Nonstructural protein 5 (NS5 methyltransferase enzyme plays a vital role in the process of messenger RNA capping of dengue by transferring methyl groups from S -adenosyl- l -methionine to N7 atom of the guanine bases of RNA and the RNA ribose group of 2′OH, resulting in S -adenosyl- l -homocysteine (SAH. The modification of SAH compound was screened using molecular docking and molecular dynamics simulation, along with computational ADME-Tox (absorption, distribution, metabolism, excretion, and toxicity test. The 2 simulations were performed using Molecular Operating Environment (MOE 2008.10 software, whereas the ADME-Tox test was performed using various software. The modification of SAH compound was done using several functional groups that possess different polarities and properties, resulting in 3460 ligands to be docked. After conducting docking simulation, we earned 3 best ligands (SAH-M331, SAH-M2696, and SAH-M1356 based on ΔG binding and molecular interactions, which show better results than the standard ligands. Moreover, the results of molecular dynamics simulation show that the best ligands are still able to maintain the active site residue interaction with the binding site until the end of the simulation. After a series of molecular docking and molecular dynamics simulation were performed, we concluded that SAH-M1356 ligand is the most potential SAH-based compound to inhibit NS5 methyltransferase enzyme for treating dengue fever.

[Arterial hypertension and sleep apnea hypopnea syndrome in primary care].

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Bayó Llibre, J; Riel Cabrera, R; Mellado Breña, E; Filomena Paci, J; Priego Artero, M; García Alfaro, F J; Grau Granero, J M; Vázquez González, D; López Solana, J; Fernández San Martín, M I

2015-01-01

Sleep apnea hypopnea syndrome (SAHS) is frequent in hypertensive patients and plays a role in a greater incidence of cardiovascular morbidity-mortality. This study aims to know the clinical profile of hypertensive patients with SAHS compared to hypertensive patients without SAHS to know which variables should be used to orient their screening from primary care. An observational, descriptive, retrospective study of cases (hypertensive patients with SAHS) and controls (hypertensive patients without) was performed in an urban health care center. Based on a computerized registry of the site, patients diagnosed of SAHS and hypertension over 30 years of age were selected. For each case, one control case of hypertensive patients without SAHS paired by age and gender was randomly obtained. A total of 64 cases and 64 controls were selected. Standing out in the bivariate analysis were greater BMI (34.3±12.8 vs. 28.6±3.6), predominance of obesity (70.3 vs. 35.9%), metabolic syndrome (77.3 vs. 42.2%), consumption of psychopharmaceuticals (19.7 vs. 7.8%) and anithypertensive drugs (26.5 vs. 14.0%), ischemic heart disease (20.3 vs. 9.4%) in the case group versus control group (P<.05 for all the variables). The multivariate analysis showed that only the presence of metabolic syndrome was related with the presence of SAHS in hypertensive patients (OR 4.65; 95% CI: 2.03-10.64; P<.001). Screening for SAHS should be performed in hypertensive patients seen in primary care if they have metabolic syndrome criteria. Copyright © 2014 SEHLELHA. Published by Elsevier Espana. All rights reserved.

Modification of S-Adenosyl-l-Homocysteine as Inhibitor of Nonstructural Protein 5 Methyltransferase Dengue Virus Through Molecular Docking and Molecular Dynamics Simulation.

Science.gov (United States)

Tambunan, Usman Sumo Friend; Nasution, Mochammad Arfin Fardiansyah; Azhima, Fauziah; Parikesit, Arli Aditya; Toepak, Erwin Prasetya; Idrus, Syarifuddin; Kerami, Djati

2017-01-01

Dengue fever is still a major threat worldwide, approximately threatening two-fifths of the world's population in tropical and subtropical countries. Nonstructural protein 5 (NS5) methyltransferase enzyme plays a vital role in the process of messenger RNA capping of dengue by transferring methyl groups from S -adenosyl-l-methionine to N7 atom of the guanine bases of RNA and the RNA ribose group of 2'OH, resulting in S -adenosyl-l-homocysteine (SAH). The modification of SAH compound was screened using molecular docking and molecular dynamics simulation, along with computational ADME-Tox (absorption, distribution, metabolism, excretion, and toxicity) test. The 2 simulations were performed using Molecular Operating Environment (MOE) 2008.10 software, whereas the ADME-Tox test was performed using various software. The modification of SAH compound was done using several functional groups that possess different polarities and properties, resulting in 3460 ligands to be docked. After conducting docking simulation, we earned 3 best ligands (SAH-M331, SAH-M2696, and SAH-M1356) based on ΔG binding and molecular interactions, which show better results than the standard ligands. Moreover, the results of molecular dynamics simulation show that the best ligands are still able to maintain the active site residue interaction with the binding site until the end of the simulation. After a series of molecular docking and molecular dynamics simulation were performed, we concluded that SAH-M1356 ligand is the most potential SAH-based compound to inhibit NS5 methyltransferase enzyme for treating dengue fever.

Regulation of homocysteine metabolism and methylation in human and mouse tissues

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Chen, Natalie C.; Yang, Fan; Capecci, Louis M.; Gu, Ziyu; Schafer, Andrew I.; Durante, William; Yang, Xiao-Feng; Wang, Hong

2010-01-01

Hyperhomocysteinemia is an independent risk factor for cardiovascular disease. Homocysteine (Hcy) metabolism involves multiple enzymes; however, tissue Hcy metabolism and its relevance to methylation remain unknown. Here, we established gene expression profiles of 8 Hcy metabolic and 12 methylation enzymes in 20 human and 19 mouse tissues through bioinformatic analysis using expression sequence tag clone counts in tissue cDNA libraries. We analyzed correlations between gene expression, Hcy, S-adenosylhomocysteine (SAH), and S-adenosylmethionine (SAM) levels, and SAM/SAH ratios in mouse tissues. Hcy metabolic and methylation enzymes were classified into two types. The expression of Type 1 enzymes positively correlated with tissue Hcy and SAH levels. These include cystathionine β-synthase, cystathionine-γ-lyase, paraxonase 1, 5,10-methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase, betaine:homocysteine methyltransferase, methionine adenosyltransferase, phosphatidylethanolamine N-methyltransferases and glycine N-methyltransferase. Type 2 enzyme expressions correlate with neither tissue Hcy nor SAH levels. These include SAH hydrolase, methionyl-tRNA synthase, 5-methyltetrahydrofolate:Hcy methyltransferase, S-adenosylmethionine decarboxylase, DNA methyltransferase 1/3a, isoprenylcysteine carboxyl methyltransferases, and histone-lysine N-methyltransferase. SAH is the only Hcy metabolite significantly correlated with Hcy levels and methylation enzyme expression. We established equations expressing combined effects of methylation enzymes on tissue SAH, SAM, and SAM/SAH ratios. Our study is the first to provide panoramic tissue gene expression profiles and mathematical models of tissue methylation regulation.—Chen, N. C., Yang, F., Capecci, L. M., Gu, Z., Schafer, A. I., Durante, W., Yang, X.-F., Wang, H. Regulation of homocysteine metabolism and methylation in human and mouse tissues. PMID:20305127

Selective Toll-Like Receptor 4 Antagonists Prevent Acute Blood-Brain Barrier Disruption After Subarachnoid Hemorrhage in Mice.

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Okada, Takeshi; Kawakita, Fumihiro; Nishikawa, Hirofumi; Nakano, Fumi; Liu, Lei; Suzuki, Hidenori

2018-05-31

There are no direct evidences showing the linkage between Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) and blood-brain barrier (BBB) disruption after subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH). The purpose of this study was to examine if selective blockage of TLR4 prevents BBB disruption after SAH in mice and if the TLR4 signaling involves mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPKs). One hundred and fifty-one C57BL/6 male mice underwent sham or endovascular perforation SAH operation, randomly followed by an intracerebroventricular infusion of vehicle or two dosages (117 or 585 ng) of a selective TLR4 antagonist IAXO-102 at 30 min post-operation. The effects were evaluated by survival rates, neurological scores, and brain water content at 24-72 h and immunoglobulin G immunostaining and Western blotting at 24 h post-SAH. IAXO-102 significantly prevented post-SAH neurological impairments, brain edema, and BBB disruption, resulting in improved survival rates. IAXO-102 also significantly suppressed post-SAH activation of a major isoform of MAPK p46 c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK) and matrix metalloproteinase-9 as well as periostin induction and preserved tight junction protein zona occludens-1. Another selective TLR4 antagonist TAK-242, which has a different binding site from IAXO-102, also showed similar effects to IAXO-102. This study first provided the evidence that TLR4 signaling is involved in post-SAH acute BBB disruption and that the signaling is mediated at least partly by JNK activation. TLR4-targeted therapy may be promising to reduce post-SAH morbidities and mortalities.

Epilepsy-associated long-term mortality after aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage.

Science.gov (United States)

Huttunen, Jukka; Lindgren, Antti; Kurki, Mitja I; Huttunen, Terhi; Frösen, Juhana; Koivisto, Timo; von Und Zu Fraunberg, Mikael; Immonen, Arto; Jääskeläinen, Juha E; Kälviäinen, Reetta

2017-07-18

To elucidate the epilepsy-associated causes of death and subsequent excess long-term mortality among 12-month survivors of subarachnoid hemorrhage from saccular intracranial aneurysm (SIA-SAH). The Kuopio SIA Database (kuopioneurosurgery.fi) includes all SIA-SAH patients admitted to the Kuopio University Hospital from its defined catchment population in Eastern Finland. The study cohort consists of 779 patients, admitted from 1995 to 2007, who were alive at 12 months after SIA-SAH. Their use of reimbursable antiepileptic drugs and the causes of death (ICD-10) were fused from the Finnish national registries from 1994 to 2014. The 779 12-month survivors were followed up until death (n = 197) or December 31, 2014, a median of 12.0 years after SIA-SAH. Epilepsy had been diagnosed in 121 (15%) patients after SIA-SAH, and 34/121 (28%) had died at the end of follow-up, with epilepsy as the immediate cause of death in 7/34 (21%). In the 779 patients alive at 12 months after SIA-SAH, epilepsy was an independent risk factor for mortality (hazard ratio 1.8, 95% confidence interval 1.1-3.0). Comorbid epilepsy in 12-month survivors of SIA-SAH is associated with increased risk of death in long-term follow-up. Survivors of SIA-SAH require long-term dedicated follow-up, including identification and effective treatment of comorbid epilepsy to prevent avoidable deaths. Copyright © 2017 The Author(s). Published by Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc. on behalf of the American Academy of Neurology.

Punica granatum L. Juice Attenuates Experimental Cerebral Vasospasm in the Rabbit Subarachnoid Hemorrhage Model: A Basilar Artery Morphometric Study and Apoptosis.

Science.gov (United States)

Guvenc, Yahya; Demirci, Adnan; Billur, Deniz; Aydin, Sevim; Ozeren, Ersin; Bayram, Pinar; Dilli, Alper; Gokce, Emre Cemal; Yaman, Onur; Celik, Haydar; Karatay, Mete; Alagoz, Fatih; Kaptanoglu, Erkan

2017-03-01

Background This study investigated the effect of Punica granatum L. (pomegranate) juice on the rabbit basilar artery in an experimental subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) model. Methods  Eighteen adult male New Zealand white rabbits were randomly divided into three groups: a control group ( n  = 6), SAH group ( n  = 6), and SAH + treatment group ( n  = 6). Basilar artery diameter was measured with magnetic resonance angiography (MRA) in all groups at the beginning of the study. Experimental SAH was created by injecting autologous arterial blood into the cisterna magna. In the treatment group, the subjects were administered a daily dose of 30 ml/kg pomegranate juice via gastric gavage for 4 days after the SAH. The SAH group and SAH + treatment group underwent cerebral MRA after 72 hours. After a neurologic score assessment, all the animals were killed. The wall thickness and lumen area of the basilar artery were measured histometrically in all groups, and the apoptotic cell percentage in the artery was identified. The mean diameter of the basilar artery during MRA was measured. Results  Pomegranate improved neurologic functions compared with the SAH group ( p   0.05). The apoptotic cell rate in the SAH + treatment group was significantly lower than in the SAH group ( p   0.05). Discussion  Pomegranate was shown to have a vasospasm- attenuating effect on the basilar artery in the rabbit SAH model for the first time in our study. Georg Thieme Verlag KG Stuttgart · New York.

30-Day Mortality and Readmission after Hemorrhagic Stroke among Medicare Beneficiaries in Joint Commission Primary Stroke Center Certified and Non-Certified Hospitals

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Lichtman, Judith H.; Jones, Sara B.; Leifheit-Limson, Erica C.; Wang, Yun; Goldstein, Larry B.

2012-01-01

Background and Purpose Ischemic stroke patients treated at Joint Commission Primary Stroke Center (JC-PSC) certified hospitals have better outcomes. Data reflecting the impact of JC-PSC status on outcomes after hemorrhagic stroke are limited. We determined whether 30-day mortality and readmission rates after hemorrhagic stroke differed for patients treated at JC-PSC certified versus non-certified hospitals. Methods The study included all fee-for-service Medicare beneficiaries ≥65 years old with a primary discharge diagnosis of subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) or intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) in 2006. Covariate-adjusted logistic and Cox proportional hazards regression assessed the effect of care at a JC-PSC certified hospital on 30-day mortality and readmission. Results There were 2,305 SAH and 8,708 ICH discharges from JC-PSC certified hospitals and 3,892 SAH and 22,564 ICH discharges from non-certified hospitals. Unadjusted in-hospital mortality (SAH: 27.5% vs. 33.2%, pmortality (SAH: 35.1% vs. 44.0%, pmortality was 34% lower (OR 0.66, 95% CI 0.58–0.76) after SAH and 14% lower (OR 0.86, 95% CI 0.80–0.92) after ICH for patients discharged from JC-PSC certified hospitals. There was no difference in 30-day risk-adjusted readmission rates for SAH or ICH based on JC-PSC status. Conclusions Patients treated at JC-PSC certified hospitals had lower risk-adjusted mortality rates for both SAH and ICH but similar 30-day readmission rates as compared with non-certified hospitals. PMID:22033986

The Importance of Early Brain Injury after Subarachnoid Hemorrhage

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Sehba, Fatima A.; Hou, Jack; Pluta, Ryszard M.; Zhang, John H.

2012-01-01

Aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage (aSAH) is a medical emergency that accounts for 5% of all stroke cases. Individuals affected are typically in the prime of their lives (mean age 50 years). Approximately 12% of patients die before receiving medical attention, 33% within 48 hours and 50% within 30 days of aSAH. Of the survivors 50% suffer from permanent disability with an estimated lifetime cost more than double that of an ischemic stroke. Traditionally, spasm that develops in large cerebral arteries 3-7 days after aneurysm rupture is considered the most important determinant of brain injury and outcome after aSAH. However, recent studies show that prevention of delayed vasospasm does not improve outcome in aSAH patients. This finding has finally brought in focus the influence of early brain injury on outcome of aSAH. A substantial amount of evidence indicates that brain injury begins at the aneurysm rupture, evolves with time and plays an important role in patients’ outcome. In this manuscript we review early brain injury after aSAH. Due to the early nature, most of the information on this injury comes from animals and few only from autopsy of patients who died within days after aSAH. Consequently, we began with a review of animal models of early brain injury, next we review the mechanisms of brain injury according to the sequence of their temporal appearance and finally we discuss the failure of clinical translation of therapies successful in animal models of aSAH. PMID:22414893

Simplicity and Specificity in Language: Domain-General Biases Have Domain-Specific Effects

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Culbertson, Jennifer; Kirby, Simon

2016-01-01

The extent to which the linguistic system—its architecture, the representations it operates on, the constraints it is subject to—is specific to language has broad implications for cognitive science and its relation to evolutionary biology. Importantly, a given property of the linguistic system can be “specific” to the domain of language in several ways. For example, if the property evolved by natural selection under the pressure of the linguistic function it serves then the property is domain-specific in the sense that its design is tailored for language. Equally though, if that property evolved to serve a different function or if that property is domain-general, it may nevertheless interact with the linguistic system in a way that is unique. This gives a second sense in which a property can be thought of as specific to language. An evolutionary approach to the language faculty might at first blush appear to favor domain-specificity in the first sense, with individual properties of the language faculty being specifically linguistic adaptations. However, we argue that interactions between learning, culture, and biological evolution mean any domain-specific adaptations that evolve will take the form of weak biases rather than hard constraints. Turning to the latter sense of domain-specificity, we highlight a very general bias, simplicity, which operates widely in cognition and yet interacts with linguistic representations in domain-specific ways. PMID:26793132

A domain-decomposition method to implement electrostatic free boundary conditions in the radial direction for electric discharges

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Malagón-Romero, A.; Luque, A.

2018-04-01

At high pressure electric discharges typically grow as thin, elongated filaments. In a numerical simulation this large aspect ratio should ideally translate into a narrow, cylindrical computational domain that envelops the discharge as closely as possible. However, the development of the discharge is driven by electrostatic interactions and, if the computational domain is not wide enough, the boundary conditions imposed to the electrostatic potential on the external boundary have a strong effect on the discharge. Most numerical codes circumvent this problem by either using a wide computational domain or by calculating the boundary conditions by integrating the Green's function of an infinite domain. Here we describe an accurate and efficient method to impose free boundary conditions in the radial direction for an elongated electric discharge. To facilitate the use of our method we provide a sample implementation. Finally, we apply the method to solve Poisson's equation in cylindrical coordinates with free boundary conditions in both radial and longitudinal directions. This case is of particular interest for the initial stages of discharges in long gaps or natural discharges in the atmosphere, where it is not practical to extend the simulation volume to be bounded by two electrodes.

Elastic frequency-domain finite-difference contrast source inversion method

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

He, Qinglong; Chen, Yong; Han, Bo; Li, Yang

2016-01-01

In this work, we extend the finite-difference contrast source inversion (FD-CSI) method to the frequency-domain elastic wave equations, where the parameters describing the subsurface structure are simultaneously reconstructed. The FD-CSI method is an iterative nonlinear inversion method, which exhibits several strengths. First, the finite-difference operator only relies on the background media and the given angular frequency, both of which are unchanged during inversion. Therefore, the matrix decomposition is performed only once at the beginning of the iteration if a direct solver is employed. This makes the inversion process relatively efficient in terms of the computational cost. In addition, the FD-CSI method automatically normalizes different parameters, which could avoid the numerical problems arising from the difference of the parameter magnitude. We exploit a parallel implementation of the FD-CSI method based on the domain decomposition method, ensuring a satisfactory scalability for large-scale problems. A simple numerical example with a homogeneous background medium is used to investigate the convergence of the elastic FD-CSI method. Moreover, the Marmousi II model proposed as a benchmark for testing seismic imaging methods is presented to demonstrate the performance of the elastic FD-CSI method in an inhomogeneous background medium. (paper)

Online transition matrix identification of the state evolution model for the extended Kalman filter in electrical impedance tomography

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Moura, Fernando S; Aya, Julio C C; Lima, Raul G; Fleury, Agenor T

2008-01-01

One of the electrical impedance tomography objectives is to estimate the electrical resistivity distribution in a domain based only on contour electrical potential measurements caused by an imposed electrical current distribution into the boundary. In biomedical applications, the random walk model is frequently used as evolution model and, under this conditions, it is observed poor tracking ability of the Extended Kalman Filter (EKF). An analytically developed evolution model is not feasible at this moment. The present work investigates the possibility of identifying the evolution model in parallel to the EKF and updating the evolution model with certain periodicity. The evolution model is identified using the history of resistivity distribution obtained by a sensitivity matrix based algorithm. To numerically identify the linear evolution model, it is used the Ibrahim Time Domain Method, normally used to identify the transition matrix on structural dynamics. The investigation was performed by numerical simulations of a time varying domain with the addition of noise. Numerical dificulties to compute the transition matrix were solved using a Tikhonov regularization. The EKF numerical simulations suggest that the tracking ability is significantly improved.

A single subcutaneous bolus of erythropoietin normalizes cerebral blood flow autoregulation after subarachnoid haemorrhage in rats

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Springborg, Jacob Bertram; Ma, XiaoDong; Rochat, Per

2002-01-01

the intracarotid (133)Xe method. CBF autoregulation was preserved in both sham-operated groups (lower limits of mean arterial blood pressure: 91+/-3 and 98+/-3 mmHg in groups A and B, respectively). In the vehicle treated SAH-group, autoregulation was abolished and the relationship between CBF and blood pressure...... administered recombinant EPO on impaired cerebral blood flow (CBF) autoregulation after experimental subarachnoid haemorrhage (SAH). Four groups of male Sprague-Dawley rats were studied: group A, sham operation plus vehicle; group B, sham operation plus EPO; group C, SAH plus vehicle; group D, SAH plus EPO...

The framing of scientific domains

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Dam Christensen, Hans

2014-01-01

domains, and UNISIST helps understanding this navigation. Design/methodology/approach The UNISIST models are tentatively applied to the domain of art history at three stages, respectively two modern, partially overlapping domains, as well as an outline of an art historical domain anno c1820...

Protein domain organisation: adding order.

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Kummerfeld, Sarah K; Teichmann, Sarah A

2009-01-29

Domains are the building blocks of proteins. During evolution, they have been duplicated, fused and recombined, to produce proteins with novel structures and functions. Structural and genome-scale studies have shown that pairs or groups of domains observed together in a protein are almost always found in only one N to C terminal order and are the result of a single recombination event that has been propagated by duplication of the multi-domain unit. Previous studies of domain organisation have used graph theory to represent the co-occurrence of domains within proteins. We build on this approach by adding directionality to the graphs and connecting nodes based on their relative order in the protein. Most of the time, the linear order of domains is conserved. However, using the directed graph representation we have identified non-linear features of domain organization that are over-represented in genomes. Recognising these patterns and unravelling how they have arisen may allow us to understand the functional relationships between domains and understand how the protein repertoire has evolved. We identify groups of domains that are not linearly conserved, but instead have been shuffled during evolution so that they occur in multiple different orders. We consider 192 genomes across all three kingdoms of life and use domain and protein annotation to understand their functional significance. To identify these features and assess their statistical significance, we represent the linear order of domains in proteins as a directed graph and apply graph theoretical methods. We describe two higher-order patterns of domain organisation: clusters and bi-directionally associated domain pairs and explore their functional importance and phylogenetic conservation. Taking into account the order of domains, we have derived a novel picture of global protein organization. We found that all genomes have a higher than expected degree of clustering and more domain pairs in forward and

Protein domain organisation: adding order

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kummerfeld Sarah K

2009-01-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Domains are the building blocks of proteins. During evolution, they have been duplicated, fused and recombined, to produce proteins with novel structures and functions. Structural and genome-scale studies have shown that pairs or groups of domains observed together in a protein are almost always found in only one N to C terminal order and are the result of a single recombination event that has been propagated by duplication of the multi-domain unit. Previous studies of domain organisation have used graph theory to represent the co-occurrence of domains within proteins. We build on this approach by adding directionality to the graphs and connecting nodes based on their relative order in the protein. Most of the time, the linear order of domains is conserved. However, using the directed graph representation we have identified non-linear features of domain organization that are over-represented in genomes. Recognising these patterns and unravelling how they have arisen may allow us to understand the functional relationships between domains and understand how the protein repertoire has evolved. Results We identify groups of domains that are not linearly conserved, but instead have been shuffled during evolution so that they occur in multiple different orders. We consider 192 genomes across all three kingdoms of life and use domain and protein annotation to understand their functional significance. To identify these features and assess their statistical significance, we represent the linear order of domains in proteins as a directed graph and apply graph theoretical methods. We describe two higher-order patterns of domain organisation: clusters and bi-directionally associated domain pairs and explore their functional importance and phylogenetic conservation. Conclusion Taking into account the order of domains, we have derived a novel picture of global protein organization. We found that all genomes have a higher than expected

Magnetic resonance imaging of aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ogawa, Toshihide; Shimosegawa, Eku; Inugami, Atsushi; Shishido, Fumio; Fujita, Hideaki; Ito, Hiroshi; Uemura, Kazuo; Yasui, Nobuyuki

1991-01-01

Magnetic resonance imaging of subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) due to aneurysm rupture was evaluated in relation to CT findings in nine patients. Six patients were studied within 3 days and the other three patients were studied 4 to 6 days from the ictus of SAH using a 0.5 Tesla superconducting unit. In all of the patients, hematoma in the subarachnoid space and ventricles was demonstrated by the proton density-weighted spin echo sequence, which showed that bloody cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) had a higher signal intensity than brain tissue or normal CSF. Magnetic resonance imaging was more sensitive in detecting SAH and more informative as to the site of the ruptured aneurysm than CT. Despite some limitations in applying it to patients with acute SAH, magnetic resonace imaging has clear advantages in the diagnosis of SAH. (author)

Magnetic resonance imaging of aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ogawa, Toshihide; Shimosegawa, Eku; Inugami, Atsushi; Shishido, Fumio; Fujita, Hideaki; Ito, Hiroshi; Uemura, Kazuo; Yasui, Nobuyuki (Research Inst. of Brain and Blood Vessels, Akita (Japan))

1991-11-01

Magnetic resonance imaging of subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) due to aneurysm rupture was evaluated in relation to CT findings in nine patients. Six patients were studied within 3 days and the other three patients were studied 4 to 6 days from the ictus of SAH using a 0.5 Tesla superconducting unit. In all of the patients, hematoma in the subarachnoid space and ventricles was demonstrated by the proton density-weighted spin echo sequence, which showed that bloody cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) had a higher signal intensity than brain tissue or normal CSF. Magnetic resonance imaging was more sensitive in detecting SAH and more informative as to the site of the ruptured aneurysm than CT. Despite some limitations in applying it to patients with acute SAH, magnetic resonace imaging has clear advantages in the diagnosis of SAH. (author).

Distributed strain measurement in perfluorinated polymer optical fibres using optical frequency domain reflectometry

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Liehr, Sascha; Wendt, Mario; Krebber, Katerina

2010-01-01

We present the latest advances in distributed strain measurement in perfluorinated polymer optical fibres (POFs) using backscatter techniques. Compared to previously introduced poly(methyl methacrylate) POFs, the measurement length can be extended to more than 500 m at improved spatial resolution of a few centimetres. It is shown that strain in a perfluorinated POF can be measured up to 100%. In parallel to these investigations, the incoherent optical frequency domain reflectometry (OFDR) technique is introduced to detect strained fibre sections and to measure distributed length change along the fibre with sub-millimetre resolution by applying a cross-correlation algorithm to the backscatter signal. The overall superior performance of the OFDR technique compared to the optical time domain reflectometry in terms of accuracy, dynamic range, spatial resolution and measurement speed is presented. The proposed sensor system is a promising technique for use in structural health monitoring applications where the precise detection of high strain is required

Effect of Chain-Extenders on the Properties and Hydrolytic Degradation Behavior of the Poly(lactide/ Poly(butylene adipate-co-terephthalate Blends

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Mingqing Chen

2013-10-01

Full Text Available Biodegradable poly(lactide/poly(butylene adipate-co-terephthalate (PLA/PBAT blends were prepared by reactive blending in the presence of chain-extenders. Two chain-extenders with multi-epoxy groups were studied. The effect of chain-extenders on the morphology, mechanical properties, thermal behavior, and hydrolytic degradation of the blends was investigated. The compatibility between the PLA and PBAT was significantly improved by in situ formation of PLA-co-PBAT copolymers in the presence of the chain-extenders, results in an enhanced ductility of the blends, e.g., the elongation at break was increased to 500% without any decrease in the tensile strength. The differential scanning calorimeter (DSC results reveal that cold crystallization of PLA was enhanced due to heterogeneous nucleation effect of the in situ compatibilized PBAT domains. As known before, PLA is sensitive to hydrolysis and in the presence of PBAT and the chain-extenders, the hydrolytic degradation of the blend was evident. A three-stage hydrolysis mechanism for the system is proposed based on a study of weight loss and molecular weight reduction of the samples and the pH variation of the degradation medium.

Insights into function of PSI domains from structure of the Met receptor PSI domain

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kozlov, Guennadi; Perreault, Audrey; Schrag, Joseph D.; Park, Morag; Cygler, Miroslaw; Gehring, Kalle; Ekiel, Irena

2004-01-01

PSI domains are cysteine-rich modules found in extracellular fragments of hundreds of signaling proteins, including plexins, semaphorins, integrins, and attractins. Here, we report the solution structure of the PSI domain from the human Met receptor, a receptor tyrosine kinase critical for proliferation, motility, and differentiation. The structure represents a cysteine knot with short regions of secondary structure including a three-stranded antiparallel β-sheet and two α-helices. All eight cysteines are involved in disulfide bonds with the pattern consistent with that for the PSI domain from Sema4D. Comparison with the Sema4D structure identifies a structurally conserved core comprising the N-terminal half of the PSI domain. Interestingly, this part links adjacent SEMA and immunoglobulin domains in the Sema4D structure, suggesting that the PSI domain serves as a wedge between propeller and immunoglobulin domains and is responsible for the correct positioning of the ligand-binding site of the receptor

Resource Unavailability (RU) Per Domain Behavior

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Karagiannis, Georgios; Westberg, L.; Bader, A.; Tschofenig, Hannes; Tschofenig, H.

2006-01-01

This draft specifies a Per Domain Behavior that provides the ability to Diffserv nodes located outside Diffserv domain(s), e.g., receiver or other Diffserv enabled router to detect when the resources provided by the Diffserv domain(s) are not available. The unavailability of resources in the domain

Role of levosimendan in the management of subarachnoid hemorrhage.

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Varvarousi, Giolanda; Xanthos, Theodoros; Sarafidou, Pavlina; Katsioula, Ellisavet; Georgiadou, Marianthi; Eforakopoulou, Maria; Pavlou, Hlias

2016-02-01

Aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage (aSAH) is one of the leading causes of neurologic disability accounting for dismal long term survival rates. aSAH leads to a sudden increase in intracranial pressure and a massive sympathetic discharge. Excessive sympathetic stimulation leads to catecholamine mediated myocardial dysfunction and hemodynamic instability which may critically hamper brain perfusion and oxygenation. In the setting of acute aSAH, administration of vasoactive drugs aims at stabilizing impaired hemodynamics. However, studies have shown that conventional treatment with vasoactive drugs that lead to Ca(+2) overload and increase myocardial oxygen consumption, fail to restore hemodynamics and decrease cerebral blood flow. Levosimendan is a non-adrenergic inotropic Ca(+2) sensitizer with not only beneficial hemodynamic properties but also pleiotropic effects, contributing to its cardioprotective and neuroprotective role. Although there have been limited data available regarding the use of levosimendan in patients with aSAH, current evidence suggests that levosimendan may have a role in the setting of post-aSAH cardiomyopathy and decreased cerebral blood flow both in the emergency departments and in intensive care units. The purpose of this review is to provide an overview of studies of levosimendan therapy for aSAH, and describe current knowledge about the effects of levosimendan in the management of aSAH. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Subarachnoid Hemorrhage Severely Impairs Brain Parenchymal Cerebrospinal Fluid Circulation in Nonhuman Primate.

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Goulay, Romain; Flament, Julien; Gauberti, Maxime; Naveau, Michael; Pasquet, Nolwenn; Gakuba, Clement; Emery, Evelyne; Hantraye, Philippe; Vivien, Denis; Aron-Badin, Romina; Gaberel, Thomas

2017-08-01

Subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) is a devastating form of stroke with neurological outcomes dependent on the occurrence of delayed cerebral ischemia. It has been shown in rodents that some of the mechanisms leading to delayed cerebral ischemia are related to a decreased circulation of the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) within the brain parenchyma. Here, we evaluated the cerebral circulation of the CSF in a nonhuman primate in physiological condition and after SAH. We first evaluated in physiological condition the circulation of the brain CSF in Macaca facicularis , using magnetic resonance imaging of the temporal DOTA-Gd distribution after its injection into the CSF. Then, animals were subjected to a minimally invasive SAH before an MRI evaluation of the impact of SAH on the brain parenchymal CSF circulation. We first demonstrate that the CSF actively penetrates the brain parenchyma. Two hours after injection, almost the entire brain is labeled by DOTA-Gd. We also show that our model of SAH in nonhuman primate displays the characteristics of SAH in humans and leads to a dramatic impairment of the brain parenchymal circulation of the CSF. The CSF actively penetrates within the brain parenchyma in the gyrencephalic brain, as described for the glymphatic system in rodent. This parenchymal CSF circulation is severely impaired by SAH. © 2017 American Heart Association, Inc.

Recovering protein-protein and domain-domain interactions from aggregation of IP-MS proteomics of coregulator complexes.

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Amin R Mazloom

2011-12-01

Full Text Available Coregulator proteins (CoRegs are part of multi-protein complexes that transiently assemble with transcription factors and chromatin modifiers to regulate gene expression. In this study we analyzed data from 3,290 immuno-precipitations (IP followed by mass spectrometry (MS applied to human cell lines aimed at identifying CoRegs complexes. Using the semi-quantitative spectral counts, we scored binary protein-protein and domain-domain associations with several equations. Unlike previous applications, our methods scored prey-prey protein-protein interactions regardless of the baits used. We also predicted domain-domain interactions underlying predicted protein-protein interactions. The quality of predicted protein-protein and domain-domain interactions was evaluated using known binary interactions from the literature, whereas one protein-protein interaction, between STRN and CTTNBP2NL, was validated experimentally; and one domain-domain interaction, between the HEAT domain of PPP2R1A and the Pkinase domain of STK25, was validated using molecular docking simulations. The scoring schemes presented here recovered known, and predicted many new, complexes, protein-protein, and domain-domain interactions. The networks that resulted from the predictions are provided as a web-based interactive application at http://maayanlab.net/HT-IP-MS-2-PPI-DDI/.

Fluctuations in heart rate variability of health care workers during four consecutive extended work shifts and recovery during rest and sleep.

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Goffeng, Elisabeth M; Nordby, Karl-Christian; Tarvainen, Mika P; Järvelin-Pasanen, Susanna; Wagstaff, Anthony; Goffeng, Lars Ole; Bugge, Merete; Skare, Øivind; Sigstad Lie, Jenny-Anne

2018-04-07

The aim of this study was to investigate fluctuations in heart rate variability (HRV), which reflect autonomic nervous system (ANS) function and potential psychological and physical strain, among 24 health care workers during work and sleep during four consecutive extended work shifts. Data included 24/36/12 h of HRV measurements, two logbooks, and a questionnaire. A cross-shift/cross-week design was applied. HRV was measured during work, leisure time, and sleep. The HRV data included time-domain [mean RR, SD of normal to normal R-R intervals (SDNN), and root mean square of the successive differences (RMSSD)] and frequency-domain [low frequency (LF)/high frequency (HF) ratio] parameters. HRV parameters revealed significant differences among work, leisure time, and sleep. Mean RR, RMSSD, and SDNN values were lower and the LF/HF ratio was higher on the first versus last day of the work period; however, the differences were most prominent in the morning hours. The results indicate higher levels of cardiovascular stress on the first versus fourth day of the working period, and measurements at night indicate a satisfactory recovery from the extended shifts.

Full waveform inversion in the frequency domain using classified time-domain residual wavefields

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Son, Woohyun; Koo, Nam-Hyung; Kim, Byoung-Yeop; Lee, Ho-Young; Joo, Yonghwan

2017-04-01

We perform the acoustic full waveform inversion in the frequency domain using residual wavefields that have been separated in the time domain. We sort the residual wavefields in the time domain according to the order of absolute amplitudes. Then, the residual wavefields are separated into several groups in the time domain. To analyze the characteristics of the residual wavefields, we compare the residual wavefields of conventional method with those of our residual separation method. From the residual analysis, the amplitude spectrum obtained from the trace before separation appears to have little energy at the lower frequency bands. However, the amplitude spectrum obtained from our strategy is regularized by the separation process, which means that the low-frequency components are emphasized. Therefore, our method helps to emphasize low-frequency components of residual wavefields. Then, we generate the frequency-domain residual wavefields by taking the Fourier transform of the separated time-domain residual wavefields. With these wavefields, we perform the gradient-based full waveform inversion in the frequency domain using back-propagation technique. Through a comparison of gradient directions, we confirm that our separation method can better describe the sub-salt image than the conventional approach. The proposed method is tested on the SEG/EAGE salt-dome model. The inversion results show that our algorithm is better than the conventional gradient based waveform inversion in the frequency domain, especially for deeper parts of the velocity model.

Apoplastic domains and sub-domains in the shoots of etiolated corn seedlings

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Epel, B. L.; Bandurski, R. S.

1990-01-01

Light Green, an apoplastic probe, was applied to the cut mesocotyl base or to the cut coleoptile apex of etiolated seedlings of Zea mays L. cv. Silver Queen. Probe transport was measured and its tissue distribution determined. In the mesocotyl, there is an apoplastic barrier between cortex and stele. This barrier creates two apoplastic domains which are non-communicating. A kinetic barrier exists between the apoplast of the mesocotyl stele and that of the coleoptile. This kinetic barrier is not absolute and there is limited communication between the apoplasts of the two regions. This kinetic barrier effectively creates two sub-domains. In the coleoptile, there is communication between the apoplast of the vascular strands and that of the surrounding cortical tissue. No apoplastic communication was observed between the coleoptile cortex and the mesocotyl cortex. Thus, the apoplastic space of the coleoptile cortex is a sub-domain of the integrated coleoptile domain and is separate from that of the apoplastic domain of the mesocotyl cortex.

DIMA 3.0: Domain Interaction Map.

Science.gov (United States)

Luo, Qibin; Pagel, Philipp; Vilne, Baiba; Frishman, Dmitrij

2011-01-01

Domain Interaction MAp (DIMA, available at http://webclu.bio.wzw.tum.de/dima) is a database of predicted and known interactions between protein domains. It integrates 5807 structurally known interactions imported from the iPfam and 3did databases and 46,900 domain interactions predicted by four computational methods: domain phylogenetic profiling, domain pair exclusion algorithm correlated mutations and domain interaction prediction in a discriminative way. Additionally predictions are filtered to exclude those domain pairs that are reported as non-interacting by the Negatome database. The DIMA Web site allows to calculate domain interaction networks either for a domain of interest or for entire organisms, and to explore them interactively using the Flash-based Cytoscape Web software.

Extended Smoluchowski models for interpreting relaxation phenomena in liquids

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Polimeno, A.; Frezzato, D.; Saielli, G.; Moro, G.J.; Nordio, P.L.

1998-01-01

Interpretation of the dynamical behaviour of single molecules or collective modes in liquids has been increasingly centered, in the last decade, on complex liquid systems, including ionic solutions, polymeric liquids, supercooled fluids and liquid crystals. This has been made necessary by the need of interpreting dynamical data obtained by advanced experiments, like optical Kerr effect, time dependent fluorescence shift experiments, two-dimensional Fourier-transform and high field electron spin resonance and scattering experiments like quasi-elastic neutron scattering. This communication is centered on the definition, treatment and application of several extended stochastic models, which have proved to be very effective tools for interpreting and rationalizing complex relaxation phenomena in liquids structures. First, applications of standard Fokker-Planck equations for the orientational relaxation of molecules in isotropic and ordered liquid phase are reviewed. In particular attention will be focused on the interpretation of neutron scattering in nematics. Next, an extended stochastic model is used to interpret time-domain resolved fluorescence emission experiments. A two-body stochastic model allows the theoretical interpretation of dynamical Stokes shift effects in fluorescence emission spectra, performed on probes in isotropic and ordered polar phases. Finally, for the case of isotropic fluids made of small rigid molecules, a very detailed model is considered, which includes as basic ingredients a Fokker-Planck description of the molecular vibrational motion and the slow diffusive motion of a persistent cage structure together with the decay processes related to the changing structure of the cage. (author)

Domain fusion analysis by applying relational algebra to protein sequence and domain databases.

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Truong, Kevin; Ikura, Mitsuhiko

2003-05-06

Domain fusion analysis is a useful method to predict functionally linked proteins that may be involved in direct protein-protein interactions or in the same metabolic or signaling pathway. As separate domain databases like BLOCKS, PROSITE, Pfam, SMART, PRINTS-S, ProDom, TIGRFAMs, and amalgamated domain databases like InterPro continue to grow in size and quality, a computational method to perform domain fusion analysis that leverages on these efforts will become increasingly powerful. This paper proposes a computational method employing relational algebra to find domain fusions in protein sequence databases. The feasibility of this method was illustrated on the SWISS-PROT+TrEMBL sequence database using domain predictions from the Pfam HMM (hidden Markov model) database. We identified 235 and 189 putative functionally linked protein partners in H. sapiens and S. cerevisiae, respectively. From scientific literature, we were able to confirm many of these functional linkages, while the remainder offer testable experimental hypothesis. Results can be viewed at http://calcium.uhnres.utoronto.ca/pi. As the analysis can be computed quickly on any relational database that supports standard SQL (structured query language), it can be dynamically updated along with the sequence and domain databases, thereby improving the quality of predictions over time.

Solving radiative transfer problems in highly heterogeneous media via domain decomposition and convergence acceleration techniques

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Previti, Alberto; Furfaro, Roberto; Picca, Paolo; Ganapol, Barry D.; Mostacci, Domiziano

2011-01-01

This paper deals with finding accurate solutions for photon transport problems in highly heterogeneous media fastly, efficiently and with modest memory resources. We propose an extended version of the analytical discrete ordinates method, coupled with domain decomposition-derived algorithms and non-linear convergence acceleration techniques. Numerical performances are evaluated using a challenging case study available in the literature. A study of accuracy versus computational time and memory requirements is reported for transport calculations that are relevant for remote sensing applications.

A novel RNA binding surface of the TAM domain of TIP5/BAZ2A mediates epigenetic regulation of rRNA genes.

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Anosova, Irina; Melnik, Svitlana; Tripsianes, Konstantinos; Kateb, Fatiha; Grummt, Ingrid; Sattler, Michael

2015-05-26

The chromatin remodeling complex NoRC, comprising the subunits SNF2h and TIP5/BAZ2A, mediates heterochromatin formation at major clusters of repetitive elements, including rRNA genes, centromeres and telomeres. Association with chromatin requires the interaction of the TAM (TIP5/ARBP/MBD) domain of TIP5 with noncoding RNA, which targets NoRC to specific genomic loci. Here, we show that the NMR structure of the TAM domain of TIP5 resembles the fold of the MBD domain, found in methyl-CpG binding proteins. However, the TAM domain exhibits an extended MBD fold with unique C-terminal extensions that constitute a novel surface for RNA binding. Mutation of critical amino acids within this surface abolishes RNA binding in vitro and in vivo. Our results explain the distinct binding specificities of TAM and MBD domains to RNA and methylated DNA, respectively, and reveal structural features for the interaction of NoRC with non-coding RNA. © The Author(s) 2015. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Nucleic Acids Research.

Extended spider cognition.

Science.gov (United States)

Japyassú, Hilton F; Laland, Kevin N

2017-05-01

There is a tension between the conception of cognition as a central nervous system (CNS) process and a view of cognition as extending towards the body or the contiguous environment. The centralised conception requires large or complex nervous systems to cope with complex environments. Conversely, the extended conception involves the outsourcing of information processing to the body or environment, thus making fewer demands on the processing power of the CNS. The evolution of extended cognition should be particularly favoured among small, generalist predators such as spiders, and here, we review the literature to evaluate the fit of empirical data with these contrasting models of cognition. Spiders do not seem to be cognitively limited, displaying a large diversity of learning processes, from habituation to contextual learning, including a sense of numerosity. To tease apart the central from the extended cognition, we apply the mutual manipulability criterion, testing the existence of reciprocal causal links between the putative elements of the system. We conclude that the web threads and configurations are integral parts of the cognitive systems. The extension of cognition to the web helps to explain some puzzling features of spider behaviour and seems to promote evolvability within the group, enhancing innovation through cognitive connectivity to variable habitat features. Graded changes in relative brain size could also be explained by outsourcing information processing to environmental features. More generally, niche-constructed structures emerge as prime candidates for extending animal cognition, generating the selective pressures that help to shape the evolving cognitive system.

Single-domain versus two-domain configuration in thin ferromagnetic prisms

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pini, Maria Gloria; Politi, Paolo

2007-01-01

Thin ferromagnetic elements in the form of rectangular prisms are theoretically investigated in order to study the transition from single-domain to two-domain state, with changing the in-plane aspect ratio p. We address two main questions: first, how general is the transition; second, how the critical value p c depends on the physical parameters. We use two complementary methods: discrete-lattice calculations and a micromagnetic continuum approach. Ultrathin films do not appear to split in two domains. Instead, thicker films may undergo the above transition. We have used the continuum approach to analyze recent magnetic force microscopy observations in 30nm-thick patterned permalloy elements, finding a good agreement for p c

Topological domain walls in helimagnets

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Schoenherr, P.; Müller, J.; Köhler, L.; Rosch, A.; Kanazawa, N.; Tokura, Y.; Garst, M.; Meier, D.

2018-05-01

Domain walls naturally arise whenever a symmetry is spontaneously broken. They interconnect regions with different realizations of the broken symmetry, promoting structure formation from cosmological length scales to the atomic level1,2. In ferroelectric and ferromagnetic materials, domain walls with unique functionalities emerge, holding great promise for nanoelectronics and spintronics applications3-5. These walls are usually of Ising, Bloch or Néel type and separate homogeneously ordered domains. Here we demonstrate that a wide variety of new domain walls occurs in the presence of spatially modulated domain states. Using magnetic force microscopy and micromagnetic simulations, we show three fundamental classes of domain walls to arise in the near-room-temperature helimagnet iron germanium. In contrast to conventional ferroics, the domain walls exhibit a well-defined inner structure, which—analogous to cholesteric liquid crystals—consists of topological disclination and dislocation defects. Similar to the magnetic skyrmions that form in the same material6,7, the domain walls can carry a finite topological charge, permitting an efficient coupling to spin currents and contributions to a topological Hall effect. Our study establishes a new family of magnetic nano-objects with non-trivial topology, opening the door to innovative device concepts based on helimagnetic domain walls.

Effects of biases in domain wall network evolution. II. Quantitative analysis

Science.gov (United States)

Correia, J. R. C. C. C.; Leite, I. S. C. R.; Martins, C. J. A. P.

2018-04-01

Domain walls form at phase transitions which break discrete symmetries. In a cosmological context, they often overclose the Universe (contrary to observational evidence), although one may prevent this by introducing biases or forcing anisotropic evolution of the walls. In a previous work [Correia et al., Phys. Rev. D 90, 023521 (2014), 10.1103/PhysRevD.90.023521], we numerically studied the evolution of various types of biased domain wall networks in the early Universe, confirming that anisotropic networks ultimately reach scaling while those with a biased potential or biased initial conditions decay. We also found that the analytic decay law obtained by Hindmarsh was in good agreement with simulations of biased potentials, but not of biased initial conditions, and suggested that the difference was related to the Gaussian approximation underlying the analytic law. Here, we extend our previous work in several ways. For the cases of biased potential and biased initial conditions, we study in detail the field distributions in the simulations, confirming that the validity (or not) of the Gaussian approximation is the key difference between the two cases. For anisotropic walls, we carry out a more extensive set of numerical simulations and compare them to the canonical velocity-dependent one-scale model for domain walls, finding that the model accurately predicts the linear scaling regime after isotropization. Overall, our analysis provides a quantitative description of the cosmological evolution of these networks.

Acute cardiac support with intravenous milrinone promotes recovery from early brain injury in a murine model of severe subarachnoid haemorrhage.

Science.gov (United States)

Mutoh, Tomoko; Mutoh, Tatsushi; Nakamura, Kazuhiro; Yamamoto, Yukiko; Tsuru, Yoshiharu; Tsubone, Hirokazu; Ishikawa, Tatsuya; Taki, Yasuyuki

2017-04-01

Early brain injury/ischaemia (EBI) is a serious complication early after subarachnoid haemorrhage (SAH) that contributes to development of delayed cerebral ischaemia (DCI). This study aimed to determine the role of inotropic cardiac support using milrinone (MIL) on restoring acute cerebral hypoperfusion attributable to EBI and improving outcomes after experimental SAH. Forty-three male C57BL/6 mice were assigned to either sham surgery (SAH-sham), SAH induced by endovascular perforation plus postconditioning with 2% isoflurane (Control), or SAH plus isoflurane combined with MIL with and without hypoxia-inducible factor inhibitor (HIF-I) pretreatment. Cardiac output (CO) during intravenous MIL infusion (0.25-0.75 μg/kg/min) between 1.5 and 2.5 hours after SAH induction was monitored with Doppler echocardiography. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)-continuous arterial spin labelling was used for quantitative cerebral blood flow (CBF) measurements. Neurobehavioral function was assessed daily by neurological score and open field test. DCI was analyzed 3 days later by determining infarction on MRI. Mild reduction of cardiac output (CO) and global cerebral blood flow (CBF) depression were notable early after SAH. MIL increased CO in a dose-dependent manner (P<.001), which was accompanied by improved hypoperfusion, incidence of DCI and functional recovery than Control (P<.05). The neuroprotective effects afforded by MIL or Control were attenuated by hypoxia-inducible factor (HIF) inhibition (P<.05). These results suggest that MIL improves acute hypoperfusion by its inotropic effect, leading to neurobehavioral improvement in mice after severe SAH, in which HIF may be acting as a critical mediator. © 2017 John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd.

Sensitivity of a Clinical Decision Rule and Early Computed Tomography in Aneurysmal Subarachnoid Hemorrhage

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Dustin G. Mark

2015-10-01

Full Text Available Introduction: Application of a clinical decision rule for subarachnoid hemorrhage, in combination with cranial computed tomography (CT performed within six hours of ictus (early cranial CT, may be able to reasonably exclude a diagnosis of aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage (aSAH. This study’s objective was to examine the sensitivity of both early cranial CT and a previously validated clinical decision rule among emergency department (ED patients with aSAH and a normal mental status. Methods: Patients were evaluated in the 21 EDs of an integrated health delivery system between January 2007 and June 2013. We identified by chart review a retrospective cohort of patients diagnosed with aSAH in the setting of a normal mental status and performance of early cranial CT. Variables comprising the SAH clinical decision rule (age >40, presence of neck pain or stiffness, headache onset with exertion, loss of consciousness at headache onset were abstracted from the chart and assessed for inter-rater reliability. Results: One hundred fifty-five patients with aSAH met study inclusion criteria. The sensitivity of early cranial CT was 95.5% (95% CI [90.9-98.2]. The sensitivity of the SAH clinical decision rule was also 95.5% (95% CI [90.9-98.2]. Since all false negative cases for each diagnostic modality were mutually independent, the combined use of both early cranial CT and the clinical decision rule improved sensitivity to 100% (95% CI [97.6-100.0]. Conclusion: Neither early cranial CT nor the SAH clinical decision rule demonstrated ideal sensitivity for aSAH in this retrospective cohort. However, the combination of both strategies might optimize sensitivity for this life-threatening disease.

Brainstem Auditory Evoked Potentials in Patients with Subarachnoid Haemorrhage

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Mikhail Matveev

2009-10-01

Full Text Available Objective. The aim of the present study is to typify BAEPs configurations of patients with different location of lesions caused by subarachnoid haemorrhage (SAH and the ensuing complications, in view of assessing the auditory-brainstem system disturbance.Methods. The typization was performed by comparing BAEPs with standard patterns from two sets of types of BAEPs by ipsilateral and binaural stimulation and by cross-stimulation.Results. 94 BAEPs were used for collection of normal referential values: for the absolute latencies and the absolute amplitudes of waves I, II, III, IV and V; for inter-peak latencies I-III, II-III, III-V, I-V and II-V; for amplitude ratios I/V and III/V. 146 BAEPs of patients with mild SAH and 55 from patients with severe SAH, were typified. In 5 types of BAEPs out of a total of 11, the percentage of the potentials in patients with mild SAH and severe SAH differed significantly (p<0.01.Conclusions. The use of sets of types of BAEPs by ipsilateral, binaural and cross-stimulation correctly classifies the potentials in patients with mild and severe SAH.

Energy and exergy analysis of a new flat-plate solar air heater having different obstacles on absorber plates

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Akpinar, Ebru Kavak; Kocyigit, Fatih

2010-01-01

This study experimentally investigates performance analysis of a new flat-plate solar air heater (SAH) with several obstacles (Type I, Type II, Type III) and without obstacles (Type IV). Experiments were performed for two air mass flow rates of 0.0074 and 0.0052 kg/s. The first and second laws of efficiencies were determined for SAHs and comparisons were made among them. The values of first law efficiency varied between 20% and 82%. The values of second law efficiency changed from 8.32% to 44.00%. The highest efficiency were determined for the SAH with Type II absorbent plate in flow channel duct for all operating conditions, whereas the lowest values were obtained for the SAH without obstacles (Type IV). The results showed that the efficiency of the solar air collectors depends significantly on the solar radiation, surface geometry of the collectors and extension of the air flow line. The largest irreversibility was occurring at the SAH without obstacles (Type IV) collector in which collector efficiency is smallest. At the end of this study, the energy and exergy relationships are delivered for different SAHs.

Impact of Ozone Valley over the Tibetan Plateau on the South Asian High in CAM5

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Zhenkun Li

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Local climate effects of Tibetan Plateau Ozone Valley (OVTP were investigated by numerical simulations using Community Atmosphere Model version 5.1.1 (CAM5. After a 20-year spin-up period, two additional 10-year experiments were conducted. CAM5 was driven by monthly mean climatological ozone in control experiment (CE and OVTP in the sensitivity experiment (SE was removed from May to September. After the removal of OVTP, South Asian High (SAH becomes more robust and colder from June to August, especially in June. The reason for enhancement of SAH is that removal of OVTP increasing ozone in 200–30 hPa leads to significant enhancement of longwave and shortwave radiative heating rate in SAH region in June, and then enhancement of horizontal divergence resulting from the radiative warming leads to strengthening of SAH influenced by the Coriolis force, while the colder SAH is primarily caused by dynamic processes. Adiabatic expansion and ascending movement mainly bring about temperature decrease in SAH after OVTP removal, but the thermodynamic process related to radiative heating offsets part of the cooling response.

SIRT3 Expression Decreases with Reactive Oxygen Species Generation in Rat Cortical Neurons during Early Brain Injury Induced by Experimental Subarachnoid Hemorrhage

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Wei Huang

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Sirtuin3 (SIRT3 is an important protein deacetylase which predominantly presents in mitochondria and exhibits broad bioactivities including regulating energy metabolism and counteracting inflammatory effect. Since inflammatory cascade was proved to be critical for pathological damage following subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH, we investigated the overall expression and cell-specific distribution of SIRT3 in the cerebral cortex of Sprague-Dawley rats with experimental SAH induced by internal carotid perforation. Results suggested that SIRT3 was expressed abundantly in neurons and endothelia but rarely in gliocytes in normal cerebral cortex. After experimental SAH, mRNA and protein expressions of SIRT3 decreased significantly as early as 8 hours and dropped to the minimum value at 24 h after SAH. By contrast, SOD2 expression increased slowly as early as 12 hours after experimental SAH, rose up sharply at the following 12 hours, and then was maintained at a higher level. In conclusion, attenuated SIRT3 expression in cortical neurons was associated closely with enhanced reactive oxygen species generation and cellular apoptosis, implying that SIRT3 might play an important neuroprotective role during early brain injury following SAH.

Prediction Reweighting for Domain Adaptation.

Science.gov (United States)

Shuang Li; Shiji Song; Gao Huang

2017-07-01

There are plenty of classification methods that perform well when training and testing data are drawn from the same distribution. However, in real applications, this condition may be violated, which causes degradation of classification accuracy. Domain adaptation is an effective approach to address this problem. In this paper, we propose a general domain adaptation framework from the perspective of prediction reweighting, from which a novel approach is derived. Different from the major domain adaptation methods, our idea is to reweight predictions of the training classifier on testing data according to their signed distance to the domain separator, which is a classifier that distinguishes training data (from source domain) and testing data (from target domain). We then propagate the labels of target instances with larger weights to ones with smaller weights by introducing a manifold regularization method. It can be proved that our reweighting scheme effectively brings the source and target domains closer to each other in an appropriate sense, such that classification in target domain becomes easier. The proposed method can be implemented efficiently by a simple two-stage algorithm, and the target classifier has a closed-form solution. The effectiveness of our approach is verified by the experiments on artificial datasets and two standard benchmarks, a visual object recognition task and a cross-domain sentiment analysis of text. Experimental results demonstrate that our method is competitive with the state-of-the-art domain adaptation algorithms.

Determination of point of maximum likelihood in failure domain using genetic algorithms

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Obadage, A.S.; Harnpornchai, N.

2006-01-01

The point of maximum likelihood in a failure domain yields the highest value of the probability density function in the failure domain. The maximum-likelihood point thus represents the worst combination of random variables that contribute in the failure event. In this work Genetic Algorithms (GAs) with an adaptive penalty scheme have been proposed as a tool for the determination of the maximum likelihood point. The utilization of only numerical values in the GAs operation makes the algorithms applicable to cases of non-linear and implicit single and multiple limit state function(s). The algorithmic simplicity readily extends its application to higher dimensional problems. When combined with Monte Carlo Simulation, the proposed methodology will reduce the computational complexity and at the same time will enhance the possibility in rare-event analysis under limited computational resources. Since, there is no approximation done in the procedure, the solution obtained is considered accurate. Consequently, GAs can be used as a tool for increasing the computational efficiency in the element and system reliability analyses

Tandem duplications of a degenerated GTP-binding domain at the origin of GTPase receptors Toc159 and thylakoidal SRP

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hernandez Torres, Jorge; Maldonado, Monica Alexandra Arias; Chomilier, Jacques

2007-01-01

The evolutionary origin of some nuclear encoded proteins that translocate proteins across the chloroplast envelope remains unknown. Therefore, sequences of GTPase proteins constituting the Arabidopsis thaliana translocon at the outer membrane of chloroplast (atToc) complexes were analyzed by means of HCA. In particular, atToc159 and related proteins (atToc132, atToc120, and atToc90) do not have proven homologues of prokaryotic or eukaryotic ancestry. We established that the three domains commonly referred to as A, G, and M originate from the GTPase G domain, tandemly repeated, and probably evolving toward an unstructured conformation in the case of the A domain. It resulted from this study a putative common ancestor for these proteins and a new domain definition, in particular the splitting of A into three domains (A1, A2, and A3), has been proposed. The family of Toc159, previously containing A. thaliana and Pisum sativum, has been extended to Medicago truncatula and Populus trichocarpa and it has been revised for Oryza sativa. They have also been compared to GTPase subunits involved in the cpSRP system. A distant homology has been revealed among Toc and cpSRP GTP-hydrolyzing proteins of A. thaliana, and repetitions of a GTPase domain were also found in cpSRP protein receptors, by means of HCA analysis

A localized interaction surface for voltage-sensing domains on the pore domain of a K+ channel.

Science.gov (United States)

Li-Smerin, Y; Hackos, D H; Swartz, K J

2000-02-01

Voltage-gated K+ channels contain a central pore domain and four surrounding voltage-sensing domains. How and where changes in the structure of the voltage-sensing domains couple to the pore domain so as to gate ion conduction is not understood. The crystal structure of KcsA, a bacterial K+ channel homologous to the pore domain of voltage-gated K+ channels, provides a starting point for addressing this question. Guided by this structure, we used tryptophan-scanning mutagenesis on the transmembrane shell of the pore domain in the Shaker voltage-gated K+ channel to localize potential protein-protein and protein-lipid interfaces. Some mutants cause only minor changes in gating and when mapped onto the KcsA structure cluster away from the interface between pore domain subunits. In contrast, mutants producing large changes in gating tend to cluster near this interface. These results imply that voltage-sensing domains interact with localized regions near the interface between adjacent pore domain subunits.

Supersymmetric domain walls

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Bergshoeff, Eric A.; Kleinschmidt, Axel; Riccioni, Fabio

2012-01-01

We classify the half-supersymmetric "domain walls," i.e., branes of codimension one, in toroidally compactified IIA/IIB string theory and show to which gauged supergravity theory each of these domain walls belong. We use as input the requirement of supersymmetric Wess-Zumino terms, the properties of

The effect of deferoxamine on brain lipid peroxide levels and Na-K ATPase activity following experimental subarachnoid hemorrhage.

Science.gov (United States)

Bilgihan, A; Türközkan, N; Aricioğlu, A; Aykol, S; Cevik, C; Göksel, M

1994-05-01

1. In the present study we have studied the effects of deferoxamine treatment on lipid peroxidation and Na-K ATPase activity after experimental induction of subarachnoid haemorrhage (SAH) in guinea pigs. 2. We assessed the extent of lipid peroxidation by measuring the level of malondialdehyde and Na-K ATPase activity in 3 different groups (sham-operated, SAH, SAH + deferoxamine). 3. There was no significant difference in lipid peroxide content between sham-operated and haemorrhagic animals, but Na-K ATPase activity decreased after SAH. 4. Deferoxamine treatment reduced the malondialdehyde content and induced the recovery of Na-K ATPase activity, exerting a brain protective role against the detrimental effects of the haemorrhage.

Melatonin mitigate cerebral vasospasm after experimental subarachnoid hemorrhage: a study of synchrotron radiation angiography

Science.gov (United States)

Cai, J.; He, C.; Chen, L.; Han, T.; Huang, S.; Huang, Y.; Bai, Y.; Bao, Y.; Zhang, H.; Ling, F.

2013-06-01

Cerebral vasospasm (CV) after subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) is a devastating and unsolved clinical issue. In this study, the rat models, which had been induced SAH by prechiasmatic cistern injection, were treated with melatonin. Synchrotron radiation angiography (SRA) was employed to detect and evaluate CV of animal models. Neurological scoring and histological examinations were used to assess the neurological deficits and CV as well. Using SRA techniques and histological analyses, the anterior cerebral artery diameters of SAH rats with melatonin administration were larger than those without melatonin treatment (p melatonin were less than those without melatonin treatment (p melatonin could mitigate CV after experimental SAH.

Subarachnoid hemorrhage in pituitary tumor

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ashis Patnaik

2013-01-01

Full Text Available Subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH is the bleeding into the subarachnoid space containing cerebrospinal fluid. The most common cause of SAH is trauma. Rupture of aneurysms, vascular anomalies, tumor bleeds and hypertension are other important etiologies. SAH in the setting of pituitary tumor can result from various causes. It can be due to intrinsic tumor related pathology, injury to surrounding the vessel during the operative procedure or due to an associated aneurysm. We discuss the pathological mechanisms and review relevant literature related to this interesting phenomenon. Early and accurate diagnosis of the cause of the SAH in pituitary tumors is important, as this influences the management.

Melting of Domain Wall in Charge Ordered Dirac Electron of Organic Conductor α-(BEDT-TTF)2I3

Science.gov (United States)

Ohki, Daigo; Matsuno, Genki; Omori, Yukiko; Kobayashi, Akito

2018-05-01

The origin of charge order melting is identified by using the real space dependent mean-field theory in the extended Hubbard model describing an organic Dirac electron system α-(BEDT-TTF)2I3. In this model, the width of a domain wall which arises between different types of the charge ordered phase exhibits a divergent increase with decreasing the strength of electron-electron correlations. By analyzing the finite-size effect carefully, it is shown that the divergence coincides with a topological transition where a pair of Dirac cones merges in keeping with a finite gap. It is also clarified that the gap opening point and the topological transition point are different, which leads to the existence of an exotic massive Dirac electron phase with melted-type domain wall and gapless edge states. The present result also indicated that multiple metastable states are emerged in massive Dirac Electron phase. In the trivial charge ordered phase, the gapless domain-wall bound state takes place instead of the gapless edge states, accompanying with a form change of the domain wall from melted-type into hyperbolic-tangent-type.

Fast optimal wavefront reconstruction for multi-conjugate adaptive optics using the Fourier domain preconditioned conjugate gradient algorithm.

Science.gov (United States)

Vogel, Curtis R; Yang, Qiang

2006-08-21

We present two different implementations of the Fourier domain preconditioned conjugate gradient algorithm (FD-PCG) to efficiently solve the large structured linear systems that arise in optimal volume turbulence estimation, or tomography, for multi-conjugate adaptive optics (MCAO). We describe how to deal with several critical technical issues, including the cone coordinate transformation problem and sensor subaperture grid spacing. We also extend the FD-PCG approach to handle the deformable mirror fitting problem for MCAO.

Acute Cholecystitis as a Cause of Fever in Aneurysmal Subarachnoid Hemorrhage

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Na Rae Yang

2017-05-01

Full Text Available Background Fever is a very common complication that has been related to poor outcomes after aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage (aSAH. The incidence of acalculous cholecystitis is reportedly 0.5%–5% in critically ill patients, and cerebrovascular disease is a risk factor for acute cholecystitis (AC. However, abdominal evaluations are not typically performed for febrile patients who have recently undergone aSAH surgeries. In this study, we discuss our experiences with febrile aSAH patients who were eventually diagnosed with AC. Methods We retrospectively reviewed 192 consecutive patients who underwent aSAH from January 2009 to December 2012. We evaluated their characteristics, vital signs, laboratory findings, radiologic images, and pathological data from hospitalization. We defined fever as a body temperature of >38.3°C, according to the Society of Critical Care Medicine guidelines. We categorized the causes of fever and compared them between patients with and without AC. Results Of the 192 enrolled patients, two had a history of cholecystectomy, and eight (4.2% were eventually diagnosed with AC. Among them, six patients had undergone laparoscopic cholecystectomy. In their pathological findings, two patients showed findings consistent with coexistent chronic cholecystitis, and two showed necrotic changes to the gall bladder. Patients with AC tended to have higher white blood cell counts, aspartame aminotransferase levels, and C-reactive protein levels than patients with fevers from other causes. Predictors of AC in the aSAH group were diabetes mellitus (odds ratio [OR], 8.758; P = 0.033 and the initial consecutive fasting time (OR, 1.325; P = 0.024. Conclusions AC may cause fever in patients with aSAH. When patients with aSAH have a fever, diabetes mellitus and a long fasting time, AC should be suspected. A high degree of suspicion and a thorough abdominal examination of febrile aSAH patients allow for prompt diagnosis and treatment of this

Flair MR imaging in the Detection of subarachnoid hemorrhage : comparison with CT and T1-weighted MR imaging

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Min, Soo Hyun; Kim, Soo Youn; Lee, Ghi Jai; Shim, Jae Chan; Oh, Tae Kyung; Kim, Ho Kyun [College of Medicine, Jnje University, Seoul (Korea, Republic of)

2000-03-01

To compare the findings of fluid-attenuated inversion recovery (FLAIR) MR imaging in the detection of subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH), with those of precontrast CT and T1-weighted MR imaging. In 13 patients (14 cases) with SAH, FLAIR MR images were retrospectively analyzed and compared with CT (10 patients, 11 cases) and T1-weighted MR images (9 cases). SAH was confirmed on the basis of high density along the subarachnoid space, as seen on precontrast CT, or lumbar puncture. MR imaging was performed on a 1.0T unit. FLAIR MR and CT images were obtained during the acute stage(less than 3 days after ictus) in 10 and 9 cases, respectively, during the subacute stage (4-14 days after ictus) in two cases and one, respectively, and during the chronic stage (more than 15 days after ictus) in two cases and one, respectively. CT was performed before FLAIR MR imaging, and the interval between CT and FLAIR ranged from 24 hours (6 cases) to 2-3 (2 cases) or 4-7 days (3 cases). In each study, the conspicuity of visualization of SAH was graded as excellent, good, fair, or negative at five locations (sylvian fissure, cortical sulci, anterior basal cistern, posterior basal cistern, and perimesencephalic cistern). In all cases, subarachnoid hemorrhages were demonstrated as high signal intensity areas on FLAIR images. The detection rates for SAH on CT and T1-weighted MR images were 100% (11/11) and 89% (8/9), respectively. FLAIR was superior to T1-weighted imaging in the detection of SAH at all sites except the anterior basal cistern (p less than 0.05) and superior to CT in the detection of SAH at the cortical sulci (p less than 0.05). On FLAIR MR images, subarachnoid hemorrhages at all stages are demonstrated as high signal intensity areas; the FLAIR MR sequence is thus considered useful in the detection of SAH. In particular FLAIR is more sensitive than CT for the detection of SAH in the cortical sulci. (author)

Interoperable domain models: the ISO land administration domain model LADM and its external classes

CSIR Research Space (South Africa)

Lemmen, CHJ

2011-09-01

Full Text Available This paper provides a brief overview of one of the first spatial domain standards: a standard for the domain of Land Administration (LA). This standard is in the draft stage of development now (May 2011). The development of domain standards is a...

Homogenization of the evolution Stokes equation in a perforated domain with a stochastic Fourier boundary condition

KAUST Repository

Bessaih, Hakima

2015-04-01

The evolution Stokes equation in a domain containing periodically distributed obstacles subject to Fourier boundary condition on the boundaries is considered. We assume that the dynamic is driven by a stochastic perturbation on the interior of the domain and another stochastic perturbation on the boundaries of the obstacles. We represent the solid obstacles by holes in the fluid domain. The macroscopic (homogenized) equation is derived as another stochastic partial differential equation, defined in the whole non perforated domain. Here, the initial stochastic perturbation on the boundary becomes part of the homogenized equation as another stochastic force. We use the twoscale convergence method after extending the solution with 0 in the holes to pass to the limit. By Itô stochastic calculus, we get uniform estimates on the solution in appropriate spaces. In order to pass to the limit on the boundary integrals, we rewrite them in terms of integrals in the whole domain. In particular, for the stochastic integral on the boundary, we combine the previous idea of rewriting it on the whole domain with the assumption that the Brownian motion is of trace class. Due to the particular boundary condition dealt with, we get that the solution of the stochastic homogenized equation is not divergence free. However, it is coupled with the cell problem that has a divergence free solution. This paper represents an extension of the results of Duan and Wang (Comm. Math. Phys. 275:1508-1527, 2007), where a reaction diffusion equation with a dynamical boundary condition with a noise source term on both the interior of the domain and on the boundary was studied, and through a tightness argument and a pointwise two scale convergence method the homogenized equation was derived. © American Institute of Mathematical Sciences.

Universal public finance of tuberculosis treatment in India: an extended cost-effectiveness analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Verguet, Stéphane; Laxminarayan, Ramanan; Jamison, Dean T

2015-03-01

Universal public finance (UPF)-government financing of an intervention irrespective of who is receiving it-for a health intervention entails consequences in multiple domains. First, UPF increases intervention uptake and hence the extent of consequent health gains. Second, UPF generates financial consequences including the crowding out of private expenditures. Finally, UPF provides insurance either by covering catastrophic expenditures, which would otherwise throw households into poverty or by preventing diseases that cause them. This paper develops a method-extended cost-effectiveness analysis (ECEA)-for evaluating the consequences of UPF in each of these domains. It then illustrates ECEA with an evaluation of UPF for tuberculosis treatment in India. Using plausible values for key parameters, our base case ECEA concludes that the health gains and insurance value of UPF would accrue primarily to the poor. Reductions in out-of-pocket expenditures are more uniformly distributed across income quintiles. A variant on our base case suggests that lowering costs of borrowing for the poor could potentially achieve some of the health gains of UPF, but at the cost of leaving the poor more deeply in debt. © 2014 The Authors. Health Economics published by John Wiley Ltd.

In Vitro Maturation of a Humanized Shark VNAR Domain to Improve Its Biophysical Properties to Facilitate Clinical Development

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

John Steven

2017-10-01

Full Text Available Molecular engineering to increase the percentage identity to common human immunoglobulin sequences of non-human therapeutic antibodies and scaffolds has become standard practice. This strategy is often used to reduce undesirable immunogenic responses, accelerating the clinical development of candidate domains. The first humanized shark variable domain (VNAR was reported by Kovalenko and colleagues and used the anti-human serum albumin (HSA domain, clone E06, as a model to construct a number of humanized versions including huE06v1.10. This study extends this work by using huE06v1.10 as a template to isolate domains with improved biophysical properties and reduced antigenicity. Random mutagenesis was conducted on huE06v1.10 followed by refinement of clones through an off-rate ranking-based selection on target antigen. Many of these next-generation binders retained high affinity for target, together with good species cross-reactivity. Lead domains were assessed for any tendency to dimerize, tolerance to N- and C-terminal fusions, affinity, stability, and relative antigenicity in human dendritic cell assays. Functionality of candidate clones was verified in vivo through the extension of serum half-life in a typical drug format. From these analyses the domain, BA11, exhibited negligible antigenicity, high stability and high affinity for mouse, rat, and HSA. When these attributes were combined with demonstrable functionality in a rat model of PK, the BA11 clone was established as our clinical candidate.

The Extended Enterprise concept

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Larsen, Lars Bjørn; Vesterager, Johan; Gobbi, Chiara

1999-01-01

This paper provides an overview of the work that has been done regarding the Extended Enterprise concept in the Common Concept team of Globeman 21 including references to results deliverables concerning the development of the Extended Enterprise concept. The first section presents the basic concept...... picture from Globeman21, which illustrates the Globeman21 way of realising the Extended Enterprise concept. The second section presents the Globeman21 EE concept in a life cycle perspective, which to a large extent is based on the thoughts and ideas behind GERAM (ISO/DIS 15704)....

Extended Enterprise performance Management

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Bobbink, Maria Lammerdina; Hartmann, Andreas

2014-01-01

The allegiance of partnering organisations and their employees to an Extended Enterprise performance is its proverbial sword of Damocles. Literature on Extended Enterprises focuses on collaboration, inter-organizational integration and learning to avoid diminishing or missing allegiance becoming an

Multifunctionalities driven by ferroic domains

Science.gov (United States)

Yang, J. C.; Huang, Y. L.; He, Q.; Chu, Y. H.

2014-08-01

Considerable attention has been paid to ferroic systems in pursuit of advanced applications in past decades. Most recently, the emergence and development of multiferroics, which exhibit the coexistence of different ferroic natures, has offered a new route to create functionalities in the system. In this manuscript, we step from domain engineering to explore a roadmap for discovering intriguing phenomena and multifunctionalities driven by periodic domain patters. As-grown periodic domains, offering exotic order parameters, periodic local perturbations and the capability of tailoring local spin, charge, orbital and lattice degrees of freedom, are introduced as modeling templates for fundamental studies and novel applications. We discuss related significant findings on ferroic domain, nanoscopic domain walls, and conjunct heterostructures based on the well-organized domain patterns, and end with future prospects and challenges in the field.

Predicting symptomatic cerebral vasospasm after aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage with an artificial neural network in a pediatric population.

Science.gov (United States)

Skoch, Jesse; Tahir, Rizwan; Abruzzo, Todd; Taylor, John M; Zuccarello, Mario; Vadivelu, Sudhakar

2017-12-01

Artificial neural networks (ANN) are increasingly applied to complex medical problem solving algorithms because their outcome prediction performance is superior to existing multiple regression models. ANN can successfully identify symptomatic cerebral vasospasm (SCV) in adults presenting after aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage (aSAH). Although SCV is unusual in children with aSAH, the clinical consequences are severe. Consequently, reliable tools to predict patients at greatest risk for SCV may have significant value. We applied ANN modeling to a consecutive cohort of pediatric aSAH cases to assess its ability to predict SCV. A retrospective chart review was conducted to identify patients met study inclusion criteria. The median age for aSAH patients was 15 years. Ten underwent surgical clipping and 6 underwent endovascular coiling for definitive treatment. One patient experienced SCV and 15 did not. The ANN applied here was able to accurately predict all 16 outcomes. The mean strength of prediction for those who did not exhibit SCV was - 0.86. The strength for the one patient who did exhibit SCV was 0.93. Adult-derived aneurysmal SAH value nodes can be applied to a simple AAN model to accurately predict SCV in children presenting with aSAH. Further work is needed to determine if ANN models can prospectively predict SCV in the pediatric aSAH population in toto; adapted to include mycotic, traumatic, and flow-related origins as well.

Factors Associated with Acute and Chronic Hydrocephalus in Nonaneurysmal Subarachnoid Hemorrhage.

Science.gov (United States)

Kang, Peter; Raya, Amanda; Zipfel, Gregory J; Dhar, Rajat

2016-02-01

Hydrocephalus requiring external ventricular drain (EVD) or shunt placement commonly complicates aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH), but its frequency is not as well known for nonaneurysmal SAH (NA-SAH). Those with diffuse bleeding may have greater risk of hydrocephalus compared to those with a perimesencephalic pattern. We evaluated the frequency of hydrocephalus in NA-SAH and whether imaging factors could predict the need for EVD and shunting. We collected admission clinical and imaging variables for 105 NA-SAH patients, including bicaudate index (BI), Hijdra sum score (HSS), intraventricular hemorrhage (IVH) score, modified Fisher scale (mFS), and bleeding pattern. Hydrocephalus was categorized as acute (need for EVD) or chronic (shunt). We applied logistic regression to determine whether hydrocephalus risk was independently related to bleeding pattern or mediated through blood volume or ventriculomegaly. Acute hydrocephalus was seen in 26 (25%) patients but was more common with diffuse (15/28, 54%) versus perimesencephalic (10/59, 17%, p hydrocephalus had worse clinical grade and higher BI, HSS, and IVH scores. Adjusting the relationship between hydrocephalus and diffuse bleeding for HSS (but not BI) nullified this association. Nine (35%) patients requiring EVD eventually required shunting for chronic hydrocephalus, which was associated with greater blood burden but not poor clinical grade. Acute hydrocephalus occurs in one-quarter of NA-SAH patients. The greater risk in diffuse bleeding appears to be mediated by greater cisternal blood volume but not by greater ventriculomegaly. Imaging characteristics may aid in anticipatory management of hydrocephalus in NA-SAH.

Detecting subarachnoid hemorrhage: Comparison of combined FLAIR/SWI versus CT

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Verma, Rajeev Kumar, E-mail: rajeev.verma@insel.ch [University Institute of Diagnostic and Interventional Neuroradiology, Support Center for Advanced Neuroimaging, University of Bern, Inselspital, Freiburgstrasse 4, 3010 Bern (Switzerland); Kottke, Raimund, E-mail: raimund.kottke@insel.ch [University Institute of Diagnostic and Interventional Neuroradiology, Support Center for Advanced Neuroimaging, University of Bern, Inselspital, Freiburgstrasse 4, 3010 Bern (Switzerland); Andereggen, Lukas, E-mail: lukas.andereggen@insel.ch [Department of Neurosurgery, University of Bern, Inselspital, Freiburgstrasse 4, 3010 Bern (Switzerland); Weisstanner, Christian, E-mail: christian.weisstanner@insel.ch [University Institute of Diagnostic and Interventional Neuroradiology, Support Center for Advanced Neuroimaging, University of Bern, Inselspital, Freiburgstrasse 4, 3010 Bern (Switzerland); Zubler, Christoph, E-mail: christoph.zubler@insel.ch [University Institute of Diagnostic and Interventional Neuroradiology, Support Center for Advanced Neuroimaging, University of Bern, Inselspital, Freiburgstrasse 4, 3010 Bern (Switzerland); Gralla, Jan, E-mail: jan.gralla@insel.ch [University Institute of Diagnostic and Interventional Neuroradiology, Support Center for Advanced Neuroimaging, University of Bern, Inselspital, Freiburgstrasse 4, 3010 Bern (Switzerland); Kiefer, Claus, E-mail: claus.kiefer@insel.ch [University Institute of Diagnostic and Interventional Neuroradiology, Support Center for Advanced Neuroimaging, University of Bern, Inselspital, Freiburgstrasse 4, 3010 Bern (Switzerland); Slotboom, Johannes, E-mail: johannes.slotboom@insel.ch [University Institute of Diagnostic and Interventional Neuroradiology, Support Center for Advanced Neuroimaging, University of Bern, Inselspital, Freiburgstrasse 4, 3010 Bern (Switzerland); and others

2013-09-15

Objectives: Aim of this study was to compare the utility of susceptibility weighted imaging (SWI) with the established diagnostic techniques CT and fluid attenuated inversion recovery (FLAIR) in their detecting capacity of subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH), and further to compare the combined SWI/FLAIR MRI data with CT to evaluate whether MRI is more accurate than CT. Methods: Twenty-five patients with acute SAH underwent CT and MRI within 6 days after symptom onset. Underlying pathology for SAH was head trauma (n = 9), ruptured aneurysm (n = 6), ruptured arteriovenous malformation (n = 2), and spontaneous bleeding (n = 8). SWI, FLAIR, and CT data were analyzed. The anatomical distribution of SAH was subdivided into 8 subarachnoid regions with three peripheral cisterns (frontal-parietal, temporal-occipital, sylvian), two central cisterns and spaces (interhemispheric, intraventricular), and the perimesencephalic, posterior fossa, superior cerebellar cisterns. Results: SAH was detected in a total of 146 subarachnoid regions. CT identified 110 (75.3%), FLAIR 127 (87%), and SWI 129 (88.4%) involved regions. Combined FLAIR and SWI identified all 146 detectable regions (100%). FLAIR was sensitive for frontal-parietal, temporal-occipital and Sylvian cistern SAH, while SWI was particularly sensitive for interhemispheric and intraventricular hemorrhage. Conclusions: By combining SWI and FLAIR, MRI yields a distinctly higher detection rate for SAH than CT alone, particularly due to their complementary detection characteristics in different anatomical regions. Detection strength of SWI is high in central areas, whereas FLAIR shows a better detection rate in peripheral areas.

Relationship between weather conditions and admissions for ischemic stroke and subarachnoid hemorrhage.

Science.gov (United States)

Tarnoki, Adam D; Turker, Acar; Tarnoki, David L; Iyisoy, Mehmet S; Szilagyi, Blanka K; Duong, Hoang; Miskolczi, Laszlo

2017-02-28

To assess impacts of different weather conditions on hospitalizations of patients with ischemic strokes and subarachnoid hemorrhages (SAH) in South Florida. Diagnostic data of patients with spontaneous SAH and strokes were recorded between June 2010 and July 2013. Daily synchronous forecast charts were collected from the National Weather Service and the whole data were matched prospectively. The incidence rate ratio (IRR) was calculated. Increased incidence rate of ischemic stroke was consistent with the daily lowest and highest air pressure (IRR 1.03, P=0.128 and IRR 0.98, P=0.380, respectively), highest air temperature (IRR 0.99, P=0.375), and presence of hurricanes or storms (IRR 0.65, P=0.054). Increased incidence of SAH cases was consistent with daily lowest and highest air pressure (IRR 0.87, P<0.001 and IRR 1.08, P=0.019, respectively) and highest air temperature (IRR 0.98, P<0.001). Presence of hurricanes and/or tropical storms did not influence the frequency of SAH. We found no relationship between the presence of fronts and the admissions for ischemic stroke or SAH. Higher number of ischemic stroke and SAH cases can be expected with the daily lowest and highest air pressure, highest air temperature. Presence of hurricanes or tropical storms increased the risk of ischemic stroke but not the SAH. These findings can help to develop preventive health plans for cerebrovascular diseases.

Text Processing of Domain-Related Information for Individuals with High and Low Domain Knowledge.

Science.gov (United States)

Spilich, George J.; And Others

1979-01-01

The way in which previously acquired knowledge affects the processing on new domain-related information was investigated. Text processing was studied in two groups differing in knowledge of the domain of baseball. A knowledge structure for the domain was constructed, and text propositions were classified. (SW)

A balancing domain decomposition method by constraints for advection-diffusion problems

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Tu, Xuemin; Li, Jing

2008-12-10

The balancing domain decomposition methods by constraints are extended to solving nonsymmetric, positive definite linear systems resulting from the finite element discretization of advection-diffusion equations. A pre-conditioned GMRES iteration is used to solve a Schur complement system of equations for the subdomain interface variables. In the preconditioning step of each iteration, a partially sub-assembled finite element problem is solved. A convergence rate estimate for the GMRES iteration is established, under the condition that the diameters of subdomains are small enough. It is independent of the number of subdomains and grows only slowly with the subdomain problem size. Numerical experiments for several two-dimensional advection-diffusion problems illustrate the fast convergence of the proposed algorithm.

An analysis of infiltration with moisture content distribution in a two-dimensional discretized water content domain

KAUST Repository

Yu, Han; Douglas, Craig C.

2014-01-01

On the basis of unsaturated Darcy's law, the Talbot-Ogden method provides a fast unconditional mass conservative algorithm to simulate groundwater infiltration in various unsaturated soil textures. Unlike advanced reservoir modelling methods that compute unsaturated flow in space, it only discretizes the moisture content domain into a suitable number of bins so that the vertical water movement is estimated piecewise in each bin. The dimensionality of the moisture content domain is extended from one dimensional to two dimensional in this study, which allows us to distinguish pore shapes within the same moisture content range. The vertical movement of water in the extended model imitates the infiltration phase in the Talbot-Ogden method. However, the difference in this extension is the directional redistribution, which represents the horizontal inter-bin flow and causes the water content distribution to have an effect on infiltration. Using this extension, we mathematically analyse the general relationship between infiltration and the moisture content distribution associated with wetting front depths in different bins. We show that a more negatively skewed moisture content distribution can produce a longer ponding time, whereas a higher overall flux cannot be guaranteed in this situation. It is proven on the basis of the water content probability distribution independent of soil textures. To illustrate this analysis, we also present numerical examples for both fine and coarse soil textures.

An analysis of infiltration with moisture content distribution in a two-dimensional discretized water content domain

KAUST Repository

Yu, Han

2014-06-11

On the basis of unsaturated Darcy\\'s law, the Talbot-Ogden method provides a fast unconditional mass conservative algorithm to simulate groundwater infiltration in various unsaturated soil textures. Unlike advanced reservoir modelling methods that compute unsaturated flow in space, it only discretizes the moisture content domain into a suitable number of bins so that the vertical water movement is estimated piecewise in each bin. The dimensionality of the moisture content domain is extended from one dimensional to two dimensional in this study, which allows us to distinguish pore shapes within the same moisture content range. The vertical movement of water in the extended model imitates the infiltration phase in the Talbot-Ogden method. However, the difference in this extension is the directional redistribution, which represents the horizontal inter-bin flow and causes the water content distribution to have an effect on infiltration. Using this extension, we mathematically analyse the general relationship between infiltration and the moisture content distribution associated with wetting front depths in different bins. We show that a more negatively skewed moisture content distribution can produce a longer ponding time, whereas a higher overall flux cannot be guaranteed in this situation. It is proven on the basis of the water content probability distribution independent of soil textures. To illustrate this analysis, we also present numerical examples for both fine and coarse soil textures.

An Extended Chemical Plant Environmental Protection Game on Addressing Uncertainties of Human Adversaries

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Rongxiao; Chen, Feiran; Wang, Yiping; Qiu, Xiaogang

2018-01-01

Chemical production activities in industrial districts pose great threats to the surrounding atmospheric environment and human health. Therefore, developing appropriate and intelligent pollution controlling strategies for the management team to monitor chemical production processes is significantly essential in a chemical industrial district. The literature shows that playing a chemical plant environmental protection (CPEP) game can force the chemical plants to be more compliant with environmental protection authorities and reduce the potential risks of hazardous gas dispersion accidents. However, results of the current literature strictly rely on several perfect assumptions which rarely hold in real-world domains, especially when dealing with human adversaries. To address bounded rationality and limited observability in human cognition, the CPEP game is extended to generate robust schedules of inspection resources for inspection agencies. The present paper is innovative on the following contributions: (i) The CPEP model is extended by taking observation frequency and observation cost of adversaries into account, and thus better reflects the industrial reality; (ii) Uncertainties such as attackers with bounded rationality, attackers with limited observation and incomplete information (i.e., the attacker’s parameters) are integrated into the extended CPEP model; (iii) Learning curve theory is employed to determine the attacker’s observability in the game solver. Results in the case study imply that this work improves the decision-making process for environmental protection authorities in practical fields by bringing more rewards to the inspection agencies and by acquiring more compliance from chemical plants. PMID:29584679

An Extended Chemical Plant Environmental Protection Game on Addressing Uncertainties of Human Adversaries.

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Zhu, Zhengqiu; Chen, Bin; Qiu, Sihang; Wang, Rongxiao; Chen, Feiran; Wang, Yiping; Qiu, Xiaogang

2018-03-27

Chemical production activities in industrial districts pose great threats to the surrounding atmospheric environment and human health. Therefore, developing appropriate and intelligent pollution controlling strategies for the management team to monitor chemical production processes is significantly essential in a chemical industrial district. The literature shows that playing a chemical plant environmental protection (CPEP) game can force the chemical plants to be more compliant with environmental protection authorities and reduce the potential risks of hazardous gas dispersion accidents. However, results of the current literature strictly rely on several perfect assumptions which rarely hold in real-world domains, especially when dealing with human adversaries. To address bounded rationality and limited observability in human cognition, the CPEP game is extended to generate robust schedules of inspection resources for inspection agencies. The present paper is innovative on the following contributions: (i) The CPEP model is extended by taking observation frequency and observation cost of adversaries into account, and thus better reflects the industrial reality; (ii) Uncertainties such as attackers with bounded rationality, attackers with limited observation and incomplete information (i.e., the attacker's parameters) are integrated into the extended CPEP model; (iii) Learning curve theory is employed to determine the attacker's observability in the game solver. Results in the case study imply that this work improves the decision-making process for environmental protection authorities in practical fields by bringing more rewards to the inspection agencies and by acquiring more compliance from chemical plants.

An Extended Chemical Plant Environmental Protection Game on Addressing Uncertainties of Human Adversaries

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Zhengqiu Zhu

2018-03-01

Full Text Available Chemical production activities in industrial districts pose great threats to the surrounding atmospheric environment and human health. Therefore, developing appropriate and intelligent pollution controlling strategies for the management team to monitor chemical production processes is significantly essential in a chemical industrial district. The literature shows that playing a chemical plant environmental protection (CPEP game can force the chemical plants to be more compliant with environmental protection authorities and reduce the potential risks of hazardous gas dispersion accidents. However, results of the current literature strictly rely on several perfect assumptions which rarely hold in real-world domains, especially when dealing with human adversaries. To address bounded rationality and limited observability in human cognition, the CPEP game is extended to generate robust schedules of inspection resources for inspection agencies. The present paper is innovative on the following contributions: (i The CPEP model is extended by taking observation frequency and observation cost of adversaries into account, and thus better reflects the industrial reality; (ii Uncertainties such as attackers with bounded rationality, attackers with limited observation and incomplete information (i.e., the attacker’s parameters are integrated into the extended CPEP model; (iii Learning curve theory is employed to determine the attacker’s observability in the game solver. Results in the case study imply that this work improves the decision-making process for environmental protection authorities in practical fields by bringing more rewards to the inspection agencies and by acquiring more compliance from chemical plants.

Functional interchangeability of late domains, late domain cofactors and ubiquitin in viral budding.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Maria Zhadina

2010-10-01

Full Text Available The membrane scission event that separates nascent enveloped virions from host cell membranes often requires the ESCRT pathway, which can be engaged through the action of peptide motifs, termed late (L- domains, in viral proteins. Viral PTAP and YPDL-like L-domains bind directly to the ESCRT-I and ALIX components of the ESCRT pathway, while PPxY motifs bind Nedd4-like, HECT-domain containing, ubiquitin ligases (e.g. WWP1. It has been unclear precisely how ubiquitin ligase recruitment ultimately leads to particle release. Here, using a lysine-free viral Gag protein derived from the prototypic foamy virus (PFV, where attachment of ubiquitin to Gag can be controlled, we show that several different HECT domains can replace the WWP1 HECT domain in chimeric ubiquitin ligases and drive budding. Moreover, artificial recruitment of isolated HECT domains to Gag is sufficient to stimulate budding. Conversely, the HECT domain becomes dispensable if the other domains of WWP1 are directly fused to an ESCRT-1 protein. In each case where budding is driven by a HECT domain, its catalytic activity is essential, but Gag ubiquitination is dispensable, suggesting that ubiquitin ligation to trans-acting proteins drives budding. Paradoxically, however, we also demonstrate that direct fusion of a ubiquitin moiety to the C-terminus of PFV Gag can also promote budding, suggesting that ubiquitination of Gag can substitute for ubiquitination of trans-acting proteins. Depletion of Tsg101 and ALIX inhibits budding that is dependent on ubiquitin that is fused to Gag, or ligated to trans-acting proteins through the action of a PPxY motif. These studies underscore the flexibility in the ways that the ESCRT pathway can be engaged, and suggest a model in which the identity of the protein to which ubiquitin is attached is not critical for subsequent recruitment of ubiquitin-binding components of the ESCRT pathway and viral budding to proceed.

Supra-physiological folic acid concentrations induce aberrant DNA methylation in normal human cells in vitro.

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Charles, Michelle A; Johnson, Ian T; Belshaw, Nigel J

2012-07-01

The micronutrients folate and selenium may modulate DNA methylation patterns by affecting intracellular levels of the methyl donor S-adenosylmethionine (SAM) and/or the product of methylation reactions S-adenosylhomocysteine (SAH). WI-38 fibroblasts and FHC colon epithelial cells were cultured in the presence of two forms of folate or four forms of selenium at physiologically-relevant doses, and their effects on LINE-1 methylation, gene-specific CpG island (CGI) methylation and intracellular SAM:SAH were determined. At physiologically-relevant doses the forms of folate or selenium had no effect on LINE-1 or CGI methylation, nor on intracellular SAM:SAH. However the commercial cell culture media used for the selenium studies, containing supra-physiological concentrations of folic acid, induced LINE-1 hypomethylation, CGI hypermethylation and decreased intracellular SAM:SAH in both cell lines. We conclude that the exposure of normal human cells to supra-physiological folic acid concentrations present in commercial cell culture media perturbs the intracellular SAM:SAH ratio and induces aberrant DNA methylation.

Systemic lupus erythematosus flare up as acute spinal subarachnoid hemorrhage with bilateral lower limb paralysis

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Xiang Yang

2018-05-01

Full Text Available Subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH is an uncommon complication of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE. Solitary association of fatal spinal SAH as a complication of SLE, has not been encountered much in literature although coexisting acute cerebral and spinal SAH have been associated with SLE. We present a 39-year old female with initial diagnosis of SLE eight years ago who suddenly developed a productive cough, acute abdomen and paralysis of the lower limbs. Magnetic resonance imaging of the spine revealed thoracic spinal SAH with varying degrees of thoracic spinal cord compression. The hemorrhage was total evacuated via surgery. She regained normal function of her lower limbers after the operation with no further neurological complications. One of the rare but fatal complications of SLE is solitary spinal SAH without cranial involvement. The best and most appropriate management of this kind of presentation is surgical decompression of the hematoma with total hemostasis. The cause of hemorrhage should be identified intra-operatively and treated appropriately.

Validity and reliability of haemoglobin colour scale and its comparison with clinical signs in diagnosing anaemia in pregnancy in Ahmedabad, India.

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Bala, D V; Vyas, S; Shukla, A; Tiwari, H; Bhatt, G; Gupta, K

2012-07-01

This study compared the validity of the haemoglobin colour scale (HCS) and clinical signs in diagnosing anaemia against Sahli's haemoglobinometer method as the gold standard, and assessed the reliability of HCS. The sample comprised 129 pregnant women recruited from 6 urban health centres in Ahmedabad. The prevalence of anaemia was 69.8% by Sahli's method, 78.3% by HCS and 89.9% by clinical signs; there was no statistically significant difference between Sahli's method and HCS whereas there was between Sahlis method and clinical signs. The mean haemoglobin level by Sahli's method and HCS differed significantly. The sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value and negative predictive value of HCS was 83.3%, 33.3%, 74.3% and 46.4% respectively and that of clinical signs was 91.1%, 12.8%, 70.7% and 38.5% respectively. Interobserver agreement for HCS was moderate (K = 0.43). Clinical signs are better than HCS for diagnosing anaemia. HCS can be used in the field provided assessors are adequately trained.

Strengthening Purity: Moral Purity as a Mediator of Direct and Extended Cross-Group Friendships on Sexual Prejudice.

Science.gov (United States)

Vezzali, Loris; Brambilla, Marco; Giovannini, Dino; Paolo Colucci, Francesco

2017-01-01

The present research investigated whether enhanced perceptions of moral purity drive the effects of intergroup cross-group friendships on the intentions to interact with homosexuals. High-school students (N = 639) reported their direct and extended cross-group friendships with homosexuals as well as their beliefs regarding the moral character of the sexual minority. Participants further reported their desire to interact with homosexuals in the future. Results showed that both face-to-face encounters and extended contact with homosexuals increased their perceived moral purity, which in turn fostered more positive behavioral intentions. Results further revealed the specific role of moral purity in this sense, as differential perceptions along other moral domains (autonomy and community) had no mediation effects on behavioral tendencies toward homosexuals. The importance of these findings for improving intergroup relations is discussed, together with the importance of integrating research on intergroup contact and morality.

KEJAHATAN NAMA DOMAIN BERKAITAN DENGAN MEREK

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Muhammad Nizar

2018-02-01

Full Text Available Indonesia already has an ITE Law governing domain names in general terms and on certain provisions in chapter VI, but the regulation of domain name crimes is not regulated in the ITE Law as mandated in the academic draft of the ITE Bill. The absence of regulation of domain name norm in the ITE Law creates problems with registrant of domain name (registrant which deliberately register the domain name is bad faith. The characteristic of a crime in a domain name relating to the mark is that the registered domain name has an equation in essence with another party’s well-known brand, the act of doing so by exploiting a reputation for well-known or previously commercially valuable names as domain names for addresses for sites (websites it manages. The Prosecutor may include articles of the KUHP in filing his indictment before the Court during the absence of special regulatory provisions concerning domain name crime.

Ligand binding by PDZ domains

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Chi, Celestine N.; Bach, Anders; Strømgaard, Kristian

2012-01-01

, for example, are particularly rich in these domains. The general function of PDZ domains is to bring proteins together within the appropriate cellular compartment, thereby facilitating scaffolding, signaling, and trafficking events. The many functions of PDZ domains under normal physiological as well...... as pathological conditions have been reviewed recently. In this review, we focus on the molecular details of how PDZ domains bind their protein ligands and their potential as drug targets in this context....

Bilateral Distal Anterior Cerebral Artery Aneurysms Mimicking So-called "Kissing Aneurysms": A Case Report

OpenAIRE

山口, 竜一; 伊藤, 宣行; 前村, 栄治; 塩川, 芳昭; 齋藤, 勇; Ryuichi, YAMAGUCHI; Nobuyuki, ITO; Eiji, MAEMURA; Yoshiaki, SHIOKAWA; Isamu, SAITO; 公立阿伎留病院脳神経外科; 公立阿伎留病院脳神経外科; 公立阿伎留病院脳神経外科; 杏林大学医学部脳神経外科; 杏林大学医学部脳神経外科

2003-01-01

A 71-year-old woman presented disturbance of consciousness due to subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH). A computed tomography (CT) on admission revealed diffuse thick SAH and intracerebral hematoma in the right frontal lobe. Conventional angiography and three-dimensional CT angiography showed symmetrical aneurysms located on the bilateral pericallosal arteries at bifurcation of the callosomarginal arteries. The operation was performed on the next day after onset of SAH. The aneurysms were clipped vi...

[Angiopoietins predict long-term outcomes after aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage during an early period].

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Wang, Yi; Wang, Dong; Wei, Huijie; Tian, Ye; Jiang, Rongcai; Yue, Shuyuan; Zhang, Jianning

2015-05-19

To evaluate the association between serum levels of angiopoietins (Ang) during an early period (within 72 h) and clinical outcomes after aneurysmal subarachnoid haemorrhage (aSAH). This prospective study was conducted at Department of Neurosurgery, Tianjin Medical University General Hospital. Blood samples from 37 aSAH patients were collected at 8 h (or GOSE). Those with GOSE > 5 were counted as a good outcome while those with GOSE ≤ 5 had a poor outcome. A total of 37 patients with aSAH and 39 healthy controls (HC) were enrolled. The aSAH patients showed a significant rise of Ang-1 within 8 h as compared with HC. The outcomes were good (n = 15) and poor (n = 22). Serum Ang-1 at 8 h (or < 8 h), 24 h and 72 h in good outcomers showed significantly higher than that in poor outcomers [(52 ± 24) vs (37 ± 17) mg/L, (62 ± 26) vs (45 ± 17) mg/L, (107 ± 27) vs (72 ± 18) mg/L]. The serum level of Ang-1 at 8 h and 24 h was one of independent risk factors for aSAH patients by multiariable Logistic regression analysis [adjected OR (95% CI) 1.095 (1.015-1.181) and 1.109 (1.016-1.211)] (P < 0.05). High serum level of Ang-1 during an early period (within 72 h) was associated with good outcomers (r = 0.627, P < 0.001). The serum levels of angiopoietins are significantly altered in aSAH patients, especially higher in good outcomers. And abnormal levels of angiopoietins may affect early brain injury (EBI) after SAH, structural integrity and recovery of blood-brain barrier (BBB) and long-term outcomes in aSAH patients.

Psychosocial Comorbidities Related to Return to Work Rates Following Aneurysmal Subarachnoid Hemorrhage.

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Turi, Eleanor R; Conley, Yvette; Crago, Elizabeth; Sherwood, Paula; Poloyac, Samuel M; Ren, Dianxu; Stanfill, Ansley G

2018-05-21

Purpose Ability to return to work (RTW) after stroke has been shown to have positive psychosocial benefits on survivors. Although one-fifth of aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage (aSAH) survivors suffer from poor psychosocial outcomes, the relationship between such outcomes and RTW post-stroke is not clear. This project explores the relationship between age, gender, race, marital status, anxiety and depression and RTW 3 and 12 months post-aSAH. Methods Demographic and clinical variables were collected from the electronic medical record at the time of aSAH admission. Anxiety and depression were assessed at 3 and 12 months post-aSAH using the State Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI) and Beck's Depression Inventory-II (BDI-II) in 121 subjects. RTW for previously employed patients was dichotomized into yes/no at their 3 or 12 month follow-up appointment. Results Older age was significantly associated with failure to RTW at 3 and 12 months post-aSAH (p = 0.003 and 0.011, respectively). Female gender showed a trending but nonsignificant relationship with RTW at 12 months (p = 0.081). High scores of depression, State anxiety, and Trait anxiety all had significant associations with failure to RTW 12 months post-aSAH (0.007 ≤ p ≤ 0.048). At 3 months, there was a significant interaction between older age and high State or Trait anxiety with failure to RTW 12 months post-aSAH (p = 0.025, 0.042 respectively). Conclusions Patients who are older and suffer from poor psychological outcomes are at an increased risk of failing to RTW 1-year post-aSAH. Our interactive results give us information about which patients should be streamlined for therapy to target their psychosocial needs.

First report of important causal relationship between the Adamkiewicz artery vasospasm and dorsal root ganglion cell degeneration in spinal subarachnoid hemorrhage: An experimental study using a rabbit model.

Science.gov (United States)

Turkmenoglu, Osman N; Kanat, Ayhan; Yolas, Coskun; Aydin, Mehmet Dumlu; Ezirmik, Naci; Gundogdu, Cemal

2017-01-01

The blood supply of the lower spinal cord is heavily dependent on the artery of Adamkiewicz. The goal of this study was to elucidate the effects of lumbar subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) on the lumbar 4 dorsal root ganglion (L4DRG) cells secondary to Adamkiewicz artery (AKA) vasospasm. This study was conducted on 20 rabbits, which were randomly divided into three groups: Spinal SAH ( n = 8), serum saline (SS) (SS; n = 6) and control ( n = 6) groups. Experimental spinal SAH was performed. After 20 days, volume values of AKA and neuron density of L4DRG were analyzed. The mean alive neuron density of the L4DRG was 15420 ± 1240/mm 3 and degenerated neuron density was 1045 ± 260/mm 3 in the control group. Whereas, the density of living and degenerated neurons density were 12930 ± 1060/mm 3 and 1365 ± 480/mm 3 in serum saline (SS), 9845 ± 1028/mm 3 and 4560 ± 1340/mm 3 in the SAH group. The mean volume of imaginary AKAs was estimated as 1,250 ± 0,310 mm 3 in the control group and 1,030 ± 0,240 mm 3 in the SF group and 0,910 ± 0,170 mm 3 in SAH group. Volume reduction of the AKAs and neuron density L4DRG were significantly different between the SAH and other two groups ( P < 0.05). Decreased volume of the lumen of the artery of Adamkiewicz was observed in animals with SAH compared with controls. Increased degeneration the L4 dorsal root ganglion in animals with SAH was also noted. Our findings will aid in the planning of future experimental studies and determining the clinical relevance on such studies.