Selection of reference genes for transcriptional analysis of edible tubers of potato (Solanum tuberosum L.).

Science.gov (United States)

Mariot, Roberta Fogliatto; de Oliveira, Luisa Abruzzi; Voorhuijzen, Marleen M; Staats, Martijn; Hutten, Ronald C B; Van Dijk, Jeroen P; Kok, Esther; Frazzon, Jeverson

2015-01-01

Potato (Solanum tuberosum) yield has increased dramatically over the last 50 years and this has been achieved by a combination of improved agronomy and biotechnology efforts. Gene studies are taking place to improve new qualities and develop new cultivars. Reverse transcriptase quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) is a bench-marking analytical tool for gene expression analysis, but its accuracy is highly dependent on a reliable normalization strategy of an invariant reference genes. For this reason, the goal of this work was to select and validate reference genes for transcriptional analysis of edible tubers of potato. To do so, RT-qPCR primers were designed for ten genes with relatively stable expression in potato tubers as observed in RNA-Seq experiments. Primers were designed across exon boundaries to avoid genomic DNA contamination. Differences were observed in the ranking of candidate genes identified by geNorm, NormFinder and BestKeeper algorithms. The ranks determined by geNorm and NormFinder were very similar and for all samples the most stable candidates were C2, exocyst complex component sec3 (SEC3) and ATCUL3/ATCUL3A/CUL3/CUL3A (CUL3A). According to BestKeeper, the importin alpha and ubiquitin-associated/ts-n genes were the most stable. Three genes were selected as reference genes for potato edible tubers in RT-qPCR studies. The first one, called C2, was selected in common by NormFinder and geNorm, the second one is SEC3, selected by NormFinder, and the third one is CUL3A, selected by geNorm. Appropriate reference genes identified in this work will help to improve the accuracy of gene expression quantification analyses by taking into account differences that may be observed in RNA quality or reverse transcription efficiency across the samples.

Energy policy: selected references. [Booklet

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kenwrick-Piercy, E [comp.

1980-01-01

This bibliography is based on material held in the UK Department of Energy Library. Energy-related documents published between 1973 and 1980 are emphasized in the 260 references listed. The bibliography is organized under the major headings of United Kingdom, Irish Republic, World, Western Europe, Eastern Europe, North America, South America, Asia, Australia, New Zealand, Africa, and Middle East. For continuing information on energy policy, 5 useful periodicals are listed.

Impact of the choice of the precipitation reference data set on climate model selection and the resulting climate change signal

Science.gov (United States)

Gampe, D.; Ludwig, R.

2017-12-01

Regional Climate Models (RCMs) that downscale General Circulation Models (GCMs) are the primary tool to project future climate and serve as input to many impact models to assess the related changes and impacts under such climate conditions. Such RCMs are made available through the Coordinated Regional climate Downscaling Experiment (CORDEX). The ensemble of models provides a range of possible future climate changes around the ensemble mean climate change signal. The model outputs however are prone to biases compared to regional observations. A bias correction of these deviations is a crucial step in the impact modelling chain to allow the reproduction of historic conditions of i.e. river discharge. However, the detection and quantification of model biases are highly dependent on the selected regional reference data set. Additionally, in practice due to computational constraints it is usually not feasible to consider the entire ensembles of climate simulations with all members as input for impact models which provide information to support decision-making. Although more and more studies focus on model selection based on the preservation of the climate model spread, a selection based on validity, i.e. the representation of the historic conditions is still a widely applied approach. In this study, several available reference data sets for precipitation are selected to detect the model bias for the reference period 1989 - 2008 over the alpine catchment of the Adige River located in Northern Italy. The reference data sets originate from various sources, such as station data or reanalysis. These data sets are remapped to the common RCM grid at 0.11° resolution and several indicators, such as dry and wet spells, extreme precipitation and general climatology, are calculate to evaluate the capability of the RCMs to produce the historical conditions. The resulting RCM spread is compared against the spread of the reference data set to determine the related uncertainties and

Selection of Reference Genes for Expression Study in Pulp and Seeds of Theobroma grandiflorum (Willd. ex Spreng. Schum.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lucas Ferraz Dos Santos

Full Text Available Cupuassu (Theobroma grandiflorum [Willd. ex Spreng.] Schum is a species of high economic importance in Brazil with great potential at international level due to the multiple uses of both its seeds and pulp in the industry of sweets and cosmetics. For this reason, the cupuassu breeding program focused on the selection of genotypes with high pulp and seed quality-selection associated with the understanding of the mechanisms involved in fruit formation. Gene expression is one of the most used approaches related to such understanding. In this sense, quantitative real-time PCR (qPCR is a powerful tool, since it rapidly and reliably quantifies gene expression levels across different experimental conditions. The analysis by qPCR and the correct interpretation of data depend on signal normalization using reference genes, i.e. genes presenting a uniform pattern of expression in the analyzed samples. Here, we selected and analyzed the expression of five genes from cupuassu (ACP, ACT, GAPDH, MDH, TUB to be used as candidates for reference genes on pulp and seed of young, maturing and mature cupuassu fruits. The evaluation of the gene expression stability was obtained using the NormFinder, geNorm and BestKeeper programs. In general, our results indicated that the GAPDH and MDH genes constituted the best combination as reference genes to analyze the expression of cupuassu samples. To our knowledge, this is the first report of reference gene definition in cupuassu, and these results will support subsequent analysis related to gene expression studies in cupuassu plants subjected to different biotic or abiotic conditions as well as serve as a tool for diversity analysis based on pulp and seed quality.

The value of cows in reference populations for genomic selection of new functional traits

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Buch, Line Hjortø; Kargo, Morten; Berg, Peer

2012-01-01

Today, almost all reference populations consist of progeny tested bulls. However, older progeny tested bulls do not have reliable estimated breeding values (EBV) for new traits. Thus, to be able to select for these new traits, it is necessary to build a reference population. We used a deterministic...... of the direct genomic values (DGV) for a new functional trait, regardless of its heritability. For small-scale recording, we compared two scenarios where the reference population consisted of the 2000 cows with phenotypic records or the 30 sires of these cows in the first year with measurements of the new...... to achieve accuracies of the DGV that enable selection for new functional traits recorded on a large scale within 3 years from commencement of recording; and (iv) a higher heritability benefits a reference population of cows more than a reference population of bulls....

An evaluation of selected herbal reference texts and comparison to published reports of adverse herbal events.

Science.gov (United States)

Haller, Christine A; Anderson, Ilene B; Kim, Susan Y; Blanc, Paul D

2002-01-01

There has been a recent proliferation of medical reference texts intended to guide practitioners whose patients use herbal therapies. We systematically assessed six herbal reference texts to evaluate the information they contain on herbal toxicity. We selected six major herbal references published from 1996 to 2000 to evaluate the adequacy of their toxicological information in light of published adverse events. To identify herbs most relevant to toxicology, we reviewed herbal-related calls to our regional California Poison Control System, San Francisco division (CPCS-SF) in 1998 and identified the 12 herbs (defined as botanical dietary supplements) most frequently involved in these CPCS-SF referrals. We searched Medline (1966 to 2000) to identify published reports of adverse effects potentially related to these same 12 herbs. We scored each herbal reference text on the basis of information inclusiveness for the target 12 herbs, with a maximal overall score of 3. The herbs, identified on the basis of CPCS-SF call frequency were: St John's wort, ma huang, echinacea, guarana, ginkgo, ginseng, valerian, tea tree oil, goldenseal, arnica, yohimbe and kava kava. The overall herbal reference scores ranged from 2.2 to 0.4 (median 1.1). The Natural Medicines Comprehensive Database received the highest overall score and was the most complete and useful reference source. All of the references, however, lacked sufficient information on management of herbal medicine overdose, and several had incorrect overdose management guidelines that could negatively impact patient care. Current herbal reference texts do not contain sufficient information for the assessment and management of adverse health effects of botanical therapies.

Accuracy of genomic selection for alfalfa biomass yield in different reference populations.

Science.gov (United States)

Annicchiarico, Paolo; Nazzicari, Nelson; Li, Xuehui; Wei, Yanling; Pecetti, Luciano; Brummer, E Charles

2015-12-01

Genomic selection based on genotyping-by-sequencing (GBS) data could accelerate alfalfa yield gains, if it displayed moderate ability to predict parent breeding values. Its interest would be enhanced by predicting ability also for germplasm/reference populations other than those for which it was defined. Predicting accuracy may be influenced by statistical models, SNP calling procedures and missing data imputation strategies. Landrace and variety material from two genetically-contrasting reference populations, i.e., 124 elite genotypes adapted to the Po Valley (sub-continental climate; PV population) and 154 genotypes adapted to Mediterranean-climate environments (Me population), were genotyped by GBS and phenotyped in separate environments for dry matter yield of their dense-planted half-sib progenies. Both populations showed no sub-population genetic structure. Predictive accuracy was higher by joint rather than separate SNP calling for the two data sets, and using random forest imputation of missing data. Highest accuracy was obtained using Support Vector Regression (SVR) for PV, and Ridge Regression BLUP and SVR for Me germplasm. Bayesian methods (Bayes A, Bayes B and Bayesian Lasso) tended to be less accurate. Random Forest Regression was the least accurate model. Accuracy attained about 0.35 for Me in the range of 0.30-0.50 missing data, and 0.32 for PV at 0.50 missing data, using at least 10,000 SNP markers. Cross-population predictions based on a smaller subset of common SNPs implied a relative loss of accuracy of about 25% for Me and 30% for PV. Genome-wide association analyses based on large subsets of M. truncatula-aligned markers revealed many SNPs with modest association with yield, and some genome areas hosting putative QTLs. A comparison of genomic vs. conventional selection for parent breeding value assuming 1-year vs. 5-year selection cycles, respectively, indicated over three-fold greater predicted yield gain per unit time for genomic selection

The role of scene type and priming in the processing and selection of a spatial frame of reference

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Katrin eJohannsen

2013-04-01

Full Text Available The selection and processing of a spatial frame of reference (FOR in interpreting verbal scene descriptions is of great interest to psycholinguistics. In this study, we focus on the choice between the relative and the intrinsic FOR, addressing two questions: a does the presence or absence of a background in the scene influence the selection of a FOR, and b what is the effect of a previously selected FOR on the subsequent processing of a different FOR. Our results show that if a scene includes a realistic background, this will make the selection of the relative FOR more likely. We attribute this effect to the facilitation of mental simulation, which enhances the relation between the viewer and the objects. With respect to the response accuracy, we found both a higher (due to FOR priming and a lower accuracy (due to different FOR, while for the response latencies, we only found a delay effect.

Self-reference enhances relational memory in young and older adults.

Science.gov (United States)

Hou, Mingzhu; Grilli, Matthew D; Glisky, Elizabeth L

2017-11-27

The present study investigated the influence of self-reference on two kinds of relational memory, internal source memory and associative memory, in young and older adults. Participants encoded object-location word pairs using the strategies of imagination and sentence generation, either with reference to themselves or to a famous other (i.e., George Clooney or Oprah Winfrey). Both young and older adults showed memory benefits in the self-reference conditions compared to other-reference conditions on both tests, and the self-referential effects in older adults were not limited by low memory or executive functioning. These results suggest that self-reference can benefit relational memory in older adults relatively independently of basic memory and executive functions.

Selection of reference genes for qPCR in hairy root cultures of peanut

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Medrano Giuliana

2011-10-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Hairy root cultures produced via Agrobacterium rhizogenes-mediated transformation have emerged as practical biological models to elucidate the biosynthesis of specialized metabolites. To effectively understand the expression patterns of the genes involved in the metabolic pathways of these compounds, reference genes need to be systematically validated under specific experimental conditions as established by the MIQE (Minimum Information for Publication of Quantitative Real-Time PCR Experiments guidelines. In the present report we describe the first validation of reference genes for RT-qPCR in hairy root cultures of peanut which produce stilbenoids upon elicitor treatments. Results A total of 21 candidate reference genes were evaluated. Nineteen genes were selected based on previous qPCR studies in plants and two were from the T-DNAs transferred from A. rhizogenes. Nucleotide sequences of peanut candidate genes were obtained using their homologous sequences in Arabidopsis. To identify the suitable primers, calibration curves were obtained for each candidate reference gene. After data analysis, 12 candidate genes meeting standard efficiency criteria were selected. The expression stability of these genes was analyzed using geNorm and NormFinder algorithms and a ranking was established based on expression stability of the genes. Candidate reference gene expression was shown to have less variation in methyl jasmonate (MeJA treated root cultures than those treated with sodium acetate (NaOAc. Conclusions This work constitutes the first effort to validate reference genes for RT-qPCR in hairy roots. While these genes were selected under conditions of NaOAc and MeJA treatment, we anticipate these genes to provide good targets for reference genes for hairy roots under a variety of stress conditions. The lead reference genes were a gene encoding for a TATA box binding protein (TBP2 and a gene encoding a ribosomal protein (RPL8C. A

Selection and validation of appropriate reference genes for quantitative real-time PCR analysis in Salvia hispanica.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rahul Gopalam

Full Text Available Quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR has become the most popular choice for gene expression studies. For accurate expression analysis, it is pertinent to select a stable reference gene to normalize the data. It is now known that the expression of internal reference genes varies considerably during developmental stages and under different experimental conditions. For Salvia hispanica, an economically important oilseed crop, there are no reports of stable reference genes till date. In this study, we chose 13 candidate reference genes viz. Actin11 (ACT, Elongation factor 1-alpha (EF1-α, Eukaryotic translation initiation factor 3E (ETIF3E, alpha tubulin (α-TUB, beta tubulin (β-TUB, Glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH, Cyclophilin (CYP, Clathrin adaptor complex (CAC, Serine/threonine-protein phosphatase 2A (PP2A, FtsH protease (FtsH, 18S ribosomal RNA (18S rRNA, S-adenosyl methionine decarboxylase (SAMDC and Rubisco activase (RCA and the expression levels of these genes were assessed in a diverse set of tissue samples representing vegetative stages, reproductive stages and various abiotic stress treatments. Two of the widely used softwares, geNorm and Normfinder were used to evaluate the expression stabilities of these 13 candidate reference genes under different conditions. Results showed that GAPDH and CYP expression remain stable throughout in the different abiotic stress treatments, CAC and PP2A expression were relatively stable under reproductive stages and α-TUB, PP2A and ETIF3E were found to be stably expressed in vegetative stages. Further, the expression levels of Diacylglycerol acyltransferase (DGAT1, a key enzyme in triacylglycerol synthesis was analyzed to confirm the validity of reference genes identified in the study. This is the first systematic study of selection of reference genes in S. hispanica, and will benefit future expression studies in this crop.

Suitable reference genes for real-time PCR in human HBV-related hepatocellular carcinoma with different clinical prognoses

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fu, Li-Yun; Jia, Hu-Liang; Dong, Qiong-Zhu; Wu, Jin-Cai; Zhao, Yue; Zhou, Hai-Jun; Ren, Ning; Ye, Qin-Hai; Qin, Lun-Xiu

2009-01-01

Housekeeping genes are routinely used as endogenous references to account for experimental differences in gene expression assays. However, recent reports show that they could be de-regulated in different diseases, model animals, or even under varied experimental conditions, which may lead to unreliable results and consequently misinterpretations. This study focused on the selection of suitable reference genes for quantitative PCR in human hepatitis B virus (HBV)-related hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) with different clinical outcomes. We evaluated 6 commonly used housekeeping genes' expression levels in 108 HBV-related HCCs' matched tumor and non-tomor tissue samples with different clinical outcomes and 26 normal liver specimens by real-time PCR. The expression stability of the 6 genes was compared using the software programs geNorm and NormFinder. To show the impact of reference genes on data analysis, we took PGK1 as a target gene normalized by each reference gene, and performed one-way ANOVA and the equivalence test. With the geNorm and NormFinder software programs, analysis of TBP and HPRT1 showed the best stability in all tissue samples, while 18s and ACTB were less stable. When 18s or ACTB was used for normalization, no significant difference of PGK1 expression (p > 0.05) was found among HCC tissues with and without metastasis, and normal liver specimens; however, dramatically differences (p < 0.001) were observed when either TBP or the combination of TBP and HPRT1 were selected as reference genes. TBP and HPRT1 are the most reliable reference genes for q-PCR normalization in HBV-related HCC specimens. However, the well-used ACTB and 18S are not suitable, which actually lead to the misinterpretation of the results in gene expression analysis

Computing Relative Free Energies of Solvation using Single Reference Thermodynamic Integration Augmented with Hamiltonian Replica Exchange.

Science.gov (United States)

Khavrutskii, Ilja V; Wallqvist, Anders

2010-11-09

This paper introduces an efficient single-topology variant of Thermodynamic Integration (TI) for computing relative transformation free energies in a series of molecules with respect to a single reference state. The presented TI variant that we refer to as Single-Reference TI (SR-TI) combines well-established molecular simulation methodologies into a practical computational tool. Augmented with Hamiltonian Replica Exchange (HREX), the SR-TI variant can deliver enhanced sampling in select degrees of freedom. The utility of the SR-TI variant is demonstrated in calculations of relative solvation free energies for a series of benzene derivatives with increasing complexity. Noteworthy, the SR-TI variant with the HREX option provides converged results in a challenging case of an amide molecule with a high (13-15 kcal/mol) barrier for internal cis/trans interconversion using simulation times of only 1 to 4 ns.

Reference Gene Selection in the Desert Plant Eremosparton songoricum

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Dao-Yuan Zhang

2012-06-01

Full Text Available Eremosparton songoricum (Litv. Vass. (E. songoricum is a rare and extremely drought-tolerant desert plant that holds promise as a model organism for the identification of genes associated with water deficit stress. Here, we cloned and evaluated the expression of eight candidate reference genes using quantitative real-time reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reactions. The expression of these candidate reference genes was analyzed in a diverse set of 20 samples including various E. songoricum plant tissues exposed to multiple environmental stresses. GeNorm analysis indicated that expression stability varied between the reference genes in the different experimental conditions, but the two most stable reference genes were sufficient for normalization in most conditions. EsEF and Esα-TUB were sufficient for various stress conditions, EsEF and EsACT were suitable for samples of differing germination stages, and EsGAPDHand EsUBQ were most stable across multiple adult tissue samples. The Es18S gene was unsuitable as a reference gene in our analysis. In addition, the expression level of the drought-stress related transcription factor EsDREB2 verified the utility of E. songoricum reference genes and indicated that no single gene was adequate for normalization on its own. This is the first systematic report on the selection of reference genes in E. songoricum, and these data will facilitate future work on gene expression in this species.

Selection of reference genes for tissue/organ samples on day 3 fifth-instar larvae in silkworm, Bombyx mori.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Genhong; Chen, Yanfei; Zhang, Xiaoying; Bai, Bingchuan; Yan, Hao; Qin, Daoyuan; Xia, Qingyou

2018-06-01

The silkworm, Bombyx mori, is one of the world's most economically important insect. Surveying variations in gene expression among multiple tissue/organ samples will provide clues for gene function assignments and will be helpful for identifying genes related to economic traits or specific cellular processes. To ensure their accuracy, commonly used gene expression quantification methods require a set of stable reference genes for data normalization. In this study, 24 candidate reference genes were assessed in 10 tissue/organ samples of day 3 fifth-instar B. mori larvae using geNorm and NormFinder. The results revealed that, using the combination of the expression of BGIBMGA003186 and BGIBMGA008209 was the optimum choice for normalizing the expression data of the B. mori tissue/organ samples. The most stable gene, BGIBMGA003186, is recommended if just one reference gene is used. Moreover, the commonly used reference gene encoding cytoplasmic actin was the least appropriate reference gene of the samples investigated. The reliability of the selected reference genes was further confirmed by evaluating the expression profiles of two cathepsin genes. Our results may be useful for future studies involving the quantification of relative gene expression levels of different tissue/organ samples in B. mori. © 2018 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Event-related potentials during visual selective attention in children of alcoholics.

Science.gov (United States)

van der Stelt, O; Gunning, W B; Snel, J; Kok, A

1998-12-01

Event-related potentials were recorded from 7- to 18-year-old children of alcoholics (COAs, n = 50) and age- and sex-matched control children (n = 50) while they performed a visual selective attention task. The task was to attend selectively to stimuli with a specified color (red or blue) in an attempt to detect the occurrence of target stimuli. COAs manifested a smaller P3b amplitude to attended-target stimuli over the parietal and occipital scalp than did the controls. A more specific analysis indicated that both the attentional relevance and the target properties of the eliciting stimulus determined the observed P3b amplitude differences between COAs and controls. In contrast, no significant group differences were observed in attention-related earlier occurring event-related potential components, referred to as frontal selection positivity, selection negativity, and N2b. These results represent neurophysiological evidence that COAs suffer from deficits at a late (semantic) level of visual selective information processing that are unlikely a consequence of deficits at earlier (sensory) levels of selective processing. The findings support the notion that a reduced visual P3b amplitude in COAs represents a high-level processing dysfunction indicating their increased vulnerability to alcoholism.

Normalization Methods and Selection Strategies for Reference Materials in Stable Isotope Analyses - Review

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Skrzypek, G.; Sadler, R.; Paul, D.; Forizs, I.

2011-01-01

A stable isotope analyst has to make a number of important decisions regarding how to best determine the 'true' stable isotope composition of analysed samples in reference to an international scale. It has to be decided which reference materials should be used, the number of reference materials and how many repetitions of each standard is most appropriate for a desired level of precision, and what normalization procedure should be selected. In this paper we summarise what is known about propagation of uncertainties associated with normalization procedures and propagation of uncertainties associated with reference materials used as anchors for the determination of 'true' values for δ''1''3C and δ''1''8O. Normalization methods Several normalization methods transforming the 'raw' value obtained from mass spectrometers to one of the internationally recognized scales has been developed. However, as summarised by Paul et al. different normalization transforms alone may lead to inconsistencies between laboratories. The most common normalization procedures are: single-point anchoring (versus working gas and certified reference standard), modified single-point normalization, linear shift between the measured and the true isotopic composition of two certified reference standards, two-point and multipoint linear normalization methods. The accuracy of these various normalization methods has been compared by using analytical laboratory data by Paul et al., with the single-point and normalization versus tank calibrations resulting in the largest normalization errors, and that also exceed the analytical uncertainty recommended for δ 13 C. The normalization error depends greatly on the relative differences between the stable isotope composition of the reference material and the sample. On the other hand, the normalization methods using two or more certified reference standards produces a smaller normalization error, if the reference materials are bracketing the whole range of

Characterisation of a reference site for quantifying uncertainties related to soil sampling

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Barbizzi, Sabrina; Zorzi, Paolo de; Belli, Maria; Pati, Alessandra; Sansone, Umberto; Stellato, Luisa; Barbina, Maria; Deluisa, Andrea; Menegon, Sandro; Coletti, Valter

2004-01-01

An integrated approach to quality assurance in soil sampling remains to be accomplished. - The paper reports a methodology adopted to face problems related to quality assurance in soil sampling. The SOILSAMP project, funded by the Environmental Protection Agency of Italy (APAT), is aimed at (i) establishing protocols for soil sampling in different environments; (ii) assessing uncertainties associated with different soil sampling methods in order to select the 'fit-for-purpose' method; (iii) qualifying, in term of trace elements spatial variability, a reference site for national and international inter-comparison exercises. Preliminary results and considerations are illustrated

Bibliography of selected references on the effects of coal mine pollutants on aquatic ecosystems

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Daniels, T F; Daniels, L K; Olsen, R D; Johnson, D O

1979-12-01

This bibliography contains more than 1400 references dealing with field and laboratory research on potential toxicities and disturbances known or postulated to be caused by pollutants found in coal mine effluents. The first of the three sections into which the bibliography is divided contains a select list of published bibliographies and literature reviews. In the second section are references on mine drainage studies, general references on environmental pollutants, and references dealing with two or more specific parameters. The third section includes references for 40 parameters under individual parameter headings. The multi parameter references in the second section are therefore also listed in the third section under individual headings. An author index is also provided.

Selection of Reference Genes for Expression Studies in Diaphorina citri (Hemiptera: Liviidae).

Science.gov (United States)

Bassan, Meire Menezes; Angelotti-Mendonc A, Je Ssika; Alves, Gustavo Rodrigues; Yamamoto, Pedro Takao; Moura O Filho, Francisco de Assis Alves

2017-12-05

The Asian citrus psyllid, Diaphorina citri Kuwayama (Hemiptera: Liviidae), is considered the main vector of the bacteria associated with huanglongbing, a very serious disease that has threatened the world citrus industry. The absence of efficient control management protocols, including a lack of resistant cultivars, has led to the development of different approaches to study this pathosystem. The production of resistant genotypes relies on D. citri gene expression analyses by RT-qPCR to assess control of the vector population. High-quality, reliable RT-qPCR analyses depend upon proper reference gene selection and validation. However, adequate D. citri reference genes have not yet been identified. In the present study, we evaluated the genes EF 1-α, ACT, GAPDH, RPL7, RPL17, and TUB as candidate reference genes for this insect. Gene expression stability was evaluated using the mathematical algorithms deltaCt, NormFinder, BestKeeper, and geNorm, at five insect developmental stages, grown on two different plant hosts [Citrus sinensis (L.) Osbeck (Sapindales: Rutaceae) and Murraya paniculata (L.) Jack (Sapindales: Rutaceae)]. The final gene ranking was calculated using RefFinder software, and the V-ATPase-A gene was selected for validation. According to our results, two reference genes are recommended when different plant hosts and developmental stages are considered. Considering gene expression studies in D. citri grown on M. paniculata, regardless of the insect developmental stage, GAPDH and RPL7 have the best fit as reference genes in RT-qPCR analyses, whereas GAPDH and EF 1-α are recommended as reference genes in insect studies using C. sinensis. © The Author(s) 2017. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Entomological Society of America. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Automatic reference selection for quantitative EEG interpretation: identification of diffuse/localised activity and the active earlobe reference, iterative detection of the distribution of EEG rhythms.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Bei; Wang, Xingyu; Ikeda, Akio; Nagamine, Takashi; Shibasaki, Hiroshi; Nakamura, Masatoshi

2014-01-01

EEG (Electroencephalograph) interpretation is important for the diagnosis of neurological disorders. The proper adjustment of the montage can highlight the EEG rhythm of interest and avoid false interpretation. The aim of this study was to develop an automatic reference selection method to identify a suitable reference. The results may contribute to the accurate inspection of the distribution of EEG rhythms for quantitative EEG interpretation. The method includes two pre-judgements and one iterative detection module. The diffuse case is initially identified by pre-judgement 1 when intermittent rhythmic waveforms occur over large areas along the scalp. The earlobe reference or averaged reference is adopted for the diffuse case due to the effect of the earlobe reference depending on pre-judgement 2. An iterative detection algorithm is developed for the localised case when the signal is distributed in a small area of the brain. The suitable averaged reference is finally determined based on the detected focal and distributed electrodes. The presented technique was applied to the pathological EEG recordings of nine patients. One example of the diffuse case is introduced by illustrating the results of the pre-judgements. The diffusely intermittent rhythmic slow wave is identified. The effect of active earlobe reference is analysed. Two examples of the localised case are presented, indicating the results of the iterative detection module. The focal and distributed electrodes are detected automatically during the repeating algorithm. The identification of diffuse and localised activity was satisfactory compared with the visual inspection. The EEG rhythm of interest can be highlighted using a suitable selected reference. The implementation of an automatic reference selection method is helpful to detect the distribution of an EEG rhythm, which can improve the accuracy of EEG interpretation during both visual inspection and automatic interpretation. Copyright © 2013 IPEM

The Paranormal: A Selected Bibliography of Serials and Reference Works, with Commentary.

Science.gov (United States)

Smith, Charles H.

1997-01-01

Provides bibliography of references and serials to assist acquisitions librarians in selection of the paranormal. Topics include alchemy, astrology, magic, conjuring, witchcraft, paganism, demonology, satanism, voodooism, sorcery, cults, shamanism, UFOs, exobiology, curious physical and biological phenomena, ghosts, poltergeists, haunted places,…

MO-FG-204-02: Reference Image Selection in the Presence of Multiple Scan Realizations

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ruan, D; Dou, T; Thomas, D; Low, D [Deparment of Radiation Oncology, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA (United States)

2015-06-15

Purpose: Fusing information from multiple correlated realizations (e.g., 4DCT) can improve image quality. This process often involves ill-conditioned and asymmetric nonlinear registration and the proper selection of a reference image is important. This work proposes to examine post-registration variation indirectly for such selection, and develops further insights to reduce the number of cross-registrations needed. Methods: We consider each individual scan as a noisy point in the vicinity of an image manifold, related by motion. Nonrigid registration “transports” a scan along the manifold to the reference neighborhood, and the residual is a surrogate for local variation. To test this conjecture, 10 thoracic scans from the same session were reconstructed from a recently developed low-dose helical 4DCT protocol. Pairwise registration was repeated bi-directionally (81 times) and fusion was performed with each candidate reference. The fused image quality was assessed with SNR and CNR. Registration residuals in SSD, harmonic energy, and deformation Jacobian behavior were examined. The semi-symmetry is further utilized to reduce the number of registration needed. Results: The comparison of image quality between single image and fused ones identified reduction of local intensity variance as the major contributor of image quality, boosting SNR and CNR by 5 to 7 folds. This observation further suggests the criticality of good agreement across post-registration images. Triangle inequality on the SSD metric provides a proficient upper-bound and surrogate on such disagreement. Empirical observation also confirms that fused images with high residual SSD have lower SNR and CNR than the ones with low or intermediate SSDs. Registration SSD is structurally close enough to symmetry for reduced computation. Conclusion: Registration residual is shown to be a good predictor of post-fusion image quality and can be used to identify good reference centers. Semi-symmetry of the

Normalization Methods and Selection Strategies for Reference Materials in Stable Isotope Analyes. Review

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Skrzypek, G. [West Australian Biogeochemistry Centre, John de Laeter Centre of Mass Spectrometry, School of Plant Biology, University of Western Australia, Crawley (Australia); Sadler, R. [School of Agricultural and Resource Economics, University of Western Australia, Crawley (Australia); Paul, D. [Department of Civil Engineering (Geosciences), Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur, Kanpur (India); Forizs, I. [Institute for Geochemical Research, Hungarian Academy of Sciences, Budapest (Hungary)

2013-07-15

Stable isotope ratio mass spectrometers are highly precise, but not accurate instruments. Therefore, results have to be normalized to one of the isotope scales (e.g., VSMOW, VPDB) based on well calibrated reference materials. The selection of reference materials, numbers of replicates, {delta}-values of these reference materials and normalization technique have been identified as crucial in determining the uncertainty associated with the final results. The most common normalization techniques and reference materials have been tested using both Monte Carlo simulations and laboratory experiments to investigate aspects of error propagation during the normalization of isotope data. The range of observed differences justifies the need to employ the same sets of standards worldwide for each element and each stable isotope analytical technique. (author)

Reference intervals for selected serum biochemistry analytes in cheetahs Acinonyx jubatus.

Science.gov (United States)

Hudson-Lamb, Gavin C; Schoeman, Johan P; Hooijberg, Emma H; Heinrich, Sonja K; Tordiffe, Adrian S W

2016-02-26

Published haematologic and serum biochemistry reference intervals are very scarce for captive cheetahs and even more for free-ranging cheetahs. The current study was performed to establish reference intervals for selected serum biochemistry analytes in cheetahs. Baseline serum biochemistry analytes were analysed from 66 healthy Namibian cheetahs. Samples were collected from 30 captive cheetahs at the AfriCat Foundation and 36 free-ranging cheetahs from central Namibia. The effects of captivity-status, age, sex and haemolysis score on the tested serum analytes were investigated. The biochemistry analytes that were measured were sodium, potassium, magnesium, chloride, urea and creatinine. The 90% confidence interval of the reference limits was obtained using the non-parametric bootstrap method. Reference intervals were preferentially determined by the non-parametric method and were as follows: sodium (128 mmol/L - 166 mmol/L), potassium (3.9 mmol/L - 5.2 mmol/L), magnesium (0.8 mmol/L - 1.2 mmol/L), chloride (97 mmol/L - 130 mmol/L), urea (8.2 mmol/L - 25.1 mmol/L) and creatinine (88 µmol/L - 288 µmol/L). Reference intervals from the current study were compared with International Species Information System values for cheetahs and found to be narrower. Moreover, age, sex and haemolysis score had no significant effect on the serum analytes in this study. Separate reference intervals for captive and free-ranging cheetahs were also determined. Captive cheetahs had higher urea values, most likely due to dietary factors. This study is the first to establish reference intervals for serum biochemistry analytes in cheetahs according to international guidelines. These results can be used for future health and disease assessments in both captive and free-ranging cheetahs.

Reference intervals for selected serum biochemistry analytes in cheetahs (Acinonyx jubatus

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gavin C. Hudson-Lamb

2016-02-01

Full Text Available Published haematologic and serum biochemistry reference intervals are very scarce for captive cheetahs and even more for free-ranging cheetahs. The current study was performed to establish reference intervals for selected serum biochemistry analytes in cheetahs. Baseline serum biochemistry analytes were analysed from 66 healthy Namibian cheetahs. Samples were collected from 30 captive cheetahs at the AfriCat Foundation and 36 free-ranging cheetahs from central Namibia. The effects of captivity-status, age, sex and haemolysis score on the tested serum analytes were investigated. The biochemistry analytes that were measured were sodium, potassium, magnesium, chloride, urea and creatinine. The 90% confidence interval of the reference limits was obtained using the non-parametric bootstrap method. Reference intervals were preferentially determined by the non-parametric method and were as follows: sodium (128 mmol/L – 166 mmol/L, potassium (3.9 mmol/L – 5.2 mmol/L, magnesium (0.8 mmol/L – 1.2 mmol/L, chloride (97 mmol/L – 130 mmol/L, urea (8.2 mmol/L – 25.1 mmol/L and creatinine (88 µmol/L – 288 µmol/L. Reference intervals from the current study were compared with International Species Information System values for cheetahs and found to be narrower. Moreover, age, sex and haemolysis score had no significant effect on the serum analytes in this study. Separate reference intervals for captive and free-ranging cheetahs were also determined. Captive cheetahs had higher urea values, most likely due to dietary factors. This study is the first to establish reference intervals for serum biochemistry analytes in cheetahs according to international guidelines. These results can be used for future health and disease assessments in both captive and free-ranging cheetahs.

Recruiter Perceptions of Information that Employment References Should Provide to Assist in Making Selection Decisions

Science.gov (United States)

Evuleocha, Stevina U.; Ugbah, Steve D.; Law, Sweety

2009-01-01

Authors investigated perceptions of campus recruiters (N = 168) in the San Francisco Bay Area regarding the importance of 15 types of information they solicit from job applicants' references in making selection decisions. Results suggest campus recruiters should consider 10 types of information to assist them in making selection decisions. Results…

Ground Receiving Station Reference Pair Selection Technique for a Minimum Configuration 3D Emitter Position Estimation Multilateration System

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Abdulmalik Shehu Yaro

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Multilateration estimates aircraft position using the Time Difference Of Arrival (TDOA with a lateration algorithm. The Position Estimation (PE accuracy of the lateration algorithm depends on several factors which are the TDOA estimation error, the lateration algorithm approach, the number of deployed GRSs and the selection of the GRS reference used for the PE process. Using the minimum number of GRSs for 3D emitter PE, a technique based on the condition number calculation is proposed to select the suitable GRS reference pair for improving the accuracy of the PE using the lateration algorithm. Validation of the proposed technique was performed with the GRSs in the square and triangular GRS configuration. For the selected emitter positions, the result shows that the proposed technique can be used to select the suitable GRS reference pair for the PE process. A unity condition number is achieved for GRS pair most suitable for the PE process. Monte Carlo simulation result, in comparison with the fixed GRS reference pair lateration algorithm, shows a reduction in PE error of at least 70% for both GRS in the square and triangular configuration.

Selection of a reference process for treatment of the West Valley alkaline waste

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Holton, L.K.; Wise, B.M.; Bray, L.A.; Pope, J.M.; Carl, D.E.

1984-08-01

As part of the West Valley Demonstration Project (WVDP) the alkaline PUREX supernatant stored in Tank 8D2 will be partially decontaminated by the removal of radiocesium. Four processes for removal of radiocesium from the alkaline supernatant were studied through experimentation and engineering analysis to identify a reference approach for the WVDP. These processes included the use of a zeolite inorganic ion-exchanger (Linde Ionsiv IE-95), an organic ion exchange resin (Duolite CS-100), and two precipitation processes; one using sodium tetraphenylboron (NaTPB) and the other using phosphotungstic acid (PTA). Based upon process performance, safety and environmental considerations, process and equipment complexity and impacts to the waste vitrification system, the zeolite ion-exchange process has been selected by West Valley Nuclear Services, Inc., as the reference supernatant treatment process for the WVDP. This paper will summarize the technical basis for the selection of the zeolite ion-exchange process. 4 figures, 2 tables

Index Selection in Relational Databases

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Choenni, R.S.; Blanken, Henk; Chang, S.C.

Intending to develop a tool which aims to support the physical design of relational databases can not be done without considering the problem of index selection. Generally the problem is split into a primary and secondary index selection problem and the selection is done per table. Whereas much

The importance of information on relatives for the prediction of genomic breeding values and the implications for the makeup of reference data sets in livestock breeding schemes.

Science.gov (United States)

Clark, Samuel A; Hickey, John M; Daetwyler, Hans D; van der Werf, Julius H J

2012-02-09

The theory of genomic selection is based on the prediction of the effects of genetic markers in linkage disequilibrium with quantitative trait loci. However, genomic selection also relies on relationships between individuals to accurately predict genetic value. This study aimed to examine the importance of information on relatives versus that of unrelated or more distantly related individuals on the estimation of genomic breeding values. Simulated and real data were used to examine the effects of various degrees of relationship on the accuracy of genomic selection. Genomic Best Linear Unbiased Prediction (gBLUP) was compared to two pedigree based BLUP methods, one with a shallow one generation pedigree and the other with a deep ten generation pedigree. The accuracy of estimated breeding values for different groups of selection candidates that had varying degrees of relationships to a reference data set of 1750 animals was investigated. The gBLUP method predicted breeding values more accurately than BLUP. The most accurate breeding values were estimated using gBLUP for closely related animals. Similarly, the pedigree based BLUP methods were also accurate for closely related animals, however when the pedigree based BLUP methods were used to predict unrelated animals, the accuracy was close to zero. In contrast, gBLUP breeding values, for animals that had no pedigree relationship with animals in the reference data set, allowed substantial accuracy. An animal's relationship to the reference data set is an important factor for the accuracy of genomic predictions. Animals that share a close relationship to the reference data set had the highest accuracy from genomic predictions. However a baseline accuracy that is driven by the reference data set size and the overall population effective population size enables gBLUP to estimate a breeding value for unrelated animals within a population (breed), using information previously ignored by pedigree based BLUP methods.

Selection of suitable reference genes for RT-qPCR analyses in cyanobacteria.

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Filipe Pinto

Full Text Available Cyanobacteria are a group of photosynthetic prokaryotes that have a diverse morphology, minimal nutritional requirements and metabolic plasticity that has made them attractive organisms to use in biotechnological applications. The use of these organisms as cell factories requires the knowledge of their physiology and metabolism at a systems level. For the quantification of gene transcripts real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR is the standard technique. However, to obtain reliable RT-qPCR results the use and validation of reference genes is mandatory. Towards this goal we have selected and analyzed twelve candidate reference genes from three morphologically distinct cyanobacteria grown under routinely used laboratory conditions. The six genes exhibiting less variation in each organism were evaluated in terms of their expression stability using geNorm, NormFinder and BestKeeper. In addition, the minimum number of reference genes required for normalization was determined. Based on the three algorithms, we provide a list of genes for cyanobacterial RT-qPCR data normalization. To our knowledge, this is the first work on the validation of reference genes for cyanobacteria constituting a valuable starting point for future works.

Reference gene selection for real-time quantitative PCR analysis of the mouse uterus in the peri-implantation period.

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Pengfei Lin

Full Text Available The study of uterine gene expression patterns is valuable for understanding the biological and molecular mechanisms that occur during embryo implantation. Real-time quantitative RT-PCR (qRT-PCR is an extremely sensitive technique that allows for the precise quantification of mRNA abundance; however, selecting stable reference genes suitable for the normalization of qRT-PCR data is required to avoid the misinterpretation of experimental results and erroneous analyses. This study employs several mouse models, including an early pregnancy, a pseudopregnancy, a delayed implantation and activation, an artificial decidualization and a hormonal treatment model; ten candidate reference genes (PPIA, RPLP0, HPRT1, GAPDH, ACTB, TBP, B2M, 18S, UBC and TUBA that are found in uterine tissues were assessed for their suitability as internal controls for relative qRT-PCR quantification. GeNorm(PLUS, NormFinder, and BestKeeper were used to evaluate these candidate reference genes, and all of these methods identified RPLP0 and GAPDH as the most stable candidates and B2M and 18S as the least stable candidates. However, when the different models were analyzed separately, the reference genes exhibited some variation in their expression levels.

Influence of population selection on the 99th percentile reference value for cardiac troponin assays.

Science.gov (United States)

Collinson, Paul O; Heung, Yen Ming; Gaze, David; Boa, Frances; Senior, Roxy; Christenson, Robert; Apple, Fred S

2012-01-01

We sought to determine the effect of patient selection on the 99th reference percentile of 2 sensitive and 1 high-sensitivity (hs) cardiac troponin assays in a well-defined reference population. Individuals>45 years old were randomly selected from 7 representative local community practices. Detailed information regarding the participants was collected via questionnaires. The healthy reference population was defined as individuals who had no history of vascular disease, hypertension, or heavy alcohol intake; were not receiving cardiac medication; and had blood pressure60 mL·min(-1)·(1.73 m2)(-1), and normal cardiac function according to results of echocardiography. Samples were stored at -70 °C until analysis for cardiac troponin I (cTnI) and cardiac troponin T (cTnT) and N-terminal pro-B-type natriuretic peptide. Application of progressively more stringent population selection strategies to the initial baseline population of 545 participants until the only individuals who remained were completely healthy according to the study criteria reduced the number of outliers seen and led to a progressive decrease in the 99th-percentile value obtained for the Roche hs-cTnT assay and the sensitive Beckman cTnI assay but not for the sensitive Siemens Ultra cTnI assay. Furthermore, a sex difference found in the baseline population for the hs-cTnT (P=0.0018) and Beckman cTnI assays (Pstrategy significantly influenced the 99th percentile reference values determined for troponin assays and the observed sex differences in troponin concentrations.

Reference Guide for Teaching Selected Duty Areas from Business, Marketing and Management Occupations.

Science.gov (United States)

Rich, John H.

This reference guide was designed to assist business, marketing, and management educators in locating textbook/instructional materials for use in teaching duty areas and task lists for grades 11-14. Duty areas and task lists are matched with selected textbook/instructional publications for the secretarial, general office clerk, and information…

Predictors of the accuracy of quotation of references in peer-reviewed orthopaedic literature in relation to publications on the scaphoid.

Science.gov (United States)

Buijze, G A; Weening, A A; Poolman, R W; Bhandari, M; Ring, D

2012-02-01

Using inaccurate quotations can propagate misleading information, which might affect the management of patients. The aim of this study was to determine the predictors of quotation inaccuracy in the peer-reviewed orthopaedic literature related to the scaphoid. We randomly selected 100 papers from ten orthopaedic journals. All references were retrieved in full text when available or otherwise excluded. Two observers independently rated all quotations from the selected papers by comparing the claims made by the authors with the data and expressed opinions of the reference source. A statistical analysis determined which article-related factors were predictors of quotation inaccuracy. The mean total inaccuracy rate of the 3840 verified quotes was 7.6%. There was no correlation between the rate of inaccuracy and the impact factor of the journal. Multivariable analysis identified the journal and the type of study (clinical, biomechanical, methodological, case report or review) as important predictors of the total quotation inaccuracy rate. We concluded that inaccurate quotations in the peer-reviewed orthopaedic literature related to the scaphoid were common and slightly more so for certain journals and certain study types. Authors, reviewers and editorial staff play an important role in reducing this inaccuracy.

Selection of reference genes for expression analysis in the entomophthoralean fungus Pandora neoaphidis.

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Chun; Xie, Tingna; Ye, Sudan; Jensen, Annette Bruun; Eilenberg, Jørgen

2016-01-01

The selection of suitable reference genes is crucial for accurate quantification of gene expression and can add to our understanding of host-pathogen interactions. To identify suitable reference genes in Pandora neoaphidis, an obligate aphid pathogenic fungus, the expression of three traditional candidate genes including 18S rRNA(18S), 28S rRNA(28S) and elongation factor 1 alpha-like protein (EF1), were measured by quantitative polymerase chain reaction at different developmental stages (conidia, conidia with germ tubes, short hyphae and elongated hyphae), and under different nutritional conditions. We calculated the expression stability of candidate reference genes using four algorithms including geNorm, NormFinder, BestKeeper and Delta Ct. The analysis results revealed that the comprehensive ranking of candidate reference genes from the most stable to the least stable was 18S (1.189), 28S (1.414) and EF1 (3). The 18S was, therefore, the most suitable reference gene for real-time RT-PCR analysis of gene expression under all conditions. These results will support further studies on gene expression in P. neoaphidis. Copyright © 2015 Sociedade Brasileira de Microbiologia. Published by Elsevier Editora Ltda. All rights reserved.

Selection of reference genes for expression analysis in the entomophthoralean fungus Pandora neoaphidis

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Chun Chen

2016-03-01

Full Text Available Abstract The selection of suitable reference genes is crucial for accurate quantification of gene expression and can add to our understanding of host–pathogen interactions. To identify suitable reference genes in Pandora neoaphidis, an obligate aphid pathogenic fungus, the expression of three traditional candidate genes including 18S rRNA(18S, 28S rRNA(28S and elongation factor 1 alpha-like protein (EF1, were measured by quantitative polymerase chain reaction at different developmental stages (conidia, conidia with germ tubes, short hyphae and elongated hyphae, and under different nutritional conditions. We calculated the expression stability of candidate reference genes using four algorithms including geNorm, NormFinder, BestKeeper and Delta Ct. The analysis results revealed that the comprehensive ranking of candidate reference genes from the most stable to the least stable was 18S (1.189, 28S (1.414 and EF1 (3. The 18S was, therefore, the most suitable reference gene for real-time RT-PCR analysis of gene expression under all conditions. These results will support further studies on gene expression in P. neoaphidis.

Selection of a reference process for treatment of the West Valley alkaline waste

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bray, L.A.; Holton, L.K.; Wise, B.M.; Carl, D.E.; Pope, J.M.

1984-01-01

As part of the West Valley Demonstration Project (WVDP) the alkaline PUREX supernatant stored in Tank 8D2 will be partially decontaminated by the removal of radiocesium. Four processes for removal of radiocesium from the alkaline supernatant were studied through experimentation and engineering analysis to identify a reference approach for the WVDP. These processes included the use of a zeolite inorganic ion-exchanger (Linde Ionsiv IE-95, Ionsiv is a trademark of Union Carbide Company), an organic ion exchange resin (Duolite CS-100, Duolite is a registered trademark of Diamond Shamrock Co) and two precipitation processes; one using sodium tetraphenylboron (NaTPB) and the other using phosphotungsthC acid (PTA). Based upon process performance, safety and environmental considerations, process and equipment complexity and impacts to the waste vitrification system, the zeolite ion-exchange process has been selected by West Valley Nuclear Services, Inc., as the reference supernatant treatment process for the WVDP. This paper summarizes the technical basis for the selection of the zeolite ion-exchange process

Decision support for the selection of reference sites using 137Cs as a soil erosion tracer

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L. Arata

2017-08-01

Full Text Available The classical approach of using 137Cs as a soil erosion tracer is based on the comparison between stable reference sites and sites affected by soil redistribution processes; it enables the derivation of soil erosion and deposition rates. The method is associated with potentially large sources of uncertainty with major parts of this uncertainty being associated with the selection of the reference sites. We propose a decision support tool to Check the Suitability of reference Sites (CheSS. Commonly, the variation among 137Cs inventories of spatial replicate reference samples is taken as the sole criterion to decide on the suitability of a reference inventory. Here we propose an extension of this procedure using a repeated sampling approach, in which the reference sites are resampled after a certain time period. Suitable reference sites are expected to present no significant temporal variation in their decay-corrected 137Cs depth profiles. Possible causes of variation are assessed by a decision tree. More specifically, the decision tree tests for (i uncertainty connected to small-scale variability in 137Cs due to its heterogeneous initial fallout (such as in areas affected by the Chernobyl fallout, (ii signs of erosion or deposition processes and (iii artefacts due to the collection, preparation and measurement of the samples; (iv finally, if none of the above can be assigned, this variation might be attributed to turbation processes (e.g. bioturbation, cryoturbation and mechanical turbation, such as avalanches or rockfalls. CheSS was exemplarily applied in one Swiss alpine valley where the apparent temporal variability called into question the suitability of the selected reference sites. In general we suggest the application of CheSS as a first step towards a comprehensible approach to test for the suitability of reference sites.

Influence of Public Relations and Reference Services on Academic ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

... infrastructure. Keywords: Academic Library, library services, Public relations, Reference Services ... books and journal articles for writing them and doing class assignment. ..... the present economic situation in the country is having adverse ...

A selective annotated bibliography for clinical audiology (1988-2008): reference works.

Science.gov (United States)

Ferrer-Vinent, Susan T; Ferrer-Vinent, Ignacio J

2009-06-01

This is the 1st in a series of 3 planned companion articles that present a selected, annotated, and indexed bibliography of clinical audiology publications from 1988 to 2008. Research and preparation of the bibliography were based on published guidelines, professional audiology experience, and professional librarian experience. This article presents reference works (dictionaries, encyclopedias, handbooks, and manuals). The future planned articles will cover other monographs, periodicals, and online resources. Audiologists and librarians can use these lists as a guide when seeking clinical audiology literature.

Selection and validation of endogenous reference genes for qRT-PCR analysis in leafy spurge (Euphorbia esula.

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Wun S Chao

Full Text Available Quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR is the most important tool in measuring levels of gene expression due to its accuracy, specificity, and sensitivity. However, the accuracy of qRT-PCR analysis strongly depends on transcript normalization using stably expressed reference genes. The aim of this study was to find internal reference genes for qRT-PCR analysis in various experimental conditions for seed, adventitious underground bud, and other organs of leafy spurge. Eleven candidate reference genes (BAM4, PU1, TRP-like, FRO1, ORE9, BAM1, SEU, ARF2, KAPP, ZTL, and MPK4 were selected from among 171 genes based on expression stabilities during seed germination and bud growth. The other ten candidate reference genes were selected from three different sources: (1 3 stably expressed leafy spurge genes (60S, bZIP21, and MD-100 identified from the analyses of leafy spurge microarray data; (2 3 orthologs of Arabidopsis "general purpose" traditional reference genes (GAPDH_1, GAPDH_2, and UBC; and (3 4 orthologs of Arabidopsis stably expressed genes (UBC9, SAND, PTB, and F-box identified from Affymetrix ATH1 whole-genome GeneChip studies. The expression stabilities of these 21 genes were ranked based on the C(T values of 72 samples using four different computation programs including geNorm, Normfinder, BestKeeper, and the comparative ΔC(T method. Our analyses revealed SAND, PTB, ORE9, and ARF2 to be the most appropriate reference genes for accurate normalization of gene expression data. Since SAND and PTB were obtained from 4 orthologs of Arabidopsis, while ORE9 and ARF2 were selected from 171 leafy spurge genes, it was more efficient to identify good reference genes from the orthologs of other plant species that were known to be stably expressed than that of randomly testing endogenous genes. Nevertheless, the two newly identified leafy spurge genes, ORE9 and ARF2, can serve as orthologous candidates in the search for reference genes

Selection of LEU/Th reference fuel for the HTGR-SC/C lead plant

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Turner, R.F.; Neylan, A.J.; Baxter, A.M.; McEachern, D.W.; Stansfield, O.M.

1983-05-01

This paper describes the reference fuel materials for the high-temperature gas-cooled reactor (HTGR) plant for steam cycle/cogeneration (SC/C). A development and testing program carried out in 1978 through 1982 led to the selection of coated fuel particles of uranium-oxycarbide (UCO) for fissile materials and thorium oxide (ThO 2 ) for fertiel materials. Low-enriched uranium (LEU) is the enrichment basis for the HTGR-SC/C application. While UC 2 and UO 2 would also meet the essential criteria for fissile fuel, the UCO, alternative was selected on the basis of improved performance, economics, and process conditions

Transcriptome-wide selection of a reliable set of reference genes for gene expression studies in potato cyst nematodes (Globodera spp.).

Science.gov (United States)

Sabeh, Michael; Duceppe, Marc-Olivier; St-Arnaud, Marc; Mimee, Benjamin

2018-01-01

Relative gene expression analyses by qRT-PCR (quantitative reverse transcription PCR) require an internal control to normalize the expression data of genes of interest and eliminate the unwanted variation introduced by sample preparation. A perfect reference gene should have a constant expression level under all the experimental conditions. However, the same few housekeeping genes selected from the literature or successfully used in previous unrelated experiments are often routinely used in new conditions without proper validation of their stability across treatments. The advent of RNA-Seq and the availability of public datasets for numerous organisms are opening the way to finding better reference genes for expression studies. Globodera rostochiensis is a plant-parasitic nematode that is particularly yield-limiting for potato. The aim of our study was to identify a reliable set of reference genes to study G. rostochiensis gene expression. Gene expression levels from an RNA-Seq database were used to identify putative reference genes and were validated with qRT-PCR analysis. Three genes, GR, PMP-3, and aaRS, were found to be very stable within the experimental conditions of this study and are proposed as reference genes for future work.

Selection of spatial reference frames depends on task's demands

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Greeshma Sharma

2016-12-01

Full Text Available Spatial reference frames (SRF are the means of representing spatial relations or locations either in an egocentric coordinate system (centred on navigator or in an allocentric coordinate system (Centred on object. It is necessary to understand when and how spatial representation switches between allocentric and egocentric reference frames in context to spatial tasks. The objective of this study was to explore if the elementary spatial representation does exist, whether it would remain consistent or change under the influence of a task's demand. Also, we explored how the SRF would assist if the environment is enriched with landmarks, having multiple routes for wayfinding. The results showed that the switching of SRF depends not only on the default representation but also on a task's demand. They also demonstrated that participants who were using allocentric representation performed better in the presence of landmarks.

Geometric Cues, Reference Frames, and the Equivalence of Experienced-Aligned and Novel-Aligned Views in Human Spatial Memory

Science.gov (United States)

Kelly, Jonathan W.; Sjolund, Lori A.; Sturz, Bradley R.

2013-01-01

Spatial memories are often organized around reference frames, and environmental shape provides a salient cue to reference frame selection. To date, however, the environmental cues responsible for influencing reference frame selection remain relatively unknown. To connect research on reference frame selection with that on orientation via…

Selected Reference Books of 1992.

Science.gov (United States)

McIlvaine, Eileen

1993-01-01

Presents an annotated bibliography of 40 recent scholarly and general works of interest to reference workers in university libraries. Topics areas covered include philosophy, religion, language, literature, architecture, economics, law, area studies, Russia and the Soviet Union, women's studies, and Christopher Columbus. New editions and…

Selecting and validating reference genes for quantitative real-time PCR in Plutella xylostella (L.).

Science.gov (United States)

You, Yanchun; Xie, Miao; Vasseur, Liette; You, Minsheng

2018-05-01

Gene expression analysis provides important clues regarding gene functions, and quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR) is a widely used method in gene expression studies. Reference genes are essential for normalizing and accurately assessing gene expression. In the present study, 16 candidate reference genes (ACTB, CyPA, EF1-α, GAPDH, HSP90, NDPk, RPL13a, RPL18, RPL19, RPL32, RPL4, RPL8, RPS13, RPS4, α-TUB, and β-TUB) from Plutella xylostella were selected to evaluate gene expression stability across different experimental conditions using five statistical algorithms (geNorm, NormFinder, Delta Ct, BestKeeper, and RefFinder). The results suggest that different reference genes or combinations of reference genes are suitable for normalization in gene expression studies of P. xylostella according to the different developmental stages, strains, tissues, and insecticide treatments. Based on the given experimental sets, the most stable reference genes were RPS4 across different developmental stages, RPL8 across different strains and tissues, and EF1-α across different insecticide treatments. A comprehensive and systematic assessment of potential reference genes for gene expression normalization is essential for post-genomic functional research in P. xylostella, a notorious pest with worldwide distribution and a high capacity to adapt and develop resistance to insecticides.

Complement Set Reference after Implicitly Small Quantities: An Event-Related Potentials Study

Science.gov (United States)

Ingram, Joanne; Ferguson, Heather J.

2018-01-01

An anaphoric reference to the complement-set is a reference to the set that does not fulfil the predicate of the preceding sentence. Preferred reference to the complement-set has been found in eye movements when a character's implicit desire for a high amount has been denied using a negative emotion. We recorded event-related potentials to examine…

Topology of the Relative Motion: Circular and Eccentric Reference Orbit Cases

Science.gov (United States)

FontdecabaiBaig, Jordi; Metris, Gilles; Exertier, Pierre

2007-01-01

This paper deals with the topology of the relative trajectories in flight formations. The purpose is to study the different types of relative trajectories, their degrees of freedom, and to give an adapted parameterization. The paper also deals with the research of local circular motions. Even if they exist only when the reference orbit is circular, we extrapolate initial conditions to the eccentric reference orbit case.This alternative approach is complementary with traditional approaches in terms of cartesian coordinates or differences of orbital elements.

Reference gene selection for quantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction normalization during in vitro adventitious rooting in Eucalyptus globulus Labill.

Science.gov (United States)

de Almeida, Márcia R; Ruedell, Carolina M; Ricachenevsky, Felipe K; Sperotto, Raul A; Pasquali, Giancarlo; Fett-Neto, Arthur G

2010-09-20

Eucalyptus globulus and its hybrids are very important for the cellulose and paper industry mainly due to their low lignin content and frost resistance. However, rooting of cuttings of this species is recalcitrant and exogenous auxin application is often necessary for good root development. To date one of the most accurate methods available for gene expression analysis is quantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (qPCR); however, reliable use of this technique requires reference genes for normalization. There is no single reference gene that can be regarded as universal for all experiments and biological materials. Thus, the identification of reliable reference genes must be done for every species and experimental approach. The present study aimed at identifying suitable control genes for normalization of gene expression associated with adventitious rooting in E. globulus microcuttings. By the use of two distinct algorithms, geNorm and NormFinder, we have assessed gene expression stability of eleven candidate reference genes in E. globulus: 18S, ACT2, EF2, EUC12, H2B, IDH, SAND, TIP41, TUA, UBI and 33380. The candidate reference genes were evaluated in microccuttings rooted in vitro, in presence or absence of auxin, along six time-points spanning the process of adventitious rooting. Overall, the stability profiles of these genes determined with each one of the algorithms were very similar. Slight differences were observed in the most stable pair of genes indicated by each program: IDH and SAND for geNorm, and H2B and TUA for NormFinder. Both programs identified UBI and 18S as the most variable genes. To validate these results and select the most suitable reference genes, the expression profile of the ARGONAUTE1 gene was evaluated in relation to the most stable candidate genes indicated by each algorithm. Our study showed that expression stability varied between putative reference genes tested in E. globulus. Based on the AGO1 relative expression

Which Individuals To Choose To Update the Reference Population? Minimizing the Loss of Genetic Diversity in Animal Genomic Selection Programs

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sonia E. Eynard

2018-01-01

Full Text Available Genomic selection (GS is commonly used in livestock and increasingly in plant breeding. Relying on phenotypes and genotypes of a reference population, GS allows performance prediction for young individuals having only genotypes. This is expected to achieve fast high genetic gain but with a potential loss of genetic diversity. Existing methods to conserve genetic diversity depend mostly on the choice of the breeding individuals. In this study, we propose a modification of the reference population composition to mitigate diversity loss. Since the high cost of phenotyping is the limiting factor for GS, our findings are of major economic interest. This study aims to answer the following questions: how would decisions on the reference population affect the breeding population, and how to best select individuals to update the reference population and balance maximizing genetic gain and minimizing loss of genetic diversity? We investigated three updating strategies for the reference population: random, truncation, and optimal contribution (OC strategies. OC maximizes genetic merit for a fixed loss of genetic diversity. A French Montbéliarde dairy cattle population with 50K SNP chip genotypes and simulations over 10 generations were used to compare these different strategies using milk production as the trait of interest. Candidates were selected to update the reference population. Prediction bias and both genetic merit and diversity were measured. Changes in the reference population composition slightly affected the breeding population. Optimal contribution strategy appeared to be an acceptable compromise to maintain both genetic gain and diversity in the reference and the breeding populations.

Which Individuals To Choose To Update the Reference Population? Minimizing the Loss of Genetic Diversity in Animal Genomic Selection Programs.

Science.gov (United States)

Eynard, Sonia E; Croiseau, Pascal; Laloë, Denis; Fritz, Sebastien; Calus, Mario P L; Restoux, Gwendal

2018-01-04

Genomic selection (GS) is commonly used in livestock and increasingly in plant breeding. Relying on phenotypes and genotypes of a reference population, GS allows performance prediction for young individuals having only genotypes. This is expected to achieve fast high genetic gain but with a potential loss of genetic diversity. Existing methods to conserve genetic diversity depend mostly on the choice of the breeding individuals. In this study, we propose a modification of the reference population composition to mitigate diversity loss. Since the high cost of phenotyping is the limiting factor for GS, our findings are of major economic interest. This study aims to answer the following questions: how would decisions on the reference population affect the breeding population, and how to best select individuals to update the reference population and balance maximizing genetic gain and minimizing loss of genetic diversity? We investigated three updating strategies for the reference population: random, truncation, and optimal contribution (OC) strategies. OC maximizes genetic merit for a fixed loss of genetic diversity. A French Montbéliarde dairy cattle population with 50K SNP chip genotypes and simulations over 10 generations were used to compare these different strategies using milk production as the trait of interest. Candidates were selected to update the reference population. Prediction bias and both genetic merit and diversity were measured. Changes in the reference population composition slightly affected the breeding population. Optimal contribution strategy appeared to be an acceptable compromise to maintain both genetic gain and diversity in the reference and the breeding populations. Copyright © 2018 Eynard et al.

Validation of commonly used reference genes for sleep-related gene expression studies

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Castro Rosa MRPS

2009-05-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Sleep is a restorative process and is essential for maintenance of mental and physical health. In an attempt to understand the complexity of sleep, multidisciplinary strategies, including genetic approaches, have been applied to sleep research. Although quantitative real time PCR has been used in previous sleep-related gene expression studies, proper validation of reference genes is currently lacking. Thus, we examined the effect of total or paradoxical sleep deprivation (TSD or PSD on the expression stability of the following frequently used reference genes in brain and blood: beta-actin (b-actin, beta-2-microglobulin (B2M, glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH, and hypoxanthine guanine phosphoribosyl transferase (HPRT. Results Neither TSD nor PSD affected the expression stability of all tested genes in both tissues indicating that b-actin, B2M, GAPDH and HPRT are appropriate reference genes for the sleep-related gene expression studies. In order to further verify these results, the relative expression of brain derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF and glycerol-3-phosphate dehydrogenase1 (GPD1 was evaluated in brain and blood, respectively. The normalization with each of four reference genes produced similar pattern of expression in control and sleep deprived rats, but subtle differences in the magnitude of expression fold change were observed which might affect the statistical significance. Conclusion This study demonstrated that sleep deprivation does not alter the expression stability of commonly used reference genes in brain and blood. Nonetheless, the use of multiple reference genes in quantitative RT-PCR is required for the accurate results.

Selection of Reference Genes for qRT-PCR Analysis of Gene Expression in Stipa grandis during Environmental Stresses.

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Dongli Wan

Full Text Available Stipa grandis P. Smirn. is a dominant plant species in the typical steppe of the Xilingole Plateau of Inner Mongolia. Selection of suitable reference genes for the quantitative real-time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR is important for gene expression analysis and research into the molecular mechanisms underlying the stress responses of S. grandis. In the present study, 15 candidate reference genes (EF1 beta, ACT, GAPDH, SamDC, CUL4, CAP, SNF2, SKIP1, SKIP5, SKIP11, UBC2, UBC15, UBC17, UCH, and HERC2 were evaluated for their stability as potential reference genes for qRT-PCR under different stresses. Four algorithms were used: GeNorm, NormFinder, BestKeeper, and RefFinder. The results showed that the most stable reference genes were different under different stress conditions: EF1beta and UBC15 during drought and salt stresses; ACT and GAPDH under heat stress; SKIP5 and UBC17 under cold stress; UBC15 and HERC2 under high pH stress; UBC2 and UBC15 under wounding stress; EF1beta and UBC17 under jasmonic acid treatment; UBC15 and CUL4 under abscisic acid treatment; and HERC2 and UBC17 under salicylic acid treatment. EF1beta and HERC2 were the most suitable genes for the global analysis of all samples. Furthermore, six target genes, SgPOD, SgPAL, SgLEA, SgLOX, SgHSP90 and SgPR1, were selected to validate the most and least stable reference genes under different treatments. Our results provide guidelines for reference gene selection for more accurate qRT-PCR quantification and will promote studies of gene expression in S. grandis subjected to environmental stress.

Auditory Warnings, Signal-Referent Relations, and Natural Indicators: Re-Thinking Theory and Application

Science.gov (United States)

Petocz, Agnes; Keller, Peter E.; Stevens, Catherine J.

2008-01-01

In auditory warning design the idea of the strength of the association between sound and referent has been pivotal. Research has proceeded via constructing classification systems of signal-referent associations and then testing predictions about ease of learning of different levels of signal-referent relation strength across and within different…

Annotated bibliography of selected references on shoreline barrier island deposits with emphasis on Patrick Draw Field, Sweetwater County, Wyoming

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Rawn-Schatzinger, V.; Schatzinger, R.A.

1993-07-01

This bibliography contains 290 annotated references on barrier island and associated depositional environments and reservoirs. It is not an exhaustive compilation of all references on the subject, but rather selected papers on barrier islands, and the depositional processes of formation. Papers that examine the morphology and internal architecture of barrier island deposits, exploration and development technologies are emphasized. Papers were selected that aid in understanding reservoir architecture and engineering technologies to help maximize recovery efficiency from barrier island oil reservoirs. Barrier islands from Wyoming, Montana and the Rocky Mountains basins are extensively covered.

The Sequence of Acquisition of Personal Pronoun Case and Person Reference among 6 Year Old Children in Two Selected Malaysian Kindergartens

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Arshad Abd Samad

2017-03-01

Full Text Available Pronoun case and person reference refer to the position of the pronoun in the sentence and the person the pronoun refers to respectively.  Examining the acquisition of pronoun case and person reference among young children can be insightful as, besides their obvious relevance to language development, both these constructs can have implications on other aspects of child development.  Attention given by children to these various constructs may indicate the importance children place on the concept of ego and self as well as on social relations.  The sequence of acquisition of personal pronouns among these children is therefore an important phenomenon to be examined as it can reflect linguistic and socio-cognitive development.  This largely descriptive study examines the sequence of acquisition of the English pronouns among forty 6 year old Malaysian children learning ESL in two kindergartens.  The children in the study were presented with 33 drawings to assess their familiarity with case and person reference expressed through English personal pronouns.  They were required to select the correct pronoun from three pronouns that were used to describe each drawing.  This paper reports on the accuracy rates for each pronoun and assumes that high accuracy rates indicate a more complete acquisition of the pronoun.  Error forms by the children were also be identified and examined.  Data obtained were compared to acquisition sequences in the literature and general implications related to the acquisition of personal pronouns among children in an ESL setting in Malaysia will be discussed.

Measuring the quality of a quantum reference frame: The relative entropy of frameness

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gour, Gilad; Marvian, Iman; Spekkens, Robert W.

2009-01-01

In the absence of a reference frame for transformations associated with group G, any quantum state that is noninvariant under the action of G may serve as a token of the missing reference frame. We here present a measure of the quality of such a token: the relative entropy of frameness. This is defined as the relative entropy distance between the state of interest and the nearest G-invariant state. Unlike the relative entropy of entanglement, this quantity is straightforward to calculate, and we find it to be precisely equal to the G-asymmetry, a measure of frameness introduced by Vaccaro et al. It is shown to provide an upper bound on the mutual information between the group element encoded into the token and the group element that may be extracted from it by measurement. In this sense, it quantifies the extent to which the token successfully simulates a full reference frame. We also show that despite a suggestive analogy from entanglement theory, the regularized relative entropy of frameness is zero and therefore does not quantify the rate of interconversion between the token and some standard form of quantum reference frame. Finally, we show how these investigations yield an approach to bounding the relative entropy of entanglement.

Selection of reference genes for quantitative real-time PCR in bovine preimplantation embryos

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Van Zeveren Alex

2005-12-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Real-time quantitative PCR is a sensitive and very efficient technique to examine gene transcription patterns in preimplantation embryos, in order to gain information about embryo development and to optimize assisted reproductive technologies. Critical to the succesful application of real-time PCR is careful assay design, reaction optimization and validation to maximize sensitivity and accuracy. In most of the studies published GAPD, ACTB or 18S rRNA have been used as a single reference gene without prior verification of their expression stability. Normalization of the data using unstable controls can result in erroneous conclusions, especially when only one reference gene is used. Results In this study the transcription levels of 8 commonly used reference genes (ACTB, GAPD, Histone H2A, TBP, HPRT1, SDHA, YWHAZ and 18S rRNA were determined at different preimplantation stages (2-cell, 8-cell, blastocyst and hatched blastocyst in order to select the most stable genes to normalize quantitative data within different preimplantation embryo stages. Conclusion Using the geNorm application YWHAZ, GAPD and SDHA were found to be the most stable genes across the examined embryonic stages, while the commonly used ACTB was shown to be highly regulated. We recommend the use of the geometric mean of those 3 reference genes as an accurate normalization factor, which allows small expression differences to be reliably measured.

The Kjeldahl method as a primary reference procedure for total protein in certified reference materials used in clinical chemistry. II. Selection of direct Kjeldahl analysis and its preliminary performance parameters.

Science.gov (United States)

Vinklárková, Bára; Chromý, Vratislav; Šprongl, Luděk; Bittová, Miroslava; Rikanová, Milena; Ohnútková, Ivana; Žaludová, Lenka

2015-01-01

To select a Kjeldahl procedure suitable for the determination of total protein in reference materials used in laboratory medicine, we reviewed in our previous article Kjeldahl methods adopted by clinical chemistry and found an indirect two-step analysis by total Kjeldahl nitrogen corrected for its nonprotein nitrogen and a direct analysis made on isolated protein precipitates. In this article, we compare both procedures on various reference materials. An indirect Kjeldahl method gave falsely lower results than a direct analysis. Preliminary performance parameters qualify the direct Kjeldahl analysis as a suitable primary reference procedure for the certification of total protein in reference laboratories.

Referring Physicians' Tendency to Collaborate With Radiologists in Managing Contrast Media-Related Risk Factors.

Science.gov (United States)

İmamoğlu, Hakan; Doğan, Serap; Erdoğan, Nuri

2018-02-01

The aim of this study was to investigate the tendency of referring physicians to collaborate with radiologists in managing contrast media (CM)-related risk factors. The study was conducted at a single academic hospital. Among 150 referring physicians from various specialties, 51 referring physicians (34%) responded to the invitation letter asking for an interview with a radiologist. During the interview, a modified form of the Control Preferences Scale was administered, in which there were five preferences (each displayed on a separate card) that ranged from the fully active to fully passive involvement of referring physicians in managing CM-related risk factors. A descriptive analysis was performed through categorization of the results depending on the respondents' two most preferred roles. Thirty-six referring physicians (70.5%) preferred a collaborative role, and 15 (29.4%) preferred a noncollaborative role (i.e., remained on either the fully active or fully passive side). Among the referring physicians who preferred a collaborative role, the most common response (n = 15 [29.4%]) was collaborative-active. Referring physicians at the authors' institution have basic cognitive and motivational-affective tone toward collaboration in future teamwork aimed at the management of CM-related risk factors. A modified form of the Control Preferences Scale, as in this study, can be used to investigate the tendency of referring physicians to collaborate with radiologists. The results are discussed from ethical and legal perspectives. Copyright © 2017 American College of Radiology. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Canadian Reference Sources 1980--A Selection.

Science.gov (United States)

Ryder, Dorothy E.

1981-01-01

Provides a bibliography of 52 reference sources and 24 new editions and supplements, excluding annuals. Topics include science and technology, art, history, university courses, regional information, native languages, museums, law, geography, Canadian culture, dissertations, sports, antiques, botany, and a variety of directories. (CHC)

Selection of Suitable Reference Genes for Quantitative Real-time PCR in Sapium sebiferum

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Xue Chen

2017-05-01

Full Text Available Chinese tallow (Sapium sebiferum L. is a promising landscape and bioenergy plant. Measuring gene expression by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR can provide valuable information on gene function. Stably expressed reference genes for normalization are a prerequisite for ensuring the accuracy of the target gene expression level among different samples. However, the reference genes in Chinese tallow have not been systematically validated. In this study, 12 candidate reference genes (18S, GAPDH, UBQ, RPS15, SAND, TIP41, 60S, ACT7, PDF2, APT, TBP, and TUB were investigated with qRT-PCR in 18 samples, including those from different tissues, from plants treated with sucrose and cold stresses. The data were calculated with four common algorithms, geNorm, BestKeeper, NormFinder, and the delta cycle threshold (ΔCt. TIP41 and GAPDH were the most stable for the tissue-specific experiment, GAPDH and 60S for cold treatment, and GAPDH and UBQ for sucrose stresses, while the least stable genes were 60S, TIP41, and 18S respectively. The comprehensive results showed APT, GAPDH, and UBQ to be the top-ranked stable genes across all the samples. The stability of 60S was the lowest during all experiments. These selected reference genes were further validated by comparing the expression profiles of the chalcone synthase gene in Chinese tallow in different samples. The results will help to improve the accuracy of gene expression studies in Chinese tallow.

Selection of Reliable Reference Genes for Gene Expression Studies on Rhododendron molle G. Don.

Science.gov (United States)

Xiao, Zheng; Sun, Xiaobo; Liu, Xiaoqing; Li, Chang; He, Lisi; Chen, Shangping; Su, Jiale

2016-01-01

The quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) approach has become a widely used method to analyze expression patterns of target genes. The selection of an optimal reference gene is a prerequisite for the accurate normalization of gene expression in qRT-PCR. The present study constitutes the first systematic evaluation of potential reference genes in Rhododendron molle G. Don. Eleven candidate reference genes in different tissues and flowers at different developmental stages of R. molle were assessed using the following three software packages: GeNorm, NormFinder, and BestKeeper. The results showed that EF1- α (elongation factor 1-alpha), 18S (18s ribosomal RNA), and RPL3 (ribosomal protein L3) were the most stable reference genes in developing rhododendron flowers and, thus, in all of the tested samples, while tublin ( TUB ) was the least stable. ACT5 (actin), RPL3 , 18S , and EF1- α were found to be the top four choices for different tissues, whereas TUB was not found to favor qRT-PCR normalization in these tissues. Three stable reference genes are recommended for the normalization of qRT-PCR data in R. molle . Furthermore, the expression profiles of RmPSY (phytoene synthase) and RmPDS (phytoene dehydrogenase) were assessed using EF1- α, 18S , ACT5 , RPL3 , and their combination as internals. Similar trends were found, but these trends varied when the least stable reference gene TUB was used. The results further prove that it is necessary to validate the stability of reference genes prior to their use for normalization under different experimental conditions. This study provides useful information for reliable qRT-PCR data normalization in gene studies of R. molle .

Selection of Reliable Reference Genes for Gene Expression Studies on Rhododendron molle G. Don

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Zheng Xiao

2016-10-01

Full Text Available The quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR approach has become a widely used method to analyze expression patterns of target genes. The selection of an optimal reference gene is a prerequisite for the accurate normalization of gene expression in qRT-PCR. The present study constitutes the first systematic evaluation of potential reference genes in Rhododendron molle G. Don. Eleven candidate reference genes in different tissues and flowers at different developmental stages of R. molle were assessed using the following three software packages: GeNorm, NormFinder and BestKeeper. The results showed that EF1-α (elongation factor 1-alpha, 18S (18s ribosomal RNA and RPL3 (ribosomal protein L3 were the most stable reference genes in developing rhododendron flowers and, thus, in all of the tested samples, while tublin (TUB was the least stable. ACT5 (actin, RPL3, 18S and EF1-α were found to be the top four choices for different tissues, whereas TUB was not found to favor qRT-PCR normalization in these tissues. Three stable reference genes are recommended for the normalization of qRT-PCR data in R. molle. Furthermore, the expression profiles of RmPSY (phytoene synthase and RmPDS (phytoene dehydrogenase were assessed using EF1-α, 18S, ACT5, and RPL3 and their combination as internals. Similar trends were found, but these trends varied when the least stable reference gene TUB was used. The results further prove that it is necessary to validate the stability of reference genes prior to their use for normalization under different experimental conditions. This study provides useful information for reliable qRT-PCR data normalization in gene studies of R. molle.

Selection and validation of reference genes for quantitative gene expression analyses in various tissues and seeds at different developmental stages in Bixa orellana L.

Science.gov (United States)

Moreira, Viviane S; Soares, Virgínia L F; Silva, Raner J S; Sousa, Aurizangela O; Otoni, Wagner C; Costa, Marcio G C

2018-05-01

Bixa orellana L., popularly known as annatto, produces several secondary metabolites of pharmaceutical and industrial interest, including bixin, whose molecular basis of biosynthesis remain to be determined. Gene expression analysis by quantitative real-time PCR (qPCR) is an important tool to advance such knowledge. However, correct interpretation of qPCR data requires the use of suitable reference genes in order to reduce experimental variations. In the present study, we have selected four different candidates for reference genes in B. orellana , coding for 40S ribosomal protein S9 (RPS9), histone H4 (H4), 60S ribosomal protein L38 (RPL38) and 18S ribosomal RNA (18SrRNA). Their expression stabilities in different tissues (e.g. flower buds, flowers, leaves and seeds at different developmental stages) were analyzed using five statistical tools (NormFinder, geNorm, BestKeeper, ΔCt method and RefFinder). The results indicated that RPL38 is the most stable gene in different tissues and stages of seed development and 18SrRNA is the most unstable among the analyzed genes. In order to validate the candidate reference genes, we have analyzed the relative expression of a target gene coding for carotenoid cleavage dioxygenase 1 (CCD1) using the stable RPL38 and the least stable gene, 18SrRNA , for normalization of the qPCR data. The results demonstrated significant differences in the interpretation of the CCD1 gene expression data, depending on the reference gene used, reinforcing the importance of the correct selection of reference genes for normalization.

Diverse protist grazers select for virulence-related traits in Legionella

Science.gov (United States)

Amaro, Francisco; Wang, Wen; Gilbert, Jack A; Roger Anderson, O; Shuman, Howard A

2015-01-01

It is generally accepted that selection for resistance to grazing by protists has contributed to the evolution of Legionella pneumophila as a pathogen. Grazing resistance is becoming more generally recognized as having an important role in the ecology and evolution of bacterial pathogenesis. However, selection for grazing resistance presupposes the existence of protist grazers that provide the selective pressure. To determine whether there are protists that graze on pathogenic Legionella species, we investigated the existence of such organisms in a variety of environmental samples. We isolated and characterized diverse protists that graze on L. pneumophila and determined the effects of adding L. pneumophila on the protist community structures in microcosms made from these environmental samples. Several unrelated organisms were able to graze efficiently on L. pneumophila. The community structures of all samples were markedly altered by the addition of L. pneumophila. Surprisingly, some of the Legionella grazers were closely related to species that are known hosts for L. pneumophila, indicating the presence of unknown specificity determinants for this interaction. These results provide the first direct support for the hypothesis that protist grazers exert selective pressure on Legionella to acquire and retain adaptations that contribute to survival, and that these properties are relevant to the ability of the bacteria to cause disease in people. We also report a novel mechanism of killing of amoebae by one Legionella species that requires an intact Type IV secretion system but does not involve intracellular replication. We refer to this phenomenon as ‘food poisoning'. PMID:25575308

Safety-related site characteristics - a relative comparison of the Forsmark reference areas

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Winberg, Anders

2010-12-01

SKB has over the years from 2002 to 2008 conducted site investigations in Forsmark and Laxemar, with associated site modeling, design and safety analysis. In mid-2009 Forsmark was selected on the basis of analysis made as site for a future repository for spent nuclear fuel. Based on defined safety-related geoscientific location factors data from Forsmark are compared in relative terms with data from a number of locations in Sweden, previously studied by SKB. The factors compared include: the rock's composition and structures, future climate evolution, rock mechanical conditions, earthquakes, groundwater flow, groundwater composition, delay of solutes, and the ability to characterize and describe the location. Past comparisons of these properties for the selected sites show that none of these sites collectively show any significant benefit over Forsmark site for a repository. This does not preclude that there may be places on the basis of an overall assessment of geoscientific location factors could be equivalent to Forsmark

Reference chart for relative weight change to detect hypernatraemic dehydration

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Dommelen, P. van; Wouwe, J.P. van; Breuning-Boers, J.M.; Buuren, S. van; Verkerk, P.H.

2007-01-01

Objective: The validity of the rule of thumb that infants may have a weight loss of 10% in the first days after birth is unknown. We assessed the validity of this and other rules to detect breast-fed infants with hypernatraemic dehydration. Design: A reference chart for relative weight change was

Selected, annotated bibliography of studies relevant to the isolation of nuclear wastes. [705 references

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hyder, L.K.; Fore, C.S.; Vaughan, N.D.; Faust, R.A.

1980-09-01

This annotated bibliography of 705 references represents the first in a series to be published by the Ecological Sciences Information Center containing scientific, technical, economic, and regulatory information relevant to nuclear waste isolation. Most references discuss deep geologic disposal, with fewer studies of deep seabed disposal; space disposal is also included. The publication covers both domestic and foreign literature for the period 1954 to 1980. Major chapters selected are Chemical and Physical Aspects; Container Design and Performance; Disposal Site; Envirnmental Transport; General Studies and Reviews; Geology, Hydrology and Site Resources; Regulatory and Economic Aspects; Repository Design and Engineering; Transportation Technology; Waste Production; and Waste Treatment. Specialized data fields have been incorporated to improve the ease and accuracy of locating pertinent references. Specific radionuclides for which data are presented are listed in the Measured Radionuclides field, and specific parameters which affect the migration of these radionuclides are presented in the Measured Parameters field. The references within each chapter are arranged alphabetically by leading author, corporate affiliation, or title of the document. When the author is not given, the corporate affiliation appears first. If these two levels of authorship are not given, the title of the document is used as the identifying level. Indexes are provided for author(s), keywords, subject category, title, geographic location, measured parameters, measured radionuclides, and publication description.

Halitosis and related factors in patient referred to the Clinic of Dentistry, Zahedan

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Tahereh Nosratzehi

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Background: Halitosis is defined as unpleasant odor from the mouth .In %87 of cases the cause of halitosis are located in the oral cavity. It is a medico-social problem that affect a many number of people. purpose of this study was to determine factors involved in halitosis patients were referred to the dental clinic Zahedan. Materials and Methods : 320 people were attending the halitosis or halitophobia for this survey were selected . Selected individuals from eating, drinking, smoking, chewing gum, about 24 hours before sampling was forbidden , and also noted that on examination of brushing, flossing and mouthwash brands do not use . Regarding gingival index periodontal used, in terms of smoking were divided into two groups, consumer and non- consumer - reviews decay and bad restorations through clinical examination and bitewing radiography was performed and the diagnosis of patients with the prosthesis or any the corresponding table were recorded . Crowding teeth were considered . Organoleptic method was used to check for bad breath . Results: The findings of factors such as tooth decay (72%, periodontal disease (47.5%, tounge  coating (17.5% are artificial teeth (13.75% and food impaction, were signficantly  related with halitosis. Conclusion: diagnosis and treatment of halitosis are pramily the responsibility of dentists. It is important for the dentist to have a proper understanding of halitosis and provide correct treatment.

Selection of reliable reference genes for quantitative real-time PCR in human T cells and neutrophils

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Ledderose Carola

2011-10-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background The choice of reliable reference genes is a prerequisite for valid results when analyzing gene expression with real-time quantitative PCR (qPCR. This method is frequently applied to study gene expression patterns in immune cells, yet a thorough validation of potential reference genes is still lacking for most leukocyte subtypes and most models of their in vitro stimulation. In the current study, we evaluated the expression stability of common reference genes in two widely used cell culture models-anti-CD3/CD28 activated T cells and lipopolysaccharide stimulated neutrophils-as well as in unselected untreated leukocytes. Results The mRNA expression of 17 (T cells, 7 (neutrophils or 8 (unselected leukocytes potential reference genes was quantified by reverse transcription qPCR, and a ranking of the preselected candidate genes according to their expression stability was calculated using the programs NormFinder, geNorm and BestKeeper. IPO8, RPL13A, TBP and SDHA were identified as suitable reference genes in T cells. TBP, ACTB and SDHA were stably expressed in neutrophils. TBP and SDHA were also the most stable genes in untreated total blood leukocytes. The critical impact of reference gene selection on the estimated target gene expression is demonstrated for IL-2 and FIH expression in T cells. Conclusions The study provides a shortlist of suitable reference genes for normalization of gene expression data in unstimulated and stimulated T cells, unstimulated and stimulated neutrophils and in unselected leukocytes.

Low-level radioactive waste technology: a selected, annotated bibliography. [416 references

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Fore, C.S.; Carrier, R.F.; Brewster, R.H.; Hyder, L.K.; Barnes, K.A.

1981-10-01

This annotated bibliography of 416 references represents the third in a series to be published by the Hazardous Materials Information Center containing scientific, technical, economic, and regulatory information relevant to low-level radioactive waste technology. The bibliography focuses on disposal site, environmental transport, and waste treatment studies as well as general reviews on the subject. The publication covers both domestic and foreign literature for the period 1951 to 1981. Major chapters selected are Chemical and Physical Aspects; Container Design and Performance; Disposal Site; Environmental Transport; General Studies and Reviews; Geology, Hydrology, and Site Resources; Regulatory and Economic Aspects; Social Aspects; Transportation Technology; Waste Production; and Waste Treatment. Entries in each of the chapters are further classified as a field study, laboratory study, theoretical study, or general overview involving one or more of these research areas.

The mechanisms of determiner selection and its relation to lexical selection : An ERP study

NARCIS (Netherlands)

D'Hooge, Elisah; De Baene, W.; Hartsuiker, Robert J

2016-01-01

The language production literature has given only little attention to the dynamics of closed class word selection, such as determiner selection, and its temporal relation to the selection of open class words. The goal of this paper was to investigate whether determiner selection follows serially

Health-related physical fitness measures: reference values and reference equations for use in clinical practice.

Science.gov (United States)

Tveter, Anne Therese; Dagfinrud, Hanne; Moseng, Tuva; Holm, Inger

2014-07-01

To provide reference values and reference equations for frequently used clinical field tests of health-related physical fitness for use in clinical practice. Cross-sectional design. General community. Convenience sample of volunteers (N=370) between 18 and 90 years of age were recruited from a wide range of settings (ie, work sites, schools, community centers for older adults) and different geographic locations (ie, urban, suburban, rural) in southeastern Norway. Not applicable. The participants conducted 5 clinical field tests (6-minute walk test, stair test, 30-second sit-to-stand test, handgrip test, fingertip-to-floor test). The results of the field tests showed that performance remained unchanged until approximately 50 years of age; after that, performance deteriorated with increasing age. Grip strength (79%), meters walked in 6 minutes (60%), and seconds used on the stair test (59%) could be well predicted by age, sex, height, and weight in participants ≥50 years of age, whereas the performance on all tests was less well predicted in participants clinical practice. Copyright © 2014 American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Expression stability and selection of optimal reference genes for gene expression normalization in early life stage rainbow trout exposed to cadmium and copper.

Science.gov (United States)

Shekh, Kamran; Tang, Song; Niyogi, Som; Hecker, Markus

2017-09-01

Gene expression analysis represents a powerful approach to characterize the specific mechanisms by which contaminants interact with organisms. One of the key considerations when conducting gene expression analyses using quantitative real-time reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) is the selection of appropriate reference genes, which is often overlooked. Specifically, to reach meaningful conclusions when using relative quantification approaches, expression levels of reference genes must be highly stable and cannot vary as a function of experimental conditions. However, to date, information on the stability of commonly used reference genes across developmental stages, tissues and after exposure to contaminants such as metals is lacking for many vertebrate species including teleost fish. Therefore, in this study, we assessed the stability of expression of 8 reference gene candidates in the gills and skin of three different early life-stages of rainbow trout after acute exposure (24h) to two metals, cadmium (Cd) and copper (Cu) using qPCR. Candidate housekeeping genes were: beta actin (b-actin), DNA directed RNA polymerase II subunit I (DRP2), elongation factor-1 alpha (EF1a), glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH), glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD), hypoxanthine phosphoribosyltransferase (HPRT), ribosomal protein L8 (RPL8), and 18S ribosomal RNA (18S). Four algorithms, geNorm, NormFinder, BestKeeper, and the comparative ΔCt method were employed to systematically evaluate the expression stability of these candidate genes under control and exposed conditions as well as across three different life-stages. Finally, stability of genes was ranked by taking geometric means of the ranks established by the different methods. Stability of reference genes was ranked in the following order (from lower to higher stability): HPRT

Adult health study reference papers. Selection of the sample. Characteristics of the sample

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Beebe, G W; Fujisawa, Hideo; Yamasaki, Mitsuru

1960-12-14

The characteristics and selection of the clinical sample have been described in some detail to provide information on the comparability of the exposure groups with respect to factors excluded from the matching criteria and to provide basic descriptive information potentially relevant to individual studies that may be done within the framework of the Adult Health Study. The characteristics under review here are age, sex, many different aspects of residence, marital status, occupation and industry, details of location and shielding ATB, acute radiation signs and symptoms, and prior ABCC medical or pathology examinations. 5 references, 57 tables.

Automatic selection of reference taxa for protein-protein interaction prediction with phylogenetic profiling

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Simonsen, Martin; Maetschke, S.R.; Ragan, M.A.

2012-01-01

Motivation: Phylogenetic profiling methods can achieve good accuracy in predicting protein–protein interactions, especially in prokaryotes. Recent studies have shown that the choice of reference taxa (RT) is critical for accurate prediction, but with more than 2500 fully sequenced taxa publicly......: We present three novel methods for automating the selection of RT, using machine learning based on known protein–protein interaction networks. One of these methods in particular, Tree-Based Search, yields greatly improved prediction accuracies. We further show that different methods for constituting...... phylogenetic profiles often require very different RT sets to support high prediction accuracy....

The relative frequency of common neuromuscular diagnoses in a reference center

OpenAIRE

Cotta, Ana; Paim, Júlia Filardi; Carvalho, Elmano; da-Cunha-Júnior, Antonio Lopes; Navarro, Monica M.; Valicek, Jaquelin; Menezes, Miriam Melo; Nunes, Simone Vilela; Xavier-Neto, Rafael; Baptista Junior, Sidney; Lima, Luciano Romero; Takata, Reinaldo Issao; Vargas, Antonio Pedro

2017-01-01

ABSTRACT The diagnostic procedure in neuromuscular patients is complex. Knowledge of the relative frequency of neuromuscular diseases within the investigated population is important to allow the neurologist to perform the most appropriate diagnostic tests. Objective: To report the relative frequency of common neuromuscular diagnoses in a reference center. Methods: A 17-year chart review of patients with suspicion of myopathy. Results: Among 3,412 examinations, 1,603 (46.98%) yielded confir...

Use of Maximum Likelihood-Mixed Models to select stable reference genes: a case of heat stress response in sheep

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Salces Judit

2011-08-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Reference genes with stable expression are required to normalize expression differences of target genes in qPCR experiments. Several procedures and companion software have been proposed to find the most stable genes. Model based procedures are attractive because they provide a solid statistical framework. NormFinder, a widely used software, uses a model based method. The pairwise comparison procedure implemented in GeNorm is a simpler procedure but one of the most extensively used. In the present work a statistical approach based in Maximum Likelihood estimation under mixed models was tested and compared with NormFinder and geNorm softwares. Sixteen candidate genes were tested in whole blood samples from control and heat stressed sheep. Results A model including gene and treatment as fixed effects, sample (animal, gene by treatment, gene by sample and treatment by sample interactions as random effects with heteroskedastic residual variance in gene by treatment levels was selected using goodness of fit and predictive ability criteria among a variety of models. Mean Square Error obtained under the selected model was used as indicator of gene expression stability. Genes top and bottom ranked by the three approaches were similar; however, notable differences for the best pair of genes selected for each method and the remaining genes of the rankings were shown. Differences among the expression values of normalized targets for each statistical approach were also found. Conclusions Optimal statistical properties of Maximum Likelihood estimation joined to mixed model flexibility allow for more accurate estimation of expression stability of genes under many different situations. Accurate selection of reference genes has a direct impact over the normalized expression values of a given target gene. This may be critical when the aim of the study is to compare expression rate differences among samples under different environmental

Selection and Validation of Reference Genes for Quantitative Real-Time PCR Normalization Under Ethanol Stress Conditions in Oenococcus oeni SD-2a

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Shuai Peng

2018-05-01

Full Text Available The powerful Quantitative real-time PCR (RT-qPCR was widely used to assess gene expression levels, which requires the optimal reference genes used for normalization. Oenococcus oeni (O. oeni, as the one of most important microorganisms in wine industry and the most resistant lactic acid bacteria (LAB species to ethanol, has not been investigated regarding the selection of stable reference genes for RT-qPCR normalization under ethanol stress conditions. In this study, nine candidate reference genes (proC, dnaG, rpoA, ldhD, ddlA, rrs, gyrA, gyrB, and dpoIII were analyzed to determine the most stable reference genes for RT-qPCR in O. oeni SD-2a under different ethanol stress conditions (8, 12, and 16% (v/v ethanol. The transcript stabilities of these genes were evaluated using the algorithms geNorm, NormFinder, and BestKeeper. The results showed that dnaG and dpoIII were selected as the best reference genes across all experimental ethanol conditions. Considering single stress experimental modes, dpoIII and dnaG would be suitable to normalize expression level for 8% ethanol shock treatment, while the combination of gyrA, gyrB, and rrs would be suitable for 12% ethanol shock treatment. proC and gyrB revealed the most stable expression in 16% ethanol shock treatment. This study selected and validated for the first time the reference genes for RT-qPCR normalization in O. oeni SD-2a under ethanol stress conditions.

[Errors in Peruvian medical journals references].

Science.gov (United States)

Huamaní, Charles; Pacheco-Romero, José

2009-01-01

References are fundamental in our studies; an adequate selection is asimportant as an adequate description. To determine the number of errors in a sample of references found in Peruvian medical journals. We reviewed 515 scientific papers references selected by systematic randomized sampling and corroborated reference information with the original document or its citation in Pubmed, LILACS or SciELO-Peru. We found errors in 47,6% (245) of the references, identifying 372 types of errors; the most frequent were errors in presentation style (120), authorship (100) and title (100), mainly due to spelling mistakes (91). References error percentage was high, varied and multiple. We suggest systematic revision of references in the editorial process as well as to extend the discussion on this theme. references, periodicals, research, bibliometrics.

Selection of reliable reference genes in Caenorhabditis elegans for analysis of nanotoxicity.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Yanqiong; Chen, Dongliang; Smith, Michael A; Zhang, Baohong; Pan, Xiaoping

2012-01-01

Despite rapid development and application of a wide range of manufactured metal oxide nanoparticles (NPs), the understanding of potential risks of using NPs is less completed, especially at the molecular level. The nematode Caenorhabditis elegans (C.elegans) has been emerging as an environmental model to study the molecular mechanism of environmental contaminations, using standard genetic tools such as the real-time quantitative PCR (RT-qPCR). The most important factor that may affect the accuracy of RT-qPCR is to choose appropriate genes for normalization. In this study, we selected 13 reference gene candidates (act-1, cdc-42, pmp-3, eif-3.C, actin, act-2, csq-1, Y45F10D.4, tba-1, mdh-1, ama-1, F35G12.2, and rbd-1) to test their expression stability under different doses of nano-copper oxide (CuO 0, 1, 10, and 50 µg/mL) using RT-qPCR. Four algorithms, geNorm, NormFinder, BestKeeper, and the comparative ΔCt method, were employed to evaluate these 13 candidates expressions. As a result, tba-1, Y45F10D.4 and pmp-3 were the most reliable, which may be used as reference genes in future study of nanoparticle-induced genetic response using C.elegans.

Selecting public relations personnel of hospitals by analytic network process.

Science.gov (United States)

Liao, Sen-Kuei; Chang, Kuei-Lun

2009-01-01

This study describes the use of analytic network process (ANP) in the Taiwanese hospital public relations personnel selection process. Starting with interviewing 48 practitioners and executives in north Taiwan, we collected selection criteria. Then, we retained the 12 critical criteria that were mentioned above 40 times by theses respondents, including: interpersonal skill, experience, negotiation, language, ability to follow orders, cognitive ability, adaptation to environment, adaptation to company, emotion, loyalty, attitude, and Response. Finally, we discussed with the 20 executives to take these important criteria into three perspectives to structure the hierarchy for hospital public relations personnel selection. After discussing with practitioners and executives, we find that selecting criteria are interrelated. The ANP, which incorporates interdependence relationships, is a new approach for multi-criteria decision-making. Thus, we apply ANP to select the most optimal public relations personnel of hospitals. An empirical study of public relations personnel selection problems in Taiwan hospitals is conducted to illustrate how the selection procedure works.

Korean Reference HLW Disposal System

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Choi, Heui Joo; Lee, J. Y.; Kim, S. S. (and others)

2008-03-15

This report outlines the results related to the development of Korean Reference Disposal System for High-level radioactive wastes. The research has been supported around for 10 years through a long-term research plan by MOST. The reference disposal method was selected via the first stage of the research during which the technical guidelines for the geological disposal of HLW were determined too. At the second stage of the research, the conceptual design of the reference disposal system was made. For this purpose the characteristics of the reference spent fuels from PWR and CANDU reactors were specified, and the material and specifications of the canisters were determined in term of structural analysis and manufacturing capability in Korea. Also, the mechanical and chemical characteristics of the domestic Ca-bentonite were analyzed in order to supply the basic design parameters of the buffer. Based on these parameters the thermal and mechanical analysis of the near-field was carried out. Thermal-Hydraulic-Mechanical behavior of the disposal system was analyzed. The reference disposal system was proposed through the second year research. At the final third stage of the research, the Korean Reference disposal System including the engineered barrier, surface facilities, and underground facilities was proposed through the performance analysis of the disposal system.

Selection of reference genes for quantitative RT-PCR studies in striped dolphin (Stenella coeruleoalba skin biopsies

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Casini Silvia

2006-09-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Odontocete cetaceans occupy the top position of the marine food-web and are particularly sensitive to the bioaccumulation of lipophilic contaminants. The effects of environmental pollution on these species are highly debated and various ecotoxicological studies have addressed the impact of xenobiotic compounds on marine mammals, raising conservational concerns. Despite its sensitivity, quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR has never been used to quantify gene induction caused by exposure of cetaceans to contaminants. A limitation for the application of qRT-PCR is the need for appropriate reference genes which allow the correct quantification of gene expression. A systematic evaluation of potential reference genes in cetacean skin biopsies is presented, in order to validate future qRT-PCR studies aiming at using the expression of selected genes as non-lethal biomarkers. Results Ten commonly used housekeeping genes (HKGs were partially sequenced in the striped dolphin (Stenella coeruleoalba and, for each gene, PCR primer pairs were specifically designed and tested in qRT-PCR assays. The expression of these potential control genes was examined in 30 striped dolphin skin biopsy samples, obtained from specimens sampled in the north-western Mediterranean Sea. The stability of selected control genes was determined using three different specific VBA applets (geNorm, NormFinder and BestKeeper which produce highly comparable results. Glyceraldehyde-3P-dehydrogenase (GAPDH and tyrosine 3-monooxygenase (YWHAZ always rank as the two most stably expressed HKGs according to the analysis with geNorm and Normfinder, and are defined as optimal control genes by BestKepeer. Ribosomal protein L4 (RPL4 and S18 (RPS18 also exhibit a remarkable stability of their expression levels. On the other hand, transferrin receptor (TFRC, phosphoglycerate kinase 1 (PGK1, hypoxanthine ribosyltransferase (HPRT1 and β-2-microglobin (B2M show variable expression

Selection of reliable reference genes in Caenorhabditis elegans for analysis of nanotoxicity.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yanqiong Zhang

Full Text Available Despite rapid development and application of a wide range of manufactured metal oxide nanoparticles (NPs, the understanding of potential risks of using NPs is less completed, especially at the molecular level. The nematode Caenorhabditis elegans (C.elegans has been emerging as an environmental model to study the molecular mechanism of environmental contaminations, using standard genetic tools such as the real-time quantitative PCR (RT-qPCR. The most important factor that may affect the accuracy of RT-qPCR is to choose appropriate genes for normalization. In this study, we selected 13 reference gene candidates (act-1, cdc-42, pmp-3, eif-3.C, actin, act-2, csq-1, Y45F10D.4, tba-1, mdh-1, ama-1, F35G12.2, and rbd-1 to test their expression stability under different doses of nano-copper oxide (CuO 0, 1, 10, and 50 µg/mL using RT-qPCR. Four algorithms, geNorm, NormFinder, BestKeeper, and the comparative ΔCt method, were employed to evaluate these 13 candidates expressions. As a result, tba-1, Y45F10D.4 and pmp-3 were the most reliable, which may be used as reference genes in future study of nanoparticle-induced genetic response using C.elegans.

Selection of References in Wind Turbine Model Predictive Control Design

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Odgaard, Peter Fogh; Hovgaard, Tobias

2015-01-01

a model predictive controller for a wind turbine. One of the important aspects for a tracking control problem is how to setup the optimal reference tracking problem, as it might be relevant to track, e.g., the three concurrent references: optimal pitch angle, optimal rotational speed, and optimal power......Lowering the cost of energy is one of the major focus areas in the wind turbine industry. Recent research has indicated that wind turbine controllers based on model predictive control methods can be useful in obtaining this objective. A number of design considerations have to be made when designing....... The importance if the individual references differ depending in particular on the wind speed. In this paper we investigate the performance of a reference tracking model predictive controller with two different setups of the used optimal reference signals. The controllers are evaluated using an industrial high...

Selection related to musculoskeletal complaints among employees

NARCIS (Netherlands)

de Zwart, B. C.; Broersen, J. P.; van der Beek, A. J.; Frings-Dresen, M. H.; van Dijk, F. J.

1997-01-01

To (a) describe differences in the outcome of cross sectional and longitudinal analysis on musculoskeletal complaints relative to age and work demands, and (b) to assess the entrance and drop out selection on musculoskeletal complaints among groups of employees relative to age and work demands. A

Fetal biometric parameters: Reference charts for a non-selected risk population from Uberaba, Brazil.

Science.gov (United States)

Peixoto, Alberto Borges; da Cunha Caldas, Taciana Mara Rodrigues; Dulgheroff, Fernando Felix; Martins, Wellington P; Araujo Júnior, Edward

2017-03-01

To establish reference charts for fetal biometric parameters in a non-selected risk population from Uberaba, Southeast of Brazil. A retrospective cross-sectional study was performed among 5656 non-selected risk singleton pregnant women between 14 and 41 weeks of gestation. The ultrasound exams were performed during routine visits of second and third trimesters. Biparietal diameter (BPD) was measured at the level of the thalami and cavum septi pellucidi. Head circumference (HC) was calculated by the following formula: HC = 1.62*(BPD + occipital frontal diameter, OFD). Abdominal circumference (AC) was measured using the following formula: AC = (anteroposterior diameter + transverse abdominal diameter) × 1.57. Femur diaphysis length (FDL) was obtained in the longest axis of femur without including the distal femoral epiphysis. The estimated fetal weight (EFW) was obtained by the Hadlock formula. Polynomial regressions were performed to obtain the best-fit model for each fetal biometric parameter as the function of gestational age (GA). The mean, standard deviations ( SD ), minimum and maximum of BPD (cm), HC (cm), AC (cm), FDL (cm) and EFW (g) were 6.9 ± 1.9 (2.3 - 10.5), 24.51 ± 6.61 (9.1 - 36.4), 22.8 ± 7.3 (7.5 - 41.1), 4.9 ± 1.6 (1.2 - 8.1) and 1365 ± 1019 (103 - 4777), respectively. Second-degree polynomial regressions between the evaluated parameters and GA resulted in the following formulas: BPD = -4.044 + 0.540 × GA - 0.0049 × GA 2 ( R 2 = 0.97); HC= -15.420 + 2.024 GA - 0.0199 × GA 2 ( R 2 = 0.98); AC = -9.579 + 1.329 × GA - 0.0055 × GA 2 ( R 2 = 0.97); FDL = -3.778 + 0.416 × GA - 0.0035 × GA 2 ( R 2 = 0.98) and EFW = 916 - 123 × GA + 4.70 × GA 2 ( R 2 = 0.96); respectively. Reference charts for the fetal biometric parameters in a non-selected risk population from Uberaba, Southeast of Brazil, were established.

Reference Gene Screening for Analyzing Gene Expression Across Goat Tissue

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yu Zhang

2013-12-01

Full Text Available Real-time quantitative PCR (qRT-PCR is one of the important methods for investigating the changes in mRNA expression levels in cells and tissues. Selection of the proper reference genes is very important when calibrating the results of real-time quantitative PCR. Studies on the selection of reference genes in goat tissues are limited, despite the economic importance of their meat and dairy products. We used real-time quantitative PCR to detect the expression levels of eight reference gene candidates (18S, TBP, HMBS, YWHAZ, ACTB, HPRT1, GAPDH and EEF1A2 in ten tissues types sourced from Boer goats. The optimal reference gene combination was selected according to the results determined by geNorm, NormFinder and Bestkeeper software packages. The analyses showed that tissue is an important variability factor in genes expression stability. When all tissues were considered, 18S, TBP and HMBS is the optimal reference combination for calibrating quantitative PCR analysis of gene expression from goat tissues. Dividing data set by tissues, ACTB was the most stable in stomach, small intestine and ovary, 18S in heart and spleen, HMBS in uterus and lung, TBP in liver, HPRT1 in kidney and GAPDH in muscle. Overall, this study provided valuable information about the goat reference genes that can be used in order to perform a proper normalisation when relative quantification by qRT-PCR studies is undertaken.

Time-Dependent Selection of an Optimal Set of Sources to Define a Stable Celestial Reference Frame

Science.gov (United States)

Le Bail, Karine; Gordon, David

2010-01-01

Temporal statistical position stability is required for VLBI sources to define a stable Celestial Reference Frame (CRF) and has been studied in many recent papers. This study analyzes the sources from the latest realization of the International Celestial Reference Frame (ICRF2) with the Allan variance, in addition to taking into account the apparent linear motions of the sources. Focusing on the 295 defining sources shows how they are a good compromise of different criteria, such as statistical stability and sky distribution, as well as having a sufficient number of sources, despite the fact that the most stable sources of the entire ICRF2 are mostly in the Northern Hemisphere. Nevertheless, the selection of a stable set is not unique: studying different solutions (GSF005a and AUG24 from GSFC and OPA from the Paris Observatory) over different time periods (1989.5 to 2009.5 and 1999.5 to 2009.5) leads to selections that can differ in up to 20% of the sources. Observing, recording, and network improvement are some of the causes, showing better stability for the CRF over the last decade than the last twenty years. But this may also be explained by the assumption of stationarity that is not necessarily right for some sources.

OBSERVATIONAL SELECTION EFFECTS AND THE M-σ RELATION

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gueltekin, Kayhan; Richstone, Douglas O.; Tremaine, Scott; Loeb, Abraham

2011-01-01

We examine the possibility that the observed relation between black hole mass and host-galaxy stellar velocity dispersion (the M-σ relation) is biased by an observational selection effect, the difficulty of detecting a black hole whose sphere of influence is smaller than the telescope resolution. In particular, we critically investigate recent claims that the M-σ relation only represents the upper limit to a broad distribution of black hole masses in galaxies of a given velocity dispersion. We find that this hypothesis can be rejected at a high confidence level, at least for the early-type galaxies with relatively high velocity dispersions (median 268 km s -1 ) that comprise most of our sample. We also describe a general procedure for incorporating observational selection effects in estimates of the properties of the M-σ relation. Applying this procedure we find results that are consistent with earlier estimates that did not account for selection effects, although with larger error bars. In particular, (1) the width of the M-σ relation is not significantly increased, (2) the slope and normalization of the M-σ relation are not significantly changed, and (3) most or all luminous early-type galaxies contain central black holes at zero redshift. Our results may not apply to late-type or small galaxies, which are not well represented in our sample.

Roaming Reference: Reinvigorating Reference through Point of Need Service

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kealin M. McCabe

2011-11-01

Full Text Available Roaming reference service was pursued as a way to address declining reference statistics. The service was staffed by librarians armed with iPads over a period of six months during the 2010-2011 academic year. Transactional statistics were collected in relation to query type (Research, Facilitative or Technology, location and approach (librarian to patron, patron to librarian or via chat widget. Overall, roaming reference resulted in an additional 228 reference questions, 67% (n=153 of which were research related. Two iterations of the service were implemented, roaming reference as a standalone service (Fall 2010 and roaming reference integrated with traditional reference desk duties (Winter 2011. The results demonstrate that although the Weller Library’s reference transactions are declining annually, they are not disappearing. For a roaming reference service to succeed, it must be a standalone service provided in addition to traditional reference services. The integration of the two reference models (roaming reference and reference desk resulted in a 56% decline in the total number of roaming reference questions from the previous term. The simple act of roaming has the potential to reinvigorate reference services as a whole, forcing librarians outside their comfort zones, allowing them to reach patrons at their point of need.

TRENDS: A flight test relational database user's guide and reference manual

Science.gov (United States)

Bondi, M. J.; Bjorkman, W. S.; Cross, J. L.

1994-01-01

This report is designed to be a user's guide and reference manual for users intending to access rotocraft test data via TRENDS, the relational database system which was developed as a tool for the aeronautical engineer with no programming background. This report has been written to assist novice and experienced TRENDS users. TRENDS is a complete system for retrieving, searching, and analyzing both numerical and narrative data, and for displaying time history and statistical data in graphical and numerical formats. This manual provides a 'guided tour' and a 'user's guide' for the new and intermediate-skilled users. Examples for the use of each menu item within TRENDS is provided in the Menu Reference section of the manual, including full coverage for TIMEHIST, one of the key tools. This manual is written around the XV-15 Tilt Rotor database, but does include an appendix on the UH-60 Blackhawk database. This user's guide and reference manual establishes a referrable source for the research community and augments NASA TM-101025, TRENDS: The Aeronautical Post-Test, Database Management System, Jan. 1990, written by the same authors.

Survey of reference materials. V. 2: Environmentally related reference materials for trace elements, nuclides and microcontaminants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1996-05-01

The present report presently contains over 250 reference materials with trace element and organic contaminant information on fuel, geological and mineral, anthropogenic disposal, soil reference and miscellaneous reference materials. Not included in the current report is information on most biological and environmental reference materials with trace element, stable isotope, radioisotope and organic contaminant information. 8 refs, tabs

Comparison of relative INAA and k0-INAA using soil and sediment reference materials

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jacimovic, R.

2014-01-01

The objective of this work was to compare the results obtained by the relative INAA and k 0 -INAA methods for the same input parameters (sample mass, nuclear data, net peak area for the same gamma line and the same measurement and same cooling and measurement times). In total eight environmental soil and sediment reference materials (RM) or certified reference materials (CRM) from different producers were analysed. In this work only the recommended or certified values were considered, allowing comparison of the two methods for 30 elements. The results point out that k 0 -INAA possesses superior qualities compared to relative INAA, being insensitive to flux gradients, and independent of recommended/certified values in RMs/CRMs, often used as standards in relative INAA. (author)

Selection and Verification of Candidate Reference Genes for Mature MicroRNA Expression by Quantitative RT-PCR in the Tea Plant (Camellia sinensis

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hui Song

2016-05-01

Full Text Available Quantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR is a rapid and sensitive method for analyzing microRNA (miRNA expression. However, accurate qRT-PCR results depend on the selection of reliable reference genes as internal positive controls. To date, few studies have identified reliable reference genes for differential expression analysis of miRNAs among tissues, and among experimental conditions in plants. In this study, three miRNAs and four non-coding small RNAs (ncRNA were selected as reference candidates, and the stability of their expression was evaluated among different tissues and under different experimental conditions in the tea plant (Camellia sinensis using the geNorm and NormFinder programs. It was shown that miR159a was the best single reference gene in the bud to the fifth leaf, 5S rRNA was the most suitable gene in different organs, miR6149 was the most stable gene when the leaves were attacked by Ectropis oblique and U4, miR5368n and miR159a were the best genes when the leaves were treated by methyl jasmonate (MeJA, salicylic acid (SA and abscisic acid (ABA, respectively. Our results provide suitable reference genes for future investigations on miRNA functions in tea plants.

Predator-induced defences in Daphnia pulex: Selection and evaluation of internal reference genes for gene expression studies with real-time PCR

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gilbert Don

2010-06-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background The planktonic microcrustacean Daphnia pulex is among the best-studied animals in ecological, toxicological and evolutionary research. One aspect that has sustained interest in the study system is the ability of D. pulex to develop inducible defence structures when exposed to predators, such as the phantom midge larvae Chaoborus. The available draft genome sequence for D. pulex is accelerating research to identify genes that confer plastic phenotypes that are regularly cued by environmental stimuli. Yet for quantifying gene expression levels, no experimentally validated set of internal control genes exists for the accurate normalization of qRT-PCR data. Results In this study, we tested six candidate reference genes for normalizing transcription levels of D. pulex genes; alpha tubulin (aTub, glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH, TATA box binding protein (Tbp syntaxin 16 (Stx16, X-box binding protein 1 (Xbp1 and CAPON, a protein associated with the neuronal nitric oxide synthase, were selected on the basis of an earlier study and from microarray studies. One additional gene, a matrix metalloproteinase (MMP, was tested to validate its transcriptional response to Chaoborus, which was earlier observed in a microarray study. The transcription profiles of these seven genes were assessed by qRT-PCR from RNA of juvenile D. pulex that showed induced defences in comparison to untreated control animals. We tested the individual suitability of genes for expression normalization using the programs geNorm, NormFinder and BestKeeper. Intriguingly, Xbp1, Tbp, CAPON and Stx16 were selected as ideal reference genes. Analyses on the relative expression level using the software REST showed that both classical housekeeping candidate genes (aTub and GAPDH were significantly downregulated, whereas the MMP gene was shown to be significantly upregulated, as predicted. aTub is a particularly ill suited reference gene because five copies are

Inequalities in selected health-related Millennium Development ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Inequalities in selected health-related Millennium Development Goals ... and interventions (including health promotion, primary and secondary prevention, ... and ensuring environmental sustainability (through reduction in the use of solid fuels ...

Perceptual quality estimation of H.264/AVC videos using reduced-reference and no-reference models

Science.gov (United States)

Shahid, Muhammad; Pandremmenou, Katerina; Kondi, Lisimachos P.; Rossholm, Andreas; Lövström, Benny

2016-09-01

Reduced-reference (RR) and no-reference (NR) models for video quality estimation, using features that account for the impact of coding artifacts, spatio-temporal complexity, and packet losses, are proposed. The purpose of this study is to analyze a number of potentially quality-relevant features in order to select the most suitable set of features for building the desired models. The proposed sets of features have not been used in the literature and some of the features are used for the first time in this study. The features are employed by the least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO), which selects only the most influential of them toward perceptual quality. For comparison, we apply feature selection in the complete feature sets and ridge regression on the reduced sets. The models are validated using a database of H.264/AVC encoded videos that were subjectively assessed for quality in an ITU-T compliant laboratory. We infer that just two features selected by RR LASSO and two bitstream-based features selected by NR LASSO are able to estimate perceptual quality with high accuracy, higher than that of ridge, which uses more features. The comparisons with competing works and two full-reference metrics also verify the superiority of our models.

Selection and validation of reference genes for gene expression analysis in switchgrass (Panicum virgatum using quantitative real-time RT-PCR.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jacinta Gimeno

Full Text Available Switchgrass (Panicum virgatum has received a lot of attention as a forage and bioenergy crop during the past few years. Gene expression studies are in progress to improve new traits and develop new cultivars. Quantitative real time PCR (qRT-PCR has emerged as an important technique to study gene expression analysis. For accurate and reliable results, normalization of data with reference genes is essential. In this work, we evaluate the stability of expression of genes to use as reference for qRT-PCR in the grass P. virgatum. Eleven candidate reference genes, including eEF-1α, UBQ6, ACT12, TUB6, eIF-4a, GAPDH, SAMDC, TUA6, CYP5, U2AF, and FTSH4, were validated for qRT-PCR normalization in different plant tissues and under different stress conditions. The expression stability of these genes was verified by the use of two distinct algorithms, geNorm and NormFinder. Differences were observed after comparison of the ranking of the candidate reference genes identified by both programs but eEF-1α, eIF-4a, CYP5 and U2AF are ranked as the most stable genes in the samples sets under study. Both programs discard the use of SAMDC and TUA6 for normalization. Validation of the reference genes proposed by geNorm and NormFinder were performed by normalization of transcript abundance of a group of target genes in different samples. Results show similar expression patterns when the best reference genes selected by both programs were used but differences were detected in the transcript abundance of the target genes. Based on the above research, we recommend the use of different statistical algorithms to identify the best reference genes for expression data normalization. The best genes selected in this study will help to improve the quality of gene expression data in a wide variety of samples in switchgrass.

Mutual information spectrum for selection of event-related spatial components. Application to eloquent motor cortex mapping.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alexei eOssadtchi

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Spatial component analysis is often used to explore multidimensional time series data whose sources cannot be measured directly. Several methods may be used to decompose the data into a set of spatial components with temporal loadings. Component selection is of crucial importance, and should be supported by objective criteria. In some applications, the use of a well defined component selection criterion may provide for automation of the analysis.In this paper we describe a novel approach for ranking of spatial components calculated from the EEG or MEG data recorded within evoked response paradigm. Our method is called Mutual Information Spectrum and is based on gauging the amount of mutual information of spatial component temporal loadings with a synthetically created reference signal. We also describe the appropriate randomization based statistical assessment scheme that can be used for selection of components with statistically significant amount of mutual information. Using simulated data with realistic trial to trial variations and SNR corresponding to the real recordings we demonstrate the superior performance characteristics of the described mutual information based measure as compared to a more conventionally used power driven gauge. We also demonstrate the application of the Mutual Information Spectrum for the selection of task-related independent components from real MEG data. We show that the Mutual Information spectrum allows to identify task-related components reliably in a consistent fashion, yielding stable results even from a small number of trials. We conclude that the proposed method fits naturally the information driven nature of ICA and can be used for routine and automatic ranking of independent components calculated from the functional neuroimaging data collected within event-related paradigms.

Reference Value Advisor: a new freeware set of macroinstructions to calculate reference intervals with Microsoft Excel.

Science.gov (United States)

Geffré, Anne; Concordet, Didier; Braun, Jean-Pierre; Trumel, Catherine

2011-03-01

International recommendations for determination of reference intervals have been recently updated, especially for small reference sample groups, and use of the robust method and Box-Cox transformation is now recommended. Unfortunately, these methods are not included in most software programs used for data analysis by clinical laboratories. We have created a set of macroinstructions, named Reference Value Advisor, for use in Microsoft Excel to calculate reference limits applying different methods. For any series of data, Reference Value Advisor calculates reference limits (with 90% confidence intervals [CI]) using a nonparametric method when n≥40 and by parametric and robust methods from native and Box-Cox transformed values; tests normality of distributions using the Anderson-Darling test and outliers using Tukey and Dixon-Reed tests; displays the distribution of values in dot plots and histograms and constructs Q-Q plots for visual inspection of normality; and provides minimal guidelines in the form of comments based on international recommendations. The critical steps in determination of reference intervals are correct selection of as many reference individuals as possible and analysis of specimens in controlled preanalytical and analytical conditions. Computing tools cannot compensate for flaws in selection and size of the reference sample group and handling and analysis of samples. However, if those steps are performed properly, Reference Value Advisor, available as freeware at http://www.biostat.envt.fr/spip/spip.php?article63, permits rapid assessment and comparison of results calculated using different methods, including currently unavailable methods. This allows for selection of the most appropriate method, especially as the program provides the CI of limits. It should be useful in veterinary clinical pathology when only small reference sample groups are available. ©2011 American Society for Veterinary Clinical Pathology.

Fetal biometric parameters: Reference charts for a non-selected risk population from Uberaba, Brazil

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Alberto Borges Peixoto

2017-03-01

Full Text Available Objective: To establish reference charts for fetal biometric parameters in a non-selected risk population from Uberaba, Southeast of Brazil. Methods: A retrospective cross-sectional study was performed among 5656 non-selected risk singleton pregnant women between 14 and 41 weeks of gestation. The ultrasound exams were performed during routine visits of second and third trimesters. Biparietal diameter (BPD was measured at the level of the thalami and cavum septi pellucidi. Head circumference (HC was calculated by the following formula: HC = 1.62*(BPD + occipital frontal diameter, OFD. Abdominal circumference (AC was measured using the following formula: AC = (anteroposterior diameter + transverse abdominal diameter × 1.57. Femur diaphysis length (FDL was obtained in the longest axis of femur without including the distal femoral epiphysis. The estimated fetal weight (EFW was obtained by the Hadlock formula. Polynomial regressions were performed to obtain the best-fit model for each fetal biometric parameter as the function of gestational age (GA. Results: The mean, standard deviations (SD, minimum and maximum of BPD (cm, HC (cm, AC (cm, FDL (cm and EFW (g were 6.9 ± 1.9 (2.3 – 10.5, 24.51 ± 6.61 (9.1 – 36.4, 22.8 ± 7.3 (7.5 – 41.1, 4.9 ± 1.6 (1.2 – 8.1 and 1365 ± 1019 (103 – 4777, respectively. Second-degree polynomial regressions between the evaluated parameters and GA resulted in the following formulas: BPD = –4.044 + 0.540 × GA – 0.0049 × GA² (R² = 0.97; HC= –15.420 + 2.024 GA – 0.0199 × GA² (R² = 0.98; AC = –9.579 + 1.329 × GA – 0.0055 × GA² (R² = 0.97; FDL = –3.778 + 0.416 × GA – 0.0035 × GA² (R² = 0.98 and EFW = 916 – 123 × GA + 4.70 × GA² (R² = 0.96; respectively. Conclusion: Reference charts for the fetal biometric parameters in a non-selected risk population from Uberaba, Southeast of Brazil, were established.

Selected bibliography for the extraction of uranium from seawater: chemical process and plant design feasibility study

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Binney, S.E.; Polkinghorne, S.T.; Jante, R.R.; Rodman, M.R.; Chen, A.C.T.; Gordon, L.I.

1979-02-01

A selected annotated bibliography of 521 references was prepared as a part of a feasibility study of the extraction of uranium from seawater. For the most part, these references are related to the chemical processes whereby the uranium is removed from the seawater. A companion docment contains a similar bibliography of 471 references related to oceanographic and uranium extraction plant siting considerations, although some of the references are in common. The bibliography was prepared by computer retrieval from Chemical Abstracts, Nuclear Science Abstracts, Energy Data Base, NTIS, and Oceanic Abstracts. References are listed by author, country of author, and selected keywords.

Selected bibliography for the extraction of uranium from seawater: chemical process and plant design feasibility study

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Binney, S.E.; Polkinghorne, S.T.; Jante, R.R.; Rodman, M.R.; Chen, A.C.T.; Gordon, L.I.

1979-02-01

A selected annotated bibliography of 521 references was prepared as a part of a feasibility study of the extraction of uranium from seawater. For the most part, these references are related to the chemical processes whereby the uranium is removed from the seawater. A companion docment contains a similar bibliography of 471 references related to oceanographic and uranium extraction plant siting considerations, although some of the references are in common. The bibliography was prepared by computer retrieval from Chemical Abstracts, Nuclear Science Abstracts, Energy Data Base, NTIS, and Oceanic Abstracts. References are listed by author, country of author, and selected keywords

Language supports young children's use of spatial relations to remember locations.

Science.gov (United States)

Miller, Hilary E; Patterson, Rebecca; Simmering, Vanessa R

2016-05-01

Two experiments investigated the role of language in children's spatial recall performance. In particular, we assessed whether selecting an intrinsic reference frame could be improved through verbal encoding. Selecting an intrinsic reference frame requires remembering locations relative to nearby objects independent of one's body (egocentric) or distal environmental (allocentric) cues, and does not reliably occur in children under 5 years of age (Nardini, Burgess, Breckenridge, & Atkinson, 2006). The current studies tested the relation between spatial language and 4-year-olds' selection of an intrinsic reference frame in spatial recall. Experiment 1 showed that providing 4-year-olds with location-descriptive cues during (Exp. 1a) or before (Exp. 1b) the recall task improved performance both overall and specifically on trials relying most on an intrinsic reference frame. Additionally, children's recall performance was predicted by their verbal descriptions of the task space (Exp. 1a control condition). Non-verbally highlighting relations among objects during the recall task (Exp. 2) supported children's performance relative to the control condition, but significantly less than the location-descriptive cues. These results suggest that the ability to verbally represent relations is a potential mechanism that could account for developmental changes in the selection of an intrinsic reference frame during spatial recall. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Primate brain architecture and selection in relation to sex.

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Lindenfors, Patrik; Nunn, Charles L; Barton, Robert A

2007-05-10

Social and competitive demands often differ between the sexes in mammals. These differing demands should be expected to produce variation in the relative sizes of various brain structures. Sexual selection on males can be predicted to influence brain components handling sensory-motor skills that are important for physical competition or neural pathways involving aggression. Conversely, because female fitness is more closely linked to ecological factors and social interactions that enable better acquisition of resources, social selection on females should select for brain components important for navigating social networks. Sexual and social selection acting on one sex could produce sexual dimorphism in brain structures, which would result in larger species averages for those same brain structures. Alternatively, sex-specific selection pressures could produce correlated effects in the other sex, resulting in larger brain structures for both males and females of a species. Data are presently unavailable for the sex-specific sizes of brain structures for anthropoid primates, but under either scenario, the effects of sexual and social selection should leave a detectable signal in average sizes of brain structures for different species. The degree of male intra-sexual selection was positively correlated with several structures involved in autonomic functions and sensory-motor skills, and in pathways relating to aggression and aggression control. The degree of male intra-sexual selection was not correlated with relative neocortex size, which instead was significantly positively correlated with female social group size, but negatively correlated with male group size. Sexual selection on males and social selection on females have exerted different effects on primate brain architecture. Species with a higher degree of male intra-sexual selection carry a neural signature of an evolutionary history centered on physical conflicts, but no traces of increased demands on

Primate brain architecture and selection in relation to sex

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Nunn Charles L

2007-05-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Social and competitive demands often differ between the sexes in mammals. These differing demands should be expected to produce variation in the relative sizes of various brain structures. Sexual selection on males can be predicted to influence brain components handling sensory-motor skills that are important for physical competition or neural pathways involving aggression. Conversely, because female fitness is more closely linked to ecological factors and social interactions that enable better acquisition of resources, social selection on females should select for brain components important for navigating social networks. Sexual and social selection acting on one sex could produce sexual dimorphism in brain structures, which would result in larger species averages for those same brain structures. Alternatively, sex-specific selection pressures could produce correlated effects in the other sex, resulting in larger brain structures for both males and females of a species. Data are presently unavailable for the sex-specific sizes of brain structures for anthropoid primates, but under either scenario, the effects of sexual and social selection should leave a detectable signal in average sizes of brain structures for different species. Results The degree of male intra-sexual selection was positively correlated with several structures involved in autonomic functions and sensory-motor skills, and in pathways relating to aggression and aggression control. The degree of male intra-sexual selection was not correlated with relative neocortex size, which instead was significantly positively correlated with female social group size, but negatively correlated with male group size. Conclusion Sexual selection on males and social selection on females have exerted different effects on primate brain architecture. Species with a higher degree of male intra-sexual selection carry a neural signature of an evolutionary history centered on

Height, weight and BMI percentiles and nutritional status relative to the international growth references among Pakistani school-aged children

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Mushtaq Muhammad Umair

2012-03-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Child growth is internationally recognized as an important indicator of nutritional status and health in populations. This study was aimed to compare age- and gender-specific height, weight and BMI percentiles and nutritional status relative to the international growth references among Pakistani school-aged children. Methods A population-based study was conducted with a multistage cluster sample of 1860 children aged five to twelve years in Lahore, Pakistan. Smoothed height, weight and BMI percentile curves were obtained and comparison was made with the World Health Organization 2007 (WHO and United States' Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 2000 (USCDC references. Over- and under-nutrition were defined according to the WHO and USCDC references, and the International Obesity Task Force (IOTF cut-offs. Simple descriptive statistics were used and statistical significance was considered at P Results Height, weight and BMI percentiles increased with age among both boys and girls, and both had approximately the same height and a lower weight and BMI as compared to the WHO and USCDC references. Mean differences from zero for height-, weight- and BMI-for-age z score values relative to the WHO and USCDC references were significant (P Conclusion Pakistani school-aged children significantly differed from the WHO and USCDC references. However, z score means relative to the WHO reference were closer to zero and the present study as compared to the USCDC reference. Overweight and obesity were significantly higher while underweight and thinness/wasting were significantly lower relative to the WHO reference as compared to the USCDC reference and the IOTF cut-offs. New growth charts for Pakistani children based on a nationally representative sample should be developed. Nevertheless, shifting to use of the 2007 WHO child growth reference might have important implications for child health programs and primary care pediatric clinics.

Which individuals to choose to update the reference population? Minimizing the loss of genetic diversity in animal genomic selection programs

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Eynard, Sonia E.; Croiseau, Pascal; Laloë, Denis; Fritz, Sebastien; Calus, Mario P.L.; Restoux, Gwendal

2018-01-01

Genomic selection (GS) is commonly used in livestock and increasingly in plant breeding. Relying on phenotypes and genotypes of a reference population, GS allows performance prediction for young individuals having only genotypes. This is expected to achieve fast high genetic gain but with a

Reference Gene Selection for qRT-PCR Normalization Analysis in kenaf (Hibiscus cannabinus L. under Abiotic Stress and Hormonal Stimuli

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Xiaoping Niu

2017-05-01

Full Text Available Kenaf (Hibiscus cannabinus L., an environmental friendly and economic fiber crop, has a certain tolerance to abiotic stresses. Identification of reliable reference genes for transcript normalization of stress responsive genes expression by quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR is important for exploring the molecular mechanisms of plants response to abiotic stresses. In this study, nine candidate reference genes were cloned, and their expression stabilities were assessed in 132 abiotic stress and hormonal stimuli samples of kenaf using geNorm, NormFinder, and BestKeeper algorithms. Results revealed that HcPP2A (Protein phosphatase 2A and HcACT7 (Actin 7 were the optimum reference genes across all samples; HcUBC (Ubiquitin-conjugating enzyme like protein was the worst reference gene for transcript normalization. The reliability of the selected reference genes was further confirmed by evaluating the expression profile of HcWRKY28 gene at different stress durations. This work will benefit future studies on discovery of stress-tolerance genes and stress-signaling pathways in this important fiber crop.

One hundred prime references on hydrogeochemical and stream sediment surveying for uranium as internationally practiced, including 60 annotated references

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sharp, R.R. Jr.; Bolivar, S.L.

1981-04-01

The United States Department of Energy (DOE), formerly the US ERDA, has initiated a nationwide Hydrogeochemical and Stream Sediment Reconnaissance (HSSR). This program is part of the US National Uranium Resource Evaluation, designed to provide an improved estimate for the availability and economics of nuclear fuel resources and make available to industry information for use in exploration and development of uranium resources. The Los Alamos National Laboratory is responsible for completing the HSSR in Rocky Mountain states of New Mexico, Colorado, Wyoming, and Montana and in the state of Alaska. This report contains a compilation of 100 prime references on uranium hydrogeochemical and stream sediment reconnaissance as internationally practiced prior to 1977. The major emphasis in selection of these references was directed toward constructing a HSSR program with the purpose of identifying uranium in the Los Alamos National Laboratory area of responsibility. The context of the annotated abstracts are the authors' concept of what the respective article contains relative to uranium geochemistry and hydrogeochemical and stream sediment surveying. Consequently, in many cases, significant portions of the original articles are not discussed. The text consists of two parts. Part I contains 100 prime references, alphabetically arranged. Part II contains 60 select annotated abstracts, listed in chronological order

An age-related deficit in spatial-feature reference memory in homing pigeons (Columba livia).

Science.gov (United States)

Coppola, Vincent J; Flaim, Mary E; Carney, Samantha N; Bingman, Verner P

2015-03-01

Age-related memory decline in mammals has been well documented. By contrast, very little is known about memory decline in birds as they age. In the current study we trained younger and older homing pigeons on a reference memory task in which a goal location could be encoded by spatial and feature cues. Consistent with a previous working memory study, the results revealed impaired acquisition of combined spatial-feature reference memory in older compared to younger pigeons. Following memory acquisition, we used cue-conflict probe trials to provide an initial assessment of possible age-related differences in cue preference. Both younger and older pigeons displayed a similarly modest preference for feature over spatial cues. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Selection and evaluation of reference genes for RT-qPCR expression studies on Burkholderia tropica strain Ppe8, a sugarcane-associated diazotrophic bacterium grown with different carbon sources or sugarcane juice.

Science.gov (United States)

da Silva, Paula Renata Alves; Vidal, Marcia Soares; de Paula Soares, Cleiton; Polese, Valéria; Simões-Araújo, Jean Luís; Baldani, José Ivo

2016-11-01

Among the members of the genus Burkholderia, Burkholderia tropica has the ability to fix nitrogen and promote sugarcane plant growth as well as act as a biological control agent. There is little information about how this bacterium metabolizes carbohydrates as well as those carbon sources found in the sugarcane juice that accumulates in stems during plant growth. Reverse transcription quantitative PCR (RT-qPCR) can be used to evaluate changes in gene expression during bacterial growth on different carbon sources. Here we tested the expression of six reference genes, lpxC, gyrB, recA, rpoA, rpoB, and rpoD, when cells were grown with glucose, fructose, sucrose, mannitol, aconitic acid, and sugarcane juice as carbon sources. The lpxC, gyrB, and recA were selected as the most stable reference genes based on geNorm and NormFinder software analyses. Validation of these three reference genes during strain Ppe8 growth on the same carbon sources showed that genes involved in glycogen biosynthesis (glgA, glgB, glgC) and trehalose biosynthesis (treY and treZ) were highly expressed when Ppe8 was grown in aconitic acid relative to other carbon sources, while otsA expression (trehalose biosynthesis) was reduced with all carbon sources. In addition, the expression level of the ORF_6066 (gluconolactonase) gene was reduced on sugarcane juice. The results confirmed the stability of the three selected reference genes (lpxC, gyrB, and recA) during the RT-qPCR and also their robustness by evaluating the relative expression of genes involved in glycogen and trehalose biosynthesis when strain Ppe8 was grown on different carbon sources and sugarcane juice.

Using the Wisconsin-Ohio Reference Evaluation Program (WOREP) to Improve Training and Reference Services

Science.gov (United States)

Novotny, Eric; Rimland, Emily

2007-01-01

This article discusses a service quality study conducted in the Pennsylvania State University Libraries. The Wisconsin-Ohio Reference Evaluation Program survey was selected as a valid, standardized instrument. We present our results, highlighting the impact on reference training. A second survey a year later demonstrated that focusing on…

Language supports young children’s use of spatial relations to remember locations

Science.gov (United States)

Miller, Hilary E.; Patterson, Rebecca; Simmering, Vanessa R.

2016-01-01

Two experiments investigated the role of language in children’s spatial recall performance. In particular, we assessed whether selecting an intrinsic reference frame could be improved through verbal encoding. Selecting an intrinsic reference frame requires remembering locations relative to nearby objects independent of one’s body (egocentric) or distal environmental (allocentric) cues, and does not reliably occur in children under 5 years of age (Nardini, Burgess, Breckenridge, & Atkinson, 2006). The current studies tested the relation between spatial language and 4-year-olds’ selection of an intrinsic reference frame in spatial recall. Experiment 1 showed that providing 4-year-olds with location-descriptive cues during (Exp. 1a) or before (Exp. 1b) the recall task improved performance both overall and specifically on trials relying most on an intrinsic reference frame. Additionally, children’s recall performance was predicted by their verbal descriptions of the task space (Exp. 1a control condition). Non-verbally highlighting relations among objects during the recall task (Exp. 2) supported children’s performance relative to the control condition, but significantly less than the location-descriptive cues. These results suggest that the ability to verbally represent relations is a potential mechanism that could account for developmental changes in the selection of an intrinsic reference frame during spatial recall. PMID:26896902

Selecting the optimal method to calculate daily global reference potential evaporation from CFSR reanalysis data for application in a hydrological model study

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

F. C. Sperna Weiland

2012-03-01

Full Text Available Potential evaporation (PET is one of the main inputs of hydrological models. Yet, there is limited consensus on which PET equation is most applicable in hydrological climate impact assessments. In this study six different methods to derive global scale reference PET daily time series from Climate Forecast System Reanalysis (CFSR data are compared: Penman-Monteith, Priestley-Taylor and original and re-calibrated versions of the Hargreaves and Blaney-Criddle method. The calculated PET time series are (1 evaluated against global monthly Penman-Monteith PET time series calculated from CRU data and (2 tested on their usability for modeling of global discharge cycles.

A major finding is that for part of the investigated basins the selection of a PET method may have only a minor influence on the resulting river flow. Within the hydrological model used in this study the bias related to the PET method tends to decrease while going from PET, AET and runoff to discharge calculations. However, the performance of individual PET methods appears to be spatially variable, which stresses the necessity to select the most accurate and spatially stable PET method. The lowest root mean squared differences and the least significant deviations (95% significance level between monthly CFSR derived PET time series and CRU derived PET were obtained for a cell-specific re-calibrated Blaney-Criddle equation. However, results show that this re-calibrated form is likely to be unstable under changing climate conditions and less reliable for the calculation of daily time series. Although often recommended, the Penman-Monteith equation applied to the CFSR data did not outperform the other methods in a evaluation against PET derived with the Penman-Monteith equation from CRU data. In arid regions (e.g. Sahara, central Australia, US deserts, the equation resulted in relatively low PET values and, consequently, led to relatively high discharge values for dry basins (e

Evidence based selection of commonly used RT-qPCR reference genes for the analysis of mouse skeletal muscle.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kristen C Thomas

Full Text Available The ability to obtain accurate and reproducible data using quantitative real-time Polymerase Chain Reaction (RT-qPCR is limited by the process of data normalization. The use of 'housekeeping' or 'reference' genes is the most common technique used to normalize RT-qPCR data. However, commonly used reference genes are often poorly validated and may change as a result of genetic background, environment and experimental intervention. Here we present an analysis of 10 reference genes in mouse skeletal muscle (Actb, Aldoa, Gapdh, Hprt1, Ppia, Rer1, Rn18s, Rpl27, Rpl41 and Rpl7L1, which were identified as stable either by microarray or in the literature. Using the MIQE guidelines we compared wild-type (WT mice across three genetic backgrounds (R129, C57BL/6j and C57BL/10 as well as analyzing the α-actinin-3 knockout (Actn3 KO mouse, which is a model of the common null polymorphism (R577X in human ACTN3. Comparing WT mice across three genetic backgrounds, we found that different genes were more tightly regulated in each strain. We have developed a ranked profile of the top performing reference genes in skeletal muscle across these common mouse strains. Interestingly the commonly used reference genes; Gapdh, Rn18s, Hprt1 and Actb were not the most stable. Analysis of our experimental variant (Actn3 KO also resulted in an altered ranking of reference gene suitability. Furthermore we demonstrate that a poor reference gene results in increased variability in the normalized expression of a gene of interest, and can result in loss of significance. Our data demonstrate that reference genes need to be validated prior to use. For the most accurate normalization, it is important to test several genes and use the geometric mean of at least three of the most stably expressed genes. In the analysis of mouse skeletal muscle, strain and intervention played an important role in selecting the most stable reference genes.

Choice of Reference Serum Creatinine in Defining AKI

Science.gov (United States)

Siew, Edward D.; Matheny, Michael E.

2015-01-01

Background/Aims The study of acute kidney injury (AKI) has expanded with the increasing availability of electronic health records and the use of standardized definitions. Understanding the impact of AKI between settings is limited by heterogeneity in the selection of reference creatinine to anchor the definition of AKI. In this mini-review, we discuss different approaches used to select reference creatinine and their relative merits and limitations. Methods We reviewed the literature to obtain representative examples of published baseline creatinine definitions when pre-hospital data were not available, as well as literature evaluating estimation of baseline renal function, using Pubmed and reference back-tracing within known works. Results 1) Prehospital creatinine values are useful in determining reference creatinine, and in high-risk populations, the mean outpatient serum creatinine value 7-365 days before hospitalization closely approximates nephrology adjudication, 2) in patients without pre-hospital data, the eGFR 75 approach does not reliably estimate true AKI incidence in most at-risk populations 3) using the lowest inpatient serum creatinine may be reasonable, especially in those with preserved kidney function, but may generously estimate AKI incidence and severity and miss community-acquired AKI that does not fully resolve, 4) using more specific definitions of AKI (e.g. KIDGO Stage 2 and 3) may help to reduce the effects of misclassification when using surrogate values, and 5) leveraging available clinical data may help refine the estimate of reference creatinine. Conclusions Choosing reference creatinine for AKI calculation is important for AKI classification and study interpretation. We recommend obtaining data on pre-hospital kidney function, wherever possible. In studies where surrogate estimates are used, transparency in how they are applied and discussion that informs the reader of potential biases should be provided. Further work to refine the

Selective bibliography of surface coal mining and reclamation literature. Volume 1. Eastern coal province. [More than 1300 references

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Weiss, N. E.; Sobek, A. A.; Streib, D. L.

1977-11-01

This bibliography has been compiled for use by researchers, students, and other groups who need a reference source of published literature related to surface coal mining and reclamation in the Eastern Coal Province. This bibliography contains more than 1300 references including government reports, journal articles, symposium proceedings, industrial reports, workshop proceedings, theses, and bibliographices. A simple format was used to categorize citations.

Reference gene selection for quantitative gene expression studies during biological invasions: A test on multiple genes and tissues in a model ascidian Ciona savignyi.

Science.gov (United States)

Huang, Xuena; Gao, Yangchun; Jiang, Bei; Zhou, Zunchun; Zhan, Aibin

2016-01-15

As invasive species have successfully colonized a wide range of dramatically different local environments, they offer a good opportunity to study interactions between species and rapidly changing environments. Gene expression represents one of the primary and crucial mechanisms for rapid adaptation to local environments. Here, we aim to select reference genes for quantitative gene expression analysis based on quantitative Real-Time PCR (qRT-PCR) for a model invasive ascidian, Ciona savignyi. We analyzed the stability of ten candidate reference genes in three tissues (siphon, pharynx and intestine) under two key environmental stresses (temperature and salinity) in the marine realm based on three programs (geNorm, NormFinder and delta Ct method). Our results demonstrated only minor difference for stability rankings among the three methods. The use of different single reference gene might influence the data interpretation, while multiple reference genes could minimize possible errors. Therefore, reference gene combinations were recommended for different tissues - the optimal reference gene combination for siphon was RPS15 and RPL17 under temperature stress, and RPL17, UBQ and TubA under salinity treatment; for pharynx, TubB, TubA and RPL17 were the most stable genes under temperature stress, while TubB, TubA and UBQ were the best under salinity stress; for intestine, UBQ, RPS15 and RPL17 were the most reliable reference genes under both treatments. Our results suggest that the necessity of selection and test of reference genes for different tissues under varying environmental stresses. The results obtained here are expected to reveal mechanisms of gene expression-mediated invasion success using C. savignyi as a model species. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Evolution of brain region volumes during artificial selection for relative brain size.

Science.gov (United States)

Kotrschal, Alexander; Zeng, Hong-Li; van der Bijl, Wouter; Öhman-Mägi, Caroline; Kotrschal, Kurt; Pelckmans, Kristiaan; Kolm, Niclas

2017-12-01

The vertebrate brain shows an extremely conserved layout across taxa. Still, the relative sizes of separate brain regions vary markedly between species. One interesting pattern is that larger brains seem associated with increased relative sizes only of certain brain regions, for instance telencephalon and cerebellum. Till now, the evolutionary association between separate brain regions and overall brain size is based on comparative evidence and remains experimentally untested. Here, we test the evolutionary response of brain regions to directional selection on brain size in guppies (Poecilia reticulata) selected for large and small relative brain size. In these animals, artificial selection led to a fast response in relative brain size, while body size remained unchanged. We use microcomputer tomography to investigate how the volumes of 11 main brain regions respond to selection for larger versus smaller brains. We found no differences in relative brain region volumes between large- and small-brained animals and only minor sex-specific variation. Also, selection did not change allometric scaling between brain and brain region sizes. Our results suggest that brain regions respond similarly to strong directional selection on relative brain size, which indicates that brain anatomy variation in contemporary species most likely stem from direct selection on key regions. © 2017 The Author(s). Evolution © 2017 The Society for the Study of Evolution.

Meaning From Environmental Sounds: Types of Signal-Referent Relations and Their Effect on Recognizing Auditory Icons

Science.gov (United States)

Keller, Peter; Stevens, Catherine

2004-01-01

This article addresses the learnability of auditory icons, that is, environmental sounds that refer either directly or indirectly to meaningful events. Direct relations use the sound made by the target event whereas indirect relations substitute a surrogate for the target. Across 3 experiments, different indirect relations (ecological, in which…

Selection of appropriate reference genes for the detection of rhythmic gene expression via quantitative real-time PCR in Tibetan hulless barley.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jing Cai

Full Text Available Hulless barley (Hordeum vulgare L. var. nudum. hook. f. has been cultivated as a major crop in the Qinghai-Tibet plateau of China for thousands of years. Compared to other cereal crops, the Tibetan hulless barley has developed stronger endogenous resistances to survive in the severe environment of its habitat. To understand the unique resistant mechanisms of this plant, detailed genetic studies need to be performed. The quantitative real-time reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR is the most commonly used method in detecting gene expression. However, the selection of stable reference genes under limited experimental conditions was considered to be an essential step for obtaining accurate results in qRT-PCR. In this study, 10 candidate reference genes-ACT (Actin, E2 (Ubiquitin conjugating enzyme 2, TUBα (Alpha-tubulin, TUBβ6 (Beta-tubulin 6, GAPDH (Glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate dehydrogenase, EF-1α (Elongation factor 1-alpha, SAMDC (S-adenosylmethionine decarboxylase, PKABA1 (Gene for protein kinase HvPKABA1, PGK (Phosphoglycerate kinase, and HSP90 (Heat shock protein 90-were selected from the NCBI gene database of barley. Following qRT-PCR amplifications of all candidate reference genes in Tibetan hulless barley seedlings under various stressed conditions, the stabilities of these candidates were analyzed by three individual software packages including geNorm, NormFinder, and BestKeeper. The results demonstrated that TUBβ6, E2, TUBα, and HSP90 were generally the most suitable sets under all tested conditions; similarly, TUBα and HSP90 showed peak stability under salt stress, TUBα and EF-1α were the most suitable reference genes under cold stress, and ACT and E2 were the most stable under drought stress. Finally, a known circadian gene CCA1 was used to verify the service ability of chosen reference genes. The results confirmed that all recommended reference genes by the three software were suitable for gene expression

Selection of appropriate reference genes for the detection of rhythmic gene expression via quantitative real-time PCR in Tibetan hulless barley.

Science.gov (United States)

Cai, Jing; Li, Pengfei; Luo, Xiao; Chang, Tianliang; Li, Jiaxing; Zhao, Yuwei; Xu, Yao

2018-01-01

Hulless barley (Hordeum vulgare L. var. nudum. hook. f.) has been cultivated as a major crop in the Qinghai-Tibet plateau of China for thousands of years. Compared to other cereal crops, the Tibetan hulless barley has developed stronger endogenous resistances to survive in the severe environment of its habitat. To understand the unique resistant mechanisms of this plant, detailed genetic studies need to be performed. The quantitative real-time reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) is the most commonly used method in detecting gene expression. However, the selection of stable reference genes under limited experimental conditions was considered to be an essential step for obtaining accurate results in qRT-PCR. In this study, 10 candidate reference genes-ACT (Actin), E2 (Ubiquitin conjugating enzyme 2), TUBα (Alpha-tubulin), TUBβ6 (Beta-tubulin 6), GAPDH (Glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate dehydrogenase), EF-1α (Elongation factor 1-alpha), SAMDC (S-adenosylmethionine decarboxylase), PKABA1 (Gene for protein kinase HvPKABA1), PGK (Phosphoglycerate kinase), and HSP90 (Heat shock protein 90)-were selected from the NCBI gene database of barley. Following qRT-PCR amplifications of all candidate reference genes in Tibetan hulless barley seedlings under various stressed conditions, the stabilities of these candidates were analyzed by three individual software packages including geNorm, NormFinder, and BestKeeper. The results demonstrated that TUBβ6, E2, TUBα, and HSP90 were generally the most suitable sets under all tested conditions; similarly, TUBα and HSP90 showed peak stability under salt stress, TUBα and EF-1α were the most suitable reference genes under cold stress, and ACT and E2 were the most stable under drought stress. Finally, a known circadian gene CCA1 was used to verify the service ability of chosen reference genes. The results confirmed that all recommended reference genes by the three software were suitable for gene expression analysis

PHOTOMETRIC OBSERVATIONS OF SELECTED, OPTICALLY BRIGHT QUASARS FOR SPACE INTERFEROMETRY MISSION AND OTHER FUTURE CELESTIAL REFERENCE FRAMES

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ojha, Roopesh; Zacharias, Norbert; Hennessy, Gregory S.; Gaume, Ralph A.; Johnston, Kenneth J.

2009-01-01

Photometric observations of 235 extragalactic objects that are potential targets for the Space Interferometry Mission (SIM) are presented. Mean B, V, R, I magnitudes at the 5% level are obtained at 1-4 epochs between 2005 and 2007 using the 1 m telescopes at Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory and the Naval Observatory Flagstaff Station. Of the 134 sources that have V magnitudes in the Veron and Veron-Cetty catalog, a difference of over 1.0 mag is found for the observed-catalog magnitudes for about 36% of the common sources, and 10 sources show over 3 mag difference. Our first set of observations presented here form the basis of a long-term photometric variability study of the selected reference frame sources to assist in mission target selection and to support QSO multicolor photometric variability studies in general.

Changing quantum reference frames

OpenAIRE

Palmer, Matthew C.; Girelli, Florian; Bartlett, Stephen D.

2013-01-01

We consider the process of changing reference frames in the case where the reference frames are quantum systems. We find that, as part of this process, decoherence is necessarily induced on any quantum system described relative to these frames. We explore this process with examples involving reference frames for phase and orientation. Quantifying the effect of changing quantum reference frames serves as a first step in developing a relativity principle for theories in which all objects includ...

Selection and evaluation of reference genes for expression studies with quantitative PCR in the model fungus Neurospora crassa under different environmental conditions in continuous culture.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kathleen D Cusick

Full Text Available Neurospora crassa has served as a model organism for studying circadian pathways and more recently has gained attention in the biofuel industry due to its enhanced capacity for cellulase production. However, in order to optimize N. crassa for biotechnological applications, metabolic pathways during growth under different environmental conditions must be addressed. Reverse-transcription quantitative PCR (RT-qPCR is a technique that provides a high-throughput platform from which to measure the expression of a large set of genes over time. The selection of a suitable reference gene is critical for gene expression studies using relative quantification, as this strategy is based on normalization of target gene expression to a reference gene whose expression is stable under the experimental conditions. This study evaluated twelve candidate reference genes for use with N. crassa when grown in continuous culture bioreactors under different light and temperature conditions. Based on combined stability values from NormFinder and Best Keeper software packages, the following are the most appropriate reference genes under conditions of: (1 light/dark cycling: btl, asl, and vma1; (2 all-dark growth: btl, tbp, vma1, and vma2; (3 temperature flux: btl, vma1, act, and asl; (4 all conditions combined: vma1, vma2, tbp, and btl. Since N. crassa exists as different cell types (uni- or multi-nucleated, expression changes in a subset of the candidate genes was further assessed using absolute quantification. A strong negative correlation was found to exist between ratio and threshold cycle (CT values, demonstrating that CT changes serve as a reliable reflection of transcript, and not gene copy number, fluctuations. The results of this study identified genes that are appropriate for use as reference genes in RT-qPCR studies with N. crassa and demonstrated that even with the presence of different cell types, relative quantification is an acceptable method for measuring

Selection and evaluation of reference genes for expression studies with quantitative PCR in the model fungus Neurospora crassa under different environmental conditions in continuous culture.

Science.gov (United States)

Cusick, Kathleen D; Fitzgerald, Lisa A; Pirlo, Russell K; Cockrell, Allison L; Petersen, Emily R; Biffinger, Justin C

2014-01-01

Neurospora crassa has served as a model organism for studying circadian pathways and more recently has gained attention in the biofuel industry due to its enhanced capacity for cellulase production. However, in order to optimize N. crassa for biotechnological applications, metabolic pathways during growth under different environmental conditions must be addressed. Reverse-transcription quantitative PCR (RT-qPCR) is a technique that provides a high-throughput platform from which to measure the expression of a large set of genes over time. The selection of a suitable reference gene is critical for gene expression studies using relative quantification, as this strategy is based on normalization of target gene expression to a reference gene whose expression is stable under the experimental conditions. This study evaluated twelve candidate reference genes for use with N. crassa when grown in continuous culture bioreactors under different light and temperature conditions. Based on combined stability values from NormFinder and Best Keeper software packages, the following are the most appropriate reference genes under conditions of: (1) light/dark cycling: btl, asl, and vma1; (2) all-dark growth: btl, tbp, vma1, and vma2; (3) temperature flux: btl, vma1, act, and asl; (4) all conditions combined: vma1, vma2, tbp, and btl. Since N. crassa exists as different cell types (uni- or multi-nucleated), expression changes in a subset of the candidate genes was further assessed using absolute quantification. A strong negative correlation was found to exist between ratio and threshold cycle (CT) values, demonstrating that CT changes serve as a reliable reflection of transcript, and not gene copy number, fluctuations. The results of this study identified genes that are appropriate for use as reference genes in RT-qPCR studies with N. crassa and demonstrated that even with the presence of different cell types, relative quantification is an acceptable method for measuring gene

Computer Aided Reference Services in the Academic Library: Experiences in Organizing and Operating an Online Reference Service.

Science.gov (United States)

Hoover, Ryan E.

1979-01-01

Summarizes the development of the Computer-Aided Reference Services (CARS) division of the University of Utah Libraries' reference department. Development, organizational structure, site selection, equipment, management, staffing and training considerations, promotion and marketing, budget and pricing, record keeping, statistics, and evaluation…

Selection of reference genes for expression studies with fish myogenic cell cultures

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Johnston Ian A

2009-08-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Relatively few studies have used cell culture systems to investigate gene expression and the regulation of myogenesis in fish. To produce robust data from quantitative real-time PCR mRNA levels need to be normalised using internal reference genes which have stable expression across all experimental samples. We have investigated the expression of eight candidate genes to identify suitable reference genes for use in primary myogenic cell cultures from Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar L.. The software analysis packages geNorm, Normfinder and Best keeper were used to rank genes according to their stability across 42 samples during the course of myogenic differentiation. Results Initial results showed several of the candidate genes exhibited stable expression throughout myogenic culture while Sdha was identified as the least stable gene. Further analysis with geNorm, Normfinder and Bestkeeper identified Ef1α, Hprt1, Ppia and RNApolII as stably expressed. Comparison of data normalised with the geometric average obtained from combinations of any three of these genes showed no significant differences, indicating that any combination of these genes is valid. Conclusion The geometric average of any three of Hprt1, Ef1α, Ppia and RNApolII is suitable for normalisation of gene expression data in primary myogenic cultures from Atlantic salmon.

Selection of reference genes for expression studies with fish myogenic cell cultures.

Science.gov (United States)

Bower, Neil I; Johnston, Ian A

2009-08-10

Relatively few studies have used cell culture systems to investigate gene expression and the regulation of myogenesis in fish. To produce robust data from quantitative real-time PCR mRNA levels need to be normalised using internal reference genes which have stable expression across all experimental samples. We have investigated the expression of eight candidate genes to identify suitable reference genes for use in primary myogenic cell cultures from Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar L.). The software analysis packages geNorm, Normfinder and Best keeper were used to rank genes according to their stability across 42 samples during the course of myogenic differentiation. Initial results showed several of the candidate genes exhibited stable expression throughout myogenic culture while Sdha was identified as the least stable gene. Further analysis with geNorm, Normfinder and Bestkeeper identified Ef1alpha, Hprt1, Ppia and RNApolII as stably expressed. Comparison of data normalised with the geometric average obtained from combinations of any three of these genes showed no significant differences, indicating that any combination of these genes is valid. The geometric average of any three of Hprt1, Ef1alpha, Ppia and RNApolII is suitable for normalisation of gene expression data in primary myogenic cultures from Atlantic salmon.

Affinity selection of Nipah and Hendra virus-related vaccine candidates from a complex random peptide library displayed on bacteriophage virus-like particles

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Peabody, David S.; Chackerian, Bryce; Ashley, Carlee; Carnes, Eric; Negrete, Oscar

2017-01-24

The invention relates to virus-like particles of bacteriophage MS2 (MS2 VLPs) displaying peptide epitopes or peptide mimics of epitopes of Nipah Virus envelope glycoprotein that elicit an immune response against Nipah Virus upon vaccination of humans or animals. Affinity selection on Nipah Virus-neutralizing monoclonal antibodies using random sequence peptide libraries on MS2 VLPs selected peptides with sequence similarity to peptide sequences found within the envelope glycoprotein of Nipah itself, thus identifying the epitopes the antibodies recognize. The selected peptide sequences themselves are not necessarily identical in all respects to a sequence within Nipah Virus glycoprotein, and therefore may be referred to as epitope mimics VLPs displaying these epitope mimics can serve as vaccine. On the other hand, display of the corresponding wild-type sequence derived from Nipah Virus and corresponding to the epitope mapped by affinity selection, may also be used as a vaccine.

Physical characteristics of the Japanese in relation to reference man

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tanaka, G.-i.; Kawamura, H.; Nomura, E.

1980-01-01

Quantitative description of physical and other characteristics of the human body provides basic data for the estimation of radiation risk and the establishment of dose equivalent in line with the International Commission on Radiological Protection recommendations. ICRP Reference Man is based essentially on data reported on populations in rather limited areas in the world although Committee 2 of ICRP concedes that ''it is neither feasible nor necessary to specify Reference Man as representative of a well-defined population group''. ICRP Reference Man is not necessarily based on the most recent available data. In order to be more realistic and quantitative in dose equivalent estimation in Japan, it is necessary to consider populations which are largely different from those of European and North American countries in physical dimensions and other aspects. Therefore, standard or reference values of mass and size of organs, body and organ content and metabolic parameters of some elements have been studied. These are compared with the values of ICRP Reference Man authorized up to now, with the intention of establishing ''Reference Japanese Man'' and contributing to the improvement of models of man used in radiation protection. Dose equivalent commitment and annual limit of intake have been calculated using the obtained data for the general population in Japan,for some nuclides. (H.K.)

Reference genes for accurate transcript normalization in citrus genotypes under different experimental conditions.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Valéria Mafra

Full Text Available Real-time reverse transcription PCR (RT-qPCR has emerged as an accurate and widely used technique for expression profiling of selected genes. However, obtaining reliable measurements depends on the selection of appropriate reference genes for gene expression normalization. The aim of this work was to assess the expression stability of 15 candidate genes to determine which set of reference genes is best suited for transcript normalization in citrus in different tissues and organs and leaves challenged with five pathogens (Alternaria alternata, Phytophthora parasitica, Xylella fastidiosa and Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus. We tested traditional genes used for transcript normalization in citrus and orthologs of Arabidopsis thaliana genes described as superior reference genes based on transcriptome data. geNorm and NormFinder algorithms were used to find the best reference genes to normalize all samples and conditions tested. Additionally, each biotic stress was individually analyzed by geNorm. In general, FBOX (encoding a member of the F-box family and GAPC2 (GAPDH was the most stable candidate gene set assessed under the different conditions and subsets tested, while CYP (cyclophilin, TUB (tubulin and CtP (cathepsin were the least stably expressed genes found. Validation of the best suitable reference genes for normalizing the expression level of the WRKY70 transcription factor in leaves infected with Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus showed that arbitrary use of reference genes without previous testing could lead to misinterpretation of data. Our results revealed FBOX, SAND (a SAND family protein, GAPC2 and UPL7 (ubiquitin protein ligase 7 to be superior reference genes, and we recommend their use in studies of gene expression in citrus species and relatives. This work constitutes the first systematic analysis for the selection of superior reference genes for transcript normalization in different citrus organs and under biotic stress.

A Select Bibliography of Books on Labor Issues.

Science.gov (United States)

American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations, Washington, DC.

This annotated bibliography of 90 books on labor issues presents selections in the following areas: labor history, biographies, contemporary issues, labor economics and labor relations, labor law, labor unions, women and work, and reference books. (DB)

Doorways III: Teacher Reference Materials. On School-Related Gender-Based Violence Prevention and Response

Science.gov (United States)

US Agency for International Development, 2009

2009-01-01

The Doorways training program was designed by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID)-funded Safe Schools Program (Safe Schools) to enable teachers, community members and students to prevent and respond to school-related gender-based violence (SRGBV). This booklet, "Doorways III: Teacher Reference Materials on School-Related…

A Study on Relative Importance and Priority Regarding Airport Selection Attributes Utilizing AHP

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sung-Oun Oh

2014-10-01

Full Text Available The aim of this study is to investigate relative importance and priority regarding airport selection attributes using Incheon International Airport and Gimpo International Airport, the two main gateway airports to Seoul, Korea, as the target. For the purpose, a survey was carried out with aviation experts as target utilizing five factors which consist of 15 airport selection attributes. The analysis has been conducted on the relative importance and priority of the airport selection factors by expert group using Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP. As a result of the analysis, the relative importance of airport selection attributes turned out to be different depending on the expert group. Aviation experts working in government agencies and aviation experts working in educational institutions and research institutes regarded accessibility as the most important airport selection factor, and aviation experts working for airlines and companies related to air travel regarded operation as the most important selection factor.

AREVA 2009 reference document; AREVA document de reference 2009

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

2009-07-01

This Reference Document contains information on the AREVA group's objectives, prospects and development strategies. It contains information on the markets, market shares and competitive position of the AREVA group. This information provides an adequate picture of the size of these markets and of the AREVA group's competitive position. Content: 1 - Person responsible for the Reference Document and Attestation by the person responsible for the Reference Document; 2 - Statutory and Deputy Auditors; 3 - Selected financial information; 4 - Risks: Risk management and coverage, Legal risk, Industrial and environmental risk, Operating risk, Risk related to major projects, Liquidity and market risk, Other risk; 5 - Information about the issuer: History and development, Investments; 6 - Business overview: Markets for nuclear power and renewable energies, AREVA customers and suppliers, Overview and strategy of the group, Business divisions, Discontinued operations: AREVA Transmission and Distribution; 7 - Organizational structure; 8 - Property, plant and equipment: Principal sites of the AREVA group, Environmental issues that may affect the issuer's; 9 - Analysis of and comments on the group's financial position and performance: Overview, Financial position, Cash flow, Statement of financial position, Events subsequent to year-end closing for 2009; 10 - Capital Resources; 11 - Research and development programs, patents and licenses; 12 -trend information: Current situation, Financial objectives; 13 - Profit forecasts or estimates; 14 - Administrative, management and supervisory bodies and senior management; 15 - Compensation and benefits; 16 - Functioning of corporate bodies; 17 - Employees; 18 - Principal shareholders; 19 - Transactions with related parties: French state, CEA, EDF group; 20 - Financial information concerning assets, financial positions and financial performance; 21 - Additional information: Share capital, Certificate of incorporation and

[Reference citation].

Science.gov (United States)

Brkić, Silvija

2013-01-01

Scientific and professional papers represent the information basis for scientific research and professional work. References important for the paper should be cited within the text, and listed at the end of the paper. This paper deals with different styles of reference citation. Special emphasis was placed on the Vancouver Style for reference citation in biomedical journals established by the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors. It includes original samples for citing various types of articles, both printed and electronic, as well as recommendations related to reference citation in accordance with the methodology and ethics of scientific research and guidelines for preparing manuscripts for publication.

Personality, personnel selection, and job performance

OpenAIRE

Linden, Dimitri; Pelt, Dirk; Dunkel, Curtis; Born, Marise

2017-01-01

markdownabstractJob Performance: The term job performance can either refer to the objective or subjective outcomes one achieves in a specific job (e.g., the profit of a sales persons, the number of publications of a scientist, the number of successful operations of a surgeon) or to work-related activities (e.g., writing an article, conducting specific surgical acts). In the majority of research on this topic, job performance as an outcome is used. Personnel selection: Personnel selection refe...

Choice of Reference Serum Creatinine in Defining Acute Kidney Injury.

Science.gov (United States)

Siew, Edward D; Matheny, Michael E

2015-01-01

The study of acute kidney injury (AKI) has expanded with the increasing availability of electronic health records and the use of standardized definitions. Understanding the impact of AKI between settings is limited by heterogeneity in the selection of reference creatinine to anchor the definition of AKI. In this mini-review, we discuss different approaches used to select reference creatinine and their relative merits and limitations. We reviewed the literature to obtain representative examples of published baseline creatinine definitions when pre-hospital data were not available, as well as literature evaluating the estimation of baseline renal function, using PubMed and reference back-tracing within known works. (1) Pre-hospital creatinine values are useful in determining reference creatinine, and in high-risk populations, the mean outpatient serum creatinine value 7-365 days before hospitalization closely approximates nephrology adjudication, (2) in patients without pre-hospital data, the eGFR 75 approach does not reliably estimate true AKI incidence in most at-risk populations, (3) using the lowest inpatient serum creatinine may be reasonable, especially in those with preserved kidney function, but may generously estimate AKI incidence and severity and miss community-acquired AKI that does not fully resolve, (4) using more specific definitions of AKI (e.g., KIDGO stages 2 and 3) may help to reduce the effects of misclassification when using surrogate values and (5) leveraging available clinical data may help refine the estimate of reference creatinine. Choosing reference creatinine for AKI calculation is important for AKI classification and study interpretation. We recommend obtaining data on pre-hospital kidney function, wherever possible. In studies where surrogate estimates are used, transparency in how they are applied and discussion that informs the reader of potential biases should be provided. Further work to refine the estimation of reference creatinine

Prey selection by North Sea herring (Clupea harengus) with special reference to fish eggs

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Segers, F.H.I.D.; Dickey-Collas, M.; Rijnsdorp, A.D.

2007-01-01

The herring stock in the North Sea in recent years has recovered to a relatively high biomass, and here we investigate prey selection of individual North Sea herring when population numbers are high. The diet composition, and specifically pelagic fish eggs, was investigated in February 2004. Samples

Threat-Related Selective Attention Predicts Treatment Success in Childhood Anxiety Disorders

NARCIS (Netherlands)

J.S. Legerstee (Jeroen); J.H.M. Tulen (Joke); V.L. Kallen (Victor); G.C. Dieleman (Gwen); P.D.A. Treffers (Philip); F.C. Verhulst (Frank); E.M.W.J. Utens (Elisabeth)

2009-01-01

textabstractAbstract OBJECTIVE: The present study examined whether threat-related selective attention was predictive of treatment success in children with anxiety disorders and whether age moderated this association. Specific components of selective attention were examined in treatment responders

Threat-related selective attention predicts treatment success in childhood anxiety disorders

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Legerstee, Jeroen S.; Tulen, Joke H. M.; Kallen, Victor L.; Dieleman, Gwen C.; Treffers, Philip D. A.; Verhulst, Frank C.; Utens, Elisabeth M. W. J.

2009-01-01

The present study examined whether threat-related selective attention was predictive of treatment success in children with anxiety disorders and whether age moderated this association. Specific components of selective attention were examined in treatment responders and nonresponders. Participants

Threat-related selective attention predicts treatment success in childhood anxiety disorders.

Science.gov (United States)

Legerstee, Jeroen S; Tulen, Joke H M; Kallen, Victor L; Dieleman, Gwen C; Treffers, Philip D A; Verhulst, Frank C; Utens, Elisabeth M W J

2009-02-01

The present study examined whether threat-related selective attention was predictive of treatment success in children with anxiety disorders and whether age moderated this association. Specific components of selective attention were examined in treatment responders and nonresponders. Participants consisted of 131 children with anxiety disorders (aged 8-16 years), who received standardized cognitive-behavioral therapy. At pretreatment, a pictorial dot-probe task was administered to assess selective attention. Both at pretreatment and posttreatment, diagnostic status of the children was evaluated with a semistructured clinical interview (the Anxiety Disorders Interview Schedule for Children). Selective attention for severely threatening pictures at pretreatment assessment was predictive of treatment success. Examination of the specific components of selective attention revealed that nonresponders showed difficulties to disengage their attention away from severe threat. Treatment responders showed a tendency not to engage their attention toward severe threat. Age was not associated with selective attention and treatment success. Threat-related selective attention is a significant predictor of treatment success in children with anxiety disorders. Clinically anxious children with difficulties disengaging their attention away from severe threat profit less from cognitive-behavioral therapy. For these children, additional training focused on learning to disengage attention away from anxiety-arousing stimuli may be beneficial.

Prospect theory, reference points, and health decisions

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alan Schwartz

2008-02-01

Full Text Available In preventative health decisions, such as the decision to undergo an invasive screening test or treatment, people may be deterred from selecting the test because its perceived disutility relative to not testing is greater than the utility associated with prevention of possible disease. The prospect theory editing operation, by which a decision maker's reference point is determined, can have important effects on the disutility of the test. On the basis of the prospect theory value function, this paper develops two approaches to reducing disutility by directing the decision maker's attention to either (actual past or (expected future losses that result in shifted reference points. After providing a graphical description of the approaches and a mathematical proof of the direction of their effect on judgment, we briefly illustrate the potential value of these approaches with examples from qualitative research on prostate cancer treatment decisions.

IAEA activities related to safety indicators, time frames and reference scenarios

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Batandjieva, B.; Hioki, K.; Metcalf, P.

2002-01-01

which was completed last year. The project proposed a methodology for the development of reference biospheres which is in line with suggestions of the International Commission for Radiological Protection 81 (ICRP). Its application is illustrated by way of three example biospheres. At present the Agency is continuing the work on development of reference scenarios for waste disposal in order to assist in the development of international agreement on the main principles and concepts for development and use of reference scenarios for use in the development of safety cases and decision making related to waste repositories. (authors)

An interim reference model for the middle atmosphere water vapor distribution

Science.gov (United States)

Russell, J. M., III

1987-01-01

Nimbus 7 LIMS data are used to determine monthly and seasonal zonal mean reference stratospheric profiles over selected latitude bands, and other ground and airborne microwave data are combined with the LIMS data to construct an interim reference profile from the tropopause to 80 km for the midlatitude region averaged over the winter and spring periods. The present profiles indicate the presence of a hygropause near 50 mb pressure in the tropics, a relatively constant mixing ratio distribution with a height of 4.7-5 ppmv in the midlatitude and high latitude stratosphere, and a decrease in the midlatitude mesosphere to 1 ppmv at about 80 km.

Doorways II: Community Counselor Reference Materials. On School-Related Gender-Based Violence Prevention and Response

Science.gov (United States)

US Agency for International Development, 2009

2009-01-01

The Doorways training program was designed by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID)-funded Safe Schools Program (Safe Schools) to enable teachers, community members and students to prevent and respond to school-related gender-based violence (SRGBV). This booklet, "Doorways II: Community Counselor Reference Materials on…

Related work on reference modeling for collaborative networks

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Afsarmanesh, H.; Camarinha-Matos, L.M.; Camarinha-Matos, L.M.; Afsarmanesh, H.

2008-01-01

Several international research and development initiatives have led to development of models for organizations and organization interactions. These models and their approaches constitute a background for development of reference models for collaborative networks. A brief survey of work on modeling

Validation and comparison of reference genes for qPCR normalization of celery (Apium graveolens at different development stages

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Meng-Yao eLi

2016-03-01

Full Text Available A suitable reference gene is an important prerequisite for guarantying accurate and reliable results in qPCR analysis. Celery is one of the representative vegetable in Apiaceae and is widely cultivated and consumed in the world. However, no reports have been previously published concerning reference genes in celery. In this study, the expression stabilities of nine candidate reference genes in leaf blade and petiole at different development stages were evaluated using three statistics algorithms geNorm, NormFinder, and BestKeeper. Our results showed that TUB-B, TUB-A, and UBC were the most reference genes among all tested samples. GAPDH represented the maximum stability for most individual sample, while the UBQ displayed the minimum stability. To further validate the stability of reference genes, the expression pattern of AgAP2-2 was calculated by using the selected genes for normalization. In addition, the expression patterns of several development-related genes were studied using the selected reference gene. Our results will be beneficial for further studies on gene transcription in celery.

Selection and evaluation of potential reference genes for gene expression analysis in the brown planthopper, Nilaparvata lugens (Hemiptera: Delphacidae using reverse-transcription quantitative PCR.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Miao Yuan

Full Text Available The brown planthopper (BPH, Nilaparvata lugens (Hemiptera, Delphacidae, is one of the most important rice pests. Abundant genetic studies on BPH have been conducted using reverse-transcription quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR. Using qRT-PCR, the expression levels of target genes are calculated on the basis of endogenous controls. These genes need to be appropriately selected by experimentally assessing whether they are stably expressed under different conditions. However, such studies on potential reference genes in N. lugens are lacking. In this paper, we presented a systematic exploration of eight candidate reference genes in N. lugens, namely, actin 1 (ACT, muscle actin (MACT, ribosomal protein S11 (RPS11, ribosomal protein S15e (RPS15, alpha 2-tubulin (TUB, elongation factor 1 delta (EF, 18S ribosomal RNA (18S, and arginine kinase (AK and used four alternative methods (BestKeeper, geNorm, NormFinder, and the delta Ct method to evaluate the suitability of these genes as endogenous controls. We examined their expression levels among different experimental factors (developmental stage, body part, geographic population, temperature variation, pesticide exposure, diet change, and starvation following the MIQE (Minimum Information for publication of Quantitative real time PCR Experiments guidelines. Based on the results of RefFinder, which integrates four currently available major software programs to compare and rank the tested candidate reference genes, RPS15, RPS11, and TUB were found to be the most suitable reference genes in different developmental stages, body parts, and geographic populations, respectively. RPS15 was the most suitable gene under different temperature and diet conditions, while RPS11 was the most suitable gene under different pesticide exposure and starvation conditions. This work sheds light on establishing a standardized qRT-PCR procedure in N. lugens, and serves as a starting point for screening for reference genes for

The application of HPLC-F and GC-MS to the analysis of selected hydroxy polycylic hydrocarbons in two certified fish bile reference materials

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Jonsson, G.; Beyer, J.; Wells, D.; Ariese, F.

2003-01-01

Four selected hydroxy polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (OH-PAHs), 2-hydroxy-naphthalene (2-OH-NPH), 1-hydroxy-phenanthrene (1-OH-PHE), 1-hydroxy-pyrene (1-OH-PYR) and 3-hydroxy-benzo[a]pyrene (3-OH-BaP) have been analysed in two certified fish bile reference materials (CRMs) for exposure monitoring

The application of HPLC-F and GC-MS to the analysis of selected hydroxy polycyclic hydrocarbons in two certified fish bile reference materials

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Jonsson, G.; Beyer, J.; Wells, D.E.; Ariese, F.

2003-01-01

Four selected hydroxy polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (OH-PAHs), 2-hydroxy-naphthalene (2-OH-NPH), 1-hydroxy-phenanthrene (1-OH-PHE), 1-hydroxy-pyrene (1-OH-PYR) and 3-hydroxy-benzo[a]pyrene (3-OH-BaP) have been analysed in two certified fish bile reference materials (CRMs) for exposure monitoring

Integrated Supplier Selection Framework in a Resilient Construction Supply Chain: An Approach via Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP and Grey Relational Analysis (GRA

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ting-Kwei Wang

2017-02-01

Full Text Available Construction supply chain management is a unique and problematic issue within the construction industry due to its inevitable external risks and variations. The resilience capability of a supplier is of significance in supplier selection; a supplier selected in the context of a resilient construction supply chain (RCSC is referred to in this research as a “resilient construction supplier”. This paper proposes a supplier selection framework tailored to effective information integration for supply chain management. The proposed framework works by integrating building information modeling (BIM and a geographic information system (GIS in a RCSC. BIM and GIS together provide highly transparent construction material information, enhanced supply chain status visualization, and workable access information for supplier selection. Supplier performance is evaluated via seventeen resilient criteria under a combined methodology consisting of the analytic hierarchy process (AHP and grey relational analysis (GRA; AHP and GRA weigh the criteria and rank the suppliers respectively. By varying the weightings given to each criterion, sensitivity analysis was conducted to identify the criteria of resilience which impact the selection priorities of suppliers. An illustrative example is also provided to show the overall process of the proposed framework.

Preparation of reference material for organochlorine pesticides in a herbal matrix.

Science.gov (United States)

Wong, Yiu Chung; Wong, Siu Kay; Kam, Tat Ting

2008-12-01

The development of reference material for four organochlorine pesticides, namely hexachlorobenzene and three isomers of hexachlorocyclohexane (alpha-hexachlorocyclohexane, beta-hexachlorocyclohexane and gamma-hexachlorocyclohexane), in a ginseng root sample is presented. Raw materials (Panax ginseng) were purchased from a local market and confirmed to contain certain levels of incurred organochlorine pesticide residues by a validated gas chromatography-mass selective detection method. A total of more than 300 bottles each containing 25 g of samples were prepared after the materials had been freeze-dried, milled and thoroughly mixed. The homogeneity and stability of samples from randomly selected bottles were verified and the reference values were characterized using a highly precise isotope dilution gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (ID-GCMS) method that was recently developed by our laboratory. The purity of standard organochlorine chemicals was determined against certified reference materials to establish the accuracy of the ID-GCMS analysis. The concentrations (+/- expanded uncertainty) of hexachlorobenzene, alpha-hexachlorocyclohexane, beta-hexachlorocyclohexane and gamma-hexachlorocyclohexane in the reference material were 0.198 +/- 0.015, 0.450 +/- 0.022, 0.213 +/- 0.011 and 0.370 +/- 0.032 mg kg(-1), respectively. A portion (70 bottles) of the samples was also used in a proficiency testing (PT) scheme for assessing the testing capabilities of field laboratories. The consensus mean values of the PT obtained from the 70 participants were on the same order but deviated by -2.7 to -14.1% from those of the assigned reference values. Because of the wide spread of participants' data (relative standard deviation ranging from 44 to 56%), the PT results were not included in the calculation of the assigned values of the reference materials. The materials served as suitable reference materials to ascertain the quality control and validation processes for the

Marketing Reference Services.

Science.gov (United States)

Norman, O. Gene

1995-01-01

Relates the marketing concept to library reference services. Highlights include a review of the literature and an overview of marketing, including research, the marketing mix, strategic plan, marketing plan, and marketing audit. Marketing principles are applied to reference services through the marketing mix elements of product, price, place, and…

Establishment of a paediatric age-related reference interval for the measurement of urinary total fractionated metanephrines.

LENUS (Irish Health Repository)

Griffin, Alison

2012-02-01

INTRODUCTION: Normetanephrine and metanephrine are intermediate metabolites of noradrenaline and adrenaline metabolism. To assess whether normetanephrine and metanephrine analysis may aid in the diagnosis of Neuroblastoma, a reference interval for these metabolites must first be established. AIM: The overall aim of this study was to establish a paediatric age-related reference interval for the measurement of total fractionated metanephrines. METHODS: A total of 267 urine samples were analysed following acid hydrolysis. This releases the metanephrines from their sulphate-bound metabolites. The samples were analysed using reverse phase high-performance liquid chromatography with electro-chemical detection on a Gilson automated sequential trace enrichment of dialysate sample system. RESULTS: Data were analysed using Minitab Release version 14. Outliers were removed using the Dixon\\/Reed one-third rule. Partitioning of the age groups was achieved using Harris and Boyd\\'s standard normal deviate test. Non-parametric analysis of the data was performed, followed by the establishment of the 2.5th and the 97.5th reference limits. CONCLUSIONS: The established reference intervals are described in Table 2.

Optimal primitive reference frames

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jennings, David

2011-01-01

We consider the smallest possible directional reference frames allowed and determine the best one can ever do in preserving quantum information in various scenarios. We find that for the preservation of a single spin state, two orthogonal spins are optimal primitive reference frames; and in a product state, they do approximately 22% as well as an infinite-sized classical frame. By adding a small amount of entanglement to the reference frame, this can be raised to 2(2/3) 5 =26%. Under the different criterion of entanglement preservation, a very similar optimal reference frame is found; however, this time it is for spins aligned at an optimal angle of 87 deg. In this case 24% of the negativity is preserved. The classical limit is considered numerically, and indicates under the criterion of entanglement preservation, that 90 deg. is selected out nonmonotonically, with a peak optimal angle of 96.5 deg. for L=3 spins.

The 7Be profiles in the undisturbed soil used for reference site to estimate the soil erosion

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Raksawong, S; Bhongsuwan, T; Krmar, M

2017-01-01

The cosmogenic radionuclide 7 Be is increasingly used to obtain information on event-related soil erosion rates within agricultural landscapes. In this study, we select two undisturbed and flat areas to calculate the reference inventory and relaxation mass depth by using 7 Be technique to document short-term erosion. Our results showed that the depth distribution of 7 Be in undisturbed soil profiles was 1.0 cm in sites S02 and S03; the initial activities were 31.6 and 38.8 Bq.kg -1 , respectively. The relaxation mass depths were 5.4 and 7.2 kg.m -2 and the measured reference 7 Be inventories were 71 and 110 Bq.m -2 for sites S02 and S03, respectively. The difference values of the relaxation mass depth and the reference inventory of both sites implied that for determining a short term soil erosion using 7 Be, the reference site was suggested to be selected as close as possible to the study site. (paper)

The importance of the selection of appropriate reference genes for gene expression profiling in adrenal medulla or sympathetic ganglia of spontaneously hypertensive rat

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Vavřínová, Anna; Behuliak, Michal; Zicha, Josef

2016-01-01

Roč. 65, č. 3 (2016), s. 401-411 ISSN 0862-8408 R&D Projects: GA ČR(CZ) GP14-16225P Institutional support: RVO:67985823 Keywords : adrenal medulla * gene expression profiling * reference gene selection * sympathetic nervous system Subject RIV: FA - Cardiovascular Diseases incl. Cardiotharic Surgery Impact factor: 1.461, year: 2016

The relation between gender role orientation and fear and anxiety in nonclinic-referred children.

Science.gov (United States)

Muris, Peter; Meesters, Cor; Knoops, Miranda

2005-06-01

This study examined the relation between gender role orientation and fear and anxiety in a sample of nonclinic-referred children (N = 209) ages 10 to 13 years. Children and their parents completed questionnaires assessing children's gender role orientation, toy and activity preferences, and fear and anxiety. Results generally indicated that femininity and a preference for girls' toys and activities were positively associated with fear and anxiety, whereas masculinity and a preference for boys' toys and activities were negatively related to these emotions. Furthermore, gender role orientation accounted for more of the variance in fear and anxiety scores than the child's sex.

Event-related potentials during visual selective attention in children of alcoholics.

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van der Stelt, O.; Gunning, W.B.; Snel, J.; Kok, A.

1998-01-01

Event-related potentials (ERPs) were recorded from 50 7-18 yr old children of alcoholics (COAs) and 50 age- and sex-matched control children while they performed a visual selective attention task. The task was to attend selectively to stimuli with a specified color (red or blue) in an attempt to

The health benefits of selective taxation as an economic instrument in relation to IHD and nutrition-related cancers

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Holm, Astrid L; Laursen, Mai-Britt; Koch, Birgit Maria

2013-01-01

of selective taxation were modelled for the adult Danish population. RESULTS: Halving the rate of value-added tax on fruit and vegetables and increasing the tax on fats would result in moderate reductions in the burden of disease from IHD, ischaemic stroke, and colorectal, lung and breast cancer (0......OBJECTIVE: The present study aimed to estimate the health benefits of selective taxation of healthy and unhealthy food commodities in relation to CVD and nutrition-related cancers. DESIGN: The potential health effects of a selective taxation scenario were estimated as changes in the burden...... for the associations between various foods and relevant diseases were found through a literature search and used in the calculation of potential impact fractions. SETTING: The study was based in Denmark, estimating the health effects of a Danish selective taxation scenario. SUBJECTS: The potential health effects...

The relative frequency of common neuromuscular diagnoses in a reference center.

Science.gov (United States)

Cotta, Ana; Paim, Júlia Filardi; Carvalho, Elmano; da-Cunha-Júnior, Antonio Lopes; Navarro, Monica M; Valicek, Jaquelin; Menezes, Miriam Melo; Nunes, Simone Vilela; Xavier-Neto, Rafael; Baptista, Sidney; Lima, Luciano Romero; Takata, Reinaldo Issao; Vargas, Antonio Pedro

2017-11-01

The diagnostic procedure in neuromuscular patients is complex. Knowledge of the relative frequency of neuromuscular diseases within the investigated population is important to allow the neurologist to perform the most appropriate diagnostic tests. To report the relative frequency of common neuromuscular diagnoses in a reference center. A 17-year chart review of patients with suspicion of myopathy. Among 3,412 examinations, 1,603 (46.98%) yielded confirmatory results: 782 (48.78%) underwent molecular studies, and 821 (51.21%) had muscle biopsies. The most frequent diagnoses were: dystrophinopathy 460 (28.70%), mitochondriopathy 330 (20.59%), spinal muscular atrophy 158 (9.86%), limb girdle muscular dystrophy 157 (9.79%), Steinert myotonic dystrophy 138 (8.61%), facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy 99 (6.17%), and other diagnoses 261 (16.28%). Using the presently-available diagnostic techniques in this service, a specific limb girdle muscular dystrophy subtype diagnosis was reached in 61% of the patients. A neuromuscular-appropriate diagnosis is important for genetic counseling, rehabilitation orientation, and early treatment of respiratory and cardiac complications.

The relative frequency of common neuromuscular diagnoses in a reference center

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ana Cotta

Full Text Available ABSTRACT The diagnostic procedure in neuromuscular patients is complex. Knowledge of the relative frequency of neuromuscular diseases within the investigated population is important to allow the neurologist to perform the most appropriate diagnostic tests. Objective: To report the relative frequency of common neuromuscular diagnoses in a reference center. Methods: A 17-year chart review of patients with suspicion of myopathy. Results: Among 3,412 examinations, 1,603 (46.98% yielded confirmatory results: 782 (48.78% underwent molecular studies, and 821 (51.21% had muscle biopsies. The most frequent diagnoses were: dystrophinopathy 460 (28.70%, mitochondriopathy 330 (20.59%, spinal muscular atrophy 158 (9.86%, limb girdle muscular dystrophy 157 (9.79%, Steinert myotonic dystrophy 138 (8.61%, facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy 99 (6.17%, and other diagnoses 261 (16.28%. Conclusion: Using the presently-available diagnostic techniques in this service, a specific limb girdle muscular dystrophy subtype diagnosis was reached in 61% of the patients. A neuromuscular-appropriate diagnosis is important for genetic counseling, rehabilitation orientation, and early treatment of respiratory and cardiac complications.

NMR chemical shift and J coupling parameterization and quantum mechanical reference spectrum simulation for selected nerve agent degradation products in aqueous conditions.

Science.gov (United States)

Koskela, Harri; Anđelković, Boban

2017-10-01

The spectral parameters of selected nerve agent degradation products relevant to the Chemical Weapons Convention, namely, ethyl methylphosphonate, isopropyl methylphosphonate, pinacolyl methylphosphonate and methylphosphonic acid, were studied in wide range of pH conditions and selected temperatures. The pH and temperature dependence of chemical shifts and J couplings was parameterized using Henderson-Hasselbalch-based functions. The obtained parameters allowed calculation of precise chemical shifts and J coupling constants in arbitrary pH conditions and typical measurement temperatures, thus facilitating quantum mechanical simulation of reference spectra in the chosen magnetic field strength for chemical verification. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Laterality related to the successive selection of Dutch national youth soccer players.

Science.gov (United States)

Verbeek, Jan; Elferink-Gemser, Marije T; Jonker, Laura; Huijgen, Barbara C H; Visscher, Chris

2017-11-01

In the general population, estimates of left-foot preference are around 20%. In soccer, specific tasks create positional demands, requiring 40% of the players to be left-footed. Whether and how this is related to the selection of players is unknown. To examine the successive selection of soccer players for Dutch national youth teams in relation to foot preference, 280 youth players (age = 16.2 ± 1.08 years) were monitored from the U16 through the U19 teams over the last 5 years. No difference in successive selection between left- and right-footed players was found (p soccer teams.

Attentional selection of relative SF mediates global versus local processing: evidence from EEG.

Science.gov (United States)

Flevaris, Anastasia V; Bentin, Shlomo; Robertson, Lynn C

2011-06-13

Previous research on functional hemispheric differences in visual processing has associated global perception with low spatial frequency (LSF) processing biases of the right hemisphere (RH) and local perception with high spatial frequency (HSF) processing biases of the left hemisphere (LH). The Double Filtering by Frequency (DFF) theory expanded this hypothesis by proposing that visual attention selects and is directed to relatively LSFs by the RH and relatively HSFs by the LH, suggesting a direct causal relationship between SF selection and global versus local perception. We tested this idea in the current experiment by comparing activity in the EEG recorded at posterior right and posterior left hemisphere sites while participants' attention was directed to global or local levels of processing after selection of relatively LSFs versus HSFs in a previous stimulus. Hemispheric asymmetry in the alpha band (8-12 Hz) during preparation for global versus local processing was modulated by the selected SF. In contrast, preparatory activity associated with selection of SF was not modulated by the previously attended level (global/local). These results support the DFF theory that top-down attentional selection of SF mediates global and local processing.

Reference gene selection for molecular studies of dormancy in wild oat (Avena fatua L. caryopses by RT-qPCR method.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Izabela Ruduś

Full Text Available Molecular studies of primary and secondary dormancy in Avena fatua L., a serious weed of cereal and other crops, are intended to reveal the species-specific details of underlying molecular mechanisms which in turn may be useable in weed management. Among others, quantitative real-time PCR (RT-qPCR data of comparative gene expression analysis may give some insight into the involvement of particular wild oat genes in dormancy release, maintenance or induction by unfavorable conditions. To assure obtaining biologically significant results using this method, the expression stability of selected candidate reference genes in different data subsets was evaluated using four statistical algorithms i.e. geNorm, NormFinder, Best Keeper and ΔCt method. Although some discrepancies in their ranking outputs were noticed, evidently two ubiquitin-conjugating enzyme homologs, AfUBC1 and AfUBC2, as well as one homolog of glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate dehydrogenase AfGAPDH1 and TATA-binding protein AfTBP2 appeared as more stably expressed than AfEF1a (translation elongation factor 1α, AfGAPDH2 or the least stable α-tubulin homolog AfTUA1 in caryopses and seedlings of A. fatua. Gene expression analysis of a dormancy-related wild oat transcription factor VIVIPAROUS1 (AfVP1 allowed for a validation of candidate reference genes performance. Based on the obtained results it can be recommended that the normalization factor calculated as a geometric mean of Cq values of AfUBC1, AfUBC2 and AfGAPDH1 would be optimal for RT-qPCR results normalization in the experiments comprising A. fatua caryopses of different dormancy status.

Reference gene selection for molecular studies of dormancy in wild oat (Avena fatua L.) caryopses by RT-qPCR method.

Science.gov (United States)

Ruduś, Izabela; Kępczyński, Jan

2018-01-01

Molecular studies of primary and secondary dormancy in Avena fatua L., a serious weed of cereal and other crops, are intended to reveal the species-specific details of underlying molecular mechanisms which in turn may be useable in weed management. Among others, quantitative real-time PCR (RT-qPCR) data of comparative gene expression analysis may give some insight into the involvement of particular wild oat genes in dormancy release, maintenance or induction by unfavorable conditions. To assure obtaining biologically significant results using this method, the expression stability of selected candidate reference genes in different data subsets was evaluated using four statistical algorithms i.e. geNorm, NormFinder, Best Keeper and ΔCt method. Although some discrepancies in their ranking outputs were noticed, evidently two ubiquitin-conjugating enzyme homologs, AfUBC1 and AfUBC2, as well as one homolog of glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate dehydrogenase AfGAPDH1 and TATA-binding protein AfTBP2 appeared as more stably expressed than AfEF1a (translation elongation factor 1α), AfGAPDH2 or the least stable α-tubulin homolog AfTUA1 in caryopses and seedlings of A. fatua. Gene expression analysis of a dormancy-related wild oat transcription factor VIVIPAROUS1 (AfVP1) allowed for a validation of candidate reference genes performance. Based on the obtained results it can be recommended that the normalization factor calculated as a geometric mean of Cq values of AfUBC1, AfUBC2 and AfGAPDH1 would be optimal for RT-qPCR results normalization in the experiments comprising A. fatua caryopses of different dormancy status.

With Reference to Reference Genes: A Systematic Review of Endogenous Controls in Gene Expression Studies.

Science.gov (United States)

Chapman, Joanne R; Waldenström, Jonas

2015-01-01

The choice of reference genes that are stably expressed amongst treatment groups is a crucial step in real-time quantitative PCR gene expression studies. Recent guidelines have specified that a minimum of two validated reference genes should be used for normalisation. However, a quantitative review of the literature showed that the average number of reference genes used across all studies was 1.2. Thus, the vast majority of studies continue to use a single gene, with β-actin (ACTB) and/or glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH) being commonly selected in studies of vertebrate gene expression. Few studies (15%) tested a panel of potential reference genes for stability of expression before using them to normalise data. Amongst studies specifically testing reference gene stability, few found ACTB or GAPDH to be optimal, whereby these genes were significantly less likely to be chosen when larger panels of potential reference genes were screened. Fewer reference genes were tested for stability in non-model organisms, presumably owing to a dearth of available primers in less well characterised species. Furthermore, the experimental conditions under which real-time quantitative PCR analyses were conducted had a large influence on the choice of reference genes, whereby different studies of rat brain tissue showed different reference genes to be the most stable. These results highlight the importance of validating the choice of normalising reference genes before conducting gene expression studies.

The health benefits of selective taxation as an economic instrument in relation to IHD and nutrition-related cancers.

Science.gov (United States)

Holm, Astrid L; Laursen, Mai-Britt; Koch, Maria; Jensen, Jørgen D; Diderichsen, Finn

2013-12-01

The present study aimed to estimate the health benefits of selective taxation of healthy and unhealthy food commodities in relation to CVD and nutrition-related cancers. The potential health effects of a selective taxation scenario were estimated as changes in the burden of disease, measured by disability-adjusted life years, from health outcomes affected by the changes in food intake. The change in burden of a disease was calculated as the change in incidence of the disease due to a modified exposure level, using the potential impact fraction. Estimates of relative risk for the associations between various foods and relevant diseases were found through a literature search and used in the calculation of potential impact fractions. The study was based in Denmark, estimating the health effects of a Danish selective taxation scenario. The potential health effects of selective taxation were modelled for the adult Danish population. Halving the rate of value-added tax on fruit and vegetables and increasing the tax on fats would result in moderate reductions in the burden of disease from IHD, ischaemic stroke, and colorectal, lung and breast cancer (0·4–2·4 % change). The largest effect could be obtained through increased intake of fruit and vegetables (0·9–2·4 %). Applying selective taxation to healthy and unhealthy foods can moderately reduce the burden of disease in the Danish population.

Employee Relations. A Guide and Reference Book for Those Involved or Training to Be Involved in Employee Relations in the Hotel and Catering Industry. Seventh Edition.

Science.gov (United States)

Martin, Rodney; Hayter, Roy, Ed.

This guide and reference book is designed to help those involved or training to be involved in employee relations in the hotel and catering industry. Chapter 1 attempts to define employee relations. Chapter 2 describes the institutions and parties involved in employee relations in the hotel and catering industry. The focus of chapter 3 is on…

Production and Comprehension of Time Reference in Korean Nonfluent Aphasia

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Jiyeon; Kwon, Miseon; Na, Hae Ri; Bastiaanse, Roelien; Thompson, Cynthia K.

2015-01-01

Objectives Individuals with nonfluent agrammatic aphasia show impaired production and comprehension of time reference via verbal morphology. However, cross-linguistic findings to date suggest inconsistent evidence as to whether tense processing in general is impaired or time reference to the past is selectively difficult in this population. This study examined production and comprehension of time reference via verb morphology in Korean-speaking individuals with nonfluent aphasia. Methods A group of 9 healthy controls and 8 individuals with nonfluent aphasia (5 for the production task) participated in the study. Sentence priming production and auditory sentence to picture matching tasks were used, parallel with the previous cross-linguistic experiments in English, Chinese, Turkish, and others. Results The participants with nonfluent aphasia showed different patterns of impairment in production and comprehension. In production, they were impaired in all time references with errors being dominated by substitution of incorrect time references and other morpho-phonologically well-formed errors, indicating a largely intact morphological affixation process. In comprehension, they showed selective impairment of the past, consistent with the cross-linguistic evidence from English, Chinese, Turkish, and others. Conclusion The findings suggest that interpretation of past time reference poses particular difficulty in nonfluent aphasia irrespective of typological characteristics of languages; however, in production, language-specific morpho-semantic functions of verbal morphology may play a significant role in selective breakdowns of time reference. PMID:26290861

Self-referent information processing in individuals with bipolar spectrum disorders.

Science.gov (United States)

Molz Adams, Ashleigh; Shapero, Benjamin G; Pendergast, Laura H; Alloy, Lauren B; Abramson, Lyn Y

2014-01-01

Bipolar spectrum disorders (BSDs) are common and impairing, which has led to an examination of risk factors for their development and maintenance. Historically, research has examined cognitive vulnerabilities to BSDs derived largely from the unipolar depression literature. Specifically, theorists propose that dysfunctional information processing guided by negative self-schemata may be a risk factor for depression. However, few studies have examined whether BSD individuals also show self-referent processing biases. This study examined self-referent information processing differences between 66 individuals with and 58 individuals without a BSD in a young adult sample (age M=19.65, SD=1.74; 62% female; 47% Caucasian). Repeated measures multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) was conducted to examine multivariate effects of BSD diagnosis on 4 self-referent processing variables (self-referent judgments, response latency, behavioral predictions, and recall) in response to depression-related and nondepression-related stimuli. Bipolar individuals endorsed and recalled more negative and fewer positive self-referent adjectives, as well as made more negative and fewer positive behavioral predictions. Many of these information-processing biases were partially, but not fully, mediated by depressive symptoms. Our sample was not a clinical or treatment-seeking sample, so we cannot generalize our results to clinical BSD samples. No participants had a bipolar I disorder at baseline. This study provides further evidence that individuals with BSDs exhibit a negative self-referent information processing bias. This may mean that those with BSDs have selective attention and recall of negative information about themselves, highlighting the need for attention to cognitive biases in therapy. © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Development of a guideline on reading CT images of malignant pleural mesothelioma and selection of the reference CT films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhou, Huashi; Tamura, Taro; Kusaka, Yukinori; Suganuma, Narufumi; Subhannachart, Ponglada; Vijitsanguan, Chomphunut; Noisiri, Weeraya; Hering, Kurt G.; Akira, Masanori; Itoh, Harumi

2012-01-01

Purpose: International experts developed a guideline on reading CT images of malignant pleural mesothelioma for radiologists and physicians. It is intended that it act as a supplement to the current International Classification of HRCT for Occupational and Environmental Respiratory Diseases. Methods: The research literatures on mesothelioma CT features were systematically reviewed. Ten mesothelioma CT features were adopted into the guideline prepared according to experts’ opinion. The terminology of mesothelioma CT features and mesothelioma probability were agreed by consensus of experts. The CT reference films for each mesothelioma feature were selected based on agreement by experts from 22 definite mesothelioma cases confirmed pathologically and immunohistochemically. To support the validity of the mesothelioma probability, 4 experts’ readings of CT films from 57 cases with or without mesothelioma were analyzed by kappa statistics between the experts; sensitivity and specificity for mesothelioma were also assessed. Results: The mesothelioma CT Guideline was developed, providing the terminology of CT features and the mesothelioma probability, the judgement of severity, the distribution of mesothelioma, and the revised CT reading sheet including mesothelioma items. The CT reference films with ten mesothelioma typical features were selected. The average linearly and quadratically weighted kappa of the agreement on the 4-point scale mesothelioma probability were 0.58 and 0.71, respectively. The average sensitivity and specificity for mesothelioma were 93.2% and 65.6%, respectively. Conclusion: The evidence-based mesothelioma CT Guideline developed may serve as a good educational tool to facilitate physicians in recognising mesothelioma and improve their proficiency in diagnosis of mesothelioma.

Development of a guideline on reading CT images of malignant pleural mesothelioma and selection of the reference CT films

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zhou, Huashi, E-mail: zhouhua@u-fukui.ac.jp [Department of Environmental Health, School of Medicine, University of Fukui, 23-3 Shimoaitsuki, Matsuoka, Eihezi-cho, Fukui Prefecture 910-1193 (Japan); Tamura, Taro, E-mail: tarou@u-fukui.ac.jp [Department of Environmental Health, School of Medicine, University of Fukui, 23-3 Shimoaitsuki, Matsuoka, Eihezi-cho, Fukui Prefecture 910-1193 (Japan); Kusaka, Yukinori, E-mail: kusakayk@gmail.com [Department of Environmental Health, School of Medicine, University of Fukui, 23-3 Shimoaitsuki, Matsuoka, Eihezi-cho, Fukui Prefecture 910-1193 (Japan); Suganuma, Narufumi, E-mail: nsuganuma@kochi-u.ac.jp [Department of Environmental Medicine, Kochi University School of Medicine (Japan); Subhannachart, Ponglada, E-mail: pongladas@gmail.com [Central Chest Disease Institute of Thailand, 39 Moo 9, Tiwanon Road, Muang Nonthaburi 11000 (Thailand); Vijitsanguan, Chomphunut, E-mail: Chompoo_vj@yahoo.com [Central Chest Disease Institute of Thailand, 39 Moo 9, Tiwanon Road, Muang Nonthaburi 11000 (Thailand); Noisiri, Weeraya, E-mail: weeraya_tat@yahoo.com [Central Chest Disease Institute of Thailand, 39 Moo 9, Tiwanon Road, Muang Nonthaburi 11000 (Thailand); Hering, Kurt G., E-mail: k.g.hering@t-online.de [Department of Diagnostic Radiology, Radiooncology and Nuclear Medicine, Radiological Clinic, Miner' s Hospital, Radiologische Klinik, Lansppaschaftskranhaus Dortmund, Wieckesweg 27 44309, Dortmund (Germany); Akira, Masanori, E-mail: akira@kch.hosp.go.jp [Department of Radiology, National Hospital Organization Kinki-Chuo Chest Medical Center, 1180 Nagasone-cho, Kita-ku, Sakai, Osaka 591-8555 (Japan); Itoh, Harumi, E-mail: hitoh@fmsrsa.fukui-med.ac.jp [Department of Environmental Health, School of Medicine, University of Fukui, 23-3 Shimoaitsuki, Matsuoka, Eihezi-cho, Fukui Prefecture 910-1193 (Japan); Department of Radiology, School of Medicine, University of Fukui, 23-3 Shimoaitsuki Matsuoka, Eiheizi-cho, Fukui Prefecture 910-1193 (Japan); and others

2012-12-15

Purpose: International experts developed a guideline on reading CT images of malignant pleural mesothelioma for radiologists and physicians. It is intended that it act as a supplement to the current International Classification of HRCT for Occupational and Environmental Respiratory Diseases. Methods: The research literatures on mesothelioma CT features were systematically reviewed. Ten mesothelioma CT features were adopted into the guideline prepared according to experts’ opinion. The terminology of mesothelioma CT features and mesothelioma probability were agreed by consensus of experts. The CT reference films for each mesothelioma feature were selected based on agreement by experts from 22 definite mesothelioma cases confirmed pathologically and immunohistochemically. To support the validity of the mesothelioma probability, 4 experts’ readings of CT films from 57 cases with or without mesothelioma were analyzed by kappa statistics between the experts; sensitivity and specificity for mesothelioma were also assessed. Results: The mesothelioma CT Guideline was developed, providing the terminology of CT features and the mesothelioma probability, the judgement of severity, the distribution of mesothelioma, and the revised CT reading sheet including mesothelioma items. The CT reference films with ten mesothelioma typical features were selected. The average linearly and quadratically weighted kappa of the agreement on the 4-point scale mesothelioma probability were 0.58 and 0.71, respectively. The average sensitivity and specificity for mesothelioma were 93.2% and 65.6%, respectively. Conclusion: The evidence-based mesothelioma CT Guideline developed may serve as a good educational tool to facilitate physicians in recognising mesothelioma and improve their proficiency in diagnosis of mesothelioma.

User satisfaction with referrals at a collaborative virtual reference service Virtual reference services, Reference services, Referrals, User satisfaction

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Nahyun Kwon

2006-01-01

Full Text Available Introduction. This study investigated unmonitored referrals in a nationwide, collaborative chat reference service. Specifically, it examined the extent to which questions are referred, the types of questions that are more likely to be referred than others, and the level of user satisfaction with the referrals in the collaborative chat reference service. Method. The data analysed for this study were 420 chat reference transaction transcripts along with corresponding online survey questionnaires submitted by the service users. Both sets of data were collected from an electronic archive of a southeastern state public library system that has participated in 24/7 Reference of the Metropolitan Cooperative Library System (MCLS. Results. Referrals in the collaborative chat reference service comprised approximately 30% of the total transactions. Circulation-related questions were the most often referred among all question types, possibly because of the inability of 'outside' librarians to access patron accounts. Most importantly, user satisfaction with referrals was found to be significantly lower than that of completed answers. Conclusion. The findings of this study addressed the importance of distinguishing two types of referrals: the expert research referrals conducive to collaborative virtual reference services; and the re-directional local referrals that increase unnecessary question traffic, thereby being detrimental to effective use of collaborative reference. Continuing efforts to conceptualize referrals in multiple dimensions are anticipated to fully grasp complex phenomena underlying referrals.

The relative age effect in the German Football TID Programme: biases in motor performance diagnostics and effects on single motor abilities and skills in groups of selected players.

Science.gov (United States)

Votteler, Andreas; Höner, Oliver

2014-01-01

This study examined the disturbing effects of relative age on the talent identification process in the talent development programme of the German Football Association. The bias in the selection rate was examined via the extent of relative age effects. The bias in motor performance diagnostics was analysed by comparing the motor performance of selected players with normal motor development. The mechanisms underlying the relative age biases in motor performance were examined by modelling the direct and indirect effects of relative age on single motor performance tests for sprint, running agility, dribbling and ball passing and control. Data from 10,130 selected football players from the U12 to U15 age groups were collected in autumn 2010. The birth distribution differed significantly from the reference population with approximately 61% of the players born in the first half of the year. The selection probability was approximately two times higher for players born in the first quarter of the year than for players born in the last quarter. Revised motor performance diagnostics showed better results on average for relatively younger players. Path analysis revealed significant direct and indirect relative age effects for physiologically demanding tests and almost no effects for technically demanding tests. Large sample sizes allowed high resolution in relative age with additional informational content and multivariate modelling of the complex relationships among relative age, physical development and motor performance. The results are discussed on how relative age affects the effectiveness and fairness of talent identification and development processes.

AREVA - 2013 Reference document

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2014-01-01

This Reference Document contains information on the AREVA group's objectives, prospects and development strategies, as well as estimates of the markets, market shares and competitive position of the AREVA group. Content: 1 - Person responsible for the Reference Document; 2 - Statutory auditors; 3 - Selected financial information; 4 - Description of major risks confronting the company; 5 - Information about the issuer; 6 - Business overview; 7 - Organizational structure; 8 - Property, plant and equipment; 9 - Situation and activities of the company and its subsidiaries; 10 - Capital resources; 11 - Research and development programs, patents and licenses; 12 - Trend information; 13 - Profit forecasts or estimates; 14 - Management and supervisory bodies; 15 - Compensation and benefits; 16 - Functioning of the management and supervisory bodies; 17 - Human resources information; 18 - Principal shareholders; 19 - Transactions with related parties; 20 - Financial information concerning assets, financial positions and financial performance; 21 - Additional information; 22 - Major contracts; 23 - Third party information, statements by experts and declarations of interest; 24 - Documents on display; 25 - Information on holdings; Appendix 1: report of the supervisory board chairman on the preparation and organization of the board's activities and internal control procedures; Appendix 2: statutory auditors' reports; Appendix 3: environmental report; Appendix 4: non-financial reporting methodology and independent third-party report on social, environmental and societal data; Appendix 5: ordinary and extraordinary general shareholders' meeting; Appendix 6: values charter; Appendix 7: table of concordance of the management report; glossaries

Formal structures, the concepts of covariance, invariance, equivalent reference frames, and the principle Relativity

Science.gov (United States)

Rodrigues, W. A.; Scanavini, M. E. F.; de Alcantara, L. P.

1990-02-01

In this paper a given spacetime theory T is characterized as the theory of a certain species of structure in the sense of Bourbaki [1]. It is then possible to clarify in a rigorous way the concepts of passive and active covariance of T under the action of the manifold mapping group G M . For each T, we define also an invariance group G I T and, in general, G I T ≠ G M . This group is defined once we realize that, for each τ ∈ ModT, each explicit geometrical object defining the structure can be classified as absolute or dynamical [2]. All spacetime theories possess also implicit geometrical objects that do not appear explicitly in the structure. These implicit objects are not absolute nor dynamical. Among them there are the reference frame fields, i.e., “timelike” vector fields X ∈ TU,U subseteq M M, where M is a manifold which is part of ST, a substructure for each τ ∈ ModT, called spacetime. We give a physically motivated definition of equivalent reference frames and introduce the concept of the equivalence group of a class of reference frames of kind X according to T, G X T. We define that T admits a weak principle of relativity (WPR) only if G X T ≠ identity for some X. If G X T = G I T for some X, we say that T admits a strong principle of relativity (PR). The results of this paper generalize and clarify several results obtained by Anderson [2], Scheibe [3], Hiskes [4], Recami and Rodrigues [5], Friedman [6], Fock [7], and Scanavini [8]. Among the novelties here, there is the realization that the definitions of G I T and G X T can be given only when certain boundary conditions for the equations of motion of T can be physically realizable in the domain U U subseteq M M, where a given reference frame is defined. The existence of physically realizable boundary conditions for each τ ∈ ModT (in ∂ U), in contrast with the mathematically possible boundary condition, is then seen to be essential for the validity of a principle of relativity for T

Selection of Reliable Reference Genes for Gene Expression Studies of a Promising Oilseed Crop, Plukenetia volubilis, by Real-Time Quantitative PCR

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Longjian Niu

2015-06-01

Full Text Available Real-time quantitative PCR (RT-qPCR is a reliable and widely used method for gene expression analysis. The accuracy of the determination of a target gene expression level by RT-qPCR demands the use of appropriate reference genes to normalize the mRNA levels among different samples. However, suitable reference genes for RT-qPCR have not been identified in Sacha inchi (Plukenetia volubilis, a promising oilseed crop known for its polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA-rich seeds. In this study, using RT-qPCR, twelve candidate reference genes were examined in seedlings and adult plants, during flower and seed development and for the entire growth cycle of Sacha inchi. Four statistical algorithms (delta cycle threshold (ΔCt, BestKeeper, geNorm, and NormFinder were used to assess the expression stabilities of the candidate genes. The results showed that ubiquitin-conjugating enzyme (UCE, actin (ACT and phospholipase A22 (PLA were the most stable genes in Sacha inchi seedlings. For roots, stems, leaves, flowers, and seeds from adult plants, 30S ribosomal protein S13 (RPS13, cyclophilin (CYC and elongation factor-1alpha (EF1α were recommended as reference genes for RT-qPCR. During the development of reproductive organs, PLA, ACT and UCE were the optimal reference genes for flower development, whereas UCE, RPS13 and RNA polymerase II subunit (RPII were optimal for seed development. Considering the entire growth cycle of Sacha inchi, UCE, ACT and EF1α were sufficient for the purpose of normalization. Our results provide useful guidelines for the selection of reliable reference genes for the normalization of RT-qPCR data for seedlings and adult plants, for reproductive organs, and for the entire growth cycle of Sacha inchi.

Selection of Reliable Reference Genes for Gene Expression Studies of a Promising Oilseed Crop, Plukenetia volubilis, by Real-Time Quantitative PCR

Science.gov (United States)

Niu, Longjian; Tao, Yan-Bin; Chen, Mao-Sheng; Fu, Qiantang; Li, Chaoqiong; Dong, Yuling; Wang, Xiulan; He, Huiying; Xu, Zeng-Fu

2015-01-01

Real-time quantitative PCR (RT-qPCR) is a reliable and widely used method for gene expression analysis. The accuracy of the determination of a target gene expression level by RT-qPCR demands the use of appropriate reference genes to normalize the mRNA levels among different samples. However, suitable reference genes for RT-qPCR have not been identified in Sacha inchi (Plukenetia volubilis), a promising oilseed crop known for its polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA)-rich seeds. In this study, using RT-qPCR, twelve candidate reference genes were examined in seedlings and adult plants, during flower and seed development and for the entire growth cycle of Sacha inchi. Four statistical algorithms (delta cycle threshold (ΔCt), BestKeeper, geNorm, and NormFinder) were used to assess the expression stabilities of the candidate genes. The results showed that ubiquitin-conjugating enzyme (UCE), actin (ACT) and phospholipase A22 (PLA) were the most stable genes in Sacha inchi seedlings. For roots, stems, leaves, flowers, and seeds from adult plants, 30S ribosomal protein S13 (RPS13), cyclophilin (CYC) and elongation factor-1alpha (EF1α) were recommended as reference genes for RT-qPCR. During the development of reproductive organs, PLA, ACT and UCE were the optimal reference genes for flower development, whereas UCE, RPS13 and RNA polymerase II subunit (RPII) were optimal for seed development. Considering the entire growth cycle of Sacha inchi, UCE, ACT and EF1α were sufficient for the purpose of normalization. Our results provide useful guidelines for the selection of reliable reference genes for the normalization of RT-qPCR data for seedlings and adult plants, for reproductive organs, and for the entire growth cycle of Sacha inchi. PMID:26047338

Age- and size-related reference ranges: a case study of spirometry through childhood and adulthood.

Science.gov (United States)

Cole, T J; Stanojevic, S; Stocks, J; Coates, A L; Hankinson, J L; Wade, A M

2009-02-28

Age-related reference ranges are useful for assessing growth in children. The LMS method is a popular technique for constructing growth charts that model the age-changing distribution of the measurement in terms of the median, coefficient of variation and skewness. Here the methodology is extended to references that depend on body size as well as age, by exploiting the flexibility of the generalised additive models for location, scale and shape (GAMLSS) technique. GAMLSS offers general linear predictors for each moment parameter and a choice of error distributions, which can handle kurtosis as well as skewness. A key question with such references is the nature of the age-size adjustment, additive or multiplicative, which is explored by comparing the identity link and log link for the median predictor.There are several measurements whose reference ranges depend on both body size and age. As an example, models are developed here for the first four moments of the lung function variables forced expiratory volume in 1 s (FEV(1)), forced vital capacity (FVC) and FEV(1)/FVC in terms of height and age, in a data set of 3598 children and adults aged 4 to 80 years. The results show a strong multiplicative association between spirometry, height and age, with a large and nonlinear age effect across the age range. Variability also depends nonlinearly on age and to a lesser extent on height. FEV(1) and FVC are close to normally distributed, while FEV(1)/FVC is appreciably skew to the left. GAMLSS is a powerful technique for the construction of such references, which should be useful in clinical medicine. Copyright (c) 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Estimating relations between temperature, relative humidity as independed variables and selected water quality parameters in Lake Manzala, Egypt

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gehan A.H. Sallam

2018-03-01

Full Text Available In Egypt, Lake Manzala is the largest and the most productive lake of northern coastal lakes. In this study, the continuous measurements data of the Real Time Water Quality Monitoring stations in Lake Manzala were statistically analyzed to measure the regional and seasonal variations of the selected water quality parameters in relation to the change of air temperature and relative humidity. Simple formulas are elaborated using the DataFit software to predict the selected water quality parameters of the Lake including pH, Dissolved Oxygen (DO, Electrical Conductivity (EC, Total Dissolved Solids (TDS, Turbidity, and Chlorophyll as a function of air temperature, relative humidity and quantities and qualities of the drainage water that discharge into the lake. An empirical positive relation was found between air temperature and the relative humidity and pH, EC and TDS and negative relation with DO. There is no significant effect on the other two parameters of turbidity and chlorophyll.

Geological and geochemical aspects of uranium deposits: a selected, annotated bibliography. [474 references

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Thomas, J.M.; Garland, P.A.; White, M.B.; Daniel, E.W.

1980-09-01

This bibliography, a compilation of 474 references, is the fourth in a series compiled from the National Uranium Resource Evaluation (NURE) Bibliographic Data Base. This data base was created for the Grand Junction Office of the Department of Energy's National Uranium Resource Evaluation Project by the Ecological Sciences Information Center, Oak Ridge National Laboratory. The references in the bibliography are arranged by subject category: (1) geochemistry, (2) exploration, (3) mineralogy, (4) genesis of deposits, (5) geology of deposits, (6) uranium industry, (7) geology of potential uranium-bearing areas, and (8) reserves and resources. The references are indexed by author, geographic location, quadrangle name, geoformational feature, and keyword.

Occupational dose reduction at nuclear power plants: Annotated bibliography of selected readings in radiation protection and ALARA

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Baum, J.W.; Khan, T.A.

1986-10-01

This report is the third in a series of bibliographies supporting the efforts at Brookhaven National Laboratory on dose reduction at nuclear power plants. Abstracts for this report were selected from papers presented at recent technical meetings, journals and research reports reviewed at the BNL ALARA Center, and searches of the DOE/RECON data base on energy-related publications. The references selected for inclusion in the bibliography relate not only to operational health physics topics but also to plant chemistry, stress corrosion cracking, and other aspects of plant operation which have important impacts on occupational exposure. Also included are references to improved design, planning, materials selection and other topics related to what might be called ALARA engineering. Thus, an attempt has been made to cover a broad spectrum of topics related directly or indirectly to occupational exposure reduction. The report contains 252 abstracts and both author and subject indices

Spectrally selective glazings

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1998-08-01

Spectrally selective glazing is window glass that permits some portions of the solar spectrum to enter a building while blocking others. This high-performance glazing admits as much daylight as possible while preventing transmission of as much solar heat as possible. By controlling solar heat gains in summer, preventing loss of interior heat in winter, and allowing occupants to reduce electric lighting use by making maximum use of daylight, spectrally selective glazing significantly reduces building energy consumption and peak demand. Because new spectrally selective glazings can have a virtually clear appearance, they admit more daylight and permit much brighter, more open views to the outside while still providing the solar control of the dark, reflective energy-efficient glass of the past. This Federal Technology Alert provides detailed information and procedures for Federal energy managers to consider spectrally selective glazings. The principle of spectrally selective glazings is explained. Benefits related to energy efficiency and other architectural criteria are delineated. Guidelines are provided for appropriate application of spectrally selective glazing, and step-by-step instructions are given for estimating energy savings. Case studies are also presented to illustrate actual costs and energy savings. Current manufacturers, technology users, and references for further reading are included for users who have questions not fully addressed here.

The Prevalence of Edentulism among Patients Over 35 Years of Age Referring to the Selected Dental Clinics in Qom City, Iran, 2014

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

mina hamian

2016-12-01

Full Text Available Backgroung and Objectives: Edentulism is a common phenomenon among the elderly, which its prevalence is one of the community health indicators. Edentulism leads to gastrointestinal diseases, esthetic defects, and reduction of social and psychological abilities. The aim of this study was to investigate the prevalence of edentulism among patients aged 35 years and over who referred to the selected dental clinics of Qom city. Methods: In this cross-sectional study, 394 patients (aged 35 years and over referring to the selected dental clinics of Qom city, 2014, were randomly selected. Before performing oral examination for each person, demographic characteristics, including age, sex, job, marital status, and economic status, as well as history of smoking, xerostomia, systemic diseases, oral hygiene, and causes for edentulism, were recorded in a questionnaire. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and chi-square test. The level of significance was set at p<0.05. Results: The prevalence of edentulism was 23.9%, which had a significant relationship with gender, and was higher in male gender. The results of independent t-test showed that the mean age was higher in edentulous subjects and was higher (56.6. The most cause of tooth loss (75% was tooth decay. Among edentulous individuals, 84% were under diploma and 52.6% had moderate economic status. Also, 71.9% of them were brushing rarely. Conclusion: According to the results, the prevalence of edentulism in Qom was high. Also, there was a significant relationship between edentulism and education level, smoking, caries, periodontal disease, economic status, occupation, xerostomia, oral hygiene, and systemic diseases.

Threat-Related Selective Attention Predicts Treatment Success in Childhood Anxiety Disorders

OpenAIRE

Legerstee, Jeroen; Tulen, Joke; Kallen, Victor; Dieleman, Gwen; Treffers, Philip; Verhulst, Frank; Utens, Elisabeth

2009-01-01

textabstractAbstract OBJECTIVE: The present study examined whether threat-related selective attention was predictive of treatment success in children with anxiety disorders and whether age moderated this association. Specific components of selective attention were examined in treatment responders and nonresponders. METHOD: Participants consisted of 131 children with anxiety disorders (aged 8-16 years), who received standardized cognitive-behavioral therapy. At pretreatment, a pictorial dot-pr...

32 CFR 634.2 - References.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... 32 National Defense 4 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 true References. 634.2 Section 634.2 National Defense Department of Defense (Continued) DEPARTMENT OF THE ARMY (CONTINUED) LAW ENFORCEMENT AND CRIMINAL INVESTIGATIONS MOTOR VEHICLE TRAFFIC SUPERVISION Introduction § 634.2 References. Required and related publications along with prescribed and reference...

Active galactic nuclei emission line diagnostics and the mass-metallicity relation up to redshift z ∼ 2: The impact of selection effects and evolution

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Juneau, Stéphanie; Bournaud, Frédéric; Daddi, Emanuele; Elbaz, David; Duc, Pierre-Alain; Gobat, Raphael; Jean-Baptiste, Ingrid; Le Floc' h, Émeric; Pannella, Maurilio; Schreiber, Corentin [CEA-Saclay, DSM/IRFU/SAp, F-91191 Gif-sur-Yvette (France); Charlot, Stéphane; Lehnert, M. D.; Pacifici, Camilla [UPMC-CNRS, UMR 7095, Institut d' Astrophysique de Paris, F-75014 Paris (France); Trump, Jonathan R. [University of California Observatories/Lick Observatory, University of California, Santa Cruz, CA 95064 (United States); Brinchmann, Jarle [Leiden Observatory, Leiden University, P.O. Box 9513, 2300 RA Leiden (Netherlands); Dickinson, Mark, E-mail: stephanie.juneau@cea.fr [National Optical Astronomy Observatory, 950 North Cherry Avenue, Tucson, AZ 85719 (United States)

2014-06-10

Emission line diagnostic diagrams probing the ionization sources in galaxies, such as the Baldwin-Phillips-Terlevich (BPT) diagram, have been used extensively to distinguish active galactic nuclei (AGN) from purely star-forming galaxies. However, they remain poorly understood at higher redshifts. We shed light on this issue with an empirical approach based on a z ∼ 0 reference sample built from ∼300,000 Sloan Digital Sky Survey galaxies, from which we mimic selection effects due to typical emission line detection limits at higher redshift. We combine this low-redshift reference sample with a simple prescription for luminosity evolution of the global galaxy population to predict the loci of high-redshift galaxies on the BPT and Mass-Excitation (MEx) diagnostic diagrams. The predicted bivariate distributions agree remarkably well with direct observations of galaxies out to z ∼ 1.5, including the observed stellar mass-metallicity (MZ) relation evolution. As a result, we infer that high-redshift star-forming galaxies are consistent with having normal interstellar medium (ISM) properties out to z ∼ 1.5, after accounting for selection effects and line luminosity evolution. Namely, their optical line ratios and gas-phase metallicities are comparable to that of low-redshift galaxies with equivalent emission-line luminosities. In contrast, AGN narrow-line regions may show a shift toward lower metallicities at higher redshift. While a physical evolution of the ISM conditions is not ruled out for purely star-forming galaxies and may be more important starting at z ≳ 2, we find that reliably quantifying this evolution is hindered by selections effects. The recipes provided here may serve as a basis for future studies toward this goal. Code to predict the loci of galaxies on the BPT and MEx diagnostic diagrams and the MZ relation as a function of emission line luminosity limits is made publicly available.

Active galactic nuclei emission line diagnostics and the mass-metallicity relation up to redshift z ∼ 2: The impact of selection effects and evolution

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Juneau, Stéphanie; Bournaud, Frédéric; Daddi, Emanuele; Elbaz, David; Duc, Pierre-Alain; Gobat, Raphael; Jean-Baptiste, Ingrid; Le Floc'h, Émeric; Pannella, Maurilio; Schreiber, Corentin; Charlot, Stéphane; Lehnert, M. D.; Pacifici, Camilla; Trump, Jonathan R.; Brinchmann, Jarle; Dickinson, Mark

2014-01-01

Emission line diagnostic diagrams probing the ionization sources in galaxies, such as the Baldwin-Phillips-Terlevich (BPT) diagram, have been used extensively to distinguish active galactic nuclei (AGN) from purely star-forming galaxies. However, they remain poorly understood at higher redshifts. We shed light on this issue with an empirical approach based on a z ∼ 0 reference sample built from ∼300,000 Sloan Digital Sky Survey galaxies, from which we mimic selection effects due to typical emission line detection limits at higher redshift. We combine this low-redshift reference sample with a simple prescription for luminosity evolution of the global galaxy population to predict the loci of high-redshift galaxies on the BPT and Mass-Excitation (MEx) diagnostic diagrams. The predicted bivariate distributions agree remarkably well with direct observations of galaxies out to z ∼ 1.5, including the observed stellar mass-metallicity (MZ) relation evolution. As a result, we infer that high-redshift star-forming galaxies are consistent with having normal interstellar medium (ISM) properties out to z ∼ 1.5, after accounting for selection effects and line luminosity evolution. Namely, their optical line ratios and gas-phase metallicities are comparable to that of low-redshift galaxies with equivalent emission-line luminosities. In contrast, AGN narrow-line regions may show a shift toward lower metallicities at higher redshift. While a physical evolution of the ISM conditions is not ruled out for purely star-forming galaxies and may be more important starting at z ≳ 2, we find that reliably quantifying this evolution is hindered by selections effects. The recipes provided here may serve as a basis for future studies toward this goal. Code to predict the loci of galaxies on the BPT and MEx diagnostic diagrams and the MZ relation as a function of emission line luminosity limits is made publicly available.

Numerical Analysis of a Rotating Detonation Engine in the Relative Reference Frame

Science.gov (United States)

Paxson, Daniel E.

2014-01-01

A two-dimensional, computational fluid dynamic (CFD) simulation of a semi-idealized rotating detonation engine (RDE) is described. The simulation operates in the detonation frame of reference and utilizes a relatively coarse grid such that only the essential primary flow field structure is captured. This construction yields rapidly converging, steady solutions. Results from the simulation are compared to those from a more complex and refined code, and found to be in reasonable agreement. The performance impacts of several RDE design parameters are then examined. Finally, for a particular RDE configuration, it is found that direct performance comparison can be made with a straight-tube pulse detonation engine (PDE). Results show that they are essentially equivalent.

MD-CTS: An integrated terminology reference of clinical and translational medicine

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Will Ray

2016-01-01

Full Text Available New vocabularies are rapidly evolving in the literature relative to the practice of clinical medicine and translational research. To provide integrated access to new terms, we developed a mobile and desktop online reference—Marshfield Dictionary of Clinical and Translational Science (MD-CTS. It is the first public resource that comprehensively integrates Wiktionary (word definition, BioPortal (ontology, Wiki (image reference, and Medline abstract (word usage information. MD-CTS is accessible at http://spellchecker.mfldclin.edu/. The website provides a broadened capacity for the wider clinical and translational science community to keep pace with newly emerging scientific vocabulary. An initial evaluation using 63 randomly selected biomedical words suggests that online references generally provided better coverage (73%-95% than paper-based dictionaries (57–71%.

Laterality related to the successive selection of Dutch national youth soccer players

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Verbeek, Jan; Elferink-Gemser, Marije T.; Jonker, Laura; Huijgen, Barbara C. H.; Visscher, Chris

2017-01-01

In the general population, estimates of left-foot preference are around 20%. In soccer, specific tasks create positional demands, requiring 40% of the players to be left-footed. Whether and how this is related to the selection of players is unknown. To examine the successive selection of soccer

Catheter-related infections in a northwestern São Paulo reference unit for burned patients care

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Cláudio Penido Campos Júnior

Full Text Available Despite improvements in care and rehabilitation of burned patients, infections still remain the main complication and death cause. Catheter-related infections are among the four most common infections and are associated with skin damage and insertion site colonization. There are few studies evaluating this kind of infection worldwide in this special group of patients. Padre Albino Hospital Burn Care Unit (PAHBCU is the only reference center in the Northwestern São Paulo for treatment of burned patients. This paper presents the results of a retrospective study aiming at describing the epidemiological and clinical features of catheter-related infections at PAHBCU.

Physical activity in relation to selected physical health components ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The aim of this study was to determine the relation between physical activity and selected physical health components. A total of 9860 employees of a financial institution in South Africa, between the ages 18 and 64 (x̄ =35.3 ± 18.6 years), voluntary participated in the study. Health risk factors and physical activity was ...

Age-related decline in bottom-up processing and selective attention in the very old.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhuravleva, Tatyana Y; Alperin, Brittany R; Haring, Anna E; Rentz, Dorene M; Holcomb, Philip J; Daffner, Kirk R

2014-06-01

Previous research demonstrating age-related deficits in selective attention have not included old-old adults, an increasingly important group to study. The current investigation compared event-related potentials in 15 young-old (65-79 years old) and 23 old-old (80-99 years old) subjects during a color-selective attention task. Subjects responded to target letters in a specified color (Attend) while ignoring letters in a different color (Ignore) under both low and high loads. There were no group differences in visual acuity, accuracy, reaction time, or latency of early event-related potential components. The old-old group showed a disruption in bottom-up processing, indexed by a substantially diminished posterior N1 (smaller amplitude). They also demonstrated markedly decreased modulation of bottom-up processing based on selected visual features, indexed by the posterior selection negativity (SN), with similar attenuation under both loads. In contrast, there were no group differences in frontally mediated attentional selection, measured by the anterior selection positivity (SP). There was a robust inverse relationship between the size of the SN and SP (the smaller the SN, the larger the SP), which may represent an anteriorly supported compensatory mechanism. In the absence of a decline in top-down modulation indexed by the SP, the diminished SN may reflect age-related degradation of early bottom-up visual processing in old-old adults.

Selection of reliable reference genes for RT-qPCR studies in Octopus vulgaris paralarvae during development and immune-stimulation.

Science.gov (United States)

García-Fernández, P; Castellanos-Martínez, S; Iglesias, J; Otero, J J; Gestal, C

2016-07-01

The common octopus, Octopus vulgaris is a new candidate species for aquaculture. However, rearing of octopus paralarvae is hampered by high mortality and poor growth rates that impede its entire culture. The study of genes involved in the octopus development and immune response capability could help to understand the key of paralarvae survival and thus, to complete the octopus life cycle. Quantitative real-time PCR (RT-qPCR) is the most frequently tool used to quantify the gene expression because of specificity and sensitivity. However, reliability of RT-qPCR requires the selection of appropriate normalization genes whose expression must be stable across the different experimental conditions of the study. Hence, the aim of the present work is to evaluate the stability of six candidate genes: β-actin (ACT), elongation factor 1-α (EF), ubiquitin (UBI), β-tubulin (TUB), glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GADPH) and ribosomal RNA 18 (18S) in order to select the best reference gene. The stability of gene expression was analyzed using geNorm, NormFinder and Bestkeeper, in octopus paralarvae of seven developmental stages (embryo, paralarvae of 0, 10, 15, 20, 30 and 34days) and paralarvae of 20days after challenge with Vibrio lentus and Vibrio splendidus. The results were validated by measuring the expression of PGRP, a stimuli-specific gene. Our results showed UBI, EF and 18S as the most suitable reference genes during development of octopus paralarvae, and UBI, ACT and 18S for bacterial infection. These results provide a basis for further studies exploring molecular mechanism of their development and innate immune defense. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Survey of reference materials for trace elements, nuclides and organic microcontaminants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Parr, R.M.; Stone, S.F.; Bel-Amakeletch, T.; Zeisler, R.

1998-01-01

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), in co-operation with the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), has recently prepared a survey on internationally available analytical reference materials for trace elements, nuclides and organic contaminants in biological, environmental and related matrices. The purpose is to help analysts to select reference materials for quality assurance that match as closely as possible, with respect to matrix type and concentrations of the measurands of interest, the ''real'' samples that are to be measured. The present version of the survey, which is available in the form of two cost-free printed volumes [1], contains over 10,000 certified and information values in 650 reference materials from 27 different producers. The 455 measurands listed include trace elements, major and minor elements, organic contaminants, organometallic compounds, radionuclides and stable isotopes. Currently, the database from which the survey has been produced is being modified and extended so as to make the data available in electronic form via the Internet. (orig.)

Selection of reference genes for normalisation of real-time RT-PCR in brain-stem death injury in Ovis aries

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Fraser John F

2009-07-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Heart and lung transplantation is frequently the only therapeutic option for patients with end stage cardio respiratory disease. Organ donation post brain stem death (BSD is a pre-requisite, yet BSD itself causes such severe damage that many organs offered for donation are unusable, with lung being the organ most affected by BSD. In Australia and New Zealand, less than 50% of lungs offered for donation post BSD are suitable for transplantation, as compared with over 90% of kidneys, resulting in patients dying for lack of suitable lungs. Our group has developed a novel 24 h sheep BSD model to mimic the physiological milieu of the typical human organ donor. Characterisation of the gene expression changes associated with BSD is critical and will assist in determining the aetiology of lung damage post BSD. Real-time PCR is a highly sensitive method involving multiple steps from extraction to processing RNA so the choice of housekeeping genes is important in obtaining reliable results. Little information however, is available on the expression stability of reference genes in the sheep pulmonary artery and lung. We aimed to establish a set of stably expressed reference genes for use as a standard for analysis of gene expression changes in BSD. Results We evaluated the expression stability of 6 candidate normalisation genes (ACTB, GAPDH, HGPRT, PGK1, PPIA and RPLP0 using real time quantitative PCR. There was a wide range of Ct-values within each tissue for pulmonary artery (15–24 and lung (16–25 but the expression pattern for each gene was similar across the two tissues. After geNorm analysis, ACTB and PPIA were shown to be the most stably expressed in the pulmonary artery and ACTB and PGK1 in the lung tissue of BSD sheep. Conclusion Accurate normalisation is critical in obtaining reliable and reproducible results in gene expression studies. This study demonstrates tissue associated variability in the selection of these

The neural correlates of reference to the past

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Laura S. Bos

2014-04-01

Analysis (see Figure 1 showed greater BOLD signal change for both types of past over non-past time-reference bilaterally frontal—the SMA and frontal superior medial gyrus. We ascribe this to increased difficulty in selecting past time-reference inflection, hence, discourse linking. We found significantly increased LIFG activation for simple past over simple present, but not for periphrastic past over future (see Figure 1C. LIFG might be taxed for past tense inflection, but not past time-reference specifically. Although periphrastic past and future differ in time-reference, both verb clusters have a present tense auxiliary. Our results align with a fundamental difference between past and non-past time-reference, and are in accordance with past time-reference processing difficulties of aphasic individuals.

Information in relational data bases

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Abhyankar, R B

1982-01-01

A new knowledge representation scheme is proposed for representing incomplete information in relational data bases. The knowledge representation scheme introduces a novel convention for negative information based on modal logic and a novel data structure obtained by introducing tuple flags in the relational model of data. Standard and minimal forms are defined for relations conforming to the new data structure. The conventional relational operators, select, project and join, the redefined so they can be used to manipulate relations containing incomplete information. Conditions are presented for the lossless decomposition of relations containing incomplete information. 20 references.

Correction: Cecotti, H. and Rivet, B. Subject Combination and Electrode Selection in Cooperative Brain-Computer Interface Based on Event Related Potentials. Brain Sci. 2014, 4, 335–355

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hubert Cecotti

2014-09-01

Full Text Available The authors wish to make the following correction to this paper (Cecotti, H.; Rivet, B. Subject Combination and Electrode Selection in Cooperative Brain-Computer Interface Based on Event Related Potentials. Brain Sci. 2014, 4, 335–355: Due to an internal error, the reference numbers in the original published paper were not shown, and the error was not due to the authors. The former main text should be replaced as below.

AREVA 2009 reference document

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2009-01-01

This Reference Document contains information on the AREVA group's objectives, prospects and development strategies. It contains information on the markets, market shares and competitive position of the AREVA group. This information provides an adequate picture of the size of these markets and of the AREVA group's competitive position. Content: 1 - Person responsible for the Reference Document and Attestation by the person responsible for the Reference Document; 2 - Statutory and Deputy Auditors; 3 - Selected financial information; 4 - Risks: Risk management and coverage, Legal risk, Industrial and environmental risk, Operating risk, Risk related to major projects, Liquidity and market risk, Other risk; 5 - Information about the issuer: History and development, Investments; 6 - Business overview: Markets for nuclear power and renewable energies, AREVA customers and suppliers, Overview and strategy of the group, Business divisions, Discontinued operations: AREVA Transmission and Distribution; 7 - Organizational structure; 8 - Property, plant and equipment: Principal sites of the AREVA group, Environmental issues that may affect the issuer's; 9 - Analysis of and comments on the group's financial position and performance: Overview, Financial position, Cash flow, Statement of financial position, Events subsequent to year-end closing for 2009; 10 - Capital Resources; 11 - Research and development programs, patents and licenses; 12 -trend information: Current situation, Financial objectives; 13 - Profit forecasts or estimates; 14 - Administrative, management and supervisory bodies and senior management; 15 - Compensation and benefits; 16 - Functioning of corporate bodies; 17 - Employees; 18 - Principal shareholders; 19 - Transactions with related parties: French state, CEA, EDF group; 20 - Financial information concerning assets, financial positions and financial performance; 21 - Additional information: Share capital, Certificate of incorporation and by-laws; 22 - Major

Neutron activation analysis of reference materials by the k sub 0 standardization and relative methods

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Freitas, M C; Martinho, E [LNETI/ICEN, Sacavem (Portugal)

1989-04-15

Instrumental neutron activation analysis with the k{sub o}-standardization method was applied to eight geological, environmental and biological reference materials, including leaves, blood, fish, sediments, soils and limestone. To a first approximation, the results were normally distributed around the certified values with a standard deviation of 10%. Results obtained by using the relative method based on well characterized multi-element standards for IAEA CRM Soil-7 are reported.

Reference Materials in LIS Instruction: A Delphi Study

Science.gov (United States)

Rabina, Debbie

2013-01-01

This paper presents the results of a Delphi study conducted over a two-month period in 2011. The purpose of the study was to identify reference sources that should be covered in basic reference courses taught in LIS programs in the United States. The Delphi method was selected for its appropriateness in soliciting expert opinions and assessing the…

Extending IM beyond the Reference Desk: A Case Study on the Integration of Chat Reference and Library-Wide Instant Messaging Network

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ian Chan

2012-09-01

Full Text Available Openfire is an open source IM network and a single unified application that meets the needs of chat reference and internal communications. In Fall 2009, the California State University San Marcos (CSUSM Library began use of Openfire and other Jive software instant messaging technologies, to simultaneously improve our existing IM-integrated chat reference software and implement an internal IM network. This case study describes the chat reference and internal communications environment at the CSUSM Library and the selection, implementation, and evaluation of Openfire. In addition, the authors discuss the benefits of deploying an integrated instant messaging and chat reference network.

Concurrent validity of the PAM accelerometer relative to the MTI Actigraph using oxygen consumption as a reference

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Slootmaker, S.M.; Chin A Paw, M.J.M.; Schuit, A.J.; Mechelen, W. van; Koppes, L.L.J.

2009-01-01

The purpose of this study was to examine the concurrent validity of the Personal Activity Monitor (PAM) accelerometer relative to the Actigraph accelerometer using oxygen consumption as a reference, and to assess the test-retest reliability of the PAM. Thirty-two fit, normal weight adults (aged

Operator psychological selection system for nuclear power plant

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

He Xuhong; Huang Xiangrui

2004-01-01

Based on a detailed job analysis of nuclear power plant operator including operation procedures analysis, interview with personnel familiar with operator job, and 9 events happened in the past in the plant involved operator error analysis, several operator work characteristics and performance influence factors are obtained. According to these specific characteristics and factors, referring to the psychological selection research results in the other related critical occupational fields, a full psychological selection system of nuclear power plant operator is forwarded in this paper, including 21 dimensions in 3 facets as general psychological ability, personality and psychological healthy. Practical measurement methods for the proposed selection dimensions are discussed in the end

Motivated encoding selectively promotes memory for future inconsequential semantically-related events.

Science.gov (United States)

Oyarzún, Javiera P; Packard, Pau A; de Diego-Balaguer, Ruth; Fuentemilla, Lluis

2016-09-01

Neurobiological models of long-term memory explain how memory for inconsequential events fades, unless these happen before or after other relevant (i.e., rewarding or aversive) or novel events. Recently, it has been shown in humans that retrospective and prospective memories are selectively enhanced if semantically related events are paired with aversive stimuli. However, it remains unclear whether motivating stimuli, as opposed to aversive, have the same effect in humans. Here, participants performed a three phase incidental encoding task where one semantic category was rewarded during the second phase. A memory test 24h after, but not immediately after encoding, revealed that memory for inconsequential items was selectively enhanced only if items from the same category had been previously, but not subsequently, paired with rewards. This result suggests that prospective memory enhancement of reward-related information requires, like previously reported for aversive memories, of a period of memory consolidation. The current findings provide the first empirical evidence in humans that the effects of motivated encoding are selectively and prospectively prolonged over time. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Selection of reference genes for qRT-PCR analysis of gene expression in sea cucumber Apostichopus japonicus during aestivation

Science.gov (United States)

Zhao, Ye; Chen, Muyan; Wang, Tianming; Sun, Lina; Xu, Dongxue; Yang, Hongsheng

2014-11-01

Quantitative real-time reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) is a technique that is widely used for gene expression analysis, and its accuracy depends on the expression stability of the internal reference genes used as normalization factors. However, many applications of qRT-PCR used housekeeping genes as internal controls without validation. In this study, the expression stability of eight candidate reference genes in three tissues (intestine, respiratory tree, and muscle) of the sea cucumber Apostichopus japonicus was assessed during normal growth and aestivation using the geNorm, NormFinder, delta CT, and RefFinder algorithms. The results indicate that the reference genes exhibited significantly different expression patterns among the three tissues during aestivation. In general, the β-tubulin (TUBB) gene was relatively stable in the intestine and respiratory tree tissues. The optimal reference gene combination for intestine was 40S ribosomal protein S18 (RPS18), TUBB, and NADH dehydrogenase (NADH); for respiratory tree, it was β-actin (ACTB), TUBB, and succinate dehydrogenase cytochrome B small subunit (SDHC); and for muscle it was α-tubulin (TUBA) and NADH dehydrogenase [ubiquinone] 1 α subcomplex subunit 13 (NDUFA13). These combinations of internal control genes should be considered for use in further studies of gene expression in A. japonicus during aestivation.

Light escape cones in local reference frames of Kerr-de Sitter black hole spacetimes and related black hole shadows

Science.gov (United States)

Stuchlík, Zdeněk; Charbulák, Daniel; Schee, Jan

2018-03-01

We construct the light escape cones of isotropic spot sources of radiation residing in special classes of reference frames in the Kerr-de Sitter (KdS) black hole spacetimes, namely in the fundamental class of `non-geodesic' locally non-rotating reference frames (LNRFs), and two classes of `geodesic' frames, the radial geodesic frames (RGFs), both falling and escaping, and the frames related to the circular geodesic orbits (CGFs). We compare the cones constructed in a given position for the LNRFs, RGFs, and CGFs. We have shown that the photons locally counter-rotating relative to LNRFs with positive impact parameter and negative covariant energy are confined to the ergosphere region. Finally, we demonstrate that the light escaping cones govern the shadows of black holes located in front of a radiating screen, as seen by the observers in the considered frames. For shadows related to distant static observers the LNRFs are relevant.

Ethnic Related Selection for an ADH Class I Variant within East Asia

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Hui; Gu, Sheng; Cai, Xiaoyun; Speed, William C.; Pakstis, Andrew J.; Golub, Efim I.; Kidd, Judith R.; Kidd, Kenneth K.

2008-01-01

Background The alcohol dehydrogenases (ADH) are widely studied enzymes and the evolution of the mammalian gene cluster encoding these enzymes is also well studied. Previous studies have shown that the ADH1B*47His allele at one of the seven genes in humans is associated with a decrease in the risk of alcoholism and the core molecular region with this allele has been selected for in some East Asian populations. As the frequency of ADH1B*47His is highest in East Asia, and very low in most of the rest of the world, we have undertaken more detailed investigation in this geographic region. Methodology/Principal Findings Here we report new data on 30 SNPs in the ADH7 and Class I ADH region in samples of 24 populations from China and Laos. These populations cover a wide geographic region and diverse ethnicities. Combined with our previously published East Asian data for these SNPs in 8 populations, we have typed populations from all of the 6 major linguistic phyla (Altaic including Korean-Japanese and inland Altaic, Sino-Tibetan, Hmong-Mien, Austro-Asiatic, Daic, and Austronesian). The ADH1B genotyping data are strongly related to ethnicity. Only some eastern ethnic phyla or subphyla (Korean-Japanese, Han Chinese, Hmong-Mien, Daic, and Austronesian) have a high frequency of ADH1B*47His. ADH1B haplotype data clustered the populations into linguistic subphyla, and divided the subphyla into eastern and western parts. In the Hmong-Mien and Altaic populations, the extended haplotype homozygosity (EHH) and relative EHH (REHH) tests for the ADH1B core were consistent with selection for the haplotype with derived SNP alleles. In the other ethnic phyla, the core showed only a weak signal of selection at best. Conclusions/Significance The selection distribution is more significantly correlated with the frequency of the derived ADH1B regulatory region polymorphism than the derived amino-acid altering allele ADH1B*47His. Thus, the real focus of selection may be the regulatory region

Ethnic related selection for an ADH Class I variant within East Asia.

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Hui; Gu, Sheng; Cai, Xiaoyun; Speed, William C; Pakstis, Andrew J; Golub, Efim I; Kidd, Judith R; Kidd, Kenneth K

2008-04-02

The alcohol dehydrogenases (ADH) are widely studied enzymes and the evolution of the mammalian gene cluster encoding these enzymes is also well studied. Previous studies have shown that the ADH1B*47His allele at one of the seven genes in humans is associated with a decrease in the risk of alcoholism and the core molecular region with this allele has been selected for in some East Asian populations. As the frequency of ADH1B*47His is highest in East Asia, and very low in most of the rest of the world, we have undertaken more detailed investigation in this geographic region. Here we report new data on 30 SNPs in the ADH7 and Class I ADH region in samples of 24 populations from China and Laos. These populations cover a wide geographic region and diverse ethnicities. Combined with our previously published East Asian data for these SNPs in 8 populations, we have typed populations from all of the 6 major linguistic phyla (Altaic including Korean-Japanese and inland Altaic, Sino-Tibetan, Hmong-Mien, Austro-Asiatic, Daic, and Austronesian). The ADH1B genotyping data are strongly related to ethnicity. Only some eastern ethnic phyla or subphyla (Korean-Japanese, Han Chinese, Hmong-Mien, Daic, and Austronesian) have a high frequency of ADH1B*47His. ADH1B haplotype data clustered the populations into linguistic subphyla, and divided the subphyla into eastern and western parts. In the Hmong-Mien and Altaic populations, the extended haplotype homozygosity (EHH) and relative EHH (REHH) tests for the ADH1B core were consistent with selection for the haplotype with derived SNP alleles. In the other ethnic phyla, the core showed only a weak signal of selection at best. The selection distribution is more significantly correlated with the frequency of the derived ADH1B regulatory region polymorphism than the derived amino-acid altering allele ADH1B*47His. Thus, the real focus of selection may be the regulatory region. The obvious ethnicity-related distributions of ADH1B diversities

Ethnic related selection for an ADH Class I variant within East Asia.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hui Li

2008-04-01

Full Text Available The alcohol dehydrogenases (ADH are widely studied enzymes and the evolution of the mammalian gene cluster encoding these enzymes is also well studied. Previous studies have shown that the ADH1B*47His allele at one of the seven genes in humans is associated with a decrease in the risk of alcoholism and the core molecular region with this allele has been selected for in some East Asian populations. As the frequency of ADH1B*47His is highest in East Asia, and very low in most of the rest of the world, we have undertaken more detailed investigation in this geographic region.Here we report new data on 30 SNPs in the ADH7 and Class I ADH region in samples of 24 populations from China and Laos. These populations cover a wide geographic region and diverse ethnicities. Combined with our previously published East Asian data for these SNPs in 8 populations, we have typed populations from all of the 6 major linguistic phyla (Altaic including Korean-Japanese and inland Altaic, Sino-Tibetan, Hmong-Mien, Austro-Asiatic, Daic, and Austronesian. The ADH1B genotyping data are strongly related to ethnicity. Only some eastern ethnic phyla or subphyla (Korean-Japanese, Han Chinese, Hmong-Mien, Daic, and Austronesian have a high frequency of ADH1B*47His. ADH1B haplotype data clustered the populations into linguistic subphyla, and divided the subphyla into eastern and western parts. In the Hmong-Mien and Altaic populations, the extended haplotype homozygosity (EHH and relative EHH (REHH tests for the ADH1B core were consistent with selection for the haplotype with derived SNP alleles. In the other ethnic phyla, the core showed only a weak signal of selection at best.The selection distribution is more significantly correlated with the frequency of the derived ADH1B regulatory region polymorphism than the derived amino-acid altering allele ADH1B*47His. Thus, the real focus of selection may be the regulatory region. The obvious ethnicity-related distributions of ADH1B

Preparation and characterization of the fish reference material

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ulrich, Joao Cristiano

2011-01-01

The certified reference materials (CRMs) play an important role in obtaining measurement results traceable to the International System of Units, through an unbroken chain of comparisons. Thus, the demand for new certified reference materials (CRMs) increases every day in all areas of knowledge. The availability of reference materials, mainly in Brazil is still incipient, given that the demand far exceeds the available variety of these materials. The amount of certified reference materials available in the country is insufficient to meet the need of the scientific community and demands for development of new methodologies. Among the many areas in need of reference materials, we highlight the importance for the food trade balance for these products within the country. The certification of food products, intended both for export and for domestic consumption, requires analysis methods that provide precise and accurate results to ensure product quality. This paper describes the preparation and certification of a reference material in the fish matrix in mercury and methylmercury. The study brings together since the stage of material selection, preparation, development of homogeneity and stability studies and characterization. The certification was performed by means of measurements using two analytical techniques, flow injection analysis - cold vapor atomic absorption spectrometry (FIA-CV-AAS) and isotope dilution applied to mass spectrometry (IDMS), which is a primary method. In this work the standards of the ISO 30 (ABNT 30-34) and ISO Guide 35 was used as the basis for the preparation and characterization of the material. For the calculation of uncertainties was used the GUM and Eurachem guide. As a result, was produced and certified a lot of material in relation to the concentration of mercury (Hg = 0.271 ± 0.057 mg g -1 ) and methylmercury (MeHg = 0.245 ± 0.038 mg g -1 ), and informational values of lead and arsenic. (author)

Selection of reference genes for expression analysis of Kumamoto and Portuguese oysters and their hybrid

Science.gov (United States)

Yan, Lulu; Su, Jiaqi; Wang, Zhaoping; Yan, Xiwu; Yu, Ruihai

2017-12-01

Quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) is a rapid and reliable technique which has been widely used to quantifying gene transcripts (expression analysis). It is also employed for studying heterosis, hybridization breeding and hybrid tolerability of oysters, an ecologically and economically important taxonomic group. For these studies, selection of a suitable set of housekeeping genes as references is crucial for correct interpretation of qRT-PCR data. To identify suitable reference genes for oysters during low temperature and low salinity stresses, we analyzed twelve genes from the gill tissue of Crassostrea sikamea (SS), Crassostrea angulata (AA) and their hybrid (SA), which included three ribosomal genes, 28S ribosomal protein S5 ( RPS5), ribosomal protein L35 ( RPL35), and 60S ribosomal protein L29 ( RPL29); three structural genes, tubulin gamma ( TUBγ), annexin A6 and A7 ( AA6 and AA7); three metabolic pathway genes, ornithine decarboxylase ( OD), glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase ( GAPDH) and glutathione S-transferase P1 ( GSP); two transcription factors, elongation factor 1 alpha and beta ( EF1α and EF1β); and one protein synthesis gene (ubiquitin ( UBQ). Primers specific for these genes were successfully developed for the three groups of oysters. Three different algorithms, geNorm, NormFinder and BestKeeper, were used to evaluate the expression stability of these candidate genes. BestKeeper program was found to be the most reliable. Based on our analysis, we found that the expression of RPL35 and EF1α was stable under low salinity stress, and the expression of OD, GAPDH and EF1α was stable under low temperature stress in hybrid (SA) oyster; the expression of RPS5 and GAPDH was stable under low salinity stress, and the expression of RPS5, UBQ, GAPDH was stable under low temperature stress in SS oyster; the expression of RPS5, GAPDH, EF1β and AA7 was stable under low salinity stress, and the expression of RPL35, EF1α, GAPDH

Dosimetric verification for radiotherapy quality audit under reference and non-reference conditions in Jiangsu province

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wang Jin; Yu Ningle; Yang Chunyong; Du Xiang; Chen Wei; Luo Suming

2014-01-01

Objective: To verify the methodology for auditing dosimetric parameters in reference and non-reference conditions with thermoluminescent dosimeters (TLDs). Methods: Under reference and non-reference conditions, the established TLD methods were used to observe the absorbed dose variations with depth, SSD, field size and 45 wedges for 10 photon beams at 5 hospitals. Dosimetric parameters, including doses at D_m_a_x points in axis, on 5 electron beams of 9 MeV were measured. The measurement results were compared between the TLDs and plane parallel ionization chambers. Results: For 6 MV photon beams, the relative deviation of between finger ionization chamber method and TLD chips was in the range of -1.7% to 5.4% under on-axis non-reference conditions, and -6.3% to -0.6% under off-axis non-reference conditions, respectively, all within the range of ≤ ±7% as required by the IAEA. The relative deviation between plane parallel chamber and TLD method was -2.3% to 3.7%, within ±5% as required by the IAEA. Conclusions: It is convenient and feasible to use TLD method for quality audits of dosimetric parameters in radiotherapy. (authors)

Instrumental neutron and photon activation analyses of selected geochemical reference materials

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Mizera, Jiří; Řanda, Z.

2010-01-01

Roč. 284, č. 1 (2010), s. 157-163 ISSN 0236-5731 Institutional research plan: CEZ:AV0Z30460519 Keywords : neutron activation analysis * photon activation analysis * geochemical reference materials Subject RIV: BG - Nuclear, Atomic and Molecular Physics, Colliders OBOR OECD: Analytical chemistry Impact factor: 0.777, year: 2010

Reference gene identification for reliable normalisation of quantitative RT-PCR data in Setaria viridis.

Science.gov (United States)

Nguyen, Duc Quan; Eamens, Andrew L; Grof, Christopher P L

2018-01-01

Quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) is the key platform for the quantitative analysis of gene expression in a wide range of experimental systems and conditions. However, the accuracy and reproducibility of gene expression quantification via RT-qPCR is entirely dependent on the identification of reliable reference genes for data normalisation. Green foxtail ( Setaria viridis ) has recently been proposed as a potential experimental model for the study of C 4 photosynthesis and is closely related to many economically important crop species of the Panicoideae subfamily of grasses, including Zea mays (maize), Sorghum bicolor (sorghum) and Sacchurum officinarum (sugarcane). Setaria viridis (Accession 10) possesses a number of key traits as an experimental model, namely; (i) a small sized, sequenced and well annotated genome; (ii) short stature and generation time; (iii) prolific seed production, and; (iv) is amendable to Agrobacterium tumefaciens -mediated transformation. There is currently however, a lack of reference gene expression information for Setaria viridis ( S. viridis ). We therefore aimed to identify a cohort of suitable S. viridis reference genes for accurate and reliable normalisation of S. viridis RT-qPCR expression data. Eleven putative candidate reference genes were identified and examined across thirteen different S. viridis tissues. Of these, the geNorm and NormFinder analysis software identified SERINE / THERONINE - PROTEIN PHOSPHATASE 2A ( PP2A ), 5 '- ADENYLYLSULFATE REDUCTASE 6 ( ASPR6 ) and DUAL SPECIFICITY PHOSPHATASE ( DUSP ) as the most suitable combination of reference genes for the accurate and reliable normalisation of S. viridis RT-qPCR expression data. To demonstrate the suitability of the three selected reference genes, PP2A , ASPR6 and DUSP , were used to normalise the expression of CINNAMYL ALCOHOL DEHYDROGENASE ( CAD ) genes across the same tissues. This approach readily demonstrated the suitably of the three

Strategies for Selecting Routes through Real-World Environments: Relative Topography, Initial Route Straightness, and Cardinal Direction.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Tad T Brunyé

Full Text Available Previous research has demonstrated that route planners use several reliable strategies for selecting between alternate routes. Strategies include selecting straight rather than winding routes leaving an origin, selecting generally south- rather than north-going routes, and selecting routes that avoid traversal of complex topography. The contribution of this paper is characterizing the relative influence and potential interactions of these strategies. We also examine whether individual differences would predict any strategy reliance. Results showed evidence for independent and additive influences of all three strategies, with a strong influence of topography and initial segment straightness, and relatively weak influence of cardinal direction. Additively, routes were also disproportionately selected when they traversed relatively flat regions, had relatively straight initial segments, and went generally south rather than north. Two individual differences, extraversion and sense of direction, predicted the extent of some effects. Under real-world conditions navigators indeed consider a route's initial straightness, cardinal direction, and topography, but these cues differ in relative influence and vary in their application across individuals.

Selection and validation of reference genes for miRNA expression studies during porcine pregnancy.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jocelyn M Wessels

Full Text Available MicroRNAs comprise a family of small non-coding RNAs that modulate several developmental and physiological processes including pregnancy. Their ubiquitous presence is confirmed in mammals, worms, flies and plants. Although rapid advances have been made in microRNA research, information on stable reference genes for validation of microRNA expression is still lacking. Real time PCR is a widely used tool to quantify gene transcripts. An appropriate reference gene must be chosen to minimize experimental error in this system. A small difference in miRNA levels between experimental samples can be biologically meaningful as these entities can affect multiple targets in a pathway. This study examined the suitability of six commercially available reference genes (RNU1A, RNU5A, RNU6B, SNORD25, SCARNA17, and SNORA73A in maternal-fetal tissues from healthy and spontaneously arresting/dying conceptuses from sows were separately analyzed at gestation day 20. Comparisons were also made with non-pregnant endometrial tissues from sows. Spontaneous fetal loss is a prime concern to the commercial pork industry. Our laboratory has previously identified deficits in vasculature development at maternal-fetal interface as one of the major participating causes of fetal loss. Using this well-established model, we have extended our studies to identify suitable microRNA reference genes. A methodical approach to assessing suitability was adopted using standard curve and melting curve analysis, PCR product sequencing, real time PCR expression in a panel of gestational tissues, and geNorm and NormFinder analysis. Our quantitative real time PCR analysis confirmed expression of all 6 reference genes in maternal and fetal tissues. All genes were uniformly expressed in tissues from healthy and spontaneously arresting conceptus attachment sites. Comparisons between tissue types (maternal/fetal/non-pregnant revealed significant differences for RNU5A, RNU6B, SCARNA17, and SNORA73A

Accuracy of references and quotations in veterinary journals.

Science.gov (United States)

Hinchcliff, K W; Bruce, N J; Powers, J D; Kipp, M L

1993-02-01

The accuracy of references and quotations used to substantiate statements of fact in articles published in 6 frequently cited veterinary journals was examined. Three hundred references were randomly selected, and the accuracy of each citation was examined. A subset of 100 references was examined for quotational accuracy; ie, the accuracy with which authors represented the work or assertions of the author being cited. Of the 300 references selected, 295 were located, and 125 major errors were found in 88 (29.8%) of them. Sixty-seven (53.6%) major errors were found involving authors, 12 (9.6%) involved the article title, 14 (11.2%) involved the book or journal title, and 32 (25.6%) involved the volume number, date, or page numbers. Sixty-eight minor errors were detected. The accuracy of 111 quotations from 95 citations in 65 articles was examined. Nine quotations were technical and not classified, 86 (84.3%) were classified as correct, 2 (1.9%) contained minor misquotations, and 14 (13.7%) contained major misquotations. We concluded that misquotations and errors in citations occur frequently in veterinary journals, but at a rate similar to that reported for other biomedical journals.

Fabricating defensible reference standards for the NDA lab

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ceo, R.N.; May, P.K. [Oak Ridge Y-12 Plant, TN (United States)

1997-11-01

Nondestructive analysis (NDA) is performed at the Oak Ridge Y-12 Plant in support of the enriched uranium operations. Process materials are analyzed using gamma ray- and neutron-based instruments including segmented gamma scanners, solution assay systems, and an active well coincidence counter. Process wastes are also discarded based on results of these measurements. Good analytical practice, as well as applicable regulations, mandates that these analytical methods be calibrated using reference materials traceable to the national standards base. Reference standards for NDA instruments are not commercially available owing to the large quantities of special nuclear materials involved. Instead, representative materials are selected from each process stream, then thoroughly characterized by methods that are traceable to the national standards base. This paper discusses the process materials to be analyzed, reference materials selected for calibrating each NDA instrument, and details of their characterization and fabrication into working calibrations standards. Example calibration curves are also presented. 4 figs.

Fabricating defensible reference standards for the NDA lab

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ceo, R.N.; May, P.K.

1997-01-01

Nondestructive analysis (NDA) is performed at the Oak Ridge Y-12 Plant in support of the enriched uranium operations. Process materials are analyzed using gamma ray- and neutron-based instruments including segmented gamma scanners, solution assay systems, and an active well coincidence counter. Process wastes are also discarded based on results of these measurements. Good analytical practice, as well as applicable regulations, mandates that these analytical methods be calibrated using reference materials traceable to the national standards base. Reference standards for NDA instruments are not commercially available owing to the large quantities of special nuclear materials involved. Instead, representative materials are selected from each process stream, then thoroughly characterized by methods that are traceable to the national standards base. This paper discusses the process materials to be analyzed, reference materials selected for calibrating each NDA instrument, and details of their characterization and fabrication into working calibrations standards. Example calibration curves are also presented. 4 figs

Technical guide for monitoring selected conditions related to wilderness character

Science.gov (United States)

Peter Landres; Steve Boutcher; Liese Dean; Troy Hall; Tamara Blett; Terry Carlson; Ann Mebane; Carol Hardy; Susan Rinehart; Linda Merigliano; David N. Cole; Andy Leach; Pam Wright; Deb Bumpus

2009-01-01

The purpose of monitoring wilderness character is to improve wilderness stewardship by providing managers a tool to assess how selected actions and conditions related to wilderness character are changing over time. Wilderness character monitoring provides information to help answer two key questions about wilderness character and wilderness stewardship: 1. How is...

Anaerobic Digestion. Selected Instructional Activities and References. Instructional Resources Monograph Series.

Science.gov (United States)

Townsend, Robert D., Comp.

Focusing specifically on the wastewater treatment process of anaerobic digestion, this document identifies instructional and reference materials for use by professionals in the field in the development and implementation of new programs or in the updating of existing programs. It is designed to help trainers, plant operators, educators, engineers,…

Selection and validation of reference genes for qRT-PCR expression analysis of candidate genes involved in olfactory communication in the butterfly Bicyclus anynana.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alok Arun

Full Text Available Real-time quantitative reverse transcription PCR (qRT-PCR is a technique widely used to quantify the transcriptional expression level of candidate genes. qRT-PCR requires the selection of one or several suitable reference genes, whose expression profiles remain stable across conditions, to normalize the qRT-PCR expression profiles of candidate genes. Although several butterfly species (Lepidoptera have become important models in molecular evolutionary ecology, so far no study aimed at identifying reference genes for accurate data normalization for any butterfly is available. The African bush brown butterfly Bicyclus anynana has drawn considerable attention owing to its suitability as a model for evolutionary ecology, and we here provide a maiden extensive study to identify suitable reference gene in this species. We monitored the expression profile of twelve reference genes: eEF-1α, FK506, UBQL40, RpS8, RpS18, HSP, GAPDH, VATPase, ACT3, TBP, eIF2 and G6PD. We tested the stability of their expression profiles in three different tissues (wings, brains, antennae, two developmental stages (pupal and adult and two sexes (male and female, all of which were subjected to two food treatments (food stress and control feeding ad libitum. The expression stability and ranking of twelve reference genes was assessed using two algorithm-based methods, NormFinder and geNorm. Both methods identified RpS8 as the best suitable reference gene for expression data normalization. We also showed that the use of two reference genes is sufficient to effectively normalize the qRT-PCR data under varying tissues and experimental conditions that we used in B. anynana. Finally, we tested the effect of choosing reference genes with different stability on the normalization of the transcript abundance of a candidate gene involved in olfactory communication in B. anynana, the Fatty Acyl Reductase 2, and we confirmed that using an unstable reference gene can drastically alter the

Selection and validation of reference genes for qRT-PCR expression analysis of candidate genes involved in olfactory communication in the butterfly Bicyclus anynana.

Science.gov (United States)

Arun, Alok; Baumlé, Véronique; Amelot, Gaël; Nieberding, Caroline M

2015-01-01

Real-time quantitative reverse transcription PCR (qRT-PCR) is a technique widely used to quantify the transcriptional expression level of candidate genes. qRT-PCR requires the selection of one or several suitable reference genes, whose expression profiles remain stable across conditions, to normalize the qRT-PCR expression profiles of candidate genes. Although several butterfly species (Lepidoptera) have become important models in molecular evolutionary ecology, so far no study aimed at identifying reference genes for accurate data normalization for any butterfly is available. The African bush brown butterfly Bicyclus anynana has drawn considerable attention owing to its suitability as a model for evolutionary ecology, and we here provide a maiden extensive study to identify suitable reference gene in this species. We monitored the expression profile of twelve reference genes: eEF-1α, FK506, UBQL40, RpS8, RpS18, HSP, GAPDH, VATPase, ACT3, TBP, eIF2 and G6PD. We tested the stability of their expression profiles in three different tissues (wings, brains, antennae), two developmental stages (pupal and adult) and two sexes (male and female), all of which were subjected to two food treatments (food stress and control feeding ad libitum). The expression stability and ranking of twelve reference genes was assessed using two algorithm-based methods, NormFinder and geNorm. Both methods identified RpS8 as the best suitable reference gene for expression data normalization. We also showed that the use of two reference genes is sufficient to effectively normalize the qRT-PCR data under varying tissues and experimental conditions that we used in B. anynana. Finally, we tested the effect of choosing reference genes with different stability on the normalization of the transcript abundance of a candidate gene involved in olfactory communication in B. anynana, the Fatty Acyl Reductase 2, and we confirmed that using an unstable reference gene can drastically alter the expression

Safety-related site characteristics - a relative comparison of the Forsmark reference areas; Saekerhetsrelaterade platsegenskaper - en relativ jaemfoerelse av Forsmark med referensomraaden

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Winberg, Anders (Conterra AB, Uppsala (Sweden))

2010-12-15

SKB has over the years from 2002 to 2008 conducted site investigations in Forsmark and Laxemar, with associated site modeling, design and safety analysis. In mid-2009 Forsmark was selected on the basis of analysis made as site for a future repository for spent nuclear fuel. Based on defined safety-related geoscientific location factors data from Forsmark are compared in relative terms with data from a number of locations in Sweden, previously studied by SKB. The factors compared include: the rock's composition and structures, future climate evolution, rock mechanical conditions, earthquakes, groundwater flow, groundwater composition, delay of solutes, and the ability to characterize and describe the location. Past comparisons of these properties for the selected sites show that none of these sites collectively show any significant benefit over Forsmark site for a repository. This does not preclude that there may be places on the basis of an overall assessment of geoscientific location factors could be equivalent to Forsmark

Instrumental neutron and photon activation analyses of selected geochemical reference materials

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Mizera, Jiří; Řanda, Zdeněk

2010-01-01

Roč. 284, č. 1 (2010), s. 157-163 ISSN 0236-5731 R&D Projects: GA AV ČR IAA300130706 Institutional research plan: CEZ:AV0Z10480505 Keywords : neutron activation analysis * photon activation analysis * geochemical reference materials Subject RIV: BG - Nuclear, Atomic and Molecular Physics, Colliders Impact factor: 0.777, year: 2010

Selection and validation of a set of reliable reference genes for quantitative sod gene expression analysis in C. elegans

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Vandesompele Jo

2008-01-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background In the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans the conserved Ins/IGF-1 signaling pathway regulates many biological processes including life span, stress response, dauer diapause and metabolism. Detection of differentially expressed genes may contribute to a better understanding of the mechanism by which the Ins/IGF-1 signaling pathway regulates these processes. Appropriate normalization is an essential prerequisite for obtaining accurate and reproducible quantification of gene expression levels. The aim of this study was to establish a reliable set of reference genes for gene expression analysis in C. elegans. Results Real-time quantitative PCR was used to evaluate the expression stability of 12 candidate reference genes (act-1, ama-1, cdc-42, csq-1, eif-3.C, mdh-1, gpd-2, pmp-3, tba-1, Y45F10D.4, rgs-6 and unc-16 in wild-type, three Ins/IGF-1 pathway mutants, dauers and L3 stage larvae. After geNorm analysis, cdc-42, pmp-3 and Y45F10D.4 showed the most stable expression pattern and were used to normalize 5 sod expression levels. Significant differences in mRNA levels were observed for sod-1 and sod-3 in daf-2 relative to wild-type animals, whereas in dauers sod-1, sod-3, sod-4 and sod-5 are differentially expressed relative to third stage larvae. Conclusion Our findings emphasize the importance of accurate normalization using stably expressed reference genes. The methodology used in this study is generally applicable to reliably quantify gene expression levels in the nematode C. elegans using quantitative PCR.

Validation of reference genes for quantitative RT-PCR normalization in Suaeda aralocaspica, an annual halophyte with heteromorphism and C4 pathway without Kranz anatomy

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jing Cao

2016-02-01

Full Text Available Reverse transcription quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR is a powerful analytical technique for the measurement of gene expression, which depends on the stability of the reference gene used for data normalization. Suaeda aralocaspica, an annual halophyte with heteromorphic seeds and possessing C4 photosynthesis pathway without Kranz anatomy, is an ideal plant species to identify stress tolerance-related genes and compare relative expression at transcriptional level. So far, no molecular information is available for this species. In the present study, six traditionally used reference genes were selected and their expression stability in two types of seeds of S. aralocaspica under different experimental conditions was evaluated. Three analytical programs, geNorm, NormFinder and BestKeeper, were used to assess and rank the stability of reference gene expression. Results revealed that although some reference genes may display different transcriptional profiles between the two types of seeds, β-TUB and GAPDH appeared to be the most suitable references under different developmental stages and tissues. GAPDH was the appropriate reference gene under different germination time points and salt stress conditions, and ACTIN was suitable for various abiotic stress treatments for the two types of seeds. For all the sample pools, β-TUB served as the most stable reference gene, whereas 18S rRNA and 28S rRNA performed poorly and presented as the least stable genes in our study. UBQ seemed to be unsuitable as internal control under different salt treatments. In addition, the expression of a photosynthesis-related gene (PPDK of C4 pathway and a salt tolerance-related gene (SAT of S. aralocaspica were used to validate the best performance reference genes. This is the first systematic comparison of reference gene selection for qRT-PCR work in S. aralocaspica and these data will facilitate further studies on gene expression in this species

Age-ordered shirt numbering reduces the selection bias associated with the relative age effect.

Science.gov (United States)

Mann, David L; van Ginneken, Pleun J M A

2017-04-01

When placed into age groups for junior sporting competition, the relative differences in age between children leads to a bias in who is evaluated as being talented. While the impact of this relative age effect (RAE) is clear, until now there has been no evidence to show how to reduce it. The aim of this study was to determine whether the selection bias associated with the RAE could be reduced. Talent scouts from an elite football club watched junior games and ranked players on the basis of their potential. Scouts were allocated to one of three groups provided with contrasting information about the age of the players: (1) no age information, (2) players' birthdates or (3) knowledge that the numbers on the playing shirts corresponded to the relative age of the players. Results revealed a significant selection bias for the scouts in the no-age information group, and that bias remained when scouts knew the players' dates-of-birth. Strikingly though, the selection bias was eliminated when scouts watched the games knowing the shirt numbers corresponded to the relative ages of the players. The selection bias associated with the RAE can be reduced if information about age is presented appropriately.

Neptunium: a bibliographic reference

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mosley, R.E.

1979-06-01

A comprehensive bibliograhy of the literature on the element neptunium published prior to January 1976 is presented. A short abstract is given for each listed reference, with a few exceptions. The references are divided into sections categorized as General, Man-Made Sources (Reactors), Man-Made Sources (Fuel Reprocessing), Chemistry (Solubility), Chemistry (Compounds), Chemistry (Isotopes), Analyses (Instrumental), Analyses (Chemical), Chemical (Animal), Biological (Effects), Biological (Animal-Metabolism-Retention), Biological (Air Movement), Biological (Human Inhalation), Measurement, and Dosimetry. The bibliography contains author and keyword indexes and was compiled to serve as a quick reference source for neptunium-related work. 184 citations

Developing job-related preplacement medical examinations.

Science.gov (United States)

Hogan, J C; Bernacki, E J

1981-07-01

Federal regulations prohibiting discrimination in hiring require that employment selection procedures to evaluate applicants be based on job-related criteria. The preplacement physical examination used in employment, particularly in the placement of handicapped persons, must also be conducted in a job-related manner. This paper discusses the development and use of the physical examination in selecting and placing applicants for jobs in the workplace with special reference to handicapped persons and disabled veterans. It presents and justifies a method of performing these examinations in a manner consistent with humanistic and business goals as well as the goals of federal regulatory agencies prohibiting employment discrimination.

Band Subset Selection for Hyperspectral Image Classification

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Chunyan Yu

2018-01-01

Full Text Available This paper develops a new approach to band subset selection (BSS for hyperspectral image classification (HSIC which selects multiple bands simultaneously as a band subset, referred to as simultaneous multiple band selection (SMMBS, rather than one band at a time sequentially, referred to as sequential multiple band selection (SQMBS, as most traditional band selection methods do. In doing so, a criterion is particularly developed for BSS that can be used for HSIC. It is a linearly constrained minimum variance (LCMV derived from adaptive beamforming in array signal processing which can be used to model misclassification errors as the minimum variance. To avoid an exhaustive search for all possible band subsets, two numerical algorithms, referred to as sequential (SQ and successive (SC algorithms are also developed for LCMV-based SMMBS, called SQ LCMV-BSS and SC LCMV-BSS. Experimental results demonstrate that LCMV-based BSS has advantages over SQMBS.

Comparison of Optimal Portfolios Selected by Multicriterial Model Using Absolute and Relative Criteria Values

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Branka Marasović

2009-03-01

Full Text Available In this paper we select an optimal portfolio on the Croatian capital market by using the multicriterial programming. In accordance with the modern portfolio theory maximisation of returns at minimal risk should be the investment goal of any successful investor. However, contrary to the expectations of the modern portfolio theory, the tests carried out on a number of financial markets reveal the existence of other indicators important in portfolio selection. Considering the importance of variables other than return and risk, selection of the optimal portfolio becomes a multicriterial problem which should be solved by using the appropriate techniques.In order to select an optimal portfolio, absolute values of criteria, like return, risk, price to earning value ratio (P/E, price to book value ratio (P/B and price to sale value ratio (P/S are included in our multicriterial model. However the problem might occur as the mean values of some criteria are significantly different for different sectors and because financial managers emphasize that comparison of the same criteria for different sectors could lead us to wrong conclusions. In the second part of the paper, relative values of previously stated criteria (in relation to mean value of sector are included in model for selecting optimal portfolio. Furthermore, the paper shows that if relative values of criteria are included in multicriterial model for selecting optimal portfolio, return in subsequent period is considerably higher than if absolute values of the same criteria were used.

Selection of reference genes in different myocardial regions of an in vivo ischemia/reperfusion rat model for normalization of antioxidant gene expression

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Vesentini Nicoletta

2012-02-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Changes in cardiac gene expression due to myocardial injury are usually assessed in whole heart tissue. However, as the heart is a heterogeneous system, spatial and temporal heterogeneity is expected in gene expression. Results In an ischemia/reperfusion (I/R rat model we evaluated gene expression of mitochondrial and cytoplasmatic superoxide dismutase (MnSod, Cu-ZnSod and thioredoxin reductase (trxr1 upon short (4 h and long (72 h reperfusion times in the right ventricle (RV, and in the ischemic/reperfused (IRR and the remote region (RR of the left ventricle. Gene expression was assessed by Real-time reverse-transcription quantitative PCR (RT-qPCR. In order to select most stable reference genes suitable for normalization purposes, in each myocardial region we tested nine putative reference genes by geNorm analysis. The genes investigated were: Actin beta (actb, Glyceraldehyde-3-P-dehydrogenase (gapdh, Ribosomal protein L13A (rpl13a, Tyrosine 3-monooxygenase (ywhaz, Beta-glucuronidase (gusb, Hypoxanthine guanine Phosphoribosyltransferase 1 (hprt, TATA binding box protein (tbp, Hydroxymethylbilane synthase (hmbs, Polyadenylate-binding protein 1 (papbn1. According to our findings, most stable reference genes in the RV and RR were hmbs/hprt and hmbs/tbp/hprt respectively. In the IRR, six reference genes were recommended for normalization purposes; however, in view of experimental feasibility limitations, target gene expression could be normalized against the three most stable reference genes (ywhaz/pabp/hmbs without loss of sensitivity. In all cases MnSod and Cu-ZnSod expression decreased upon long reperfusion, the former in all myocardial regions and the latter in IRR alone. trxr1 expression did not vary. Conclusions This study provides a validation of reference genes in the RV and in the anterior and posterior wall of the LV of cardiac ischemia/reperfusion model and shows that gene expression should be assessed separately in

Nuclear energy - Reference beta-particle radiation - Part 2: Calibration fundamentals related to basic quantities characterizing the radiation field

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2004-01-01

ISO 6980 consists of the following parts, under the general title Nuclear energy - Reference beta-particle radiation: Part 1: Method of production; Part 2: Calibration fundamentals related to basic quantities characterizing the radiation field; Part 3: Calibration of area and personal dosimeters and determination of their response as a function of energy and angle of incidence. This part 2 of ISO 6980 specifies methods for the measurement of the directional absorbed-dose rate in a tissue-equivalent slab phantom in the ISO 6980 reference beta-particle radiation fields. The energy range of the beta-particle-emitting isotopes covered by these reference radiations is 0.066 to 3.54 MeV (maximum energy). Radiation energies outside this range are beyond the scope of this standard. While measurements in a reference geometry (depth of 0.07 mm at perpendicular incidence in a tissue-equivalent slab phantom) with a reference class extrapolation chamber are dealt with in detail, the use of other measurement systems and measurements in other geometries are also described, although in less detail. The ambient dose equivalent, H*(10) as used for area monitoring of strongly penetrating radiation, is not an appropriate quantity for any beta radiation, even for that penetrating a 10 mm thick layer of ICRU tissue (i.e. E max > 2 MeV). If adequate protection is provided at 0.07 mm, only rarely will one be concerned with other depths, for example 3 mm. This document is geared towards organizations wishing to establish reference-class dosimetry capabilities for beta particles, and serves as a guide to the performance of dosimetry with the reference class extrapolation chamber for beta-particle dosimetry in other fields. Guidance is also provided on the statement of measurement uncertainties

Ion-selective electrode reviews

CERN Document Server

Thomas, J D R

1983-01-01

Ion-Selective Electrode Reviews, Volume 5 is a collection of articles that covers ion-speciation. The book aims to present the advancements of the range and capabilities of selective ion-sensors. The topics covered in the selection are neutral carrier based ion-selective electrodes; reference electrodes and liquid junction effects in ion-selective electrode potentiometry; ion transfer across water/organic phase boundaries and analytical; and carbon substrate ion-selective electrodes. The text will be of great use to chemists and chemical engineers.

22 CFR 212.13 - Incorporation by reference.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

... 22 Foreign Relations 1 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Incorporation by reference. 212.13 Section 212.13 Foreign Relations AGENCY FOR INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT PUBLIC INFORMATION Publication in the Federal Register § 212.13 Incorporation by reference. For purposes of this subpart B, USAID matters which...

Spatial Updating Strategy Affects the Reference Frame in Path Integration.

Science.gov (United States)

He, Qiliang; McNamara, Timothy P

2018-06-01

This study investigated how spatial updating strategies affected the selection of reference frames in path integration. Participants walked an outbound path consisting of three successive waypoints in a featureless environment and then pointed to the first waypoint. We manipulated the alignment of participants' final heading at the end of the outbound path with their initial heading to examine the adopted reference frame. We assumed that the initial heading defined the principal reference direction in an allocentric reference frame. In Experiment 1, participants were instructed to use a configural updating strategy and to monitor the shape of the outbound path while they walked it. Pointing performance was best when the final heading was aligned with the initial heading, indicating the use of an allocentric reference frame. In Experiment 2, participants were instructed to use a continuous updating strategy and to keep track of the location of the first waypoint while walking the outbound path. Pointing performance was equivalent regardless of the alignment between the final and the initial headings, indicating the use of an egocentric reference frame. These results confirmed that people could employ different spatial updating strategies in path integration (Wiener, Berthoz, & Wolbers Experimental Brain Research 208(1) 61-71, 2011), and suggested that these strategies could affect the selection of the reference frame for path integration.

Compendium of selected references on air emissions; health, risk, and valuation research; and environmental externalities

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Szpunar, C.B.

1992-07-01

In preparing to develop a cost-benefit methodology that could be applied to potential projects abroad involving new coal-fired power plants that make use of US clean coal technologies, the author reviewed a wide variety of reference sources. These are listed in this publication. Before this review, the author had conducted a number of literature searches that identified source material in the newly rediscovered field of environmental externalities and related topics that might also be of value to other energy and environmental researchers. Those sources that appeared to be appropriate but that the author was unable to review are also listed in this document. Thus, this document serves as a comprehensive compendium of source material on these subjects, arranged alphabetically within categories

Regional probability distribution of the annual reference evapotranspiration and its effective parameters in Iran

Science.gov (United States)

Khanmohammadi, Neda; Rezaie, Hossein; Montaseri, Majid; Behmanesh, Javad

2017-10-01

The reference evapotranspiration (ET0) plays an important role in water management plans in arid or semi-arid countries such as Iran. For this reason, the regional analysis of this parameter is important. But, ET0 process is affected by several meteorological parameters such as wind speed, solar radiation, temperature and relative humidity. Therefore, the effect of distribution type of effective meteorological variables on ET0 distribution was analyzed. For this purpose, the regional probability distribution of the annual ET0 and its effective parameters were selected. Used data in this research was recorded data at 30 synoptic stations of Iran during 1960-2014. Using the probability plot correlation coefficient (PPCC) test and the L-moment method, five common distributions were compared and the best distribution was selected. The results of PPCC test and L-moment diagram indicated that the Pearson type III distribution was the best probability distribution for fitting annual ET0 and its four effective parameters. The results of RMSE showed that the ability of the PPCC test and L-moment method for regional analysis of reference evapotranspiration and its effective parameters was similar. The results also showed that the distribution type of the parameters which affected ET0 values can affect the distribution of reference evapotranspiration.

An event-related brain potential study of visual selective attention to conjunctions of color and shape.

Science.gov (United States)

Smid, H G; Jakob, A; Heinze, H J

1999-03-01

What cognitive processes underlie event-related brain potential (ERP) effects related to visual multidimensional selective attention and how are these processes organized? We recorded ERPs when participants attended to one conjunction of color, global shape and local shape and ignored other conjunctions of these attributes in three discriminability conditions. Attending to color and shape produced three ERP effects: frontal selection positivity (FSP), central negativity (N2b), and posterior selection negativity (SN). The results suggested that the processes underlying SN and N2b perform independent within-dimension selections, whereas the process underlying the FSP performs hierarchical between-dimension selections. At posterior electrodes, manipulation of discriminability changed the ERPs to the relevant but not to the irrelevant stimuli, suggesting that the SN does not concern the selection process itself but rather a cognitive process initiated after selection is finished. Other findings suggested that selection of multiple visual attributes occurs in parallel.

Reference values and evaluation of the results of intercomparisons

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Aigner, H.; Deron, S.; Kuhn, E.

1981-01-01

The need of a reference value for the composition of materials distributed in intercomparisons is generally recognized. A single reference laboratory or a group of reference laboratories may be used to establish this reference value. The respective advantages and limitations of the two approaches are discussed. The reference measurements must be evaluated to provide the confidence limits of the reference value but also an estimate of the possible heterogeneity of the materials and its samples. The results of the intercomparison measurements should themselves be evaluated to test and discuss the significance of the biases of individual and selected groups of laboratories or techniques. The approach taken by the Analytical Quality Control Services of the International Atomic Energy Agency is illustrated by the SR-1 intercomparison on uranium assay in UO 2 powder

Genomic Selection Using Extreme Phenotypes and Pre-Selection of SNPs in Large Yellow Croaker (Larimichthys crocea).

Science.gov (United States)

Dong, Linsong; Xiao, Shijun; Chen, Junwei; Wan, Liang; Wang, Zhiyong

2016-10-01

Genomic selection (GS) is an effective method to improve predictive accuracies of genetic values. However, high cost in genotyping will limit the application of this technology in some species. Therefore, it is necessary to find some methods to reduce the genotyping costs in genomic selection. Large yellow croaker is one of the most commercially important marine fish species in southeast China and Eastern Asia. In this study, genotyping-by-sequencing was used to construct the libraries for the NGS sequencing and find 29,748 SNPs in the genome. Two traits, eviscerated weight (EW) and the ratio between eviscerated weight and whole body weight (REW), were chosen to study. Two strategies to reduce the costs were proposed as follows: selecting extreme phenotypes (EP) for genotyping in reference population or pre-selecting SNPs to construct low-density marker panels in candidates. Three methods of pre-selection of SNPs, i.e., pre-selecting SNPs by absolute effects (SE), by single marker analysis (SMA), and by fixed intervals of sequence number (EL), were studied. The results showed that using EP was a feasible method to save the genotyping costs in reference population. Heritability did not seem to have obvious influences on the predictive abilities estimated by EP. Using SMA was the most feasible method to save the genotyping costs in candidates. In addition, the combination of EP and SMA in genomic selection also showed good results, especially for trait of REW. We also described how to apply the new methods in genomic selection and compared the genotyping costs before and after using the new methods. Our study may not only offer a reference for aquatic genomic breeding but also offer a reference for genomic prediction in other species including livestock and plants, etc.

Early selection versus late correction: Age-related differences in controlling working memory contents.

Science.gov (United States)

Schwarzkopp, Tina; Mayr, Ulrich; Jost, Kerstin

2016-08-01

We examined whether a reduced ability to ignore irrelevant information is responsible for the age-related decline of working memory (WM) functions. By means of event-related brain potentials, we will show that filtering is not out of service in older adults but shifted to a later processing stage. Participants performed a visual short-term memory task (change-detection task) in which targets were presented along with distractors. To allow early selection, a cue was presented in advance of each display, indicating where the targets were to appear. Despite this relatively easy selection criterion, older adults' filtering was delayed as indicated by the amplitude pattern of the contralateral delay activity. Importantly, WM-equated younger adults did not show a delay indicating that the delay is specific to older adults and not a general phenomenon that comes with low WM capacity. Moreover, the analysis of early visual potentials revealed qualitatively different perceptual/attentional processing between the age groups. Young adults exhibited stronger distractor sensitivity that in turn facilitated filtering. Older adults, in contrast, seemed to initially store distractors and to suppress them after the fact. These early selection versus late-correction modes suggest an age-related shift in the strategy to control the contents of WM. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved).

Effectiveness of Reference Services in Providing Students ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

after spending lots of money due to some reason and the other. .... services include various forms of current awareness and selective dissemination of ... the users. Personal attention is at the very heart of the reference desk, and the goal of the.

Analysis and comparison of NoSQL databases with an introduction to consistent references in big data storage systems

Science.gov (United States)

Dziedzic, Adam; Mulawka, Jan

2014-11-01

NoSQL is a new approach to data storage and manipulation. The aim of this paper is to gain more insight into NoSQL databases, as we are still in the early stages of understanding when to use them and how to use them in an appropriate way. In this submission descriptions of selected NoSQL databases are presented. Each of the databases is analysed with primary focus on its data model, data access, architecture and practical usage in real applications. Furthemore, the NoSQL databases are compared in fields of data references. The relational databases offer foreign keys, whereas NoSQL databases provide us with limited references. An intermediate model between graph theory and relational algebra which can address the problem should be created. Finally, the proposal of a new approach to the problem of inconsistent references in Big Data storage systems is introduced.

Certified reference materials for organic analysis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

QianChuanfan

2002-01-01

This presentation discusses the requirements for certified reference materials (CRMs) to be used in measurements of residues of pesticides in food and environmental samples. It deals with the types of CRMs, matrix selection, sample preparation and representativeness. It also discusses CRM validity period and gives some examples of CRM preparation

Selection and Validation of Reference Genes for qRT-PCR Expression Analysis of Candidate Genes Involved in Olfactory Communication in the Butterfly Bicyclus anynana

OpenAIRE

Arun, Alok; Bauml?, V?ronique; Amelot, Ga?l; Nieberding, Caroline M.

2015-01-01

Real-time quantitative reverse transcription PCR (qRT-PCR) is a technique widely used to quantify the transcriptional expression level of candidate genes. qRT-PCR requires the selection of one or several suitable reference genes, whose expression profiles remain stable across conditions, to normalize the qRT-PCR expression profiles of candidate genes. Although several butterfly species (Lepidoptera) have become important models in molecular evolutionary ecology, so far no study aimed at ident...

Construction of an adult barnacle (Balanus amphitrite cDNA library and selection of reference genes for quantitative RT-PCR studies

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Burgess J Grant

2009-06-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Balanus amphitrite is a barnacle commonly used in biofouling research. Although many aspects of its biology have been elucidated, the lack of genetic information is impeding a molecular understanding of its life cycle. As part of a wider multidisciplinary approach to reveal the biogenic cues influencing barnacle settlement and metamorphosis, we have sequenced and annotated the first cDNA library for B. amphitrite. We also present a systematic validation of potential reference genes for normalization of quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR data obtained from different developmental stages of this animal. Results We generated a cDNA library containing expressed sequence tags (ESTs from adult B. amphitrite. A total of 609 unique sequences (comprising 79 assembled clusters and 530 singlets were derived from 905 reliable unidirectionally sequenced ESTs. Bioinformatics tools such as BLAST, HMMer and InterPro were employed to allow functional annotation of the ESTs. Based on these analyses, we selected 11 genes to study their ability to normalize qRT-PCR data. Total RNA extracted from 7 developmental stages was reverse transcribed and the expression stability of the selected genes was compared using geNorm, BestKeeper and NormFinder. These software programs produced highly comparable results, with the most stable gene being mt-cyb, while tuba, tubb and cp1 were clearly unsuitable for data normalization. Conclusion The collection of B. amphitrite ESTs and their annotation has been made publically available representing an important resource for both basic and applied research on this species. We developed a qRT-PCR assay to determine the most reliable reference genes. Transcripts encoding cytochrome b and NADH dehydrogenase subunit 1 were expressed most stably, although other genes also performed well and could prove useful to normalize gene expression studies.

Preserving the Integrity of Citations and References by All Stakeholders of Science Communication.

Science.gov (United States)

Gasparyan, Armen Yuri; Yessirkepov, Marlen; Voronov, Alexander A; Gerasimov, Alexey N; Kostyukova, Elena I; Kitas, George D

2015-11-01

Citations to scholarly items are building bricks for multidisciplinary science communication. Citation analyses are currently influencing individual career advancement and ranking of academic and research institutions worldwide. This article overviews the involvement of scientific authors, reviewers, editors, publishers, indexers, and learned associations in the citing and referencing to preserve the integrity of science communication. Authors are responsible for thorough bibliographic searches to select relevant references for their articles, comprehend main points, and cite them in an ethical way. Reviewers and editors may perform additional searches and recommend missing essential references. Publishers, in turn, are in a position to instruct their authors over the citations and references, provide tools for validation of references, and open access to bibliographies. Publicly available reference lists bear important information about the novelty and relatedness of the scholarly items with the published literature. Few editorial associations have dealt with the issue of citations and properly managed references. As a prime example, the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE) issued in December 2014 an updated set of recommendations on the need for citing primary literature and avoiding unethical references, which are applicable to the global scientific community. With the exponential growth of literature and related references, it is critically important to define functions of all stakeholders of science communication in curbing the issue of irrational and unethical citations and thereby improve the quality and indexability of scholarly journals.

Preserving the Integrity of Citations and References by All Stakeholders of Science Communication

Science.gov (United States)

Yessirkepov, Marlen; Voronov, Alexander A.; Gerasimov, Alexey N.; Kostyukova, Elena I.; Kitas, George D.

2015-01-01

Citations to scholarly items are building bricks for multidisciplinary science communication. Citation analyses are currently influencing individual career advancement and ranking of academic and research institutions worldwide. This article overviews the involvement of scientific authors, reviewers, editors, publishers, indexers, and learned associations in the citing and referencing to preserve the integrity of science communication. Authors are responsible for thorough bibliographic searches to select relevant references for their articles, comprehend main points, and cite them in an ethical way. Reviewers and editors may perform additional searches and recommend missing essential references. Publishers, in turn, are in a position to instruct their authors over the citations and references, provide tools for validation of references, and open access to bibliographies. Publicly available reference lists bear important information about the novelty and relatedness of the scholarly items with the published literature. Few editorial associations have dealt with the issue of citations and properly managed references. As a prime example, the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE) issued in December 2014 an updated set of recommendations on the need for citing primary literature and avoiding unethical references, which are applicable to the global scientific community. With the exponential growth of literature and related references, it is critically important to define functions of all stakeholders of science communication in curbing the issue of irrational and unethical citations and thereby improve the quality and indexability of scholarly journals. PMID:26538996

Balinese Frame of Reference

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

I Nyoman Aryawibawa

2016-04-01

Full Text Available Abstract: Balinese Frame of Reference. Wassmann and Dasen (1998 did a study on the acquisition of Balinese frames of reference. They pointed out that, in addition to the dominant use of absolute system, the use of relative system was also observed. This article aims at verifying Wassmann and Dasen’ study. Employing monolingual Balinese speakers and using linguistic and non-linguistic tasks, Aryawibawa (2010, 2012, 2015 showed that Balinese subjects used an absolute system dominantly in responding the two tasks, e.g. The man is north/south/east/west of the car. Unlike Wassmann and Dasen’s results, no relative system was used by the subjects in solving the tasks. Instead of the relative system, an intrinsic system was also observed in this study, even though it was unfrequent. The article concludes that the absolute system was dominantly employed by Balinese speakers in describing spatial relations in Balinese. The use of the system seems to affect their cognitive functions.

Distress Tolerance among Students Referred for Treatment Following Violation of\\ud Campus Cannabis Use Policy: Relations to Use, Problems, and Motivation

OpenAIRE

Buckner, Julia D.; Jeffries, Emily R.; Terlecki, Meredith A.; Ecker, Anthony H.

2015-01-01

Students referred to treatment after violating campus drug policies represent a high-risk\\ud group. Identification of factors related to these students’ cannabis use could inform prevention\\ud and treatment efforts. Distress tolerance (DT) is negatively related to substance-related\\ud behaviors and may be related to high-risk cannabis use vulnerability factors that can impact\\ud treatment outcome. Thus, the current study tested whether DT was related to cannabis use\\ud frequency, cannabis-rel...

Selection of best entrepreneurship practices in relation to the emerging 3D internet

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Frølunde, Lisbeth; Flåten, Bjørn-Tore

This report focuses on entrepreneurship in relation to the 3D internet in general (aka virtual worlds, virtual environments, etc.) and the selection of best practices specifically. In preparing this report, we focused primarily on the Nordic countries and the USA and on empirically-based research...... articles. We faced three major challenges when going through the scientific research literature: 1) the lack of and fragmentation of knowledge due to the relative infancy of the 3D internet field and its interdisciplinary nature across many research fields, 2) the fluid definitions of terms regarding the 3...... of entrepreneurship in relation to the emergence of virtual worlds / 3D internet, 3) the definitions and review of literature on entrepreneurship, 4) selection of best entrepreneurial practices, and 5) discussion and preliminary conclusions....

Quantum frames of reference

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kaufherr, T.

1981-01-01

The idea that only relative variables have physical meaning came to be known as Mach's principle. Carrying over this idea to quantum theory, has led to the consideration of finite mass, macroscopic reference frames, relative to which all physical quantities are measured. During the process of measurement, a finite mass observer receives a kickback, and this reaction of the measuring device is not negligible in quantum theory because of the quantization of the action. Hence, the observer himself has to be included in the system that is being considered. Using this as the starting point, a number of thought experiments involving finite mass observers is discussed which have quantum uncertainties in their time or in their position. These thought experiments serve to elucidate in a qualitative way some of the difficulties involved, as well as pointing out a direction to take in seeking solutions to them. When the discussion is extended to include more than one observer, the question of the covariance of the theory immediately arises. Because none of the frames of reference should be preferred, the theory should be covariant. This demand expresses an equivalence principle which here is extended to include reference frames which are in quantum uncertainties relative to each other. Formulating the problem in terms of canonical variables, the ensueing free Hamiltonian contains vector and scalar potentials which represent the kick that the reference frame receives during measurement. These are essentially gravitational type potentials, resulting, as it were, from the extension of the equivalence principle into the quantum domain

Transformations between inertial and linearly accelerated frames of reference

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ashworth, D.G.

1983-01-01

Transformation equations between inertial and linearly accelerated frames of reference are derived and these transformation equations are shown to be compatible, where applicable, with those of special relativity. The physical nature of an accelerated frame of reference is unambiguously defined by means of an equation which relates the velocity of all points within the accelerated frame of reference to measurements made in an inertial frame of reference. (author)

Evaluation of reference genes for quantitative real-time PCR in oil palm elite planting materials propagated by tissue culture.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Pek-Lan Chan

Full Text Available BACKGROUND: The somatic embryogenesis tissue culture process has been utilized to propagate high yielding oil palm. Due to the low callogenesis and embryogenesis rates, molecular studies were initiated to identify genes regulating the process, and their expression levels are usually quantified using reverse transcription quantitative real-time PCR (RT-qPCR. With the recent release of oil palm genome sequences, it is crucial to establish a proper strategy for gene analysis using RT-qPCR. Selection of the most suitable reference genes should be performed for accurate quantification of gene expression levels. RESULTS: In this study, eight candidate reference genes selected from cDNA microarray study and literature review were evaluated comprehensively across 26 tissue culture samples using RT-qPCR. These samples were collected from two tissue culture lines and media treatments, which consisted of leaf explants cultures, callus and embryoids from consecutive developmental stages. Three statistical algorithms (geNorm, NormFinder and BestKeeper confirmed that the expression stability of novel reference genes (pOP-EA01332, PD00380 and PD00569 outperformed classical housekeeping genes (GAPDH, NAD5, TUBULIN, UBIQUITIN and ACTIN. PD00380 and PD00569 were identified as the most stably expressed genes in total samples, MA2 and MA8 tissue culture lines. Their applicability to validate the expression profiles of a putative ethylene-responsive transcription factor 3-like gene demonstrated the importance of using the geometric mean of two genes for normalization. CONCLUSIONS: Systematic selection of the most stably expressed reference genes for RT-qPCR was established in oil palm tissue culture samples. PD00380 and PD00569 were selected for accurate and reliable normalization of gene expression data from RT-qPCR. These data will be valuable to the research associated with the tissue culture process. Also, the method described here will facilitate the selection

Evaluation of Reference Genes for Quantitative Real-Time PCR in Oil Palm Elite Planting Materials Propagated by Tissue Culture

Science.gov (United States)

Chan, Pek-Lan; Rose, Ray J.; Abdul Murad, Abdul Munir; Zainal, Zamri; Leslie Low, Eng-Ti; Ooi, Leslie Cheng-Li; Ooi, Siew-Eng; Yahya, Suzaini; Singh, Rajinder

2014-01-01

Background The somatic embryogenesis tissue culture process has been utilized to propagate high yielding oil palm. Due to the low callogenesis and embryogenesis rates, molecular studies were initiated to identify genes regulating the process, and their expression levels are usually quantified using reverse transcription quantitative real-time PCR (RT-qPCR). With the recent release of oil palm genome sequences, it is crucial to establish a proper strategy for gene analysis using RT-qPCR. Selection of the most suitable reference genes should be performed for accurate quantification of gene expression levels. Results In this study, eight candidate reference genes selected from cDNA microarray study and literature review were evaluated comprehensively across 26 tissue culture samples using RT-qPCR. These samples were collected from two tissue culture lines and media treatments, which consisted of leaf explants cultures, callus and embryoids from consecutive developmental stages. Three statistical algorithms (geNorm, NormFinder and BestKeeper) confirmed that the expression stability of novel reference genes (pOP-EA01332, PD00380 and PD00569) outperformed classical housekeeping genes (GAPDH, NAD5, TUBULIN, UBIQUITIN and ACTIN). PD00380 and PD00569 were identified as the most stably expressed genes in total samples, MA2 and MA8 tissue culture lines. Their applicability to validate the expression profiles of a putative ethylene-responsive transcription factor 3-like gene demonstrated the importance of using the geometric mean of two genes for normalization. Conclusions Systematic selection of the most stably expressed reference genes for RT-qPCR was established in oil palm tissue culture samples. PD00380 and PD00569 were selected for accurate and reliable normalization of gene expression data from RT-qPCR. These data will be valuable to the research associated with the tissue culture process. Also, the method described here will facilitate the selection of appropriate

Hippocampal testosterone relates to reference memory performance and synaptic plasticity in male rats

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kristina eSchulz

2010-12-01

Full Text Available Steroids are important neuromodulators influencing cognitive performance and synaptic plasticity. While the majority of literature concerns adrenal- and gonadectomized animals, very little is known about the natural endogenous release of hormones during learning. Therefore, we measured blood and brain (hippocampus, prefrontal cortex testosterone, estradiol, and corticosterone concentrations of intact male rats undergoing a spatial learning paradigm which is known to reinforce hippocampal plasticity. We found significant modulations of all investigated hormones over the training course. Corticosterone and testosterone were correlated manifold with behaviour, while estradiol expressed fewer correlations. In the recall session, testosterone was tightly coupled to reference memory performance, which is crucial for reinforcement of synaptic plasticity in the dentate gyrus. Intriguingly, prefrontal cortex and hippocampal levels related differentially to reference memory performance. Correlations of testosterone and corticosterone switched from unspecific activity to specific cognitive functions over training. Correspondingly, exogenous application of testosterone revealed different effects on synaptic and neuronal plasticity in trained versus untrained animals. While hippocampal long-term potentiation (LTP of the field excitatory postsynaptic potential (fEPSP was prolonged in untrained rats, both the fEPSP- and the population spike amplitude-LTP was impaired in trained rats. Behavioural performance was unaffected, but correlations of hippocampal field potentials with behaviour were decoupled in treated rats. The data provide important evidence that besides adrenal, also gonadal steroids play a mechanistic role in linking synaptic plasticity to cognitive performance.

Reference Beam Pattern Design for Frequency Invariant Beamforming Based on Fast Fourier Transform

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Wang Zhang

2016-09-01

Full Text Available In the field of fast Fourier transform (FFT-based frequency invariant beamforming (FIB, there is still an unsolved problem. That is the selection of the reference beam to make the designed wideband pattern frequency invariant (FI over a given frequency range. This problem is studied in this paper. The research shows that for a given array, the selection of the reference beam pattern is determined by the number of sensors and the ratio of the highest frequency to the lowest frequency of the signal (RHL. The length of the weight vector corresponding to a given reference beam pattern depends on the reference frequency. In addition, the upper bound of the weight length to ensure the FI property over the whole frequency band of interest is also given. When the constraints are added to the reference beam, it does not affect the FI property of the designed wideband beam as long as the symmetry of the reference beam is ensured. Based on this conclusion, a scheme for reference beam design is proposed.

Selection of reference genes for quantitative gene expression normalization in flax (Linum usitatissimum L.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Neutelings Godfrey

2010-04-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR is currently the most accurate method for detecting differential gene expression. Such an approach depends on the identification of uniformly expressed 'housekeeping genes' (HKGs. Extensive transcriptomic data mining and experimental validation in different model plants have shown that the reliability of these endogenous controls can be influenced by the plant species, growth conditions and organs/tissues examined. It is therefore important to identify the best reference genes to use in each biological system before using qRT-PCR to investigate differential gene expression. In this paper we evaluate different candidate HKGs for developmental transcriptomic studies in the economically-important flax fiber- and oil-crop (Linum usitatissimum L. Results Specific primers were designed in order to quantify the expression levels of 20 different potential housekeeping genes in flax roots, internal- and external-stem tissues, leaves and flowers at different developmental stages. After calculations of PCR efficiencies, 13 HKGs were retained and their expression stabilities evaluated by the computer algorithms geNorm and NormFinder. According to geNorm, 2 Transcriptional Elongation Factors (TEFs and 1 Ubiquitin gene are necessary for normalizing gene expression when all studied samples are considered. However, only 2 TEFs are required for normalizing expression in stem tissues. In contrast, NormFinder identified glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GADPH as the most stably expressed gene when all samples were grouped together, as well as when samples were classed into different sub-groups. qRT-PCR was then used to investigate the relative expression levels of two splice variants of the flax LuMYB1 gene (homologue of AtMYB59. LuMYB1-1 and LuMYB1-2 were highly expressed in the internal stem tissues as compared to outer stem tissues and other samples. This result was confirmed with both ge

Selection of reference genes for quantitative gene expression normalization in flax (Linum usitatissimum L.).

Science.gov (United States)

Huis, Rudy; Hawkins, Simon; Neutelings, Godfrey

2010-04-19

Quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR) is currently the most accurate method for detecting differential gene expression. Such an approach depends on the identification of uniformly expressed 'housekeeping genes' (HKGs). Extensive transcriptomic data mining and experimental validation in different model plants have shown that the reliability of these endogenous controls can be influenced by the plant species, growth conditions and organs/tissues examined. It is therefore important to identify the best reference genes to use in each biological system before using qRT-PCR to investigate differential gene expression. In this paper we evaluate different candidate HKGs for developmental transcriptomic studies in the economically-important flax fiber- and oil-crop (Linum usitatissimum L). Specific primers were designed in order to quantify the expression levels of 20 different potential housekeeping genes in flax roots, internal- and external-stem tissues, leaves and flowers at different developmental stages. After calculations of PCR efficiencies, 13 HKGs were retained and their expression stabilities evaluated by the computer algorithms geNorm and NormFinder. According to geNorm, 2 Transcriptional Elongation Factors (TEFs) and 1 Ubiquitin gene are necessary for normalizing gene expression when all studied samples are considered. However, only 2 TEFs are required for normalizing expression in stem tissues. In contrast, NormFinder identified glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GADPH) as the most stably expressed gene when all samples were grouped together, as well as when samples were classed into different sub-groups.qRT-PCR was then used to investigate the relative expression levels of two splice variants of the flax LuMYB1 gene (homologue of AtMYB59). LuMYB1-1 and LuMYB1-2 were highly expressed in the internal stem tissues as compared to outer stem tissues and other samples. This result was confirmed with both geNorm-designated- and NormFinder-designated-reference

Application of GRA for Sustainable Material Selection and Evaluation Using LCA

Science.gov (United States)

Jayakrishna, Kandasamy; Vinodh, Sekar; Sakthi Sanghvi, Vijayaselvan; Deepika, Chinadurai

2016-07-01

Material selection is identified as a successful key parameter in establishing any product to be sustainable, considering its end of life (EoL) characteristics. An accurate understanding of expected service conditions and environmental considerations are crucial in the selection of material plays a vital role with overwhelming customer expectations and stringent laws. Therefore, this article presents an integrated approach for sustainable material selection using grey relational analysis (GRA) considering the EoL disposal strategies with respect to an automotive product. GRA, an impact evaluation model measures the degree of similarity between the comparability (choice of material) sequence and reference (EoL strategies) sequence based on the relational grade. The ranking result shows that the outranking relationships in the order, ABS-REC > PP-INC > AL-REM > PP-LND > ABS-LND > ABS-INC > PU-LND > AL-REC > AL-LND > PU-INC > AL-INC. The best sustainable material selected was ABS and recycling was selected as the best EoL strategy with the grey relational value of 2.43856. The best material selected by this approach, ABS was evaluated for its viability using life cycle assessment and the estimated impacts also proved the practicability of the selected material highlighting the focus on dehumidification step in the manufacturing of the case product using this developed multi-criteria approach.

Trees in Urban and City Environments: a review of the selection criteria with particular reference to nature conservation in New Zealand Cities

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

(Late David Given

2008-07-01

Full Text Available The overall aim of this research was to review the general criteria for selection of trees for urban environments and city environments. The reason for this research was to assess the extent to which criteria for tree selection can contribute to nature conservation in cities. We conducted an extensive review of the literature, looking for publications about the selection criteria. In particular, we looked for any previous published reviews of the criteria. With reference to the criteria used in New Zealand, we undertook an unstructured review of the practices adopted in most cities. A review of the literature revealed many publications about different criteria but only one publication in which there was a general review of the criteria used for selecting trees for urban environments. By way of contrast, lists of tree species deemed to be suitable (or unsuitable for urban planting are widely available, and some include information about selection criteria, but often with little background explanation. Worldwide, commonly used criteria included commercial availability of species, compatibility with urban environments, landscape design, low maintenance, avoidance of nuisance factors and historical practice. The most common criteria are concerned with the concept of choosing species compatible with local climate and soils. Anecdotal evidence suggests that more and more cities are using a mix of criteria including those that may contribute to conservation and restoration of native biota. We suggest that there should be greater use of ecological, genetic and biogeographical criteria to meet the needs of nature conservation in New Zealand cities.

Non-Formal Education in International Comparison: Patterns of Participation and Investment in Selected European Countries

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Katrin Kaufmann

2015-12-01

Full Text Available This investigation focuses on participation and related investment patterns in job related non-formal education (NFE in selected European countries. Broadening previous research formats of NFE are distinguished by investment including financial and time investments by employers, employees and public authorities. By this, company-sponsored and individual-financed NFE are distinguished sharply and cases with shared investment between employers and employees (co-financed NFE and between employers, employees and public funding (co-financed pooled NFE are accounted for, additionally. For explaining participation in NFE supply and demand models are referred to. Hypotheses on cross-country differences for investment in NFE refer to the Varieties-of-Capitalism approach and countries are selected representing different varieties of capitalism (Norway, Sweden, Germany, Lithuania, Latvia, Spain, France, UK. Analyses are based on data of the Adult Education Survey (AES 2011/12.

Phenotypic selection on leaf water use efficiency and related ecophysiological traits for natural populations of desert sunflowers.

Science.gov (United States)

Donovan, Lisa A; Dudley, Susan A; Rosenthal, David M; Ludwig, Fulco

2007-05-01

Plant water-use efficiency (WUE) is expected to affect plant fitness and thus be under natural selection in arid habitats. Although many natural population studies have assessed plant WUE, only a few related WUE to fitness. The further determination of whether selection on WUE is direct or indirect through functionally related traits has yielded no consistent results. For natural populations of two desert annual sunflowers, Helianthus anomalus and H. deserticola, we used phenotypic selection analysis with vegetative biomass as the proxy for fitness to test (1) whether there was direct and indirect selection on WUE (carbon isotope ratio) and related traits (leaf N, area, succulence) and (2) whether direct selection was consistent with hypothesized drought/dehydration escape and avoidance strategies. There was direct selection for lower WUE in mesic and dry H. anomalus populations, consistent with dehydration escape, even though it is the longer lived of the two species. For mesic H. anomalus, direct selection favored lower WUE and higher N, suggesting that plants may be "wasting water" to increase N delivery via the transpiration stream. For the shorter lived H. deserticola in the direr habitat, there was indirect selection for lower WUE, inconsistent with drought escape. There was also direct selection for higher leaf N, succulence and leaf size. There was no direct selection for higher WUE consistent with dehydration avoidance in either species. Thus, in these natural populations of two desert dune species higher fitness was associated with some combination direct and indirect selection for lower WUE, higher leaf N and larger leaf size. Our understanding of the adaptive value of plant ecophysiological traits will benefit from further consideration of related traits such as leaf nitrogen and more tests in natural populations.

Applying Information Retrieval Techniques to Detect Duplicates and to Rank References in the Preliminary Phases of Systematic Literature Reviews

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ramon Abilio

2015-08-01

Full Text Available Systematic Literature Review (SLR is a means to synthesize relevant and high quality studies related to a specific topic or research questions. In the Primary Selection stage of an SLR, the selection of studies is usually performed manually by reading title, abstract and keywords of each study. In the last years, the number of published scientific studies has grown increasing the effort to perform this sort of reviews. In this paper, we proposed strategies to detect non-papers and duplicated references in results exported by search engines, and strategies to rank the references in decreasing order of importance for an SLR, regarding the terms in the search string. These strategies are based on Information Retrieval techniques. We implemented the strategies and carried out an experimental evaluation of their applicability using two real datasets. As results, the strategy to detect non-papers presented 100% of precision and 50% of recall; the strategy to detect duplicates detected more duplicates than the manual inspection; and one of the strategies to rank relevant references presented 50% of precision and 80% of recall. Therefore, the results show that the proposed strategies can minimize the effort in the Primary Selection stage of an SLR.

Weather Test Reference Year of Greenland

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kragh, Jesper; Pedersen, Frank; Svendsen, Svend

2005-01-01

the construction of two test reference years of Greenland used in the work of establishing new energy frame for the coming building code of Greenland. The first test reference year is constructed using measurements of climatic parameters from the town Nuuk located in the southwestern part of Greenland. The second...... test reference year is constructed using measurements from the town Uummannaq located in the north part of Greenland on the west coast. The construction of the test reference years fulfills the procedures described in the standard EN ISO 15927-4 using the following main weather parameters: Dry bulb...... temperature, global radiation, relative humidity and mean wind speed. To construct the test reference years a program called REFYEAR was developed in MatLab. REFYEAR automatically constructs the test reference year using an input file containing the climatic measurements. The two constructed test reference...

The importance of the reference populations for coherent mortality forecasting models

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kjærgaard, Søren; Canudas-Romo, Vladimir; Vaupel, James W.

-population mortality models aiming to find the optimal of the set of countries to use as reference population and analyse the importance of the selection of countries. The two multi-population mortality models used are the Li-Lee model and the Double-Gap life expectancy forecasting model. The reference populations......Coherent forecasting models that take into consideration mortality changes observed in different countries are today among the essential tools for demographers, actuaries and other researchers interested in forecasts. Medium and long term life expectancy forecasts are compared for two multi...... is calculated taking into account all the possible combinations of a set of 20 industrialized countries. The different reference populations possibilities are compared by their forecast performance. The results show that the selection of countries for multi-population mortality models has a significant effect...

Threat Related Selective Attention Predicts Treatment Success in Childhood Anxiety Disorders

Science.gov (United States)

Legerstee, Jeroen S.; Tulen, Joke H. M.; Kallen, Victor L.; Dieleman, Gwen C.; Treffers, Philip D. A.; Verhulst, Frank C.; Utens, Elisabeth M. W. J.

2009-01-01

Threat-related selective attention was found to predict the success of the treatment of childhood anxiety disorders through administering a pictorial dot-probe task to 131 children with anxiety disorders prior to cognitive behavioral therapy. The diagnostic status of the subjects was evaluated with a semistructured clinical interview at both pre-…

Identification of reference genes for relative quantification of circulating microRNAs in bovine serum.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

In-Seon Bae

Full Text Available Circulating microRNAs in body fluids have been implicated as promising biomarkers for physiopathology disorders. Currently, the expression levels of circulating microRNAs are estimated by reverse transcription quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction. Use of appropriate reference microRNAs for normalization is critical for accurate microRNA expression analysis. However, no study has systematically investigated reference genes for evaluating circulating microRNA expression in cattle. In this study, we describe the identification and characterization of appropriate reference microRNAs for use in the normalization of circulating microRNA levels in bovine serum. We evaluated the expression stability of ten candidate reference genes in bovine serum by using reverse transcription quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction. Data were analyzed using geNorm, NormFinder, and BestKeeper statistical algorithms. The results consistently showed that a combination of miR-93 and miR-127 provided the most stably expressed reference. The suitability of these microRNAs was validated, and even when compared among different genders or breeds, the combination of miR-93 and miR-127 was ranked as the most stable microRNA reference. Therefore, we conclude that this combination is the optimal endogenous reference for reverse transcription quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction-based detection of microRNAs in bovine serum. The data presented in this study are crucial to successful biomarker discovery and validation for the diagnosis of physiopathological conditions in cattle.

Diagnostic reference levels in medical imaging

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rosenstein, M.

2001-01-01

The paper proposes additional advice to national or local authorities and the clinical community on the application of diagnostic reference levels as a practical tool to manage radiation doses to patients in diagnostic radiology and nuclear medicine. A survey was made of the various approaches that have been taken by authoritative bodies to establish diagnostic reference levels for medical imaging tasks. There are a variety of ways to implement the idea of diagnostic reference levels, depending on the medical imaging task of interest, the national or local state of practice and the national or local preferences for technical implementation. The existing International Commission on Radiological Protection (ICRP) guidance is reviewed, the survey information is summarized, a set of unifying principles is espoused and a statement of additional advice that has been proposed to ICRP Committee 3 is presented. The proposed advice would meet a need for a unifying set of principles to provide a framework for diagnostic reference levels but would allow flexibility in their selection and use. While some illustrative examples are given, the proposed advice does not specify the specific quantities to be used, the numerical values to be set for the quantities or the technical details of how national or local authorities should implement diagnostic reference levels. (author)

MicroRNA expression profiling to identify and validate reference genes for relative quantification in colorectal cancer.

LENUS (Irish Health Repository)

Chang, Kah Hoong

2010-01-01

BACKGROUND: Advances in high-throughput technologies and bioinformatics have transformed gene expression profiling methodologies. The results of microarray experiments are often validated using reverse transcription quantitative PCR (RT-qPCR), which is the most sensitive and reproducible method to quantify gene expression. Appropriate normalisation of RT-qPCR data using stably expressed reference genes is critical to ensure accurate and reliable results. Mi(cro)RNA expression profiles have been shown to be more accurate in disease classification than mRNA expression profiles. However, few reports detailed a robust identification and validation strategy for suitable reference genes for normalisation in miRNA RT-qPCR studies. METHODS: We adopt and report a systematic approach to identify the most stable reference genes for miRNA expression studies by RT-qPCR in colorectal cancer (CRC). High-throughput miRNA profiling was performed on ten pairs of CRC and normal tissues. By using the mean expression value of all expressed miRNAs, we identified the most stable candidate reference genes for subsequent validation. As such the stability of a panel of miRNAs was examined on 35 tumour and 39 normal tissues. The effects of normalisers on the relative quantity of established oncogenic (miR-21 and miR-31) and tumour suppressor (miR-143 and miR-145) target miRNAs were assessed. RESULTS: In the array experiment, miR-26a, miR-345, miR-425 and miR-454 were identified as having expression profiles closest to the global mean. From a panel of six miRNAs (let-7a, miR-16, miR-26a, miR-345, miR-425 and miR-454) and two small nucleolar RNA genes (RNU48 and Z30), miR-16 and miR-345 were identified as the most stably expressed reference genes. The combined use of miR-16 and miR-345 to normalise expression data enabled detection of a significant dysregulation of all four target miRNAs between tumour and normal colorectal tissue. CONCLUSIONS: Our study demonstrates that the top six most

MicroRNA expression profiling to identify and validate reference genes for relative quantification in colorectal cancer

LENUS (Irish Health Repository)

Chang, Kah Hoong

2010-04-29

Abstract Background Advances in high-throughput technologies and bioinformatics have transformed gene expression profiling methodologies. The results of microarray experiments are often validated using reverse transcription quantitative PCR (RT-qPCR), which is the most sensitive and reproducible method to quantify gene expression. Appropriate normalisation of RT-qPCR data using stably expressed reference genes is critical to ensure accurate and reliable results. Mi(cro)RNA expression profiles have been shown to be more accurate in disease classification than mRNA expression profiles. However, few reports detailed a robust identification and validation strategy for suitable reference genes for normalisation in miRNA RT-qPCR studies. Methods We adopt and report a systematic approach to identify the most stable reference genes for miRNA expression studies by RT-qPCR in colorectal cancer (CRC). High-throughput miRNA profiling was performed on ten pairs of CRC and normal tissues. By using the mean expression value of all expressed miRNAs, we identified the most stable candidate reference genes for subsequent validation. As such the stability of a panel of miRNAs was examined on 35 tumour and 39 normal tissues. The effects of normalisers on the relative quantity of established oncogenic (miR-21 and miR-31) and tumour suppressor (miR-143 and miR-145) target miRNAs were assessed. Results In the array experiment, miR-26a, miR-345, miR-425 and miR-454 were identified as having expression profiles closest to the global mean. From a panel of six miRNAs (let-7a, miR-16, miR-26a, miR-345, miR-425 and miR-454) and two small nucleolar RNA genes (RNU48 and Z30), miR-16 and miR-345 were identified as the most stably expressed reference genes. The combined use of miR-16 and miR-345 to normalise expression data enabled detection of a significant dysregulation of all four target miRNAs between tumour and normal colorectal tissue. Conclusions Our study demonstrates that the top six most

Tracing evolutionary relicts of positive selection on eight malaria-related immune genes in mammals.

Science.gov (United States)

Huang, Bing-Hong; Liao, Pei-Chun

2015-07-01

Plasmodium-induced malaria widely infects primates and other mammals. Multiple past studies have revealed that positive selection could be the main evolutionary force triggering the genetic diversity of anti-malaria resistance-associated genes in human or primates. However, researchers focused most of their attention on the infra-generic and intra-specific genome evolution rather than analyzing the complete evolutionary history of mammals. Here we extend previous research by testing the evolutionary link of natural selection on eight candidate genes associated with malaria resistance in mammals. Three of the eight genes were detected to be affected by recombination, including TNF-α, iNOS and DARC. Positive selection was detected in the rest five immunogenes multiple times in different ancestral lineages of extant species throughout the mammalian evolution. Signals of positive selection were exposed in four malaria-related immunogenes in primates: CCL2, IL-10, HO1 and CD36. However, selection signals of G6PD have only been detected in non-primate eutherians. Significantly higher evolutionary rates and more radical amino acid replacement were also detected in primate CD36, suggesting its functional divergence from other eutherians. Prevalent positive selection throughout the evolutionary trajectory of mammalian malaria-related genes supports the arms race evolutionary hypothesis of host genetic response of mammalian immunogenes to infectious pathogens. © The Author(s) 2014 Reprints and permissions: sagepub.co.uk/journalsPermissions.nav.

Genetics Home Reference: myostatin-related muscle hypertrophy

Science.gov (United States)

... Twitter Home Health Conditions Myostatin-related muscle hypertrophy Myostatin-related muscle hypertrophy Printable PDF Open All Close ... Javascript to view the expand/collapse boxes. Description Myostatin-related muscle hypertrophy is a rare condition characterized ...

Sensitivity of annual and seasonal reference crop ...

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

scheduling and water resources management. Ref- ... time, and refers to evapotranspiration rate from a reference ... variable per unit increase in independent variable. Sensitivity ...... Pereira L S 2007 Relating water productivity and crop.

Defining the Reference Condition for Wadeable Streams in the Sand Hills Subdivision of the Southeastern Plains Ecoregion, USA

Science.gov (United States)

Kosnicki, Ely; Sefick, Stephen A.; Paller, Michael H.; Jarrell, Miller S.; Prusha, Blair A.; Sterrett, Sean C.; Tuberville, Tracey D.; Feminella, Jack W.

2014-09-01

The Sand Hills subdivision of the Southeastern Plains ecoregion has been impacted by historical land uses over the past two centuries and, with the additive effects of contemporary land use, determining reference condition for streams in this region is a challenge. We identified reference condition based on the combined use of 3 independent selection methods. Method 1 involved use of a multivariate disturbance gradient derived from several stressors, method 2 was based on variation in channel morphology, and method 3 was based on passing 6 of 7 environmental criteria. Sites selected as reference from all 3 methods were considered primary reference, whereas those selected by 2 or 1 methods were considered secondary or tertiary reference, respectively. Sites not selected by any of the methods were considered non-reference. In addition, best professional judgment (BPJ) was used to exclude some sites from any reference class, and comparisons were made to examine the utility of BPJ. Non-metric multidimensional scaling indicated that use of BPJ may help designate non-reference sites when unidentified stressors are present. The macroinvertebrate community measures Ephemeroptera, Plecoptera, Trichoptera richness and North Carolina Biotic Index showed no differences between primary and secondary reference sites when BPJ was ignored. However, there was no significant difference among primary, secondary, and tertiary reference sites when BPJ was used. We underscore the importance of classifying reference conditions, especially in regions that have endured significant anthropogenic activity. We suggest that the use of secondary reference sites may enable construction of models that target a broader set of management interests.

Standard and reference materials for environmental science. Part 1. Technical memo

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Cantillo, A.Y.

1995-11-01

This is the fourth edition of the catalog of reference materials suited for use in environmental science, originally compiled in 1986 for NOAA, IOC, and UNEP. The catalog lists more than 1200 reference materials from 28 producers and contains information about their proper use, sources, availability, and analyte concentrations. Indices are included for elements, isotopes, and organic compounds, as are cross references to CAS registry numbers, alternate names, and chemical structures of selected organic compounds.

Standard and reference materials for environmental science. Part 2. Technical memo

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Cantillo, A.Y.

1995-11-01

This is the fourth edition of the catalog of reference materials suited for use in environmental science, originally compiled in 1986 for NOAA, IOC, and UNEP. The catalog lists more than 1200 reference materials from 28 producers and contains information about their proper use, sources, availability, and analyte concentrations. Indices are included for elements, isotopes, and organic compounds, as are cross references to CAS registry numbers, alternate names, and chemical structures of selected organic compounds.

Estimation of Completeness of Cancer Registration for Patients Referred to Shiraz Selected Centers through a Two Source Capture Re-capture Method, 2009 Data.

Science.gov (United States)

Sharifian, Roxana; SedaghatNia, Mohammad Hossein; Nematolahi, Mohtram; Zare, Najaf; Barzegari, Saeed

2015-01-01

Cancer has important social consequences with cancer registration as the basis of moving towards prevention. The present study aimed to estimate the completeness of registration of the ten most common cancers in patients referred to selected hospitals in Shiraz, Iran by using capture-recapture method. This cross-sectional analytical study was performed in 2014 based on the data of 2009, on a total of 4,388 registered cancer patients. After cleaning data from two sources, using capture-recapture common findings were identified. Then, the percentage of the completeness of cancer registration was estimated using Chapman and Chao methods. Finally, the effects of demographic and treatment variables on the completeness of cancer registration were investigated. The results showed that the percentages of completeness of cancer registration in the selected hospitals of Shiraz were 58.6% and 58.4%, and influenced by different variables. The age group between 40-49 years old was the highest represented and for the age group under 20 years old was the lowest for cancer registration. Breast cancer had the highest registration level and after that, thyroid and lung cancers, while colorectal cancer had the lowest registration level. According to the results, the number of cancers registered was very few and it seems that factors like inadequate knowledge of some doctors, imprecise diagnosis about the types of cancer, incorrectly filled out medical documents, and lack of sufficient accuracy in recording data on the computer cause errors and defects in cancer registration. This suggests a necessity to educate and teach doctors and other medical workers about the methods of documenting information related to cancer and also conduct additional measures to improve the cancer registration system.

Positional reference system for ultraprecision machining

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Arnold, J.B.; Burleson, R.R.; Pardue, R.M.

1982-01-01

A stable positional reference system for use in improving the cutting tool-to-part contour position in numerical controlledmultiaxis metal turning machines is provided. The reference system employs a plurality of interferometers referenced to orthogonally disposed metering bars which are substantially isolated from machine strain induced position errors for monitoring the part and tool positions relative to the metering bars. A microprocessor-based control system is employed in conjunction with the plurality of position interferometers and part contour description data inputs to calculate error components for each axis of movement and output them to corresponding axis drives with appropriate scaling and error compensation. Real-time position control, operating in combination with the reference system, makes possible the positioning of the cutting points of a tool along a part locus with a substantially greater degree of accuracy than has been attained previously in the art by referencing and then monitoring only the tool motion relative to a reference position located on the machine base

Positional reference system for ultraprecision machining

Science.gov (United States)

Arnold, J.B.; Burleson, R.R.; Pardue, R.M.

1980-09-12

A stable positional reference system for use in improving the cutting tool-to-part contour position in numerical controlled-multiaxis metal turning machines is provided. The reference system employs a plurality of interferometers referenced to orthogonally disposed metering bars which are substantially isolated from machine strain induced position errors for monitoring the part and tool positions relative to the metering bars. A microprocessor-based control system is employed in conjunction with the plurality of positions interferometers and part contour description data input to calculate error components for each axis of movement and output them to corresponding axis driven with appropriate scaling and error compensation. Real-time position control, operating in combination with the reference system, makes possible the positioning of the cutting points of a tool along a part locus with a substantially greater degree of accuracy than has been attained previously in the art by referencing and then monitoring only the tool motion relative to a reference position located on the machine base.

Relative frequency and estimated minimal frequency of Lysosomal Storage Diseases in Brazil: Report from a Reference Laboratory

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Roberto Giugliani

2017-03-01

Full Text Available Abstract Lysosomal storage diseases (LSDs comprise a heterogeneous group of more than 50 genetic conditions of inborn errors of metabolism (IEM caused by a defect in lysosomal function. Although there are screening tests for some of these conditions, diagnosis usually depends on specific enzyme assays, which are only available in a few laboratories around the world. A pioneer facility for the diagnosis of IEM and LSDs was established in the South of Brazil in 1982 and has served as a reference service since then. Over the past 34 years, samples from 72,797 patients were referred for investigation of IEM, and 3,211 were confirmed as having an LSD (4.41%, or 1 in 22, with 3,099 of these patients originating from Brazil. The rate of diagnosis has increased over time, in part due to the creation of diagnostic networks involving a large number of Brazilian services. These cases, referred from Brazilian regions, provide insight about the relative frequency of LSDs in the country. The large amount of data available allows for the estimation of the minimal frequency of specific LSDs in Brazil. The reported data could help to plan health care policies, as there are specific therapies available for most of the cases diagnosed.

Relative aggregation operator in database fuzzy querying

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Luminita DUMITRIU

2005-12-01

Full Text Available Fuzzy selection criteria querying relational databases include vague terms; they usually refer linguistic values form the attribute linguistic domains, defined as fuzzy sets. Generally, when a vague query is processed, the definitions of vague terms must already exist in a knowledge base. But there are also cases when vague terms must be dynamically defined, when a particular operation is used to aggregate simple criteria in a complex selection. The paper presents a new aggregation operator and the corresponding algorithm to evaluate the fuzzy query.

A content analysis of displayed alcohol references on a social networking web site.

Science.gov (United States)

Moreno, Megan A; Briner, Leslie R; Williams, Amanda; Brockman, Libby; Walker, Leslie; Christakis, Dimitri A

2010-08-01

Exposure to alcohol use in media is associated with adolescent alcohol use. Adolescents frequently display alcohol references on Internet media, such as social networking web sites. The purpose of this study was to conduct a theoretically based content analysis of older adolescents' displayed alcohol references on a social networking web site. We evaluated 400 randomly selected public MySpace profiles of self-reported 17- to 20-year-olds from zip codes, representing urban, suburban, and rural communities in one Washington county. Content was evaluated for alcohol references, suggesting: (1) explicit versus figurative alcohol use, (2) alcohol-related motivations, associations, and consequences, including references that met CRAFFT problem drinking criteria. We compared profiles from four target zip codes for prevalence and frequency of alcohol display. Of 400 profiles, 225 (56.3%) contained 341 references to alcohol. Profile owners who displayed alcohol references were mostly male (54.2%) and white (70.7%). The most frequent reference category was explicit use (49.3%); the most commonly displayed alcohol use motivation was peer pressure (4.7%). Few references met CRAFFT problem drinking criteria (3.2%). There were no differences in prevalence or frequency of alcohol display among the four sociodemographic communities. Despite alcohol use being illegal and potentially stigmatizing in this population, explicit alcohol use is frequently referenced on adolescents' MySpace profiles across several sociodemographic communities. Motivations, associations, and consequences regarding alcohol use referenced on MySpace appear consistent with previous studies of adolescent alcohol use. These references may be a potent source of influence on adolescents, particularly given that they are created and displayed by peers. (c) 2010 Society for Adolescent Health and Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Space-Time Reference Systems

CERN Document Server

Soffel, Michael

2013-01-01

The high accuracy of modern astronomical spatial-temporal reference systems has made them considerably complex. This book offers a comprehensive overview of such systems. It begins with a discussion of ‘The Problem of Time’, including recent developments in the art of clock making (e.g., optical clocks) and various time scales. The authors address  the definitions and realization of spatial coordinates by reference to remote celestial objects such as quasars. After an extensive treatment of classical equinox-based coordinates, new paradigms for setting up a celestial reference system are introduced that no longer refer to the translational and rotational motion of the Earth. The role of relativity in the definition and realization of such systems is clarified. The topics presented in this book are complemented by exercises (with solutions). The authors offer a series of files, written in Maple, a standard computer algebra system, to help readers get a feel for the various models and orders of magnitude. ...

Algorithmic Procedure for Finding Semantically Related Journals.

Science.gov (United States)

Pudovkin, Alexander I.; Garfield, Eugene

2002-01-01

Using citations, papers and references as parameters a relatedness factor (RF) is computed for a series of journals. Sorting these journals by the RF produces a list of journals most closely related to a specified starting journal. The method appears to select a set of journals that are semantically most similar to the target journal. The…

Analysis of data relative to the update of diagnosis reference levels in radiology and nuclear medicine. Situation 2004-2006

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2008-01-01

This report presents the results of the analysis of patients dosimetry data the radiology and nuclear medicine institutions have to transmit yearly to I.R.S.N. in application of the 12. february decree disposal relative to the diagnosis reference levels in radiology and nuclear medicine. The analysed dosimetry data concern the evaluations realised between the date of decree publication, the 16. march 2004 and 31. december 2006. The so considered results have to allow to the Nuclear Safety Authority to define the evolution needs of the regulation. Particularly, the analysis of delivered doses in radiology and the activities given in nuclear medicine lead to propositions on the possible update of reference values of some examination types. (N.C.)

Systematic review of serum steroid reference intervals developed using mass spectrometry.

Science.gov (United States)

Tavita, Nevada; Greaves, Ronda F

2017-12-01

The aim of this study was to perform a systematic review of the published literature to determine the available serum/plasma steroid reference intervals generated by mass spectrometry (MS) methods across all age groups in healthy subjects and to suggest recommendations to achieve common MS based reference intervals for serum steroids. MEDLINE, EMBASE and PubMed databases were used to conduct a comprehensive search for English language, MS-based reference interval studies for serum/plasma steroids. Selection of steroids to include was based on those listed in the Royal College of Pathologists of Australasia Quality Assurance Programs, Chemical Pathology, Endocrine Program. This methodology has been registered onto the PROSPERO International prospective register of systematic reviews (ID number: CRD42015029637). After accounting for duplicates, a total of 60 manuscripts were identified through the search strategy. Following critical evaluation, a total of 16 studies were selected. Of the 16 studies, 12 reported reference intervals for testosterone, 11 for 17 hydroxy-progesterone, nine for androstenedione, six for cortisol, three for progesterone, two for dihydrotestosterone and only one for aldosterone and dehydroepiandrosterone sulphate. No studies established MS-based reference intervals for oestradiol. As far as we are aware, this report provides the first comparison of the peer reviewed literature for serum/plasma steroid reference intervals generated by MS-based methods. The reference intervals based on these published studies can be used to inform the process to develop common reference intervals, and agreed reporting units for mass spectrometry based steroid methods. Copyright © 2017 The Canadian Society of Clinical Chemists. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Evaluation of reference genes for RT-qPCR study in abalone Haliotis discus hannai during heavy metal overload stress

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sang Yoon Lee

2016-06-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background The evaluation of suitable reference genes as normalization controls is a prerequisite requirement for launching quantitative reverse transcription-PCR (RT-qPCR-based expression study. In order to select the stable reference genes in abalone Haliotis discus hannai tissues (gill and hepatopancreas under heavy metal exposure conditions (Cu, Zn, and Cd, 12 potential candidate housekeeping genes were subjected to expression stability based on the comprehensive ranking while integrating four different statistical algorithms (geNorm, NormFinder, BestKeeper, and ΔCT method. Results Expression stability in the gill subset was determined as RPL7 > RPL8 > ACTB > RPL3 > PPIB > RPL7A > EF1A > RPL4 > GAPDH > RPL5 > UBE2 > B-TU. On the other hand, the ranking in the subset for hepatopancreas was RPL7 > RPL3 > RPL8 > ACTB > RPL4 > EF1A > RPL5 > RPL7A > B-TU > UBE2 > PPIB > GAPDH. The pairwise variation assessed by the geNorm program indicates that two reference genes could be sufficient for accurate normalization in both gill and hepatopancreas subsets. Overall, both gill and hepatopancreas subsets recommended ribosomal protein genes (particularly RPL7 as stable references, whereas traditional housekeepers such as β-tubulin (B-TU and glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH genes were ranked as unstable genes. The validation of reference gene selection was confirmed with the quantitative assay of MT transcripts. Conclusions The present analysis showed the importance of validating reference genes with multiple algorithmic approaches to select genes that are truly stable. Our results indicate that expression stability of a given reference gene could not always have consensus across tissue types. The data from this study could be a good guide for the future design of RT-qPCR studies with respect to metal regulation/detoxification and other related

Sharing reference data and including cows in the reference population improve genomic predictions in Danish Jersey.

Science.gov (United States)

Su, G; Ma, P; Nielsen, U S; Aamand, G P; Wiggans, G; Guldbrandtsen, B; Lund, M S

2016-06-01

data and including cows in reference population are efficient approaches to increase reliability of genomic prediction. Therefore, genomic selection is promising for numerically small population.

Investors’ Risk Preference Characteristics Based on Different Reference Point

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Fenghua Wen

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Taking the stock market as a whole object, we assume that prior losses and gains are two different factors that can influence risk preference separately. The two factors are introduced as separate explanatory variables into the time-varying GARCH-M (TVRA-GARCH-M model. Then, we redefine prior losses and gains by selecting different reference point to study investors’ time-varying risk preference. The empirical evidence shows that investors’ risk preference is time varying and is influenced by previous outcomes; the stock market as a whole exhibits house money effect; that is, prior gains can decrease investors’ risk aversion while prior losses increase their risk aversion. Besides, different reference points selected by investors will cause different valuation of prior losses and gains, thus affecting investors’ risk preference.

2001 – 2010 Danish Design Reference Year

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Grunnet Wang, Peter; Scharling, Mikael; Pagh Nielsen, Kristian

This report presents the Danish Design Reference Year based on observed data from 2001 – 2010. In various sectors - i.e. building and construction, energy, etc. - the climate and weather usually plays a part in a given project. The Danish Design Reference Year dataset is a collection of data series...... for eleven specific parameters, that each represents a typical year in Denmark. The uses of the dataset may vary from simulations to statistical analysis, graphical overviews etc. The Danish land areas have been sectionalized into five to six climatological zones depending on the parameter, each...... characterized by distinct diurnal and yearly variations. The dataset consists of observed data from one station located within and representing each zone. In addition to the complete Danish Design Reference Year dataset, a subset specifically selected to be used for energy performance calculations for obtaining...

Evaluation of the uncertainty around the mean level of 137Cs fallout at undisturbed reference site: A simple statistical approach

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mabit, L.; Gonsalves, B.C.; Chen, X.; Toloza, A.; Weltin, G.; Darby, I.G.; Padilla-Alvarez, R.

2015-01-01

One of the major issues related to the use of 137 Cs as a soil erosion/sedimentation tracer is the selection of the reference site which is used to estimate the initial 137 Cs fallout input (also termed reference inventory). The initial 137 Cs fallout input is a key component of the conversion models used to estimate erosion and sedimentation rates from the 137 Cs data set. The selection and evaluation of the validity of reference sites have been explained in detail in the recent IAEA TECDOC 1741 ‘‘Guidelines for using Fallout radionuclides to assess erosion and effectiveness of soil conservation strategies’’. An investigation was carried out at the experimental research station of the Austrian Agency for Health and Food Safety (AGES), in Austria, Grabenegg (48°07'40 N , 15°13'16 E ). Located at an altitude of 260 m a.s.l, with an annual average temperature of 8.4 °C and annual precipitation of 686 mm, the soil of this area has been classified as Gleyic Cambisol with a silt-loamy texture

Reference materials and their role in quality assurance in environmental monitoring

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cortes, Eduardo

2002-01-01

The importance of a good and routine quality control procedure for the analyses of environmental samples is presented. The use of Reference Materials as one simple procedure for validating analytical methodologies and determining the accuracy of analytical data is emphasized. The quality of the reference materials is also discussed as well as their selection and correct use. The convenience of preparing 'in-house' reference materials is discussed and attention is called to relevant aspects to be considered. An example of the preparation of a reference material is presented and some aspects of the procedure are discussed. (author)

Do candidate reactions relate to job performance or affect criterion-related validity? A multistudy investigation of relations among reactions, selection test scores, and job performance.

Science.gov (United States)

McCarthy, Julie M; Van Iddekinge, Chad H; Lievens, Filip; Kung, Mei-Chuan; Sinar, Evan F; Campion, Michael A

2013-09-01

Considerable evidence suggests that how candidates react to selection procedures can affect their test performance and their attitudes toward the hiring organization (e.g., recommending the firm to others). However, very few studies of candidate reactions have examined one of the outcomes organizations care most about: job performance. We attempt to address this gap by developing and testing a conceptual framework that delineates whether and how candidate reactions might influence job performance. We accomplish this objective using data from 4 studies (total N = 6,480), 6 selection procedures (personality tests, job knowledge tests, cognitive ability tests, work samples, situational judgment tests, and a selection inventory), 5 key candidate reactions (anxiety, motivation, belief in tests, self-efficacy, and procedural justice), 2 contexts (industry and education), 3 continents (North America, South America, and Europe), 2 study designs (predictive and concurrent), and 4 occupational areas (medical, sales, customer service, and technological). Consistent with previous research, candidate reactions were related to test scores, and test scores were related to job performance. Further, there was some evidence that reactions affected performance indirectly through their influence on test scores. Finally, in no cases did candidate reactions affect the prediction of job performance by increasing or decreasing the criterion-related validity of test scores. Implications of these findings and avenues for future research are discussed. PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2013 APA, all rights reserved

2001 - 2010 Danish design reference year. Reference climate dataset for technical dimensioning in building, construction and other sectors

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Grunnet Wang, P.; Scharling, M.; Pagh Nielsen, K.; Kern-Hansen, C. [Danish Meteorological Institute (DMI), Copenhagen (Denmark); Wittchen, K.B. [Aalborg Univ., Danish Building Research Institute (SBi), Copenhagen (Denmark)

2013-09-15

This report presents the Danish Design Reference Year based on observed data from 2001 - 2010. In various sectors - i.e. building and construction, energy, etc. - the climate and weather usually plays a part in a given project. The Danish Design Reference Year dataset is a collection of data series for eleven specific parameters, that each represents a typical year in Denmark. The uses of the dataset may vary from simulations to statistical analysis, graphical overviews etc. The Danish land areas have been sectionalised into five to six climatological zones depending on the parameter, each characterized by distinct diurnal and yearly variations. The dataset consists of observed data from one station located within and representing each zone. In addition to the complete Danish Design Reference Year dataset, a subset specifically selected to be used for energy performance calculations for obtaining a building permit is included. (Author)

Effects of bedding systems selected by manual muscle testing on sleep and sleep-related respiratory disturbances.

Science.gov (United States)

Tsai, Ling-Ling; Liu, Hau-Min

2008-03-01

In this study, we investigated the feasibility of applying manual muscle testing (MMT) for bedding selection and examined the bedding effect on sleep. Four lay testers with limited training in MMT performed muscle tests for the selection of the bedding systems from five different mattresses and eight different pillows for 14 participants with mild sleep-related respiratory disturbances. For each participant individually, two bedding systems-one inducing stronger muscle forces and the other inducing weaker forces-were selected. The tester-participant pairs showed 85% and 100% agreement, respectively, for the selection of mattresses and pillows that induced the strongest muscle forces. The firmness of the mattress and the height of the pillow were significantly correlated with the body weight and body mass index of the participants for the selected strong bedding system but not for the weak bedding system. Finally, differences were observed between the strong and the weak bedding systems with regard to sleep-related respiratory disturbances and the percentage of slow-wave sleep. It was concluded that MMT can be performed by inexperienced testers for the selection of bedding systems.

The Reference Scenarios for the Swiss Emergency Planning

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hanspeter Isaak; Navert, Stephan B.; Ralph Schulz

2006-01-01

For the purpose of emergency planning and preparedness, realistic reference scenarios and corresponding accident source terms have been defined on the basis of common plant features. Three types of representative reference scenarios encompass the accident sequences expected to be the most probable. Accident source terms are assumed to be identical for all Swiss nuclear power plants, although the plants differ in reactor type and power. Plant-specific probabilistic safety analyses were used to justify the reference scenarios and the postulated accident source terms. From the full spectrum of release categories available, those categories were selected which would be covered by the releases and time frames assumed in the reference scenarios. For each nuclear power plant, the cumulative frequency of accident sequences not covered by the reference scenarios was determined. It was found that the cumulative frequency for such accident sequences does not exceed about 1 x 10 -6 per year. The Swiss Federal Nuclear Safety Inspectorate concludes that the postulated accident source terms for the reference scenarios are consistent with the current international approach in emergency planning, where one should concentrate on the most probable accident sequences. (N.C.)

Phenotypic selection on leaf WUE and related ecophysiological traits for natural populations of desert sunflowers

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Donovan, L.A.; Rosenthal, D.R.; Dudley, S.A.; Ludwig, F.

2007-01-01

Plant water-use efficiency (WUE) is expected to affect plant fitness and thus be under natural selection in arid habitats. Although many natural population studies have assessed plant WUE, only a few related WUE to fitness. The further determination of whether selection on WUE is direct or indirect

Alcohol-related biases in selective attention and action tendency make distinct contributions to dysregulated drinking behaviour.

Science.gov (United States)

Sharbanee, Jason M; Stritzke, Werner G K; Wiers, Reinout W; MacLeod, Colin

2013-10-01

To assess whether alcohol-related biases in selective-attention and action tendency uniquely or concurrently predict the ability to regulate alcohol consumption. Two groups of undergraduate social drinkers (total n = 55) who differed in their ability to regulate their alcohol consumption completed a novel Selective-Attention/Action-Tendency Task (SA/ATT), which assessed separately alcohol-related biases in selective attention and action tendency. University of Western Australia, Australia. Dysregulated drinking was operationalized as a self-reported high level of alcohol consumption on the Alcohol Consumption Questionnaire, and a high desire to reduce consumption on the Brief Readiness to Change Algorithm. Selective attention and action tendency were assessed using the SA/ATT, working memory was assessed using the operation-span task and participant characteristics were assessed using the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT) and Stages of Change Readiness and Treatment Eagerness Scale (SOCRATES). Results indicated that (i) there was no significant association between alcohol-related biases in selective attention and action tendency, r = 0.16, P = 0.274, and (ii) biases towards alcohol, in both selective attention, β = 1.01, odds ratio = 2.74, P = 0.022, and action tendency, β = 1.24, odds ratio = 3.45, P = 0.015, predicted independent variance in dysregulated-drinker status. Biases in selective attention and action tendency appear to be distinct mechanisms that contribute independently to difficulty regulating alcohol consumption. Treatment components that could be combined to target both mechanisms could enhance treatment outcomes for alcohol-use disorders. © 2013 Society for the Study of Addiction.

Compressors selection and sizing

CERN Document Server

Brown, Royce N

2005-01-01

This practical reference provides in-depth information required to understand and properly estimate compressor capabilities and to select the proper designs. Engineers and students will gain a thorough understanding of compression principles, equipment, applications, selection, sizing, installation, and maintenance. The many examples clearly illustrate key aspects to help readers understand the ""real world"" of compressor technology.Compressors: Selection and Sizing, third edition is completely updated with new API standards. Additions requested by readers include a new section on di

The Internal/External Frame of Reference Model of Self-Concept and Achievement Relations: Age-Cohort and Cross-Cultural Differences

Science.gov (United States)

Marsh, Herbert W.; Abduljabbar, Adel Salah; Parker, Philip D.; Morin, Alexandre J. S.; Abdelfattah, Faisal; Nagengast, Benjamin; Möller, Jens; Abu-Hilal, Maher M.

2015-01-01

The internal/external frame of reference (I/E) model and dimensional comparison theory posit paradoxical relations between achievement (ACH) and self-concept (SC) in mathematics (M) and verbal (V) domains; ACH in each domain positively affects SC in the matching domain (e.g., MACH to MSC) but negatively in the nonmatching domain (e.g., MACH to…

From reference to sense: how the brain encodes meaning for speaking

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Laura eMenenti

2012-01-01

Full Text Available In speaking, semantic encoding is the conversion of a nonverbal mental representation (the reference into a semantic structure suitable for expression (the sense. In this fMRI study on sentence production we investigate how the speaking brain accomplishes this transition from nonverbal to verbal representations. In an overt picture description task, we manipulated repetition of sense (the semantic structure of the sentence and reference (the described situation separately. By investigating brain areas showing response adaptation to repetition of each of these sentence properties, we disentangle the neuronal infrastructure for these two components of semantic encoding. We also performed a control experiment with the same stimuli and design but without any linguistic task to identify areas involved in perception of the stimuli per se. The bilateral inferior parietal lobes were selectively sensitive to repetition of reference, while left inferior frontal gyrus showed selective suppression to repetition of sense. Strikingly, a widespread network of areas associated with language processing (left middle frontal gyrus, bilateral superior parietal lobes and bilateral posterior temporal gyri all showed repetition suppression to both sense and reference processing. These areas are probably involved in mapping reference onto sense, the crucial step in semantic encoding. These results enable us to track the transition from nonverbal to verbal representations in our brains.

Design-related bias in estimates of accuracy when comparing imaging tests: examples from breast imaging research

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Houssami, Nehmat; Ciatto, Stefano

2010-01-01

This work highlights concepts on the potential for design-related factors to bias estimates of test accuracy in comparative imaging research. We chose two design factors, selection of eligible subjects and the reference standard, to examine the effect of design limitations on estimates of accuracy. Estimates of sensitivity in a study of the comparative accuracy of mammography and ultrasound differed according to how subjects were selected. Comparison of a new imaging test with an existing test should distinguish whether the new test is to be used as a replacement for, or as an adjunct to, the conventional test, to guide the method for subject selection. Quality of the reference standard, examined in a meta-analysis of preoperative breast MRI, varied across studies and was associated with estimates of incremental accuracy. Potential solutions to deal with the reference standard are outlined where an ideal reference standard may not be available in all subjects. These examples of breast imaging research demonstrate that design-related bias, when comparing a new imaging test with a conventional imaging test, may bias accuracy in a direction that favours the new test by overestimating the accuracy of the new test or by underestimating that of the conventional test. (orig.)

Reference miRNAs for miRNAome analysis of urothelial carcinomas.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Nadine Ratert

Full Text Available BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVE: Reverse transcription quantitative real-time PCR (RT-qPCR is widely used in microRNA (miRNA expression studies on cancer. To compensate for the analytical variability produced by the multiple steps of the method, relative quantification of the measured miRNAs is required, which is based on normalization to endogenous reference genes. No study has been performed so far on reference miRNAs for normalization of miRNA expression in urothelial carcinoma. The aim of this study was to identify suitable reference miRNAs for miRNA expression studies by RT-qPCR in urothelial carcinoma. METHODS: Candidate reference miRNAs were selected from 24 urothelial carcinoma and normal bladder tissue samples by miRNA microarrays. The usefulness of these candidate reference miRNAs together with the commonly for normalization purposes used small nuclear RNAs RNU6B, RNU48, and Z30 were thereafter validated by RT-qPCR in 58 tissue samples and analyzed by the algorithms geNorm, NormFinder, and BestKeeper. PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Based on the miRNA microarray data, a total of 16 miRNAs were identified as putative reference genes. After validation by RT-qPCR, miR-101, miR-125a-5p, miR-148b, miR-151-5p, miR-181a, miR-181b, miR-29c, miR-324-3p, miR-424, miR-874, RNU6B, RNU48, and Z30 were used for geNorm, NormFinder, and BestKeeper analyses that gave different combinations of recommended reference genes for normalization. CONCLUSIONS: The present study provided the first systematic analysis for identifying suitable reference miRNAs for miRNA expression studies of urothelial carcinoma by RT-qPCR. Different combinations of reference genes resulted in reliable expression data for both strongly and less strongly altered miRNAs. Notably, RNU6B, which is the most frequently used reference gene for miRNA studies, gave inaccurate normalization. The combination of four (miR-101, miR-125a-5p, miR-148b, and miR-151-5p or three (miR-148b, miR-181b, and miR-874

Factors Related to Communication of Forest Fire Prevention Messages, a Study of Selected Rural Communities.

Science.gov (United States)

Griessman, B. Eugene; Bertrand, Alvin L.

Two rural Louisiana communities were selected to evaluate the effectiveness of certain types of communication in preventing man-caused forest fires. The communities were selected on the basis of differences in fire occurrence rates and other factors related to conservation. Questionnaires and personal interviews were utilized to determine views of…

The Relative Age Effect On The Selection In The Slovakia National Football Teams

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mikulič Martin

2015-11-01

Full Text Available The focus of this research was to determine the relative age effect (RAE on selection in the Slovakia national football teams. A factor that may have a significant impact on the quality of players chosen for the national teams or may result in a poor selection of players for the elite teams. Anthropometric and cognitive acceleration of players born in the first months of the calendar year concerning the overall context of the competition for placement in the national teams may be considered as a significant advantage. The aim of this research was to examine, determine and verify the presence of relative age effect in the selection of football players for the Slovakia national teams starting with the under 16 age category (U-16 through to the A - senior national football team. We presumed that the elite teams under this review and study consisted predominantly of players born in the first quarter of the calendar year, while also presuming that relative age effect receded with the increasing age category. Our survey sample U16 consisted of 79 players, U17 consisted of 47 players, U18 consisted of 58 players, U19 consisted of 71 players, U21 consisted of 52 players and A - senior national team consisted of 302 Slovakia national football players. The information obtained from the Slovak Football Association has been processed by the application of statistical methods and statistical significance test (T-test. Our research confirmed the presence of relative age effect in the U-16, U-17 and U-18 teams under our investigation (p≤0.01. In the U19 and U21 age categories, statistical significance has not been confirmed. As for the senior national team, statistically significant difference has been found in relation to players born in the last quarter of the year as opposed to players born in the first three months of the year (p≤0.01. Our results have shown that with the increasing age, the relative age effect fades and vanishes in full in the

Test reference year generation from meteorological and simulated solar radiation data

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Miguel, A. de; Bilbao, J. [University of Valladolid (Spain). Dept. of Applied Physics

2005-06-01

In this paper, a new method for generating test reference year (TRY) from the measured meteorological variables is proposed. Hourly recorded data of air temperature, relative humidity and wind velocity for two stations, Valladolid and Madrid (Spain) were selected to develop the method and a TRY was obtained. Monthly average solar radiation values were calculated taking into account the temperature and solar radiation correlations. Four different methodologies were used to evaluate hourly global solar radiation from hourly weather data of temperature and, as a consequence, four different TRYs with common data sets of temperature, relative humidity and wind velocity were generated for Valladolid and Madrid (Spain) stations. In order to evaluate the four different methodologies, TRYs data were compared with long-term measured data series using statistical estimators such as average, standard deviation, root mean square error (rmse) and mean bias error (mbe). Festa and Ratto and the TAG model, from Aguiar and Collares-Pereira, respectively, turned out to be the best methods for generating hourly solar irradiation data. The best performance was shown by the TRY0 year which was based on the solar radiation models mentioned above. The results show that the best reference year for each site varies with the season and the characteristics of the station. (author)

Biological and environmental reference materials for trace elements, nuclides and organic microcontaminants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cortes Toro, E.; Parr, R.M.; Clements, S.A.

1990-01-01

This report has been produced from a database on analytical reference materials of biological and environmental origin, which is maintained at the International Atomic Energy Agency. It is an updated version of an earlier report, published in 1985, which focussed mainly on reference materials for trace elements. In the present version of the report, reference materials for trace elements still constitute the major part of the data; however, information is also now included on a number of other selected analytes of relevance to IAEA programmes, i.e. radionuclides, stable isotopes and organic microcontaminants. The database presently contains 2,694 analyte values for 117 analytes in 116 biological and 77 environmental (non-biological) reference materials produced by 20 different suppliers. Additional information on the cost of the material, the unit size supplied, (weight or volume), and the minimum weight of material recommended for analysis is also provided (if available to the authors). It is expected that this report will help analysts to select the reference material that matches as closely as possible, with respect to matrix type and concentrations of the analytes of interest, the ''real'' samples that are to be analysed. Refs, 12 tabs

A Framework for Establishing Standard Reference Scale of Texture by Multivariate Statistical Analysis Based on Instrumental Measurement and Sensory Evaluation.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhi, Ruicong; Zhao, Lei; Xie, Nan; Wang, Houyin; Shi, Bolin; Shi, Jingye

2016-01-13

A framework of establishing standard reference scale (texture) is proposed by multivariate statistical analysis according to instrumental measurement and sensory evaluation. Multivariate statistical analysis is conducted to rapidly select typical reference samples with characteristics of universality, representativeness, stability, substitutability, and traceability. The reasonableness of the framework method is verified by establishing standard reference scale of texture attribute (hardness) with Chinese well-known food. More than 100 food products in 16 categories were tested using instrumental measurement (TPA test), and the result was analyzed with clustering analysis, principal component analysis, relative standard deviation, and analysis of variance. As a result, nine kinds of foods were determined to construct the hardness standard reference scale. The results indicate that the regression coefficient between the estimated sensory value and the instrumentally measured value is significant (R(2) = 0.9765), which fits well with Stevens's theory. The research provides reliable a theoretical basis and practical guide for quantitative standard reference scale establishment on food texture characteristics.

Science reference room index to physical, chemical and other property data

CERN Document Server

This nice reference guide from Arizona State University's Noble Science and Engineering Library amounts to "an index to selected library and internet resources that contain chemical, physical, thermodynamic, mechanical, toxicological, and safety data with a list of suggested standard reference sources that may be found in most technical libraries, this reference guide goes on to include a vast reservoir of alphabetically listed library books and Internet sites where a user may locate specific information. From Abrasion Resistance to Yield Strength data, this index is quite comprehensive.

Reference costs of electricity

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Terraz, N.

1997-01-01

The calculation of electric power production reference costs is used in France, even in the present case of over-capacity, for comparing the relative interest of the various means of power generation (nuclear plants, coal plants, hydroelectricity, gas combined cycles, etc.) and as an aid for future investment decisions. Reference costs show a sharp decrease between 1993 and 1997 due to advancements in nuclear plant operating ability and fossil fuel price decrease. Actuarial rates, plant service life, fuel costs and exchange rates are important parameters. The various costs from the research stage to the waste processing stages are discussed and the reference costs of the various power generation systems are presented and compared together with their competitiveness; the future of wind energy and cogeneration and the prospective of the renewal of nuclear plants at the 2010 horizon are also addressed

Patterns of Mortality in Patients Treated with Dental Implants: A Comparison of Patient Age Groups and Corresponding Reference Populations.

Science.gov (United States)

Jemt, Torsten; Kowar, Jan; Nilsson, Mats; Stenport, Victoria

2015-01-01

Little is known about the relationship between implant patient mortality compared to reference populations. The aim of this study was to report the mortality pattern in patients treated with dental implants up to a 15-year period, and to compare this to mortality in reference populations with regard to age at surgery, sex, and degree of tooth loss. Patient cumulative survival rate (CSR) was calculated for a total of 4,231 treated implant patients from a single clinic. Information was based on surgical registers in the clinic and the National Population Register in Sweden. Patients were arranged into age groups of 10 years, and CSR was compared to that of the reference population of comparable age and reported in relation to age at surgery, sex, and type of jaw/dentition. A similar, consistent, general relationship between CSR of different age groups of implant patients and reference populations could be observed for all parameters studied. Completely edentulous patients presented higher mortality than partially edentulous patients (P age groups showed mortality similar to or higher than reference populations, while older patient age groups showed increasingly lower mortality than comparable reference populations for edentulous and partially edentulous patients (P age groups of patients compared to reference populations was observed, indicating higher patient mortality in younger age groups and lower in older groups. The reported pattern is not assumed to be related to implant treatment per se, but is assumed to reflect the variation in general health of a selected subgroup of treated implant patients compared to the reference population in different age groups.

An experimental study on the self-reference effect

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

ZHU; Ying(朱滢); ZHANG; Li(张力)

2002-01-01

Self-reference at encoding increases the probability of recollective experience in recognition memory. Self-reference effect (SRE) in memory is observed when the degree of self-refer- ence of to-be-remembered materials is varied. Usually items encoded in terms of self-reference are associated with significantly higher recall performance relative to items encoded in other ways, including semantic encoding. In our three experiments, four orientating tasks formed four levels in a between-subjects design. The conditions were rating personality traits with reference to self, mother, Lu Xun (a famous Chinese writer) or rating the traits on a negative-positive dimension. In a recognition test, subjects first identified old items and then indicated which of these were accompanied by recollective experience ('remember' responses) and which were recognized on some other basis ('know' responses). Our results showed that both the self-reference condition and mother condition were associated with the same highest proportion of correct remember responses and the same lowest proportion of correct know responses. In contrast, for Western subjects, the self-reference condition, relative to the mother condition, was associated with a higher proportion of correct remember responses and a lower proportion of correct know responses. We discussed the results with reference to the HERA model (hemispheric encoding/retrieval asymmetry).

Site selection and evaluation for nuclear power plants with respect to population distribution

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1980-01-01

This safety guide, relating population distribution to site selection and evaluation, for nuclear power plants, forms part of the IAEA's programme, referred to as the NUSS programme (Nuclear Safety Standards). The guide presents population distribution data, requirements, examples of site screening methods, and an overview of radiological impact assessment with respect to population distribution

A 'Global Reference' Comparator for Biosimilar Development.

Science.gov (United States)

Webster, Christopher J; Woollett, Gillian R

2017-08-01

Major drug regulators have indicated in guidance their flexibility to accept some development data for biosimilars generated with reference product versions licensed outside their own jurisdictions, but most authorities require new bridging studies between these versions and the versions of them licensed locally. The costs of these studies are not trivial in absolute terms and, due to the multiplier effect of required repetition by each biosimilar sponsor, their collective costs are substantial. Yet versions of biologics licensed in different jurisdictions usually share the same development data, and any manufacturing changes between versions have been justified by a rigorous comparability process. The fact that a biosimilar is usually expected to be licensed in multiple jurisdictions, in each case as similar to the local reference product, confirms that minor analytical differences between versions of reference biologics are typically inconsequential for clinical outcomes and licensing. A greatly simplified basis for selecting a reference comparator, that does not require conducting new bridging studies, is proposed and justified based on the shared data of the reference product versions as well as the proof offered where biosimilars have already been approved. The relevance of this proposal to the interchangeability designation available in the US is discussed.

Reference values for electrooculography

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Barrientos Castanno, Alberto; Herrera Mora, Maritza; Garcia Baez, Obel

2012-01-01

Obtain electrooculographic reference values based on the patterns set by the Standardization Committee of the International Society for Clinical Electrophysiology of Vision (ISCEV). the lowest amplitude values of the potential ranged between 388 and 882 μv in the dark phase. The light peak was obtained between 9 and 10 minutes, and during this phase the potential reached an amplitude ranging between 808 and 1 963 μv. This amplitude variability may be related to the fact that the test was conducted without pupillary mydriasis. The reference value obtained for Arden index was 1,55 to 2,87

Synthesis of reference compounds related to Chemical Weapons Convention for verification and drug development purposes – a Brazilian endeavour

Science.gov (United States)

Cavalcante, S. F. A.; de Paula, R. L.; Kitagawa, D. A. S.; Barcellos, M. C.; Simas, A. B. C.; Granjeiro, J. M.

2018-03-01

This paper deals with challenges that Brazilian Army Organic Synthesis Laboratory has been going through to access reference compounds related to the Chemical Weapons Convention in order to support verification analysis and for research of novel antidotes. Some synthetic procedures to produce the chemicals, as well as Quality Assurance issues and a brief introduction of international agreements banning chemical weapons are also presented.

Criteria of reference radionuclides for safety analysis of spent fuel waste disposal

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Suryanto

1998-01-01

Study on the criteria for reference radionuclides selection for assessment on spent fuel disposal have done. The reference radionuclides in this study means radionuclides are predicted to contribute of the most radiological effect for man if spent fuel waste are discharged on deep geology formation. The research was done by investigate critically of parameters were used on evaluation a kind of radionuclide. Especially, this research study of parameter which relevant disposal case and or spent fuel waste on deep geology formation . The research assumed that spent fuel discharged on deep geology by depth 500-1000 meters from surface of the land. The migration scenario Radionuclides from waste form to man was assumed particularly for normal release in which Radionuclides discharge from waste form in a series thorough container, buffer, geological, rock, to fracture(fault) and move together with ground water go to biosphere and than go into human body. On this scenario, the parameter such as radionuclides inventory, half life, heat generation, hazard index based on maximum permissible concentration (MPC) or annual limit on intake (ALI) was developed as criteria of reference radionuclides selection. The research concluded that radionuclides inventory, half live, heat generated, hazard index base on MPC or ALI can be used as criteria for selection of reference Radionuclide. The research obtained that the main radionuclides are predicted give the most radiological effect to human are as Cs-137, Sr-90, I-129, Am-243, Cm-244, Pu-238, Pu-239, Pu-240. The radionuclides reasonable to be used as reference radionuclides in safety analysis at spent fuel disposal. (author)

Validation of endogenous reference genes for qRT-PCR analysis of human visceral adipose samples.

Science.gov (United States)

Mehta, Rohini; Birerdinc, Aybike; Hossain, Noreen; Afendy, Arian; Chandhoke, Vikas; Younossi, Zobair; Baranova, Ancha

2010-05-21

Given the epidemic proportions of obesity worldwide and the concurrent prevalence of metabolic syndrome, there is an urgent need for better understanding the underlying mechanisms of metabolic syndrome, in particular, the gene expression differences which may participate in obesity, insulin resistance and the associated series of chronic liver conditions. Real-time PCR (qRT-PCR) is the standard method for studying changes in relative gene expression in different tissues and experimental conditions. However, variations in amount of starting material, enzymatic efficiency and presence of inhibitors can lead to quantification errors. Hence the need for accurate data normalization is vital. Among several known strategies for data normalization, the use of reference genes as an internal control is the most common approach. Recent studies have shown that both obesity and presence of insulin resistance influence an expression of commonly used reference genes in omental fat. In this study we validated candidate reference genes suitable for qRT-PCR profiling experiments using visceral adipose samples from obese and lean individuals. Cross-validation of expression stability of eight selected reference genes using three popular algorithms, GeNorm, NormFinder and BestKeeper found ACTB and RPII as most stable reference genes. We recommend ACTB and RPII as stable reference genes most suitable for gene expression studies of human visceral adipose tissue. The use of these genes as a reference pair may further enhance the robustness of qRT-PCR in this model system.

Validation of endogenous reference genes for qRT-PCR analysis of human visceral adipose samples

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Afendy Arian

2010-05-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Given the epidemic proportions of obesity worldwide and the concurrent prevalence of metabolic syndrome, there is an urgent need for better understanding the underlying mechanisms of metabolic syndrome, in particular, the gene expression differences which may participate in obesity, insulin resistance and the associated series of chronic liver conditions. Real-time PCR (qRT-PCR is the standard method for studying changes in relative gene expression in different tissues and experimental conditions. However, variations in amount of starting material, enzymatic efficiency and presence of inhibitors can lead to quantification errors. Hence the need for accurate data normalization is vital. Among several known strategies for data normalization, the use of reference genes as an internal control is the most common approach. Recent studies have shown that both obesity and presence of insulin resistance influence an expression of commonly used reference genes in omental fat. In this study we validated candidate reference genes suitable for qRT-PCR profiling experiments using visceral adipose samples from obese and lean individuals. Results Cross-validation of expression stability of eight selected reference genes using three popular algorithms, GeNorm, NormFinder and BestKeeper found ACTB and RPII as most stable reference genes. Conclusions We recommend ACTB and RPII as stable reference genes most suitable for gene expression studies of human visceral adipose tissue. The use of these genes as a reference pair may further enhance the robustness of qRT-PCR in this model system.

Brazilian readers and contextual reference Brazilian readers and contextual reference

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lilia M. O. Carioni

2008-04-01

Full Text Available This article describes an experiment carried out using Brazilian university students at UFSC, the purpose being to check comprehension relationships between two types of contextual reference and two languages, Portuguese and English. A major stimulus for the research was the question: are Brazilian students' difficulties in reading English related more to English language difficulties or to difficulties in processing text in general?

Binocular perception of slant about oblique axes relative to a visual frame of reference

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Ee, R. van; Erkelens, Casper J.

1995-01-01

From the literature it is known that the processing of disparity for slant is different in the presence and in the absence of a visual frame of reference. We elaborate the experimental finding that vertical disparity is not processed for slant perception in the presence of a visual reference. This

Subjective Social Status and Well-Being: The Role of Referent Abstraction.

Science.gov (United States)

Haught, Heather M; Rose, Jason; Geers, Andrew; Brown, Jill A

2015-01-01

Subjective social status (SSS) has been shown to predict well-being and mental health, above and beyond objective social status (OSS). However, little is known about the factors that moderate this relationship. Two studies explored whether the link between SSS and well-being varied depending upon the referent used for comparison in SSS judgments. Participants judged their well-being and SSS in comparison to referents that varied in abstraction. A confirmatory factor analysis on SSS judgments yielded two factors: (a) SSS perceptions toward global referents and (b) SSS perceptions toward local referents. SSS relative to a global referent was a better predictor of depression (Studies 1 and 2), life satisfaction (Studies 1 and 2), and self-esteem (Study 2) than SSS relative to a local referent. These findings have theoretical implications for understanding how people differentiate between local vs. global referents and practical implications for status-related health disparities.

Enhance the Value of a Research Paper: Choosing the Right References and Writing them Accurately.

Science.gov (United States)

Bavdekar, Sandeep B

2016-03-01

References help readers identify and locate sources used for justifying the need for conducting the research study, verify methods employed in the study and for discussing the interpretation of results and implications of the study. It is extremely essential that references are accurate and complete. This article provides suggestions regarding choosing references and writing reference list. References are a list of sources that are selected by authors to represent the best documents concerning the research study.1 They constitute the foundation of any research paper. Although generally written towards the end of the article-writing process, they are nevertheless extremely important. They provide the context for the hypothesis and help justify the need for conducting the research study. Authors use references to inform readers about the techniques used for conducting the study and convince them about the appropriateness of methodology used. References help provide appropriate perspective in which the research findings should be seen and interpreted. This communication will discuss the purpose of citations, how to select quality sources for citing and the importance of accuracy while writing the reference list. © Journal of the Association of Physicians of India 2011.

Valores de referência para carboxiemoglobina Reference values for carboxyhemoglobin

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Maria Elisa P. B. de Siqueira

1997-12-01

the present study, the RV for carboxyhemoglobin (COHb was determined for the South of Minas Gerais. MATERIAL AND METHOD: The COHb was analyzed by the Beutler and West (1984 spectrophotometric method, optimized in our laboratory. In all the samples, analyses of some biochemical and hematological parameters were made to evaluate the health condition of a population of 200 volunteer non-smokers occupationally not exposed to CO. Each individual answered a questionnaire to obtain data pertinent to the interpretation of the results. The reference values were expressed as mean values ± standard deviation, with a 95% confidence interval, and an upper reference value. The statistical distribution of the results was made so as to enable comparisons between the results of groups of workers, rather than individual evaluations, to be made. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: The mean value ± standard deviation was 1.0% ± 0.75; the 95% confidence interval was 0,9 - 1.1% and the upper reference value was 2.5%. By the t Student test (p < 0.05, no difference was detected between the values related to sex, age or ingestion of alcoholic beverages. The reference values obtained were close to those reported for others countries.

Relative Gains, Losses, and Reference Points in Probabilistic Choice in Rats

Science.gov (United States)

Marshall, Andrew T.; Kirkpatrick, Kimberly

2015-01-01

Theoretical reference points have been proposed to differentiate probabilistic gains from probabilistic losses in humans, but such a phenomenon in non-human animals has yet to be thoroughly elucidated. Three experiments evaluated the effect of reward magnitude on probabilistic choice in rats, seeking to determine reference point use by examining the effect of previous outcome magnitude(s) on subsequent choice behavior. Rats were trained to choose between an outcome that always delivered reward (low-uncertainty choice) and one that probabilistically delivered reward (high-uncertainty). The probability of high-uncertainty outcome receipt and the magnitudes of low-uncertainty and high-uncertainty outcomes were manipulated within and between experiments. Both the low- and high-uncertainty outcomes involved variable reward magnitudes, so that either a smaller or larger magnitude was probabilistically delivered, as well as reward omission following high-uncertainty choices. In Experiments 1 and 2, the between groups factor was the magnitude of the high-uncertainty-smaller (H-S) and high-uncertainty-larger (H-L) outcome, respectively. The H-S magnitude manipulation differentiated the groups, while the H-L magnitude manipulation did not. Experiment 3 showed that manipulating the probability of differential losses as well as the expected value of the low-uncertainty choice produced systematic effects on choice behavior. The results suggest that the reference point for probabilistic gains and losses was the expected value of the low-uncertainty choice. Current theories of probabilistic choice behavior have difficulty accounting for the present results, so an integrated theoretical framework is proposed. Overall, the present results have implications for understanding individual differences and corresponding underlying mechanisms of probabilistic choice behavior. PMID:25658448

Relative gains, losses, and reference points in probabilistic choice in rats.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Andrew T Marshall

Full Text Available Theoretical reference points have been proposed to differentiate probabilistic gains from probabilistic losses in humans, but such a phenomenon in non-human animals has yet to be thoroughly elucidated. Three experiments evaluated the effect of reward magnitude on probabilistic choice in rats, seeking to determine reference point use by examining the effect of previous outcome magnitude(s on subsequent choice behavior. Rats were trained to choose between an outcome that always delivered reward (low-uncertainty choice and one that probabilistically delivered reward (high-uncertainty. The probability of high-uncertainty outcome receipt and the magnitudes of low-uncertainty and high-uncertainty outcomes were manipulated within and between experiments. Both the low- and high-uncertainty outcomes involved variable reward magnitudes, so that either a smaller or larger magnitude was probabilistically delivered, as well as reward omission following high-uncertainty choices. In Experiments 1 and 2, the between groups factor was the magnitude of the high-uncertainty-smaller (H-S and high-uncertainty-larger (H-L outcome, respectively. The H-S magnitude manipulation differentiated the groups, while the H-L magnitude manipulation did not. Experiment 3 showed that manipulating the probability of differential losses as well as the expected value of the low-uncertainty choice produced systematic effects on choice behavior. The results suggest that the reference point for probabilistic gains and losses was the expected value of the low-uncertainty choice. Current theories of probabilistic choice behavior have difficulty accounting for the present results, so an integrated theoretical framework is proposed. Overall, the present results have implications for understanding individual differences and corresponding underlying mechanisms of probabilistic choice behavior.

Reference values for physical performance measures in the aging working population.

Science.gov (United States)

Cote, Mark P; Kenny, Anne; Dussetschleger, Jeffrey; Farr, Dana; Chaurasia, Ashok; Cherniack, Martin

2014-02-01

The aim of this study was to determine reference physical performance values in older aging workers. Cross-sectional physical performance measures were collected for 736 manufacturing workers to assess effects of work and nonwork factors on age-related changes in musculoskeletal function and health. Participants underwent surveys and physical testing that included bioelectrical impedance analysis, range-of-motion measures, exercise testing, and dynamic assessment. Physical characteristics, such as blood pressure and body fat percentage, were comparable to published values. Dynamic and range-of-motion measurements differed from published normative results. Women had age-related decreases in cervical extension and lateral rotation. Older men had better spinal flexion than expected. Predicted age-related decline in lower-extremity strength and shoulder strength in women was not seen. Men declined in handgrip, lower-extremity strength, and knee extension strength, but not trunk strength, across age groups. There was no appreciable decline in muscle fatigue at the trunk, shoulder, and knee with aging for either gender, except for the youngest age group of women. Normative values may underestimate physical performance in "healthy" older workers, thereby underappreciating declines in less healthy older workers. Work may be preservative of function for a large group of selected individuals. A "healthy worker effect" may be greater for musculoskeletal disease and function than for heart disease and mortality. Clinicians and researchers studying musculoskeletal function in older workers can use a more specific set of reference values.

Exploring students' understanding of reference frames and time in Galilean and special relativity

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

De Hosson, C; Kermen, I; Parizot, E

2010-01-01

This paper aims at exploring prospective physics teachers' reasoning associated with the concepts of reference frame, time and event which form the framework of the classical kinematics and that of the relativistic kinematics. About 100 prospective physics teachers were surveyed by means of a questionnaire involving classical kinematics situations and relativistic ones. The analysis of the answers shows a deep lack of understanding of both concepts of reference frame and event. Some students think that events may be simultaneous for an observer and not simultaneous for another one, even when both observers are located in the same reference frame. Most of the students surveyed cannot give an answer only depending on the location of the observer when his/her velocity is mentioned as if the movement contaminated the event. This lack of understanding is embodied in reasoning implemented by the population surveyed to address classical kinematics questions and seems to form a major obstacle to grasping relativistic kinematics.

32 CFR 507.2 - References.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... QUALITY CONTROL PROGRAM Introduction § 507.2 References. Related publications are listed in paragraphs (a..., Tabards and Automobile Plates. (f) AFR 900-3, Department of the Air Force Seal, Organizational Emblems...

Radiogas chromatography mass spectrometry in the selected ion monitoring mode

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Doerfler, D.L.; Rosenblum, E.R.; Malloy, J.M.; Naworal, J.D.; McManus, I.R.; Campbell, I.M.

1980-01-01

The value of selected ion monitoring in analyzing biological radio isotope incorporation experiments by radiogas chromatography mass spectrometry is illustrated with reference to the biosynthesis of the mycotoxin mycophenolic acid in Penicillium brevicompactum and the mode of action of the anticholesterolemic drug 20,25-diazacholesterol. Both examples used 1-[ 14 C]acetate precursors. It is shown that the increased sensitivity and specificity of the selected ion monitoring mode detector permits straightforward detection and identification of the relatively small cellular pools associated with metabolic intermediates. The computer program RADSIM is described. Problems that still exist in using radiogas gas chromatography mass spectrometry technology to analyse isotope incorporation experiments are discussed. (author)

Reference materials for micro-analytical nuclear techniques

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Valkovic, V.; Zeisler, R.; Bernasconi, G.; Danesi, P.R.

1994-01-01

Direct application of many existing reference materials in micro-analytical procedures such as energy dispersive x-ray fluorescence (EDXRF), particle induced x-ray emission spectroscopy (PIXE) and ion probe techniques for the determination of trace elements is often impossible or difficult because: 1) other constituents present in large amounts interfere with the determination; 2) trace components are not sufficiently homogeneously distributed in the sample. Therefore specific natural-matrix reference materials containing very low levels of trace elements and having high degree of homogeneity are required for many micro-analytical procedures. In this report, selection of the types of environmental and biological materials which are suitable for micro-analytical techniques will be discussed. (author)

Selective vulnerability related to aging in large-scale resting brain networks.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Hong-Ying; Chen, Wen-Xin; Jiao, Yun; Xu, Yao; Zhang, Xiang-Rong; Wu, Jing-Tao

2014-01-01

Normal aging is associated with cognitive decline. Evidence indicates that large-scale brain networks are affected by aging; however, it has not been established whether aging has equivalent effects on specific large-scale networks. In the present study, 40 healthy subjects including 22 older (aged 60-80 years) and 18 younger (aged 22-33 years) adults underwent resting-state functional MRI scanning. Four canonical resting-state networks, including the default mode network (DMN), executive control network (ECN), dorsal attention network (DAN) and salience network, were extracted, and the functional connectivities in these canonical networks were compared between the younger and older groups. We found distinct, disruptive alterations present in the large-scale aging-related resting brain networks: the ECN was affected the most, followed by the DAN. However, the DMN and salience networks showed limited functional connectivity disruption. The visual network served as a control and was similarly preserved in both groups. Our findings suggest that the aged brain is characterized by selective vulnerability in large-scale brain networks. These results could help improve our understanding of the mechanism of degeneration in the aging brain. Additional work is warranted to determine whether selective alterations in the intrinsic networks are related to impairments in behavioral performance.

Detailed mechanical design and manufacturing study for the ITER reference breeding blanket

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zacchia, F.; Daenner, W.; Stefanis, L. de; Ferrari, M.; Gerber, A.; Mustoe, J.

1998-01-01

This papers relates on the detailed mechanical design, manufacturing feasibility and assembly analysis of a water-cooled solid breeding blanket concept, selected as the ITER reference design. This breeding blanket design is characterised by: i) pressurised water flowing inside flat steel panels for cooling of the internals; each panel is welded along its contour onto the first wall structure and to the rear shield plate after closure of the module (last assembly step). ii) Beryllium (neutronic multiplier) in the form of micro-spheres filling the volume between parallel flat coolant panels. iii) Breeder pebbles enclosed in rods, which form bundles and are themselves embedded inside the Beryllium micro-spheres. (authors)

Implementing learnerships: learner recruitment and selection B ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Implementing learnerships: learner recruitment and selection B lessons learnt from the KwaZulu-Natal pilot projects. ... 2001 in KwaZulu-Natal, with specific reference to the recruitment and selection of learners. ... AJOL African Journals Online.

Cross-Sensory Transfer of Reference Frames in Spatial Memory

Science.gov (United States)

Kelly, Jonathan W.; Avraamides, Marios N.

2011-01-01

Two experiments investigated whether visual cues influence spatial reference frame selection for locations learned through touch. Participants experienced visual cues emphasizing specific environmental axes and later learned objects through touch. Visual cues were manipulated and haptic learning conditions were held constant. Imagined perspective…

Effect of selection for relative growth rate and bodyweight of mice on rate, composition and efficiency of growth

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Bakker, H.

1974-01-01

To evaluate the effect of selection for parameters of a growth curve, four selection lines and a control line were started from one base population. In the selection lines is selected for a large and a small relative growth rate between 21 and 29 days (RGH and RGL) and for a large and

Local sensitivity of per-recruit fishing mortality reference points.

Science.gov (United States)

Cadigan, N G; Wang, S

2016-12-01

We study the sensitivity of fishery management per-recruit harvest rates which may be part of a quantitative harvest strategy designed to achieve some objective for catch or population size. We use a local influence sensitivity analysis to derive equations that describe how these reference harvest rates are affected by perturbations to productivity processes. These equations give a basic theoretical understanding of sensitivity that can be used to predict what the likely impacts of future changes in productivity will be. Our results indicate that per-recruit reference harvest rates are more sensitive to perturbations when the equilibrium catch or population size per recruit, as functions of the harvest rate, have less curvature near the reference point. Overall our results suggest that per recruit reference points will, with some exceptions, usually increase if (1) growth rates increase, (2) natural mortality rates increase, or (3) fishery selectivity increases to an older age.

The Basic Principles in Assessment and Selection of Reference Doses: Considerations in Nuclear Medicine (invited paper)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mattsson, S.; Jacobsson, L.; Vestergren, E.

1998-01-01

The possible ways to optimise the relation between diagnostic information and patient absorbed dose differ between nuclear medicine and X ray imaging. In nuclear medicine, very little has been done to find an optimal dosage of radiopharmaceuticals. Current nuclear medicine methods are discussed in the light of the recent ICRP Publications and the new EU Patient Directive. The paper also discusses how reference levels for administered activity may be derived from patient studies. In order to eliminate the most inappropriate choices (too low or too high activities), knowledge of the current statistical distribution of administered activities may be helpful. Different methods to estimate the amount of activity that should be administered to children of various body sizes to guarantee the same image quality as for adults are also discussed. Examples of current activity levels for common nuclear medicine procedures, indicating the state of the practice, are given. (author)

Variable selection methods in PLS regression - a comparison study on metabolomics data

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Karaman, İbrahim; Hedemann, Mette Skou; Knudsen, Knud Erik Bach

. The aim of the metabolomics study was to investigate the metabolic profile in pigs fed various cereal fractions with special attention to the metabolism of lignans using LC-MS based metabolomic approach. References 1. Lê Cao KA, Rossouw D, Robert-Granié C, Besse P: A Sparse PLS for Variable Selection when...... integrated approach. Due to the high number of variables in data sets (both raw data and after peak picking) the selection of important variables in an explorative analysis is difficult, especially when different data sets of metabolomics data need to be related. Variable selection (or removal of irrelevant...... different strategies for variable selection on PLSR method were considered and compared with respect to selected subset of variables and the possibility for biological validation. Sparse PLSR [1] as well as PLSR with Jack-knifing [2] was applied to data in order to achieve variable selection prior...

Computed tomography of the brain in cases with venous vasculitis compared with an age-matched reference group

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hannerz, J.; Ericson, K.; Bergstrand, G.; Berggren, B.M.; Edman, G.; Karolinska Sjukhuset, Stockholm; Karolinska Sjukhuset, Stockholm

1988-01-01

Patients with a particular, steroid-sensitive headache and often characteristic pathology at orbital phlebography, have been suggested to suffer from venous vasculitis. Fifty such patients were examined with computed tomography (CT) of the brain. The findings were compared with those of an age-matched reference group selected at random to represent normal subjects. The CT examinations were analyzed with respect to size of lateral ventricles and signs of atrophy. In both groups, there was a significant increase of atrophy with age. There was also a significantly higher degree of atrophy in the patient group as compared with the reference group. The findings indicate that the supposedly underlying venous vasculitis is related to early aging and atrophy of the brain. (orig.)

Book Selection, Collection Development, and Bounded Rationality.

Science.gov (United States)

Schwartz, Charles A.

1989-01-01

Reviews previously proposed schemes of classical rationality in book selection, describes new approaches to rational choice behavior, and presents a model of book selection based on bounded rationality in a garbage can decision process. The role of tacit knowledge and symbolic content in the selection process are also discussed. (102 references)…

Do physical and relational aggression explain adolescents' friendship selection? The competing roles of network characteristics, gender, and social status.

Science.gov (United States)

Dijkstra, Jan Kornelis; Berger, Christian; Lindenberg, Siegwart

2011-01-01

The role of physical and relational aggression in adolescents' friendship selection was examined in a longitudinal sample of 274 Chilean students from 5th and 6th grade followed over 1 year. Longitudinal social network modeling (SIENA) was used to study selection processes for aggression while influence processes were controlled for. Furthermore, the effects of network characteristics (i.e., reciprocity and transitivity), gender, and social status on friendship selection were examined. The starting assumption of this study was that selection effects based on aggression might have been overestimated in previous research as a result of failing to consider influence processes and alternative characteristics that steer friendship formation. The results show that selection effects of both physical and relational aggression disappeared when network effects, gender, and social status were taken into account. Particularly gender and perceived popularity appeared to be far more important determinants of friendship selection over time than aggression. Moreover, a peer influence effect was only found for relational aggression, and not for physical aggression. These findings suggest that similarity in aggression among befriended adolescents can be considered to be mainly a by-product rather than a leading dimension in friendship selection. © 2011 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

The Mosaic Ancestry of the Drosophila Genetic Reference Panel and the D. melanogaster Reference Genome Reveals a Network of Epistatic Fitness Interactions

Science.gov (United States)

Pool, John E.

2015-01-01

North American populations of Drosophila melanogaster derive from both European and African source populations, but despite their importance for genetic research, patterns of ancestry along their genomes are largely undocumented. Here, I infer geographic ancestry along genomes of the Drosophila Genetic Reference Panel (DGRP) and the D. melanogaster reference genome, which may have implications for reference alignment, association mapping, and population genomic studies in Drosophila. Overall, the proportion of African ancestry was estimated to be 20% for the DGRP and 9% for the reference genome. Combining my estimate of admixture timing with historical records, I provide the first estimate of natural generation time for this species (approximately 15 generations per year). Ancestry levels were found to vary strikingly across the genome, with less African introgression on the X chromosome, in regions of high recombination, and at genes involved in specific processes (e.g., circadian rhythm). An important role for natural selection during the admixture process was further supported by evidence that many unlinked pairs of loci showed a deficiency of Africa–Europe allele combinations between them. Numerous epistatic fitness interactions may therefore exist between African and European genotypes, leading to ongoing selection against incompatible variants. By focusing on hubs in this network of fitness interactions, I identified a set of interacting loci that include genes with roles in sensation and neuropeptide/hormone reception. These findings suggest that admixed D. melanogaster samples could become an important study system for the genetics of early-stage isolation between populations. PMID:26354524

The influence of caffeine on spatial-selective attention: an event-related potential study.

Science.gov (United States)

Ruijter, J; de Ruiter, M B; Snel, J; Lorist, M M

2000-12-01

Following the indications of previous studies that caffeine might have a specific effect on the processing of spatial information compared with other types of information, the present study investigated the influence of caffeine on an often used spatial-selective attention task. Event-related potentials (ERPs) were recorded from 11 participants under conditions of caffeine (250 mg) and placebo. Spatial-selective attention effects were reflected in the ERPs as more positive going occipital P1 and broadly distributed P2 components, and more negative going occipital-temporal N1 and broadly distributed N2 components. A treatment effect was found as a more positive going frontal P2 component in the caffeine condition, whereas interactions between treatment and attention were observed for P2 and N2 components, but not for P1 and N1 components. This pattern of results suggests that caffeine has no specific influence on spatial-selective attention, but rather, has a more general facilitating effect on perceptual processing, as well as a possible effect on the frontal control mechanisms, i.e. focusing attention and increasing selectivity.

Evaluation of Appropriate Reference Genes for Reverse Transcription-Quantitative PCR Studies in Different Tissues of a Desert Poplar via Comparision of Different Algorithms

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hou-Ling Wang

2015-08-01

Full Text Available Despite the unshakable status of reverse transcription-quantitative PCR in gene expression analysis, it has certain disadvantages, including that the results are highly dependent on the reference genes selected for data normalization. Since inappropriate endogenous control genes will lead to inaccurate target gene expression profiles, the validation of suitable internal reference genes is essential. Given the increasing interest in functional genes and genomics of Populus euphratica, a desert poplar showing extraordinary adaptation to salt stress, we evaluated the expression stability of ten candidate reference genes in P. euphratica roots, stems, and leaves under salt stress conditions. We used five algorithms, namely, ΔCt, NormFinder, geNorm, GrayNorm, and a rank aggregation method (RankAggreg to identify suitable normalizers. To support the suitability of the identified reference genes and to compare the relative merits of these different algorithms, we analyzed and compared the relative expression levels of nine P. euphratica functional genes in different tissues. Our results indicate that a combination of multiple reference genes recommended by GrayNorm algorithm (e.g., a combination of Actin, EF1α, GAPDH, RP, UBQ in root should be used instead of a single reference gene. These results are valuable for research of gene identification in different P. euphratica tissues.

PSP: rapid identification of orthologous coding genes under positive selection across multiple closely related prokaryotic genomes.

Science.gov (United States)

Su, Fei; Ou, Hong-Yu; Tao, Fei; Tang, Hongzhi; Xu, Ping

2013-12-27

With genomic sequences of many closely related bacterial strains made available by deep sequencing, it is now possible to investigate trends in prokaryotic microevolution. Positive selection is a sub-process of microevolution, in which a particular mutation is favored, causing the allele frequency to continuously shift in one direction. Wide scanning of prokaryotic genomes has shown that positive selection at the molecular level is much more frequent than expected. Genes with significant positive selection may play key roles in bacterial adaption to different environmental pressures. However, selection pressure analyses are computationally intensive and awkward to configure. Here we describe an open access web server, which is designated as PSP (Positive Selection analysis for Prokaryotic genomes) for performing evolutionary analysis on orthologous coding genes, specially designed for rapid comparison of dozens of closely related prokaryotic genomes. Remarkably, PSP facilitates functional exploration at the multiple levels by assignments and enrichments of KO, GO or COG terms. To illustrate this user-friendly tool, we analyzed Escherichia coli and Bacillus cereus genomes and found that several genes, which play key roles in human infection and antibiotic resistance, show significant evidence of positive selection. PSP is freely available to all users without any login requirement at: http://db-mml.sjtu.edu.cn/PSP/. PSP ultimately allows researchers to do genome-scale analysis for evolutionary selection across multiple prokaryotic genomes rapidly and easily, and identify the genes undergoing positive selection, which may play key roles in the interactions of host-pathogen and/or environmental adaptation.

Estimation of reference intervals from small samples: an example using canine plasma creatinine.

Science.gov (United States)

Geffré, A; Braun, J P; Trumel, C; Concordet, D

2009-12-01

According to international recommendations, reference intervals should be determined from at least 120 reference individuals, which often are impossible to achieve in veterinary clinical pathology, especially for wild animals. When only a small number of reference subjects is available, the possible bias cannot be known and the normality of the distribution cannot be evaluated. A comparison of reference intervals estimated by different methods could be helpful. The purpose of this study was to compare reference limits determined from a large set of canine plasma creatinine reference values, and large subsets of this data, with estimates obtained from small samples selected randomly. Twenty sets each of 120 and 27 samples were randomly selected from a set of 1439 plasma creatinine results obtained from healthy dogs in another study. Reference intervals for the whole sample and for the large samples were determined by a nonparametric method. The estimated reference limits for the small samples were minimum and maximum, mean +/- 2 SD of native and Box-Cox-transformed values, 2.5th and 97.5th percentiles by a robust method on native and Box-Cox-transformed values, and estimates from diagrams of cumulative distribution functions. The whole sample had a heavily skewed distribution, which approached Gaussian after Box-Cox transformation. The reference limits estimated from small samples were highly variable. The closest estimates to the 1439-result reference interval for 27-result subsamples were obtained by both parametric and robust methods after Box-Cox transformation but were grossly erroneous in some cases. For small samples, it is recommended that all values be reported graphically in a dot plot or histogram and that estimates of the reference limits be compared using different methods.

Standard and reference materials for marine science. Third edition. Technical memo

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cantillo, A.Y.

1992-08-01

The third edition of the catalog of reference materials suited for use in marine science, originally compiled in 1986 for NOAA, IOC, and UNEP. The catalog lists close to 2,000 reference materials from sixteen producers and contains information about their proper use, sources, availability, and analyte concentrations. Indices are included for elements, isotopes, and organic compounds, as are cross references to CAS registry numbers, alternate names, and chemical structures of selected organic compounds. The catalog is being published independently by both NOAA and IOC/UNEP and is available from NOAA/NOS/ORCA in electronic form

Sickle Cell: A Selected Resource Bibliography.

Science.gov (United States)

National Center for Education in Maternal and Child Health, Washington, DC.

This annotated, selective bibliography lists the following types of educational and informational material on both sickle cell disease and trait: (1) professional education materials; (2) fact sheets, pamphlets, and brochures; and (3) audiovisual material. A selected list of references is provided for the following topic areas: (1) genetic…

Dietary reference values for thiamin

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Sjödin, Anders Mikael

2016-01-01

Following a request from the European Commission, the EFSA Panel on Dietetic Products, Nutrition and Allergies (NDA) derived dietary reference values (DRVs) for thiamin (vitamin B1). The Panel considers that data from depletion–repletion studies in adults on the amount of dietary thiamin intake...... were measured. Results from other depletion–repletion studies are in agreement with this value. The Panel agrees on the coefficient of variation of 20% used by the SCF to cover uncertainties related to distribution of thiamin requirements in the general population, and endorses the population reference...

Reference genes for real-time PCR quantification of messenger RNAs and microRNAs in mouse model of obesity.

Science.gov (United States)

Matoušková, Petra; Bártíková, Hana; Boušová, Iva; Hanušová, Veronika; Szotáková, Barbora; Skálová, Lenka

2014-01-01

Obesity and metabolic syndrome is increasing health problem worldwide. Among other ways, nutritional intervention using phytochemicals is important method for treatment and prevention of this disease. Recent studies have shown that certain phytochemicals could alter the expression of specific genes and microRNAs (miRNAs) that play a fundamental role in the pathogenesis of obesity. For study of the obesity and its treatment, monosodium glutamate (MSG)-injected mice with developed central obesity, insulin resistance and liver lipid accumulation are frequently used animal models. To understand the mechanism of phytochemicals action in obese animals, the study of selected genes expression together with miRNA quantification is extremely important. For this purpose, real-time quantitative PCR is a sensitive and reproducible method, but it depends on proper normalization entirely. The aim of present study was to identify the appropriate reference genes for mRNA and miRNA quantification in MSG mice treated with green tea catechins, potential anti-obesity phytochemicals. Two sets of reference genes were tested: first set contained seven commonly used genes for normalization of messenger RNA, the second set of candidate reference genes included ten small RNAs for normalization of miRNA. The expression stability of these reference genes were tested upon treatment of mice with catechins using geNorm, NormFinder and BestKeeper algorithms. Selected normalizers for mRNA quantification were tested and validated on expression of quinone oxidoreductase, biotransformation enzyme known to be modified by catechins. The effect of selected normalizers for miRNA quantification was tested on two obesity- and diabetes- related miRNAs, miR-221 and miR-29b, respectively. Finally, the combinations of B2M/18S/HPRT1 and miR-16/sno234 were validated as optimal reference genes for mRNA and miRNA quantification in liver and 18S/RPlP0/HPRT1 and sno234/miR-186 in small intestine of MSG mice. These

Selection, development and characterisation of plasma facing materials for ITER

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Barabash, V.; Akiba, M.; Ulrickson, M.; Vieider, G.

1996-01-01

The current status of the selection of the armour materials for first wall, limiters and divertor are presented. The candidate armour materials are beryllium, tungsten and carbon base materials (mainly carbon fiber composites). The selection of the references grades from these material classes is discussed and the candidate grades are described. The main reasons for the selection of the reference grades are also discussed. The urgent materials R and D needs for the development of the design are described briefly. (orig.)

Importance of hemodialysis-related outcomes: comparison of ratings by a self-help group, clinicians, and health technology assessment authors with those by a large reference group of patients

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Janssen IM

2016-12-01

Full Text Available Inger M Janssen,1 Fueloep Scheibler,2 Ansgar Gerhardus3,4 1Department of Epidemiology and International Public Health, University of Bielefeld, Bielefeld, 2Department of Non-Drug Interventions, Institute for Quality and Efficiency in Health Care, Cologne, 3Department for Health Services Research, Institute for Public Health and Nursing Research, University of Bremen, 4Health Sciences Bremen, University of Bremen, Bremen, Germany Background: The selection of important outcomes is a crucial decision for clinical research and health technology assessment (HTA, and there is ongoing debate about which stakeholders should be involved. Hemodialysis is a complex treatment for chronic kidney disease (CKD and affects many outcomes. Apart from obvious outcomes, such as mortality, morbidity and health-related quality of life (HRQoL, others such as, concerning daily living or health care provision, may also be important. The aim of our study was to analyze to what extent the preferences for patient-relevant outcomes differed between various stakeholders. We compared preferences of stakeholders normally or occasionally involved in outcome prioritization (patients from a self-help group, clinicians and HTA authors with those of a large reference group of patients. Participants and methods: The reference group consisted of 4,518 CKD patients investigated previously. We additionally recruited CKD patients via a regional self-help group, nephrologists via an online search and HTA authors via an expert database or personal contacts. All groups assessed the relative importance of the 23 outcomes by means of a discrete visual analog scale. We used descriptive statistics to rank outcomes and compare the results between groups. Results: We received completed questionnaires from 49 self-help group patients, 19 nephrologists and 18 HTA authors. Only the following 3 outcomes were ranked within the top 7 outcomes by all 4 groups: safety, HRQoL and emotional state. The

Selection of safety officers in an indian construction organization by using grey relational analysis

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sunku Venkata Siva Rajaprasad

2018-03-01

Full Text Available Stakeholders are responsible for implementing the occupational health and safety provisions in an organization. Irrespective of organization, the role of safety department is purely advisory as it coordinates with all the departments, and this is crucial to improve the performance. Selection of safety officer is vital job for any organization; it should not only be based on qualifications of the applicant, the incumbent should also have sufficient exposure in implementing proactive measures. The process of selection is complex and choosing the right safety professional is a vital decision. The safety performance of an organization relies on the systems being implemented by the safety officer. Application of multi criteria decision-making tools is helpful as a selection process. The present study proposes the grey relational analysis(GRA for selection of the safety officers in an Indian construction organization. This selection method considers fourteen criteria appropriate to the organization and has ranked the results. The data was also analyzed by using technique for order Preference by Similarity to an Ideal solution (TOPSIS and results of both the methods are strongly correlated

Decline in Reference Transactions with Few Questions Referred to Librarian when the Reference Desk is Staffed by a Paraprofessional. A Review of: Dinkins, D., & Ryan, S. M. (2010. Measuring referrals: The use of paraprofessionals at the reference desk. The Journal of Academic Librarianship, 36(4, 279-286.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Diana K. Wakimoto

2011-03-01

Full Text Available Objective — To determine the type and percentage of questions referred to a librarian by a paraprofessional (i.e., an individual without an MLIS staffing the reference desk, whether the percentage of referrals would decrease over time, and any consequences from having a paraprofessional rather than a librarian staffing the desk.Design — Quantitative analysis of reference desk transaction statistics.Setting — Reference desk at the main library of Stetson University, a private university in the United States of America with approximately 2,500 FTE (full-time equivalent students.Subjects — A total of 486 reference desk transactions recorded by a paraprofessional staffing the reference desk during the Fall and Spring semesters of the 2008-2009 academic year.Methods — The first year that he worked in the Library at Stetson University, a paraprofessional recorded all reference desk transactions during his shift from 10:00am to 12:00pm, four days a week, for the Fall and Spring semesters of the 2008-2009 academic year. This paraprofessional, with computer expertise, received "relatively minimal" (p. 281 training on "reference desk policies and procedures… the use of the catalogue and the subscription databases" (p. 281. For each transaction, the paraprofessional categorized the question as "direction, " "reference, " or "machine. " He was instructed to contact a librarian if he could not answer a reference question. The paraprofessional also completed a questionnaire regarding his level of comfort answering questions and his thoughts on the training at the end of his first year of staffing the reference desk.Main Results — In the Fall semester, 9.5% of all reference desk transactions were referred to a librarian. This decreased to 4.2% of the total transactions during the Spring semester. The percentage of reference questions referred to a librarian in the Fall semester was 21.9% and only 5.0% in the Spring semester. There was a 49

Citations and references as keys to relevance ranking in interactive IR

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Ingwersen, Peter

2012-01-01

According to the principle of Polyrepresentation (Ingwersen & Järvelin, 2005; Ingwersen, 2012) bibliographic references in scientific documents as well as citations to documents have the potential of serving as useful features for re-ranking of retrieved documents. References (and thus citations...... been demonstrated to improve retrieval performance (Skov et al. 2008), whereas the number of citations has not provided similar improvements. The presentation will discuss the following phenomena and characteristics of references and citations as means for relevance re-ranking: 1) Are academic...... references (and thus citations) associated with relevance? 2) What are their potentials for IR? 3) What are their limitations? The presentation will propose a range of potentials and provide an initial research design. Selected cases are exemplified from the Web of Science database....

Cervical cancer screening in women referred to healthcare centres in Tabriz, Iran.

Science.gov (United States)

Farshbaf-Khalili, Azizeh; Salehi-Pourmehr, Hanieh; Shahnazi, Mahnaz; Yaghoubi, Sina; Gahremani-Nasab, Parvaneh

2015-01-01

Cervical cancer is the second most common cancer among Iranian women and among the few cancers that could be easily diagnosed in the pre-malignant stage. We aimed to assess the status of cervical cancer screening in women referred to health care centres in Tabriz, northwest Iran. This descriptive-analytical study was done on 441 women referred to health care centres of Tabriz, northwest Iran. The centres were selected using the multi-stage cluster sampling method. The participants were selected from the active records of those centres. A questionnaire regarding the socio-demographic characteristics and cervical cancer screening and reasons for referring or not referring for screening was completed by the participants A P marriage or having sexual intercourse at a young age, history of obvious cervical infection, cautery, cryotherapy or repeated curettage), age and type of family planning] in screening was controlled. Suitable and continuous educational programmes especially for high risk women should be implemented through the health care services. Preparing educational brochures and pamphlets and providing adequate training on the necessity of early referral and marriage counseling could also be effective in improving woman's awareness and performance.

Leading product-related environmental performance indicators: a selection guide and database

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Issa, Isabela I.; Pigosso, Daniela Cristina Antelmi; McAloone, Tim C.

2015-01-01

Ecodesign is a proactive environmental management and improvement approach employed in the product development process, which aims to minimize the environmental impacts caused during a product's life cycle and thus improve its environmental performance. The establishment of measurable environmental...... in the selection and application of environmental performance indicators - a more structured approach is still lacking. This paper presents the efforts made to identify and systematize existing leading product-related environmental performance indicators, based on a systematic literature review, and to develop...

[International reference prices and cost minimization analysis for the regulation of medicine prices in Colombia].

Science.gov (United States)

Vacca, Caludia; Acosta, Angela; Rodriguez, Ivan

2011-01-01

To suggest a scheme of decision making on pricing for medicines that are part of Free Regulated Regime, a regulation way of the pharmaceutical pricing policy in Colombia. It includes two regulation tools: international reference prices and a cost minimization analysis methodology. Following the current pricing policy, international reference prices were built with data from five countries for selected medicines, which are under Free Regulated Regime. The cost minimization analysis methodology includes selection of those medicines under Free Regulated Regime with possible comparable medicines, selection of comparable medicines, and treatment costs evaluation. As a result of the estimate of International Reference Prices, four medicines showed in the domestic pharmaceutical market a bigger price than the Reference Price. A scheme of decision-making was design containing two possible regulation tools for medicines that are part of Free Regulated Regime: estimate of international reference prices and cost minimization analysis methodology. This diagram would be useful to assist the pricing regulation of Free Regulated Regime in Colombia. As present results shows, international reference prices make clear when domestic prices are higher than those of reference countries. In the current regulation of pharmaceutical prices in Colombia, the international reference price has been applied for four medicines. Would be suitable to extend this methodology to other medicines of high impact on the pharmaceutical expenditure, in particular those covered by public funding. The availability of primary sources about treatment costs in Colombia needs to be improved as a requirement to develop pharmaco-economic evidence. SISMED is an official database that represents an important primary source of medicines prices in Colombia. Nevertheless, having into account that SISMED represents an important advantage of transparency in medicines prices, it needs to be improved in quality and data

Seleção de um modelo de referência de PDP para uma empresa de autopeças através de um método de auxílio à decisão por múltiplos critérios Selection of a PDP reference model to an auto parts company by means of multi-criteria techniques

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jefferson Olegário de Paula

2012-01-01

Full Text Available O processo de desenvolvimento de produtos (PDP é um fator crítico de sucesso no lançamento de um novo produto para atender os requisitos dos clientes. A adoção de um modelo de referência serve como um guia detalhado para auxiliar as organizações na gestão e sistematização do PDP, através da sequência padronizada de etapas que são adaptadas de acordo com o tipo de produto que a empresa desenvolve. O objetivo deste artigo é selecionar um modelo de referência do processo de desenvolvimento de produtos para uma empresa do ramo de autopeças através de um método de auxílio à decisão por multicritério denominado Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP. O método de pesquisa utilizado foi a modelagem, que diante de seis alternativas, três critérios e julgamento de cinco especialistas resultou na seleção do modelo de Rozenfeld et al. (2006 como o modelo mais indicado para realizar a análise do PDP da empresa objeto de estudo em pesquisas futuras.The Product Development Process (PDP is a critical success factor in launching a new product to meet customer requirements. The adoption of a reference model serves as a comprehensive guide to assist organizations in managing and systematization of the PDP, through standardized sequence of steps that are adapted to the type of product that the company develops. The aim of this paper is to select a reference model of the product development process for the auto part sector by establishing an aid to multi-criteria decision known as Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP. The research method used was modeling, which before six alternatives, three criteria and trial of five experts resulted in the selection of Rozenfeld et al. (2006 reference model as the most suitable model to analyze the company's PDP selected as object of study in future research.

Research on filter’s parameter selection based on PROMETHEE method

Science.gov (United States)

Zhu, Hui-min; Wang, Hang-yu; Sun, Shi-yan

2018-03-01

The selection of filter’s parameters in target recognition was studied in this paper. The PROMETHEE method was applied to the optimization problem of Gabor filter parameters decision, the correspondence model of the elemental relation between two methods was established. The author took the identification of military target as an example, problem about the filter’s parameter decision was simulated and calculated by PROMETHEE. The result showed that using PROMETHEE method for the selection of filter’s parameters was more scientific. The human disturbance caused by the experts method and empirical method could be avoided by this way. The method can provide reference for the parameter configuration scheme decision of the filter.

Criteria for the Selection of Reference Groups in the Statistical Evaluation of Tumor Markers

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Holubec jr., L.; Topolčan, O.; Pikner, R.; Pecen, Ladislav; Holubec sen., L.

2002-01-01

Roč. 22, 1B (2002), s. 531 ISSN 0250-7005. [International Hamburg Symposium on Tumor Markers /11./. 27.01.2002-29.01.2002, Hamburg] Institutional research plan: AV0Z1030915 Keywords : reference groups * tumor markers Subject RIV: BA - General Mathematics

Personnel References: Balancing Professional Responsibilities against Potential Legal Action.

Science.gov (United States)

Hernandez, David E.; Bozeman, William C.

1989-01-01

Personnel references, comprising a major component in the employee screening and selection process, are viewed from three perspectives: types of information contributed, use of such information in decision-making, and legal implications of contributing the information. Advice is provided for reducing the probability of a successful suit. Includes…

An Appraisal of Digital Reference Services in Nigerian University ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

This study examined digital reference services in Nigeria university libraries. A descriptive research design of the ex-post facto was adopted in the study. The instrument used in collecting data for this study was the questionnaire. One hundred and twenty respondents were randomly selected from six Nigerian universities ...

Comparison of Oral Health-Related Quality Of Life among Adult Referred to Public and Private Dental Clinics of Mashhad, Iran

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Zahra Mohammadzadeh

2017-09-01

Full Text Available Introduction: Nowadays, appraisal of patients' perception of health has largely replaced the clinical evaluations. This study aimed to compare oral health-related quality of life in patients referring to public and private clinics in Mashhad, Iran. Materials and Methods: In this cross-sectional study, we enrolled 383 patients referred to five private and two public dental clinics in Mashhad, Iran. The study variables including age, gender, level of education, functional dentition status, decayed, missing, and filled teeth, and the reason for referral were recorded. Oral Impact on Daily Performance (OIDP score was calculated for each patient. To analyze the data, independent samples t-test, Man-Whitney U test, and Chi-squared test were run. Results: The reason for visiting the public and private clinics was significantly different (P

Height, weight and BMI percentiles and nutritional status relative to the international growth references among Pakistani school-aged children

OpenAIRE

Mushtaq, Muhammad Umair; Gull, Sibgha; Mushtaq, Komal; Abdullah, Hussain Muhammad; Khurshid, Usman; Shahid, Ubeera; Shad, Mushtaq Ahmad; Akram, Javed

2012-01-01

Abstract Background Child growth is internationally recognized as an important indicator of nutritional status and health in populations. This study was aimed to compare age- and gender-specific height, weight and BMI percentiles and nutritional status relative to the international growth references among Pakistani school-aged children. Methods A population-based study was conducted with a multistage cluster sample of 1860 children aged five to twelve years in Lahore, Pakistan. Smoothed heigh...

An event-related brain potential study of visual selective attention to conjunctions of color and shape

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Smid, HGOM; Jakob, A; Heinze, HJ

What cognitive processes underlie event-related brain potential (ERP) effects related to visual multidimensional selective attention and how are these processes organized? We recorded ERPs when participants attended to one conjunction of color, global shape and local shape and ignored other

A systematic review of the angular values obtained by computerized photogrammetry in sagittal plane: a proposal for reference values.

Science.gov (United States)

Krawczky, Bruna; Pacheco, Antonio G; Mainenti, Míriam R M

2014-05-01

Reference values for postural alignment in the coronal plane, as measured by computerized photogrammetry, have been established but not for the sagittal plane. The objective of this study is to propose reference values for angular measurements used for postural analysis in the sagittal plane for healthy adults. Electronic databases (PubMed, BVS, Cochrane, Scielo, and Science Direct) were searched using the following key words: evaluation, posture, photogrammetry, and software. Articles published between 2006 and 2012 that used the PAS/SAPO (postural assessment software) were selected. Another inclusion criterion was the presentation of, at least, one of the following measurements: head horizontal alignment, pelvic horizontal alignment, hip angle, vertical alignment of the body, thoracic kyphosis, and lumbar lordosis. Angle samples of the selected articles were grouped 2 by 2 in relation to an overall average, which made possible total average, variance, and SD calculations. Six articles were included, and the following average angular values were found: 51.42° ± 4.87° (head horizontal alignment), -12.26° ± 5.81° (pelvic horizontal alignment), -6.40° ± 3.86° (hip angle), and 1.73° ± 0.94° (vertical alignment of the body). None of the articles contained the measurements for thoracic kyphosis and lumbar lordosis. The reference values can be adopted as reference for postural assessment in future researches if the same anatomical points are considered. Copyright © 2014 National University of Health Sciences. Published by Mosby, Inc. All rights reserved.

Genomics of Compositae crops: reference transcriptome assemblies and evidence of hybridization with wild relatives.

Science.gov (United States)

Hodgins, Kathryn A; Lai, Zhao; Oliveira, Luiz O; Still, David W; Scascitelli, Moira; Barker, Michael S; Kane, Nolan C; Dempewolf, Hannes; Kozik, Alex; Kesseli, Richard V; Burke, John M; Michelmore, Richard W; Rieseberg, Loren H

2014-01-01

Although the Compositae harbours only two major food crops, sunflower and lettuce, many other species in this family are utilized by humans and have experienced various levels of domestication. Here, we have used next-generation sequencing technology to develop 15 reference transcriptome assemblies for Compositae crops or their wild relatives. These data allow us to gain insight into the evolutionary and genomic consequences of plant domestication. Specifically, we performed Illumina sequencing of Cichorium endivia, Cichorium intybus, Echinacea angustifolia, Iva annua, Helianthus tuberosus, Dahlia hybrida, Leontodon taraxacoides and Glebionis segetum, as well 454 sequencing of Guizotia scabra, Stevia rebaudiana, Parthenium argentatum and Smallanthus sonchifolius. Illumina reads were assembled using Trinity, and 454 reads were assembled using MIRA and CAP3. We evaluated the coverage of the transcriptomes using BLASTX analysis of a set of ultra-conserved orthologs (UCOs) and recovered most of these genes (88-98%). We found a correlation between contig length and read length for the 454 assemblies, and greater contig lengths for the 454 compared with the Illumina assemblies. This suggests that longer reads can aid in the assembly of more complete transcripts. Finally, we compared the divergence of orthologs at synonymous sites (Ks) between Compositae crops and their wild relatives and found greater divergence when the progenitors were self-incompatible. We also found greater divergence between pairs of taxa that had some evidence of postzygotic isolation. For several more distantly related congeners, such as chicory and endive, we identified a signature of introgression in the distribution of Ks values. © 2013 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Selecting and evoking innovators

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kanstrup, Anne Marie; Christiansen, Ellen

2006-01-01

prepared for and conducted selection of and collaboration with innovators. The outcome was successful in the sense that the innovators produced excellent foundation for conceptual interaction design by creating mock-ups and explanations incarnating their preferences, attitudes and habits. By referring...

Basal View Reference Photographs for Nasolabial Appearance Rating in Unilateral Cleft Lip and Palate.

Science.gov (United States)

Rubin, Marcie S; Lowe, Kristen M; Clouston, Sean; Shetye, Pradip R; Warren, Stephen M; Grayson, Barry H

2015-07-01

The Asher-McDade system is a 5-point ordinal scale frequently used to rate the components of nasolabial appearance, including nasal form and nasal symmetry, in unilateral cleft lip and palate. Although reference photographs illustrating this scale have been identified for the frontal and right profile view, no reference photographs exist for the basal view. The aim of this study was to identify reference photographs for nasal form and nasal symmetry from the basal view to illustrate this scale and facilitate its use. Four raters assessed nasolabial appearance (form and symmetry) on basal view photographs of 50 children (average age 8 years) with a repaired cleft lip. Intraclass correlation coefficients show fair to moderate inter-rater reliability. Cronbach α indicated strong agreement between raters (0.77 nasal form; 0.78 nasal symmetry; 0.80 overall), along with low duplicate measurement error and strong internal consistency between the measures. The photographs with the highest agreement among raters were selected to illustrate each point on the 5-point scale for nasal form and for nasal symmetry, resulting in the selection of 10 reference photographs. The basal view reference photograph set developed from this study may complement existing reference photograph sets for other views and facilitate rating tasks.

Image Reference Database in Teleradiology: Migrating to WWW

Science.gov (United States)

Pasqui, Valdo

The paper presents a multimedia Image Reference Data Base (IRDB) used in Teleradiology. The application was developed at the University of Florence in the framework of the European Community TELEMED Project. TELEMED overall goals and IRDB requirements are outlined and the resulting architecture is described. IRDB is a multisite database containing radiological images, selected because their scientific interest, and their related information. The architecture consists of a set of IRDB Installations which are accessed from Viewing Stations (VS) located at different medical sites. The interaction between VS and IRDB Installations follows the client-server paradigm and uses an OSI level-7 protocol, named Telemed Communication Language. After reviewing Florence prototype implementation and experimentation, IRDB migration to World Wide Web (WWW) is discussed. A possible scenery to implement IRDB on the basis of WWW model is depicted in order to exploit WWW servers and browsers capabilities. Finally, the advantages of this conversion are outlined.

Relations between water physico-chemistry and benthic algal communities in a northern Canadian watershed: defining reference conditions using multiple descriptors of community structure.

Science.gov (United States)

Thomas, Kathryn E; Hall, Roland I; Scrimgeour, Garry J

2015-09-01

Defining reference conditions is central to identifying environmental effects of anthropogenic activities. Using a watershed approach, we quantified reference conditions for benthic algal communities and their relations to physico-chemical conditions in rivers in the South Nahanni River watershed, NWT, Canada, in 2008 and 2009. We also compared the ability of three descriptors that vary in terms of analytical costs to define algal community structure based on relative abundances of (i) all algal taxa, (ii) only diatom taxa, and (iii) photosynthetic pigments. Ordination analyses showed that variance in algal community structure was strongly related to gradients in environmental variables describing water physico-chemistry, stream habitats, and sub-watershed structure. Water physico-chemistry and local watershed-scale descriptors differed significantly between algal communities from sites in the Selwyn Mountain ecoregion compared to sites in the Nahanni-Hyland ecoregions. Distinct differences in algal community types between ecoregions were apparent irrespective of whether algal community structure was defined using all algal taxa, diatom taxa, or photosynthetic pigments. Two algal community types were highly predictable using environmental variables, a core consideration in the development of Reference Condition Approach (RCA) models. These results suggest that assessments of environmental impacts could be completed using RCA models for each ecoregion. We suggest that use of algal pigments, a high through-put analysis, is a promising alternative compared to more labor-intensive and costly taxonomic approaches for defining algal community structure.

Improving transcriptome de novo assembly by using a reference genome of a related species: Translational genomics from oil palm to coconut.

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Alix Armero

Full Text Available The palms are a family of tropical origin and one of the main constituents of the ecosystems of these regions around the world. The two main species of palm represent different challenges: coconut (Cocos nucifera L. is a source of multiple goods and services in tropical communities, while oil palm (Elaeis guineensis Jacq is the main protagonist of the oil market. In this study, we present a workflow that exploits the comparative genomics between a target species (coconut and a reference species (oil palm to improve the transcriptomic data, providing a proteome useful to answer functional or evolutionary questions. This workflow reduces redundancy and fragmentation, two inherent problems of transcriptomic data, while preserving the functional representation of the target species. Our approach was validated in Arabidopsis thaliana using Arabidopsis lyrata and Capsella rubella as references species. This analysis showed the high sensitivity and specificity of our strategy, relatively independent of the reference proteome. The workflow increased the length of proteins products in A. thaliana by 13%, allowing, often, to recover 100% of the protein sequence length. In addition redundancy was reduced by a factor greater than 3. In coconut, the approach generated 29,366 proteins, 1,246 of these proteins deriving from new contigs obtained with the BRANCH software. The coconut proteome presented a functional profile similar to that observed in rice and an important number of metabolic pathways related to secondary metabolism. The new sequences found with BRANCH software were enriched in functions related to biotic stress. Our strategy can be used as a complementary step to de novo transcriptome assembly to get a representative proteome of a target species. The results of the current analysis are available on the website PalmComparomics (http://palm-comparomics.southgreen.fr/.

Improving transcriptome de novo assembly by using a reference genome of a related species: Translational genomics from oil palm to coconut.

Science.gov (United States)

Armero, Alix; Baudouin, Luc; Bocs, Stéphanie; This, Dominique

2017-01-01

The palms are a family of tropical origin and one of the main constituents of the ecosystems of these regions around the world. The two main species of palm represent different challenges: coconut (Cocos nucifera L.) is a source of multiple goods and services in tropical communities, while oil palm (Elaeis guineensis Jacq) is the main protagonist of the oil market. In this study, we present a workflow that exploits the comparative genomics between a target species (coconut) and a reference species (oil palm) to improve the transcriptomic data, providing a proteome useful to answer functional or evolutionary questions. This workflow reduces redundancy and fragmentation, two inherent problems of transcriptomic data, while preserving the functional representation of the target species. Our approach was validated in Arabidopsis thaliana using Arabidopsis lyrata and Capsella rubella as references species. This analysis showed the high sensitivity and specificity of our strategy, relatively independent of the reference proteome. The workflow increased the length of proteins products in A. thaliana by 13%, allowing, often, to recover 100% of the protein sequence length. In addition redundancy was reduced by a factor greater than 3. In coconut, the approach generated 29,366 proteins, 1,246 of these proteins deriving from new contigs obtained with the BRANCH software. The coconut proteome presented a functional profile similar to that observed in rice and an important number of metabolic pathways related to secondary metabolism. The new sequences found with BRANCH software were enriched in functions related to biotic stress. Our strategy can be used as a complementary step to de novo transcriptome assembly to get a representative proteome of a target species. The results of the current analysis are available on the website PalmComparomics (http://palm-comparomics.southgreen.fr/).

Activities, self-referent memory beliefs, and cognitive performance: evidence for direct and mediated relations.

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Jopp, Daniela; Hertzog, Christopher

2007-12-01

In this study, the authors investigated the role of activities and self-referent memory beliefs for cognitive performance in a life-span sample. A factor analysis identified 8 activity factors, including Developmental Activities, Experiential Activities, Social Activities, Physical Activities, Technology Use, Watching Television, Games, and Crafts. A second-order general activity factor was significantly related to a general factor of cognitive function as defined by ability tests. Structural regression models suggested that prediction of cognition by activity level was partially mediated by memory beliefs, controlling for age, education, health, and depressive affect. Models adding paths from general and specific activities to aspects of crystallized intelligence suggested additional unique predictive effects for some activities. In alternative models, nonsignificant effects of beliefs on activities were detected when cognition predicted both variables, consistent with the hypothesis that beliefs derive from monitoring cognition and have no influence on activity patterns. PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2008 APA, all rights reserved.

A system for protecting the environment from ionising radiation: selecting reference fauna and flora, and the possible dose models and environmental geometries that could be applied to them.

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Pentreath, R J; Woodhead, D S

2001-09-28

In order to demonstrate, explicitly, that the environment can be protected with respect to controlled sources of ionising radiation, it is essential to have a systematic framework within which dosimetry models for fauna and flora can be used. And because of the practical limitations on what could reasonably be modelled and the amount of information that could reasonably be obtained, it is also necessary to limit the application of such models to a 'set' of fauna and flora within a reference' context. This paper, therefore, outlines the factors that will need to be considered to select such 'reference' fauna and flora, and describes some of the factors and constraints necessary to develop the associated dosimetry models. It also describes some of the most basic environmental geometrics within which the dose models could be set in order to make comparisons amongst different radiation sources.

A system for protecting the environment from ionising radiation. Selecting reference fauna and flora, and the possible dose models and environmental geometries that could be applied to them

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pentreath, R.J.; Woodhead, D.S.

2001-01-01

In order to demonstrate, explicitly, that the environment can be protected with respect to controlled sources of ionising radiation, it is essential to have a systematic framework within which dosimetry models for fauna and flora can be used. And because of the practical limitations on what could reasonably be modelled and the amount of information that could reasonably be obtained, it is also necessary to limit the application of such models to a 'set' of fauna and flora within a 'reference' context. This paper, therefore, outlines the factors that will need to be considered to select such 'reference' fauna and flora, and describes some of the factors and constraints necessary to develop the associated dosimetry models. It also describes some of the most basic environmental geometries within which the dose models could be set in order to make comparisons amongst different radiation sources

Specifics of Educational Texts Selection for Schoolchildren Doing the Humanities Subjects

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

T. V. Oblasova

2012-01-01

Full Text Available The paper proposes the new approach to educational text selection for the humanities teaching. Its specifics is based on the wide interpretation of educational texts, as the culture texts involved in cognitive learning activity and fulfilling the multiple tasks of the related subjects and personal development. The educational text is taken as a generalized model, its content and structure determining the scheme of a speech cognitive activity, as well as the meaning formation mechanism responsible for understanding and personal development. The texts and tasks selection is oriented on schoolchildren’s understanding with the reference to the psycholinguistic, psychological and hermeneutic approaches; information extraction and interpretation level related to the author’s and student’s context. The given approach could provide the basis for developing and structuring the textbooks content for the humanities subjects. 

The Mosaic Ancestry of the Drosophila Genetic Reference Panel and the D. melanogaster Reference Genome Reveals a Network of Epistatic Fitness Interactions.

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Pool, John E

2015-12-01

North American populations of Drosophila melanogaster derive from both European and African source populations, but despite their importance for genetic research, patterns of ancestry along their genomes are largely undocumented. Here, I infer geographic ancestry along genomes of the Drosophila Genetic Reference Panel (DGRP) and the D. melanogaster reference genome, which may have implications for reference alignment, association mapping, and population genomic studies in Drosophila. Overall, the proportion of African ancestry was estimated to be 20% for the DGRP and 9% for the reference genome. Combining my estimate of admixture timing with historical records, I provide the first estimate of natural generation time for this species (approximately 15 generations per year). Ancestry levels were found to vary strikingly across the genome, with less African introgression on the X chromosome, in regions of high recombination, and at genes involved in specific processes (e.g., circadian rhythm). An important role for natural selection during the admixture process was further supported by evidence that many unlinked pairs of loci showed a deficiency of Africa-Europe allele combinations between them. Numerous epistatic fitness interactions may therefore exist between African and European genotypes, leading to ongoing selection against incompatible variants. By focusing on hubs in this network of fitness interactions, I identified a set of interacting loci that include genes with roles in sensation and neuropeptide/hormone reception. These findings suggest that admixed D. melanogaster samples could become an important study system for the genetics of early-stage isolation between populations. © The Author 2015. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Society for Molecular Biology and Evolution.

Special relativity and the Michelson-Morley experiment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chapman, B.R.

1979-01-01

It is stated that contrary to most textbook statements about the origins of relativity, there is no real evidence to support the existence of a causal relationship between Michelson's 'crucial' experiment on ether drift and Einstein's enunciation of special relativity. Selective but, it is believed by the author, representative evidence elating to the genesis of the theory of special relativity is presented. Since this evidence contradicts both the substance and the spirit of most textbook references to that genesis, it is thought by the author to have some pedagogic significance for those attempting to teach both the process and the content of physics. (U.K.)

Accurate determination of brain metabolite concentrations using ERETIC as external reference.

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Zoelch, Niklaus; Hock, Andreas; Heinzer-Schweizer, Susanne; Avdievitch, Nikolai; Henning, Anke

2017-08-01

Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy (MRS) can provide in vivo metabolite concentrations in standard concentration units if a reliable reference signal is available. For 1 H MRS in the human brain, typically the signal from the tissue water is used as the (internal) reference signal. However, a concentration determination based on the tissue water signal most often requires a reliable estimate of the water concentration present in the investigated tissue. Especially in clinically interesting cases, this estimation might be difficult. To avoid assumptions about the water in the investigated tissue, the Electric REference To access In vivo Concentrations (ERETIC) method has been proposed. In this approach, the metabolite signal is compared with a reference signal acquired in a phantom and potential coil-loading differences are corrected using a synthetic reference signal. The aim of this study, conducted with a transceiver quadrature head coil, was to increase the accuracy of the ERETIC method by correcting the influence of spatial B 1 inhomogeneities and to simplify the quantification with ERETIC by incorporating an automatic phase correction for the ERETIC signal. Transmit field ( B1+) differences are minimized with a volume-selective power optimization, whereas reception sensitivity changes are corrected using contrast-minimized images of the brain and by adapting the voxel location in the phantom measurement closely to the position measured in vivo. By applying the proposed B 1 correction scheme, the mean metabolite concentrations determined with ERETIC in 21 healthy subjects at three different positions agree with concentrations derived with the tissue water signal as reference. In addition, brain water concentrations determined with ERETIC were in agreement with estimations derived using tissue segmentation and literature values for relative water densities. Based on the results, the ERETIC method presented here is a valid tool to derive in vivo metabolite

A novel relational regularization feature selection method for joint regression and classification in AD diagnosis.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhu, Xiaofeng; Suk, Heung-Il; Wang, Li; Lee, Seong-Whan; Shen, Dinggang

2017-05-01

In this paper, we focus on joint regression and classification for Alzheimer's disease diagnosis and propose a new feature selection method by embedding the relational information inherent in the observations into a sparse multi-task learning framework. Specifically, the relational information includes three kinds of relationships (such as feature-feature relation, response-response relation, and sample-sample relation), for preserving three kinds of the similarity, such as for the features, the response variables, and the samples, respectively. To conduct feature selection, we first formulate the objective function by imposing these three relational characteristics along with an ℓ 2,1 -norm regularization term, and further propose a computationally efficient algorithm to optimize the proposed objective function. With the dimension-reduced data, we train two support vector regression models to predict the clinical scores of ADAS-Cog and MMSE, respectively, and also a support vector classification model to determine the clinical label. We conducted extensive experiments on the Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative (ADNI) dataset to validate the effectiveness of the proposed method. Our experimental results showed the efficacy of the proposed method in enhancing the performances of both clinical scores prediction and disease status identification, compared to the state-of-the-art methods. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Natural Selection on Genes Related to Cardiovascular Health in High-Altitude Adapted Andeans.

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Crawford, Jacob E; Amaru, Ricardo; Song, Jihyun; Julian, Colleen G; Racimo, Fernando; Cheng, Jade Yu; Guo, Xiuqing; Yao, Jie; Ambale-Venkatesh, Bharath; Lima, João A; Rotter, Jerome I; Stehlik, Josef; Moore, Lorna G; Prchal, Josef T; Nielsen, Rasmus

2017-11-02

The increase in red blood cell mass (polycythemia) due to the reduced oxygen availability (hypoxia) of residence at high altitude or other conditions is generally thought to be beneficial in terms of increasing tissue oxygen supply. However, the extreme polycythemia and accompanying increased mortality due to heart failure in chronic mountain sickness most likely reduces fitness. Tibetan highlanders have adapted to high altitude, possibly in part via the selection of genetic variants associated with reduced polycythemic response to hypoxia. In contrast, high-altitude-adapted Quechua- and Aymara-speaking inhabitants of the Andean Altiplano are not protected from high-altitude polycythemia in the same way, yet they exhibit other adaptive features for which the genetic underpinnings remain obscure. Here, we used whole-genome sequencing to scan high-altitude Andeans for signals of selection. The genes showing the strongest evidence of selection-including BRINP3, NOS2, and TBX5-are associated with cardiovascular development and function but are not in the response-to-hypoxia pathway. Using association mapping, we demonstrated that the haplotypes under selection are associated with phenotypic variations related to cardiovascular health. We hypothesize that selection in response to hypoxia in Andeans could have vascular effects and could serve to mitigate the deleterious effects of polycythemia rather than reduce polycythemia itself. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier Inc.

Music training relates to the development of neural mechanisms of selective auditory attention.

Science.gov (United States)

Strait, Dana L; Slater, Jessica; O'Connell, Samantha; Kraus, Nina

2015-04-01

Selective attention decreases trial-to-trial variability in cortical auditory-evoked activity. This effect increases over the course of maturation, potentially reflecting the gradual development of selective attention and inhibitory control. Work in adults indicates that music training may alter the development of this neural response characteristic, especially over brain regions associated with executive control: in adult musicians, attention decreases variability in auditory-evoked responses recorded over prefrontal cortex to a greater extent than in nonmusicians. We aimed to determine whether this musician-associated effect emerges during childhood, when selective attention and inhibitory control are under development. We compared cortical auditory-evoked variability to attended and ignored speech streams in musicians and nonmusicians across three age groups: preschoolers, school-aged children and young adults. Results reveal that childhood music training is associated with reduced auditory-evoked response variability recorded over prefrontal cortex during selective auditory attention in school-aged child and adult musicians. Preschoolers, on the other hand, demonstrate no impact of selective attention on cortical response variability and no musician distinctions. This finding is consistent with the gradual emergence of attention during this period and may suggest no pre-existing differences in this attention-related cortical metric between children who undergo music training and those who do not. Copyright © 2015 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

Basic anatomical and physiological data for use in radiological protection: reference values ICRP Publication 89

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Valentin, J.

2002-01-01

This report presents detailed information on age- and gender-related differences in the anatomical and physiological characteristics of reference individuals. These reference values provide needed input to prospective dosimetry calculations for radiation protection purposes for both workers and members of the general public. The purpose of this report is to consolidate and unify in one publication, important new information on reference anatomical and physiological values that has become available since Publication 23 was published by the ICRP in 1975. There are two aspects of this work. The first is to revise and extend the information in Publication 23 as appropriate. The second is to provide additional information on individual variation among grossly normal individuals resulting from differences in age, gender, race, or other factors. This publication collects, unifies, and expands the updated ICRP reference values for the purpose of providing a comprehensive and consistent set of age- and gender-specific reference values for anatomical and physiological features of the human body pertinent to radiation dosimetry. The reference values given in this report are based on: (a) anatomical and physiological information not published before by the ICRP; (b) recent ICRP publications containing reference value information; and (c) information in Publication 23 that is still considered valid and appropriate for radiation protection purposes. Moving from the past emphasis on 'Reference Man', the new report presents a series of reference values for both male and female subjects of six different ages: newborn, 1 year, 5 years, 10 years, 15 years, and adult. In selecting reference values, the Commission has used data on Western Europeans and North Americans because these populations have been well studied with respect to anatomy, body composition, and physiology. When appropriate, comparisons are made between the chosen reference values and data from several Asian

Basic anatomical and physiological data for use in radiological protection: reference values ICRP Publication 89

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Valentin, J

2002-12-01

This report presents detailed information on age- and gender-related differences in the anatomical and physiological characteristics of reference individuals. These reference values provide needed input to prospective dosimetry calculations for radiation protection purposes for both workers and members of the general public. The purpose of this report is to consolidate and unify in one publication, important new information on reference anatomical and physiological values that has become available since Publication 23 was published by the ICRP in 1975. There are two aspects of this work. The first is to revise and extend the information in Publication 23 as appropriate. The second is to provide additional information on individual variation among grossly normal individuals resulting from differences in age, gender, race, or other factors. This publication collects, unifies, and expands the updated ICRP reference values for the purpose of providing a comprehensive and consistent set of age- and gender-specific reference values for anatomical and physiological features of the human body pertinent to radiation dosimetry. The reference values given in this report are based on: (a) anatomical and physiological information not published before by the ICRP; (b) recent ICRP publications containing reference value information; and (c) information in Publication 23 that is still considered valid and appropriate for radiation protection purposes. Moving from the past emphasis on 'Reference Man', the new report presents a series of reference values for both male and female subjects of six different ages: newborn, 1 year, 5 years, 10 years, 15 years, and adult. In selecting reference values, the Commission has used data on Western Europeans and North Americans because these populations have been well studied with respect to anatomy, body composition, and physiology. When appropriate, comparisons are made between the chosen reference values and data from several Asian

Theoretical foundations of the so-called cross-reference structures

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Tarp, Sven

1999-01-01

A discussion of the concept of "structure" related to the concept of "cross-reference". On the basis of the distribution structures a completely new way of viewing the lexicographical cross-references of all sorts is presented....

Relative frequency of human papillomavirus genotypes and related sociodemographic characteristics in women referred to a general hospital in Tehran, 2014- 2015: A cross-sectional study

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Mahin Jamshidi Makiani

2017-09-01

Full Text Available Background: Human papilloma virus (HPV is one of the major public health problems and the main causes of cervical cancer. The prevalence HPV infection in developing countries with low financial resources is high. Objective: This study aimed to determine the relative frequency of HPV genotypes and its sociodemographic characteristics in women referred to a general hospital in Tehran, Iran from 2014-2015. Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional study was performed in 400 women with Pap smear samples, referring to to a general hospital in Tehran, Iran from 2014- 2015. The detection of 28 HPV genotypes was performed by using the Multiplex PCR technique. The sociodemographic survey was conducted for each HPV positive woman. Results: HPV-positive infection was detected in 155 (38.75% women aged 17-85 years. HPV 16 (19.1% was the most prevalent type, followed by HPV 39 (12.5% and HPV 18 (8.9%. The highest rate of HPV infection was observed at the age of 36 years (7.7%. The level of education and economic situation of each woman were showed most of HPV-positive women had a high school diploma (34.6% and average economic situation (67,9%. 60.9% of these women were a housewife, and 67.3% lived in the capital . Conclusion: Determination of HPV genotype and risk factor related to HPV infection in each geographical region can lead to the production of effective vaccines against the HPV virus. It can also be useful for disease management and high sensitivity diagnosis of cervical intraepithelial neoplasia

Dietary reference values for riboflavin