21 CFR 316.34 - FDA recognition of exclusive approval.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... 21 Food and Drugs 5 2014-04-01 2014-04-01 false FDA recognition of exclusive approval. 316.34... (CONTINUED) DRUGS FOR HUMAN USE ORPHAN DRUGS Orphan-drug Exclusive Approval § 316.34 FDA recognition of exclusive approval. (a) FDA will send the sponsor (or, the permanent-resident agent, if applicable) timely...

21 CFR 316.34 - FDA recognition of exclusive approval.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... 21 Food and Drugs 5 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false FDA recognition of exclusive approval. 316.34... (CONTINUED) DRUGS FOR HUMAN USE ORPHAN DRUGS Orphan-drug Exclusive Approval § 316.34 FDA recognition of exclusive approval. (a) FDA will send the sponsor (or, the permanent-resident agent, if applicable) timely...

Thioimidazolium Ionic Liquids as Tunable Alkylating Agents.

PubMed

Guterman, Ryan; Miao, Han; Antonietti, Markus

2018-01-19

Alkylating ionic liquids based on the thioimidazolium structure combine the conventional properties of ionic liquids, including low melting point and nonvolatility, with the alkylating function. Alkyl transfer occurs exclusively from the S-alkyl position, thus allowing for easy derivatization of the structure without compromising specificity. We apply this feature to tune the electrophilicty of the cation to profoundly affect the reactivity of these alkylating ionic liquids, with a caffeine-derived compound possessing the highest reactivity. Anion choice was found to affect reaction rates, with iodide anions assisting in the alkylation reaction through a "shuttling" process. The ability to tune the properties of the alkylating agent using the toolbox of ionic liquid chemistry highlights the modular nature of these compounds as a platform for alkylating agent design and integration in to future systems.

12 CFR 367.5 - Exclusions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... also prohibited from conducting business with FDIC as agents or representatives of other contractors... bars to contracting are shown to exist, the existence of a cause for exclusion does not necessarily...

Prostate cancer prevention agent development: Criteria and pipeline for candidate chemoprevention agents.

PubMed

Nelson, W G; Wilding, G

2001-04-01

Epidemiologic data suggest that prostate cancer morbidity and mortality ought to be preventable. New insights into the molecular pathogenesis of prostate cancer offer new opportunities for the discovery of prostate cancer chemoprevention drugs and new challenges for their development. Established pathways that lead to US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval of drugs for advanced prostate cancer may not be appropriate for the development of drugs for prostate cancer chemoprevention. For example, large randomized clinical trials designed to test the efficacy of new chemoprevention drugs on prostate cancer survival in the general population are likely to be conducted at great expense and take many years, threatening to increase commercial development risks while decreasing exclusive marketing revenues. As a consequence, to accelerate progress in research, new validated surrogate and strategic clinical trial endpoints, and new clinical trial designs featuring more precisely defined high-risk clinical trial cohorts, are needed. In this review, 10 criteria for prostate cancer chemoprevention agent development are offered and the pipeline of new prostate cancer chemoprevention drug candidates is considered.

76 FR 43993 - Notice of Availability for Exclusive, Non-Exclusive, or Partially-Exclusive Licensing of an...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-07-22

... Agents by Measuring Distinct Pattern in the Levels of Expression of Specific Genes AGENCY: Department of... Measuring Distinct Pattern in the Levels of Expression of Specific Genes,'' issued November 13, 2001. The... determining a difference in the detected amount of protein/gene expression between exposed and unexposed...

Novel Cleanup Agents Designed Exclusively for Oil Field Membrane Filtration Systems Low Cost Field Demonstrations of Cleanup Agents in Controlled Experimental Environments

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

David Burnett; Harold Vance

2007-08-31

The goal of our project is to develop innovative processes and novel cleaning agents for water treatment facilities designed to remove fouling materials and restore micro-filter and reverse osmosis (RO) membrane performance. This project is part of Texas A&M University's comprehensive study of the treatment and reuse of oilfield brine for beneficial purposes. Before waste water can be used for any beneficial purpose, it must be processed to remove contaminants, including oily wastes such as residual petroleum hydrocarbons. An effective way of removing petroleum from brines is the use of membrane filters to separate oily waste from the brine. Texasmore » A&M and its partners have developed highly efficient membrane treatment and RO desalination for waste water including oil field produced water. We have also developed novel and new cleaning agents for membrane filters utilizing environmentally friendly materials so that the water from the treatment process will meet U.S. EPA drinking water standards. Prototype micellar cleaning agents perform better and use less clean water than alternate systems. While not yet optimized, the new system restores essentially complete membrane flux and separation efficiency after cleaning. Significantly the amount of desalinated water that is required to clean the membranes is reduced by more than 75%.« less

Modernizing Clinical Trial Eligibility Criteria: Recommendations of the American Society of Clinical Oncology–Friends of Cancer Research HIV Working Group

PubMed Central

Uldrick, Thomas S.; Ison, Gwynn; Rudek, Michelle A.; Noy, Ariela; Schwartz, Karl; Bruinooge, Suanna; Schenkel, Caroline; Miller, Barry; Dunleavy, Kieron; Wang, Judy; Zeldis, Jerome; Little, Richard F.

2018-01-01

Purpose People with HIV are living longer as a result of effective antiretroviral therapy. Cancer has become a leading cause of morbidity and mortality in this patient population. However, studies of novel cancer therapeutics have historically excluded patients with HIV. Critical review of eligibility criteria related to HIV is required to accelerate development of and access to effective therapeutics for HIV-infected patients with cancer and make studies more generalizable to this patient population. Methods From January through April 2016, the HIV Working Group conducted a series of teleconferences; a review of 46 New Drug Applications from registration studies of unique agents studied in adults with cancer that led to the initial US Food and Drug Administration approval of that agent from 2011 to 2015; and a review of HIV-related eligibility criteria from National Cancer Institute–sponsored studies. Results were discussed and refined at a multistakeholder workshop held May 12, 2016. The HIV Working Group developed recommendations for eligibility criteria that focus on pharmacologic and immunologic considerations in this patient population and that balance patient safety, access to appropriate investigational agents, and study integrity. Results Exclusion of patients with HIV remains common in most studies of novel cancer agents. Models for HIV-related eligibility criteria in National Cancer Institute–sponsored studies are instructive. HIV infection itself should no longer be an exclusion criterion for most studies. Eligibility criteria related to HIV infection that address concurrent antiretroviral therapy and immune status should be designed in a manner that is appropriate for a given cancer. Conclusion Expanding clinical trial eligibility to be more inclusive of patients with HIV is justified in most cases and may accelerate the development of effective therapies in this area of unmet clinical need. PMID:28968173

Modernizing Clinical Trial Eligibility Criteria: Recommendations of the American Society of Clinical Oncology-Friends of Cancer Research HIV Working Group.

PubMed

Uldrick, Thomas S; Ison, Gwynn; Rudek, Michelle A; Noy, Ariela; Schwartz, Karl; Bruinooge, Suanna; Schenkel, Caroline; Miller, Barry; Dunleavy, Kieron; Wang, Judy; Zeldis, Jerome; Little, Richard F

2017-11-20

Purpose People with HIV are living longer as a result of effective antiretroviral therapy. Cancer has become a leading cause of morbidity and mortality in this patient population. However, studies of novel cancer therapeutics have historically excluded patients with HIV. Critical review of eligibility criteria related to HIV is required to accelerate development of and access to effective therapeutics for HIV-infected patients with cancer and make studies more generalizable to this patient population. Methods From January through April 2016, the HIV Working Group conducted a series of teleconferences; a review of 46 New Drug Applications from registration studies of unique agents studied in adults with cancer that led to the initial US Food and Drug Administration approval of that agent from 2011 to 2015; and a review of HIV-related eligibility criteria from National Cancer Institute-sponsored studies. Results were discussed and refined at a multistakeholder workshop held May 12, 2016. The HIV Working Group developed recommendations for eligibility criteria that focus on pharmacologic and immunologic considerations in this patient population and that balance patient safety, access to appropriate investigational agents, and study integrity. Results Exclusion of patients with HIV remains common in most studies of novel cancer agents. Models for HIV-related eligibility criteria in National Cancer Institute-sponsored studies are instructive. HIV infection itself should no longer be an exclusion criterion for most studies. Eligibility criteria related to HIV infection that address concurrent antiretroviral therapy and immune status should be designed in a manner that is appropriate for a given cancer. Conclusion Expanding clinical trial eligibility to be more inclusive of patients with HIV is justified in most cases and may accelerate the development of effective therapies in this area of unmet clinical need.

77 FR 26772 - Prospective Grant of Exclusive License: Ocular Therapeutics Agent Delivery Devices and Methods...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-05-07

... Michael R. Robinson et al (NEI, CC, and NIBIB) (E-241-1999/0), to ODIN Biotech having a place of business... United States of America. The exclusive patent license is one which qualifies under the Start-up...

Green chemistry focus on optimization of silver nanoparticles using response surface methodology (RSM) and mosquitocidal activity: Anopheles stephensi (Diptera: Culicidae).

PubMed

Ondari Nyakundi, Erick; Padmanabhan, M Nalini

2015-01-01

There is an exigent necessity for development of environmental friendly bio-control agent(s) for elimination of mosquito due to increased resistance resurgence against synthetic control agents. Mosquito control strategy will lay a strong foundation to malaria exclusion or it can be curbed to certain level especially in the developing nations. In this study, silver nanoparticles were synthesized by green chemistry approach using Tridax procumbens leaf extract as a reducing agent. The reaction medium involved in the synthesis process was optimized by statistical experimental design using response surface methodology to obtain better yield, uniform size, shape and stability. Further, these synthesized nanoparticles were confirmed through UV-Visible, FT-IR spectroscopy, PSA and SEM Subsequently, the bioefficacy of these particles were investigated on Anopheles stephensi for larvicidal and pupicidal activity. Interestingly, time period of 90 min, temperature of 76±2 °C, pH 7.2±2, 2 mM silver nitrate (AgNO3), 3mM PEG and 2mM PVP showed excellent parameters for bioprocess design for large scale production of stabilized nanoparticles. A concentration of 5 ppm of PVP stabilized nanoparticles exhibited 100% mortality. Thus, the obtained results clearly suggest that silver nanoparticles stabilized by PEG and PVP may have important function as stabilizers, dispersants as well as larvicides for mosquito control. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Exclusive queueing model including the choice of service windows

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tanaka, Masahiro; Yanagisawa, Daichi; Nishinari, Katsuhiro

2018-01-01

In a queueing system involving multiple service windows, choice behavior is a significant concern. This paper incorporates the choice of service windows into a queueing model with a floor represented by discrete cells. We contrived a logit-based choice algorithm for agents considering the numbers of agents and the distances to all service windows. Simulations were conducted with various parameters of agent choice preference for these two elements and for different floor configurations, including the floor length and the number of service windows. We investigated the model from the viewpoint of transit times and entrance block rates. The influences of the parameters on these factors were surveyed in detail and we determined that there are optimum floor lengths that minimize the transit times. In addition, we observed that the transit times were determined almost entirely by the entrance block rates. The results of the presented model are relevant to understanding queueing systems including the choice of service windows and can be employed to optimize facility design and floor management.

The role of the extracellular matrix in tissue distribution of macromolecules in normal and pathological tissues: potential therapeutic consequences.

PubMed

Wiig, Helge; Gyenge, Christina; Iversen, Per Ole; Gullberg, Donald; Tenstad, Olav

2008-05-01

The interstitial space is a dynamic microenvironment that consists of interstitial fluid and structural molecules of the extracellular matrix, such as glycosaminoglycans (hyaluronan and proteoglycans) and collagen. Macromolecules can distribute in the interstitium only in those spaces unoccupied by structural components, a phenomenon called interstitial exclusion. The exclusion phenomenon has direct consequences for plasma volume regulation. Early studies have assigned a major role to collagen as an excluding agent that accounts for the sterical (geometrical) exclusion. More recently, it has been shown that the contribution of negatively charged glycosaminoglycans might also be significant, resulting in an additional electrostatical exclusion effect. This charge effect may be of importance for drug uptake and suggests that either the glycosaminoglycans or the net charge of macromolecular substances to be delivered may be targeted to increase the available volume and uptake of macromolecular therapeutic agents in tumor tissue. Here, we provide an overview of the structural components of the interstitium and discuss the importance the sterical and electrostatical components have on the dynamics of transcapillary fluid exchange.

A Comparison of Patient Characteristics and Outcomes in Selected European and U.S. Rheumatoid Arthritis Registries

PubMed Central

Curtis, Jeffrey R; Jain, Archana; Askling, Johan; Bridges, Lou; Carmona, Loreto; Dixon, William; Finckh, Axel; Hyrich, Kimme; Greenberg, Jeffrey; Kremer, Joel; Listing, Joachim; Michaud, Kaleb; Mikuls, Ted; Shadick, Nancy; Solomon, Daniel H; Wolfe, Fred; Zink, Angela

2010-01-01

Purpose To provide a qualitative comparison of selected US and European rheumatoid arthritis (RA) biologics registries and cohorts including ARTIS, BIOBADASER, BSRBR, BRASS, CLEAR, CORRONA, NDB, RABBIT, SCQM, and VARA. Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) have demonstrated the efficacy of biologic agents in treatment of rheumatic diseases. However, results from RCTs may not be generalizable to clinical practice because of their strict inclusion and exclusion criteria. Assessment of safety using RCT data also is limited by short duration of follow-up and relatively small sample sizes which generally preclude analysis of longer-term outcomes and rare adverse events. In rheumatology, various observational cohorts and registries have been created to complement information obtained from RCTs, some with the primary purpose of monitoring effectiveness and safety of biologic agents. Most registries are either drug based or disease based. These registries include patients with a variety of rheumatic diseases including RA. A careful comparison of these registries, as provided in this article, can provide a basis for understanding the many similarities and differences inherent in their design, as well as societal context and content, all of which can significantly impact their results and comparisons across registers. Summary The increasing use of biologic agents for treatment of rheumatic diseases has raised important questions about cost, safety and effectiveness of these agents. The unique and variable features of patient populations and registry designs in Europe and the U.S. provide valuable and complementary data on comparative effectiveness and safety of biologic agents to what can be derived from RCTs. PMID:20674669

Multiscale Modeling of Angiogenesis and Predictive Capacity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pillay, Samara; Byrne, Helen; Maini, Philip

Tumors induce the growth of new blood vessels from existing vasculature through angiogenesis. Using an agent-based approach, we model the behavior of individual endothelial cells during angiogenesis. We incorporate crowding effects through volume exclusion, motility of cells through biased random walks, and include birth and death-like processes. We use the transition probabilities associated with the discrete model and a discrete conservation equation for cell occupancy to determine collective cell behavior, in terms of partial differential equations (PDEs). We derive three PDE models incorporating single, multi-species and no volume exclusion. By fitting the parameters in our PDE models and other well-established continuum models to agent-based simulations during a specific time period, and then comparing the outputs from the PDE models and agent-based model at later times, we aim to determine how well the PDE models predict the future behavior of the agent-based model. We also determine whether predictions differ across PDE models and the significance of those differences. This may impact drug development strategies based on PDE models.

TRICARE; TRICARE sanction authority for third-party billing agents. Final rule.

PubMed

2013-02-26

This final rule will provide the Director, TRICARE Management Activity (TMA), or designee, with the authority to sanction third-party billing agents by invoking the administrative remedy of exclusion or suspension from the TRICARE program. Such sanctions may be invoked in situations involving fraud or abuse on the part of third-party billing agents that prepare or submit claims presented to TRICARE for payment.

75 FR 33793 - Intent To Grant an Exclusive License of a U.S. Government-Owned Patent

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-06-15

... from the exposure to chemical warfare agents, to Bracco Diagnostics, Inc., with its principal place of... DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE Department of the Army Intent To Grant an Exclusive License of a U.S. Government-Owned Patent AGENCY: Department of the Army, DoD. ACTION: Notice. SUMMARY: In accordance with 35 U...

Activated carbon fibers and engineered forms from renewable resources

DOEpatents

Baker, Frederick S

2013-02-19

A method of producing activated carbon fibers (ACFs) includes the steps of providing a natural carbonaceous precursor fiber material, blending the carbonaceous precursor material with a chemical activation agent to form chemical agent-impregnated precursor fibers, spinning the chemical agent-impregnated precursor material into fibers, and thermally treating the chemical agent-impregnated precursor fibers. The carbonaceous precursor material is both carbonized and activated to form ACFs in a single step. The method produces ACFs exclusive of a step to isolate an intermediate carbon fiber.

Activated carbon fibers and engineered forms from renewable resources

DOEpatents

Baker, Frederick S.

2010-06-01

A method of producing activated carbon fibers (ACFs) includes the steps of providing a natural carbonaceous precursor fiber material, blending the carbonaceous precursor material with a chemical activation agent to form chemical agent-impregnated precursor fibers, spinning the chemical agent-impregnated precursor material into fibers, and thermally treating the chemical agent-impregnated precursor fibers. The carbonaceous precursor material is both carbonized and activated to form ACFs in a single step. The method produces ACFs exclusive of a step to isolate an intermediate carbon fiber.

Gradually including potential users: A tool to counter design exclusions.

PubMed

Zitkus, Emilene; Langdon, Patrick; Clarkson, P John

2018-01-01

The paper describes an iterative development process used to understand the suitability of different inclusive design evaluation tools applied into design practices. At the end of this process, a tool named Inclusive Design Advisor was developed, combining data related to design features of small appliances with ergonomic task demands, anthropometric data and exclusion data. When auditing a new design the tool examines the exclusion that each design feature can cause, followed by objective recommendations directly related to its features. Interactively, it allows designers or clients to balance design changes with the exclusion caused. It presents the type of information that enables designers and clients to discuss user needs and make more inclusive design decisions. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

76 FR 65518 - Prospective Grant of Exclusive License: The Development of a Companion Diagnostic Kit for...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-10-21

... predictive of the therapeutic effect of an anti- cancer agent in the treatment of kidney, lung, and breast cancers that includes at least one of the following proteins (phosphorylated or unphosphorylated): PTEN...- Cancer Agents AGENCY: National Institutes of Health, Public Health Service, HHS. ACTION: Notice. SUMMARY...

14 CFR 221.105 - Special notice of limited liability for death or injury under the Warsaw Convention.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... contrasting with the stock on: (i) Each ticket; (ii) A piece of paper either placed in the ticket envelope... employed exclusively by it or by it jointly with another person, or by any agent employed by such air... travel agent for further information. ...

Nonlinear stochastic exclusion financial dynamics modeling and time-dependent intrinsic detrended cross-correlation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Wei; Wang, Jun

2017-09-01

In attempt to reproduce price dynamics of financial markets, a stochastic agent-based financial price model is proposed and investigated by stochastic exclusion process. The exclusion process, one of interacting particle systems, is usually thought of as modeling particle motion (with the conserved number of particles) in a continuous time Markov process. In this work, the process is utilized to imitate the trading interactions among the investing agents, in order to explain some stylized facts found in financial time series dynamics. To better understand the correlation behaviors of the proposed model, a new time-dependent intrinsic detrended cross-correlation (TDI-DCC) is introduced and performed, also, the autocorrelation analyses are applied in the empirical research. Furthermore, to verify the rationality of the financial price model, the actual return series are also considered to be comparatively studied with the simulation ones. The comparison results of return behaviors reveal that this financial price dynamics model can reproduce some correlation features of actual stock markets.

Highlighting cancer cells with macromolecular probes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tang, Sicheng; Zhang, Yang; Thapaliya, Ek Raj; Brown, Adrienne S.; Wilson, James N.; Raymo, Françisco M.

2017-02-01

Conventional fluorophore-ligand constructs for the detection of cancer cells generally produce relatively weak signals with modest contrast. The inherently low brightness accessible per biding event with the pairing of a single organic fluorophore to a single ligand as well as the contribution of unbound probes to background fluorescence are mainly responsible for these limitations. Our laboratories identified a viable structural design to improve both brightness and contrast. It is based on the integration of activatable fluorophores and targeting ligands within the same macromolecular construct. The chromophoric components are engineered to emit bright fluorescence exclusively in acidic environments. The targeting agents are designed to bind complementary receptors overexpressed on the surface of cancer cells and allow internalization of the macromolecules into acidic organelles. As a result of these properties, our macromolecular probes switch their intense emission on exclusively in the intracellular space of target cells with minimal background fluorescence from the extracellular matrix. In fact, these operating principles translate into a 170-fold enhancement in brightness, relative to equivalent but isolated chromophoric components, and a 3-fold increase in contrast, relative to model but non-activatable fluorophores. Thus, our macromolecular probes might ultimately evolve into valuable analytical tools to highlight cancer cells with optimal signal-to-noise ratios in a diversity of biomedical applications.

Attenuation of a select agent-excluded Burkholderia pseudomallei capsule mutant in hamsters.

PubMed

Gutierrez, Maria G; Warawa, Jonathan M

2016-05-01

Burkholderia pseudomallei is a Tier 1 select agent and potential bioweapon. Given it is potential to cause a lethal respiratory disease, research with fully virulent B. pseudomallei is conducted in Biosafety Level 3 (BSL-3) laboratory spaces. The logistical, financial, and administrative burden of Tier 1 select agent BSL-3 research has created an interest in mitigating such burdens through the use of either attenuated B. pseudomallei strains at BSL-2, or research with surrogate species, such as Burkholderia thailandensis. Previously, attenuated B. pseudomallei auxotroph mutants (asd and purM) have been approved for exclusion from select agent requirements, allowing for in vitro studies to be conducted at BSL-2. Acapsular B. pseudomallei mutants are known to be strongly attenuated in a variety of animal models, and yet acapsular B. pseudomallei mutants do not require nutritional supplementation, and can be studied within cultured macrophages, performing phenotypically similarly to parent strains. We demonstrate that the loss of a 30.8 kb region of the wcb capsule operon allows for a dramatic >4.46 log attenuation in a hamster intraperitoneal infection model, and report that this strain, JW270, has met criteria for exclusion from select agent requirements. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Complete genome sequence of Lactobacillus johnsonii FI9785, a competitive exclusion agent against pathogens in poultry.

PubMed

Wegmann, Udo; Overweg, Karin; Horn, Nikki; Goesmann, Alexander; Narbad, Arjan; Gasson, Michael J; Shearman, Claire

2009-11-01

Lactobacillus johnsonii is a member of the acidophilus group of lactobacilli. Because of their probiotic properties, including attachment to epithelial cells, immunomodulation, and competitive exclusion of pathogens, representatives of this group are being intensively studied. Here we report the complete annotated genome sequence of Lactobacillus johnsonii FI9785, a strain which prevents the colonization of specific-pathogen-free chicks by Clostridium perfringens.

76 FR 67762 - Notice of Intent to Grant Exclusive License

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-11-02

... Environment For The Brahms Multiagent Language,'' ARC-16160-1B, entitled ``Mobile Agents Architecture,'' ARC... business at 865 Wisconsin Street, San Francisco, CA 94107. The copyright in the software and documentation...

Resistance profiles to antimicrobial agents in bacteria isolated from acute endodontic infections: systematic review and meta-analysis.

PubMed

Lang, Pauline M; Jacinto, Rogério C; Dal Pizzol, Tatiane S; Ferreira, Maria Beatriz C; Montagner, Francisco

2016-11-01

Infected root canal or acute apical abscess exudates can harbour several species, including Fusobacterium, Porphyromonas, Prevotella, Parvimonas, Streptococcus, Treponema, Olsenella and not-yet cultivable species. A systematic review and meta-analysis was performed to assess resistance rates to antimicrobial agents in clinical studies that isolated bacteria from acute endodontic infections. Electronic databases and the grey literature were searched up to May 2015. Clinical studies in humans evaluating the antimicrobial resistance of primary acute endodontic infection isolates were included. PRISMA guidelines were followed. A random-effect meta-analysis was employed. The outcome was described as the pooled resistance rates for each antimicrobial agent. Heterogeneity and sensitivity analyses were performed. Subgroup analyses were conducted based upon report or not of the use of antibiotics prior to sampling as an exclusion factor (subgroups A and B, respectively). Data from seven studies were extracted. Resistance rates for 15 different antimicrobial agents were evaluated (range, 3.5-40.0%). Lower resistance rates were observed for amoxicillin/clavulanic acid and amoxicillin; higher resistance rates were detected for tetracycline. Resistance rates varied according to previous use of an antimicrobial agent as demonstrated by the subgroup analyses. Heterogeneity was observed for the resistance profiles of penicillin G in subgroup A and for amoxicillin, clindamycin, metronidazole and tetracycline in subgroup B. Sensitivity analyses demonstrated that resistance rates changed for metronidazole, clindamycin, tetracycline and amoxicillin. These findings suggest that clinical isolates had low resistance to β-lactams. Further well-designed studies are needed to clarify whether the differences in susceptibility among the antimicrobial agents may influence clinical responses to treatment. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. and International Society of Chemotherapy. All rights reserved.

Characterization of novel molecular photoacoustic contrast agents for in vivo photoacoustic tomography

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Laoui, Samir

Photoacoustic tomography is a hybrid imaging modality that takes advantage of the high contrast of pure optical imaging and the high intrinsic resolution of ultrasound without the necessity of ionizing radiation. Photoacoustic imaging (PM) is neither purely optical nor purely acoustical in nature, but a combination of the two. It is fundamentally based on light excitation and ultrasonic detection. Photoacoustic imaging has been successful without the introduction of exogenous contrast agents; however, to image deeper regions of biological tissue, a contrast agent is necessary. Several types of photoacoustic contrast agents have been made available for diagnostic purposes; however, the majority of literature has focused on gold nanoparticle systems for which the surface-plasmon resonance effect is important. The only option currently available for molecular PM contrast agents is to choose an existing near infrared absorbing fluorescent probes with the hope that they may generate a substantial photoacoustic (PA) response. However, these dyes have been designed with an optimized fluorescence emission response and are not anticipated to generate an adequate photoacoustic response. This dissertation addresses this lack of precedence in the literature for understanding the mechanism of a photoacoustic signal generation from strongly absorbing dye molecules including BODIPY, cyanine and curcumin systems. This work represents preliminary efforts in bringing novel molecular photoacoustic contrast agents (MPACs) into the photoacoustic imaging arena. To this end, photoacoustic and optical Z-scan experiments, and quenching studies were employed to demonstrate correlation of photoacoustic emission enhancement with excited state absorption mechanisms. To investigate further the photoacoustic emission in a practical imaging setting, MPACs were imaged using a recently developed photoacoustic imaging tomography system which was constructed exclusively for the purpose of this study.

Cancer chemoprevention and cancer preventive vaccines--a call to action: leaders of diverse stakeholder groups present strategies for overcoming multiple barriers to meet an urgent need.

PubMed

Herberman, Ronald B; Pearce, Homer L; Lippman, Scott M; Pyenson, Bruce S; Alberts, David S

2006-12-15

The emerging field of cancer prevention through chemoprevention agents and cancer vaccines offers significant promise for reducing suffering and death from cancer. However, that promise may not be kept unless major barriers to progress are lowered or eliminated. Among the most significant barriers are the relatively small investment from government and industry in research and development of cancer preventive agents; a predominant emphasis of translational cancer research on therapeutic interventions for metastatic or advanced cancer; complexities of prevention trial design; a relatively uncharted Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval process for preventive agents; insufficient public and patient understanding of the importance and potential for cancer preventive measures, with consequent unpredictable public and patient willingness to take preventive agents; an uncertain reimbursement from payors; and limitations in patent law, liability protection, and data package exclusivity that undermine the opportunity for recouping investment. Viewed individually or collectively, each of these barriers serves as a substantial deterrent to intellectual and financial investment by all sectors of the cancer community. In an effort to ultimately overcome these barriers, a Cancer Prevention Research Summit was assembled June 12-13, 2006 in Bethesda, Maryland, organized by C-Change with support from the AACR. The Summit brought together some 120 leaders from private, public, and not-for-profit entities, including cancer researchers and clinicians; federal health officials; regulatory agency representatives; pharmaceutical, biotech, and food industry leaders; patent attorneys; economists; public and private provider group executives; and advocates. Participants engaged in a detailed process to more carefully define the major barriers, identify potential solutions, and formulate initial priorities and recommendations for action. At the conclusion of this dialogue among experts, the following recommended actions were outlined: define policy solutions to patent, intellectual property, and liability law barriers; create an advisory document about the approval process for cancer chemopreventive agents and vaccines for the FDA; develop new design models for cancer chemopreventive clinical trials; outline the business case for chemopreventive agents and vaccines for federal research agencies, payors and investors; and implement a communications strategy to increase public awareness about the importance of chemoprevention and cancer preventive vaccines.

Enhancing Interrogation: Advancing a New Agenda

DTIC Science & Technology

2009-01-01

cloaked in righteousness, and would make the American people less safe.”16 His clear message, delivered in an earli- er Fox News interview, is that...Scalia, a fan of Fox network’s hit drama 24, has championed the show’s federal agent protagonist, Jack Bauer, who regularly saves the nation by...with one based on “submission through humiliation and cruelty .”37 Even more damaging, Soufan contended, was the exclusion of FBI agents from further

78 FR 18999 - Prospective Grant of Start-Up Exclusive License: Photosensitizing Antibody-Fluorophore Conjugates...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-03-28

.... Binding of such conjugates to targeted cancer cells followed by irradiation with near infrared light (NIR... more anti-cancer agents following the irradiation step. This is achieved by the markedly rapid...

Endovascular Embolization of Visceral Artery Aneurysms with Ethylene-vinyl Alcohol (Onyx): A Case Series

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Bratby, M.J.; Lehmann, E.D.; Bottomley, J.

2006-12-15

We report the application of the liquid embolic agent ethylene-vinyl alcohol (Onyx; MicroTherapeutics, Irvine, CA, USA) in the management of visceral artery aneurysms. The technique and indications for using Onyx are discussed with emphasis on the management of wide-necked aneurysms and maintenance of patency of the parent vessel. None of the cases was considered suitable for stent-grafting or embolization with conventional agents. Two aneurysms of the renal artery bifurcation and one aneurysm of the inferior pancreaticoduodenal artery were treated. Following treatment there was complete exclusion of all aneurysms. There was no evidence of end-organ infarction. Follow-up with intervals up tomore » 6 months has shown sustained aneurysm exclusion. Onyx is known to be effective in the management of intracranial aneurysms. Our experience demonstrates the efficacy and applicability of the use of Onyx in the treatment of complex visceral artery aneurysms.« less

Serotonergic 5-HT6 Receptor Antagonists: Heterocyclic Chemistry and Potential Therapeutic Significance.

PubMed

Bali, Alka; Singh, Shalu

2015-01-01

The serotonin 5-HT(6) receptor (5- HT(6)R) is amongst the recently discovered serotonergic receptors with almost exclusive localization in the brain. Hence, this receptor is fast emerging as a promising target for cognition enhancement in central nervous system (CNS) diseases such as Alzheimer's disease (cognitive function), obesity, schizophrenia and anxiety. The last decade has seen a surge of literature reports on the functional role of this receptor in learning and memory processes and investigations related to the chemistry and pharmacology of 5-HT(6) receptor ligands, especially 5- HT(6) receptor antagonists. Studies show the involvement of multiple neurotransmitter systems in cognitive enhancement by 5-HT(6)R antagonists including cholinergic, glutamatergic, and GABAergic systems. Several of the 5-HT(6)R ligands are indole based agents bearing structural similarity to the endogenous neurotransmitter serotonin. Based on the pharmacophoric models proposed for these agents, drug designing has been carried out incorporating various heterocyclic replacements for the indole nucleus. In this review, we have broadly summarized the medicinal chemistry and current status of this fairly recent class of drugs along with their potential therapeutic applications.

49 CFR 40.409 - What does the issuance of a PIE mean to transportation employers?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... PROCEDURES FOR TRANSPORTATION WORKPLACE DRUG AND ALCOHOL TESTING PROGRAMS Public Interest Exclusions § 40.409... Department issues a PIE concerning Service Agent N on September 1. All tests conducted using N's services...

75 FR 5289 - Notice of Intent To Grant Exclusive Patent License; Ultratrace Detection, LLC

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-02-02

..., analyzing, and detecting chemicals, warfare agents, or drugs in the United States, the Government-owned inventions described in U.S. Patent Application No. 11/542,453 entitled ``Micro Scale Flow Through Sorbent...

Incentives for orphan drug research and development in the United States.

PubMed

Seoane-Vazquez, Enrique; Rodriguez-Monguio, Rosa; Szeinbach, Sheryl L; Visaria, Jay

2008-12-16

The Orphan Drug Act (1983) established several incentives to encourage the development of orphan drugs (ODs) to treat rare diseases and conditions. This study analyzed the characteristics of OD designations, approvals, sponsors, and evaluated the effective patent and market exclusivity life of orphan new molecular entities (NMEs) approved in the US between 1983 and 2007. Primary data sources were the FDA Orange Book, the FDA Office of Orphan Drugs Development, and the US Patent and Trademark Office. Data included all orphan designations and approvals listed by the FDA and all NMEs approved by the FDA during the study period. The FDA listed 1,793 orphan designations and 322 approvals between 1983 and 2007. Cancer was the main group of diseases targeted for orphan approvals. Eighty-three companies concentrated 67.7% of the total orphan NMEs approvals. The average time from orphan designation to FDA approval was 4.0 +/- 3.3 years (mean +/- standard deviation). The average maximum effective patent and market exclusivity life was 11.7 +/- 5.0 years for orphan NME. OD market exclusivity increased the average maximum effective patent and market exclusivity life of ODs by 0.8 years. Public programs, federal regulations, and policies support orphan drugs R&D. Grants, research design support, FDA fee waivers, tax incentives, and orphan drug market exclusivity are the main incentives for orphan drug R&D. Although the 7-year orphan drug market exclusivity provision had a positive yet relatively modest overall effect on effective patent and market exclusivity life, economic incentives and public support mechanisms provide a platform for continued orphan drug development for a highly specialized market.

76 FR 76744 - Prospective Grant of Exclusive License: Use of Agents Targeting Thrombospondin-1 and CD47 To...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-12-08

...,'' to Radiation Control Technologies, Inc., a company incorporated under the laws of the State of Delaware having its headquarters in Rockville, Maryland. The United States of America is the assignee of...

PHARMACEUTICALS AND PERSONAL CARE PRODUCTS IN THE ENVIRONMENT: AGENTS OF SUBTLE CHANGE?

EPA Science Inventory

During the last three decades, the impact of chemical pollution has focused almost exclusively on the conventional "priority" pollutants, especially those acutely toxic/carcinogenic pesticides and industrial intermediates displaying persistence in the environment. This spectrum o...

A phenanthrene derived PARP inhibitor is an extra-centrosomes de-clustering agent exclusively eradicating human cancer cells

PubMed Central

2011-01-01

Background Cells of most human cancers have supernumerary centrosomes. To enable an accurate chromosome segregation and cell division, these cells developed a yet unresolved molecular mechanism, clustering their extra centrosomes at two poles, thereby mimicking mitosis in normal cells. Failure of this bipolar centrosome clustering causes multipolar spindle structures and aberrant chromosomes segregation that prevent normal cell division and lead to 'mitotic catastrophe cell death'. Methods We used cell biology and biochemical methods, including flow cytometry, immunocytochemistry and live confocal imaging. Results We identified a phenanthrene derived PARP inhibitor, known for its activity in neuroprotection under stress conditions, which exclusively eradicated multi-centrosomal human cancer cells (mammary, colon, lung, pancreas, ovarian) while acting as extra-centrosomes de-clustering agent in mitosis. Normal human proliferating cells (endothelial, epithelial and mesenchymal cells) were not impaired. Despite acting as PARP inhibitor, the cytotoxic activity of this molecule in cancer cells was not attributed to PARP inhibition alone. Conclusion We identified a water soluble phenanthridine that exclusively targets the unique dependence of most human cancer cells on their supernumerary centrosomes bi-polar clustering for their survival. This paves the way for a new selective cancer-targeting therapy, efficient in a wide range of human cancers. PMID:21943092

Antigiardial activity of glycoproteins and glycopeptides from Ziziphus honey.

PubMed

Mohammed, Seif Eldin A; Kabashi, Ahmed S; Koko, Waleed S; Azim, M Kamran

2015-01-01

Natural honey contains an array of glycoproteins, proteoglycans and glycopeptides. Size-exclusion chromatography fractionated Ziziphus honey proteins into five peaks with molecular masses in the range from 10 to >200 kDa. The fractionated proteins exhibited in vitro activities against Giardia lamblia with IC50 values ≤ 25 μg/mL. Results indicated that honey proteins were more active as antiprotozoal agents than metronidazole. This study indicated the potential of honey proteins and peptides as novel antigiardial agents.

49 CFR 40.407 - May a service agent ask to have a PIE reduced or terminated?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... TRANSPORTATION WORKPLACE DRUG AND ALCOHOL TESTING PROGRAMS Public Interest Exclusions § 40.407 May a service... reconsideration of the decision to issue the PIE. (b) Your request must be in writing and supported with...

A Novel Computer-Based Set-Up to Study Movement Coordination in Human Ensembles

PubMed Central

Alderisio, Francesco; Lombardi, Maria; Fiore, Gianfranco; di Bernardo, Mario

2017-01-01

Existing experimental works on movement coordination in human ensembles mostly investigate situations where each subject is connected to all the others through direct visual and auditory coupling, so that unavoidable social interaction affects their coordination level. Here, we present a novel computer-based set-up to study movement coordination in human groups so as to minimize the influence of social interaction among participants and implement different visual pairings between them. In so doing, players can only take into consideration the motion of a designated subset of the others. This allows the evaluation of the exclusive effects on coordination of the structure of interconnections among the players in the group and their own dynamics. In addition, our set-up enables the deployment of virtual computer players to investigate dyadic interaction between a human and a virtual agent, as well as group synchronization in mixed teams of human and virtual agents. We show how this novel set-up can be employed to study coordination both in dyads and in groups over different structures of interconnections, in the presence as well as in the absence of virtual agents acting as followers or leaders. Finally, in order to illustrate the capabilities of the architecture, we describe some preliminary results. The platform is available to any researcher who wishes to unfold the mechanisms underlying group synchronization in human ensembles and shed light on its socio-psychological aspects. PMID:28649217

49 CFR 571.214 - Standard No. 214; Side impact protection.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

... rearmost position. (4) Any side door that is designed to be easily attached to or removed (e.g., using... lifts, and vehicles which have no doors or exclusively have doors that are designed to be easily... have no doors, or exclusively have doors that are designed to be easily attached or removed so that the...

Specific Pathogen Free Macaque Colonies: A Review of Principles and Recent Advances for Viral Testing and Colony Management

PubMed Central

Yee, JoAnn L.; Vandeford, Thomas H.; Didier, Elizabeth S.; Gray, Stanton; Lewis, Anne; Roberts, Jeffrey; Taylor, Kerry; Bohm, Rudolf P.

2016-01-01

Specific Pathogen Free (SPF) macaques provide valuable animal models for biomedical research. In 1989 the National Center for Research Resources (now Office of Research Infrastructure Programs ORIP) of the National Institutes of Health initiated experimental research contracts to establish and maintain SPF colonies. The derivation and maintenance of SPF macaque colonies is a complex undertaking requiring knowledge of the biology of the agents for exclusion and normal physiology and behavior of macaques, application of the latest diagnostic technology, facilities management, and animal husbandry. This review provides information on the biology of the four viral agents targeted for exclusion in ORIP SPF macaque colonies, describes current state-of-the-art viral diagnostic algorithms, presents data from proficiency testing of diagnostic assays between laboratories at institutions participating in the ORIP SPF program, and outlines management strategies for maintaining the integrity of SPF colonies using results of diagnostic testing as a guide to decision making. PMID:26932456

Leveraging prior quantitative knowledge in guiding pediatric drug development: a case study.

PubMed

Jadhav, Pravin R; Zhang, Jialu; Gobburu, Jogarao V S

2009-01-01

The manuscript presents the FDA's focus on leveraging prior knowledge in designing informative pediatric trial through this case study. In developing written request for Drug X, an anti-hypertensive for immediate blood pressure (BP) control, the sponsor and FDA conducted clinical trial simulations (CTS) to design trial with proper sample size and support the choice of dose range. The objective was to effectively use prior knowledge from adult patients for drug X, pediatric data from Corlopam (approved for a similar indication) trial and general experience in developing anti-hypertensive agents. Different scenarios governing the exposure response relationship in the pediatric population were simulated to perturb model assumptions. The choice of scenarios was based on the past observation that pediatric population is less responsive and sensitive compared with adults. The conceptual framework presented here should serve as an example on how the industry and FDA scientists can collaborate in designing the pediatric exclusivity trial. Using CTS, inter-disciplinary scientists with the sponsor and FDA can objectively discuss the choice of dose range, sample size, endpoints and other design elements. These efforts are believed to yield plausible trial design, qrational dosing recommendations and useful labeling information in pediatrics. Published in 2009 by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

76 FR 34968 - Notice of Availability for Exclusive, Non-Exclusive, or Partially; Exclusive Licensing of an...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-06-15

... INFORMATION: The invention relates to a dynamic exoskeletal orthosis applied to the leg below the knee, designed to compensate for weakness, pain, and/or decreased range of motion at the ankle. Brenda S. Bowen...

Discovery and molecular characterization of an ambisense densovirus from South American populations of Solenopsis invicta

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

In an effort to expand and utilize viruses as classical biological control agents, a metatranscriptomic/pyrosequencing approach was used to examine Solenopsis invicta populations collected exclusively in Argentina. A new virus with characteristics consistent with the family Parvoviridae, subfamily D...

26 CFR 1.151-3 - Definitions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

...-farm training under the supervision of an accredited agent of an educational institution or of a State or political subdivision of a State. An example of “institutional on-farm training” is that... months need not be consecutive. School attendance exclusively at night does not constitute full-time...

26 CFR 1.151-3 - Definitions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

...-farm training under the supervision of an accredited agent of an educational institution or of a State or political subdivision of a State. An example of “institutional on-farm training” is that... months need not be consecutive. School attendance exclusively at night does not constitute full-time...

26 CFR 1.151-3 - Definitions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

...-farm training under the supervision of an accredited agent of an educational institution or of a State or political subdivision of a State. An example of “institutional on-farm training” is that... months need not be consecutive. School attendance exclusively at night does not constitute full-time...

26 CFR 1.151-3 - Definitions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

...-farm training under the supervision of an accredited agent of an educational institution or of a State or political subdivision of a State. An example of “institutional on-farm training” is that... months need not be consecutive. School attendance exclusively at night does not constitute full-time...

26 CFR 1.151-3 - Definitions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

...-farm training under the supervision of an accredited agent of an educational institution or of a State or political subdivision of a State. An example of “institutional on-farm training” is that... months need not be consecutive. School attendance exclusively at night does not constitute full-time...

75 FR 13319 - NextEra Energy Seabrook, LLC, et al.

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-03-19

... * NextEra Energy Seabrook, LLC is authorized to act as agent for the Hudson Light & Power Department, Massachusetts Municipal Wholesale Electric Company, and Taunton Municipal Light and has exclusive responsibility... National Pollution Discharge Elimination System permit are needed. No effects on the aquatic or terrestrial...

Renal toxicity of anticancer agents targeting vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and its receptors (VEGFRs).

PubMed

Cosmai, Laura; Gallieni, Maurizio; Liguigli, Wanda; Porta, Camillo

2017-04-01

Since angiogenesis plays a key role in tumor growth, progression and metastasization, anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF)/VEGF receptor (VEGFR) agents have been developed over the years as anticancer agents, and have changed, for the better, the natural history of a number of cancer types. In the present review, the renal safety profile of presently available agents targeting either VEGF or VEGFRs will be discussed, together with the peculiarities related to their clinical use in patients with impaired renal function, or even in dialysis. Indeed, renal toxicity (especially, but not exclusively, hypertension and proteinuria) are quite commonly observed with these agents, and may be increased by the concomitant use of cytoxic chemotherapeutics. Despite all the above, kidney impairment or dialysis must not be regarded di per se as reasons not to administer or to stop an active anticancer treatment, especially considering the possibility of a significant survival improvement in many cancer patients treated with these agents.

Issues in the design of a clinical trial with a behavioral intervention--the Zambia exclusive breast-feeding study.

PubMed

Thea, Donald M; Vwalika, Cheswa; Kasonde, Prisca; Kankasa, Chipepo; Sinkala, Moses; Semrau, Katherine; Shutes, Erin; Ayash, Christine; Tsai, Wei-Yann; Aldrovandi, Grace; Kuhn, Louise

2004-08-01

We present the rationale and design of the Zambian Exclusive Breast-feeding Study (ZEBS), a randomized trial evaluating the efficacy of short-duration exclusive breast-feeding (EBF) as a strategy to reduce postnatal human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) transmission while preserving the other health benefits of this important mode of infant feeding. One thousand two hundred HIV-positive pregnant women were recruited in Lusaka, Zambia, and followed with their infants for 24 months. In addition to Nevirapine (NVP), all women received intensive and frequent clinic- and home-based counseling to support exclusive breast-feeding. When the infant was 1 week of age, half of the women were randomly assigned to a group encouraged to abruptly (<24 h) cease all breast-feeding at 4 months. The primary outcome of the experimental (randomized) comparison is HIV-free survival at 24 months. The design is also observational and will compare HIV transmission rates between those who do and do not adhere to the counseling intervention promoting exclusive breast-feeding. Our study aims to quantify the benefit-risk ratio of early cessation of exclusive breast-feeding to interrupt mother-to-child transmission of HIV with an intensive behavioral intervention and has both observational and experimental analytic approaches. Our study design assesses efficacy and also has a prominent applied component that if the intervention is effective, it will permit rapid and sustainable adoption within low-resource communities.

40 CFR 59.202 - Definitions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

..., scenting, or deodorizing the air. This does not include products that are used on the human body, products... agricultural use or products designed to be used exclusively on humans or animals. Distributor means any person... designed to be used exclusively on humans or animals or their bedding. Flexible flooring material means...

Considerations for setting up an order entry system for nuclear medicine tests.

PubMed

Hara, Narihiro; Onoguchi, Masahisa; Nishida, Toshihiko; Honda, Minoru; Houjou, Osamu; Yuhi, Masaru; Takayama, Teruhiko; Ueda, Jun

2007-12-01

Integrating the Healthcare Enterprise-Japan (IHE-J) was established in Japan in 2001 and has been working to standardize health information and make it accessible on the basis of the fundamental Integrating Healthcare Enterprise (IHE) specifications. However, because specialized operations are used in nuclear medicine tests, online sharing of patient information and test order information from the order entry system as shown by the scheduled workflow (SWF) is difficult, making information inconsistent throughout the facility and uniform management of patient information impossible. Therefore, we examined the basic design (subsystem design) for order entry systems, which are considered an important aspect of information management for nuclear medicine tests and needs to be consistent with the system used throughout the rest of the facility. There are many items that are required by the subsystem when setting up an order entry system for nuclear medicine tests. Among these items, those that are the most important in the order entry system are constructed using exclusion settings, because of differences in the conditions for using radiopharmaceuticals and contrast agents and appointment frame settings for differences in the imaging method and test items. To establish uniform management of patient information for nuclear medicine tests throughout the facility, it is necessary to develop an order entry system with exclusion settings and appointment frames as standard features. Thereby, integration of health information with the Radiology Information System (RIS) or Picture Archiving Communication System (PACS) based on Digital Imaging Communications in Medicine (DICOM) standards and real-time health care assistance can be attained, achieving the IHE agenda of improving health care service and efficiently sharing information.

Moving beyond Social Exclusion through Dialogue

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Aubert, Adriana

2011-01-01

The Dialogic Inclusion Contract (DIC) makes it possible to build a dialogue between the international scientific community and the knowledge derived from the experiences of social agents. This article presents the theoretical underpinnings and the process of developing and implementing the DIC. A case study of a primary school in a disadvantaged…

Team play with a powerful and independent agent: operational experiences and automation surprises on the Airbus A-320.

PubMed

Sarter, N B; Woods, D D

1997-12-01

Research and operational experience have shown that one of the major problems with pilot-automation interaction is a lack of mode awareness (i.e., the current and future status and behavior of the automation). As a result, pilots sometimes experience so-called automation surprises when the automation takes an unexpected action or fails to behave as anticipated. A lack of mode awareness and automation surprises can he viewed as symptoms of a mismatch between human and machine properties and capabilities. Changes in automation design can therefore he expected to affect the likelihood and nature of problems encountered by pilots. Previous studies have focused exclusively on early generation "glass cockpit" aircraft that were designed based on a similar automation philosophy. To find out whether similar difficulties with maintaining mode awareness are encountered on more advanced aircraft, a corpus of automation surprises was gathered from pilots of the Airbus A-320, an aircraft characterized by high levels of autonomy, authority, and complexity. To understand the underlying reasons for reported breakdowns in human-automation coordination, we also asked pilots about their monitoring strategies and their experiences with and attitude toward the unique design of flight controls on this aircraft.

Team play with a powerful and independent agent: operational experiences and automation surprises on the Airbus A-320

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sarter, N. B.; Woods, D. D.

1997-01-01

Research and operational experience have shown that one of the major problems with pilot-automation interaction is a lack of mode awareness (i.e., the current and future status and behavior of the automation). As a result, pilots sometimes experience so-called automation surprises when the automation takes an unexpected action or fails to behave as anticipated. A lack of mode awareness and automation surprises can he viewed as symptoms of a mismatch between human and machine properties and capabilities. Changes in automation design can therefore he expected to affect the likelihood and nature of problems encountered by pilots. Previous studies have focused exclusively on early generation "glass cockpit" aircraft that were designed based on a similar automation philosophy. To find out whether similar difficulties with maintaining mode awareness are encountered on more advanced aircraft, a corpus of automation surprises was gathered from pilots of the Airbus A-320, an aircraft characterized by high levels of autonomy, authority, and complexity. To understand the underlying reasons for reported breakdowns in human-automation coordination, we also asked pilots about their monitoring strategies and their experiences with and attitude toward the unique design of flight controls on this aircraft.

GC-MS and LC-MS analysis of nerve agents in body fluids: intra-laboratory verification test using spiked plasma and urine samples.

PubMed

Koller, Marianne; Becker, Christian; Thiermann, Horst; Worek, Franz

2010-05-15

The purpose of this study was to check the applicability of different analytical methods for the identification of unknown nerve agents in human body fluids. Plasma and urine samples were spiked with nerve agents (plasma) or with their metabolites (urine) or were left blank. Seven random samples (35% of all samples) were selected for the verification test. Plasma was worked up for unchanged nerve agents and for regenerated nerve agents after fluoride-induced reactivation of nerve agent-inhibited butyrylcholinesterase. Both extracts were analysed by GC-MS. Metabolites were extracted from plasma and urine, respectively, and were analysed by LC-MS. The urinary metabolites and two blank samples could be identified without further measurements, plasma metabolites and blanks were identified in six of seven samples. The analysis of unchanged nerve agent provided five agents/blanks and the sixth agent after further investigation. The determination of the regenerated agents also provided only five clear findings during the first screening because of a rather noisy baseline. Therefore, the sample preparation was extended by a size exclusion step performed before addition of fluoride which visibly reduced baseline noise and thus improved identification of the two missing agents. The test clearly showed that verification should be performed by analysing more than one biomarker to ensure identification of the agent(s). Copyright (c) 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Cytoplasmic Localization of HTLV-1 HBZ Protein: A Biomarker of HTLV-1-Associated Myelopathy/Tropical Spastic Paraparesis (HAM/TSP).

PubMed

Baratella, Marco; Forlani, Greta; Raval, Goutham U; Tedeschi, Alessandra; Gout, Olivier; Gessain, Antoine; Tosi, Giovanna; Accolla, Roberto S

2017-01-01

HTLV-1 is the causative agent of a severe form of adult T cell leukemia/Lymphoma (ATL), and of a chronic progressive neuromyelopathy designated HTLV-1 associated myelopathy/tropical spastic paraparesis (HAM/TSP). Two important HTLV-1-encoded proteins, Tax-1 and HBZ, play crucial roles in the generation and maintenance of the oncogenic process. Less information is instead available on the molecular and cellular mechanisms leading to HAM/TSP. More importantly, no single specific biomarker has been described that unambiguously define the status of HAM/TSP. Here we report for the first time the finding that HBZ, described until now as an exclusive nuclear protein both in chronically infected and in ATL cells, is instead exclusively localized in the cytoplasm of peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) from patients suffering of HAM/TSP. Interestingly, at the single cell level, HBZ and Tax-1 proteins are never found co-expressed in the same cell, suggesting the existence of mechanisms of expression uncoupling of these two important HTLV-1 viral products in HAM/TSP patients. Cells expressing cytoplasmic HBZ were almost exclusively found in the CD4+ T cell compartment that was not, at least in a representative HAM/TSP patient, expressing the CD25 marker. Less than 1 percent CD8+ T cells were fond positive for HBZ, while B cells and NK cells were found negative for HBZ in HAM/TSP patients. Our results identify the cytoplasmic localization of HBZ in HAM/TSP patient as a possible biomarker of this rather neglected tropical disease, and raise important hypotheses on the role of HBZ in the pathogenesis of the neuromyelopathy associated to HTLV-1 infection.

5 CFR 733.102 - Exclusion of employees in the Criminal Division of the United States Department of Justice.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... 5 Administrative Personnel 2 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Exclusion of employees in the Criminal... OFFICE OF PERSONNEL MANAGEMENT (CONTINUED) CIVIL SERVICE REGULATIONS (CONTINUED) POLITICAL ACTIVITY-FEDERAL EMPLOYEES RESIDING IN DESIGNATED LOCALITIES § 733.102 Exclusion of employees in the Criminal...

49 CFR 40.361 - What is the purpose of a public interest exclusion (PIE)?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... transportation employers and employees from serious noncompliance with DOT drug and alcohol testing rules, the Department's policy is to ensure that employers conduct business only with responsible service agents. (b... alcohol testing regulations, has shown that it is not currently acting in a responsible manner. (c) A PIE...

Jordanian National Football "Muslimat" Players: Interrupting Islamophobia in FIFA's "Hijab" Ban

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hamzeh, Manal

2015-01-01

Background: Though "muslim" females exclusion from physical activities and sports has concerned scholars for years, they are still being theorized out of context and out of history and not as agents in their own lives. Within the prevailing context of the "War on Terror," "muslim" females are becoming more racialized…

Diversity and impact of herbivorous insects on Brazilian peppertree in Florida prior to release of exotic biological control agents

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

The impact of insect herbivores on the performance of Brazilian peppertree, Schinus terebinthifolia Raddi (Anacardiaceae), was evaluated at two locations in Florida using an insecticide exclusion method. Although several species of insect herbivores were collected on the invasive tree, there was no...

Social Lift or Social Exclusion?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Aleshina, M. V.; Pleve, I. R.

2010-01-01

Transmitting the achievements of civilization and the values of culture to younger generations is the task of today's higher education as the agent of socialization, the accumulation of human capital, and the formation of the middle class. All of these vital functions of higher education can be accomplished provided that efforts are made to ensure…

77 FR 62521 - Prospective Grant of Exclusive License: The Development of Therapeutic Agents for the Treatment...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-10-15

...- cell Lymphoma AGENCY: National Institutes of Health, Public Health Service, HHS. ACTION: Notice...) incorporating a p53 isoform antisense oligonucleotide as a single biologic therapy to treat T- cell lymphoma... inventions concern i) compositions and methods for targeted delivery of inhibitory nucleic acids to cells...

21 CFR 589.2000 - Animal proteins prohibited in ruminant feed.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... manufacturing method that has been validated by the Food and Drug Administration to deactivate the agent that... Food and Drug Administration; or (iii) Use exclusively a method for controlling the manufacturing... 21 Food and Drugs 6 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Animal proteins prohibited in ruminant feed. 589...

Contrasting Scientific Knowledge with Knowledge from the Lifeworld: The Dialogic Inclusion Contract

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Padros, Maria; Garcia, Rocio; de Mello, Roseli; Molina, Silvia

2011-01-01

The Dialogic Inclusion Contract (DIC) consists in an agreement between the scientific community and social agents to define successful actions aimed at overcoming social exclusion in highly underprivileged areas. Taking the case of a Spanish neighborhood that is generating important transformations, this article explores the process of defining…

Glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase deficiency: not exclusively in males.

PubMed

van den Broek, Leonie; Heylen, Evelien; van den Akker, Machiel

2016-12-01

Glucose-6-phosphate (G6PD) deficiency is the most common human enzyme defect, often presenting with neonatal jaundice and/or acute hemolytic anemia, triggered by oxidizing agents. G6PD deficiency is an X-linked, hereditary disease, mainly affecting men, but should also be considered in females with an oxidative hemolysis.

Baby-Friendly Practices Minimize Newborn Infants Weight Loss.

PubMed

Procaccini, Diane; Curley, Ann L Cupp; Goldman, Martha

2018-04-01

It is accepted that newborns lose weight in the first few days of life. Baby-Friendly practices that support breastfeeding may affect newborn weight loss. The objective of this study were: 1) To determine whether Baby-Friendly practices are associated with term newborn weight loss day 0-2 in three feeding categories (exclusively breastfed, mixed formula fed and breastfed, and formula fed). 2) To determine whether Baby-Friendly practices increase exclusive breast feeding rates in different ethnic populations. This was a retrospective case-control study. Term newborn birth weight, neonatal weights days 0-2, feeding type, type of birth, and demographic information were collected for 1,000 births for the year before Baby-Friendly designation (2010) and 1,000 in 2013 (after designation). Ultimately 683 in the first group and 518 in the second met the inclusion criteria. Mean weight loss decreased day 0-2 for infants in all feeding types after the initiation of Baby-Friendly practices. There was a statistically significant effect of Baby-Friendly designation on weight loss for day 0-2 in exclusively breastfed infants (p < 0.01) after controlling for birth weight. Exclusive breast feeding increased in all ethnic groups after Baby-Friendly practices were put in place. There was a decrease in mean weight loss day 0-2 regardless of feeding type after Baby-Friendly designation. Exclusive breast feeding increased in the presence of Baby-Friendly practices.

21 CFR 316.31 - Scope of orphan-drug exclusive approval.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... use in the rare disease or condition for which the drug was designated, or for select indication(s) or use(s) within the rare disease or condition for which the drug was designated. Unless FDA previously... indication(s) or uses(s) within the rare disease or condition not protected by the exclusive approval. If the...

75 FR 74545 - Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Final Rule Designating Critical Habitat for...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-11-30

... the benefits of exclusion outweigh the benefits of inclusion of approximately 118 ac (48 ha) of land... habitat designation under section 4(b)(2) of the Act. For a complete discussion of the benefits of... and determined that the benefits of exclusion outweigh the benefits of inclusion of approximately 160...

Development of a nested-PCR assay for the rapid detection of Pilidiella granati in pomegranate fruit

PubMed Central

Yang, Xue; Hameed, Uzma; Zhang, Ai-Fang; Zang, Hao-Yu; Gu, Chun-Yan; Chen, Yu; Xu, Yi-Liu

2017-01-01

Pilidiella granati, a causal agent of twig blight and crown rot of pomegranate, is an emerging threat that may cause severe risk to the pomegranate industry in the future. Development of a rapid assay for the timely and accurate detection of P. granati will be helpful in the active surveillance and management of the disease caused by this pathogen. In this study, a nested PCR method was established for the detection of P. granati. Comparative analysis of genetic diversity within 5.8S rDNA internal transcribed spacer (ITS) sequences of P. granati and 21 other selected fungal species was performed to design species-specific primers (S1 and S2). This primer pair successfully amplified a 450 bp product exclusively from the genomic DNA of P. granati. The developed method can detect 10 pg genomic DNA of the pathogen in about 6 h. This technique was successfully applied to detect the natural infection of P. granati in the pomegranate fruit. The designed protocol is rapid and precise with a high degree of sensitivity. PMID:28106107

Evaluation of standardized sample collection, packaging, and ...

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

Journal Sample collection procedures and primary receptacle (sample container and bag) decontamination methods should prevent contaminant transfer between contaminated and non-contaminated surfaces and areas during bio-incident operations. Cross-contamination of personnel, equipment, or sample containers may result in the exfiltration of biological agent from the exclusion (hot) zone and have unintended negative consequences on response resources, activities and outcomes. The current study was designed to: (1) evaluate currently recommended sample collection and packaging procedures to identify procedural steps that may increase the likelihood of spore exfiltration or contaminant transfer; (2) evaluate the efficacy of currently recommended primary receptacle decontamination procedures; and (3) evaluate the efficacy of outer packaging decontamination methods. Wet- and dry-deposited fluorescent tracer powder was used in contaminant transfer tests to qualitatively evaluate the currently-recommended sample collection procedures. Bacillus atrophaeus spores, a surrogate for Bacillus anthracis, were used to evaluate the efficacy of spray- and wipe-based decontamination procedures.

Reviews on 1,4-naphthoquinones from Diospyros L.

PubMed

Nematollahi, Alireza; Aminimoghadamfarouj, Noushin; Wiart, Christophe

2012-01-01

The genus Diospyros is one of the most important sources of bioactive compounds, exclusively 1,4-naphthoquinones. The following information is an attempt to cover the developments in the biology and phytochemistry of 1,4-naphthoquinones isolated from this genus, as well as the studies done and the suggested mechanisms regarding their activities. During the past 60 years, many of these agents have been isolated from Diospyros L. Twelve considerable bioactive structures are reported in this review. The basic 1,4-naphthoquinone skeletons, on which a large number of studies have been done, are plumbagin and diospyrin. Today, the potential for development of leads from 1,4-naphthoquinones obtained from Diospyros L. is growing dramatically, mainly in the area of anticancer and antibacterial investigations. The data prepared and described here are intended to be served as a reference tool to the natural products and chemistry specialists in order to expand the rational drug design.

49 CFR 214.321 - Exclusive track occupancy.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

..., DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION RAILROAD WORKPLACE SAFETY Roadway Worker Protection § 214.321 Exclusive track... printed document directly, by relay through a designated employee, in a data transmission, or by oral...

49 CFR 214.321 - Exclusive track occupancy.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

..., DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION RAILROAD WORKPLACE SAFETY Roadway Worker Protection § 214.321 Exclusive track... printed document directly, by relay through a designated employee, in a data transmission, or by oral...

29 CFR 18.615 - Exclusion of witnesses.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... OFFICE OF ADMINISTRATIVE LAW JUDGES Rules of Evidence Witnesses § 18.615 Exclusion of witnesses. At the... authorize exclusion of a party who is a natural person, or an officer or employee of a party which is not a natural person designated as its representative by its attorney, or a person whose presence is shown by a...

29 CFR 18.615 - Exclusion of witnesses.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... OFFICE OF ADMINISTRATIVE LAW JUDGES Rules of Evidence Witnesses § 18.615 Exclusion of witnesses. At the... authorize exclusion of a party who is a natural person, or an officer or employee of a party which is not a natural person designated as its representative by its attorney, or a person whose presence is shown by a...

29 CFR 18.615 - Exclusion of witnesses.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... OFFICE OF ADMINISTRATIVE LAW JUDGES Rules of Evidence Witnesses § 18.615 Exclusion of witnesses. At the... authorize exclusion of a party who is a natural person, or an officer or employee of a party which is not a natural person designated as its representative by its attorney, or a person whose presence is shown by a...

29 CFR 18.615 - Exclusion of witnesses.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... OFFICE OF ADMINISTRATIVE LAW JUDGES Rules of Evidence Witnesses § 18.615 Exclusion of witnesses. At the... authorize exclusion of a party who is a natural person, or an officer or employee of a party which is not a natural person designated as its representative by its attorney, or a person whose presence is shown by a...

29 CFR 18.615 - Exclusion of witnesses.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... OFFICE OF ADMINISTRATIVE LAW JUDGES Rules of Evidence Witnesses § 18.615 Exclusion of witnesses. At the... authorize exclusion of a party who is a natural person, or an officer or employee of a party which is not a natural person designated as its representative by its attorney, or a person whose presence is shown by a...

21 CFR 516.31 - Scope of MUMS-drug exclusive marketing rights.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... 21 Food and Drugs 6 2013-04-01 2013-04-01 false Scope of MUMS-drug exclusive marketing rights. 516... SERVICES (CONTINUED) ANIMAL DRUGS, FEEDS, AND RELATED PRODUCTS NEW ANIMAL DRUGS FOR MINOR USE AND MINOR SPECIES Designation of a Minor Use or Minor Species New Animal Drug § 516.31 Scope of MUMS-drug exclusive...

21 CFR 516.31 - Scope of MUMS-drug exclusive marketing rights.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... 21 Food and Drugs 6 2012-04-01 2012-04-01 false Scope of MUMS-drug exclusive marketing rights. 516... SERVICES (CONTINUED) ANIMAL DRUGS, FEEDS, AND RELATED PRODUCTS NEW ANIMAL DRUGS FOR MINOR USE AND MINOR SPECIES Designation of a Minor Use or Minor Species New Animal Drug § 516.31 Scope of MUMS-drug exclusive...

21 CFR 516.31 - Scope of MUMS-drug exclusive marketing rights.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... 21 Food and Drugs 6 2011-04-01 2011-04-01 false Scope of MUMS-drug exclusive marketing rights. 516... SERVICES (CONTINUED) ANIMAL DRUGS, FEEDS, AND RELATED PRODUCTS NEW ANIMAL DRUGS FOR MINOR USE AND MINOR SPECIES Designation of a Minor Use or Minor Species New Animal Drug § 516.31 Scope of MUMS-drug exclusive...

21 CFR 516.31 - Scope of MUMS-drug exclusive marketing rights.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... 21 Food and Drugs 6 2014-04-01 2014-04-01 false Scope of MUMS-drug exclusive marketing rights. 516... SERVICES (CONTINUED) ANIMAL DRUGS, FEEDS, AND RELATED PRODUCTS NEW ANIMAL DRUGS FOR MINOR USE AND MINOR SPECIES Designation of a Minor Use or Minor Species New Animal Drug § 516.31 Scope of MUMS-drug exclusive...

21 CFR 516.31 - Scope of MUMS-drug exclusive marketing rights.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... 21 Food and Drugs 6 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Scope of MUMS-drug exclusive marketing rights. 516... SERVICES (CONTINUED) ANIMAL DRUGS, FEEDS, AND RELATED PRODUCTS NEW ANIMAL DRUGS FOR MINOR USE AND MINOR SPECIES Designation of a Minor Use or Minor Species New Animal Drug § 516.31 Scope of MUMS-drug exclusive...

Career Guidance and Social Exclusion: A Cautionary Tale.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Watts, A. G.

2001-01-01

Examines the relationship of career guidance to public-policy interventions designed to address social exclusion. Analyzes the nature and origin of the concept of social exclusion and reviews the roles of career guidance in response to it, particularly in relation to young people who have dropped out of formal education or are at high risk of…

First record of Acizzia jamatonica (Hemiptera: Psyllidae) in North America: friend or foe?

Treesearch

Michael D. Ulyshen; Douglass Miller

2007-01-01

Acizzia jamatonica (Kuwayama) (Hemiptera: Sternorrhyncha: Psyllidae) is reported for the first time in North America. Because the species is thought to feed exclusively on Albizia, it may prove to be an effective biocontrol agent against the invasive Albizia julibrissin Durazzini in the southeastern United States. Because A. julibrissin is also an ornamental plant of...

49 CFR 40.399 - How does the Department notify service agents of its decision?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... PROCEDURES FOR TRANSPORTATION WORKPLACE DRUG AND ALCOHOL TESTING PROGRAMS Public Interest Exclusions § 40.399.... The notice includes the following elements: (a) If the decision is not to issue a PIE, a statement of the reasons for the decision, including findings of fact with respect to any material factual issues...

Temperature and Particle Size Dependence of Sodium Bicarbonate Inhibition of Methane/Air Flames.

DTIC Science & Technology

1982-11-03

with thermal theories dating back to those of Mallard and Le Chatelier . They proposed that it was a propagation of heat back * ~ ~ -7 7 - 777* - . 41...inhibiting effects * can be separated in principle , the action of a given inhibiting agent does not have to fall exclusively in the realm of one or an- other

Laboratory and field experimental evaluation of host plant specificity of Aceria solstitialis, a prospective biological control agent of yellow starthistle

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Yellow starthistle (Centaurea solstitialis) is an invasive annual weed in the western USA that is native to the Mediterranean Region and is a target for classical biological control. Aceria solstitialis is an eriophyid mite that has been found exclusively in association with yellow starthistle in I...

78 FR 1848 - Intent To Grant an Exclusive License of a U.S. Government-Owned Invention

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-01-09

..., entitled ``Method of Diagnosing of Exposure to Toxic Agents by Measuring Distinct Pattern in the Levels of..., Inc., with its principal place of business at 4938 Hampden Lane 319, Bethesda, Maryland 20814-2914. ADDRESSES: Commander, U.S. Army Medical Research and Materiel Command, ATTN: Command Judge Advocate, MCMR-JA...

Food safety. [chemical contaminants and human toxic diseases

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Pier, S. M.; Valentine, J. L.

1975-01-01

Illness induced by unsafe food is a problem of great public health significance. This study relates exclusively to the occurrence of chemical agents which will result in food unsafe for human consumption since the matter of food safety is of paramount importance in the mission and operation of the manned spacecraft program of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.

Muscavirus (MdHV) disease dynamics in house fly populations – how is this virus transmitted and has it potential as a biological control agent?

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

The newly classified family Hytrosaviridae comprises several double-stranded DNA viruses that have been isolated from various dipteran species. These viruses cause characteristic salivary gland hypertrophy and suppress gonad development in their hosts. One member, Muscavirus or MdHV, exclusively in...

Biology and host specificity of Rhinusa pilosa, a recommended biological control agent of Linaria vulgaris

Treesearch

Andre Gassmann; Rosemarie De Clerck-Floate; Sharlene Sing; Ivo Tosevski; Milana Mitrovic; Olivier Krstic

2014-01-01

Linaria vulgaris Mill. (Plantaginaceae), common or yellow toadflax, is a Eurasian short-lived perennial forb invasive throughout temperate North America. Rhinusa pilosa (Gyllenhal) (Coleoptera, Curculionidae) is a univoltine shoot-galling weevil found exclusively on L. vulgaris in Europe. Under no-choice test conditions, 13 non-native Linaria species exposed toR....

Recycling of Zinc- and Lead-Bearing Residues with Pyrolysis Gas

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pichler, C.; Antrekowitsch, J.

2015-09-01

Efforts in the metallurgical industry for an approximation to the zero waste concept has led to many different investigations. Together with the greenhouse effect, CO2 emissions have caused additional costs for different process steps in the industry. For this reason, alternative carbon carriers have been sought, and charcoal was found to be an ideal substitute, due to its CO2 neutrality. In order to use it in the metallurgical industry, an optimization of the charcoal production through a carbonization process must be carried out. Beside the charcoal, pyrolysis gas also occurs during the heating of wood or agricultural wastes under the exclusion of air. Because of combustible compounds in this gas, it is possible to use it as a reduction agent instead of fossil carbon carriers. Together with the idea of preventing landfilling of metallurgical by-products, an investigation was carried out to treat zinc- and lead-containing materials. For this issue a special process concept was designed and developed. The main aspect was to recycle the zinc- and lead-containing Waelz slag, which results from the processing of steel mill dusts, in a vertical retort. Two different sizes of facilities were constructed to perform the reaction system of the solid Waelz slag with the gaseous reduction agent of pyrolysis gas.

Interventions designed to promote exclusive breastfeeding in high-income countries: a systematic review.

PubMed

Skouteris, Helen; Nagle, Cate; Fowler, Michelle; Kent, Bridie; Sahota, Pinki; Morris, Heather

2014-04-01

Worldwide, women fail to reach the recommended exclusive breastfeeding target of 6 months postpartum. The objective of this study was to present a conceptual and methodological synthesis of interventions designed to promote exclusive breastfeeding to 6 months in high-income countries. A systematic search of leading databases was conducted for scholarly peer-reviewed randomized trials published between January 2000 and June 2013. Seventeen articles were identified as relevant; all were published in English and assessed exclusive breastfeeding with a follow-up period extending beyond 4 months postpartum. Articles were analyzed for overall quality of evidence, regarding duration of exclusive breastfeeding, using the Grading and Recommendations Assessment, Development, and Evaluation approach. A significant increase in the duration of exclusive breastfeeding was found in eight of the 17 studies, with most interventions using supportive or educational approaches. Interventions in pregnancy focused on educating mothers on the benefits of exclusive breastfeeding. Fifteen interventions took place, at least in part, in the postnatal period and provided educational and emotional support to mothers. Of the eight successful interventions, five took part in the postnatal period in the mothers' own homes. The quality of the evidence for duration of exclusive breastfeeding was moderate. The most successful interventions were conducted in the postnatal period and over a long period of time; however, the findings were inconsistent. No study assessed intervention fidelity, and only two studies noted maternal body mass index, a variable known to affect exclusive breastfeeding rates. Further research is needed to provide a robust evidence base to inform future interventions.

[Retrospective analysis of correlative factors between digestive system injury and anticoagulant or antiplatelet-agents].

PubMed

Cui, Ning; Luo, Hesheng

2014-05-27

To explore the correlative factors and clinical characteristics of digestive system injury during the treatment of anticoagulant and (or) antiplatelet-agents. A total of 1 443 hospitalized patients on anticoagulant and (or) antiplatelet-agents from January 2010 to December 2013 at Renmin Hospital of Wuhan University were analyzed retrospectively. Their length of hospital stay was from 5 to 27 days. Most of them were elderly males (n = 880, 61.0%) with an average age of (62 ± 6) years. 1 138 patients (78.9%) were farmers, workers or someone without a specific occupation. During the treatment of anticoagulant/antiplatelet-agents, statistical difference existed (P = 0.01) between positively and negatively previous digestive disease groups for actively newly occurring digestive system injury (16.0% (41/256) vs 15.9% (189/1 187)). After the dosing of anticoagulant and (or) antiplatelet-agents, 57 (66.3%, 57/86) patients were complicated by hemorrhage of digestive tract, taking 62.9% (61/97) of all positive result patients for Helicobacter pylori test. Comparing preventive PPI group with no PPI group, there was no marked statistical differences (P = 2.67) for digestive system complication (including hemorrhage of digestive tract) while receiving anticoagulant and (or) antiplatelet-agents (13.9% (74/533) vs 17.1% (156/910)). During anticoagulant and/or antiplatelet-agent therapy, 185 patients (12.8%) were complicated by peptic ulcer or peptic ulcer with bleeding, 40 patients (2.8%) had erosive gastritis and 5 (0.3%) developed acute gastric mucosal lesions. And 42 of 76 patients complicated by hemorrhage of digestive tract underwent endoscopic hemostasis while 2 patients were operated. Ninety-seven patients (6.7%) died, including 61 (62.9%, 61/97) from hemorrhage of digestive tract. The remainder became cured, improved and discharged. Moreover, no significant statistical differences existed (P = 2.29) among three combination group (aspirin, clopidogrel, warfarin), two combination group (aspirin, clopidogrel), exclusive aspirin group and exclusive warfarin group in short-term (<27 d) mortality. It is necessary to clearly dictate the details of medication to the patients not highly educated. Elder, male, history of digestive system disease and Helicobacter pylori infection are possibly highly risk correlative factors for digestive system complications during anticoagulant/antiplatelet-agent therapy. The short-term protective effect of routine dose of PPI is inconspicuous. No significant correlation exists between short-term mortality and the dosage (or type) of anticoagulant/antiplatelet-agents.

Effects of hydration on steric and electric charge-induced interstitial volume exclusion--a model.

PubMed

Øien, Alf H; Justad, Sigrid R; Tenstad, Olav; Wiig, Helge

2013-09-03

The presence of collagen and charged macromolecules like glycosaminoglycans (GAGs) in the interstitial space limits the space available for plasma proteins and other macromolecules. This phenomenon, known as interstitial exclusion, is of importance for interstitial fluid volume regulation. Physical/mathematical models are presented for calculating the exclusion of electrically charged and neutral macromolecules that equilibrate in the interstitium under various degrees of hydration. Here, a central hypothesis is that the swelling of highly electrically charged GAGs with increased hydration shields parts of the neutral collagen of the interstitial matrix from interacting with electrically charged macromolecules, such that exclusion of charged macromolecules exhibits change due to steric and charge effects. GAGs are also thought to allow relatively small neutral, but also charged macromolecules neutralized by a very high ionic strength, diffuse into the interior of GAGs, whereas larger macromolecules may not. Thus, in the model, relatively small electrically charged macromolecules, such as human serum albumin, and larger neutral macromolecules such as IgG, will have quite similar total volume exclusion properties in the interstitium. Our results are in agreement with ex vivo and in vivo experiments, and suggest that the charge of GAGs or macromolecular drugs may be targeted to increase the tissue uptake of macromolecular therapeutic agents. Copyright © 2013 Biophysical Society. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Emergent Aerospace Designs Using Negotiating Autonomous Agents

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Deshmukh, Abhijit; Middelkoop, Timothy; Krothapalli, Anjaneyulu; Smith, Charles

2000-01-01

This paper presents a distributed design methodology where designs emerge as a result of the negotiations between different stake holders in the process, such as cost, performance, reliability, etc. The proposed methodology uses autonomous agents to represent design decision makers. Each agent influences specific design parameters in order to maximize their utility. Since the design parameters depend on the aggregate demand of all the agents in the system, design agents need to negotiate with others in the market economy in order to reach an acceptable utility value. This paper addresses several interesting research issues related to distributed design architectures. First, we present a flexible framework which facilitates decomposition of the design problem. Second, we present overview of a market mechanism for generating acceptable design configurations. Finally, we integrate learning mechanisms in the design process to reduce the computational overhead.

Contrast between Spain and the Netherlands in the hidden obstacles to re-entry into the labour market due to a criminal record.

PubMed

Kurtovic, Elina; Rovira, Marti

2017-09-01

This article aims at analysing the differences between European countries in the obstacles ex-offenders face due to having a criminal record. First, a comparative analytical framework is introduced that takes into account all the different elements that can lead to exclusion from the labour market by the dissemination of criminal record information. This model brings together social norms (macro level), social actors (meso level) and individual choices (micro level) in the same framework. Secondly, this model is used to compare the different impact of having a criminal record in Spain and the Netherlands. This comparison highlights three important findings: (1) the difference between norms of transparency/privacy and inclusive/exclusive ideals, (2) the significant role of social control agents, such as probation agencies and the ex-offenders' social network, in shaping the opportunities that they have, and (3) self-exclusion seems to be a key mechanism for understanding unsuccessful re-entry into the labour market.

Contrast between Spain and the Netherlands in the hidden obstacles to re-entry into the labour market due to a criminal record

PubMed Central

Kurtovic, Elina; Rovira, Marti

2016-01-01

This article aims at analysing the differences between European countries in the obstacles ex-offenders face due to having a criminal record. First, a comparative analytical framework is introduced that takes into account all the different elements that can lead to exclusion from the labour market by the dissemination of criminal record information. This model brings together social norms (macro level), social actors (meso level) and individual choices (micro level) in the same framework. Secondly, this model is used to compare the different impact of having a criminal record in Spain and the Netherlands. This comparison highlights three important findings: (1) the difference between norms of transparency/privacy and inclusive/exclusive ideals, (2) the significant role of social control agents, such as probation agencies and the ex-offenders’ social network, in shaping the opportunities that they have, and (3) self-exclusion seems to be a key mechanism for understanding unsuccessful re-entry into the labour market. PMID:28989325

Stable fixation with absorbable sutures in craniofacial surgery.

PubMed

Linz, C; Kunz, F; Krauß, J; Böhm, H; Wirth, C; Hartmann, S; Wirbelauer, J; Schweitzer, T

2016-05-01

The present study analyses the exclusive use of absorbable suture material (Vicryl(®), Ethicon, Germany) in the fixation of transposed bone segments in craniofacial surgery without modification of the osteotomy design. Among 129 children up to 24 months of age, osteosynthesis was conducted exclusively with Vicryl(®) sutures. The stability of postoperative results was evaluated and possible foreign body reactions were examined within the framework of clinical and radiological routine checks. All examined children exhibited stable postoperative conditions while the length of hospital stay was not affected. X-ray examinations of the skull in two planes demonstrated good bony union in all cases. Relevant foreign body reactions were not observed. The exclusive application of absorbable suture material enables stable and cost effective osteosynthesis. Significant foreign body reactions were not observed. The exclusive use of absorbable sutures did not alter the osteotomy design. Copyright © 2016 European Association for Cranio-Maxillo-Facial Surgery. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

49 CFR 40.363 - On what basis may the Department issue a PIE?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... 49 Transportation 1 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false On what basis may the Department issue a PIE? 40... TRANSPORTATION WORKPLACE DRUG AND ALCOHOL TESTING PROGRAMS Public Interest Exclusions § 40.363 On what basis may the Department issue a PIE? (a) If you are a service agent, the Department may issue a PIE concerning...

Cholesterol, cancer, and rebooting a treatment for athlete's foot.

PubMed

Chua, Ngee Kiat; Coates, Hudson W; Brown, Andrew J

2018-04-18

A key enzyme in cholesterol synthesis is placed firmly on the oncogenic map and demonstrated to be a potential therapeutic target in liver cancer by repurposing a common antifungal agent (Liu et al , this issue). Copyright © 2018 The Authors, some rights reserved; exclusive licensee American Association for the Advancement of Science. No claim to original U.S. Government Works.

Possible mechanism for anthraquinone species diffusion in alkaline pulping

Treesearch

X.-S. Chai; J. Samp; Q.X. Hou; S.-H Yoon; J.Y. Zhu

2007-01-01

An analysis of the effectiveness of anthraquinone (AQ) in kraft-AQ pulping in terms of its mechanism of transport has been conducted. Our previous work showed that caustic solutions of wood lignin can decrease the membrane exclusion for anthraquinones, i.e., the presence of wood lignin enhances the ability of AQ to pass through a membrane when a reducing agent is...

The Agreement between the Southwest Wisconsin Board of Vocational, Technical & Adult Education and the Professional Staff Association, 1987-1990.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Southwest Wisconsin Vocational, Technical, and Adult Education District 3, Fennimore.

The collective bargaining agreement between the Southwest Wisconsin Board of Vocational, Technical and Adult Education and the Professional Staff Association of Southwest Wisconsin Technical Institute, the exclusive bargaining agent for all full-time teaching personnel in the college, is presented, covering the period 1987 to 1990. The 11 articles…

37 CFR 201.5 - Corrections and amplifications of copyright registrations; applications for supplementary...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

...) The year when the basic registration was completed; (iv) The name or names of the author or authors of... registration has been completed, any author or other copyright claimant of the work, or the owner of any exclusive right in the work, or the duly authorized agent of any such author, other claimant, or owner, who...

37 CFR 201.5 - Corrections and amplifications of copyright registrations; applications for supplementary...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

...) The year when the basic registration was completed; (iv) The name or names of the author or authors of... registration has been completed, any author or other copyright claimant of the work, or the owner of any exclusive right in the work, or the duly authorized agent of any such author, other claimant, or owner, who...

The herb community of a tropical forest in central Panama: dynamics and impact of mammalian herbivores

Treesearch

Alejandro A. Royo; Walter P. Carson

2005-01-01

Mammals are hypothesized to either promote plant diversity by preventing competitive exclusion or limit diversity by reducing the abundance of sensitive plant species through their activities as browsers or disturbance agents. Previous studies of herbivore impacts in plant communities have focused on tree species and ignored the herbaceous community. In an experiment...

Idiopathic granulomatous mastitis masquerading as carcinoma of the breast: a case report and review of the literature

PubMed Central

Tuli, Richard; O'Hara, Brian J; Hines, Janet; Rosenberg, Anne L

2007-01-01

Background Idiopathic granulomatous mastitis is an uncommon, benign entity with a diagnosis of exclusion. The typical clinical presentation of idiopathic granulomatous mastitis often mimics infection or malignancy. As a result, histopathological confirmation of idiopathic granulomatous mastitis combined with exclusion of infection, malignancy and other causes of granulomatous disease is absolutely necessary. Case Presentation We present a case of a young woman with idiopathic granulomatous mastitis, initially mistaken for mastitis as well as breast carcinoma, and successfully treated with a course of corticosteroids. Conclusion There is no clear clinical consensus regarding the ideal therapeutic management of idiopathic granulomatous mastitis. Treatment options include expectant management with spontaneous remission, corticosteroid therapy, immunosuppressive agents and extensive surgery for refractory cases. PMID:17662130

Percolation and cooperation with mobile agents: geometric and strategy clusters.

PubMed

Vainstein, Mendeli H; Brito, Carolina; Arenzon, Jeferson J

2014-08-01

We study the conditions for persistent cooperation in an off-lattice model of mobile agents playing the Prisoner's Dilemma game with pure, unconditional strategies. Each agent has an exclusion radius r(P), which accounts for the population viscosity, and an interaction radius r(int), which defines the instantaneous contact network for the game dynamics. We show that, differently from the r(P)=0 case, the model with finite-sized agents presents a coexistence phase with both cooperators and defectors, besides the two absorbing phases, in which either cooperators or defectors dominate. We provide, in addition, a geometric interpretation of the transitions between phases. In analogy with lattice models, the geometric percolation of the contact network (i.e., irrespective of the strategy) enhances cooperation. More importantly, we show that the percolation of defectors is an essential condition for their survival. Differently from compact clusters of cooperators, isolated groups of defectors will eventually become extinct if not percolating, independently of their size.

Formal Assurance for Cognitive Architecture Based Autonomous Agent

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bhattacharyya, Siddhartha; Eskridge, Thomas; Neogi, Natasha; Carvalho, Marco

2017-01-01

Autonomous systems are designed and deployed in different modeling paradigms. These environments focus on specific concepts in designing the system. We focus our effort in the use of cognitive architectures to design autonomous agents to collaborate with humans to accomplish tasks in a mission. Our research focuses on introducing formal assurance methods to verify the behavior of agents designed in Soar, by translating the agent to the formal verification environment Uppaal.

8 CFR 1244.18 - Issuance of charging documents; detention.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... seek such a waiver in deportation or exclusion proceedings. The charging document shall constitute... JUSTICE IMMIGRATION REGULATIONS TEMPORARY PROTECTED STATUS FOR NATIONALS OF DESIGNATED STATES § 1244.18... of deportation or exclusion against an alien granted Temporary Protected Status shall constitute a...

Nonsurgical Management of Mitral Valve Endocarditis Due to Cardiobacterium valvarum in a Patient with a Ventricular Septal Defect

PubMed Central

Isais, Florante Santos; Lee, Cheng Chuan

2013-01-01

Cardiobacterium valvarum is a relatively novel agent of infective endocarditis. We describe the first case of infective endocarditis due to this pathogen in the Asian Pacific. This case is unique in its involvement of the mitral valve as well as its clinical resolution exclusively resulting from treatment with antibiotics without resorting to valve replacement/explantation. PMID:23576538

17 CFR 240.10b-18 - Purchases of certain equity securities by the issuer and others.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... authorize Rule 10b-18 purchases by or on behalf of the issuer. (4) Agent independent of the issuer has the... trading volume for that security or, in the event that trading volume data are unavailable, is at least 20... of the security, exclusive of any shares owned by any affiliate; Provided, however, That a block...

37 CFR 201.13 - Notices of objection to certain noncommercial performances of nondramatic literary or musical works.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... exclusive right, initially owned by the author of performance of the type referred to in 17 U.S.C. 110(4... in writing and signed by each copyright owner, or such owner's duly authorized agent, as required by... number of that person, typewritten or printed legibly by hand. (3) If a Notice of Objection is initially...

26 CFR 1.883-1 - Exclusion of income from the international operation of ships or aircraft.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... during the time it is an owner or lessee of one or more entire ships or aircraft and uses such ships or... the case of a ship, the leasing out of the ship under a time or voyage charter (full charter), space...; (v) Ship or aircraft brokering; (vi) Freight forwarding; (vii) The activities of travel agents and...

Bird communities following high-severity fire: Response to single and repeat fires in a mixed-evergreen forest, Oregon, USA

Treesearch

Joseph B. Fontaine; Daniel C. Donato; W. Douglas Robinson; Beverly E. Law; J. Boone Kauffman

2009-01-01

Fire is a widespread natural disturbance agent in most conifer-dominated forests. In light of climate change and the effects of fire exclusion, single and repeated high-severity (stand-replacement) fires have become prominent land management issues. We studied bird communities using point counting in the Klamath-Siskiyou ecoregion of Oregon, USA at various points in...

30 CFR 550.145 - How do I designate an agent or a local agent?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... designate an agent empowered to fulfill your obligations under the Act, the lease, or the regulations in... local agent empowered to receive notices and submit requests, applications, notices, or supplemental...

30 CFR 550.145 - How do I designate an agent or a local agent?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... designate an agent empowered to fulfill your obligations under the Act, the lease, or the regulations in... local agent empowered to receive notices and submit requests, applications, notices, or supplemental...

30 CFR 250.145 - How do I designate an agent or a local agent?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... Director may require you to designate an agent empowered to fulfill your obligations under the Act, the... Regional Supervisor's approval a local agent empowered to receive notices and submit requests, applications...

30 CFR 550.145 - How do I designate an agent or a local agent?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... designate an agent empowered to fulfill your obligations under the Act, the lease, or the regulations in... local agent empowered to receive notices and submit requests, applications, notices, or supplemental...

Tin-117m-labeled stannic (Sn.sup.4+) chelates

DOEpatents

Srivastava, Suresh C.; Meinken, George E.; Richards, Powell

1985-01-01

The radiopharmaceutical reagents of this invention and the class of Tin-117m radiopharmaceuticals are therapeutic and diagnostic agents that incorporate gamma-emitting nuclides that localize in bone after intravenous injection in mammals (mice, rats, dogs, and rabbits). Images reflecting bone structure or function can then be obtained by a scintillation camera that detects the distribution of ionizing radiation emitted by the radioactive agent. Tin-117m-labeled chelates of stannic tin localize almost exclusively in cortical bone. Upon intravenous injection of the reagent, the preferred chelates are phosphonate compounds, preferable, PYP, MDP, EHDP, and DTPA. This class of reagents is therapeutically and diagnostically useful in skeletal scintigraphy and for the radiotherapy of bone tumors and other disorders.

30 CFR 250.145 - How do I designate an agent or a local agent?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... require you to designate an agent empowered to fulfill your obligations under the Act, the lease, or the... approval a local agent empowered to receive notices and submit requests, applications, notices, or...

30 CFR 250.145 - How do I designate an agent or a local agent?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... require you to designate an agent empowered to fulfill your obligations under the Act, the lease, or the... approval a local agent empowered to receive notices and submit requests, applications, notices, or...

30 CFR 250.145 - How do I designate an agent or a local agent?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... require you to designate an agent empowered to fulfill your obligations under the Act, the lease, or the... approval a local agent empowered to receive notices and submit requests, applications, notices, or...

Physical agents used in the management of chronic pain by physical therapists.

PubMed

Allen, Roger J

2006-05-01

Evidence supporting the use of specific physical agents in the management of chronic pain conditions is not definitive; it is largely incomplete and sometimes contradictory. However, the use of agents in chronic pain management programs is common. Within the broad use of physical agents, they are rarely the sole modality of treatment. A 1995 American Physical Therapy Association position statement asserts that "Without documentation which justifies the necessity of the exclusive use of physical agents/modalities, the use of physical agents/modalities, in the absence of other skilled therapeutic or educational intervention, should not be considered physical therapy". Physical agents may serve as useful adjunctive modalities of pain relief or to enhance the effectiveness of other elements in therapy geared toward resolution of movement impairments and restoration of physical function. Given that a conclusive aggregate of findings is unlikely to exist for all permutations of patient conditions, combined with interacting therapeutic modalities, an evidence-based approach to pain management is not always possible or beneficial to the patient. In the face of inconclusive evidence, a theory-based approach may help determine if the therapeutic effect ofa given physical agent has the possibility of being a useful clinical tool in the context of treating a particular patient's mechanism of pain generation. Until controlled efficacy findings are definitive, careful individual patient response monitoring of thoughtful theoretical application of adjunctive physical agents may be a prudent approach to the management of chronic pain.

Meta-Analysis of Infectious Agents and Depression

PubMed Central

Wang, Xiao; Zhang, Liang; Lei, Yang; Liu, Xia; Zhou, Xinyu; Liu, Yiyun; Wang, Mingju; Yang, Liu; Zhang, Lujun; Fan, Songhua; Xie, Peng

2014-01-01

Depression is a debilitating psychiatric disorder and a growing global public health issue. However, the relationships between microbial infections and depression remains uncertain. A computerized literature search of Medline, ISI Web of Knowledge, PsycINFO, and the Cochrane Library was conducted up to May 2013, and 6362 studies were initially identified for screening. Case-control studies detected biomarker of microorganism were included. Based on inclusion and exclusion criteria, 28 studies were finally included to compare the detection of 16 infectious agents in unipolar depressed patients and healthy controls with a positive incident being defined as a positive biochemical marker of microbial infection. A customized form was used for data extraction. Pooled analysis revealed that the majority of the 16 infectious agents were not significantly associated with depression. However, there were statistically significant associations between depression and infection with Borna disease virus, herpes simplex virus-1, varicella zoster virus, Epstein-Barr virus, and Chlamydophila trachomatis. PMID:24681753

40 CFR 766.32 - Exclusions and waivers.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... ACT DIBENZO-PARA-DIOXINS/DIBENZOFURANS Specific Chemical Testing/Reporting Requirements § 766.32...: (1) Exclusions may be granted if. (i) Testing of the appropriate grade of the chemical substance has... a well-designed bioassay with appropriate QA/QC or; (ii) Process and reaction conditions of the...

40 CFR 21.6 - Exclusions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY GENERAL SMALL BUSINESS § 21.6 Exclusions. (a..., except for areawide management agencies designated and approved under section 208 of the Act, shall not... municipality conforming to regulations governing a user charge or capital cost system under section 204(b)(2...

The essential role of fetuin in the serum-induced calcification of collagen.

PubMed

Toroian, Damon; Price, Paul A

2008-02-01

The mineral in bone is located primarily within the collagen fibril, and during mineralization the fibril is formed first and then water within the fibril is replaced with mineral. Our goal is to understand the mechanism of fibril mineralization, and as a first step we recently determined the size exclusion characteristics of the fibril. This study indicates that apatite crystals up to 12 unit cells in size can access the water within the fibril while molecules larger than a 40-kDa protein are excluded. We proposed a novel mechanism for fibril mineralization based on these observations, one that relies exclusively on agents excluded from the fibril. One agent generates crystals outside the fibril, some of which diffuse into the fibril and grow, and the other selectively inhibits crystal growth outside of the fibril. We have tested this mechanism by examining the impact of removing the major serum inhibitor of apatite growth, fetuin, on the serum-induced calcification of collagen. The results of this test show that fetuin determines the location of serum-driven mineralization: in fetuin's presence, mineral forms only within collagen fibrils; in fetuin's absence, mineral forms only in solution outside the fibrils. The X-ray diffraction spectrum of serum-induced mineral is comparable to the spectrum of bone crystals. These observations show that serum calcification activity consists of an as yet unidentified agent that generates crystal nuclei, some of which diffuse into the fibril, and fetuin, which favors fibril mineralization by selectively inhibiting the growth of crystals outside the fibril.

Modeling agent's preferences by its designer's social value orientation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zuckerman, Inon; Cheng, Kan-Leung; Nau, Dana S.

2018-03-01

Human social preferences have been shown to play an important role in many areas of decision-making. There is evidence from the social science literature that human preferences in interpersonal interactions depend partly on a measurable personality trait called, Social Value Orientation (SVO). Automated agents are often written by humans to serve as their delegates when interacting with other agents. Thus, one might expect an agent's behaviour to be influenced by the SVO of its human designer. With that in mind, we present the following: first, we explore, discuss and provide a solution to the question of how SVO tests that were designed for humans can be used to evaluate agents' social preferences. Second, we show that in our example domain there is a medium-high positive correlation between the social preferences of agents and their human designers. Third, we exemplify how the SVO information of the designer can be used to improve the performance of some other agents playing against those agents, and lastly, we develop and exemplify the behavioural signature SVO model which allows us to better predict performances when interactions are repeated and behaviour is adapted.

Contact Active Antimicrobial Coatings Prepared by Polymer Blending.

PubMed

Cuervo-Rodríguez, Rocío; López-Fabal, Fátima; Gómez-Garcés, José L; Muñoz-Bonilla, Alexandra; Fernández-García, Marta

2017-11-01

Herein, contact active antimicrobial films are prepared by simply blending cationic amphiphilic block copolymers with commercial polystyrene (PS). The copolymers are prepared by combining atom transfer radical polymerization and "click chemistry." A variety of copolymers are synthesized, and composed of a PS segment and an antimicrobial block bearing flexible side chain with thiazole and triazole groups, 4-(1-(2-(4-methylthiazol-5-yl)ethyl)-1H-1,2,3-triazol-4-yl) butyl methacrylate (TTBM). The length of the TTBM block is varied as well as the alkylating agent. Different films are prepared from N,N-dimethylformamide solution, containing variable PS-b-PTTBM/PS ratio: from 0 to 100 wt%. Remarkably, the blend films, especially those with 30 and 50 wt% of copolymers, exhibit excellent antimicrobial activities against Gram-positive, Gram-negative bacteria and fungi, even higher than films prepared exclusively from the cationic copolymers. Blends composed of 50 wt% of the copolymers present a more than 99.999% killing efficiency against the studied microorganisms. The better activity found in blends can be due to the higher roughness, which increases the surface area and consequently the contact with the microorganisms. These results demonstrate that the use of blends implies a reduction of the content of antimicrobial agent and also enhances the antimicrobial activity, providing new insights for the better designing of antimicrobial coatings. © 2017 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Radiation-induced controlled polymerization of acrylic acid by RAFT and RAFT-MADIX methods in protic solvents

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sütekin, S. Duygu; Güven, Olgun

2018-01-01

The kinetic investigation of one-pot synthesis of poly(acrylic acid) (PAA) prepared via gamma radiation induced controlled polymerization was reported. PAA homopolymers were prepared by Reversible Addition-Fragmentation Chain Transfer (RAFT) polymerization in the presence of trithiocarbonate-based chain transfer agent (CTA) 2-(Dodecylthiocarbonothioylthio)-2-methylpropionic acid (DDMAT) and also by Reversible Addition-Fragmentation/Macromolecular Design by Inter-change of Xanthates (RAFT/MADIX) polymerization in the presence of a xanthate based CTA O-ethyl-S-(1-methoxycarbonyl) ethyl dithiocarbonate (RA1). The polymerizations were performed at room temperature by the virtue of ionizing radiation. Protic solvents were used for the RAFT polymerization of AA considering environmental profits. The linear first-order kinetic plot, close control of molecular weight by the monomer/CTA molar ratio supported that the polymerization proceeds in a living fashion. The linear increase in molecular weight with conversion monitored by Size Exclusion Chromatography (SEC) is another proof of controlling of polymerization. [Monomer]/[RAFT] ratio and conversion was controlled to obtain PAA in the molecular weight range of 6900-35,800 with narrow molecular weight distributions. Reaction kinetics and effect of the amount of RAFT agent were investigated in detail. Between two different types of CTA, trithiocarbonate based DDMAT was found to be more efficient in terms of low dispersity (Đ) and linear first-order kinetic behavior for the radiation induced controlled synthesis of PAA homopolymers.

Recent advances in metamaterial split-ring-resonator circuits as biosensors and therapeutic agents.

PubMed

RoyChoudhury, Sohini; Rawat, Vaishali; Jalal, Ahmed Hasnain; Kale, S N; Bhansali, Shekhar

2016-12-15

Potential applications of thin film metamaterials are diverse and their realization to offer miniaturized waveguides, antennas and shielding patterns are on anvil. These artificially engineered structures can produce astonishing electromagnetic responses because of their constituents being engineered at much smaller dimensions than the wavelength of the incident electromagnetic wave, hence behaving as artificial materials. Such micro-nano dimensions of thin film metamaterial structures can be customized for various applications due to their exclusive responses to not only electromagnetic, but also to acoustic and thermal waves that surpass the natural materials' properties. In this paper, the recent major advancements in the emerging fields of diagnostics (sensors) and therapeutics involving thin film metamaterials have been reviewed and underlined; discussing their edge over conventional counterpart techniques; concentrating on their design considerations and feasible ways of achieving them. Challenges faced in sensitivity, precision, accuracy and factors that interfere with the degree of performance of the sensors are also dealt with, herein. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Antagonists of the miRNA-Argonaute 2 Protein Complex: Anti-miR-AGOs.

PubMed

Schmidt, Marco F; Korb, Oliver; Abell, Chris

2017-01-01

microRNAs (miRNAs) have been identified as high-value drug targets. A widely applied strategy in miRNA inhibition is the use of antisense agents. However, it has been shown that oligonucleotides are poorly cell permeable because of their complex chemical structure and due to their negatively charged backbone. Consequently, the general application of oligonucleotides in therapy is limited. Since miRNAs' functions are executed exclusively by the Argonaute 2 protein, we therefore describe a protocol for the design of a novel miRNA inhibitor class: antagonists of the miRNA-Argonaute 2 protein complex, so-called anti-miR-AGOs, that not only block the crucial binding site of the target miRNA but also bind to the protein's active site. Due to their lower molecular weight and, thus, more drug-like chemical structure, the novel inhibitor class may show better pharmacokinetic properties than reported oligonucleotide inhibitors, enabling them for potential therapeutic use.

Anticancer activity of Sargassum oligocystum water extract against human cancer cell lines.

PubMed

Zandi, K; Ahmadzadeh, S; Tajbakhsh, S; Rastian, Z; Yousefi, F; Farshadpour, F; Sartavi, K

2010-08-01

Antitumor drug resistance and side effects of antitumor compounds are the most common problems in medicine. Therefore, finding new antitumor agents with low side effects could be interesting. This study was designed to assay antitumor activity of the extract from brown alga Sargassum oligocystum, gathered from Persian Gulf seashore, against K562 and Daudi human cancer cell lines. The research was performed as an in vitro study. The effect of the alga extract on proliferation of cell lines were measured by two methods: MTT assay and trypan blue exclusion test. The most effective antitumor activity has been shown at concentrations 500 microg/ml and 400 microg/ml of the alga extract against Daudi and K562 cell lines, respectively. The results showed that the extracts of brown alga Sargassum oligocystum have remarkable antitumor activity against K562 and Daudi cell lines. It is justified to be suggested for further research such as algal extract fractionation and purification and in vivo studies in order to formulate natural compounds with antitumor activities.

MIDAS: a practical Bayesian design for platform trials with molecularly targeted agents.

PubMed

Yuan, Ying; Guo, Beibei; Munsell, Mark; Lu, Karen; Jazaeri, Amir

2016-09-30

Recent success of immunotherapy and other targeted therapies in cancer treatment has led to an unprecedented surge in the number of novel therapeutic agents that need to be evaluated in clinical trials. Traditional phase II clinical trial designs were developed for evaluating one candidate treatment at a time and thus not efficient for this task. We propose a Bayesian phase II platform design, the multi-candidate iterative design with adaptive selection (MIDAS), which allows investigators to continuously screen a large number of candidate agents in an efficient and seamless fashion. MIDAS consists of one control arm, which contains a standard therapy as the control, and several experimental arms, which contain the experimental agents. Patients are adaptively randomized to the control and experimental agents based on their estimated efficacy. During the trial, we adaptively drop inefficacious or overly toxic agents and 'graduate' the promising agents from the trial to the next stage of development. Whenever an experimental agent graduates or is dropped, the corresponding arm opens immediately for testing the next available new agent. Simulation studies show that MIDAS substantially outperforms the conventional approach. The proposed design yields a significantly higher probability for identifying the promising agents and dropping the futile agents. In addition, MIDAS requires only one master protocol, which streamlines trial conduct and substantially decreases the overhead burden. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

MIDAS: A Practical Bayesian Design for Platform Trials with Molecularly Targeted Agents

PubMed Central

Yuan, Ying; Guo, Beibei; Munsell, Mark; Lu, Karen; Jazaeri, Amir

2016-01-01

Recent success of immunotherapy and other targeted therapies in cancer treatment has led to an unprecedented surge in the number of novel therapeutic agents that need to be evaluated in clinical trials. Traditional phase II clinical trial designs were developed for evaluating one candidate treatment at a time, and thus not efficient for this task. We propose a Bayesian phase II platform design, the Multi-candidate Iterative Design with Adaptive Selection (MIDAS), which allows investigators to continuously screen a large number of candidate agents in an efficient and seamless fashion. MIDAS consists of one control arm, which contains a standard therapy as the control, and several experimental arms, which contain the experimental agents. Patients are adaptively randomized to the control and experimental agents based on their estimated efficacy. During the trial, we adaptively drop inefficacious or overly toxic agents and “graduate” the promising agents from the trial to the next stage of development. Whenever an experimental agent graduates or is dropped, the corresponding arm opens immediately for testing the next available new agent. Simulation studies show that MIDAS substantially outperforms the conventional approach. The proposed design yields a significantly higher probability for identifying the promising agents and dropping the futile agents. In addition, MIDAS requires only one master protocol, which streamlines trial conduct and substantially decreases the overhead burden. PMID:27112322

47 CFR 90.165 - Procedures for mutually exclusive applications.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-10-01

..., the Commission may use competitive bidding, random selection, or comparative hearings, depending on... exclusive applications in a renewal filing group are designated for comparative consideration in a hearing... applications in the filing group for comparative consideration in a hearing. In this event, the result of the...

47 CFR 90.165 - Procedures for mutually exclusive applications.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-10-01

..., the Commission may use competitive bidding, random selection, or comparative hearings, depending on... exclusive applications in a renewal filing group are designated for comparative consideration in a hearing... applications in the filing group for comparative consideration in a hearing. In this event, the result of the...

47 CFR 90.165 - Procedures for mutually exclusive applications.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-10-01

..., the Commission may use competitive bidding, random selection, or comparative hearings, depending on... exclusive applications in a renewal filing group are designated for comparative consideration in a hearing... applications in the filing group for comparative consideration in a hearing. In this event, the result of the...

Buoyancy-generating agents for stomach-specific drug delivery: an overview with special emphasis on floating behavior.

PubMed

Ishak, Rania A H

2015-01-01

Gastric retentive drug delivery provides a promising technology exhibiting an extended gastric residence and a drug release independent of patient related variables. It is usually useful in improving local gastric treatment as well as overcoming drug-related problems .i.e. drugs having narrow absorption window, short half-life or low intestinal solubility. Buoyancy is considered one of the most promising approaches for gastro-retention of dosage forms. Floating drug delivery systems have a bulk density lower than gastric fluids and thus remain buoyant in the stomach causing an increase in gastric residence time. The buoyancy of these systems is attained by the aid of substances responsible to generate the low density. Various agents with different mechanisms were adopted either gas-generating agents, air entrapping swellable polymers, inherent low density substances, porous excipients, hollow/porous particles inducing preparation techniques or sublimating agents. Therefore, this review gives an exclusive descriptive classification of the different categories of these buoyancy-generating agents while representing the related research works. An overview is also conducted to describe relevant techniques assessing the floating behavior of such dosage forms either in vitro or in vivo. Finally, a collection representing FDA-approved floating pharmaceutical products is adopted with emphasis on the buoyancy-generating agent type used in each product.

Continuum models of cohesive stochastic swarms: The effect of motility on aggregation patterns

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hughes, Barry D.; Fellner, Klemens

2013-10-01

Mathematical models of swarms of moving agents with non-local interactions have many applications and have been the subject of considerable recent interest. For modest numbers of agents, cellular automata or related algorithms can be used to study such systems, but in the present work, instead of considering discrete agents, we discuss a class of one-dimensional continuum models, in which the agents possess a density ρ(x,t) at location x at time t. The agents are subject to a stochastic motility mechanism and to a global cohesive inter-agent force. The motility mechanisms covered include classical diffusion, nonlinear diffusion (which may be used to model, in a phenomenological way, volume exclusion or other short-range local interactions), and a family of linear redistribution operators related to fractional diffusion equations. A variety of exact analytic results are discussed, including equilibrium solutions and criteria for unimodality of equilibrium distributions, full time-dependent solutions, and transitions between asymptotic collapse and asymptotic escape. We address the behaviour of the system for diffusive motility in the low-diffusivity limit for both smooth and singular interaction potentials and show how this elucidates puzzling behaviour in fully deterministic non-local particle interaction models. We conclude with speculative remarks about extensions and applications of the models.

25 CFR 519.1 - Designation of an agent by a tribe.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... 25 Indians 2 2011-04-01 2011-04-01 false Designation of an agent by a tribe. 519.1 Section 519.1 Indians NATIONAL INDIAN GAMING COMMISSION, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR GENERAL PROVISIONS SERVICE § 519.1 Designation of an agent by a tribe. By written notification to the Commission, a tribe shall designate an...

25 CFR 519.1 - Designation of an agent by a tribe.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... 25 Indians 2 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Designation of an agent by a tribe. 519.1 Section 519.1 Indians NATIONAL INDIAN GAMING COMMISSION, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR GENERAL PROVISIONS SERVICE § 519.1 Designation of an agent by a tribe. By written notification to the Commission, a tribe shall designate an...

25 CFR 519.1 - Designation of an agent by a tribe.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... 25 Indians 2 2014-04-01 2014-04-01 false Designation of an agent by a tribe. 519.1 Section 519.1 Indians NATIONAL INDIAN GAMING COMMISSION, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR GENERAL PROVISIONS SERVICE § 519.1 Designation of an agent by a tribe. By written notification to the Commission, a tribe shall designate an...

25 CFR 519.1 - Designation of an agent by a tribe.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... 25 Indians 2 2012-04-01 2012-04-01 false Designation of an agent by a tribe. 519.1 Section 519.1 Indians NATIONAL INDIAN GAMING COMMISSION, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR GENERAL PROVISIONS SERVICE § 519.1 Designation of an agent by a tribe. By written notification to the Commission, a tribe shall designate an...

25 CFR 519.1 - Designation of an agent by a tribe.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... 25 Indians 2 2013-04-01 2013-04-01 false Designation of an agent by a tribe. 519.1 Section 519.1 Indians NATIONAL INDIAN GAMING COMMISSION, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR GENERAL PROVISIONS SERVICE § 519.1 Designation of an agent by a tribe. By written notification to the Commission, a tribe shall designate an...

Herbivory and nutrient limitation protect warming tundra from lowland species' invasion and diversity loss.

PubMed

Eskelinen, Anu; Kaarlejärvi, Elina; Olofsson, Johan

2017-01-01

Herbivory and nutrient limitation can increase the resistance of temperature-limited systems to invasions under climate warming. We imported seeds of lowland species to tundra under factorial treatments of warming, fertilization, herbivore exclusion and biomass removal. We show that warming alone had little impact on lowland species, while exclusion of native herbivores and relaxation of nutrient limitation greatly benefitted them. In contrast, warming alone benefitted resident tundra species and increased species richness; however, these were canceled by negative effects of herbivore exclusion and fertilization. Dominance of lowland species was associated with low cover of tundra species and resulted in decreased species richness. Our results highlight the critical role of biotic and abiotic filters unrelated to temperature in protecting tundra under warmer climate. While scarcity of soil nutrients and native herbivores act as important agents of resistance to invasions by lowland species, they concurrently promote overall species coexistence. However, when these biotic and abiotic resistances are relaxed, invasion of lowland species can lead to decreased abundance of resident tundra species and diminished diversity. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Pharmacologic conversion of atrial fibrillation: a systematic review of available evidence.

PubMed

Slavik, R S; Tisdale, J E; Borzak, S

2001-01-01

This report reviews the efficacy of currently available antiarrhythmic agents for conversion of atrial fibrilation (AF) to normal sinus rhythm (NSR). A systematic search of literature in the English language was done on computerized databases, such as MEDLINE, EMBASE, and Current Contents, in reference lists, by manual searching, and in contact with expert informants. Published studies involving humans that described the use of antiarrhythmic therapy for conversion of AF to NSR were considered and only studies that examined the use of agents currently available in the United States were included. Studies exclusively describing antiarrhythmic therapy for conversion of postsurgical AF were excluded. The methodology and results of each trial were assessed and attempts were made to acquire additional information from investigators when needed. Assessment of methodological quality was incorporated into a levels-of-evidence scheme. Eighty-eight trials were included, of which 34 (39%) included a placebo group (level I data). We found in recent-onset AF of less than 7 days, intravenous (i.v.) procainamide, high-dose i.v. or high-dose combination i.v. and oral amiodarone, oral quinidine, oral flecainide, oral propafenone, and high-dose oral amiodarone are more effective than placebo for converting AF to NSR. In recent-onset AF of less than 90 days, i.v. ibutilide is more effective than placebo and i.v. procainamide. In chronic AF, oral dofetilide converts AF to NSR within 72 hours, and oral propafenone and amiodarone are effective after 30 days of therapy. We conclude than for conversion of recent-onset AF of less than 7 days, procainamide may be considered a preferred i.v. agent and propafenone a preferred oral agent. For conversion of recent-onset AF of longer duration (less than 90 days), i.v. ibutilide may be considered a preferred agent. For patients with chronic AF and left ventricular dysfunction, direct current cardioversion is the preferred conversion method. Larger, well-designed randomized controlled trials with clinically important endpoints in specific populations of AF patients are needed. Copyright 2001 by W.B. Saunders Company

Assessing the impact of national level interventions on workplace respiratory disease in the UK: part 2--regulatory activity by the Health and Safety Executive.

PubMed

Stocks, S J; McNamee, R; Turner, S; Carder, M; Agius, R M

2013-07-01

To investigate whether interventions implemented by the UK Health and Safety Executive addressing exposure to isocyanate-based spray paints in motor vehicle repair (MVR), flour dust in craft bakeries, rosin-based solder flux fume (RBSFF) in the electronics industry, metalworking fluids and wood dust coincided with a decline in incidence of work-related short latency respiratory disease (SLRD) or asthma in the target groups. Changes in the incidence of SLRD reported to a UK-based surveillance scheme were compared using a longitudinal, negative binomial regression model with β distributed random effects. An interrupted time series design was used and comparisons according to inclusion or exclusion in the target group were made by including a statistical interactions expressed as a ratio of incidence rate ratios (RIRRs) in the model. The incidence of SLRD attributed to flour dust significantly increased relative to all other agents (RIRR: 1.10; 95% CI 1.06 to 1.16) whereas SLRD attributed to RBSFF significantly declined relative to all other agents (0.94; 0.90 to 0.99). No significant changes in the incidence of SLRD attributed to wood dust (1.03; 0.91 to 1.16) or spray paints (1.03; 0.95 to 1.11) relative to all other agents were observed. A higher proportion of reports originated from the industries targeted by the intervention for RBSFF (65/107; 61%) than spray painting (27/93; 27%) or wood dust (16/42; 38%). These data support a beneficial effect of interventions to reduce exposure to RBSFF but an increase in SLRD attributed to flour dust may indicate increased exposure or increased awareness of the problem.

Propofol ameliorates doxorubicin-induced oxidative stress and cellular apoptosis in rat cardiomyocytes

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Lai, H.C.; Department of Medicine and Cardiovascular Research Center, National Yang-Ming University School of Medicine, Taipei, Taiwan; Yeh, Y.C.

2011-12-15

Background: Propofol is an anesthetic with pluripotent cytoprotective properties against various extrinsic insults. This study was designed to examine whether this agent could also ameliorate the infamous toxicity of doxorubicin, a widely-used chemotherapeutic agent against a variety of cancer diseases, on myocardial cells. Methods: Cultured neonatal rat cardiomyocytes were administrated with vehicle, doxorubicin (1 {mu}M), propofol (1 {mu}M), or propofol plus doxorubicin (given 1 h post propofol). After 24 h, cells were harvested and specific analyses regarding oxidative/nitrative stress and cellular apoptosis were conducted. Results: Trypan blue exclusion and MTT assays disclosed that viability of cardiomyocytes was significantly reduced bymore » doxorubicin. Contents of reactive oxygen and nitrogen species were increased and antioxidant enzymes SOD1, SOD2, and GPx were decreased in these doxorubicin-treated cells. Mitochondrial dehydrogenase activity and membrane potential were also depressed, along with activation of key effectors downstream of mitochondrion-dependent apoptotic signaling. Besides, abundance of p53 was elevated and cleavage of PKC-{delta} was induced in these myocardial cells. In contrast, all of the above oxidative, nitrative and pro-apoptotic events could be suppressed by propofol pretreatment. Conclusions: Propofol could extensively counteract oxidative/nitrative and multiple apoptotic effects of doxorubicin in the heart; hence, this anesthetic may serve as an adjuvant agent to assuage the untoward cardiac effects of doxorubicin in clinical application. -- Highlights: Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer We evaluate how propofol prevents doxorubicin-induced toxicity in cardiomyocytes. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Propofol reduces doxorubicin-imposed nitrative and oxidative stress. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Propofol suppresses mitochondrion-, p53- and PKC-related apoptotic signaling. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Propofol ameliorates apoptosis and preserves viability of doxorubicin-treated cells. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Thus, propofol could effectively antagonize doxorubicin toxicity on myocardial cells.« less

Lurking in the Shadows: Emerging Rodent Infectious Diseases

PubMed Central

Besselsen, David G.; Franklin, Craig L.; Livingston, Robert S.; Riley, Lela K.

2013-01-01

Rodent parvoviruses, Helicobacter spp., murine norovirus, and several other previously unknown infectious agents have “emerged” in laboratory rodents relatively recently. These agents have been discovered serendipitously or through active investigation of atypical serology results, cell culture contamination, unexpected histopathology, or previously unrecognized clinical disease syndromes. The potential research impact of these agents is not fully known. Infected rodents have demonstrated immunomodulation, tumor suppression, clinical disease (particularly in immunodeficient rodents), and histopathology. Perturbations of organismal and cellular physiology also likely occur. These agents posed unique challenges to laboratory animal resource programs once discovered; it was necessary to develop specific diagnostic assays and an understanding of their epidemiology and transmission routes before attempting eradication, and then evaluate eradication methods for efficacy. Even then management approaches varied significantly, from apathy to total exclusion, and such inconsistency has hindered the sharing and transfer of rodents among institutions, particularly for genetically modified rodent models that may not be readily available. As additional infectious agents are discovered in laboratory rodents in coming years, much of what researchers have learned from experiences with the recently identified pathogens will be applicable. This article provides an overview of the discovery, detection, and research impact of infectious agents recently identified in laboratory rodents. We also discuss emerging syndromes for which there is a suspected infectious etiology, and the unique challenges of managing newly emerging infectious agents. PMID:18506061

Acroangiodermatitis mimicking Kaposi's sarcoma in an HIV-positive man.

PubMed

Goorney, B P; Newsham, J; Fitzgerald, D; Motta, L

2018-06-01

Kaposi's sarcoma (KS) is the commonest human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-related malignancy with its characteristic cutaneous morphological appearance and histopathological features. However, it can be simulated by other co-morbid opportunistic infections and unrelated dermatological conditions. We describe such a case of acroangiodermatitis in an HIV co-infected man, based on exclusion of KS histologically and the absence of human herpesvirus 8, the causative agent of KS.

Community College Agreement between the Alaska Community Colleges' Federation of Teachers Local 2404, AFT, and the University of Alaska, April 1, 1984-March 31, 1987.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Alaska Univ., Fairbanks.

The collective bargaining agreement between the University of Alaska and the Alaska Community Colleges' Federation of Teachers, the exclusive bargaining agent for all statewide rural education learning center and community college faculty, is presented, covering the period between April 1, 1984 and March 31, 1987. The 13 articles in the agreement…

Administration of Lactobacillus johnsonii FI9785 to chickens affects colonisation by Campylobacter jejuni and the intestinal microbiota.

PubMed

Mañes-Lázaro, R; Van Diemen, P M; Pin, C; Mayer, M J; Stevens, M P; Narbad, A

2017-08-01

1. Campylobacter jejuni is the most common bacterial cause of human food-borne gastroenteritis in the world. A major source of human infection is the consumption of contaminated meat, particularly poultry. New control measures to reduce or eliminate this pathogen from the animal gastrointestinal tract are urgently required, and the use of probiotics as competitive exclusion agents is a promising biocontrol measure to reduce C. jejuni in the food chain. 2. In this study, we assessed the potential of Lactobacillus johnsonii FI9785, which has shown efficacy against Clostridium perfringens, to combat C. jejuni. The effect of prophylactic administration of L. johnsonii on the ability of C. jejuni to colonise chickens was determined. 3. Two doses of L. johnsonii given a week apart led to a reduction in C. jejuni colonisation in the caecal contents, but this biocontrol seemed reliant upon a high level of initial colonisation by the probiotic. 4. The microbial composition in the chicken gut was significantly altered by the probiotic treatment, as shown by denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis of 16S rRNA gene amplicons. 5. Together these results demonstrate the potential of this probiotic strain to be tested further as a competitive exclusion agent in poultry against C. jejuni.

23 CFR 658.16 - Exclusions from length and width determinations.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... TRAFFIC OPERATIONS TRUCK SIZE AND WEIGHT, ROUTE DESIGNATIONS-LENGTH, WIDTH AND WEIGHT LIMITATIONS § 658.16 Exclusions from length and width determinations. (a) Vehicle components not excluded by law or regulation shall be included in the measurement of the length and width of commercial motor vehicles. (b) The...

45 CFR 5.31 - Designation of authorized officials.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

... records of the Alcohol, Drug Abuse and Mental Health Administration, only the Associate Administrator for... Officer. If the records you seek are exclusively records of the Food and Drug Administration, only the... you seek are exclusively records of the National Institutes of Health, only the Associate Director of...

45 CFR 5.31 - Designation of authorized officials.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-10-01

... records of the Alcohol, Drug Abuse and Mental Health Administration, only the Associate Administrator for... Officer. If the records you seek are exclusively records of the Food and Drug Administration, only the... you seek are exclusively records of the National Institutes of Health, only the Associate Director of...

Gadolinium-Based Contrast Agents for MR Cancer Imaging

PubMed Central

Zhou, Zhuxian; Lu, Zheng-Rong

2013-01-01

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is a clinical imaging modality effective for anatomical and functional imaging of diseased soft tissues, including solid tumors. MRI contrast agents have been routinely used for detecting tumor at an early stage. Gadolinium based contrast agents are the most commonly used contrast agents in clinical MRI. There have been significant efforts to design and develop novel Gd(III) contrast agents with high relaxivity, low toxicity and specific tumor binding. The relaxivity of the Gd(III) contrast agents can be increased by proper chemical modification. The toxicity of Gd(III) contrast agents can be reduced by increasing the agents’ thermodynamic and kinetic stability, as well as optimizing their pharmacokinetic properties. The increasing knowledge in the field of cancer genomics and biology provides an opportunity for designing tumor-specific contrast agents. Various new Gd(III) chelates have been designed and evaluated in animal models for more effective cancer MRI. This review outlines the design and development, physicochemical properties, and in vivo properties of several classes of Gd(III)-based MR contrast agents for tumor imaging. PMID:23047730

Designing Distributed Learning Environments with Intelligent Software Agents

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lin, Fuhua, Ed.

2005-01-01

"Designing Distributed Learning Environments with Intelligent Software Agents" reports on the most recent advances in agent technologies for distributed learning. Chapters are devoted to the various aspects of intelligent software agents in distributed learning, including the methodological and technical issues on where and how intelligent agents…

Hyperprogression during anti-PD-1/PD-L1 therapy in patients with recurrent and/or metastatic head and neck squamous cell carcinoma.

PubMed

Saâda-Bouzid, E; Defaucheux, C; Karabajakian, A; Coloma, V P; Servois, V; Paoletti, X; Even, C; Fayette, J; Guigay, J; Loirat, D; Peyrade, F; Alt, M; Gal, J; Le Tourneau, C

2017-07-01

Pembrolizumab and nivolumab are immune checkpoint inhibitors targeting PD-1 that have recently been approved in pretreated recurrent and/or metastatic head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (R/M HNSCC) patients. In the clinic, some patients seem not only not to benefit from anti-PD-L1/PD-1 agents but rather to experience an acceleration of tumor growth kinetics (TGK). We retrospectively compared TGK on immunotherapy and TGK on last treatment in patients with R/M HNSCC treated with PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitors in four French centers. The TGK ratio (TGKR, ratio of the slope of tumor growth before treatment and the slope of tumor growth on treatment) was calculated. Hyperprogression was defined as a TGKR ≥ 2. From September 2012 to September 2015, 34 patients were identified. Patterns of recurrence included exclusive loco-regional recurrence in 14 patients, exclusive distant metastases in 11 patients, and both in 9 patients. No pseudo-progression was observed. Hyperprogression was observed in 10 patients (29%), including 9 patients with at least a locoregional recurrence, and only 1 patient with exclusively distant metastases. Hyperprogression significantly correlated with a regional recurrence (TGKR ≥ 2: 90% versus TGKR < 2: 37%, P = 0.008), but not with local or distant recurrence. Hyperprogression was associated with a shorter progression-free survival (PFS) according to RECIST (P = 0.003) and irRECIST (P = 0.02), but not with overall survival (P = 0.77). Hyperprogression was observed in 29% of patients with R/M HNSCC treated with anti-PD-L1/PD-1 agents and correlated with a shorter PFS. It occurred in 39% of patients with at least a locoregional recurrence and 9% of patients with exclusively distant metastases. No pseudo-progressions were reported. Mechanisms and causality of hyperprogression should further be assessed through prospective controlled studies. © The Author 2017. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the European Society for Medical Oncology. All rights reserved. For permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Multi-Agent Design and Implementation for an Online Peer Help System

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Meng, Anbo

2014-01-01

With the rapid advance of e-learning, the online peer help is playing increasingly important role. This paper explores the application of MAS to an online peer help system (MAPS). In the design phase, the architecture of MAPS is proposed, which consists of a set of agents including the personal agent, the course agent, the diagnosis agent, the DF…

76 FR 30437 - Indian Child Welfare Act; Designated Tribal Agents for Service of Notice

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-05-25

...The regulations implementing the Indian Child Welfare Act provide that Indian tribes may designate an agent other than the tribal chairman for service of notice of proceedings under the Act. This notice includes the current list of designated tribal agents for service of notice.

Design, Characterization, and Optimization of Controlled Drug Delivery System Containing Antibiotic Drug/s

PubMed Central

Shelate, Pragna; Dave, Divyang

2016-01-01

The objective of this work was design, characterization, and optimization of controlled drug delivery system containing antibiotic drug/s. Osmotic drug delivery system was chosen as controlled drug delivery system. The porous osmotic pump tablets were designed using Plackett-Burman and Box-Behnken factorial design to find out the best formulation. For screening of three categories of polymers, six independent variables were chosen for Plackett-Burman design. Osmotic agent sodium chloride and microcrystalline cellulose, pore forming agent sodium lauryl sulphate and sucrose, and coating agent ethyl cellulose and cellulose acetate were chosen as independent variables. Optimization of osmotic tablets was done by Box-Behnken design by selecting three independent variables. Osmotic agent sodium chloride, pore forming agent sodium lauryl sulphate, and coating agent cellulose acetate were chosen as independent variables. The result of Plackett-Burman and Box-Behnken design and ANOVA studies revealed that osmotic agent and pore former had significant effect on the drug release up to 12 hr. The observed independent variables were found to be very close to predicted values of most satisfactory formulation which demonstrates the feasibility of the optimization procedure in successful development of porous osmotic pump tablets containing antibiotic drug/s by using sodium chloride, sodium lauryl sulphate, and cellulose acetate as key excipients. PMID:27610247

Agent-Based Learning Environments as a Research Tool for Investigating Teaching and Learning.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Baylor, Amy L.

2002-01-01

Discusses intelligent learning environments for computer-based learning, such as agent-based learning environments, and their advantages over human-based instruction. Considers the effects of multiple agents; agents and research design; the use of Multiple Intelligent Mentors Instructing Collaboratively (MIMIC) for instructional design for…

15 CFR 922.22 - Development of designation materials.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... RESOURCE MANAGEMENT NATIONAL MARINE SANCTUARY PROGRAM REGULATIONS Designation of National Marine Sanctuaries § 922.22 Development of designation materials. (a) In designating a National Marine Sanctuary, the... Sanctuary includes waters within the exclusive economic zone, the Secretary shall notify the appropriate...

Guidance and Navigation Software Architecture Design for the Autonomous Multi-Agent Physically Interacting Spacecraft (AMPHIS) Test Bed

DTIC Science & Technology

2006-12-01

NAVIGATION SOFTWARE ARCHITECTURE DESIGN FOR THE AUTONOMOUS MULTI-AGENT PHYSICALLY INTERACTING SPACECRAFT (AMPHIS) TEST BED by Blake D. Eikenberry...Engineer Degree 4. TITLE AND SUBTITLE Guidance and Navigation Software Architecture Design for the Autonomous Multi- Agent Physically Interacting...iii Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited GUIDANCE AND NAVIGATION SOFTWARE ARCHITECTURE DESIGN FOR THE AUTONOMOUS MULTI

Interventions Designed to Promote Exclusive Breastfeeding in High-Income Countries: A Systematic Review Update.

PubMed

Skouteris, Helen; Bailey, Cate; Nagle, Cate; Hauck, Yvonne; Bruce, Lauren; Morris, Heather

2017-12-01

Worldwide, women seldom reach the recommended target of exclusive breastfeeding up to 6 months postpartum. The aim of the current study was to update a previously published review that presented a conceptual and methodological synthesis of interventions designed to promote exclusive breastfeeding up to 6 months in high-income countries. A systematic search of leading databases was conducted for scholarly, peer-reviewed, randomized controlled trials published from June 2013 to December 2016. Twelve new articles were identified as relevant; all were published in English and assessed exclusive breastfeeding with a follow-up period extending beyond 4 months postpartum. Articles were analyzed for overall quality of evidence in regard to duration of exclusive breastfeeding, using the Grading and Recommendations Assessment, Development, and Evaluation approach. A significant increase in the duration of exclusive breastfeeding was found in 4 of the 12 studies. All four successful interventions had long-duration postpartum programs, implemented by telephone, text message, or through a website. Some of the successful interventions also included prenatal education or in-hospital breastfeeding support. Results from this review update correspond closely with previous findings, in that all of the successful interventions had lengthy postnatal support or an education component. More studies assessed intervention fidelity than in the previous review; however, there was little discussion of maternal body-mass index. While a pattern of successful interventions is beginning to emerge, further research is needed to provide a robust evidence base to inform future interventions, particularly with overweight and obese women.

Resveratrol as an anti-cancer agent: A review.

PubMed

Rauf, Abdur; Imran, Muhammad; Butt, Masood Sadiq; Nadeem, Muhammad; Peters, Dennis G; Mubarak, Mohammad S

2018-06-13

Owing to their antimicrobial, antioxidant, and anti-inflammatory activity, grapes (Vitis vinifera L.) are the archetypal paradigms of fruits used not only for nutritional purposes, but also for exclusive therapeutics. Grapes are a prominent and promising source of phytochemicals, especially resveratrol, a phytoalexin antioxidant found in red grapes which has both chemopreventive and therapeutic effects against various ailments. Resveratrol's role in reducing different human cancers, including breast, cervical, uterine, blood, kidney, liver, eye, bladder, thyroid, esophageal, prostate, brain, lung, skin, gastric, colon, head and neck, bone, ovarian, and cervical, has been reviewed. This review covers the literature that deals with the anti-cancer mechanism of resveratrol with special reference to antioxidant potential. Furthermore, this article summarizes the literature pertaining to resveratrol as an anti-cancer agent.

Physiological stress reactivity and empathy following social exclusion: a test of the defensive emotional analgesia hypothesis.

PubMed

Bass, Ellyn Charlotte; Stednitz, Sarah Josephine; Simonson, Kevin; Shen, Tori; Gahtan, Ethan

2014-01-01

Experiences of social exclusion elicit social pain responses. The current study examined the ability of social exclusion to activate physiological stress responses and adaptively modulate affect and empathy consistent with "defensive emotional analgesia." Measures of affect and empathy, and saliva samples for cortisol and alpha-amylase (sAA) analysis, were collected before and after subjects participated in a computer game ("Cyberball") designed to manipulate feelings of social exclusion. Contrary to our hypotheses, social exclusion was associated with a reduction in cortisol, and social inclusion with an increase in cortisol. Both Cyberball groups showed increases in sAA and decreases in both positive and negative affect, with the greatest drop in affect occurring after social exclusion. Empathy did not differ between the social exclusion and inclusion groups and was not correlated with cortisol or sAA levels. These results support the presence of a defensive response to social exclusion in which central stress pathways controlling cortisol release are inhibited. Cortisol and sAA were shown to have distinct patterns of responses to psychological stress, with sAA responding more rapidly. Related methodological concerns for the use of these physiological stress markers and of Cyberball in social neuroscience research are discussed.

37 CFR 201.38 - Designation of agent to receive notification of claimed infringement.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

..., including a specific number and street name or rural route, of the agent designated to receive notification... it is the only address that can be used in that geographic location; (5) The telephone number, facsimile number, and electronic mail address of the agent designated to receive notification of claimed...

37 CFR 201.38 - Designation of agent to receive notification of claimed infringement.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

..., including a specific number and street name or rural route, of the agent designated to receive notification... it is the only address that can be used in that geographic location; (5) The telephone number, facsimile number, and electronic mail address of the agent designated to receive notification of claimed...

37 CFR 201.38 - Designation of agent to receive notification of claimed infringement.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

..., including a specific number and street name or rural route, of the agent designated to receive notification... it is the only address that can be used in that geographic location; (5) The telephone number, facsimile number, and electronic mail address of the agent designated to receive notification of claimed...

37 CFR 201.38 - Designation of agent to receive notification of claimed infringement.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

..., including a specific number and street name or rural route, of the agent designated to receive notification... it is the only address that can be used in that geographic location; (5) The telephone number, facsimile number, and electronic mail address of the agent designated to receive notification of claimed...

46 CFR 154.1710 - Exclusion of air from cargo tank vapor spaces.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

... 46 Shipping 5 2011-10-01 2011-10-01 false Exclusion of air from cargo tank vapor spaces. 154.1710 Section 154.1710 Shipping COAST GUARD, DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY (CONTINUED) CERTAIN BULK DANGEROUS CARGOES SAFETY STANDARDS FOR SELF-PROPELLED VESSELS CARRYING BULK LIQUEFIED GASES Special Design and...

46 CFR 154.1710 - Exclusion of air from cargo tank vapor spaces.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... 46 Shipping 5 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Exclusion of air from cargo tank vapor spaces. 154.1710 Section 154.1710 Shipping COAST GUARD, DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY (CONTINUED) CERTAIN BULK DANGEROUS CARGOES SAFETY STANDARDS FOR SELF-PROPELLED VESSELS CARRYING BULK LIQUEFIED GASES Special Design and...

46 CFR 154.1710 - Exclusion of air from cargo tank vapor spaces.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-10-01

... 46 Shipping 5 2014-10-01 2014-10-01 false Exclusion of air from cargo tank vapor spaces. 154.1710 Section 154.1710 Shipping COAST GUARD, DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY (CONTINUED) CERTAIN BULK DANGEROUS CARGOES SAFETY STANDARDS FOR SELF-PROPELLED VESSELS CARRYING BULK LIQUEFIED GASES Special Design and...

46 CFR 154.1710 - Exclusion of air from cargo tank vapor spaces.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-10-01

... 46 Shipping 5 2012-10-01 2012-10-01 false Exclusion of air from cargo tank vapor spaces. 154.1710 Section 154.1710 Shipping COAST GUARD, DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY (CONTINUED) CERTAIN BULK DANGEROUS CARGOES SAFETY STANDARDS FOR SELF-PROPELLED VESSELS CARRYING BULK LIQUEFIED GASES Special Design and...

46 CFR 154.1710 - Exclusion of air from cargo tank vapor spaces.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-10-01

... 46 Shipping 5 2013-10-01 2013-10-01 false Exclusion of air from cargo tank vapor spaces. 154.1710 Section 154.1710 Shipping COAST GUARD, DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY (CONTINUED) CERTAIN BULK DANGEROUS CARGOES SAFETY STANDARDS FOR SELF-PROPELLED VESSELS CARRYING BULK LIQUEFIED GASES Special Design and...

75 FR 51741 - Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic Zone Off Alaska; Pacific Halibut and Sablefish Individual...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-08-23

... Program to provide economic stability for the Pacific halibut and sablefish commercial fisheries and.... 0906041011-91012-01 RIN 0648-AX91 Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic Zone Off Alaska; Pacific Halibut and... designed to maintain the social character and economic benefits of the commercial, fixed-gear fisheries...

Financial Aid for Veterans, Military Personnel and Their Dependents, 1996-1998. A List of: Scholarships, Fellowships/Grants, Loans, Grants-in-Aid, Awards, and Internships Designed Primarily or Exclusively for Veterans, Military Personnel, and Their Dependents; State Sources of Benefits; and Reference Source on Financial Aids.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schlachter, Gail Ann; Weber, R. David

This directory lists 1,207 student financial aid programs or other services designed primarily or exclusively for veterans, military personnel, and their dependents. An introduction provides a sample entry and explains how to use the directory. The section on financial aid programs is organized, first, by type of aid scholarship, fellowship or…

Economic Return of Clinical Trials Performed Under the Pediatric Exclusivity Program

PubMed Central

Li, Jennifer S.; Eisenstein, Eric L.; Grabowski, Henry G.; Reid, Elizabeth D.; Mangum, Barry; Schulman, Kevin A.; Goldsmith, John V.; Murphy, M. Dianne; Califf, Robert M.; Benjamin, Daniel K.

2009-01-01

Context In 1997, Congress authorized the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to grant 6 month extensions of marketing rights through the Pediatric Exclusivity program if industry sponsors complete FDA-requested pediatric trials. The program has been praised for creating incentives for studies in children; it has been criticized as a “windfall” to the innovator drug industry. This critique has been a substantial part of Congressional debate on the program, which is due to sunset in 2007. Objective To quantify the economic return to industry for completing Pediatric Exclusivity. Design Cohort study of programs conducted for Pediatric Exclusivity. We selected 9 drugs that were granted Pediatric Exclusivity. From the final study reports submitted to FDA, we obtained key elements of the clinical trial design and study operations. We estimated the cost of performing each study and converted these into estimates of after-tax cash outflows. We obtained 3-year market sales and converted these into estimates of after-tax cash inflows based upon 6 months of additional market protection. We then calculated the net economic return (cash inflows less outflows) and ratio net return to costs (net economic return divided by cash outflows) for each product. Main Outcome Measures Net economic return and ratio of net return to cost. Results The indications studied reflected a broad representation of the program: asthma, tumors, attention deficit disorder, hypertension, depression/generalized anxiety disorder, diabetes, gastroesophageal reflux, bacterial infection, and bone mineralization. The distribution of net economic return for 6 months of exclusivity varied substantially among products [net return ranged from (−)$8.9 million to (+)$507.9 million; ratio of return to cost ranged from −0.68 to 73.6] Conclusions The economic return for pediatric exclusivity is highly variable. Pediatric Exclusivity, as an incentive to complete much-needed clinical trials in children, can generate lucrative returns, but more frequently produces more modest return on investment. PMID:17284698

37 CFR 201.38 - Designation of agent to receive notification of claimed infringement.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... person signing the Notice, and by the date of signature. (e) Filing. A service provider may file the.... The Copyright Office does not provide printed forms for filing an Interim Designation of Agent to... shall be accompanied by a filing fee for Recordation of an Interim Designation of Agent to Receive...

The role of potential agents in making spatial perspective taking social

PubMed Central

Clements-Stephens, Amy M.; Vasiljevic, Katarina; Murray, Alexandra J.; Shelton, Amy L.

2013-01-01

A striking relationship between visual spatial perspective taking (VSPT) and social skills has been demonstrated for perspective-taking tasks in which the target of the imagined or inferred perspective is a potential agent, suggesting that the presence of a potential agent may create a social context for the seemingly spatial task of imagining a novel visual perspective. In a series of studies, we set out to investigate how and when a target might be viewed as sufficiently agent-like to incur a social influence on VSPT performance. By varying the perceptual and conceptual features that defined the targets as potential agents, we find that even something as simple as suggesting animacy for a simple wooden block may be sufficient. More critically, we found that experience with one potential agent influenced the performance with subsequent targets, either by inducing or eliminating the influence of social skills on VSPT performance. These carryover effects suggest that the relationship between social skills and VSPT performance is mediated by a complex relationship that includes the task, the target, and the context in which that target is perceived. These findings highlight potential problems that arise when identifying a task as belonging exclusively to a single cognitive domain and stress instead the highly interactive nature of cognitive domains and their susceptibility to cross-domain individual differences. PMID:24046735

Racial Diversity Sounds Nice; Systems Transformation? Not So Much: Developing Urban Teachers of Color

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rogers-Ard, Rachelle; Knaus, Christopher B.; Epstein, Kitty Kelly; Mayfield, Kimberly

2013-01-01

This article argues that economic exclusion, standardized testing, and racially biased definitions of teacher quality continue the exclusion of teachers of color from the urban teaching force. The authors highlight two urban programs designed to address such barriers and situate such efforts within a critical race theory framework that identifies…

Primary School Playgrounds as Spaces of Inclusion/Exclusion in New South Wales, Australia

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ndhlovu, Sithembile; Varea, Valeria

2018-01-01

The purpose of this study was to determine how the design and organisation of primary school playground spaces may result in the inclusion or exclusion of some groups of children. Two primary school playgrounds in rural New South Wales, Australia, were selected for this investigation. Data were collected through observations and unstructured…

Process to Selectively Distinguish Viable from Non-Viable Bacterial Cells

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

LaDuc, Myron T.; Bernardini, Jame N.; Stam, Christina N.

2010-01-01

The combination of ethidium monoazide (EMA) and post-fragmentation, randomly primed DNA amplification technologies will enhance the analytical capability to discern viable from non-viable bacterial cells in spacecraft-related samples. Intercalating agents have been widely used since the inception of molecular biology to stain and visualize nucleic acids. Only recently, intercalating agents such as EMA have been exploited to selectively distinguish viable from dead bacterial cells. Intercalating dyes can only penetrate the membranes of dead cells. Once through the membrane and actually inside the cell, they intercalate DNA and, upon photolysis with visible light, produce stable DNA monoadducts. Once the DNA is crosslinked, it becomes insoluble and unable to be fragmented for post-fragmentation, randomly primed DNA library formation. Viable organisms DNA remains unaffected by the intercalating agents, allowing for amplification via post-fragmentation, randomly primed technologies. This results in the ability to carry out downstream nucleic acid-based analyses on viable microbes to the exclusion of all non-viable cells.

Development of inhibitors of the 2C-methyl-D-erythritol 4-phosphate (MEP) pathway enzymes as potential anti-infective agents.

PubMed

Masini, Tiziana; Hirsch, Anna K H

2014-12-11

Important pathogens such as Mycobacterium tuberculosis and Plasmodium falciparum, the causative agents of tuberculosis and malaria, respectively, and plants, utilize the 2C-methyl-D-erythritol 4-phosphate (MEP, 5) pathway for the biosynthesis of isopentenyl diphosphate (1) and dimethylallyl diphosphate (2), the universal precursors of isoprenoids, while humans exclusively utilize the alternative mevalonate pathway for the synthesis of 1 and 2. This distinct distribution, together with the fact that the MEP pathway is essential in numerous organisms, makes the enzymes of the MEP pathway attractive drug targets for the development of anti-infective agents and herbicides. Herein, we review the inhibitors reported over the past 2 years, in the context of the most important older developments and with a particular focus on the results obtained against enzymes of pathogenic organisms. We will also discuss new discoveries in terms of structural and mechanistic features, which can help to guide a rational development of inhibitors.

Unintended Effects of Orphan Product Designation for Rare Neurological Diseases

PubMed Central

Murphy, Sinéad M; Puwanant, Araya; Griggs, Robert C.

2012-01-01

Since the introduction of the Orphan Drug Act in 1983, designed to promote development of treatments for rare diseases, at least 378 orphan drugs have been approved. Incentives include financial support, tax credits and, perhaps most importantly, extended market exclusivity. These incentives have encouraged industry interest and accelerated research on rare diseases, allowing patients with orphan diseases access to treatments. However, extended market exclusivity has been associated with unacceptably high drug costs; both for newly developed drugs and even for drugs which were previously widely available. We suggest that a paradoxical effect of orphan product exclusivity can be reduced patient access to existing drugs. In addition, the costs of each new drug are arguably unsustainable for patients and for the American health care system. Of all the specialties, neurology has the third highest number of orphan product designations, and neurological diseases account for at least one fifth of rare diseases. Citing the use of tetrabenazine for chorea in Huntington’s disease, adrenocorticotropic hormone for infantile spasms and enzyme replacement therapy with alglucosidase alpha for Pompe’s disease we highlight these paradoxical effects. PMID:23109143

IMAGE: A Design Integration Framework Applied to the High Speed Civil Transport

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hale, Mark A.; Craig, James I.

1993-01-01

Effective design of the High Speed Civil Transport requires the systematic application of design resources throughout a product's life-cycle. Information obtained from the use of these resources is used for the decision-making processes of Concurrent Engineering. Integrated computing environments facilitate the acquisition, organization, and use of required information. State-of-the-art computing technologies provide the basis for the Intelligent Multi-disciplinary Aircraft Generation Environment (IMAGE) described in this paper. IMAGE builds upon existing agent technologies by adding a new component called a model. With the addition of a model, the agent can provide accountable resource utilization in the presence of increasing design fidelity. The development of a zeroth-order agent is used to illustrate agent fundamentals. Using a CATIA(TM)-based agent from previous work, a High Speed Civil Transport visualization system linking CATIA, FLOPS, and ASTROS will be shown. These examples illustrate the important role of the agent technologies used to implement IMAGE, and together they demonstrate that IMAGE can provide an integrated computing environment for the design of the High Speed Civil Transport.

Hardware accelerated high performance neutron transport computation based on AGENT methodology

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Xiao, Shanjie

The spatial heterogeneity of the next generation Gen-IV nuclear reactor core designs brings challenges to the neutron transport analysis. The Arbitrary Geometry Neutron Transport (AGENT) AGENT code is a three-dimensional neutron transport analysis code being developed at the Laboratory for Neutronics and Geometry Computation (NEGE) at Purdue University. It can accurately describe the spatial heterogeneity in a hierarchical structure through the R-function solid modeler. The previous version of AGENT coupled the 2D transport MOC solver and the 1D diffusion NEM solver to solve the three dimensional Boltzmann transport equation. In this research, the 2D/1D coupling methodology was expanded to couple two transport solvers, the radial 2D MOC solver and the axial 1D MOC solver, for better accuracy. The expansion was benchmarked with the widely applied C5G7 benchmark models and two fast breeder reactor models, and showed good agreement with the reference Monte Carlo results. In practice, the accurate neutron transport analysis for a full reactor core is still time-consuming and thus limits its application. Therefore, another content of my research is focused on designing a specific hardware based on the reconfigurable computing technique in order to accelerate AGENT computations. It is the first time that the application of this type is used to the reactor physics and neutron transport for reactor design. The most time consuming part of the AGENT algorithm was identified. Moreover, the architecture of the AGENT acceleration system was designed based on the analysis. Through the parallel computation on the specially designed, highly efficient architecture, the acceleration design on FPGA acquires high performance at the much lower working frequency than CPUs. The whole design simulations show that the acceleration design would be able to speedup large scale AGENT computations about 20 times. The high performance AGENT acceleration system will drastically shortening the computation time for 3D full-core neutron transport analysis, making the AGENT methodology unique and advantageous, and thus supplies the possibility to extend the application range of neutron transport analysis in either industry engineering or academic research.

Chemical modification of normal tissue damage induced by photodynamic therapy.

PubMed Central

Sigdestad, C. P.; Fingar, V. H.; Wieman, T. J.; Lindberg, R. D.

1996-01-01

One of the limitations of successful use of photodynamic therapy (PDT) employing porphyrins is the acute and long-term cutaneous photosensitivity. This paper describes results of experiments designed to test the effects of two radiation protective agents (WR-2721, 500 mg kg-1 or WR-3689, 700 mg kg-1) on murine skin damage induced by PDT. C3H mice were shaved and depilated three days prior to injection with the photosensitiser, Photofrin (5 or 10 mg kg-1). Twenty-four hours later, the mice were injected intraperitoneally with a protector 30 min prior to Argon dye laser (630 nm) exposure. The skin response was followed for two weeks post irradiation using an arbitrary response scale. A light dose response as well as a drug dose response was obtained. The results indicate that both protectors reduced the skin response to PDT, however WR-2721 was demonstrated to be the most effective. The effect of the protectors on vascular stasis after PDT was determined using a fluorescein dye exclusion assay. In mice treated with Photofrin (5 mg kg-1), and 630 nm light (180 J cm-2) pretreatment with either WR-2721 or WR-3689 resulted in significant protection of the vascular effects of PDT. These studies document the ability of the phosphorothioate class of radiation protective agents to reduce the effects of light on photosensitized skin. They do so in a drug dose-dependent fashion with maximum protection at the highest drug doses. PMID:8763855

Hypoxia-activated cytotoxic agent tirapazamine enhances hepatic artery ligation-induced killing of liver tumor in HBx transgenic mice

PubMed Central

Lin, Wei-Hsiang; Yeh, Shiou-Hwei; Yeh, Kun-Huei; Chen, Kai-Wei; Cheng, Ya-Wen; Su, Tung-Hung; Jao, Ping; Ni, Lin-Chun; Chen, Pei-Jer; Chen, Ding-Shinn

2016-01-01

Transarterial chemoembolization (TACE) is the main treatment for intermediate stage hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) with Barcelona Clinic Liver Cancer classification because of its exclusive arterial blood supply. Although TACE achieves substantial necrosis of the tumor, complete tumor necrosis is uncommon, and the residual tumor generally rapidly recurs. We combined tirapazamine (TPZ), a hypoxia-activated cytotoxic agent, with hepatic artery ligation (HAL), which recapitulates transarterial embolization in mouse models, to enhance the efficacy of TACE. The effectiveness of this combination treatment was examined in HCC that spontaneously developed in hepatitis B virus X protein (HBx) transgenic mice. We proved that the tumor blood flow in this model was exclusively supplied by the hepatic artery, in contrast to conventional orthotopic HCC xenografts that receive both arterial and venous blood supplies. At levels below the threshold oxygen levels created by HAL, TPZ was activated and killed the hypoxic cells, but spared the normoxic cells. This combination treatment clearly limited the toxicity of TPZ to HCC, which caused the rapid and near-complete necrosis of HCC. In conclusion, the combination of TPZ and HAL showed a synergistic tumor killing activity that was specific for HCC in HBx transgenic mice. This preclinical study forms the basis for the ongoing clinical program for the TPZ-TACE regimen in HCC treatment. PMID:27702890

A Cognitive Game Theoretic Analysis of Conflict Alerts in Air Traffic Control

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Erev, Ido; Gopher, Daniel; Remington, Roger

1999-01-01

The current research was motivated by the recommendation made by a joint Government/Industry committee to introduce a new traffic control system, referred to as the Free Flight. This system is designed to use recent new technology to facilitate efficient and safe air transportation. We addressed one of the major difficulties that arise in the design of this and similar multi-agent systems: the adaptive (and slippery) nature of human agents. To facilitate a safe and efficient design of this multi-agent system, designers have to rely on assessments of the expected behavior of the different agents under various scenarios. Whereas the behavior of the computerized agents is predictable, the behavior of the human agents (including air traffic controllers and pilots) is not. Experimental and empirical observations suggest that human agents are likely to adjust their behavior to the design of the system. To see the difficulty that the adaptive nature of human agents creates assume that a good approximation of the way operators currently behave is available. Given this information an optimal design can be performed. The problem arises as the human operator will learn to adjust their behavior to the new system. Following this adjustment process the assumptions made by the designer concerning the operators behavior will no longer be accurate and the system might reach a suboptimal state. In extreme situations these potential suboptimal states might involve unnecessary risk. That is, the fact that operators learn in an adaptive fashion does not imply that the system will become safer as they gain experience. At least in the context of Safety dilemmas, experience can lead to a pareto deficient risk taking behavior.

Tin-117m-labeled stannic (Sn/sup 4 +/) chelate of diethylenetriamine pentaacetic acid (DTPA) for application in diagnosis and therapy

DOEpatents

Srivastava, S.C.; Meinken, G.E.; Richards, P.

1983-08-25

The radiopharmaceutical reagents of this invention and the class of Tin-117m radiopharmaceuticals are therapeutic and diagnostic agents that incorporate gamma-emitting nuclides that localize in bone after intravenous injection in mammals (mice, rats, dogs, and rabbits). Images reflecting bone structure or function can then be obtained by a scintillation camera that detects the distribution of ionizing radiation emitted by the radioactive agent. Tin-117m-labeled chelates of stannic tin localize almost exclusively in cortical bone. Upon intravenous injection of the reagent, the preferred chelates are phosphonate compounds, preferable, PYP, MDP, EHDP, and DTPA. This class of reagents is therapeutically and diagnostically useful in skeletal scintigraphy and for the radiotherapy of bone tumors and other disorders.

Echinacea plants as antioxidant and antibacterial agents: From traditional medicine to biotechnological applications.

PubMed

Sharifi-Rad, Mehdi; Mnayer, Dima; Morais-Braga, Maria Flaviana Bezerra; Carneiro, Joara Nályda Pereira; Bezerra, Camila Fonseca; Coutinho, Henrique Douglas Melo; Salehi, Bahare; Martorell, Miquel; Del Mar Contreras, María; Soltani-Nejad, Azam; Uribe, Yoshie Adriana Hata; Yousaf, Zubaida; Iriti, Marcello; Sharifi-Rad, Javad

2018-05-10

The genus Echinacea consists of 11 taxa of herbaceous and perennial flowering plants. In particular, Echinacea purpurea (L.) Moench is widely cultivated all over the United States, Canada, and in Europe, exclusively in Germany, for its beauty and reported medicinal properties. Echinacea extracts have been used traditionally as wound healing to improve the immune system and to treat respiratory symptoms caused by bacterial infections. Echinacea extracts have demonstrated antioxidant and antimicrobial activities, and to be safe. This survey aims at reviewing the medicinal properties of Echinacea species, their cultivation, chemical composition, and the potential uses of these plants as antioxidant and antibacterial agents in foods and in a clinical context. Moreover, the factors affecting the chemical composition of Echinacea spp. are also covered. Copyright © 2018 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

75 FR 28103 - Indian Child Welfare Act; Designated Tribal Agents for Service of Notice

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-05-19

...The regulations implementing the Indian Child Welfare Act provide that Indian Tribes may designate an agent other than the Tribal chairman for service of notice of proceedings under the Act. This notice includes the current list of designated Tribal agents for service of notice. The names are those received by the Secretary of the Interior before the date of this publication.

Story-Based Pedagogical Agents: A Scaffolding Design Approach for the Process of Historical Inquiry in a Web-Based Self-Learning Environment

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fujimoto, Toru

2010-01-01

The purpose of this research was to design and evaluate a web-based self-learning environment for historical inquiry embedded with different types of instructional support featuring story-based pedagogical agents. This research focused on designing a learning environment by integrating story-based instruction and pedagogical agents as a means to…

Promotion of exclusive breast-feeding at scale within routine health services: impact of breast-feeding counselling training for community health workers in Recife, Brazil.

PubMed

Coutinho, Sonia B; Lira, Pedro Ic; Lima, Marilia C; Frias, Paulo G; Eickmann, Sophie H; Ashworth, Ann

2014-04-01

Breast-feeding counselling has been identified as the intervention with the greatest potential for reducing child deaths, but there is little experience in delivering breast-feeding counselling at scale within routine health systems. The study aim was to compare rates of exclusive breast-feeding associated with a breast-feeding counselling intervention in which community health agents (CHA) received 20 h of training directed at counselling and practical skills with rates pre-intervention when CHA received 4 h of didactic teaching. Cross-sectional surveys of breast-feeding practices were conducted pre- and post-intervention in random samples of 1266 and 1245 infants aged 0-5.9 months, respectively. Recife, Brazil, with a population of 2 million. CHA (n 1449) of Brazil's Family Health Programme were trained to provide breast-feeding counselling at home visits. Rates of exclusive breast-feeding improved when CHA were trained to provide breast-feeding counselling and were significantly higher by 10-13 percentage points at age 3-5.9 months when compared with pre-intervention rates (P < 0.05). Post-intervention point prevalence of exclusive breast-feeding for infants aged <4 months was 63% and for those aged <6 months was 50%. Multifunctional CHA were able to deliver breast-feeding counselling at scale within a routine health service and this was associated with a significant increase in rates of exclusive breast-feeding. The study reinforces the need to focus training on counselling and practical skills; a key component was an interactive style that utilized the knowledge and experience of CHA. The findings are relevant to the call by international organizations to scale up breast-feeding counselling.

Observer-based distributed adaptive iterative learning control for linear multi-agent systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Jinsha; Liu, Sanyang; Li, Junmin

2017-10-01

This paper investigates the consensus problem for linear multi-agent systems from the viewpoint of two-dimensional systems when the state information of each agent is not available. Observer-based fully distributed adaptive iterative learning protocol is designed in this paper. A local observer is designed for each agent and it is shown that without using any global information about the communication graph, all agents achieve consensus perfectly for all undirected connected communication graph when the number of iterations tends to infinity. The Lyapunov-like energy function is employed to facilitate the learning protocol design and property analysis. Finally, simulation example is given to illustrate the theoretical analysis.

A dedicated network for social interaction processing in the primate brain.

PubMed

Sliwa, J; Freiwald, W A

2017-05-19

Primate cognition requires interaction processing. Interactions can reveal otherwise hidden properties of intentional agents, such as thoughts and feelings, and of inanimate objects, such as mass and material. Where and how interaction analyses are implemented in the brain is unknown. Using whole-brain functional magnetic resonance imaging in macaque monkeys, we discovered a network centered in the medial and ventrolateral prefrontal cortex that is exclusively engaged in social interaction analysis. Exclusivity of specialization was found for no other function anywhere in the brain. Two additional networks, a parieto-premotor and a temporal one, exhibited both social and physical interaction preference, which, in the temporal lobe, mapped onto a fine-grain pattern of object, body, and face selectivity. Extent and location of a dedicated system for social interaction analysis suggest that this function is an evolutionary forerunner of human mind-reading capabilities. Copyright © 2017, American Association for the Advancement of Science.

Learning Sequences of Actions in Collectives of Autonomous Agents

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Turner, Kagan; Agogino, Adrian K.; Wolpert, David H.; Clancy, Daniel (Technical Monitor)

2001-01-01

In this paper we focus on the problem of designing a collective of autonomous agents that individually learn sequences of actions such that the resultant sequence of joint actions achieves a predetermined global objective. We are particularly interested in instances of this problem where centralized control is either impossible or impractical. For single agent systems in similar domains, machine learning methods (e.g., reinforcement learners) have been successfully used. However, applying such solutions directly to multi-agent systems often proves problematic, as agents may work at cross-purposes, or have difficulty in evaluating their contribution to achievement of the global objective, or both. Accordingly, the crucial design step in multiagent systems centers on determining the private objectives of each agent so that as the agents strive for those objectives, the system reaches a good global solution. In this work we consider a version of this problem involving multiple autonomous agents in a grid world. We use concepts from collective intelligence to design goals for the agents that are 'aligned' with the global goal, and are 'learnable' in that agents can readily see how their behavior affects their utility. We show that reinforcement learning agents using those goals outperform both 'natural' extensions of single agent algorithms and global reinforcement, learning solutions based on 'team games'.

49 CFR 571.201 - Standard No. 201; Occupant protection in interior impact.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

... seat. Ambulance means a motor vehicle designed exclusively for the purpose of emergency medical care... designated seating position, with adjustable forward seats in their rearmost design driving position and reclinable forward seat backs in their nominal design driving position; (b) Direction of impact shall be...

49 CFR 571.201 - Standard No. 201; Occupant protection in interior impact.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... seat. Ambulance means a motor vehicle designed exclusively for the purpose of emergency medical care... designated seating position, with adjustable forward seats in their rearmost design driving position and reclinable forward seat backs in their nominal design driving position; (b) Direction of impact shall be...

21 CFR 516.29 - Termination of MUMS-drug designation.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... (CONTINUED) ANIMAL DRUGS, FEEDS, AND RELATED PRODUCTS NEW ANIMAL DRUGS FOR MINOR USE AND MINOR SPECIES Designation of a Minor Use or Minor Species New Animal Drug § 516.29 Termination of MUMS-drug designation. (a... exclusive marketing rights under this subpart. (d) FDA may terminate designation if it independently...

21 CFR 516.29 - Termination of MUMS-drug designation.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... (CONTINUED) ANIMAL DRUGS, FEEDS, AND RELATED PRODUCTS NEW ANIMAL DRUGS FOR MINOR USE AND MINOR SPECIES Designation of a Minor Use or Minor Species New Animal Drug § 516.29 Termination of MUMS-drug designation. (a... exclusive marketing rights under this subpart. (d) FDA may terminate designation if it independently...

21 CFR 516.29 - Termination of MUMS-drug designation.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... (CONTINUED) ANIMAL DRUGS, FEEDS, AND RELATED PRODUCTS NEW ANIMAL DRUGS FOR MINOR USE AND MINOR SPECIES Designation of a Minor Use or Minor Species New Animal Drug § 516.29 Termination of MUMS-drug designation. (a... exclusive marketing rights under this subpart. (d) FDA may terminate designation if it independently...

21 CFR 516.29 - Termination of MUMS-drug designation.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... (CONTINUED) ANIMAL DRUGS, FEEDS, AND RELATED PRODUCTS NEW ANIMAL DRUGS FOR MINOR USE AND MINOR SPECIES Designation of a Minor Use or Minor Species New Animal Drug § 516.29 Termination of MUMS-drug designation. (a... exclusive marketing rights under this subpart. (d) FDA may terminate designation if it independently...

21 CFR 516.29 - Termination of MUMS-drug designation.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... (CONTINUED) ANIMAL DRUGS, FEEDS, AND RELATED PRODUCTS NEW ANIMAL DRUGS FOR MINOR USE AND MINOR SPECIES Designation of a Minor Use or Minor Species New Animal Drug § 516.29 Termination of MUMS-drug designation. (a... exclusive marketing rights under this subpart. (d) FDA may terminate designation if it independently...

Identifying Ant-Mirid Spatial Interactions to Improve Biological Control in Cacao-Based Agroforestry System.

PubMed

Bagny Beilhe, Leïla; Piou, Cyril; Tadu, Zéphirin; Babin, Régis

2018-06-06

The use of ants for biological control of insect pests was the first reported case of conservation biological control. Direct and indirect community interactions between ants and pests lead to differential spatial pattern. We investigated spatial interactions between mirids, the major cocoa pest in West Africa and numerically dominant ant species, using bivariate point pattern analysis to identify potential biological control agents. We assume that potential biological control agents should display negative spatial interactions with mirids considering their niche overlap. The mirid/ant data were collected in complex cacao-based agroforestry systems sampled in three agroecological areas over a forest-savannah gradient in Cameroon. Three species, Crematogaster striatula Emery (Hymenoptera: Formicidae), Crematogaster clariventris Mayr (Hymenoptera: Formicidae), and Oecophylla longinoda Latreille (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) with high predator and aggressive behaviors were identified as dominant and showed negative spatial relationships with mirids. The weaver ant, O. longinoda was identified as the only potential biological control agent, considering its ubiquity in the plots, the similarity in niche requirements, and the spatial segregation with mirids resulting probably from exclusion mechanisms. Combining bivariate point pattern analysis to good knowledge of insect ecology was an effective method to identify a potentially good biological control agent.

Small molecules as therapy for uveitis: a selected perspective of new and developing agents.

PubMed

Pleyer, Uwe; Algharably, Engi Abdel-Hady; Feist, Eugen; Kreutz, Reinhold

2017-09-01

Intraocular inflammation (uveitis) remains a significant burden of legal blindness. Because of its immune mediated and chronic recurrent nature, common therapy includes corticosteroids, disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs and more recently biologics as immune modulatory agents. The purpose of this article is to identify the role of new treatment approaches focusing on small molecules as therapeutic option in uveitis. Areas covered: A MEDLINE database search was conducted through February 2017 using the terms 'uveitis' and 'small molecule'. To provide ongoing and future perspectives in treatment options, also clinical trials as registered at ClinicalTrials.gov were included. Both, results from experimental as well as clinical research in this field were included. Since this field is rapidly evolving, a selection of promising agents had to be made. Expert opinion: Small molecules may interfere at different steps of the inflammatory cascade and appear as an interesting option in the treatment algorithm of uveitis. Because of their highly targeted molecular effects and their favorable bioavailability with the potential of topical application small molecules hold great promise. Nevertheless, a careful evaluation of these agents has to be made, since current experience is almost exclusively based on experimental uveitis models and few registered trials.

78 FR 24707 - Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic Zone off Alaska: Fixed-Gear Commercial Halibut and Sablefish...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-04-26

.... 120926497-3269-01] RIN 0648-BC62 Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic Zone off Alaska: Fixed-Gear Commercial... NMFS designed the IFQ Program to maintain the social and economic character of the fixed-gear fisheries... regulation would also frustrate the Council's overall policy goal of encouraging a transition from initial QS...

Decoupling Coupled Constraints Through Utility Design

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Li, N; Marden, JR

2014-08-01

Several multiagent systems exemplify the need for establishing distributed control laws that ensure the resulting agents' collective behavior satisfies a given coupled constraint. This technical note focuses on the design of such control laws through a game-theoretic framework. In particular, this technical note provides two systematic methodologies for the design of local agent objective functions that guarantee all resulting Nash equilibria optimize the system level objective while also satisfying a given coupled constraint. Furthermore, the designed local agent objective functions fit into the framework of state based potential games. Consequently, one can appeal to existing results in game-theoretic learning tomore » derive a distributed process that guarantees the agents will reach such an equilibrium.« less

7 CFR 3201.99 - Water clarifying agents.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-01-01

... 7 Agriculture 15 2014-01-01 2014-01-01 false Water clarifying agents. 3201.99 Section 3201.99... Designated Items § 3201.99 Water clarifying agents. (a) Definition. Products designed to clarify and improve the quality of water by reducing contaminants such as excess nitrites, nitrates, phosphates, ammonia...

7 CFR 3201.99 - Water clarifying agents.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-01-01

... 7 Agriculture 15 2013-01-01 2013-01-01 false Water clarifying agents. 3201.99 Section 3201.99... Designated Items § 3201.99 Water clarifying agents. (a) Definition. Products designed to clarify and improve the quality of water by reducing contaminants such as excess nitrites, nitrates, phosphates, ammonia...

A two-dimensional biased coin design for dual-agent dose-finding trials.

PubMed

Sun, Zhichao; Braun, Thomas M

2015-12-01

Given the limited efficacy observed with single agents, there is growing interest in Phase I clinical trial designs that allow for identification of the maximum tolerated combination of two agents. Existing parametric designs may suffer from over- or under-parameterization. Thus, we have designed a nonparametric approach that can be easily understood and implemented for combination trials. We propose a two-stage adaptive biased coin design that extends existing methods for single-agent trials to dual-agent dose-finding trials. The basic idea of our design is to divide the entire trial into two stages and apply the biased coin design, with modification, in each stage. We compare the operating characteristics of our design to four competing parametric approaches via simulation in several numerical examples. Under all simulation scenarios we have examined, our method performs well in terms of identification of the maximum tolerated combination and allocation of patients relative to the performance of its competitors. In our design, stopping rule criteria and the distribution of the total sample size among the two stages are context-dependent, and both need careful consideration before adopting our design in practice. Efficacy is not a part of the dose-assignment algorithm, nor used to define the maximum tolerated combination. Our design inherits the favorable statistical properties of the biased coin design, is competitive with existing designs, and promotes patient safety by limiting patient exposure to toxic combinations whenever possible. © The Author(s) 2015.

Modeling Interactive Intelligences

DTIC Science & Technology

2002-08-01

given a task in an uncertain environment? How can we design it with that type of intelligence? How do we gauge the ludic capabilities of an agent? The...for play, unless they are playgrounds or have been designated as toys. Our non-artistic creations come with built-in purposes. Deviations from expected...uses are usually not welcomed. How could play enter into autonomous agent design ? What enhancement of the agent could it bring about? To think

The influence of macrophages on mesenchymal stromal cell therapy: passive or aggressive agents?

PubMed Central

Carty, F.; English, K.

2017-01-01

Summary Mesenchymal stromal cells (MSC) have emerged as promising cell therapies for multiple conditions based on demonstrations of their potent immunomodulatory and regenerative capacities in models of inflammatory disease. Understanding the effects of MSC on T cells has dominated the majority of work carried out in this field to date; recently, however, a number of studies have shown that the therapeutic effect of MSC requires the presence of macrophages. It is timely to review the mechanisms and manner by which MSC modulate macrophage populations in order to design more effective MSC therapies and clinical studies. A complex cross‐talk exists through which MSC and macrophages communicate, a communication that is not controlled exclusively by MSC. Here, we examine the evidence that suggests that MSC not only respond to inflammatory macrophages and adjust their secretome accordingly, but also that macrophages respond to encounters with MSC, creating a feedback loop which contributes to the immune regulation observed following MSC therapy. Future studies examining the effects of MSC on macrophages should consider the antagonistic role that macrophages play in this exchange. PMID:28108980

15 CFR 16.9 - Rules governing designated agents.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

... representation; and (3) Agree to service any participant in this program in the agent's cognizant product area... participants that the designated agent services under the program. The Secretary shall also be provided an... transmit those fees and charges required under § 16.6 to the Secreatry; (3) Distribute Department of...

15 CFR 16.9 - Rules governing designated agents.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... representation; and (3) Agree to service any participant in this program in the agent's cognizant product area... participants that the designated agent services under the program. The Secretary shall also be provided an... transmit those fees and charges required under § 16.6 to the Secreatry; (3) Distribute Department of...

76 FR 515 - Endangered and Threatened Species, Designation of Critical Habitat for Southern Distinct...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-01-05

...We, the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), propose to designate critical habitat for the southern Distinct Population Segment (DPS) of Pacific eulachon (Thaleichthys pacificus), which was recently listed as threatened under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). We have proposed 12 specific areas for designation as critical habitat within the states of California, Oregon, and Washington. The proposed areas are a combination of freshwater creeks and rivers and their associated estuaries which comprise approximately 470 km (292 mi) of habitat. Three particular areas are proposed for exclusion after evaluating the impacts and benefits associated with tribal land ownership and management by Indian tribes, but no areas are proposed for exclusion based on economic impacts. We are soliciting comments from the public on all aspects of the proposal, including information on the economic, national security, and other relevant impacts of the proposed designation, as well as the benefits to the southern DPS of eulachon from designation. We will consider additional information received prior to making a final designation.

Promoting motivation with virtual agents and avatars: role of visual presence and appearance.

PubMed

Baylor, Amy L

2009-12-12

Anthropomorphic virtual agents can serve as powerful technological mediators to impact motivational outcomes such as self-efficacy and attitude change. Such anthropomorphic agents can be designed as simulated social models in the Bandurian sense, providing social influence as virtual 'role models'. Of particular value is the capacity for designing such agents as optimized social models for a target audience and context. Importantly, the visual presence and appearance of such agents can have a major impact on motivation and affect regardless of the underlying technical sophistication. Empirical results of different instantiations of agent presence and appearance are reviewed for both autonomous virtual agents and avatars that represent a user.

Influence of mitochondrion-toxic agents on the cardiovascular system.

PubMed

Finsterer, Josef; Ohnsorge, Peter

2013-12-01

Cardiovascular disease may be induced or worsened by mitochondrion-toxic agents. Mitochondrion-toxic agents may be classified as those with or without a clinical effect, those which induce cardiac disease only in humans or animals or both, as prescribed drugs, illicit drugs, exotoxins, or nutritiants, as those which affect the heart exclusively or also other organs, as those which are effective only in patients with a mitochondrial disorder or cardiac disease or also in healthy subjects, or as solid, liquid, or volatile agents. In humans, cardiotoxic agents due to mitochondrial dysfunction include anthracyclines (particularly doxorubicin), mitoxantrone, cyclophosphamide, cisplatin, fluorouracil, imatinib, bortezomib, trastuzumab, arsenic trioxide, cyclosporine-A, zidovudine, lamotrigine, glycosides, lidocain, isoproterenol, nitroprusside, pivalic acid, alcohol, cocaine, pesticides, cadmium, mycotoxins, cyanotoxins, meat meal, or carbon monoxide. Even more agents exhibit cardiac abnormalities due to mitochondrion-toxicity only in animals or tissue cultures. The mitochondrion-toxic effect results from impairment of the respiratory chain, the oxidative phosphorylation, the Krebs cycle, or the β-oxidation, from decrease of the mitochondrion-membrane potential, from increased oxidative stress, reduced anti-oxidative capacity, or from induction of apoptosis. Cardiac abnormalities induced via these mechanisms include cardiomyopathy, myocarditis, coronary heart disease, arrhythmias, heart failure, or Takotsubo syndrome. Discontinuation of the cardiotoxic agent results in complete recovery in the majority of the cases. Antioxidants and nutritiants may be of additional help. Particularly coenzyme-Q, riboflavin, vitamin-E, vitamin-C, L-carnitine, vitamin-D, thiamin, folic acid, omega-3 fatty acids, and D-ribose may alleviate mitochondrial cardiotoxic effects. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

You Look Human, But Act Like a Machine: Agent Appearance and Behavior Modulate Different Aspects of Human-Robot Interaction.

PubMed

Abubshait, Abdulaziz; Wiese, Eva

2017-01-01

Gaze following occurs automatically in social interactions, but the degree to which gaze is followed depends on whether an agent is perceived to have a mind, making its behavior socially more relevant for the interaction. Mind perception also modulates the attitudes we have toward others, and determines the degree of empathy, prosociality, and morality invested in social interactions. Seeing mind in others is not exclusive to human agents, but mind can also be ascribed to non-human agents like robots, as long as their appearance and/or behavior allows them to be perceived as intentional beings. Previous studies have shown that human appearance and reliable behavior induce mind perception to robot agents, and positively affect attitudes and performance in human-robot interaction. What has not been investigated so far is whether different triggers of mind perception have an independent or interactive effect on attitudes and performance in human-robot interaction. We examine this question by manipulating agent appearance (human vs. robot) and behavior (reliable vs. random) within the same paradigm and examine how congruent (human/reliable vs. robot/random) versus incongruent (human/random vs. robot/reliable) combinations of these triggers affect performance (i.e., gaze following) and attitudes (i.e., agent ratings) in human-robot interaction. The results show that both appearance and behavior affect human-robot interaction but that the two triggers seem to operate in isolation, with appearance more strongly impacting attitudes, and behavior more strongly affecting performance. The implications of these findings for human-robot interaction are discussed.

Scalable Hierarchical Network Management System for Displaying Network Information in Three Dimensions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

George, Jude (Inventor); Schlecht, Leslie (Inventor); McCabe, James D. (Inventor); LeKashman, John Jr. (Inventor)

1998-01-01

A network management system has SNMP agents distributed at one or more sites, an input output module at each site, and a server module located at a selected site for communicating with input output modules, each of which is configured for both SNMP and HNMP communications. The server module is configured exclusively for HNMP communications, and it communicates with each input output module according to the HNMP. Non-iconified, informationally complete views are provided of network elements to aid in network management.

Characterization of Clinically Attenuated Burkholderia mallei by Whole-Genome Sequencing: Candidate Strain for Exclusion from Select Agent Lists

DTIC Science & Technology

2008-04-01

symptoms may have been related to endotoxin . Clinical signs in the ponies and the mule were either minimal (fever) or nonexistent. All 6 equids produced ...ponies, 1 mule, 1 donkey), natural hosts, for purposes of producing antibodies. Multiple high inocula were used in some cases. Unexpectedly SAVP1 appeared...that was experimentally infected in 6 equids (4 ponies, 1 mule, 1 donkey), natural hosts, for purposes of producing antibodies. Multiple high inocula

Aptamer-Targeted Gold Nanoparticles As Molecular-Specific Contrast Agents for Reflectance Imaging

PubMed Central

2008-01-01

Targeted metallic nanoparticles have shown potential as a platform for development of molecular-specific contrast agents. Aptamers have recently been demonstrated as ideal candidates for molecular targeting applications. In this study, we investigated the development of aptamer-based gold nanoparticles as contrast agents, using aptamers as targeting agents and gold nanoparticles as imaging agents. We devised a novel conjugation approach using an extended aptamer design where the extension is complementary to an oligonucleotide sequence attached to the surface of the gold nanoparticles. The chemical and optical properties of the aptamer−gold conjugates were characterized using size measurements and oligonucleotide quantitation assays. We demonstrate this conjugation approach to create a contrast agent designed for detection of prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA), obtaining reflectance images of PSMA(+) and PSMA(−) cell lines treated with the anti-PSMA aptamer−gold conjugates. This design strategy can easily be modified to incorporate multifunctional agents as part of a multimodal platform for reflectance imaging applications. PMID:18512972

Effect of fertilizer applications and grazing exclusion on species composition and biomass in wet meadow restoration in eastern Washington.

Treesearch

John Beebe; Richard Everett; George Scherer; Carl. Davis

2002-01-01

Fertilizer applications and grazing exclusion were used as restoration strategies in degraded wet meadows in eastern Washington to grow biomass in the root systems where it could not be grazed. We used a split-block design to test vegetation responses to six fertilizer rates, eight fertilizer types, and three grazing treatments after three growing seasons. Little...

22 CFR 121.1 - General. The United States Munitions List.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... specifically designed or modified for the articles in this category: * (1) Guidance and control components for... controls of the ITAR. (f) Developmental aircraft, engines, and components thereof specifically designed... (including propellers) designed exclusively for civil, non-military aircraft (see § 121.3 of this subchapter...

22 CFR 121.1 - General. The United States Munitions List.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... specifically designed or modified for the articles in this category: * (1) Guidance and control components for... controls of the ITAR. (f) Developmental aircraft, engines, and components thereof specifically designed... (including propellers) designed exclusively for civil, non-military aircraft (see § 121.3 of this subchapter...

Intelligent Design of Nano-Scale Molecular Imaging Agents

PubMed Central

Kim, Sung Bae; Hattori, Mitsuru; Ozawa, Takeaki

2012-01-01

Visual representation and quantification of biological processes at the cellular and subcellular levels within living subjects are gaining great interest in life science to address frontier issues in pathology and physiology. As intact living subjects do not emit any optical signature, visual representation usually exploits nano-scale imaging agents as the source of image contrast. Many imaging agents have been developed for this purpose, some of which exert nonspecific, passive, and physical interaction with a target. Current research interest in molecular imaging has mainly shifted to fabrication of smartly integrated, specific, and versatile agents that emit fluorescence or luminescence as an optical readout. These agents include luminescent quantum dots (QDs), biofunctional antibodies, and multifunctional nanoparticles. Furthermore, genetically encoded nano-imaging agents embedding fluorescent proteins or luciferases are now gaining popularity. These agents are generated by integrative design of the components, such as luciferase, flexible linker, and receptor to exert a specific on–off switching in the complex context of living subjects. In the present review, we provide an overview of the basic concepts, smart design, and practical contribution of recent nano-scale imaging agents, especially with respect to genetically encoded imaging agents. PMID:23235326

Intelligent design of nano-scale molecular imaging agents.

PubMed

Kim, Sung Bae; Hattori, Mitsuru; Ozawa, Takeaki

2012-12-12

Visual representation and quantification of biological processes at the cellular and subcellular levels within living subjects are gaining great interest in life science to address frontier issues in pathology and physiology. As intact living subjects do not emit any optical signature, visual representation usually exploits nano-scale imaging agents as the source of image contrast. Many imaging agents have been developed for this purpose, some of which exert nonspecific, passive, and physical interaction with a target. Current research interest in molecular imaging has mainly shifted to fabrication of smartly integrated, specific, and versatile agents that emit fluorescence or luminescence as an optical readout. These agents include luminescent quantum dots (QDs), biofunctional antibodies, and multifunctional nanoparticles. Furthermore, genetically encoded nano-imaging agents embedding fluorescent proteins or luciferases are now gaining popularity. These agents are generated by integrative design of the components, such as luciferase, flexible linker, and receptor to exert a specific on-off switching in the complex context of living subjects. In the present review, we provide an overview of the basic concepts, smart design, and practical contribution of recent nano-scale imaging agents, especially with respect to genetically encoded imaging agents.

25 CFR 23.12 - Designated tribal agent for service of notice.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... pursuant to 25 U.S.C. 1912 may designate by resolution, or by such other form as the tribe's constitution... shall update and publish as necessary the names and addresses of the designated agents in the Federal...

The Application of Embodied Conversational Agents for Mentoring African American STEM Doctoral Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gosha, Kinnis

2013-01-01

This dissertation presents the design, development and short-term evaluation of an embodied conversational agent designed to mentor human users. An embodied conversational agent (ECA) was created and programmed to mentor African American computer science majors on their decision to pursue graduate study in computing. Before constructing the ECA,…

The Design of Motivational Agents and Avatars

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Baylor, Amy L.

2011-01-01

While the addition of an anthropomorphic interface agent to a learning system generally has little direct impact on learning, it potentially has a huge impact on learner motivation. As such agents become increasingly ubiquitous on the Internet, in virtual worlds, and as interfaces for learning and gaming systems, it is important to design them to…

30 CFR 285.705 - When must I use a Certified Verification Agent (CVA)?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... INTERIOR OFFSHORE RENEWABLE ENERGY ALTERNATE USES OF EXISTING FACILITIES ON THE OUTER CONTINENTAL SHELF Facility Design, Fabrication, and Installation Certified Verification Agent § 285.705 When must I use a Certified Verification Agent (CVA)? You must use a CVA to review and certify the Facility Design Report, the...

The exclusion from welfare benefits: Resentment and survey attrition in a randomized controlled trial in Mexico.

PubMed

Stecklov, Guy; Weinreb, Alexander; Winters, Paul

2016-11-01

Public policy programs must often impose limits on who may be eligible for benefits. Despite research on the impact of exclusion in developed countries, there is little evidence on how people react to being excluded from benefits in developing societies. Utilizing repeated waves of data from an experimental evaluation of Mexico's foundational PROGRESA antipoverty program, we examine the impact of exclusion and distinguish two separate forms. "Statistical exclusion" occurs where determination of benefits is based on randomized assignment to a treatment and control group. "Needs-based exclusion" occurs when benefits programs are designed to be selective rather than universal, basing eligibility on characteristics, like relative poverty, that are difficult to measure simply and accurately. Focusing on temporal variation in survey non-response as our behavioral outcome, we show that needs-based exclusion has much greater negative effects on continued participation than statistical exclusion. We also show that these effects are concentrated among the wealthy, that is, those furthest from the eligibility cut-off line. These findings reinforce general concerns about the validity of evaluation studies when incentives are at work. We discuss both the behavioral explanations that might underlie these findings as well as some potential approaches to reduce threats to evaluation validity. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Synthesis and biological evaluation of sialyl-oligonucleotide conjugates targeting leukocyte B trans-membranal receptor CD22 as delivery agents for nucleic acid drugs.

PubMed

St-Pierre, Gabrielle; Pal, Sudip; Østergaard, Michael E; Zhou, Tianyuan; Yu, Jinghua; Tanowitz, Michael; Seth, Punit P; Hanessian, Stephen

2016-06-01

Antisense oligonucleotides (ASOs) modified with ligands which target cell surface receptors have the potential to significantly improve potency in the target tissue. This has recently been demonstrated using triantennary N-acetyl d-galactosamine conjugated ASOs. CD22 is a cell surface receptor expressed exclusively on B cells thus presenting an attractive target for B cell specific delivery of drugs. Herein, we reported the synthesis of monovalent and trivalent ASO conjugates with biphenylcarbonyl (BPC) modified sialic acids and their study as ASO delivery agents into B cells. CD22 positive cells exhibited reduced potency when treated with ligand modified ASOs and mechanistic examination suggested reduced uptake into cells potentially as a result of sequestration of ASO by other cell-surface proteins. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Structure-guided design of a high-affinity platelet integrin αIIbβ3 receptor antagonist that disrupts Mg²⁺ binding to the MIDAS.

PubMed

Zhu, Jieqing; Choi, Won-Seok; McCoy, Joshua G; Negri, Ana; Zhu, Jianghai; Naini, Sarasija; Li, Jihong; Shen, Min; Huang, Wenwei; Bougie, Daniel; Rasmussen, Mark; Aster, Richard; Thomas, Craig J; Filizola, Marta; Springer, Timothy A; Coller, Barry S

2012-03-14

An integrin found on platelets, α(IIb)β(3) mediates platelet aggregation, and α(IIb)β(3) antagonists are effective antithrombotic agents in the clinic. Ligands bind to integrins in part by coordinating a magnesium ion (Mg(2+)) located in the β subunit metal ion-dependent adhesion site (MIDAS). Drugs patterned on the integrin ligand sequence Arg-Gly-Asp have a basic moiety that binds the α(IIb) subunit and a carboxyl group that coordinates the MIDAS Mg(2+) in the β(3) subunits. They induce conformational changes in the β(3) subunit that may have negative consequences such as exposing previously hidden epitopes and inducing the active conformation of the receptor. We recently reported an inhibitor of α(IIb)β(3) (RUC-1) that binds exclusively to the α(IIb) subunit; here, we report the structure-based design and synthesis of RUC-2, a RUC-1 derivative with a ~100-fold higher affinity. RUC-2 does not induce major conformational changes in β(3) as judged by monoclonal antibody binding, light scattering, gel chromatography, electron microscopy, and a receptor priming assay. X-ray crystallography of the RUC-2-α(IIb)β(3) headpiece complex in 1 mM calcium ion (Ca(2+))/5 mM Mg(2+) at 2.6 Å revealed that RUC-2 binds to α(IIb) the way RUC-1 does, but in addition, it binds to the β(3) MIDAS residue glutamic acid 220, thus displacing Mg(2+) from the MIDAS. When the Mg(2+) concentration was increased to 20 mM, however, Mg(2+) was identified in the MIDAS and RUC-2 was absent. RUC-2's ability to inhibit ligand binding and platelet aggregation was diminished by increasing the Mg(2+) concentration. Thus, RUC-2 inhibits ligand binding by a mechanism different from that of all other α(IIb)β(3) antagonists and may offer advantages as a therapeutic agent.

40 CFR 600.002 - Definitions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

...”). Auxiliary emission control device (AECD) means an element of design as defined in § 86.1803 of this chapter... combination. Alcohol-fueled automobile means an automobile designed to operate exclusively on alcohol. Alcohol dual fuel automobile means an automobile: (1) Which is designed to operate on alcohol and on gasoline...

40 CFR 600.002-08 - Definitions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... 523.3. Auxiliary emission control device (AECD) means an element of design as defined in part 86 of... means an automobile designed to operate exclusively on alcohol. Alcohol dual fuel automobile means an automobile: (1) Which is designed to operate on alcohol and on gasoline or diesel fuel; and (2) Which...

40 CFR 600.002 - Definitions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

...”). Auxiliary emission control device (AECD) means an element of design as defined in § 86.1803 of this chapter... combination. Alcohol-fueled automobile means an automobile designed to operate exclusively on alcohol. Alcohol dual fuel automobile means an automobile: (1) Which is designed to operate on alcohol and on gasoline...

76 FR 14070 - In the Matter of Certain Automotive Vehicles and Designs Therefore; Notice of Commission Issuance...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-03-15

... Vehicles and Designs Therefore; Notice of Commission Issuance of Limited Exclusion Order and Cease and... within the United States after importation of certain automotive vehicles and designs therefor by reason...: importing, selling, marketing, advertising, distributing, offering for sale, transferring (except for...

Innovation for an Inclusive Future

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Springett, Mark; Rice, Mark; Carmichael, Alex; Griffiths, Richard

This workshop will focus on setting the agenda for research, practice and policy in support of inclusive design for third generation computer-based products. The next generation of technology represents an unprecedented opportunity to improve the quality of life for groups of users who have previously faced exclusion, such as those with impairments and older citizens. At the same time it risks creating a greater digital divide and further exclusion. How we approach design for this new generation will determine whether or not the third wave will provide positive advances towards an inclusive digital world. We therefore need to put forward both a rationale for inclusive design and provide pointers towards technical development and design practice in support of inclusion. It is our belief that there is not only a strong moral case for design for inclusion but also significant commercial incentive, which may be key to persuading influential players to focus on inclusion. Therefore one of our key objectives is to describe and promote the advantages of designing ‘in from the edges’ of the user population rather than designing for a notional ‘average’ user.

Health and social exclusion in older age: evidence from Understanding Society, the UK household longitudinal study.

PubMed

Sacker, Amanda; Ross, Andy; MacLeod, Catherine A; Netuveli, Gopal; Windle, Gill

2017-07-01

Social exclusion of the elderly is a key policy focus but evidence on the processes linking health and social exclusion is hampered by the variety of ways that health is used in social exclusion research. We investigated longitudinal associations between health and social exclusion using an analytical framework that did not conflate them. Data employed in this study came from 4 waves of Understanding Society, the UK Household Longitudinal Study 2009-2013. The sample comprised all adults who took part in all 4 waves, were 65 years or more in Wave 3, and had complete data on our variables of interest for each analysis. We used linear regression to model the relationship between Wave 2/3 social exclusion and Wave1-2 health transitions (N=4312) and logistic regression to model the relationship between Wave2/3 social exclusion and Wave 4 health states, conditional on Wave 3 health (N=4244). There was a dose-response relationship between poor health in Waves 1 and 2 and later social exclusion. Use of a car, mobile phone and the internet moderated the association between poor health and social exclusion. Given the health status in Wave 3, those who were more socially excluded had poorer outcomes on each of the three domains of health in Wave 4. Use of the internet and technology protected older adults in poor health from social exclusion. Age-friendly hardware and software design might have public health benefits. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://www.bmj.com/company/products-services/rights-and-licensing/.

The Effect of an Embedded Pedagogical Agent on the Students' Science Achievement

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kizilkaya, Gonca; Askar, Petek

2008-01-01

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to investigate the effect of an embedded pedagogical agent into a tutorial on achievement. Design/methodology/approach: Research methodology is designed according to the post test control group model in which the experimental group (69 students) was exposed to a tutorial with an embedded pedagogical agent;…

"New drug" designations for new therapeutic entities: new active substance, new chemical entity, new biological entity, new molecular entity.

PubMed

Branch, Sarah K; Agranat, Israel

2014-11-13

This Perspective addresses ambiguities in designations of "new drugs" intended as new therapeutic entities (NTEs). Designation of an NTE as a new drug is significant, as it may confer regulatory exclusivity, an important incentive for development of novel compounds. Such designations differ between jurisdictions according to their drug laws and drug regulations. Chemical, biological, and innovative drugs are addressed in turn. The terms new chemical entity (NCE), new molecular entity (NME), new active substance (NAS), and new biological entity (NBE) as applied in worldwide jurisdictions are clarified. Differences between them are explored through case studies showing why new drugs have different periods of exclusivity in different jurisdictions or none at all. Finally, this Perspective recommends that in future, for the purpose of new drug compilations, NME is used for a new chemical drug, NBE for a new biological drug, and the combined designation NTE should refer to either an NME or an NBE.

Profiles of eight working mothers who practiced exclusive breastfeeding in Depok, Indonesia.

PubMed

Februhartanty, Judhiastuty; Wibowo, Yulianti; Fahmida, Umi; Roshita, Airin

2012-02-01

Exclusive breastfeeding practice is generally low because of multifaceted factors internally within mothers themselves and also the surroundings. In addition, studies have consistently found that maternal employment outside the home is related to shorter duration of exclusive breastfeeding. With all these challenges, it is interesting that there are some mothers who manage to exclusively breastfeed their infants. Therefore, this report aims at exploring the characteristics of working mothers who are able to practice exclusive breastfeeding. The original study population was non-working and working mothers who have infants around 1 to 6 months old. The study design is an observational study with a mixed methods approach using a quantitative study (survey) and qualitative methods (in-depth interview) in sequential order. In addition, in-depth interviews with family members, midwives, supervisors at work, and community health workers were also included to accomplish a holistic picture of the situation. The study concludes that self-efficacy and confidence of the breastfeeding mothers characterize the practice of exclusive breastfeeding. Good knowledge that was acquired way before the mothers got pregnant suggests a predisposing factor to the current state of confidence. Home support from the father enhances the decision to sustain breastfeeding.

Use of agents to implement an integrated computing environment

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hale, Mark A.; Craig, James I.

1995-01-01

Integrated Product and Process Development (IPPD) embodies the simultaneous application to both system and quality engineering methods throughout an iterative design process. The use of IPPD results in the time-conscious, cost-saving development of engineering systems. To implement IPPD, a Decision-Based Design perspective is encapsulated in an approach that focuses on the role of the human designer in product development. The approach has two parts and is outlined in this paper. First, an architecture, called DREAMS, is being developed that facilitates design from a decision-based perspective. Second, a supporting computing infrastructure, called IMAGE, is being designed. Agents are used to implement the overall infrastructure on the computer. Successful agent utilization requires that they be made of three components: the resource, the model, and the wrap. Current work is focused on the development of generalized agent schemes and associated demonstration projects. When in place, the technology independent computing infrastructure will aid the designer in systematically generating knowledge used to facilitate decision-making.

Development of multimedia resource and short courses for LRFD design.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2011-03-01

Multimedia technology is an essential instrument in the development of graduate engineers. This : multimedia package provides an exclusive background and an in-depth understanding of the new : technological advances in the design of concrete, steel a...

Iron-based ferritin nanocore as a contrast agent.

PubMed

Sana, Barindra; Johnson, Eric; Sheah, Kenneth; Poh, Chueh Loo; Lim, Sierin

2010-09-01

Self-assembling protein cages have been exploited as templates for nanoparticle synthesis. The ferritin molecule, a protein cage present in most living systems, stores excess soluble ferrous iron in the form of an insoluble ferric complex within its cavity. Magnetic nanocores formed by loading excess iron within an engineered ferritin from Archaeoglobus fulgidus (AfFtn-AA) were studied as a potential magnetic resonance (MR) imaging contrast agent. The self-assembly characteristics of the AfFtn-AA were investigated using dynamic light scattering technique and size exclusion chromatography. Homogeneous size distribution of the assembled nanoparticles was observed using transmission electron microscopy. The magnetic properties of iron-loaded AfFtn-AA were studied using vibrating sample magnetometry. Images obtained from a 3.0 T whole-body MRI scanner showed significant brightening of T(1) images and signal loss of T(2) images with increased concentrations of iron-loaded AfFtn-AA. The analysis of the MR image intensities showed extremely high R(2) values (5300 mM(-1) s(-1)) for the iron-loaded AfFtn-AA confirming its potential as a T(2) contrast agent.

Best Fed Beginnings: A Nationwide Quality Improvement Initiative to Increase Breastfeeding.

PubMed

Feldman-Winter, Lori; Ustianov, Jennifer; Anastasio, Julius; Butts-Dion, Sue; Heinrich, Patricia; Merewood, Anne; Bugg, Kimarie; Donohue-Rolfe, Sarah; Homer, Charles J

2017-07-01

In response to a low number of Baby-Friendly-designated hospitals in the United States, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention funded the National Institute for Children's Health Quality to conduct a national quality improvement initiative between 2011 and 2015. The initiative was entitled Best Fed Beginnings and enrolled 90 hospitals in a nationwide initiative to increase breastfeeding and achieve Baby-Friendly designation. The intervention period lasted from July 2012 to August 2014. During that period, data on process indicators aligned with the Ten Steps to Successful Breastfeeding and outcome measures (overall and exclusively related to breastfeeding) were collected. In addition, data on the Baby-Friendly designation were collected after the end of the intervention through April 2016. Hospitals assembled multidisciplinary teams that included parent partners and community representatives. Three in-person learning sessions were interspersed with remote learning and tests of change, and a Web-based platform housed resources and data for widespread sharing. By April 2016, a total of 72 (80%) of the 90 hospitals received the Baby-Friendly designation, nearly doubling the number of designated hospitals in the United States. Participation in the Best Fed Beginnings initiative had significantly high correlation with designation compared with hospital applicants not in the program (Pearson's r [235]: 0.80; P < .01). Overall breastfeeding increased from 79% to 83% ( t = 1.93; P = .057), and exclusive breastfeeding increased from 39% to 61% ( t = 9.72; P < .001). A nationwide initiative of maternity care hospitals accomplished rapid transformative changes to achieve Baby-Friendly designation. These changes were accompanied by a significant increase in exclusive breastfeeding. Copyright © 2017 by the American Academy of Pediatrics.

The impact of exotic parasitoids on populations of a native Hawaiian moth assessed using life table studies.

PubMed

Kaufman, Leyla V; Wright, Mark G

2009-03-01

The impact of alien species on native organisms is a cause for concern worldwide, with biological invasions commonplace today. Suppression efforts targeting many invasive species have included introductions of biological control agents. The numerous releases of biological control agents in the Hawaiian archipelago have resulted in considerable concern for non-target impacts, due to high levels of non-target parasitism observed to occur in some cases. This study investigated the impact of introduced Hymenoptera parasitoids on a Hawaiian moth. The endemic Hawaiian moth Udea stellata (Butler) has seven alien parasitoids associated with it, two purposely introduced, three adventive, and two of uncertain origin. The objective of this study was to determine the relative contribution of the seven parasitoid species to the population dynamics of U. stellata by constructing partial life tables. Marginal attack rates and associated k-values were calculated to allow comparison of mortality factors between experimental sites. Sentinel larvae were deployed on potted host plants and left in the field for 3-day intervals in open and exclusion treatments. The factors that contributed to total mortality in the open treatment were: disappearance (42.1%), death due to unknown reasons during rearing (16.5%) and parasitism (4.9%). The open treatment incurred significantly higher larval disappearance compared to the exclusion treatment (7.8%), which suggests that in large part disappearance is the result of predation. Adventive parasitoids inflicted greater total larval mortality attributable to parasitism (97.0%) than purposely introduced species (3.0%).

Discrimination of tenants with a visual impairment on the housing market: Empirical evidence from correspondence tests.

PubMed

Verhaeghe, Pieter-Paul; Van der Bracht, Koen; Van de Putte, Bart

2016-04-01

According to the social model of disability, physical 'impairments' become disabilities through exclusion in social relations. An obvious form of social exclusion might be discrimination, for instance on the rental housing market. Although discrimination has detrimental health effects, very few studies have examined discrimination of people with a visual impairment. We aim to study (1) the extent of discrimination of individuals with a visual impairment on the rental housing market and (2) differences in rates of discrimination between landowners and real estate agents. We conducted correspondence tests among 268 properties on the Belgian rental housing market. Using matched tests, we compared reactions by realtors and landowners to tenants with and tenants without a visual impairment. The results show that individuals with a visual impairment are substantially discriminated against in the rental housing market: at least one in three lessors discriminate against individuals with a visual impairment. We further discern differences in the propensity toward discrimination according to the type of lessor. Private landlords are at least twice as likely to discriminate against tenants with a visual impairment than real estate agents. At the same time, realtors still discriminate against one in five tenants with a visual impairment. This study shows the substantial discrimination against visually people with an impairment. Given the important consequences discrimination might have for physical and mental health, further research into this topic is needed. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Ventral and dorsal streams for choosing word order during sentence production

PubMed Central

Thothathiri, Malathi; Rattinger, Michelle

2015-01-01

Proficient language use requires speakers to vary word order and choose between different ways of expressing the same meaning. Prior statistical associations between individual verbs and different word orders are known to influence speakers’ choices, but the underlying neural mechanisms are unknown. Here we show that distinct neural pathways are used for verbs with different statistical associations. We manipulated statistical experience by training participants in a language containing novel verbs and two alternative word orders (agent-before-patient, AP; patient-before-agent, PA). Some verbs appeared exclusively in AP, others exclusively in PA, and yet others in both orders. Subsequently, we used sparse sampling neuroimaging to examine the neural substrates as participants generated new sentences in the scanner. Behaviorally, participants showed an overall preference for AP order, but also increased PA order for verbs experienced in that order, reflecting statistical learning. Functional activation and connectivity analyses revealed distinct networks underlying the increased PA production. Verbs experienced in both orders during training preferentially recruited a ventral stream, indicating the use of conceptual processing for mapping meaning to word order. In contrast, verbs experienced solely in PA order recruited dorsal pathways, indicating the use of selective attention and sensorimotor integration for choosing words in the right order. These results show that the brain tracks the structural associations of individual verbs and that the same structural output may be achieved via ventral or dorsal streams, depending on the type of regularities in the input. PMID:26621706

Human herpes viruses in burn patients: A systematic review.

PubMed

Wurzer, Paul; Guillory, Ashley; Parvizi, Daryousch; Clayton, Robert P; Branski, Ludwik K; Kamolz, Lars-P; Finnerty, Celeste C; Herndon, David N; Lee, Jong O

2017-02-01

The contribution of human herpes viruses, including herpes simplex virus (HSV), cytomegalovirus (CMV), and varicella zoster virus (VZV) to morbidity and mortality after burns remains controversial. This systematic review was undertaken to assess evidence of herpes virus-related morbidity and mortality in burns. PubMed, Ovid, and Web of Science were searched to identify studies of HSV, CMV, or VZV infections in burn patients. Exclusion criteria included: A level of evidence (LoE) of IV or V; nonhuman in vivo studies; and non-English articles. There was no limitation by publication date. Fifty articles were subjected to full-text analysis. Of these, 18 had LoE between I-III and were included in the final review (2 LoE I, 16 LoE II-III). Eight had a prospective study design, 9 had a retrospective study design, and 1 included both. No direct evidence linked CMV and HSV infection with increased morbidity and mortality in burns. Following burn, CMV reactivation was more common than a primary CMV infection. Active HSV infection impaired wound healing but was not directly correlated to mortality. Infections with VZV are rare after burns but when they occur, VZV infections were associated with severe complications including mortality. The therapeutic effect of antiviral agents administered after burns warrants investigation via prospective randomized controlled trials. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd and ISBI. All rights reserved.

Characterization of single-domain antibodies with an engineered disulfide bond.

PubMed

Hussack, Greg; Mackenzie, C Roger; Tanha, Jamshid

2012-01-01

Camelidae single-domain antibodies (VHHs) represent a unique class of emerging therapeutics. Similar to other recombinant antibody fragments (e.g., Fabs, scFvs), VHHs are amenable to library screening and selection, but benefit from superior intrinsic biophysical properties such as high refolding efficiency, high solubility, no tendency for aggregation, resistance to proteases and chemical denaturants, and high expression, making them ideal agents for antibody-based drug design. Despite these favorable biophysical characteristics, further improvements to VHH stability are desirable when considering applications in adverse environments like high heat, low humidity, pH extremes, and the acidic, protease-rich gastrointestinal tract. Recently, the introduction of a disulfide bond into the hydrophobic core of camelid VHHs increased antibody thermal and conformational stability. Here, we present additional protocols for characterizing the effects of the introduced disulfide bond on a panel of llama VHHs. Specifically, we employ mass spectrometry fingerprinting analysis of VHH peptides to confirm the presence of the introduced disulfide bond, size exclusion chromatography, and surface plasmon resonance to examine the effects on aggregation state and target affinity, and circular dichroism spectroscopy and protease digestion assays to assess the effects on thermal and proteolytic stability. The disulfide bond stabilization strategy can be incorporated into antibody library design and should lead to hyperstabilized single-domain antibodies (VHHs, VHs), and possibly Fabs and scFvs, if selection pressures such as denaturants or proteases are introduced during antibody selection.

Monitoring Agents for Assisting NASA Engineers with Shuttle Ground Processing

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Semmel, Glenn S.; Davis, Steven R.; Leucht, Kurt W.; Rowe, Danil A.; Smith, Kevin E.; Boeloeni, Ladislau

2005-01-01

The Spaceport Processing Systems Branch at NASA Kennedy Space Center has designed, developed, and deployed a rule-based agent to monitor the Space Shuttle's ground processing telemetry stream. The NASA Engineering Shuttle Telemetry Agent increases situational awareness for system and hardware engineers during ground processing of the Shuttle's subsystems. The agent provides autonomous monitoring of the telemetry stream and automatically alerts system engineers when user defined conditions are satisfied. Efficiency and safety are improved through increased automation. Sandia National Labs' Java Expert System Shell is employed as the agent's rule engine. The shell's predicate logic lends itself well to capturing the heuristics and specifying the engineering rules within this domain. The declarative paradigm of the rule-based agent yields a highly modular and scalable design spanning multiple subsystems of the Shuttle. Several hundred monitoring rules have been written thus far with corresponding notifications sent to Shuttle engineers. This chapter discusses the rule-based telemetry agent used for Space Shuttle ground processing. We present the problem domain along with design and development considerations such as information modeling, knowledge capture, and the deployment of the product. We also present ongoing work with other condition monitoring agents.

30 CFR 250.145 - How do I designate an agent or a local agent?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... agent empowered to fulfill your obligations under the Act, the lease, or the regulations in this part... agent empowered to receive notices and submit requests, applications, notices, or supplemental...

47 CFR 7.18 - Procedure; designation of agents for service.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... 47 Telecommunication 1 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Procedure; designation of agents for service. 7.18 Section 7.18 Telecommunication FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION GENERAL ACCESS TO VOICEMAIL AND INTERACTIVE MENU SERVICES AND EQUIPMENT BY PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES Enforcement § 7.18 Procedure; designation...

47 CFR 7.18 - Procedure; designation of agents for service.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-10-01

... 47 Telecommunication 1 2013-10-01 2013-10-01 false Procedure; designation of agents for service. 7.18 Section 7.18 Telecommunication FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION GENERAL ACCESS TO VOICEMAIL AND INTERACTIVE MENU SERVICES AND EQUIPMENT BY PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES Enforcement § 7.18 Procedure; designation...

47 CFR 7.18 - Procedure; designation of agents for service.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

... 47 Telecommunication 1 2011-10-01 2011-10-01 false Procedure; designation of agents for service. 7.18 Section 7.18 Telecommunication FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION GENERAL ACCESS TO VOICEMAIL AND INTERACTIVE MENU SERVICES AND EQUIPMENT BY PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES Enforcement § 7.18 Procedure; designation...

47 CFR 7.18 - Procedure; designation of agents for service.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-10-01

... 47 Telecommunication 1 2012-10-01 2012-10-01 false Procedure; designation of agents for service. 7.18 Section 7.18 Telecommunication FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION GENERAL ACCESS TO VOICEMAIL AND INTERACTIVE MENU SERVICES AND EQUIPMENT BY PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES Enforcement § 7.18 Procedure; designation...

47 CFR 7.18 - Procedure; designation of agents for service.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-10-01

... 47 Telecommunication 1 2014-10-01 2014-10-01 false Procedure; designation of agents for service. 7.18 Section 7.18 Telecommunication FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION GENERAL ACCESS TO VOICEMAIL AND INTERACTIVE MENU SERVICES AND EQUIPMENT BY PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES Enforcement § 7.18 Procedure; designation...

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Goldsmith, Steven Y.; Spires, Shannon V.

There are currently two proposed standards for agent communication languages, namely, KQML (Finin, Lobrou, and Mayfield 1994) and the FIPA ACL. Neither standard has yet achieved primacy, and neither has been evaluated extensively in an open environment such as the Internet. It seems prudent therefore to design a general-purpose agent communications facility for new agent architectures that is flexible yet provides an architecture that accepts many different specializations. In this paper we exhibit the salient features of an agent communications architecture based on distributed metaobjects. This architecture captures design commitments at a metaobject level, leaving the base-level design and implementationmore » up to the agent developer. The scope of the metamodel is broad enough to accommodate many different communication protocols, interaction protocols, and knowledge sharing regimes through extensions to the metaobject framework. We conclude that with a powerful distributed object substrate that supports metaobject communications, a general framework can be developed that will effectively enable different approaches to agent communications in the same agent system. We have implemented a KQML-based communications protocol and have several special-purpose interaction protocols under development.« less

Intelligent Agents for Design and Synthesis Environments: My Summary

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Norvig, Peter

1999-01-01

This presentation gives a summary of intelligent agents for design synthesis environments. We'll start with the conclusions, and work backwards to justify them. First, an important assumption is that agents (whatever they are) are good for software engineering. This is especially true for software that operates in an uncertain, changing environment. The "real world" of physical artifacts is like that: uncertain in what we can measure, changing in that things are always breaking down, and we must interact with non-software entities. The second point is that software engineering techniques can contribute to good design. There may have been a time when we wanted to build simple artifacts containing little or no software. But modern aircraft and spacecraft are complex, and rely on a great deal of software. So better software engineering leads to better designed artifacts, especially when we are designing a series of related artifacts and can amortize the costs of software development. The third point is that agents are especially useful for design tasks, above and beyond their general usefulness for software engineering, and the usefulness of software engineering to design.

A Buyer Behaviour Framework for the Development and Design of Software Agents in E-Commerce.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sproule, Susan; Archer, Norm

2000-01-01

Software agents are computer programs that run in the background and perform tasks autonomously as delegated by the user. This paper blends models from marketing research and findings from the field of decision support systems to build a framework for the design of software agents to support in e-commerce buying applications. (Contains 35…

Revised Study Design for Final Phase of the Change Agent Study. Study of Change Agent Programs: A Working Note.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bass, G.; And Others

The Rand change agent study was designed to determine the factors for successful implementation and continuation of selected federal programs--the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, Title III, Innovation Projects; ESEA Title VII, Bilingual Projects; Vocational Education Part D, Exemplary Programs; and the Right-to-Read program. This report…

40 CFR 93.101 - Definitions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... or changing traffic flow or congestion conditions. Notwithstanding the first sentence of this...-traffic rail transit, exclusive busway, etc. Design scope means the design aspects which will affect the... from vehicles under fixed traffic conditions are not TCMs for the purposes of this subpart...

32 CFR Appendix B to Part 651 - Categorical Exclusions

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... disturbance. Examples include topographic surveys, bird counts, wetland mapping, and other resources... existing land-use patterns. (4) Modification, product improvement, or configuration engineering design... original product design and there are no unusual disposal requirements. The development and use by the...

32 CFR Appendix B to Part 651 - Categorical Exclusions

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... disturbance. Examples include topographic surveys, bird counts, wetland mapping, and other resources... existing land-use patterns. (4) Modification, product improvement, or configuration engineering design... original product design and there are no unusual disposal requirements. The development and use by the...

32 CFR Appendix B to Part 651 - Categorical Exclusions

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... disturbance. Examples include topographic surveys, bird counts, wetland mapping, and other resources... existing land-use patterns. (4) Modification, product improvement, or configuration engineering design... original product design and there are no unusual disposal requirements. The development and use by the...

32 CFR Appendix B to Part 651 - Categorical Exclusions

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... disturbance. Examples include topographic surveys, bird counts, wetland mapping, and other resources... existing land-use patterns. (4) Modification, product improvement, or configuration engineering design... original product design and there are no unusual disposal requirements. The development and use by the...

46 CFR Sec. 2 - Voyage numbers.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-10-01

... voyage No. 1 having the prefixed designation NSA and followed by the General Agents' abbreviated designation and voyage number, as NSA-1/ABC-1. (b) The continuity of NSA voyage numbers shall not change with... General Agent shall affix his abbreviated designation and initial voyage numbers, as NSA-13/XYZ-1. ...

46 CFR Sec. 2 - Voyage numbers.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-10-01

... voyage No. 1 having the prefixed designation NSA and followed by the General Agents' abbreviated designation and voyage number, as NSA-1/ABC-1. (b) The continuity of NSA voyage numbers shall not change with... General Agent shall affix his abbreviated designation and initial voyage numbers, as NSA-13/XYZ-1. ...

46 CFR Sec. 2 - Voyage numbers.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... voyage No. 1 having the prefixed designation NSA and followed by the General Agents' abbreviated designation and voyage number, as NSA-1/ABC-1. (b) The continuity of NSA voyage numbers shall not change with... General Agent shall affix his abbreviated designation and initial voyage numbers, as NSA-13/XYZ-1. ...

46 CFR Sec. 2 - Voyage numbers.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

... voyage No. 1 having the prefixed designation NSA and followed by the General Agents' abbreviated designation and voyage number, as NSA-1/ABC-1. (b) The continuity of NSA voyage numbers shall not change with... General Agent shall affix his abbreviated designation and initial voyage numbers, as NSA-13/XYZ-1. ...

46 CFR Sec. 2 - Voyage numbers.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-10-01

... voyage No. 1 having the prefixed designation NSA and followed by the General Agents' abbreviated designation and voyage number, as NSA-1/ABC-1. (b) The continuity of NSA voyage numbers shall not change with... General Agent shall affix his abbreviated designation and initial voyage numbers, as NSA-13/XYZ-1. ...

76 FR 17107 - Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic Zone Off Alaska; Application for an Exempted Fishing Permit

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-03-28

... experimental design requires this quantity of salmon to ensure statistically valid results. The applicant also... encounters sufficient concentrations of salmon and pollock for meeting the experimental design. Groundfish... of the groundfish harvested is expected to be pollock. The experimental design requires this quantity...

77 FR 69796 - Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic Zone Off Alaska; Application for an Exempted Fishing Permit

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-11-21

...-year EFP. The experimental design requires this quantity of salmon to ensure statistically valid... of the groundfish harvested each year from the EFP is expected to be pollock. The experimental design... concentrations of salmon and pollock for addressing experimental design criteria. The activities under the EFP...

49 CFR 571.201 - Standard No. 201; Occupant protection in interior impact.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-10-01

... seat. Ambulance means a motor vehicle designed exclusively for the purpose of emergency medical care... seats in their rearmost design driving position and reclinable forward seat backs in their nominal design driving position; (b) Direction of impact shall be either: (1) In a vertical plane parallel to the...

49 CFR 571.201 - Standard No. 201; Occupant protection in interior impact.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-10-01

... seat. Ambulance means a motor vehicle designed exclusively for the purpose of emergency medical care... seats in their rearmost design driving position and reclinable forward seat backs in their nominal design driving position; (b) Direction of impact shall be either: (1) In a vertical plane parallel to the...

49 CFR 571.201 - Standard No. 201; Occupant protection in interior impact.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-10-01

... seat. Ambulance means a motor vehicle designed exclusively for the purpose of emergency medical care... seats in their rearmost design driving position and reclinable forward seat backs in their nominal design driving position; (b) Direction of impact shall be either: (1) In a vertical plane parallel to the...

47 CFR 64.1506 - Number designation.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-10-01

... 47 Telecommunication 3 2014-10-01 2014-10-01 false Number designation. 64.1506 Section 64.1506... Number designation. Any interstate service described in § 64.1501(a)(1)-(2), and not subject to the exclusions contained in § 64.1501(a)(4), shall be offered only through telephone numbers beginning with a 900...

47 CFR 64.1506 - Number designation.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

... 47 Telecommunication 3 2011-10-01 2011-10-01 false Number designation. 64.1506 Section 64.1506... Number designation. Any interstate service described in § 64.1501(a)(1)-(2), and not subject to the exclusions contained in § 64.1501(a)(4), shall be offered only through telephone numbers beginning with a 900...

47 CFR 64.1506 - Number designation.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-10-01

... 47 Telecommunication 3 2013-10-01 2013-10-01 false Number designation. 64.1506 Section 64.1506... Number designation. Any interstate service described in § 64.1501(a)(1)-(2), and not subject to the exclusions contained in § 64.1501(a)(4), shall be offered only through telephone numbers beginning with a 900...

47 CFR 64.1506 - Number designation.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-10-01

... 47 Telecommunication 3 2012-10-01 2012-10-01 false Number designation. 64.1506 Section 64.1506... Number designation. Any interstate service described in § 64.1501(a)(1)-(2), and not subject to the exclusions contained in § 64.1501(a)(4), shall be offered only through telephone numbers beginning with a 900...

34 CFR 200.79 - Exclusion of supplemental State and local funds from supplement, not supplant and comparability...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... academic achievement standards; (ii) Provides supplementary services designed to meet the special... at least 40 percent; (ii) Is designed to promote schoolwide reform and upgrade the entire educational... academic achievement standards that all students are expected to meet; (iii) Is designed to meet the...

Speeding up social waves. Propagation mechanisms of shimmering in giant honeybees.

PubMed

Kastberger, Gerald; Hoetzl, Thomas; Maurer, Michael; Kranner, Ilse; Weiss, Sara; Weihmann, Frank

2014-01-01

Shimmering is a defence behaviour in giant honeybees (Apis dorsata), whereby bees on the nest surface flip their abdomen upwards in a Mexican wave-like process. However, information spreads faster than can be ascribed to bucket bridging, which is the transfer of information from one individual to an adjacent one. We identified a saltatoric process that speeds up shimmering by the generation of daughter waves, which subsequently merge with the parental wave, producing a new wave front. Motion patterns of individual "focus" bees (n = 10,894) and their shimmering-active neighbours (n = 459,558) were measured with high-resolution video recording and stereoscopic imaging. Three types of shimmering-active surface bees were distinguished by their communication status, termed "agents": "Bucket-bridging" agents comprised 74.98% of all agents, affected 88.17% of their neighbours, and transferred information at a velocity of v = 0.317±0.015 m/s. "Chain-tail" agents comprised 9.20% of the agents, were activated by 6.35% of their neighbours, but did not motivate others to participate in the wave. "Generator agents" comprised 15.82% of agents, showed abdominal flipping before the arrival of the main wave front, and initiated daughter waves. They affected 6.75% of their neighbourhood and speeded up the compound shimmering process compared to bucket bridging alone by 41.5% to v = 0.514±0.019 m/s. The main direction of shimmering was reinforced by 35.82% of agents, whereas the contribution of the complementing agents was fuzzy. We discuss that the saltatoric process could enable the bees to instantly recruit larger cohorts to participate in shimmering and to respond rapidly to changes in flight direction of preying wasps. A third, non-exclusive explanation is that at a distance of up to three metres from the nest the acceleration of shimmering could notably contribute to the startle response in mammals and birds.

Delay-dependent coupling for a multi-agent LTI consensus system with inter-agent delays

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Qiao, Wei; Sipahi, Rifat

2014-01-01

Delay-dependent coupling (DDC) is considered in this paper in a broadly studied linear time-invariant multi-agent consensus system in which agents communicate with each other under homogeneous delays, while attempting to reach consensus. The coupling among the agents is designed here as an explicit parameter of this delay, allowing couplings to autonomously adapt based on the delay value, and in order to guarantee stability and a certain degree of robustness in the network despite the destabilizing effect of delay. Design procedures, analysis of convergence speed of consensus, comprehensive numerical studies for the case of time-varying delay, and limitations are presented.

77 FR 71702 - Possession, Use, and Transfer of Select Agents and Toxins; Biennial Review

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-12-04

... of Select Agents and Toxins; Biennial Review AGENCY: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC... designated certain select agents and toxins as Tier 1 agents. DATES: Effective Date: Effective December 4, 2012. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Robbin Weyant, Director, Division of Select Agents and Toxins...

The development of bis(hydroxymethyl)pyrrole analogs as bifunctional DNA cross-linking agents and their chemotherapeutic potential.

PubMed

Su, Tsann-Long; Lee, Te-Chang; Kakadiya, Rajesh

2013-11-01

Bifunctional DNA cross-linking agents are widely used as chemotherapeutic agents in clinics. The advance in the development of these agents as potential antitumor agents has generated various types of bis(hydroxymethyl)pyrrole analogs. In order to develop highly effective anticancer agents, it is necessary to understand the chemophysical properties, structure-activity relationships, therapeutic potency, toxicity/safety, and pharmacokinetics of these DNA cross-linking agents. This review presents an overview of the recent advances in developing various types of bis(hydroxymethyl)pyrrole analogs with potential antitumor activity to provide more information for future drug design and strategies for combination chemotherapy. The rational drug design, chemical syntheses, antitumor activity, mechanism of action, and development of combined chemotherapy regimens, including a DNA repair inhibitor, are discussed. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.

Quantifying evenly distributed states in exclusion and nonexclusion processes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Binder, Benjamin J.; Landman, Kerry A.

2011-04-01

Spatial-point data sets, generated from a wide range of physical systems and mathematical models, can be analyzed by counting the number of objects in equally sized bins. We find that the bin counts are related to the Pólya distribution. New measures are developed which indicate whether or not a spatial data set, generated from an exclusion process, is at its most evenly distributed state, the complete spatial randomness (CSR) state. To this end, we define an index in terms of the variance between the bin counts. Limiting values of the index are determined when objects have access to the entire domain and when there are subregions of the domain that are inaccessible to objects. Using three case studies (Lagrangian fluid particles in chaotic laminar flows, cellular automata agents in discrete models, and biological cells within colonies), we calculate the indexes and verify that our theoretical CSR limit accurately predicts the state of the system. These measures should prove useful in many biological applications.

Development and evaluation of devices designed to minimize deer-vehicle collisions : phase II.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2010-12-01

We evaluated behavioral responses of captive white-tailed deer to visual and physical barriers designed to minimize deer-vehicle collisions, determined effects of exclusion fencing on movements of free-ranging deer, and further tested the visual capa...

Design Principles of Nanoparticles as Contrast Agents for Magnetic Resonance Imaging

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shan, Liang; Gu, Xinbin; Wang, Paul

2013-09-01

Molecular imaging is an emerging field that introduces molecular agents into traditional imaging techniques, enabling visualization, characterization and measurement of biological processes at the molecular and cellular levels in humans and other living systems. The promise of molecular imaging lies in its potential for selective potency by targeting biomarkers or molecular targets and the imaging agents serve as reporters for the selectivity of targeting. Development of an efficient molecular imaging agent depends on well-controlled high-quality experiment design involving target selection, agent synthesis, in vitro characterization, and in vivo animal characterization before it is applied in humans. According to the analysis from the Molecular Imaging and Contrast Agent Database (MICAD, ), more than 6000 molecular imaging agents with sufficient preclinical evaluation have been reported to date in the literature and this number increases by 250-300 novel agents each year. The majority of these agents are radionuclides, which are developed for positron emission tomography (PET) and single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT). Contrast agents for magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) account for only a small part. This is largely due to the fact that MRI is currently not a fully quantitative imaging technique and is less sensitive than PET and SPECT. However, because of the superior ability to simultaneously extract molecular and anatomic information, molecular MRI is attracting significant interest and various targeted nanoparticle contrast agents have been synthesized for MRI. The first and one of the most critical steps in developing a targeted nanoparticle contrast agent is target selection, which plays the central role and forms the basis for success of molecular imaging. This chapter discusses the design principles of targeted contrast agents in the emerging frontiers of molecular MRI.

An assessment of the social cognitive predictors of exclusive breastfeeding behavior using the Health Action Process Approach.

PubMed

Martinez-Brockman, J L; Shebl, F M; Harari, N; Pérez-Escamilla, R

2017-06-01

In the United States rates of exclusive breastfeeding duration remain exceedingly low. Exclusive breastfeeding is a complex learned behavior that is influenced by social cognitive, interpersonal, and structural factors. Interventions are needed that address factors at multiple levels of the social-ecological model. This study was designed to examine the social cognitive predictors of exclusive breastfeeding behavior in a sample of low-income women attending the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) breastfeeding peer counseling program and enrolled in the Lactation Advice Through Texting Can Help (LATCH) study. The objectives were to examine whether: (1) the theoretical model, the Health Action Process Approach (HAPA), fit the data well; (2) planning mediated the effect of intentions and maintenance self-efficacy on exclusive breastfeeding; and (3) recovery self-efficacy mediated the association between maintenance self-efficacy and exclusive breastfeeding behavior. Outcome expectancies, action self-efficacy and intentions were assessed prenatally at baseline in N = 119 participants. Maintenance self-efficacy, planning, recovery self-efficacy and breastfeeding behavior were measured at two weeks post partum. Structural equation modeling with mean and variance adjusted Weighted Least Squares estimation was used to examine the applicability of the HAPA model to the data. Phase specific self-efficacy and planning significantly predicted exclusive breastfeeding status. Planning and recovery self-efficacy mediated the association between maintenance self-efficacy and exclusive breastfeeding. Planning did not emerge as a mediator between intentions and behavior. These results demonstrate the utility of the HAPA model in predicting exclusive breastfeeding behavior among low-income women attending WIC. LATCH is a theoretically sound text messaging intervention that can be used to augment and reinforce the WIC breastfeeding peer counseling process. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Screening of Compounds Toxicity against Human Monocytic cell line-THP-1 by Flow Cytometry

PubMed Central

Pick, Neora; Cameron, Scott; Arad, Dorit

2004-01-01

The worldwide rapid increase in bacterial resistance to numerous antibiotics requires on-going development of new drugs to enter the market. As the development of new antibiotics is lengthy and costly, early monitoring of compound's toxicity is essential in the development of novel agents. Our interest is in a rapid, simple, high throughput screening method to assess cytotoxicity induced by potential agents. Some intracellular pathogens, such as Mycobacterium tuberculosis primary site of infection is human alveolar macrophages. Thus, evaluation of candidate drugs for macrophage toxicity is crucial. Protocols for high throughput drug toxicity screening of macrophages using flow cytometry are lacking in the literature. For this application we modified a preexisting technique, propidium iodide (PI) exclusion staining and utilized it for rapid toxicity tests. Samples were prepared in 96 well plates and analyzed by flow cytometry, which allowed for rapid, inexpensive and precise assessment of compound's toxicity associated with cell death. PMID:15472722

Sulfite hypersensitivity. A critical review

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Gunnison, A.F.; Jacobsen, D.W.

Sulfiting agents (sulfur dioxide and the sodium and potassium salts of bisulfite, sulfite, and metabisulfite) are widely used as preservatives in foods, beverages, and pharmaceuticals. Within the past 5 years, there have been numerous reports of adverse reactions to sulfiting agents. This review presents a comprehensive compilation and discussion of reports describing reactions to ingested, inhaled, and parenterally administered sulfite. Sulfite hypersensitivity is usually, but not exclusively, found within the chronic asthmatic population. Although there is some disagreement on its prevalence, a number of studies have indicated that 5 to 10% of all chronic asthmatics are sulfite hypersensitive. This reviewmore » also describes respiratory sulfur dioxide sensitivity which essentially all asthmatics experience. Possible mechanisms of sulfite hypersensitivity and sulfur dioxide sensitivity are discussed in detail. Sulfite metabolism and the role of sulfite oxidase in the detoxification of exogenous sulfite are reviewed in relationship to the etiology of sulfite hypersensitivity. 147 references.« less

Determination of the MRI contrast agent Gd-DTPA by SEC-ICP-MS.

PubMed

Loreti, Valeria; Bettmer, Jörg

2004-08-01

The simultaneous determination of Gd(3+) and Gd-DTPA (DTPA: diethylenetriamino-pentaacetic acid), often used as contrast agent, is described. The proposed approach combines size-exclusion chromatography (SEC) and inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) for element-selective detection in order to determine also high-molecular Gd-complexes if present. This method was applied to the analysis of urine samples of a patient to whom Gd-DTPA was intravenously administered. The results showed that no conversion or adsorption of Gd-DTPA could be observed in any sample, even free Gd(3+) could not be detected. Urine excretion behaviour was monitored and it was proved that Gd-DTPA was almost completely (>99%) excreted by urination within one day. Traces of Gd-DTPA could be measured in hair samples, but extraction with tetramethylammonium hydroxide (TMAH) resulted in degradation of Gd-DTPA.

Modulation of inflammation by vasoactive intestinal peptide and bombesin: lack of effects on neutrophil apoptosis.

PubMed

Djanani, Angela M; Kähler, Ch M

2002-01-01

Inhibition of neutrophil apoptosis has been identified as a prominent feature in chronic inflammation, parenchymal damage, and unresolved organ dysfunction. Lung injury animal models suggest that the neuropeptides vasoactive intestinal peptide and bombesin are protective. Therefore, in vitro effects of VIP and bombesin on apoptosis of normal human neutrophils were tested. For measuring effects on cell survival and apoptosis, trypan dye exclusion, colorimetric MTT assay to assess cell survival, and caspase-3 assay and annexin-V binding for analysing apoptosis rates were used. Foetal calf serum, Fas ligand, and tumour necrosis factor-alpha served as modulatory control agents; survival-promoting and apoptosis-inducing activities of the respective agents were confirmed. Vasoactive intestinal peptide and bombesin, however, failed to significantly affect cell death in neutrophils. Data suggest that direct regulation of neutrophil apoptosis is unlikely to be among the mechanisms of lung-protective actions of VIP and bombesin.

Selective Cytotoxicity of Rhodium Metalloinsertors in Mismatch Repair-Deficient Cells†

PubMed Central

Ernst, Russell J.; Komor, Alexis C.; Barton, Jacqueline K.

2011-01-01

Mismatches in DNA occur naturally during replication and as a result of endogenous DNA damaging agents, but the mismatch repair (MMR) pathway acts to correct mismatches before subsequent rounds of replication. Rhodium metalloinsertors bind to DNA mismatches with high affinity and specificity and represent a promising strategy to target mismatches in cells. Here we examine the biological fate of rhodium metalloinsertors bearing dipyridylamine ancillary ligands in cells deficient in MMR versus those that are MMR-proficient. These complexes are shown to exhibit accelerated cellular uptake which permits the observation of various cellular responses, including disruption of the cell cycle, monitored by flow cytometry assays, and induction of necrosis, monitored by dye exclusion and caspase inhibition assays, that occur preferentially in the MMR-deficient cell line. These cellular responses provide insight into the mechanisms underlying the selective activity of this novel class of targeted anti-cancer agents. PMID:22103240

Therapeutic options for lymphangioleiomyomatosis (LAM): where we are and where we are going

PubMed Central

Steagall, Wendy K; Moss, Joel

2009-01-01

Lymphangioleiomyomatosis (LAM), a multisystem disease affecting predominantly premenopausal and middle-aged women, causes progressive respiratory failure due to cystic lung destruction and is associated with lymphatic and kidney tumors. In the past, the treatment of LAM comprised exclusively anti-estrogen and related hormonal therapies. These treatments, however, have not been proven effective. In this article, we discuss new findings regarding the molecular mechanisms involved in the regulation of LAM cell growth, which may offer opportunities to develop effective and targeted therapeutic agents. PMID:20948684

Conceptual design of single turbofan engine powered light aircraft

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Snyder, F. S.; Voorhees, C. G.; Heinrich, A. M.; Baisden, D. N.

1977-01-01

The conceptual design of a four place single turbofan engine powered light aircraft was accomplished utilizing contemporary light aircraft conventional design techniques as a means of evaluating the NASA-Ames General Aviation Synthesis Program (GASP) as a preliminary design tool. In certain areas, disagreement or exclusion were found to exist between the results of the conventional design and GASP processes. Detail discussion of these points along with the associated contemporary design methodology are presented.

Knee complaints and consequences on work status; a 10-year follow-up survey among floor layers and graphic designers.

PubMed

Rytter, Søren; Jensen, Lilli Kirkeskov; Bonde, Jens Peter

2007-09-18

The purpose of the study was to examine if knee complaints among floor layers predict exclusion from the trade. In 1994/95 self-reported data were obtained from a cohort of floor layers and graphic designers with and without knee straining work activities, respectively. At follow-up in 2005 the questionnaire survey was repeated. The study population consisted of 81 floor layers and 173 graphic designers who were presently working in their trades at baseline (1995). All participants were men aged 36-70 years in 2005. We computed the risk of losing gainful employment in the trade according to occurrence of knee complaints at baseline, using Cox proportional hazard regression adjusted for a number of potential confounding variables. Moreover, the crude and adjusted odds risk ratio for knee complaints according to status of employment in the trade were computed, using graphic designers as reference. A positive but non-significant association between knee complaints lasting more than 30 days the past 12 months and exclusion from the trade was found among floor layers (Hazard Ratio = 1.4, 95% CI = 0.6-3.5).The frequency of self-reported knee complaints was lower among floor layers presently at work in the trade in year 2005 (26.3%) compared with baseline in 1995 (41.1%), while the opposite tendency was seen among graphic designers (20.7% vs. 10.7%). The study suggests that knee complaints are a risk factor for premature exclusion from a knee demanding trade. However, low power of the study precludes strong conclusions. The study also indicates a healthy worker effect among floor layers and a survivor effect among graphic designers.

Knee complaints and consequences on work status; a 10-year follow-up survey among floor layers and graphic designers

PubMed Central

Rytter, Søren; Jensen, Lilli Kirkeskov; Bonde, Jens Peter

2007-01-01

Background The purpose of the study was to examine if knee complaints among floor layers predict exclusion from the trade. Methods In 1994/95 self-reported data were obtained from a cohort of floor layers and graphic designers with and without knee straining work activities, respectively. At follow-up in 2005 the questionnaire survey was repeated. The study population consisted of 81 floor layers and 173 graphic designers who were presently working in their trades at baseline (1995). All participants were men aged 36–70 years in 2005. We computed the risk of losing gainful employment in the trade according to occurrence of knee complaints at baseline, using Cox proportional hazard regression adjusted for a number of potential confounding variables. Moreover, the crude and adjusted odds risk ratio for knee complaints according to status of employment in the trade were computed, using graphic designers as reference. Results A positive but non-significant association between knee complaints lasting more than 30 days the past 12 months and exclusion from the trade was found among floor layers (Hazard Ratio = 1.4, 95% CI = 0.6–3.5). The frequency of self-reported knee complaints was lower among floor layers presently at work in the trade in year 2005 (26.3%) compared with baseline in 1995 (41.1%), while the opposite tendency was seen among graphic designers (20.7% vs. 10.7%). Conclusion The study suggests that knee complaints are a risk factor for premature exclusion from a knee demanding trade. However, low power of the study precludes strong conclusions. The study also indicates a healthy worker effect among floor layers and a survivor effect among graphic designers. PMID:17877790

Human-Centered Design for the Personal Satellite Assistant

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bradshaw, Jeffrey M.; Sierhuis, Maarten; Gawdiak, Yuri; Thomas, Hans; Greaves, Mark; Clancey, William J.; Swanson, Keith (Technical Monitor)

2000-01-01

The Personal Satellite Assistant (PSA) is a softball-sized flying robot designed to operate autonomously onboard manned spacecraft in pressurized micro-gravity environments. We describe how the Brahms multi-agent modeling and simulation environment in conjunction with a KAoS agent teamwork approach can be used to support human-centered design for the PSA.

Pathogenesis of Borna disease in rats: evidence that intra-axonal spread is the major route for virus dissemination and the determinant for disease incubation.

PubMed

Carbone, K M; Duchala, C S; Griffin, J W; Kincaid, A L; Narayan, O

1987-11-01

Borna disease virus is an uncharacterized agent that causes sporadic but fatal neurological disease in horses and sheep in Europe. Studies of the infection in rats have shown that the agent has a strict tropism for neural tissues, in which it persists indefinitely. Inoculated rats developed encephalitis after an incubation period of 17 to 90 days. This report shows that the incubation period is the time required for transport of the agent in dendritic-axonal processes from the site of inoculation to the hippocampus. The immune responses to the agent had no effect on replication or transport of the virus. The neural conduit to the brain was proven by intranasal inoculation of virus that resulted in rapid transport of the agent via olfactory nerves to the hippocampus and in development of disease in 20 days. Virus inoculation into the feet resulted in spread along nerve fibers from neuron to neuron. There was sequential replication in neurons of the dorsal root ganglia adjacent to the lumbar spinal cord, the gracilis nucleus in the medulla, and pyramidal cells in the cerebral cortex, followed by infection of the hippocampal neurons and onset of disease. This progression required 50 to 60 days. The exclusiveness of the neural conduit was proven by failure to cause infection after injection of the virus intravenously or into the feet of neurectomized rats.

The exclusion problem in seasonally forced epidemiological systems.

PubMed

Greenman, J V; Adams, B

2015-02-21

The pathogen exclusion problem is the problem of finding control measures that will exclude a pathogen from an ecological system or, if the system is already disease-free, maintain it in that state. To solve this problem we work within a holistic control theory framework which is consistent with conventional theory for simple systems (where there is no external forcing and constant controls) and seamlessly generalises to complex systems that are subject to multiple component seasonal forcing and targeted variable controls. We develop, customise and integrate a range of numerical and algebraic procedures that provide a coherent methodology powerful enough to solve the exclusion problem in the general case. An important aspect of our solution procedure is its two-stage structure which reveals the epidemiological consequences of the controls used for exclusion. This information augments technical and economic considerations in the design of an acceptable exclusion strategy. Our methodology is used in two examples to show how time-varying controls can exploit the interference and reinforcement created by the external and internal lag structure and encourage the system to 'take over' some of the exclusion effort. On-off control switching, resonant amplification, optimality and controllability are important issues that emerge in the discussion. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The Effect of Pacing on Learners' Perceptions of Pedagogical Agents

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schroeder, Noah L.; Craig, Scotty D.

2017-01-01

This study examined the influence of three levels of learner control on learners' perceptions when learning with a pedagogical agent. Pedagogical agents have shown promise for improving learning and connections with learning materials within video-based instruction, and research has shown that agent design choices can influence how agents are…

Mothers' attitudes and beliefs about infant feeding highlight barriers to exclusive breastfeeding in American Samoa.

PubMed

Hawley, Nicola L; Rosen, Rochelle K; Strait, E Ashton; Raffucci, Gabriela; Holmdahl, Inga; Freeman, Joshua R; Muasau-Howard, Bethel T; McGarvey, Stephen T

2015-09-01

In American Samoa, initiation of breastfeeding is almost universal but exclusive breastfeeding, a promising target for obesity prevention, is short in duration. (1) To examine American Samoan mothers' feeding experiences and attitudes and beliefs about infant feeding and (2) to identify potential barriers to exclusive breastfeeding. Eighteen semi-structured interviews were conducted with American Samoan mothers at 16-32 days postpartum. Interviews focused on mother's knowledge and beliefs about infant feeding, how their infants were fed, why the mother had chosen this mode of infant feeding, and how decisions about feeding were made within her social surroundings. A thematic qualitative analysis was conducted to identify salient themes in the data. Intention to exclusively breastfeed did not predict practice; most women supplemented with formula despite intending to exclusively breastfeed. The benefits of breastfeeding were well-recognized, but the importance of exclusivity was missed. Formula-use was not preferred but considered an innocuous "back-up option" where breastfeeding was not possible or not sufficient for infant satiety. Identified barriers to exclusive breastfeeding included: the convenience of formula; perceptions among mothers that they were not producing enough breast milk; and pain while breastfeeding. The important support role of family for infant feeding could be utilized in intervention design. This study identified barriers to exclusive breastfeeding that can be immediately addressed by providers of breastfeeding support services. Further research is needed to address the common perception of insufficient milk in this setting. Copyright © 2015 Australian College of Midwives. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

A Bayesian Dose-finding Design for Oncology Clinical Trials of Combinational Biological Agents

PubMed Central

Cai, Chunyan; Yuan, Ying; Ji, Yuan

2013-01-01

Treating patients with novel biological agents is becoming a leading trend in oncology. Unlike cytotoxic agents, for which efficacy and toxicity monotonically increase with dose, biological agents may exhibit non-monotonic patterns in their dose-response relationships. Using a trial with two biological agents as an example, we propose a dose-finding design to identify the biologically optimal dose combination (BODC), which is defined as the dose combination of the two agents with the highest efficacy and tolerable toxicity. A change-point model is used to reflect the fact that the dose-toxicity surface of the combinational agents may plateau at higher dose levels, and a flexible logistic model is proposed to accommodate the possible non-monotonic pattern for the dose-efficacy relationship. During the trial, we continuously update the posterior estimates of toxicity and efficacy and assign patients to the most appropriate dose combination. We propose a novel dose-finding algorithm to encourage sufficient exploration of untried dose combinations in the two-dimensional space. Extensive simulation studies show that the proposed design has desirable operating characteristics in identifying the BODC under various patterns of dose-toxicity and dose-efficacy relationships. PMID:24511160

Mobile Agents: A Distributed Voice-Commanded Sensory and Robotic System for Surface EVA Assistance

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Clancey, William J.; Sierhuis, Maarten; Alena, Rick; Crawford, Sekou; Dowding, John; Graham, Jeff; Kaskiris, Charis; Tyree, Kim S.; vanHoof, Ronnie

2003-01-01

A model-based, distributed architecture integrates diverse components in a system designed for lunar and planetary surface operations: spacesuit biosensors, cameras, GPS, and a robotic assistant. The system transmits data and assists communication between the extra-vehicular activity (EVA) astronauts, the crew in a local habitat, and a remote mission support team. Software processes ("agents"), implemented in a system called Brahms, run on multiple, mobile platforms, including the spacesuit backpacks, all-terrain vehicles, and robot. These "mobile agents" interpret and transform available data to help people and robotic systems coordinate their actions to make operations more safe and efficient. Different types of agents relate platforms to each other ("proxy agents"), devices to software ("comm agents"), and people to the system ("personal agents"). A state-of-the-art spoken dialogue interface enables people to communicate with their personal agents, supporting a speech-driven navigation and scheduling tool, field observation record, and rover command system. An important aspect of the engineering methodology involves first simulating the entire hardware and software system in Brahms, and then configuring the agents into a runtime system. Design of mobile agent functionality has been based on ethnographic observation of scientists working in Mars analog settings in the High Canadian Arctic on Devon Island and the southeast Utah desert. The Mobile Agents system is developed iteratively in the context of use, with people doing authentic work. This paper provides a brief introduction to the architecture and emphasizes the method of empirical requirements analysis, through which observation, modeling, design, and testing are integrated in simulated EVA operations.

Proceedings of the Agent 2002 Conference on Social Agents : Ecology, Exchange, and Evolution

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Macal, C., ed.; Sallach, D., ed.

2003-04-10

Welcome to the ''Proceedings'' of the third in a series of agent simulation conferences cosponsored by Argonne National Laboratory and The University of Chicago. The theme of this year's conference, ''Social Agents: Ecology, Exchange and Evolution'', was selected to foster the exchange of ideas on some of the most important social processes addressed by agent simulation models, namely: (1) The translation of ecology and ecological constraints into social dynamics; (2) The role of exchange processes, including the peer dependencies they create; and (3) The dynamics by which, and the attractor states toward which, social processes evolve. As stated in themore » ''Call for Papers'', throughout the social sciences, the simulation of social agents has emerged as an innovative and powerful research methodology. The promise of this approach, however, is accompanied by many challenges. First, modeling complexity in agents, environments, and interactions is non-trivial, and these representations must be explored and assessed systematically. Second, strategies used to represent complexities are differentially applicable to any particular problem space. Finally, to achieve sufficient generality, the design and experimentation inherent in agent simulation must be coupled with social and behavioral theory. Agent 2002 provides a forum for reviewing the current state of agent simulation scholarship, including research designed to address such outstanding issues. This year's conference introduces an extensive range of domains, models, and issues--from pre-literacy to future projections, from ecology to oligopolistic markets, and from design to validation. Four invited speakers highlighted major themes emerging from social agent simulation.« less

76 FR 15826 - Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic Zone Off Alaska; Gulf of Alaska License Limitation Program

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-03-22

... or non-trawl gear designations); and (4) designate the type of vessel operation permitted (i.e., LLP... catcher/processor). The endorsements for specific regulatory areas, gear designations, and vessel operational types are non-severable from the LLP license (i.e., once an LLP license is issued, the components...

Paragogy and Flipped Assessment: Experience of Designing and Running a MOOC on Research Methods

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lee, Yenn; Rofe, J. Simon

2016-01-01

This study draws on the authors' first-hand experience of designing, developing and delivering (3Ds) a massive open online course (MOOC) entitled "Understanding Research Methods" since 2014, largely but not exclusively for learners in the humanities and social sciences. The greatest challenge facing us was to design an assessment…

49 CFR 571.214 - Standard No. 214; Side impact protection.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... of the cushion with the seat adjusted to its rearmost position. (4) Any side door that is designed to... exclusively have doors that are designed to be easily attached or removed so the vehicle can be operated... have doors that are designed to be easily attached or removed so that the vehicle can be operated...

49 CFR 571.214 - Standard No. 214; Side impact protection.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-10-01

... of the cushion with the seat adjusted to its rearmost position. (4) Any side door that is designed to... exclusively have doors that are designed to be easily attached or removed so the vehicle can be operated... have doors that are designed to be easily attached or removed so that the vehicle can be operated...

49 CFR 571.214 - Standard No. 214; Side impact protection.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-10-01

... of the cushion with the seat adjusted to its rearmost position. (4) Any side door that is designed to... exclusively have doors that are designed to be easily attached or removed so the vehicle can be operated... have doors that are designed to be easily attached or removed so that the vehicle can be operated...

49 CFR 571.214 - Standard No. 214; Side impact protection.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-10-01

... of the cushion with the seat adjusted to its rearmost position. (4) Any side door that is designed to... exclusively have doors that are designed to be easily attached or removed so the vehicle can be operated... have doors that are designed to be easily attached or removed so that the vehicle can be operated...

How the Architectural Research Is Used in Educational Facilities and Design in Japan. Phase II.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nagakura, Yasuhiko; Moronuki, Mikio

When designing schools, one should assign space for athletic fields, arrange halls so that traffic will not disturb classrooms, separate grade levels, provide playgrounds exclusively for younger children, and provide lighting and ventilation. Unit plans should be designed so that all educational and domestic activities can be executed in the…

40 CFR 600.002-08 - Definitions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... alcohols, in any combination. Alcohol-fueled automobile means an automobile designed to operate exclusively on alcohol. Alcohol dual fuel automobile means an automobile: (1) Which is designed to operate on... meaning given by the Department of Transportation at 49 CFR 523.3. Auxiliary emission control device (AECD...

Operational Design Guidelines For High Occupancy Vehicle Lanes On Arterial Roadways, Including Planning Strategies And Supporting Measures

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

1994-11-01

">THIS REPORT IS A COMPANION TO THE 1993 MINISTRY OF TRANSPORTATION OF ONTARIO DOCUMENT, "OPERATION & DESIGN GUIDELINES FOR HOV LANES ON PROVINCIAL FREEWAYS". SINCE THAT DOCUMENT DEALS EXCLUSIVELY AND COMPREHENSIVELY WITH FREEWAY HOV APPLICATIONS, TH...

28 CFR 91.55 - Categorical exclusions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... an approved State Coastal Zone Management Program, a coastal barrier or a portion of a barrier within the Coastal Barrier Resources System, a river or portion of a river included in or designated for... source aquifer recharge area designated by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The resulting...

Quantum-enhanced deliberation of learning agents using trapped ions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dunjko, V.; Friis, N.; Briegel, H. J.

2015-02-01

A scheme that successfully employs quantum mechanics in the design of autonomous learning agents has recently been reported in the context of the projective simulation (PS) model for artificial intelligence. In that approach, the key feature of a PS agent, a specific type of memory which is explored via random walks, was shown to be amenable to quantization, allowing for a speed-up. In this work we propose an implementation of such classical and quantum agents in systems of trapped ions. We employ a generic construction by which the classical agents are ‘upgraded’ to their quantum counterparts by a nested process of adding coherent control, and we outline how this construction can be realized in ion traps. Our results provide a flexible modular architecture for the design of PS agents. Furthermore, we present numerical simulations of simple PS agents which analyze the robustness of our proposal under certain noise models.

Peptide-based protein capture agents with high affinity, selectivity, and stability as antibody replacements in biodetection assays

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Coppock, Matthew B.; Farrow, Blake; Warner, Candice; Finch, Amethist S.; Lai, Bert; Sarkes, Deborah A.; Heath, James R.; Stratis-Cullum, Dimitra

2014-05-01

Current biodetection assays that employ monoclonal antibodies as primary capture agents exhibit limited fieldability, shelf life, and performance due to batch-to-batch production variability and restricted thermal stability. In order to improve upon the detection of biological threats in fieldable assays and systems for the Army, we are investigating protein catalyzed capture (PCC) agents as drop-in replacements for the existing antibody technology through iterative in situ click chemistry. The PCC agent oligopeptides are developed against known protein epitopes and can be mass produced using robotic methods. In this work, a PCC agent under development will be discussed. The performance, including affinity, selectivity, and stability of the capture agent technology, is analyzed by immunoprecipitation, western blotting, and ELISA experiments. The oligopeptide demonstrates superb selectivity coupled with high affinity through multi-ligand design, and improved thermal, chemical, and biochemical stability due to non-natural amino acid PCC agent design.

Intelligent Agents and Their Potential for Future Design and Synthesis Environment

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Noor, Ahmed K. (Compiler); Malone, John B. (Compiler)

1999-01-01

This document contains the proceedings of the Workshop on Intelligent Agents and Their Potential for Future Design and Synthesis Environment, held at NASA Langley Research Center, Hampton, VA, September 16-17, 1998. The workshop was jointly sponsored by the University of Virginia's Center for Advanced Computational Technology and NASA. Workshop attendees came from NASA, industry and universities. The objectives of the workshop were to assess the status of intelligent agents technology and to identify the potential of software agents for use in future design and synthesis environment. The presentations covered the current status of agent technology and several applications of intelligent software agents. Certain materials and products are identified in this publication in order to specify adequately the materials and products that were investigated in the research effort. In no case does such identification imply recommendation or endorsement of products by NASA, nor does it imply that the materials and products are the only ones or the best ones available for this purpose. In many cases equivalent materials and products are available and would probably produce equivalent results.

Application and Implications of Agent Technology for Librarians.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nardi, Bonnie A.; O'Day, Vicki L.

1998-01-01

Examines intelligent software agents, presents nine design principles aimed specifically at the technology perspective (to personalize task performance and general principles), and discusses what librarians can do that software agents (agents defined as activity-aware software programs) cannot do. Describes an information ecology that integrates…

Association of birth of girls with postnatal depression and exclusive breastfeeding: an observational study

PubMed Central

Jain, Akanksha; Tyagi, Prashant; Kaur, Prabhjeet; Puliyel, Jacob; Sreenivas, Vishnu

2014-01-01

Objectives and hypothesis To examine the influence of gender of the baby on exclusive breastfeeding and incidence of postnatal depression (PND). We hypothesise that in a society with a male gender bias there may be more PND and less exclusive breastfeeding of the girl child. Design Prospective study. Setting The study was conducted in an urban, tertiary hospital in Delhi. Participants Mothers delivering normally with their babies roomed-in.1537 eligible women participated in the study. Primary and secondary outcome measures Exclusive breastfeeding within the first 48 h of life and score on the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) were recorded. Results 3466 babies were born in the hospital. There were 792 girls for every 1000 boys. Among primiparous women, the sex ratio was 901 girls per 1000 boys. For second babies, the sex ratio was 737:1000. If the first child was a girl the birth ratio fell to 632. 1026 mothers were exclusively breastfeeding. Exclusive breastfeeding of boys was significantly higher (70.8% vs 61.5%, p<0.001). The EPDS score was significantly higher with the birth of girls (EPDS 6.0±3.39 vs 5.4±2.87, p<0.01). Women with an EPDS score >11 were less likely to exclusively breastfeed (p<0.01). Conclusions The results point to a pro-male gender bias evidenced by a low sex ratio at birth, higher EPDS score in mothers of girls and less breastfeeding of female children. PMID:24913326

Future of anti-PD-1/PD-L1 applications: Combinations with other therapeutic regimens.

PubMed

Song, Mengjia; Chen, Xinfeng; Wang, Liping; Zhang, Yi

2018-04-01

Programmed cell death 1 (PD-1)/programmed cell death 1 ligand (PD-L1) blockade has shown promising effects in cancer immunotherapy. Removing the so-called " brakes" on T cell immune responses by blocking the PD-1/PD-L1 check point should boost anti-tumor immunity and provide durable tumor regression for cancer patients. However, 30%-60% of patients show no response to PD-1/PD-L1 blockade. Thus, it is urgent to explore the underlying resistance mechanisms to improve sensitivity to anti-PD-1/PD-L1 therapy. We propose that the mechanisms promoting resistance mainly include T cell exclusion or exhaustion at the tumor site, immunosuppressive factors in the tumor microenvironment (TME), and a range of tumor-intrinsic factors. This review highlights the power of studying the cellular and molecular mechanisms of resistance to improve the rational design of combination therapeutic strategies that can be translated to the clinic. Here, we briefly discuss the development of PD-1/PD-L1 blockade agents and focus on the current issues and future prospects for potential combinatorial therapeutic strategies that include anti-PD-1/PD-L1 therapy, based upon the available preclinical and clinical data.

Pathogenesis and treatment of leukemia: an Asian perspective.

PubMed

Kwong, Yok-Lam

2012-03-01

Leukemias occur worldwide, but there are important geographic differences in incidences. Three leukemias with special Asian perspectives, acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL), T-cell large granular lymphocyte (T-LGL) leukemia and NK-cell leukemia. In APL, China has made contributions in discovering the efficacy of all-trans retinoic acid (ATRA) and arsenic trioxide. Some APL patients are potentially curable after treatment with ATRA or arsenic trioxide as a single agent. Combined treatment of APL with ATRA and arsenic trioxide induces remission with deeper molecular response. An oral formulation of arsenic trioxide is available, making outpatient treatment feasible. Future regimens for APL should examine how ATRA and arsenic trioxide can be optimally combined with other synergistic drugs. Asian patients with T-LGL leukemia present more frequently with pure red cell aplasia, but less frequently with neutropenia, recurrent infection, splenomegaly and rheumatoid arthritis as compared with Western patients. These differences have potential effects on treatment and disease pathogenesis. NK-cell leukemia is rapidly fatal and occurs almost exclusively in Asian and South American patients. Conventional anthracycline-based chemotherapy designed for B-cell lymphomas do not work in NK-cell leukemias. Novel therapeutic approaches targeting cellular signaling pathways or preferentially upregulated genes are needed to improve outcome.

Method for reducing nitrogen oxides in combustion effluents

DOEpatents

Zauderer, Bert

2000-01-01

Method for reducing nitrogen oxides (NO.sub.x) in the gas stream from the combustion of fossil fuels is disclosed. In a narrow gas temperature zone, NO.sub.x is converted to nitrogen by reaction with urea or ammonia with negligible remaining ammonia and other reaction pollutants. Specially designed injectors are used to introduce air atomized water droplets containing dissolved urea or ammonia into the gaseous combustion products in a manner that widely disperses the droplets exclusively in the optimum reaction temperature zone. The injector operates in a manner that forms droplet of a size that results in their vaporization exclusively in this optimum NO.sub.x -urea/ammonia reaction temperature zone. Also disclosed is a design of a system to effectively accomplish this injection.

Security Analysis of Some Diffusion Mechanisms Used in Chaotic Ciphers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Leo Yu; Zhang, Yushu; Liu, Yuansheng; Yang, Anjia; Chen, Guanrong

As a variant of the substitution-permutation network, the permutation-diffusion structure has received extensive attention in the field of chaotic cryptography over the last three decades. Because of the high implementation speed and nonlinearity over GF(2), the Galois field of two elements, mixing modulo addition/multiplication and Exclusive OR becomes very popular in various designs to achieve the desired diffusion effect. This paper reports that some diffusion mechanisms based on modulo addition/multiplication and Exclusive OR are not resistant to plaintext attacks as claimed. By cracking several recently proposed chaotic ciphers as examples, it is demonstrated that a good understanding of the strength and weakness of these crypto-primitives is crucial for designing more practical chaotic encryption algorithms in the future.

77 FR 74161 - Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic Zone Off Alaska; Allocating Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-12-13

..., processors, and affected communities to request an exemption from regional delivery requirements. Federal... within the designated region; likewise, crab purchased with regionally designated individual processing... fishing and processing activity making regional delivery requirements untenable in some seasons. Amendment...

78 FR 49520 - Scientific Information Request on Imaging Techniques for the Surveillance, Diagnosis, and Staging...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-08-14

... conducting this comparative effectiveness review pursuant to Section 1013 of the Medicare Prescription Drug... summary, including the following elements: study number, study period, design, methodology, indication and... period, design, methodology, indication and diagnosis, proper use instructions, inclusion and exclusion...

HAPTEN DESIGN FOR COMPOUND-SELECTIVE ANTIBODIES: ELISAS FOR ENVIRONMENTALLY DELETERIOUS SMALL MOLECULES. (R825433)

EPA Science Inventory

We have developed an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) for the herbicide simazine with virtually no recognition of propazine and very low (8%) recognition of atrazine. In this research we have developed a generalized "size-exclusion" concept for designing immun...

Apoptosis and Self-Destruct: A Contribution to Autonomic Agents?

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sterritt, Roy; Hinchey, Mike

2004-01-01

Autonomic Computing (AC), a self-managing systems initiative based on the biological metaphor of the autonomic nervous system, is increasingly gaining momentum as the way forward in designing reliable systems. Agent technologies have been identified as a key enabler for engineering autonomicity in systems, both in terms of retrofitting autonomicity into legacy systems and designing new systems. The AC initiative provides an opportunity to consider other biological systems and principles in seeking new design strategies. This paper reports on one such investigation; utilizing the apoptosis metaphor of biological systems to provide a dynamic health indicator signal between autonomic agents.

Control design based on dead-zone and leakage adaptive laws for artificial swarm mechanical systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhao, Xiaomin; Chen, Y. H.; Zhao, Han

2017-05-01

We consider the control design of artificial swarm systems with emphasis on four characteristics. First, the agent is made of mechanical components. As a result, the motion of each agent is subject to physical laws that govern mechanical systems. Second, both nonlinearity and uncertainty of the mechanical system are taken into consideration. Third, the ideal agent kinematic performance is treated as a desired d'Alembert constraint. This in turn suggests a creative way of embedding the constraint into the control design. Fourth, two types of adaptive robust control schemes are designed. They both contain leakage and dead-zone. However, one design suggests a trade-off between the amount of leakage and the size of dead-zone, in exchange for a simplified dead-zone structure.

A combined variable temperature 600 MHz NMR/MD study of the calcium release agent cyclic adenosine diphosphate ribose (cADPR): Structure, conformational analysis, and thermodynamics of the conformational equilibria.

PubMed

Javornik, Uroš; Plavec, Janez; Wang, Baifan; Graham, Steven M

2018-01-02

A combined variable temperature 600 MHz NMR/molecular dynamics study of the Ca 2+ -release agent cyclic adenosine 5'-diphosphate ribose (cADPR) was conducted. In addition to elucidating the major and minor orientations of the conformationally flexible furanose rings, γ- (C4'-C5'), and β- (C5'-O5') bonds, the thermodynamics (ΔH o , ΔS o ) associated with each of these conformational equilibria were determined. Both furanose rings were biased towards a south conformation (64-74%) and both β-bonds heavily favored trans conformations. The R-ring γ-bond was found to exist almost exclusively as the γ + conformer, whereas the A-ring γ-bond was a mixture of the γ + and γ t conformers, with the trans conformer being slightly favored. Enthalpic factors accounted for most of the observed conformational preferences, although the R-ring furanose exists as its major conformation based solely on entropic factors. There was excellent agreement between the NMR and MD results, particularly with regard to the conformer identities, but the MD showed a bias towards γ + conformers. The MD results showed that both N-glycosidic χ-bonds are exclusively syn. Collectively the data allowed for the construction of a model for cADPR in which many of the conformationally flexible units in fact effectively adopt single orientations and where most of the conformational diversity resides in its A-ring furanose and γ-bond. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

In vivo characterization of Lactobacillus johnsonii FI9785 for use as a defined competitive exclusion agent against bacterial pathogens in poultry.

PubMed

La Ragione, R M; Narbad, A; Gasson, M J; Woodward, M J

2004-01-01

To test the efficacy of Lactobacillus johnsonii FI9785 in reducing the colonization and shedding of Salmonella enterica serotype Enteritidis, Escherichia coli O78:K80 and Clostridium perfringens in poultry. Specific pathogen-free chicks (1 day old) were dosed with a single oral inoculum of 1x10(9) CFU. Lactobacillus johnsonii FI9785 and 24 h later were challenged in separate experiments with S. Enteritidis (S1400, nalr) and E. coli O78:K80 (EC34195, nalr). There were no significant effects against S. Enteritidis whereas colonization of the small intestine by E. coli O78:K80 was reduced significantly. Both S. Enteritidis and E. coli colonized the caeca and colon to levels equivalent to control birds and there was no reduction in shedding as assessed by a semi-quantitative cloacal swabbing technique. Specific pathogen-free chicks (20 day old) were dosed with a single oral inoculum of 1x10(9) CFU L. johnsonii FI9785 and 24 h later were challenged with C. perfringens. A single oral dose of L. johnsonii FI9785 was sufficient to suppress all aspects of colonization and persistence of C. perfringens. Lactobacillus johnsonii FI9785 may be given to poultry for use as a competitive exclusion agent to control C. perfringens. Lactobacillus johnsonii FI9785 may be a valuable tool to control the endemic disease of necrotic enteritis, thereby reducing economic losses associated with reduced use of antimicrobials in the poultry industry.

Electrostatic, elastic and hydration-dependent interactions in dermis influencing volume exclusion and macromolecular transport.

PubMed

Øien, Alf H; Wiig, Helge

2016-07-07

Interstitial exclusion refers to the limitation of space available for plasma proteins and other macromolecules based on collagen and negatively charged glycosaminoglycans (GAGs) in the interstitial space. It is of particular importance to interstitial fluid and plasma volume regulation. Here we present a novel mechanical and mathematical model of the dynamic interactions of structural elements within the interstitium of the dermis at the microscopic level that may explain volume exclusion of charged and neutral macroparticles. At this level, the interstitium is considered to consist of elements called extracellular matrix (ECM) cells, again containing two main interacting structural components on a fluid background including anions and cations setting up osmotic forces: one smaller GAG component, having an intrinsic expansive electric force, and one bigger collagen component, having an intrinsic elastic force. Because of size differences, the GAG component interacts with a fraction of the collagen component only at normal hydration. This fraction, however, increases with rising hydration as a consequence of the modeled form of the interaction force between the GAGs and collagen. Collagen is locally displaced at variable degrees as hydration changes. Two models of GAGs are considered, having largely different geometries which demands different, but related, forms of GAG-collagen interaction forces. The effects of variable fixed charges on GAGs and of GAG density in tissue are evaluated taking into account observed volume exclusion properties of charged macromolecules as a function of tissue hydration. The presented models may improve our biophysical understanding of acting forces influencing tissue fluid dynamics. Such knowledge is significant when evaluating the transport of electrically charged and neutral macromolecules into and through the interstitium, and therefore to drug uptake and the therapeutic effects of macromolecular agents. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Adaptivity in Agent-Based Routing for Data Networks

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wolpert, David H.; Kirshner, Sergey; Merz, Chris J.; Turner, Kagan

2000-01-01

Adaptivity, both of the individual agents and of the interaction structure among the agents, seems indispensable for scaling up multi-agent systems (MAS s) in noisy environments. One important consideration in designing adaptive agents is choosing their action spaces to be as amenable as possible to machine learning techniques, especially to reinforcement learning (RL) techniques. One important way to have the interaction structure connecting agents itself be adaptive is to have the intentions and/or actions of the agents be in the input spaces of the other agents, much as in Stackelberg games. We consider both kinds of adaptivity in the design of a MAS to control network packet routing. We demonstrate on the OPNET event-driven network simulator the perhaps surprising fact that simply changing the action space of the agents to be better suited to RL can result in very large improvements in their potential performance: at their best settings, our learning-amenable router agents achieve throughputs up to three and one half times better than that of the standard Bellman-Ford routing algorithm, even when the Bellman-Ford protocol traffic is maintained. We then demonstrate that much of that potential improvement can be realized by having the agents learn their settings when the agent interaction structure is itself adaptive.

An equation-free approach to agent-based computation: Bifurcation analysis and control of stationary states

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Siettos, C. I.; Gear, C. W.; Kevrekidis, I. G.

2012-08-01

We show how the equation-free approach can be exploited to enable agent-based simulators to perform system-level computations such as bifurcation, stability analysis and controller design. We illustrate these tasks through an event-driven agent-based model describing the dynamic behaviour of many interacting investors in the presence of mimesis. Using short bursts of appropriately initialized runs of the detailed, agent-based simulator, we construct the coarse-grained bifurcation diagram of the (expected) density of agents and investigate the stability of its multiple solution branches. When the mimetic coupling between agents becomes strong enough, the stable stationary state loses its stability at a coarse turning point bifurcation. We also demonstrate how the framework can be used to design a wash-out dynamic controller that stabilizes open-loop unstable stationary states even under model uncertainty.

The effect of surface tension reduction on the clinical performance of sodium hypochlorite in endodontics.

PubMed

Rossi-Fedele, G; Prichard, J W; Steier, L; de Figueiredo, J A P

2013-06-01

Sodium hypochlorite (NaOCl) is recommended as an endodontic irrigant in view of its broad antimicrobial and tissue dissolution capacities. To enhance its penetration into inaccessible areas of root canals and to improve its overall effect, the addition of surface-active agents has been suggested. The aim of this investigation was to review the effect of the reduction of the surface tension on the performance of NaOCl in endodontics. A search was performed in the Medline electronic database (articles published up to 28 July 2012, in English) with the search terms and combinations as follows: 'sodium hypochlorite AND surface tension or interfacial force or interfacial tension or surface-active agent or amphiphilic agent or surface active agent or surfactant or tenside or detergent'. The purpose of this search was to identify publications that compared NaOCl alone and NaOCl modified with the addition of a surface-active agent in endodontics. A hand search of articles published online ('in-press' and 'early view'), and appearing in the reference list of the articles included, was further performed, using the same search criteria as the electronic search. The search identified 302 publications, of which 11 fulfilled the inclusion/exclusion criteria of the review. The evidence available suggests that surface-active agents improve the penetration of NaOCl in the main canal and have no effect on its pulp tissue dissolution ability. There are, however, insufficient data to enable a sound conclusion to be drawn regarding the effect of modifying NaOCl's surface tension on lubrication, antimicrobial and smear layer or debris removal abilities. © 2012 International Endodontic Journal.

Economic reasoning and artificial intelligence.

PubMed

Parkes, David C; Wellman, Michael P

2015-07-17

The field of artificial intelligence (AI) strives to build rational agents capable of perceiving the world around them and taking actions to advance specified goals. Put another way, AI researchers aim to construct a synthetic homo economicus, the mythical perfectly rational agent of neoclassical economics. We review progress toward creating this new species of machine, machina economicus, and discuss some challenges in designing AIs that can reason effectively in economic contexts. Supposing that AI succeeds in this quest, or at least comes close enough that it is useful to think about AIs in rationalistic terms, we ask how to design the rules of interaction in multi-agent systems that come to represent an economy of AIs. Theories of normative design from economics may prove more relevant for artificial agents than human agents, with AIs that better respect idealized assumptions of rationality than people, interacting through novel rules and incentive systems quite distinct from those tailored for people. Copyright © 2015, American Association for the Advancement of Science.

The Use of Calcimimetics for the Treatment of Secondary Hyperparathyroidism: A 10 Year Evidence Review.

PubMed

Rodríguez, Mariano; Goodman, William G; Liakopoulos, Vassilios; Messa, Piergiorgio; Wiecek, Andrzej; Cunningham, John

2015-01-01

Until the discovery of calcimimetics, the management of secondary hyperparathyroidism (SHPT) relied exclusively on treatment with phosphate binders, vitamin D derivatives or surgical parathyroidectomy with limited success. The therapeutic use of calcimimetic agents, together with a better understanding of the pivotal role of the calcium-sensing receptor (CaSR) in the physiological regulation of parathyroid gland function, substantially advanced the management of hyperparathyroidism in dialysis practice. Calcimimetics bind selectively to the CaSR receptor in parathyroid tissue and enhance the inhibitory effect of extracellular calcium ions on parathyroid hormone (PTH) secretion, thereby reducing PTH levels even when serum calcium concentrations are normal or low. The availability of calcimimetic agents for clinical use has opened a new era in the management of patients with SHPT. Indeed, calcimimetic compounds have been shown to reduce PTH levels and to lower serum calcium concentrations in all forms of hyperparathyroidism, including primary hyperparathyroidism (PHPT) and parathyroid carcinoma. Such findings underscore the critical importance of the CaSR as a therapeutic target in this family of clinical disorders. New calcimimetic agents are being developed that have the potential to offer improved efficacy and safety compared with currently available calcimimetic compounds. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Modeling social learning of language and skills.

PubMed

Vogt, Paul; Haasdijk, Evert

2010-01-01

We present a model of social learning of both language and skills, while assuming—insofar as possible—strict autonomy, virtual embodiment, and situatedness. This model is built by integrating various previous models of language development and social learning, and it is this integration that, under the mentioned assumptions, provides novel challenges. The aim of the article is to investigate what sociocognitive mechanisms agents should have in order to be able to transmit language from one generation to the next so that it can be used as a medium to transmit internalized rules that represent skill knowledge. We have performed experiments where this knowledge solves the familiar poisonous-food problem. Simulations reveal under what conditions, regarding population structure, agents can successfully solve this problem. In addition to issues relating to perspective taking and mutual exclusivity, we show that agents need to coordinate interactions so that they can establish joint attention in order to form a scaffold for language learning, which in turn forms a scaffold for the learning of rule-based skills. Based on these findings, we conclude by hypothesizing that social learning at one level forms a scaffold for the social learning at another, higher level, thus contributing to the accumulation of cultural knowledge.

The Design of Learning Experiences: A Connection to Physical Environments.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Stueck, Lawrence E.; Tanner, C. Kenneth

The school environment must create a rich, beautiful, dynamic, meaningful experience for students to learn; however, architects, school boards, and the state focus almost exclusively only on the building when making design decisions. This document lists specific aspects to developing a visionary campus: one that provides a three-dimensional…

12. Photographic copy of original design drawing, dated January 1970, ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

12. Photographic copy of original design drawing, dated January 1970, revised 15 June 1973 (original print in possession of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Huntsville Division). Spartan launch station concrete sections - Stanley R. Mickelsen Safeguard Complex, Missile Launch Area, Within Exclusion Area, Nekoma, Cavalier County, ND

Patent and exclusivity status of essential medicines for non-communicable disease.

PubMed

Mackey, Tim K; Liang, Bryan A

2012-01-01

The threat of non-communicable diseases ("NCDs") is increasingly becoming a global health crisis and are pervasive in high, middle, and low-income populations resulting in an estimated 36 million deaths per year. There is a need to assess intellectual property rights ("IPRs") that may impede generic production and availability and affordability to essential NCD medicines. Using the data sources listed below, the study design systematically eliminated NCD drugs that had no patent/exclusivity provisions on API, dosage, or administration route. The first step identified essential medicines that treat certain high disease burden NCDs. A second step examined the patent and exclusivity status of active ingredient, dosage and listed route of administration using exclusion criteria outlined in this study. We examined the patent and exclusivity status of medicines listed in the World Health Organization's ("WHO") Model List of Essential Drugs (Medicines) ("MLEM") and other WHO sources for drugs treating certain NCDs. i.e., cardiovascular and respiratory disease, cancers, and diabetes. We utilized the USA Food and Drug Administration Orange Book and the USA Patent and Trademark Office databases as references given the predominant number of medicines registered in the USA. Of the 359 MLEM medicines identified, 22% (79/359) address targeted NCDs. Of these 79, only eight required in-depth patent or exclusivity assessment. Upon further review, no NCD MLEM medicines had study patent or exclusivity protection for reviewed criteria. We find that ensuring availability and affordability of potential generic formulations of NCD MLEM medicines appears to be more complex than the presence of IPRs with API, dosage, or administration patent or exclusivity protection. Hence, more sophisticated analysis of NCD barriers to generic availability and affordability should be conducted in order to ensure equitable access to global populations for these essential medicines.

Improved self-exclusion program: preliminary results.

PubMed

Tremblay, Nicole; Boutin, Claude; Ladouceur, Robert

2008-12-01

The gambling industry has offered self-exclusion programs for quite a long time. Such measures are designed to limit access to gaming opportunities and provide problem gamblers with the help they need to cease or limit their gambling behaviour. However, few studies have empirically evaluated these programs. This study has three objectives: (1) to observe the participation in an improved self-exclusion program that includes an initial voluntary evaluation, phone support, and a mandatory meeting, (2) to evaluate satisfaction and usefulness of this service as perceived by self-excluders, (3) to measure the preliminary impact of this improved program. One hundred sixteen self-excluders completed a questionnaire about their satisfaction and their perception of the usefulness during the mandatory meeting. Among those participants, 39 attended an initial meeting. Comparisons between data collected at the initial meeting and data taken at the final meeting were made for those 39 participants. Data showed that gamblers chose the improved self-exclusion program 75% of the time; 25% preferred to sign a regular self-exclusion contract. Among those who chose the improved service, 40% wanted an initial voluntary evaluation and 37% of these individuals actually attended that meeting. Seventy percent of gamblers came to the mandatory meeting, which was a required condition to end their self-exclusion. The majority of participants were satisfied with the improved self-exclusion service and perceived it as useful. Major improvements were observed between the final and the initial evaluation on time and money spent, consequences of gambling, DSM-IV score, and psychological distress. The applicability of an improved self-exclusion program is discussed and, as shown in our study, the inclusion of a final mandatory meeting might not be so repulsive for self-excluders. Future research directives are also proposed.

Mainstreaming nutrition into maternal and child health programmes: scaling up of exclusive breastfeeding.

PubMed

Bhandari, Nita; Kabir, A K M Iqbal; Salam, Mohammed Abdus

2008-04-01

Interventions to promote exclusive breastfeeding have been estimated to have the potential to prevent 13% of all under-5 deaths in developing countries and are the single most important preventive intervention against child mortality. According to World Health Organization and United Nations Children Funds (UNICEF), only 39% infants are exclusively breastfed for less than 4 months. This review examines programme efforts to scale up exclusive breastfeeding in different countries and draws lesson for successful scale-up. Opportunities and challenges in scaling up of exclusive breastfeeding into Maternal and Child Health programmes are identified. The key processes required for exclusive breastfeeding scale-up are: (1) an evidence-based policy and science-driven technical guidelines; and (2) an implementation strategy and plan for achieving high exclusive breastfeeding rates in all strata of society, on a sustainable basis. Factors related to success include political will, strong advocacy, enabling policies, well-defined short- and long-term programme strategy, sustained financial support, clear definition of roles of multiple stakeholders and emphasis on delivery at the community level. Effective use of antenatal, birth and post-natal contacts at homes and through community mobilization efforts is emphasized. Formative research to ensure appropriate intervention design and delivery is critical particularly in areas with high HIV prevalence. Strong communication strategy and support, quality trainers and training contributed significantly to programme success. Monitoring and evaluation with feedback systems that allow for periodic programme corrections and continued innovation are central to very high coverage. Legal framework must make it possible for mothers to exclusively breastfeed for at least 4 months. Sustained programme efforts are critical to achieve high coverage and this requires strong national- and state-level leadership.

Effectiveness of breastfeeding interventions delivered to fathers in low- and middle-income countries: A systematic review.

PubMed

Tadesse, Kidane; Zelenko, Oksana; Mulugeta, Afework; Gallegos, Danielle

2018-05-08

Adequate support for lactating mothers is crucial to improve the rates of early initiation, exclusive, and continued breastfeeding. Maternal breastfeeding intention and ongoing breastfeeding duration are strongly predicted by their partners' breastfeeding beliefs. Partner support has a significant effect on improving rates of any and exclusive breastfeeding, when compared with professional support, particularly in low-income populations. This systematic review investigates the effectiveness of breastfeeding interventions targeting fathers in low- and middle-income countries (LMIC). A systematic literature search was undertaken on Medline (EBSCOhost), PsycInfo, CINAHL, and Scopus databases and via manual searching. Inclusion criteria were experimental or quasiexperimental designs targeting fathers from LMIC, which measured either breastfeeding initiation, breastfeeding exclusivity, or duration of breastfeeding as the main outcomes. No time restriction was put in place, and all articles were published in English. The quality of selected papers was assessed using the Joanna Briggs Institute tool. A total of 8 articles were included from 6 interventions: 2 quasiexperimental and 4 randomized control trials. All interventions involved breastfeeding education targeting fathers; 2 were given only to fathers, and 4 delivered to both fathers and mothers. Among these interventions, 2 measured both early initiation and exclusive breastfeeding; one exclusive breastfeeding only; one exclusive breastfeeding, knowledge, and attitudes; one exclusive breastfeeding and knowledge; and one breastfeeding, continued breastfeeding, and awareness. Across all interventions, breastfeeding education showed significant improvement in breastfeeding outcomes in the intervention compared with the control groups. In summary, breastfeeding education interventions targeting fathers in LMIC are effective in improving early initiation of breastfeeding, exclusive breastfeeding, and continued breastfeeding. Thus, breastfeeding promotion should consider the education and involvement of fathers in the intervention. © 2018 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

38 CFR 17.272 - Benefits limitations/exclusions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... specific developmental disorder. The following exception applies: Diagnostic and evaluative services... apply: (i) Well-child care from birth to age six. Periodic health examinations designed for prevention...

38 CFR 17.272 - Benefits limitations/exclusions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... specific developmental disorder. The following exception applies: Diagnostic and evaluative services... apply: (i) Well-child care from birth to age six. Periodic health examinations designed for prevention...

38 CFR 17.272 - Benefits limitations/exclusions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... specific developmental disorder. The following exception applies: Diagnostic and evaluative services... apply: (i) Well-child care from birth to age six. Periodic health examinations designed for prevention...

37 CFR 262.7 - Verification of royalty payments.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... Designated Agent have agreed as to proper verification methods. (b) Frequency of verification. A Copyright Owner or a Performer may conduct a single audit of the Designated Agent upon reasonable notice and... COPYRIGHT ARBITRATION ROYALTY PANEL RULES AND PROCEDURES RATES AND TERMS FOR CERTAIN ELIGIBLE...

47 CFR 68.418 - Procedure; designation of agents for service.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... 47 Telecommunication 3 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Procedure; designation of agents for service. 68.418 Section 68.418 Telecommunication FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION (CONTINUED) COMMON CARRIER SERVICES (CONTINUED) CONNECTION OF TERMINAL EQUIPMENT TO THE TELEPHONE NETWORK Complaint Procedures § 68...

47 CFR 14.35 - Procedure; designation of agents for service.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-10-01

... 47 Telecommunication 1 2014-10-01 2014-10-01 false Procedure; designation of agents for service. 14.35 Section 14.35 Telecommunication FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION GENERAL ACCESS TO ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS SERVICES AND EQUIPMENT BY PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES Recordkeeping, Consumer Dispute Assistance, and...

47 CFR 14.35 - Procedure; designation of agents for service.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-10-01

... 47 Telecommunication 1 2013-10-01 2013-10-01 false Procedure; designation of agents for service. 14.35 Section 14.35 Telecommunication FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION GENERAL ACCESS TO ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS SERVICES AND EQUIPMENT BY PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES Recordkeeping, Consumer Dispute Assistance, and...

47 CFR 14.35 - Procedure; designation of agents for service.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-10-01

... 47 Telecommunication 1 2012-10-01 2012-10-01 false Procedure; designation of agents for service. 14.35 Section 14.35 Telecommunication FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION GENERAL ACCESS TO ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS SERVICES AND EQUIPMENT BY PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES Recordkeeping, Consumer Dispute Assistance, and...

Research and application of multi-agent genetic algorithm in tower defense game

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jin, Shaohua

2018-04-01

In this paper, a new multi-agent genetic algorithm based on orthogonal experiment is proposed, which is based on multi-agent system, genetic algorithm and orthogonal experimental design. The design of neighborhood competition operator, orthogonal crossover operator, Son and self-learning operator. The new algorithm is applied to mobile tower defense game, according to the characteristics of the game, the establishment of mathematical models, and finally increases the value of the game's monster.

Little by Little Does the Trick: Design and Construction of a Discrete Event Agent-Based Simulation Framework

DTIC Science & Technology

2007-12-01

model. Finally, we build a small agent-based model using the component architecture to demonstrate the library’s functionality. 15. NUMBER OF...and a Behavioral model. Finally, we build a small agent-based model using the component architecture to demonstrate the library’s functionality...prototypes an architectural design which is generalizable, reusable, and extensible. We have created an initial set of model elements that demonstrate

In vivo magnetic resonance and fluorescence dual imaging of tumor sites by using dye-doped silica-coated iron oxide nanoparticles

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jang, Haeyun; Lee, Chaedong; Nam, Gi-Eun; Quan, Bo; Choi, Hyuck Jae; Yoo, Jung Sun; Piao, Yuanzhe

2016-02-01

The difficulty in delineating tumor is a major obstacle for better outcomes in cancer treatment of patients. The use of single-imaging modality is often limited by inadequate sensitivity and resolution. Here, we present the synthesis and the use of monodisperse iron oxide nanoparticles coated with fluorescent silica nano-shells for fluorescence and magnetic resonance dual imaging of tumor. The as-synthesized core-shell nanoparticles were designed to improve the accuracy of diagnosis via simultaneous tumor imaging with dual imaging modalities by a single injection of contrast agent. The iron oxide nanocrystals ( 11 nm) were coated with Rhodamine B isothiocyanate-doped silica shells via reverse microemulsion method. Then, the core-shell nanoparticles ( 54 nm) were analyzed to confirm their size distribution by transmission electron microscopy and dynamic laser scattering. Photoluminescence spectroscopy was used to characterize the fluorescent property of the dye-doped silica shell-coated nanoparticles. The cellular compatibility of the as-prepared nanoparticles was confirmed by a trypan blue dye exclusion assay and the potential as a dual-imaging contrast agent was verified by in vivo fluorescence and magnetic resonance imaging. The experimental results show that the uniform-sized core-shell nanoparticles are highly water dispersible and the cellular toxicity of the nanoparticles is negligible. In vivo fluorescence imaging demonstrates the capability of the developed nanoparticles to selectively target tumors by the enhanced permeability and retention effects and ex vivo tissue analysis was corroborated this. Through in vitro phantom test, the core/shell nanoparticles showed a T2 relaxation time comparable to Feridex® with smaller size, indicating that the as-made nanoparticles are suitable for imaging tumor. This new dual-modality-nanoparticle approach has promised for enabling more accurate tumor imaging.

Design for interaction between humans and intelligent systems during real-time fault management

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Malin, Jane T.; Schreckenghost, Debra L.; Thronesbery, Carroll G.

1992-01-01

Initial results are reported to provide guidance and assistance for designers of intelligent systems and their human interfaces. The objective is to achieve more effective human-computer interaction (HCI) for real time fault management support systems. Studies of the development of intelligent fault management systems within NASA have resulted in a new perspective of the user. If the user is viewed as one of the subsystems in a heterogeneous, distributed system, system design becomes the design of a flexible architecture for accomplishing system tasks with both human and computer agents. HCI requirements and design should be distinguished from user interface (displays and controls) requirements and design. Effective HCI design for multi-agent systems requires explicit identification of activities and information that support coordination and communication between agents. The effects are characterized of HCI design on overall system design and approaches are identified to addressing HCI requirements in system design. The results include definition of (1) guidance based on information level requirements analysis of HCI, (2) high level requirements for a design methodology that integrates the HCI perspective into system design, and (3) requirements for embedding HCI design tools into intelligent system development environments.

Cage-Like Porous Carbon with Superhigh Activity and Br2 -Complex-Entrapping Capability for Bromine-Based Flow Batteries.

PubMed

Wang, Chenhui; Lai, Qinzhi; Xu, Pengcheng; Zheng, Daoyuan; Li, Xianfeng; Zhang, Huamin

2017-06-01

Bromine-based flow batteries receive wide attention in large-scale energy storage because of their attractive features, such as high energy density and low cost. However, the Br 2 diffusion and relatively low activity of Br 2 /Br - hinder their further application. Herein, a cage-like porous carbon (CPC) with specific pore structure combining superhigh activity and Br 2 -complex-entrapping capability is designed and fabricated. According to the results of density functional theory (DFT) calculation, the pore size of the CPC (1.1 nm) is well designed between the size of Br - (4.83 Å), MEP + (9.25 Å), and Br 2 complex (MEPBr 3 12.40 Å), wherein Br - is oxidized to Br 2 , which forms a Br 2 complex with the complexing agent immediately and is then entrapped in the cage via pore size exclusion. In addition, the active sites produced during the carbon dioxide activation process dramatically accelerate the reaction rate of Br 2 /Br - . In this way, combining a high Br 2 -entrapping-capability and high specific surface areas, the CPC shows very impressive performance. The zinc bromine flow battery assembled with the prepared CPC shows a Coulombic efficiency of 98% and an energy efficiency of 81% at the current density of 80 mA cm -2 , which are among the highest values ever reported. © 2017 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Peritoneal dialysis solutions--at a crossroad.

PubMed

Diaz-Buxo, J A; Gotloib, L

2006-06-01

After many decades of evolution and with many choices available for the formulation of peritoneal dialysis fluids (PDF), we find ourselves at a crossroads. A review of related developments, laboratory trials and clinical evaluations is offered to stimulate future research in this area. The information presented here raises more questions than it provides answers, but opens the door to innumerable possibilities for improvement. The search for a biocompatible osmotic agent designed to replace those currently used has been frustrating and is far from being considered a success. Research on cytokines and other mediators of inflammation produced a huge amount of interesting scientific knowledge that may help our understanding. However, it is unlikely that it will identify a specifically targeted anticytokine, or combination of them, designed to neutralize and/or reverse inflammatory changes resulting from the use of poorly biocompatible PDF. The development of low glucose degradation product (GDP) solutions by means of multi-chambered bags appear to be a step in the right direction and perhaps is the most significant improvement in this field in many decades. GDPs are important, but not the only offenders or the exclusive source of oxidative stress. Thus, the addition of antioxidants to PDF formulations, in our opinion, deserves further consideration. Additionally, repopulation of the mesothelial monolayer by means of periodic autotransplantation of mesothelial cells may well become a useful tool to prevent and/or correct membrane failure. We are fortunate to have choices at this crossroad, which we must evaluate rigorously.

Distributed Leader-Following Finite-Time Consensus Control for Linear Multiagent Systems under Switching Topology

PubMed Central

Xu, Xiaole; Chen, Shengyong

2014-01-01

This paper investigates the finite-time consensus problem of leader-following multiagent systems. The dynamical models for all following agents and the leader are assumed the same general form of linear system, and the interconnection topology among the agents is assumed to be switching and undirected. We mostly consider the continuous-time case. By assuming that the states of neighbouring agents are known to each agent, a sufficient condition is established for finite-time consensus via a neighbor-based state feedback protocol. While the states of neighbouring agents cannot be available and only the outputs of neighbouring agents can be accessed, the distributed observer-based consensus protocol is proposed for each following agent. A sufficient condition is provided in terms of linear matrix inequalities to design the observer-based consensus protocol, which makes the multiagent systems achieve finite-time consensus under switching topologies. Then, we discuss the counterparts for discrete-time case. Finally, we provide an illustrative example to show the effectiveness of the design approach. PMID:24883367

The effects of social interactions with in-vehicle agents on a driver's anger level, driving performance, situation awareness, and perceived workload.

PubMed

Jeon, Myounghoon; Walker, Bruce N; Gable, Thomas M

2015-09-01

Research has suggested that interaction with an in-vehicle software agent can improve a driver's psychological state and increase road safety. The present study explored the possibility of using an in-vehicle software agent to mitigate effects of driver anger on driving behavior. After either anger or neutral mood induction, 60 undergraduates drove in a simulator with two types of agent intervention. Results showed that both speech-based agents not only enhance driver situation awareness and driving performance, but also reduce their anger level and perceived workload. Regression models show that a driver's anger influences driving performance measures, mediated by situation awareness. The practical implications include design guidelines for the design of social interaction with in-vehicle software agents. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd and The Ergonomics Society. All rights reserved.

Evaluation of Market Design Agents: The Mertacor Perspective

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stavrogiannis, Lampros C.; Mitkas, Pericles A.

The annual Trading Agent Competition for Market Design, CAT, provides a testbed to study the mechanisms that modern stock exchanges use in their effort to attract potential traders while maximizing their profit. This paper presents an evaluation of the agents that participated in the 2008 competition. The evaluation is based on the analysis of the CAT finals as well as on the results obtained from post-tournament experiments. We present Mertacor, our entrant for 2008, and compare it with the other available agents. In addition, we introduce a simple yet effective way of computing the global competitive equilibrium that Mertacor utilizes and discuss its importance for the game.

Synthesis and evaluation of novel caged DNA alkylating agents bearing 3,4-epoxypiperidine structure.

PubMed

Kawada, Yuji; Kodama, Tetsuya; Miyashita, Kazuyuki; Imanishi, Takeshi; Obika, Satoshi

2012-07-14

Previously, we reported that the 3,4-epoxypiperidine structure, whose design was based on the active site of DNA alkylating antitumor antibiotics, azinomycins A and B, possesses prominent DNA cleavage activity. In this report, novel caged DNA alkylating agents, which were designed to be activated by UV irradiation, were synthesized by the introduction of four photo-labile protecting groups to a 3,4-epoxypiperidine derivative. The DNA cleavage activity and cytotoxicity of the caged DNA alkylating agents were examined under UV irradiation. Four caged DNA alkylating agents showed various degrees of bioactivity depending on the photosensitivity of the protecting groups.

Construction and Evaluation of Animated Teachable Agents

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bodenheimer, Bobby; Williams, Betsy; Kramer, Mattie Ruth; Viswanath, Karun; Balachandran, Ramya; Belynne, Kadira; Biswas, Gautam

2009-01-01

This article describes the design decisions, technical approach, and evaluation of the animation and interface components for an agent-based system that allows learners to learn by teaching. Students learn by teaching an animated agent using a visual representation. The agent can answer questions about what she has been taught and take quizzes.…

Using Animated Agents in Learner-Controlled Training: The Effects of Design Control

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Behrend, Tara S.; Thompson, Lori Foster

2012-01-01

Animated agents have the potential to increase engagement and learning during online training by acting as personalized tutors. However, little is known about the conditions that make these agents most effective. In this study, 183 e-learners completed a Microsoft Excel training course. Approximately half were assigned an agent with predetermined…

Photodithazine photodynamic effect on viability of 9L/lacZ gliosarcoma cell line.

PubMed

Fontana, Leticia C; Pinto, Juliana G; Pereira, André H C; Soares, Cristina P; Raniero, Leandro J; Ferreira-Strixino, Juliana

2017-08-01

Even with the advances of conventional treatment techniques, the nervous system cancer prognosis is still not favorable to the patient which makes alternative therapies needed to be studied. Photodynamic therapy (PDT) is presented as a promising therapy, which employs a photosensitive (PS) agent, light wavelength suitable for the PS agent, and molecular oxygen, producing reactive oxygen species in order to induce cell death. The aim of this study is to observe the PDT action in gliosarcoma cell using a chlorin (Photodithazine, PDZ). The experiments were done with 9L/lacZ lineage cells, grown in a DMEM medium supplemented with 10% fetal bovine serum and 1% penicillin/streptomycin solution and put in a culture chamber at 37 °C with an atmosphere of 5% CO 2 . The PS agent used was the PDZ to an LED light source device (Biopdi/IRRAD-LED 660) in the 660-nm region. The location of the PS agent was analyzed by fluorescence microscopy, and cell viability was analyzed by MTT assay (mitochondrial activity), exclusion by trypan blue (cell viability), and morphological examination through an optical microscope (Leica MD 2500). In the analysis of the experiments with PDZ, there was 100% cell death at different concentrations and clear morphological differences in groups with and without treatment. Furthermore, it was observed that the photodithazine has been focused on all nuclear and cytoplasmic extension; however, it cannot be said for sure whether the location is in the inside core region or on the plasma membrane. In general, the PDZ showed a promising photosensitive agent in PDT for the use of gliosarcoma.

Metareasoning and Social Evaluations in Cognitive Agents

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pinyol, Isaac; Sabater-Mir, Jordi

Reputation mechanisms have been recognized one of the key technologies when designing multi-agent systems. They are specially relevant in complex open environments, becoming a non-centralized mechanism to control interactions among agents. Cognitive agents tackling such complex societies must use reputation information not only for selecting partners to interact with, but also in metareasoning processes to change reasoning rules. This is the focus of this paper. We argue about the necessity to allow, as a cognitive systems designers, certain degree of freedom in the reasoning rules of the agents. We also describes cognitive approaches of agency that support this idea. Furthermore, taking as a base the computational reputation model Repage, and its integration in a BDI architecture, we use the previous ideas to specify metarules and processes to modify at run-time the reasoning paths of the agent. In concrete we propose a metarule to update the link between Repage and the belief base, and a metarule and a process to update an axiom incorporated in the belief logic of the agent. Regarding this last issue we also provide empirical results that show the evolution of agents that use it.

Modelling of robotic work cells using agent based-approach

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sękala, A.; Banaś, W.; Gwiazda, A.; Monica, Z.; Kost, G.; Hryniewicz, P.

2016-08-01

In the case of modern manufacturing systems the requirements, both according the scope and according characteristics of technical procedures are dynamically changing. This results in production system organization inability to keep up with changes in a market demand. Accordingly, there is a need for new design methods, characterized, on the one hand with a high efficiency and on the other with the adequate level of the generated organizational solutions. One of the tools that could be used for this purpose is the concept of agent systems. These systems are the tools of artificial intelligence. They allow assigning to agents the proper domains of procedures and knowledge so that they represent in a self-organizing system of an agent environment, components of a real system. The agent-based system for modelling robotic work cell should be designed taking into consideration many limitations considered with the characteristic of this production unit. It is possible to distinguish some grouped of structural components that constitute such a system. This confirms the structural complexity of a work cell as a specific production system. So it is necessary to develop agents depicting various aspects of the work cell structure. The main groups of agents that are used to model a robotic work cell should at least include next pattern representatives: machine tool agents, auxiliary equipment agents, robots agents, transport equipment agents, organizational agents as well as data and knowledge bases agents. In this way it is possible to create the holarchy of the agent-based system.

47 CFR 74.655 - Authorization of equipment.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-10-01

... EXPERIMENTAL RADIO, AUXILIARY, SPECIAL BROADCAST AND OTHER PROGRAM DISTRIBUTIONAL SERVICES Television Broadcast... and regulations. (f) Transmitters designed to be used exclusively for a TV STL station, a TV intercity...

23 CFR 771.117 - FHWA categorical exclusions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... to provide for noise reduction. (7) Landscaping. (8) Installation of fencing, signs, pavement... design, function, and location as the original (which may include upgrades to meet existing codes and...

23 CFR 771.117 - FHWA categorical exclusions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... to provide for noise reduction. (7) Landscaping. (8) Installation of fencing, signs, pavement... design, function, and location as the original (which may include upgrades to meet existing codes and...

Parents as Agents of Change (PAC) in pediatric weight management: The protocol for the PAC randomized clinical trial

PubMed Central

2012-01-01

Background There is an urgent need to develop and evaluate weight management interventions to address childhood obesity. Recent research suggests that interventions designed for parents exclusively, which have been named parents as agents of change (PAC) approaches, have yielded positive outcomes for managing pediatric obesity. To date, no research has combined a PAC intervention approach with cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) to examine whether these combined elements enhance intervention effectiveness. This paper describes the protocol our team is using to examine two PAC-based interventions for pediatric weight management. We hypothesize that children with obesity whose parents complete a CBT-based PAC intervention will achieve greater reductions in adiposity and improvements in cardiometabolic risk factors, lifestyle behaviours, and psychosocial outcomes than children whose parents complete a psycho-education-based PAC intervention (PEP). Methods/Design This study is a pragmatic, two-armed, parallel, single-blinded, superiority, randomized clinical trial. The primary objective is to examine the differential effects of a CBT-based PAC vs PEP-based PAC intervention on children’s BMI z-score (primary outcome). Secondary objectives are to assess intervention-mediated changes in cardiometabolic, lifestyle, and psychosocial variables in children and parents. Both interventions are similar in frequency of contact, session duration, group facilitation, lifestyle behaviour goals, and educational content. However, the interventions differ insofar as the CBT-based intervention incorporates theory-based concepts to help parents link their thoughts, feelings, and behaviours; these cognitive activities are enabled by group leaders who possess formal training in CBT. Mothers and fathers of children (8–12 years of age; BMI ≥85th percentile) are eligible to participate if they are proficient in English (written and spoken) and agree for at least one parent to attend group-based sessions on a weekly basis. Anthropometry, cardiometabolic risk factors, lifestyle behaviours, and psychosocial health of children and parents are assessed at pre-intervention, post-intervention, 6-, and 12-months follow-up. Discussion This study is designed to extend findings from earlier efficacy studies and provide data on the effect of a CBT-based PAC intervention for managing pediatric obesity in a real-world, outpatient clinical setting. Trial Registration ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT01267097 PMID:22866998

Designing clinical trials to test disease-modifying agents: application to the treatment trials of Alzheimer's disease.

PubMed

Xiong, Chengjie; van Belle, Gerald; Miller, J Philip; Morris, John C

2011-02-01

Therapeutic trials of disease-modifying agents on Alzheimer's disease (AD) require novel designs and analyses involving switch of treatments for at least a portion of subjects enrolled. Randomized start and randomized withdrawal designs are two examples of such designs. Crucial design parameters such as sample size and the time of treatment switch are important to understand in designing such clinical trials. The purpose of this article is to provide methods to determine sample sizes and time of treatment switch as well as optimum statistical tests of treatment efficacy for clinical trials of disease-modifying agents on AD. A general linear mixed effects model is proposed to test the disease-modifying efficacy of novel therapeutic agents on AD. This model links the longitudinal growth from both the placebo arm and the treatment arm at the time of treatment switch for these in the delayed treatment arm or early withdrawal arm and incorporates the potential correlation on the rate of cognitive change before and after the treatment switch. Sample sizes and the optimum time for treatment switch of such trials as well as optimum test statistic for the treatment efficacy are determined according to the model. Assuming an evenly spaced longitudinal design over a fixed duration, the optimum treatment switching time in a randomized start or a randomized withdrawal trial is half way through the trial. With the optimum test statistic for the treatment efficacy and over a wide spectrum of model parameters, the optimum sample size allocations are fairly close to the simplest design with a sample size ratio of 1:1:1 among the treatment arm, the delayed treatment or early withdrawal arm, and the placebo arm. The application of the proposed methodology to AD provides evidence that much larger sample sizes are required to adequately power disease-modifying trials when compared with those for symptomatic agents, even when the treatment switch time and efficacy test are optimally chosen. The proposed method assumes that the only and immediate effect of treatment switch is on the rate of cognitive change. Crucial design parameters for the clinical trials of disease-modifying agents on AD can be optimally chosen. Government and industry officials as well as academia researchers should consider the optimum use of the clinical trials design for disease-modifying agents on AD in their effort to search for the treatments with the potential to modify the underlying pathophysiology of AD.

Agent Collaborative Target Localization and Classification in Wireless Sensor Networks

PubMed Central

Wang, Xue; Bi, Dao-wei; Ding, Liang; Wang, Sheng

2007-01-01

Wireless sensor networks (WSNs) are autonomous networks that have been frequently deployed to collaboratively perform target localization and classification tasks. Their autonomous and collaborative features resemble the characteristics of agents. Such similarities inspire the development of heterogeneous agent architecture for WSN in this paper. The proposed agent architecture views WSN as multi-agent systems and mobile agents are employed to reduce in-network communication. According to the architecture, an energy based acoustic localization algorithm is proposed. In localization, estimate of target location is obtained by steepest descent search. The search algorithm adapts to measurement environments by dynamically adjusting its termination condition. With the agent architecture, target classification is accomplished by distributed support vector machine (SVM). Mobile agents are employed for feature extraction and distributed SVM learning to reduce communication load. Desirable learning performance is guaranteed by combining support vectors and convex hull vectors. Fusion algorithms are designed to merge SVM classification decisions made from various modalities. Real world experiments with MICAz sensor nodes are conducted for vehicle localization and classification. Experimental results show the proposed agent architecture remarkably facilitates WSN designs and algorithm implementation. The localization and classification algorithms also prove to be accurate and energy efficient.

43 CFR 4120.3-4 - Standards, design and stipulations.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-10-01

... 43 Public Lands: Interior 2 2014-10-01 2014-10-01 false Standards, design and stipulations. 4120.3-4 Section 4120.3-4 Public Lands: Interior Regulations Relating to Public Lands (Continued) BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR RANGE MANAGEMENT (4000) GRAZING ADMINISTRATION-EXCLUSIVE OF ALASKA Grazing Management § 4120.3-4...

21 CFR 516.36 - Insufficient quantities of MUMS-designated drugs.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... SERVICES (CONTINUED) ANIMAL DRUGS, FEEDS, AND RELATED PRODUCTS NEW ANIMAL DRUGS FOR MINOR USE AND MINOR SPECIES Designation of a Minor Use or Minor Species New Animal Drug § 516.36 Insufficient quantities of... the 7-year period of exclusive marketing rights. (b) If, within the time that FDA specifies, the...

21 CFR 516.36 - Insufficient quantities of MUMS-designated drugs.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... SERVICES (CONTINUED) ANIMAL DRUGS, FEEDS, AND RELATED PRODUCTS NEW ANIMAL DRUGS FOR MINOR USE AND MINOR SPECIES Designation of a Minor Use or Minor Species New Animal Drug § 516.36 Insufficient quantities of... the 7-year period of exclusive marketing rights. (b) If, within the time that FDA specifies, the...

21 CFR 516.36 - Insufficient quantities of MUMS-designated drugs.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... SERVICES (CONTINUED) ANIMAL DRUGS, FEEDS, AND RELATED PRODUCTS NEW ANIMAL DRUGS FOR MINOR USE AND MINOR SPECIES Designation of a Minor Use or Minor Species New Animal Drug § 516.36 Insufficient quantities of... the 7-year period of exclusive marketing rights. (b) If, within the time that FDA specifies, the...

21 CFR 516.36 - Insufficient quantities of MUMS-designated drugs.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... SERVICES (CONTINUED) ANIMAL DRUGS, FEEDS, AND RELATED PRODUCTS NEW ANIMAL DRUGS FOR MINOR USE AND MINOR SPECIES Designation of a Minor Use or Minor Species New Animal Drug § 516.36 Insufficient quantities of... the 7-year period of exclusive marketing rights. (b) If, within the time that FDA specifies, the...

21 CFR 516.36 - Insufficient quantities of MUMS-designated drugs.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... SERVICES (CONTINUED) ANIMAL DRUGS, FEEDS, AND RELATED PRODUCTS NEW ANIMAL DRUGS FOR MINOR USE AND MINOR SPECIES Designation of a Minor Use or Minor Species New Animal Drug § 516.36 Insufficient quantities of... the 7-year period of exclusive marketing rights. (b) If, within the time that FDA specifies, the...

Advances in acrylic-alkyd hybrid synthesis and characterization

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dziczkowski, Jamie

2008-10-01

In situ graft acrylic-alkyd hybrid resins were formed by polymerizing acrylic and acrylic-mixed monomers in the presence of alkyds by introduction of a free radical initiator to promote graft formation. Two-dimensional NMR, specifically gradient heteronuclear multiple quantum coherence (gHMQC), was used to clarify specific graft sites of the hybrid materials. Both individual and mixed-monomer systems were produced to determine any individual monomer preferences and to model current acrylic-alkyd systems. Different classes of initiators were used to determine any initiator effects on graft location. The 2D-NMR results confirm grafting at doubly allylic hydrogens located on the fatty acid chains and the polyol segment of the alkyd backbone. The gHMQC spectra show no evidence of grafting across double bonds on either pendant fatty acid groups or THPA unsaturation sites for any of the monomer or mixed monomer systems. It was also determined that choice of initiator has no effect on graft location. In addition, a design of experiments using response surface methodology was utilized to obtain a better understanding of this commercially available class of materials and relate both the chemical and physical properties to one another. A Box-Behnkin design was used, varying the oil length of the alkyd phase, the degree of unsaturation in the polyester backbone, and acrylic to alkyd ratio. Acrylic-alkyd hybrid resins were reduced with an amine/water mixture. Hydrolytic stability was tested and viscoelastic properties were obtained to determine crosslink density. Cured films were prepared and basic coatings properties were evaluated. It was found that the oil length of the alkyd is the most dominant factor for final coatings properties of the resins. Acrylic to alkyd ratio mainly influences the resin properties such as acid number, average molecular weight, and hydrolytic stability. The degree of unsaturation in the alkyd backbone has minimal effects on resin and film performance. Reversible-addition fragmentation polymerization techniques were employed to create a new class of acrylic-alkyd hybrid materials. Medium and long oil alkyds made from the monoglyceride process using soybean oil, glycerol, and phthalic anhydride were modified with a RAFT chain transfer agent. The alkyd macro-RAFT agents were reached by end-capping a medium oil soya-based alkyd with a carboxy-functional trithiocarbonate. The alkyd macro-RAFT agents were then used to create acrylic-alkyd block structures by polymerizing different acrylic monomers, including both acrylates and methacrylates in the presence of the macro-RAFT agent and 2, 2'-azobisisobutyronitrile (AIBN). Co-acrylic segments were reached by complete polymerization of one monomer followed by the addition of a second monomer and additional free radical initiator. The alkyds, macro-RAFT agents and, acrylic-alkyd blocks were characterized by size-exclusion chromatography (SEC), FTIR, and 1H-NMR. Pseudo-first-order kinetics behavior and conversion vs. molecular weight plots show that the RAFT-mediated reaction afforded a more controlled process for the synthesis of acrylated-alkyd materials. Preliminary coatings tests showed that material properties of acrylated-alkyds achieved by RAFT polymerization exhibit good overall coatings properties including adhesion, gloss, hardness, and impact resistance.

An information driven strategy to support multidisciplinary design

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rangan, Ravi M.; Fulton, Robert E.

1990-01-01

The design of complex engineering systems such as aircraft, automobiles, and computers is primarily a cooperative multidisciplinary design process involving interactions between several design agents. The common thread underlying this multidisciplinary design activity is the information exchange between the various groups and disciplines. The integrating component in such environments is the common data and the dependencies that exist between such data. This may be contrasted to classical multidisciplinary analyses problems where there is coupling between distinct design parameters. For example, they may be expressed as mathematically coupled relationships between aerodynamic and structural interactions in aircraft structures, between thermal and structural interactions in nuclear plants, and between control considerations and structural interactions in flexible robots. These relationships provide analytical based frameworks leading to optimization problem formulations. However, in multidisciplinary design problems, information based interactions become more critical. Many times, the relationships between different design parameters are not amenable to analytical characterization. Under such circumstances, information based interactions will provide the best integration paradigm, i.e., there is a need to model the data entities and their dependencies between design parameters originating from different design agents. The modeling of such data interactions and dependencies forms the basis for integrating the various design agents.

Corporate social responsibility initiatives addressing social exclusion in Bangladesh.

PubMed

Werner, Wendy J

2009-08-01

The private sector is often seen as a driver of exclusionary processes rather than a partner in improving the health and welfare of socially-excluded populations. However, private-sector initiatives and partnerships- collectively labelled corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives-may be able to positively impact social status, earning potential, and access to services and resources for socially-excluded populations. This paper presents case studies of CSR projects in Bangladesh that are designed to reduce social exclusion among marginalized populations and explores whether CSR initiatives can increase economic and social capabilities to reduce exclusion. The examples provide snapshots of projects that (a) increase job-skills and employment opportunities for women, disabled women, and rehabilitated drug-users and (b) provide healthcare services to female workers and their communities. The CSR case studies cover a limited number of people but characteristics and practices replicable and scaleable across different industries, countries, and populations are identified. Common success factors from the case studies form the basis for recommendations to design and implement more CSR initiatives targeting socially-excluded groups. The analysis found that CSR has potential for positive and lasting impact on developing countries, especifically on socially-excluded populations. However, there is a need for additional monitoring and critical evaluation.

Speeding Up Social Waves. Propagation Mechanisms of Shimmering in Giant Honeybees

PubMed Central

Kastberger, Gerald; Hoetzl, Thomas; Maurer, Michael; Kranner, Ilse; Weiss, Sara; Weihmann, Frank

2014-01-01

Shimmering is a defence behaviour in giant honeybees (Apis dorsata), whereby bees on the nest surface flip their abdomen upwards in a Mexican wave-like process. However, information spreads faster than can be ascribed to bucket bridging, which is the transfer of information from one individual to an adjacent one. We identified a saltatoric process that speeds up shimmering by the generation of daughter waves, which subsequently merge with the parental wave, producing a new wave front. Motion patterns of individual “focus” bees (n = 10,894) and their shimmering-active neighbours (n = 459,558) were measured with high-resolution video recording and stereoscopic imaging. Three types of shimmering-active surface bees were distinguished by their communication status, termed “agents”: “Bucket-bridging” agents comprised 74.98% of all agents, affected 88.17% of their neighbours, and transferred information at a velocity of v = 0.317±0.015 m/s. “Chain-tail” agents comprised 9.20% of the agents, were activated by 6.35% of their neighbours, but did not motivate others to participate in the wave. “Generator agents” comprised 15.82% of agents, showed abdominal flipping before the arrival of the main wave front, and initiated daughter waves. They affected 6.75% of their neighbourhood and speeded up the compound shimmering process compared to bucket bridging alone by 41.5% to v = 0.514±0.019 m/s. The main direction of shimmering was reinforced by 35.82% of agents, whereas the contribution of the complementing agents was fuzzy. We discuss that the saltatoric process could enable the bees to instantly recruit larger cohorts to participate in shimmering and to respond rapidly to changes in flight direction of preying wasps. A third, non-exclusive explanation is that at a distance of up to three metres from the nest the acceleration of shimmering could notably contribute to the startle response in mammals and birds. PMID:24475104

Distributed neural network control for adaptive synchronization of uncertain dynamical multiagent systems.

PubMed

Peng, Zhouhua; Wang, Dan; Zhang, Hongwei; Sun, Gang

2014-08-01

This paper addresses the leader-follower synchronization problem of uncertain dynamical multiagent systems with nonlinear dynamics. Distributed adaptive synchronization controllers are proposed based on the state information of neighboring agents. The control design is developed for both undirected and directed communication topologies without requiring the accurate model of each agent. This result is further extended to the output feedback case where a neighborhood observer is proposed based on relative output information of neighboring agents. Then, distributed observer-based synchronization controllers are derived and a parameter-dependent Riccati inequality is employed to prove the stability. This design has a favorable decouple property between the observer and the controller designs for nonlinear multiagent systems. For both cases, the developed controllers guarantee that the state of each agent synchronizes to that of the leader with bounded residual errors. Two illustrative examples validate the efficacy of the proposed methods.

Believable Social and Emotional Agents.

DTIC Science & Technology

1996-05-01

While building tools to support the creation of believable emotional agents, I had to make a number of important design decisions . Before describing...processing systems, it is difficult to give an artist direct control over the emotion - al aspects of the character. By making these decisions explicit, I hope...Woody on “Cheers”). Believable Agents BELIEVABLE SOCIAL AND EMOTIONAL AGENTS 11 Lesson: We don’t want agent architectures that enforce rationality and

Pediatric Patients Demonstrate Progressive T1-Weighted Hyperintensity in the Dentate Nucleus following Multiple Doses of Gadolinium-Based Contrast Agent.

PubMed

Roberts, D R; Chatterjee, A R; Yazdani, M; Marebwa, B; Brown, T; Collins, H; Bolles, G; Jenrette, J M; Nietert, P J; Zhu, X

2016-12-01

While there have been recent reports of brain retention of gadolinium following gadolinium-based contrast agent administration in adults, a retrospective series of pediatric patients has not previously been reported, to our knowledge. We investigated the relationship between the number of prior gadolinium-based contrast agent doses and increasing T1 signal in the dentate nucleus on unenhanced T1-weighted MR imaging. We hypothesized that despite differences in pediatric physiology and the smaller gadolinium-based contrast agent doses that pediatric patients are typically administered based on weighted-adjusted dosing, the pediatric brain would also demonstrate dose-dependent increasing T1 signal in the dentate nucleus. We included children with multiple gadolinium-based contrast agent administrations at our institution. A blinded reader placed ROIs within the dentate nucleus and adjacent cerebellar white matter. To eliminate reader bias, we also performed automated ROI delineation of the dentate nucleus, cerebellar white matter, and pons. Dentate-to-cerebellar white matter and dentate-to pons ratios were compared with the number of gadolinium-based contrast agent administrations. During 20 years at our institution, 280 patients received at least 5 gadolinium-based contrast agent doses, with 1 patient receiving 38 doses. Sixteen patients met the inclusion/exclusion criteria for ROI analysis. Blinded reader dentate-to-cerebellar white matter ratios were significantly associated with gadolinium-based contrast agent doses (r s = 0.77, P = .001). The dentate-to-pons ratio and dentate-to-cerebellar white matter ratios based on automated ROI placement were also significantly correlated with gadolinium-based contrast agent doses (t = 4.98, P < .0001 and t = 2.73, P < .02, respectively). In pediatric patients, the number of prior gadolinium-based contrast agent doses is significantly correlated with progressive T1-weighted dentate hyperintensity. Definitive confirmation of gadolinium deposition requires tissue analysis. Any potential clinical sequelae of gadolinium retention in the developing brain are unknown. Given this uncertainty, we suggest taking a cautious stance, including the use, in pediatric patients, of higher stability, macrocyclic agents, which in both human and animal studies have been shown to be associated with lower levels of gadolinium deposition, and detailed documentation of dosing. Most important, a patient should not be deprived of a well-indicated contrasted MR examination. © 2016 by American Journal of Neuroradiology.

Ecological Succession and Viability of Human-Associated Microbiota on Restroom Surfaces

PubMed Central

Gibbons, Sean M.; Schwartz, Tara; Fouquier, Jennifer; Mitchell, Michelle; Sangwan, Naseer; Kelley, Scott T.

2014-01-01

Human-associated bacteria dominate the built environment (BE). Following decontamination of floors, toilet seats, and soap dispensers in four public restrooms, in situ bacterial communities were characterized hourly, daily, and weekly to determine their successional ecology. The viability of cultivable bacteria, following the removal of dispersal agents (humans), was also assessed hourly. A late-successional community developed within 5 to 8 h on restroom floors and showed remarkable stability over weeks to months. Despite late-successional dominance by skin- and outdoor-associated bacteria, the most ubiquitous organisms were predominantly gut-associated taxa, which persisted following exclusion of humans. Staphylococcus represented the majority of the cultivable community, even after several hours of human exclusion. Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA)-associated virulence genes were found on floors but were not present in assembled Staphylococcus pan-genomes. Viral abundances, which were predominantly enterophages, human papilloma virus, and herpesviruses, were significantly correlated with bacterial abundances and showed an unexpectedly low virus-to-bacterium ratio in surface-associated samples, suggesting that bacterial hosts are mostly dormant on BE surfaces. PMID:25398865

Multiscale Modeling of Cell Interaction in Angiogenesis: From the Micro- to Macro-scale

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pillay, Samara; Maini, Philip; Byrne, Helen

Solid tumors require a supply of nutrients to grow in size. To this end, tumors induce the growth of new blood vessels from existing vasculature through the process of angiogenesis. In this work, we use a discrete agent-based approach to model the behavior of individual endothelial cells during angiogenesis. We incorporate crowding effects through volume exclusion, motility of cells through biased random walks, and include birth and death processes. We use the transition probabilities associated with the discrete models to determine collective cell behavior, in terms of partial differential equations, using a Markov chain and master equation framework. We find that the cell-level dynamics gives rise to a migrating cell front in the form of a traveling wave on the macro-scale. The behavior of this front depends on the cell interactions that are included and the extent to which volume exclusion is taken into account in the discrete micro-scale model. We also find that well-established continuum models of angiogenesis cannot distinguish between certain types of cell behavior on the micro-scale. This may impact drug development strategies based on these models.

Ecological succession and viability of human-associated microbiota on restroom surfaces

DOE PAGES

Gibbons, Sean M.; Schwartz, Tara; Fouquier, Jennifer; ...

2014-11-14

Human-associated bacteria dominate the built environment (BE). Following decontamination of floors, toilet seats, and soap dispensers in four public restrooms, in situ bacterial communities were characterized hourly, daily, and weekly to determine their successional ecology. The viability of cultivable bacteria, following the removal of dispersal agents (humans), was also assessed hourly. A late-successional community developed within 5 to 8 h on restroom floors and showed remarkable stability over weeks to months. Despite late-successional dominance by skin- and outdoor-associated bacteria, the most ubiquitous organisms were predominantly gut-associated taxa, which persisted following exclusion of humans. Staphylococcus represented the majority of the cultivablemore » community, even after several hours of human exclusion. Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA)-associated virulence genes were found on floors but were not present in assembled Staphylococcus pan-genomes. Viral abundances, which were predominantly enterophages, human papilloma virus, and herpesviruses, were significantly correlated with bacterial abundances and showed an unexpectedly low virus-to-bacterium ratio in surface-associated samples, suggesting that bacterial hosts are mostly dormant on BE surfaces.« less

Ecological succession and viability of human-associated microbiota on restroom surfaces

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Gibbons, Sean M.; Schwartz, Tara; Fouquier, Jennifer

Human-associated bacteria dominate the built environment (BE). Following decontamination of floors, toilet seats, and soap dispensers in four public restrooms, in situ bacterial communities were characterized hourly, daily, and weekly to determine their successional ecology. The viability of cultivable bacteria, following the removal of dispersal agents (humans), was also assessed hourly. A late-successional community developed within 5 to 8 h on restroom floors and showed remarkable stability over weeks to months. Despite late-successional dominance by skin- and outdoor-associated bacteria, the most ubiquitous organisms were predominantly gut-associated taxa, which persisted following exclusion of humans. Staphylococcus represented the majority of the cultivablemore » community, even after several hours of human exclusion. Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA)-associated virulence genes were found on floors but were not present in assembled Staphylococcus pan-genomes. Viral abundances, which were predominantly enterophages, human papilloma virus, and herpesviruses, were significantly correlated with bacterial abundances and showed an unexpectedly low virus-to-bacterium ratio in surface-associated samples, suggesting that bacterial hosts are mostly dormant on BE surfaces.« less

Assessing Consequential Scenarios in a Complex Operational Environment Using Agent Based Simulation

DTIC Science & Technology

2017-03-16

RWISE) 93 5.1.5 Conflict Modeling, Planning, and Outcomes Experimentation Program (COMPOEX) 94 5.1.6 Joint Non -Kinetic Effects Model (JNEM)/Athena... experimental design and testing. 4.3.8 Types and Attributes of Agent-Based Model Design Patterns Using the aforementioned ABM flowchart design methodology ...speed, or flexibility during tactical US Army wargaming. The report considers methodologies to improve analysis of the human domain, identifies

A product of independent beta probabilities dose escalation design for dual-agent phase I trials.

PubMed

Mander, Adrian P; Sweeting, Michael J

2015-04-15

Dual-agent trials are now increasingly common in oncology research, and many proposed dose-escalation designs are available in the statistical literature. Despite this, the translation from statistical design to practical application is slow, as has been highlighted in single-agent phase I trials, where a 3 + 3 rule-based design is often still used. To expedite this process, new dose-escalation designs need to be not only scientifically beneficial but also easy to understand and implement by clinicians. In this paper, we propose a curve-free (nonparametric) design for a dual-agent trial in which the model parameters are the probabilities of toxicity at each of the dose combinations. We show that it is relatively trivial for a clinician's prior beliefs or historical information to be incorporated in the model and updating is fast and computationally simple through the use of conjugate Bayesian inference. Monotonicity is ensured by considering only a set of monotonic contours for the distribution of the maximum tolerated contour, which defines the dose-escalation decision process. Varied experimentation around the contour is achievable, and multiple dose combinations can be recommended to take forward to phase II. Code for R, Stata and Excel are available for implementation. © 2015 The Authors. Statistics in Medicine Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Basic MR relaxation mechanisms and contrast agent design.

PubMed

De León-Rodríguez, Luis M; Martins, André F; Pinho, Marco C; Rofsky, Neil M; Sherry, A Dean

2015-09-01

The diagnostic capabilities of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) have undergone continuous and substantial evolution by virtue of hardware and software innovations and the development and implementation of exogenous contrast media. Thirty years since the first MRI contrast agent was approved for clinical use, a reliance on MR contrast media persists, largely to improve image quality with higher contrast resolution and to provide additional functional characterization of normal and abnormal tissues. Further development of MR contrast media is an important component in the quest for continued augmentation of diagnostic capabilities. In this review we detail the many important considerations when pursuing the design and use of MR contrast media. We offer a perspective on the importance of chemical stability, particularly kinetic stability, and how this influences one's thinking about the safety of metal-ligand-based contrast agents. We discuss the mechanisms involved in MR relaxation in the context of probe design strategies. A brief description of currently available contrast agents is accompanied by an in-depth discussion that highlights promising MRI contrast agents in the development of future clinical and research applications. Our intention is to give a diverse audience an improved understanding of the factors involved in developing new types of safe and highly efficient MR contrast agents and, at the same time, provide an appreciation of the insights into physiology and disease that newer types of responsive agents can provide. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

"Basic MR Relaxation Mechanisms & Contrast Agent Design"

PubMed Central

De León-Rodríguez, Luis M.; Martins, André F.; Pinho, Marco; Rofsky, Neil; Sherry, A. Dean

2015-01-01

The diagnostic capabilities of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) have undergone continuous and substantial evolution by virtue of hardware and software innovations and the development and implementation of exogenous contrast media. Thirty years since the first MRI contrast agent was approved for clinical use, a reliance on MR contrast media persists largely to improve image quality with higher contrast resolution and to provide additional functional characterization of normal and abnormal tissues. Further development of MR contrast media is an important component in the quest for continued augmentation of diagnostic capabilities. In this review we will detail the many important considerations when pursuing the design and use of MR contrast media. We will offer a perspective on the importance of chemical stability, particularly kinetic stability, and how this influences one's thinking about the safety of metal-ligand based contrast agents. We will discuss the mechanisms involved in magnetic resonance relaxation in the context of probe design strategies. A brief description of currently available contrast agents will be accompanied by an in-depth discussion that highlights promising MRI contrast agents in development for future clinical and research applications. Our intention is to give a diverse audience an improved understanding of the factors involved in developing new types of safe and highly efficient MR contrast agents and, at the same time, provide an appreciation of the insights into physiology and disease that newer types of responsive agents can provide. PMID:25975847

Breast cancer: the role of angiogenesis and antiangiogenic therapy.

PubMed

Miller, Kathy D; Dul, Carrie L

2004-10-01

Angiogenesis plays a role in breast cancer development. Preclinical and clinical evidence is reviewed. Development of targeted antiangiogenic agents provides new challenges to clinical trial design. Current antiangiogenic therapy with traditional agents and novel agents are classified and reviewed.

Distributed robust finite-time nonlinear consensus protocols for multi-agent systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zuo, Zongyu; Tie, Lin

2016-04-01

This paper investigates the robust finite-time consensus problem of multi-agent systems in networks with undirected topology. Global nonlinear consensus protocols augmented with a variable structure are constructed with the aid of Lyapunov functions for each single-integrator agent dynamics in the presence of external disturbances. In particular, it is shown that the finite settling time of the proposed general framework for robust consensus design is upper bounded for any initial condition. This makes it possible for network consensus problems to design and estimate the convergence time offline for a multi-agent team with a given undirected information flow. Finally, simulation results are presented to demonstrate the performance and effectiveness of our finite-time protocols.

On the engineering design for systematic integration of agent-orientation in industrial automation.

PubMed

Yu, Liyong; Schüller, Andreas; Epple, Ulrich

2014-09-01

In today's automation industry, agent-oriented development of system functionalities appears to have a great potential for increasing autonomy and flexibility of complex operations, while lowering the workload of users. In this paper, we present a reference model for the harmonious and systematical integration of agent-orientation in industrial automation. Considering compatibility with existing automation systems and best practice, this model combines advantages of function block technology, service orientation and native description methods from the automation standard IEC 61131-3. This approach can be applied as a guideline for the engineering design of future agent-oriented automation systems. Copyright © 2014 ISA. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Hale, M.A.; Craig, J.I.

Integrated Product and Process Development (IPPD) embodies the simultaneous application to both system and quality engineering methods throughout an iterative design process. The use of IPPD results in the time-conscious, cost-saving development of engineering systems. To implement IPPD, a Decision-Based Design perspective is encapsulated in an approach that focuses on the role of the human designer in product development. The approach has two parts and is outlined in this paper. First, an architecture, called DREAMS, is being developed that facilitates design from a decision-based perspective. Second, a supporting computing infrastructure, called IMAGE, is being designed. Agents are used to implementmore » the overall infrastructure on the computer. Successful agent utilization requires that they be made of three components: the resource, the model, and the wrap. Current work is focused on the development of generalized agent schemes and associated demonstration projects. When in place, the technology independent computing infrastructure will aid the designer in systematically generating knowledge used to facilitate decision-making.« less

Peptides designed to spatially depict the Epstein-Barr virus major virion glycoprotein gp350 neutralization epitope elicit antibodies that block virus-neutralizing antibody 72A1 interaction with the native gp350 molecule.

PubMed

Tanner, Jerome E; Coinçon, Mathieu; Leblond, Valérie; Hu, Jing; Fang, Janey M; Sygusch, Jurgen; Alfieri, Caroline

2015-05-01

Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) is the etiologic agent of infectious mononucleosis and the root cause of B-cell lymphoproliferative disease in individuals with a weakened immune system, as well as a principal cofactor in nasopharyngeal carcinoma, various lymphomas, and other cancers. The EBV major virion surface glycoprotein gp350 is viewed as the best vaccine candidate to prevent infectious mononucleosis in healthy EBV-naive persons and EBV-related cancers in at-risk individuals. Previous epitope mapping of gp350 revealed only one dominant neutralizing epitope, which has been shown to be the target of the monoclonal antibody 72A1. Computer modeling of the 72A1 antibody interaction with the gp350 amino terminus was used to identify gp350 amino acids that could form strong ionic, electrostatic, or hydrogen bonds with the 72A1 antibody. Peptide DDRTTLQLAQNPVYIPETYPYIKWDN (designated peptide 2) and peptide GSAKPGNGSYFASVKTEMLGNEID (designated peptide 3) were designed to spatially represent the gp350 amino acids predicted to interact with the 72A1 antibody paratope. Peptide 2 bound to the 72A1 antibody and blocked 72A1 antibody recognition of the native gp350 molecule. Peptide 2 and peptide 3 were recognized by human IgG and shown to elicit murine antibodies that could target gp350 and block its recognition by the 72A1 antibody. This work provides a structural mapping of the interaction between the EBV-neutralizing antibody 72A1 and the major virion surface protein gp350. gp350 mimetic peptides that spatially depict the EBV-neutralizing epitope would be useful as a vaccine to focus the immune system exclusively to this important virus epitope. The production of virus-neutralizing antibodies targeting the Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) major surface glycoprotein gp350 is important for the prevention of infectious mononucleosis and EBV-related cancers. The data presented here provide the first in silico map of the gp350 interaction with a virus-blocking monoclonal antibody. Immunization with gp350 peptides identified by in silico mapping generated antibodies that cross-react with the EBV gp350 molecule and block recognition of the gp350 molecule by a virus-neutralizing antibody. Through its ability to focus the immune system exclusively on the gp350 sequence important for viral entry, these peptides may form the basis of an EBV vaccine candidate. This strategy would sidestep the production of other irrelevant gp350 antibodies that divert the immune system from generating a protective antiviral response or that impede access to the virus-blocking epitope by protective antibodies. Copyright © 2015, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

Structural elucidation of direct analysis in real time ionized nerve agent simulants with infrared multiple photon dissociation spectroscopy.

PubMed

Rummel, Julia L; Steill, Jeffrey D; Oomens, Jos; Contreras, Cesar S; Pearson, Wright L; Szczepanski, Jan; Powell, David H; Eyler, John R

2011-06-01

Infrared multiple photon dissociation (IRMPD) was used to generate vibrational spectra of ions produced with a direct analysis in real time (DART) ionization source coupled to a 4.7 T Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance (FT-ICR) mass spectrometer. The location of protonation on the nerve agent simulants diisopropyl methylphosphonate (DIMP) and dimethyl methylphosphonate (DMMP) was studied while solutions of the compounds were introduced for extended periods of time with a syringe pump. Theoretical vibrational spectra were generated with density functional theory calculations. Visual comparison of experimental mid-IR IRMPD spectra and theoretical spectra could not establish definitively if a single structure or a mixture of conformations was present for the protonated parent of each compound. However, theoretical calculations, near-ir IRMPD spectra, and frequency-to-frequency and statistical comparisons indicated that the protonation site for both DIMP and DMMP was predominantly, if not exclusively, the phosphonyl oxygen instead of one of the oxygen atoms with only single bonds.

Marine Diterpenoids as Potential Anti-Inflammatory Agents

PubMed Central

González, Yisett; Torres-Mendoza, Daniel; Jones, Gillian E.; Fernandez, Patricia L.

2015-01-01

The inflammatory response is a highly regulated process, and its dysregulation can lead to the establishment of chronic inflammation and, in some cases, to death. Inflammation is the cause of several diseases, including rheumatoid arthritis, inflammatory bowel diseases, multiple sclerosis, and asthma. The search for agents inhibiting inflammation is a great challenge as the inflammatory response plays an important role in the defense of the host to infections. Marine invertebrates are exceptional sources of new natural products, and among those diterpenoids secondary metabolites exhibit notable anti-inflammatory properties. Novel anti-inflammatory diterpenoids, exclusively produced by marine organisms, have been identified and synthetic molecules based on those structures have been obtained. The anti-inflammatory activity of marine diterpenoids has been attributed to the inhibition of Nuclear Factor-κB activation and to the modulation of arachidonic acid metabolism. However, more research is necessary to describe the mechanisms of action of these secondary metabolites. This review is a compilation of marine diterpenoids, mainly isolated from corals, which have been described as potential anti-inflammatory molecules. PMID:26538822

Onyx embolization for the endovascular treatment of infectious and traumatic aneurysms involving the cranial and cerebral vasculature.

PubMed

Jadhav, Ashutosh P; Pryor, Johnny C; Nogueira, Raul G

2013-11-01

Onyx is a liquid non-adhesive viscous embolic agent ideal for slow targeted injections which is currently approved for the treatment of intracranial aneurysms and arteriovenous malformations. We performed a single-center retrospective analysis of consecutive patients who underwent off-label use of Onyx as the single embolic agent for the treatment of traumatic or infectious pseudoaneurysms involving the cerebral or cranial vasculature. A total of nine pseudoaneurysms treated by Onyx embolization were identified. Six of the pseudoaneurysms were post-surgical, one of the pseudoaneurysms was traumatic and two were infectious in nature. The mean pseudoaneurysm size was 5.9 mm (range 2-10 mm). Onyx-34 was used in all cases. Following treatment there was complete exclusion of all pseudoaneurysms including their inflow and outflow zones. Our experience demonstrates the efficacy and applicability of the use of Onyx in the treatment of complex traumatic and mycotic pseudoaneurysms involving the cerebral and cranial vascular tree.

The first report on mushroom green mould disease in Croatia.

PubMed

Hatvani, Lóránt; Sabolić, Petra; Kocsubé, Sándor; Kredics, László; Czifra, Dorina; Vágvölgyi, Csaba; Kaliterna, Joško; Ivić, Dario; Đermić, Edyta; Kosalec, Ivan

2012-12-01

Green mould disease, caused by Trichoderma species, is a severe problem for mushroom growers worldwide, including Croatia. Trichoderma strains were isolated from green mould-affected Agaricus bisporus (button or common mushroom) compost and Pleurotus ostreatus (oyster mushroom) substrate samples collected from Croatian mushroom farms. The causal agents of green mould disease in the oyster mushroom were T. pleurotum and T. pleuroticola, similar to other countries. At the same time, the pathogen of A. bisporus was exclusively the species T. harzianum, which is different from earlier findings and indicates that the range of mushroom pathogens is widening. The temperature profiles of the isolates and their hosts overlapped, thus no range was found that would allow optimal growth of the mushrooms without mould contamination. Ferulic acid and certain phenolic compounds, such as thymol showed remarkable fungistatic effect on the Trichoderma isolates, but inhibited the host mushrooms as well. However, commercial fungicides prochloraz and carbendazim were effective agents for pest management. This is the first report on green mould disease of cultivated mushrooms in Croatia.

Polyamidoamine nanoparticles as nanocarriers for the drug delivery to malaria parasite stages in the mosquito vector.

PubMed

Urbán, Patricia; Ranucci, Elisabetta; Fernàndez-Busquets, Xavier

2015-11-01

Malaria is arguably one of the main medical concerns worldwide because of the numbers of people affected, the severity of the disease and the complexity of the life cycle of its causative agent, the protist Plasmodium spp. With the advent of nanoscience, renewed hopes have appeared of finally obtaining the long sought-after magic bullet against malaria in the form of a nanovector for the targeted delivery of antimalarial compounds exclusively to Plasmodium-infected cells, thus increasing drug efficacy and minimizing the induction of resistance to newly developed therapeutic agents. Polyamidoamine-derived nanovectors combine into a single chemical structure drug encapsulating capacity, antimalarial activity, low unspecific toxicity, specific targeting to Plasmodium, optimal in vivo activity and affordable synthesis cost. After having shown their efficacy in targeting drugs to intraerythrocytic parasites, now polyamidoamines face the challenge of spearheading a new generation of nanocarriers aiming at the malaria parasite stages in the mosquito vector.

Inferential reasoning by exclusion in children (Homo sapiens).

PubMed

Hill, Andrew; Collier-Baker, Emma; Suddendorf, Thomas

2012-08-01

The cups task is the most widely adopted forced-choice paradigm for comparative studies of inferential reasoning by exclusion. In this task, subjects are presented with two cups, one of which has been surreptitiously baited. When the empty cup is shaken or its interior shown, it is possible to infer by exclusion that the alternative cup contains the reward. The present study extends the existing body of comparative work to include human children (Homo sapiens). Like chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) that were tested with the same equipment and near-identical procedures, children aged three to five made apparent inferences using both visual and auditory information, although the youngest children showed the least-developed ability in the auditory modality. However, unlike chimpanzees, children of all ages used causally irrelevant information in a control test designed to examine the possibility that their apparent auditory inferences were the product of contingency learning (the duplicate cups test). Nevertheless, the children's ability to reason by exclusion was corroborated by their performance on a novel verbal disjunctive syllogism test, and we found preliminary evidence consistent with the suggestion that children used their causal-logical understanding to reason by exclusion in the cups task, but subsequently treated the duplicate cups information as symbolic or communicative, rather than causal. Implications for future comparative research are discussed. 2012 APA, all rights reserved

76 FR 59953 - Designation of Agent To Receive Notification of Claimed Infringement

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-09-28

... for comment. The interim regulations have functioned satisfactorily for many years, but issues have... designation of agent using the online template be required, either annually, every two years, or at some other... at least every two years, but the Office invites comment as to the appropriate time period. As is...

25 CFR 23.12 - Designated tribal agent for service of notice.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... 25 Indians 1 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Designated tribal agent for service of notice. 23.12 Section 23.12 Indians BUREAU OF INDIAN AFFAIRS, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR HUMAN SERVICES INDIAN CHILD WELFARE ACT Notice of Involuntary Child Custody Proceedings and Payment for Appointed Counsel in State...

Exclusive Breastfeeding Experiences among Mexican American Women.

PubMed

Wambach, Karen; Domian, Elaine Williams; Page-Goertz, Sallie; Wurtz, Heather; Hoffman, Kelli

2016-02-01

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Hispanic breastfeeding mothers begin early formula supplementation at higher rates than other ethnic groups, which can lead to shorter breastfeeding duration and decreased exclusive breastfeeding. Acculturation, the process of adopting beliefs and behaviors of another culture, appears to influence breastfeeding practices of Hispanic women in the United States. Little is known about Mexican American mothers' formula use and exclusive breastfeeding within the context of acculturation. Our study identified perceived benefits and barriers to exclusive breastfeeding and levels of acculturation among Mexican American women living in a Midwestern city. We used a qualitative descriptive design integrating Pender's Health Promotion Model concepts. Individual interviews were conducted in English or Spanish (N = 21). The revised Acculturation Rating Scale for Mexican Americans was used to examine acculturation levels. Acculturation scores indicated that the majority (66%) of the sample was "very Mexican oriented." Most women exclusively breastfed, with a few using early supplementation for "insufficient milk production." Three themes emerged: (1) It is natural that a woman give life and also provide the best food for her baby; (2) Breastfeeding is ultimately a woman's decision but is influenced by tradition, guidance, and encouragement; and (3) Breast milk is superior but life circumstances can challenge one's ability to breastfeed. Strong familial/cultural traditions supported and normalized breastfeeding. Barriers to exclusive breastfeeding were similar to breastfeeding women in general, in the United States. Findings support the need for culturally competent and individualized lactation care. © The Author(s) 2015.

Multi-agent based control of large-scale complex systems employing distributed dynamic inference engine

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Daili

Increasing societal demand for automation has led to considerable efforts to control large-scale complex systems, especially in the area of autonomous intelligent control methods. The control system of a large-scale complex system needs to satisfy four system level requirements: robustness, flexibility, reusability, and scalability. Corresponding to the four system level requirements, there arise four major challenges. First, it is difficult to get accurate and complete information. Second, the system may be physically highly distributed. Third, the system evolves very quickly. Fourth, emergent global behaviors of the system can be caused by small disturbances at the component level. The Multi-Agent Based Control (MABC) method as an implementation of distributed intelligent control has been the focus of research since the 1970s, in an effort to solve the above-mentioned problems in controlling large-scale complex systems. However, to the author's best knowledge, all MABC systems for large-scale complex systems with significant uncertainties are problem-specific and thus difficult to extend to other domains or larger systems. This situation is partly due to the control architecture of multiple agents being determined by agent to agent coupling and interaction mechanisms. Therefore, the research objective of this dissertation is to develop a comprehensive, generalized framework for the control system design of general large-scale complex systems with significant uncertainties, with the focus on distributed control architecture design and distributed inference engine design. A Hybrid Multi-Agent Based Control (HyMABC) architecture is proposed by combining hierarchical control architecture and module control architecture with logical replication rings. First, it decomposes a complex system hierarchically; second, it combines the components in the same level as a module, and then designs common interfaces for all of the components in the same module; third, replications are made for critical agents and are organized into logical rings. This architecture maintains clear guidelines for complexity decomposition and also increases the robustness of the whole system. Multiple Sectioned Dynamic Bayesian Networks (MSDBNs) as a distributed dynamic probabilistic inference engine, can be embedded into the control architecture to handle uncertainties of general large-scale complex systems. MSDBNs decomposes a large knowledge-based system into many agents. Each agent holds its partial perspective of a large problem domain by representing its knowledge as a Dynamic Bayesian Network (DBN). Each agent accesses local evidence from its corresponding local sensors and communicates with other agents through finite message passing. If the distributed agents can be organized into a tree structure, satisfying the running intersection property and d-sep set requirements, globally consistent inferences are achievable in a distributed way. By using different frequencies for local DBN agent belief updating and global system belief updating, it balances the communication cost with the global consistency of inferences. In this dissertation, a fully factorized Boyen-Koller (BK) approximation algorithm is used for local DBN agent belief updating, and the static Junction Forest Linkage Tree (JFLT) algorithm is used for global system belief updating. MSDBNs assume a static structure and a stable communication network for the whole system. However, for a real system, sub-Bayesian networks as nodes could be lost, and the communication network could be shut down due to partial damage in the system. Therefore, on-line and automatic MSDBNs structure formation is necessary for making robust state estimations and increasing survivability of the whole system. A Distributed Spanning Tree Optimization (DSTO) algorithm, a Distributed D-Sep Set Satisfaction (DDSSS) algorithm, and a Distributed Running Intersection Satisfaction (DRIS) algorithm are proposed in this dissertation. Combining these three distributed algorithms and a Distributed Belief Propagation (DBP) algorithm in MSDBNs makes state estimations robust to partial damage in the whole system. Combining the distributed control architecture design and the distributed inference engine design leads to a process of control system design for a general large-scale complex system. As applications of the proposed methodology, the control system design of a simplified ship chilled water system and a notional ship chilled water system have been demonstrated step by step. Simulation results not only show that the proposed methodology gives a clear guideline for control system design for general large-scale complex systems with dynamic and uncertain environment, but also indicate that the combination of MSDBNs and HyMABC can provide excellent performance for controlling general large-scale complex systems.

Mechanistic and quantitative insight into cell surface targeted molecular imaging agent design.

PubMed

Zhang, Liang; Bhatnagar, Sumit; Deschenes, Emily; Thurber, Greg M

2016-05-05

Molecular imaging agent design involves simultaneously optimizing multiple probe properties. While several desired characteristics are straightforward, including high affinity and low non-specific background signal, in practice there are quantitative trade-offs between these properties. These include plasma clearance, where fast clearance lowers background signal but can reduce target uptake, and binding, where high affinity compounds sometimes suffer from lower stability or increased non-specific interactions. Further complicating probe development, many of the optimal parameters vary depending on both target tissue and imaging agent properties, making empirical approaches or previous experience difficult to translate. Here, we focus on low molecular weight compounds targeting extracellular receptors, which have some of the highest contrast values for imaging agents. We use a mechanistic approach to provide a quantitative framework for weighing trade-offs between molecules. Our results show that specific target uptake is well-described by quantitative simulations for a variety of targeting agents, whereas non-specific background signal is more difficult to predict. Two in vitro experimental methods for estimating background signal in vivo are compared - non-specific cellular uptake and plasma protein binding. Together, these data provide a quantitative method to guide probe design and focus animal work for more cost-effective and time-efficient development of molecular imaging agents.

Design and simulation of bi-directional microfluid driving systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jen, Chun-Ping; Lin, Yu-Cheng

2002-03-01

Micro total analysis systems (μTAS) have been developed to perform a number of analytical processes involving chemical reactions, separation and sensing on a single chip. In medical and biomedical applications, μTAS must be designed considering special transport mechanisms to move samples and reagents through the microchannels in the system. For conventional micropumps, however, complicated relationships exist between the pumping mechanisms, the conditions under which the devices operate and the behavior of the multi-component fluids transported in these channels. A bi-directional microfluid driving system has been developed in this paper. This pneumatic system is an on-chip planar structure with no moving parts and does not require microfabricated heaters or electrodes. The pumping actuation is introduced to the microchannel fabricated in the chip by blowing an airflow through this device. The bi-directional driving module combines two individual components for suction and exclusion. The driving system provides a stable and flexible bi-directional microfluid driving control. The tunable parameters for adjusting the exclusion/suction ratios, such as the location of the inlet channel and the velocities of the airflow, have been observed in the numerical study. The optimal exclusion/suction ratio for the specific purpose of the driving system can be selected by changing the location of the microchannel to the reaction area for the sample/reagent. The velocity at the microchannel can be adjusted by varying the inlet velocities for the suction and exclusion components. For the presented design, no air conduit was employed to connect the servo-system to the driving system; therefore the packaging difficulty and leakage problem, which may arise in conventional systems, can be eliminated. The final airflow outlet was fixed in one direction so that it can prevent cross-contamination between the servo-system and the chip. The driving system is therefore particularly suited to microdevices for biochemical analysis.

Addressing disparities in maternal health care in Pakistan: gender, class and exclusion

PubMed Central

2012-01-01

Background After more than two decades of the Safe Motherhood Initiative and Millennium Development Goals aimed at reducing maternal mortality, women continue to die in childbirth at unacceptably high rates in Pakistan. While an extensive literature describes various programmatic strategies, it neglects the rigorous analysis of the reasons these strategies have been unsuccessful, especially for women living at the economic and social margins of society. A critical gap in current knowledge is a detailed understanding of the root causes of disparities in maternal health care, and in particular, how gender and class influence policy formulation and the design and delivery of maternal health care services. Taking Pakistan as a case study, this research builds upon two distinct yet interlinked conceptual approaches to understanding the phenomenon of inequity in access to maternal health care: social exclusion and health systems as social institutions. Methods/Design This four year project consists of two interrelated modules that focus on two distinct groups of participants: (1) poor, disadvantaged women and men and (2) policy makers, program managers and health service providers. Module one will employ critical ethnography to understand the key axes of social exclusion as related to gender, class and zaat and how they affect women’s experiences of using maternal health care. Through health care setting observations, interviews and document review, Module two will assess policy design and delivery of maternal health services. Discussion This research will provide theoretical advances to enhance understanding of the power dynamics of gender and class that may underlie poor women’s marginalization from health care systems in Pakistan. It will also provide empirical evidence to support formulation of maternal health care policies and health care system practices aimed at reducing disparities in maternal health care in Pakistan. Lastly, it will enhance inter-disciplinary research capacity in the emerging field of social exclusion and maternal health and help reduce social inequities and achieve the Millennium Development Goal No. 5. PMID:22871056

Overcoming obstacles in the design of cancer anorexia/weight loss trials.

PubMed

Le-Rademacher, Jennifer G; Crawford, Jeffrey; Evans, William J; Jatoi, Aminah

2017-09-01

Most advanced cancer patients suffer loss of appetite (anorexia) and loss of weight. Despite the fact that cancer anorexia and weight loss are associated with a poor prognosis and detract from quality of life, no interventions have been demonstrated to palliate this syndrome in its entirety, particularly in patients with treatment-refractory malignancies. Recently, two registration trials - one with anamorelin and another with enobosarm - failed to reach their primary endpoints, thus raising questions. Were both these agents ineffective? Alternatively, did study design issues compromise the ability of these trials to identify effective agents? Thus, this review is timely insofar it serves as an introduction to study design, offers guidance on how to test promising agents for cancer anorexia/weight loss, and provides advice for overcoming trial design obstacles. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

An Application of Artificial Intelligence to the Implementation of Electronic Commerce

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Srivastava, Anoop Kumar

In this paper, we present an application of Artificial Intelligence (AI) to the implementation of Electronic Commerce. We provide a multi autonomous agent based framework. Our agent based architecture leads to flexible design of a spectrum of multiagent system (MAS) by distributing computation and by providing a unified interface to data and programs. Autonomous agents are intelligent enough and provide autonomy, simplicity of communication, computation, and a well developed semantics. The steps of design and implementation are discussed in depth, structure of Electronic Marketplace, an ontology, the agent model, and interaction pattern between agents is given. We have developed mechanisms for coordination between agents using a language, which is called Virtual Enterprise Modeling Language (VEML). VEML is a integration of Java and Knowledge Query and Manipulation Language (KQML). VEML provides application programmers with potential to globally develop different kinds of MAS based on their requirements and applications. We have implemented a multi autonomous agent based system called VE System. We demonstrate efficacy of our system by discussing experimental results and its salient features.

Duration of exclusive breastfeeding and wheezing in the first year of life: A longitudinal study.

PubMed

Verduci, Elvira; Banderali, Giuseppe; Peroni, Diego; Lassandro, Carlotta; Radaelli, Giovanni

Wheezing is the most common symptom associated with asthma in young children. There is a lack of well-designed prospective studies on the relationship of exclusive breastfeeding with wheezing in infants. This prospective cohort study investigated whether a relationship exists of exclusive breastfeeding with wheezing at 12 months of age. A series of 1632 mother-infant pairs were sequentially recruited. Mothers were trained at hospital on breastfeeding practices and how to recognise wheezing. At hospital discharge they received a calendar-diary to record the date at stopping breastfeeding and at onset of wheezing. Data were collected by telephone interviews through 12 months post-delivery. Breastfeeding was in accordance with the World Health Organisation and wheezing with the International Classification of Diseases (ICD-10-CM code R06.2). At 12 months 1522 mother-infant pairs were participating. Breastfeeding started in 95.9% of them and was exclusive in 86.1%. The incidence of wheezing ever and recurrent wheezing at 12 months of age was 33.7% and 10.0%, respectively. Duration of exclusive breastfeeding was shorter in wheezing than non-wheezing infants (median 2.6 months vs. 4.1 months, P<0.001). After adjustment for confounders each month of exclusive breastfeeding reduced the risk of wheezing ever by 11% and of recurrent wheezing by 15%, at 12 months of age. Longer duration of exclusive breastfeeding reduces the risk of wheezing throughout the first 12 months of life. These findings would be relevant to all healthcare operators and mothers, also to improve their awareness about the best feeding practices for the infant's health. Copyright © 2016 SEICAP. Published by Elsevier España, S.L.U. All rights reserved.

42 CFR 411.386 - CMS's advisory opinions as exclusive.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... Relationships Between Physicians and Entities Furnishing Designated Health Services § 411.386 CMS's advisory... § 411.370, in either oral or written form, except through written opinions it issues in accordance with...

42 CFR 411.386 - CMS's advisory opinions as exclusive.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-10-01

... Relationships Between Physicians and Entities Furnishing Designated Health Services § 411.386 CMS's advisory... § 411.370, in either oral or written form, except through written opinions it issues in accordance with...

42 CFR 411.386 - CMS's advisory opinions as exclusive.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-10-01

... Relationships Between Physicians and Entities Furnishing Designated Health Services § 411.386 CMS's advisory... § 411.370, in either oral or written form, except through written opinions it issues in accordance with...

42 CFR 411.386 - CMS's advisory opinions as exclusive.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

... Relationships Between Physicians and Entities Furnishing Designated Health Services § 411.386 CMS's advisory... § 411.370, in either oral or written form, except through written opinions it issues in accordance with...

42 CFR 411.386 - CMS's advisory opinions as exclusive.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-10-01

... Relationships Between Physicians and Entities Furnishing Designated Health Services § 411.386 CMS's advisory... § 411.370, in either oral or written form, except through written opinions it issues in accordance with...

49 CFR 1.56b - Delegations to the Designated Senior Career Official, Office of the Assistant Secretary for...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

... Official, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Aviation and International Affairs. 1.56b Section 1.56b... for Aviation and International Affairs. The Designated Senior Career Official in the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Aviation and International Affairs is delegated exclusive authority to make...

13. Photographic copy of original design drawing, dated May 1971, ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

13. Photographic copy of original design drawing, dated May 1971, revised 16 April 1974 (original Army Operational Drawing in the possession of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Huntsville Division). Sprint launch station and antenna foundation, plans, section details - Stanley R. Mickelsen Safeguard Complex, Missile Launch Area, Within Exclusion Area, Nekoma, Cavalier County, ND

Two Paper Airplane Design Challenges: Customizing for Different Learning Objectives

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Meyer, Daniel Z.; Meyer, Allison Antink

2012-01-01

The incorporation of scientific inquiry into college classrooms has steadily risen as faculty work to move away from exclusively didactic methods. One type of inquiry structure, the design task, produces a product rather than simply a conclusion. This offers students a context to apply their understanding of content in a tangible way that has…

The Effect of Lactation Educators Implementing a Telephone-Based Intervention among Low-Income Hispanics: A Randomised Trial

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Efrat, Merav W.; Esparza, Salvador; Mendelson, Sherri G.; Lane, Christianne J.

2015-01-01

Objectives: To assess whether a telephone-based breastfeeding intervention delivered by lactation educators influenced exclusive breastfeeding rates among low-income Hispanic women in the USA. Design: Randomised two-group design. Setting: Pregnant low-income Hispanic women (298) were recruited from community health clinics in Los Angeles County…

How Biology Teachers Can Respond to Intelligent Design

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mackenzie, Jim

2010-01-01

Teachers of biology and related subjects are increasingly meeting objections from students and their parents to the teaching of evolution and the exclusion of what is called the theory of Intelligent Design. This paper attempts to draw together arguments and evidence which may be used by such teachers. Four lessons are drawn from the 1982…

Treatment Paradigms for Advanced Non‐Small Cell Lung Cancer at Academic Medical Centers: Involvement in Clinical Trial Endpoint Design

PubMed Central

Borghaei, Hossein

2017-01-01

Abstract Based on the positive results of various clinical trials, treatment options for non‐small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) have expanded greatly over the last 25 years. While regulatory approvals of chemotherapeutic agents for NSCLC have largely been based on improvements in overall survival, recent approvals of many targeted agents for NSCLC (afatinib, crizotinib, ceritinib, osimertinib) have been based on surrogate endpoints such as progression‐free survival and objective response. As such, selection of appropriate clinical endpoints for examining the efficacy of investigational agents for NSCLC is of vital importance in clinical trial design. This review provides an overview of clinical trial endpoints previously utilized for approved agents for NSCLC and highlights the key efficacy results for these trials. Trends for more recent approvals in NSCLC, including those for the immunotherapeutic agents nivolumab and pembrolizumab, are also discussed. The results of a correlative analysis of endpoints from 18 clinical trials that supported approvals of investigational agents in clinical trials for NSCLC are also presented. Implications for Practice. While improving survival remains the ultimate goal of oncology clinical trials, overall survival may not always be the most feasible or appropriate endpoint to assess patient response. Recently, several investigational agents, both targeted agents and immunotherapies, have gained U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval in non‐small cell lung cancer based on alternate endpoints such as progression‐free survival or response rate. An understanding of the assessment of response and trial endpoint choice is important for future oncology clinical trial design. PMID:28408617

Agent Technologies Designed to Facilitate Interactive Knowledge Construction

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Graesser, Arthur C.; Jeon, Moongee; Dufty, David

2008-01-01

During the last decade, interdisciplinary researchers have developed technologies with animated pedagogical agents that interact with the student in language and other communication channels (such as facial expressions and gestures). These pedagogical agents model good learning strategies and coach the students in actively constructing knowledge…

Adaptive tracking control of leader-following linear multi-agent systems with external disturbances

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lin, Hanquan; Wei, Qinglai; Liu, Derong; Ma, Hongwen

2016-10-01

In this paper, the consensus problem for leader-following linear multi-agent systems with external disturbances is investigated. Brownian motions are used to describe exogenous disturbances. A distributed tracking controller based on Riccati inequalities with an adaptive law for adjusting coupling weights between neighbouring agents is designed for leader-following multi-agent systems under fixed and switching topologies. In traditional distributed static controllers, the coupling weights depend on the communication graph. However, coupling weights associated with the feedback gain matrix in our method are updated by state errors between neighbouring agents. We further present the stability analysis of leader-following multi-agent systems with stochastic disturbances under switching topology. Most traditional literature requires the graph to be connected all the time, while the communication graph is only assumed to be jointly connected in this paper. The design technique is based on Riccati inequalities and algebraic graph theory. Finally, simulations are given to show the validity of our method.

Guidelines for safe handling of hazardous drugs: A systematic review

PubMed Central

Bernabeu-Martínez, Mari A.; Ramos Merino, Mateo; Santos Gago, Juan M.; Álvarez Sabucedo, Luis M.; Wanden-Berghe, Carmina

2018-01-01

Objective To review the scientific literature related to the safe handling of hazardous drugs (HDs). Method Critical analysis of works retrieved from MEDLINE, the Cochrane Library, Scopus, CINHAL, Web of Science and LILACS using the terms "Hazardous Substances", "Antineoplastic Agents" and "Cytostatic Agents", applying "Humans" and "Guidelines" as filters. Date of search: January 2017. Results In total, 1100 references were retrieved, and from those, 61 documents were selected based on the inclusion and exclusion criteria: 24 (39.3%) documents related to recommendations about HDs; 27 (44.3%) about antineoplastic agents, and 10 (33.3%) about other types of substances (monoclonal antibodies, gene medicine and other chemical and biological agents). In 14 (23.3%) guides, all the stages in the manipulation process involving a risk due to exposure were considered. Only one guide addressed all stages of the handling process of HDs (including stages with and without the risk of exposure). The most described stages were drug preparation (41 guides, 67.2%), staff training and/or patient education (38 guides, 62.3%), and administration (37 guides, 60.7%). No standardized informatics system was found that ensured quality management, traceability and minimization of the risks associated with these drugs. Conclusions Most of the analysed guidelines limit their recommendations to the manipulation of antineoplastics. The most frequently described activities were preparation, training, and administration. It would be convenient to apply ICTs (Information and Communications Technologies) to manage processes involving HDs in a more complete and simpler fashion. PMID:29750798

Guidelines for safe handling of hazardous drugs: A systematic review.

PubMed

Bernabeu-Martínez, Mari A; Ramos Merino, Mateo; Santos Gago, Juan M; Álvarez Sabucedo, Luis M; Wanden-Berghe, Carmina; Sanz-Valero, Javier

2018-01-01

To review the scientific literature related to the safe handling of hazardous drugs (HDs). Critical analysis of works retrieved from MEDLINE, the Cochrane Library, Scopus, CINHAL, Web of Science and LILACS using the terms "Hazardous Substances", "Antineoplastic Agents" and "Cytostatic Agents", applying "Humans" and "Guidelines" as filters. Date of search: January 2017. In total, 1100 references were retrieved, and from those, 61 documents were selected based on the inclusion and exclusion criteria: 24 (39.3%) documents related to recommendations about HDs; 27 (44.3%) about antineoplastic agents, and 10 (33.3%) about other types of substances (monoclonal antibodies, gene medicine and other chemical and biological agents). In 14 (23.3%) guides, all the stages in the manipulation process involving a risk due to exposure were considered. Only one guide addressed all stages of the handling process of HDs (including stages with and without the risk of exposure). The most described stages were drug preparation (41 guides, 67.2%), staff training and/or patient education (38 guides, 62.3%), and administration (37 guides, 60.7%). No standardized informatics system was found that ensured quality management, traceability and minimization of the risks associated with these drugs. Most of the analysed guidelines limit their recommendations to the manipulation of antineoplastics. The most frequently described activities were preparation, training, and administration. It would be convenient to apply ICTs (Information and Communications Technologies) to manage processes involving HDs in a more complete and simpler fashion.

Analysis of the DNA damage produced by a platinum-acridine antitumor agent and its effects in NCI-H460 lung cancer cells.

PubMed

Qiao, Xin; Zeitany, Alexandra E; Wright, Marcus W; Essader, Amal S; Levine, Keith E; Kucera, Gregory L; Bierbach, Ulrich

2012-07-01

High-performance liquid chromatography in conjunction with electrospray mass spectrometry (LC-ESMS) was used to structurally characterize the adducts formed by the platinum-acridine agent [PtCl(en)(N-(2-(acridin-9-ylamino)ethyl)-N-methylpropionimidamide)](NO(3))(2) (compound 1) in cell-free DNA. Compound 1 forms monofunctional adducts exclusively with guanine, based on the fragments identified in enzymatic digests (dG*, dGMP*, dApG*, and dTpG*, where the asterisk denotes bound drug). The time course of accumulation and DNA adduct formation of compound 1 and the clinical drug cisplatin in NCI-H460 lung cancer cells at physiologically relevant drug concentrations (0.1 μM) was studied by inductively-coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). Compound 1 accumulates rapidly in cells and reaches intracellular levels of up to 60-fold higher than those determined for cisplatin. The hybrid agent shows unusually high DNA binding levels: while cisplatin adducts form at a maximum frequency of 5 adducts per 10(6) nucleotides, compound 1 produces 25 adducts per 10(6) nucleotides after only 3 h of continuous incubation with the lung cancer cells. The high overall levels of compound 1 in the cells and in cellular DNA over the entire 12-h treatment period translate into a rapid decrease in cell viability. Possible implications of these findings for the mechanism of action of compound 1 and the agent's potential to overcome tumor resistance to cisplatin are discussed.

Non-aflatoxigenic Aspergillus flavus as potential biocontrol agents to reduce aflatoxin contamination in peanuts harvested in Northern Argentina.

PubMed

Alaniz Zanon, María Silvina; Barros, Germán Gustavo; Chulze, Sofía Noemí

2016-08-16

Biological control is one of the most promising strategies for preventing aflatoxin contamination in peanuts at field stage. A population of 46 native Aspergillus flavus nonaflatoxin producers were analysed based on phenotypic, physiological and genetic characteristics. Thirty-three isolates were characterized as L strain morphotype, 3 isolates as S strain morphotype, and 10 isolates did not produce sclerotia. Only 11 of 46 non-aflatoxigenic isolates did not produce cyclopiazonic acid. The vegetative compatibility group (VCG) diversity index for the population was 0.37. For field trials we selected the non-aflatoxigenic A. flavus AR27, AR100G and AFCHG2 strains. The efficacy of single and mixed inocula as potential biocontrol agents in Northern Argentina was evaluated through a 2-year study (2014-2015). During the 2014 peanut growing season, most of the treatments reduced the incidence of aflatoxigenic strains in both soil and peanut kernel samples, and no aflatoxin was detected in kernels. During the 2015 growing season, there was a reduction of aflatoxigenic strains in kernel samples from the plots treated with the potential biocontrol agents. Reductions of aflatoxin contamination between 78.36% and 89.55% were observed in treated plots in comparison with the un-inoculated control plots. This study provides the first data on aflatoxin biocontrol based on competitive exclusion in the peanut growing region of Northern Argentina, and proposes bioproducts with potential use as biocontrol agents. Copyright © 2016. Published by Elsevier B.V.

Agent planning in AgScala

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tošić, Saša; Mitrović, Dejan; Ivanović, Mirjana

2013-10-01

Agent-oriented programming languages are designed to simplify the development of software agents, especially those that exhibit complex, intelligent behavior. This paper presents recent improvements of AgScala, an agent-oriented programming language based on Scala. AgScala includes declarative constructs for managing beliefs, actions and goals of intelligent agents. Combined with object-oriented and functional programming paradigms offered by Scala, it aims to be an efficient framework for developing both purely reactive, and more complex, deliberate agents. Instead of the Prolog back-end used initially, the new version of AgScala relies on Agent Planning Package, a more advanced system for automated planning and reasoning.

Management and control of communicable diseases in schools and other child care settings: systematic review on the incubation period and period of infectiousness.

PubMed

Czumbel, Ida; Quinten, Chantal; Lopalco, Pierluigi; Semenza, Jan C

2018-05-02

Information on the incubation period and period of infectiousness or shedding of infectious pathogens is critical for management and control of communicable diseases in schools and other childcare settings. We performed a systematic literature review (Pubmed and Embase) to identify and critically appraise all relevant published articles using incubation, infectiousness or shedding, and exclusion period as parameters for the search. No language, time, geographical or study design restrictions were applied. A total of 112 articles met the eligibility criteria. A relatively large number were retrieved for gastrointestinal diseases and influenza or respiratory syncytial virus, but there were few or no studies for other diseases. Although a considerable number of publications reported the incubation and shedding periods, there was less evidence concerning the period of infectiousness. On average, five days of exclusion is considered for measles, mumps, rubella, varicella and pertussis. For other diseases, such as most cases of meningococcal disease, hepatitis A and influenza exclusion is considered as long as severe symptoms persist. However, these results are based on a diverse range of study characteristics, including age, treatment, vaccination, underlying diseases, diagnostic tools, viral load, study design and definitions, making statistical analysis difficult. Despite inconsistent definitions for key variables and the diversity of studies reviewed, published data provide sufficient quantitative estimates to inform decision making in schools and other childcare settings. The results can be used as a reference when deciding about the exclusion of a child with a communicable disease that both prevents exposure and avoids unnecessary absenteeism.

Using comparative effectiveness design to improve the generalizability of bipolar treatment trials data: contrasting LiTMUS baseline data with pre-existing placebo controlled trials.

PubMed

Friedman, E S; Calabrese, J R; Ketter, T A; Leon, A C; Thase, M E; Bowden, C L; Sylvia, L G; Ostracher, M J; Severe, J; Iosifescu, D V; Nierenberg, A A; Reilly-Harrington, N A

2014-01-01

Efficacy-based double-blind placebo controlled trials were conducted to establish efficacy and safety for FDA approval. Such designs allowed and encouraged the use of exclusion criteria to improve assay sensitivity and internal validity. The LiTMUS trial increased the representation of real-world individuals with bipolar disorder despite the acknowledgment that this compromises assay sensitivity. To maximize generalizability, LiTMUS used broad inclusion and narrow exclusion criteria: participants experiencing mood symptoms of sufficient intensity (at least with a CGI-BP ≥ 3) that would warrant a change in treatment, and that lithium treatment would be a reasonable therapeutic option if they were randomized to it. At baseline demographic, illness, clinical, and treatment characteristics were collected. The LiTMUS study design and baseline sociodemographic data were compared to previous efficacy studies. As compared to the previous bipolar disorder efficacy studies, LiTMUS participants were of similar age, gender, weight and illness severity; however LiTMUS participants were more racially and ethnically representative of the general population, had a greater number of mood episodes in the past 12 months, more Axis I/II comorbidity, a greater number of prior suicide attempts, and higher functional capacity. LiTMUS was a comparative effectiveness trial that had broad inclusion and minimal exclusion criteria that produced a more representative sample comprised of real-world participants. This design enables the results of the LiTMUS study to be a more representative of real world pharmacotherapuetic outcomes. Limitations include possible selection bias, paucity of sociodemographic data in efficacy trials, and lack of a placebo. Copyright © 2013. Published by Elsevier B.V.

Patent and Exclusivity Status of Essential Medicines for Non-Communicable Disease

PubMed Central

Mackey, Tim K.; Liang, Bryan A.

2012-01-01

Objective The threat of non-communicable diseases (“NCDs”) is increasingly becoming a global health crisis and are pervasive in high, middle, and low-income populations resulting in an estimated 36 million deaths per year. There is a need to assess intellectual property rights (“IPRs”) that may impede generic production and availability and affordability to essential NCD medicines. Methods Using the data sources listed below, the study design systematically eliminated NCD drugs that had no patent/exclusivity provisions on API, dosage, or administration route. The first step identified essential medicines that treat certain high disease burden NCDs. A second step examined the patent and exclusivity status of active ingredient, dosage and listed route of administration using exclusion criteria outlined in this study. Materials We examined the patent and exclusivity status of medicines listed in the World Health Organization’s (“WHO”) Model List of Essential Drugs (Medicines) (“MLEM”) and other WHO sources for drugs treating certain NCDs. i.e., cardiovascular and respiratory disease, cancers, and diabetes. We utilized the USA Food and Drug Administration Orange Book and the USA Patent and Trademark Office databases as references given the predominant number of medicines registered in the USA. Results Of the 359 MLEM medicines identified, 22% (79/359) address targeted NCDs. Of these 79, only eight required in-depth patent or exclusivity assessment. Upon further review, no NCD MLEM medicines had study patent or exclusivity protection for reviewed criteria. Conclusions We find that ensuring availability and affordability of potential generic formulations of NCD MLEM medicines appears to be more complex than the presence of IPRs with API, dosage, or administration patent or exclusivity protection. Hence, more sophisticated analysis of NCD barriers to generic availability and affordability should be conducted in order to ensure equitable access to global populations for these essential medicines. PMID:23226453

Economic return of clinical trials performed under the pediatric exclusivity program.

PubMed

Li, Jennifer S; Eisenstein, Eric L; Grabowski, Henry G; Reid, Elizabeth D; Mangum, Barry; Schulman, Kevin A; Goldsmith, John V; Murphy, M Dianne; Califf, Robert M; Benjamin, Daniel K

2007-02-07

In 1997, Congress authorized the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to grant 6-month extensions of marketing rights through the Pediatric Exclusivity Program if industry sponsors complete FDA-requested pediatric trials. The program has been praised for creating incentives for studies in children and has been criticized as a "windfall" to the innovator drug industry. This critique has been a substantial part of congressional debate on the program, which is due to expire in 2007. To quantify the economic return to industry for completing pediatric exclusivity trials. A cohort study of programs conducted for pediatric exclusivity. Nine drugs that were granted pediatric exclusivity were selected. From the final study reports submitted to the FDA (2002-2004), key elements of the clinical trial design and study operations were obtained, and the cost of performing each study was estimated and converted into estimates of after-tax cash outflows. Three-year market sales were obtained and converted into estimates of after-tax cash inflows based on 6 months of additional market protection. Net economic return (cash inflows minus outflows) and net return-to-costs ratio (net economic return divided by cash outflows) for each product were then calculated. Net economic return and net return-to-cost ratio. The indications studied reflect a broad representation of the program: asthma, tumors, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, hypertension, depression/generalized anxiety disorder, diabetes mellitus, gastroesophageal reflux, bacterial infection, and bone mineralization. The distribution of net economic return for 6 months of exclusivity varied substantially among products (net economic return ranged from -$8.9 million to $507.9 million and net return-to-cost ratio ranged from -0.68 to 73.63). The economic return for pediatric exclusivity is variable. As an incentive to complete much-needed clinical trials in children, pediatric exclusivity can generate lucrative returns or produce more modest returns on investment.

DeafSpace and the principles of universal design.

PubMed

Edwards, Claire; Harold, Gill

2014-01-01

Recent debates about the epistemological origins of Universal Design (UD) have questioned how far universalist design approaches can address the particularities and diversities of the human form through a series of standardised, technical responses. This article contributes to these debates by discussing an emergent architectural paradigm known as DeafSpace, which articulates a set of design principles originating from the d/Deaf community in the US. Commentary. DeafSpace has emerged as a design paradigm rooted in an expression of d/Deaf cultural identity based around sign language, rather than as a response designed to compensate for, or minimise, impairment. It distinguishes itself from UD by articulating a more user-centred design process, but its principles are arguably rooted in notions of d/Deaf identity based around consensus and homogeneity, with less attention paid to the socio-political contexts which shape diverse experiences of d/Deafness and the exclusion(s) of d/Deaf people from the built environment. While proponents of DeafSpace argue that UD and DeafSpace are not mutually exclusive, nor DeafSpace principles applicable only to d/Deaf people, questions remain about the type of spaces DeafSpace creates, most notably whether they lead to the creation of particularist spaces of and for the d/Deaf community, or reflect a set of design principles which can be embedded across a range of different environments. Implications for Rehabilitation UD as a basis for rehabilitation has been critiqued on the basis that creates "standardised", or universal solutions, thus negating the particularities of the human form. DeafSpace is an architectural paradigm rooted in socio-linguistic understandings of Deafness and the cultural identity of the Deaf community. It challenges UD's technocratic emphasis on minimising impairment and asserts design which is rooted in a more qualitative understanding of individuals' relationship with their environment. DeafSpace seeks to place the user more centrally in the design process and draw on the experiential knowledge of (Deaf) users. However, it has less to say about the often exclusionary socio-political relations which underlie the built environment and shape the diverse experience of deafness. DeafSpace raises questions about how the needs of particular groups can be met through UD principles and in turn whether DeafSpace principles lead to the creation of separate spaces for the D/deaf community.

Dietary polyphenols influence antimetabolite agents: methotrexate, 6-mercaptopurine and 5-fluorouracil in leukemia cell lines

PubMed Central

Mahbub, Amani; Le Maitre, Christine; Haywood-Small, Sarah; Cross, Neil; Jordan-Mahy, Nicola

2017-01-01

Polyphenols have been previously shown to sensitize leukemia cell lines to topoisomerase inhibitors. Here, we assess the effects of five polyphenols when used alone and in combination with antimetabolites: methotrexate, 6-mercaptopurine and 5-fluorouracil; in lymphoid and myeloid leukemia cells lines, and non-tumor control cells. The effects of combined treatments were investigated on ATP and glutathione levels, cell-cycle progression, DNA damage and apoptosis. Polyphenols antagonized methotrexate and 6-mercaptopurine induced cell-cycle arrest and apoptosis in most leukemia cell lines. This was associated with reduced DNA damage and increased glutathione levels, greater than that seen following individual treatments alone. In contrast, 5-fluorouracil when combined with quercetin, apigenin and rhein caused synergistic decrease in ATP levels, induction of cell-cycle arrest and apoptosis in some leukemia cell lines. However, antagonistic effects were observed when 5-fluorouracil was combined with rhein and cis-stilbene in myeloid cell lines. The effects were dependant on polyphenol type and chemotherapy agent investigated, and cell type treated. Interestingly treatment of non-tumor control cells with polyphenols protected cells from antimetabolite treatments. This suggests that polyphenols modulate the action of antimetabolite agents; more importantly they antagonized methotrexate and 6-mercaptopurine actions, thus suggesting the requirement of polyphenol-exclusion during their use. PMID:29285220

Autonomous microfluidic sample preparation system for protein profile-based detection of aerosolized bacterial cells and spores.

PubMed

Stachowiak, Jeanne C; Shugard, Erin E; Mosier, Bruce P; Renzi, Ronald F; Caton, Pamela F; Ferko, Scott M; Van de Vreugde, James L; Yee, Daniel D; Haroldsen, Brent L; VanderNoot, Victoria A

2007-08-01

For domestic and military security, an autonomous system capable of continuously monitoring for airborne biothreat agents is necessary. At present, no system meets the requirements for size, speed, sensitivity, and selectivity to warn against and lead to the prevention of infection in field settings. We present a fully automated system for the detection of aerosolized bacterial biothreat agents such as Bacillus subtilis (surrogate for Bacillus anthracis) based on protein profiling by chip gel electrophoresis coupled with a microfluidic sample preparation system. Protein profiling has previously been demonstrated to differentiate between bacterial organisms. With the goal of reducing response time, multiple microfluidic component modules, including aerosol collection via a commercially available collector, concentration, thermochemical lysis, size exclusion chromatography, fluorescent labeling, and chip gel electrophoresis were integrated together to create an autonomous collection/sample preparation/analysis system. The cycle time for sample preparation was approximately 5 min, while total cycle time, including chip gel electrophoresis, was approximately 10 min. Sensitivity of the coupled system for the detection of B. subtilis spores was 16 agent-containing particles per liter of air, based on samples that were prepared to simulate those collected by wetted cyclone aerosol collector of approximately 80% efficiency operating for 7 min.

Ultraviolet-ozone treatment reduces levels of disease-associated prion protein and prion infectivity

USGS Publications Warehouse

Johnson, C.J.; Gilbert, P.; McKenzie, D.; Pedersen, J.A.; Aiken, Judd M.

2009-01-01

Background. Transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSEs) are a group of fatal neurodegenerative diseases caused by novel infectious agents referred to as prions. Prions appear to be composed primarily, if not exclusively, of a misfolded isoform of the cellular prion protein. TSE infectivity is remarkably stable and can resist many aggressive decontamination procedures, increasing human, livestock and wildlife exposure to TSEs. Findings. We tested the hypothesis that UV-ozone treatment reduces levels of the pathogenic prion protein and inactivates the infectious agent. We found that UV-ozone treatment decreased the carbon and prion protein content in infected brain homogenate to levels undetectable by dry-ashing carbon analysis or immunoblotting, respectively. After 8 weeks of ashing, UV-ozone treatment reduced the infectious titer of treated material by a factor of at least 105. A small amount of infectivity, however, persisted despite UV-ozone treatment. When bound to either montmorillonite clay or quartz surfaces, PrPTSE was still susceptible to degradation by UV-ozone. Conclusion. Our findings strongly suggest that UV-ozone treatment can degrade pathogenic prion protein and inactivate prions, even when the agent is associated with surfaces. Using larger UV-ozone doses or combining UV-ozone treatment with other decontaminant methods may allow the sterilization of TSE-contaminated materials. ?? 2009 Aiken et al; licensee BioMed Central Ltd.

Successful treatment of hydroquinone-resistant melasma using topical methimazole.

PubMed

Malek, Joelle; Chedraoui, Adele; Nikolic, Damian; Barouti, Neda; Ghosn, Samer; Abbas, Ossama

2013-01-01

Melasma is an acquired hyperpigmentation skin disorder in sun-exposed areas. It occurs almost exclusively over the face, and is most commonly seen in women. Several depigmenting agents have been used for the treatment of melasma among which hydroquinone has been the most widely used due to its efficacy and safety in short-term use. However, hydroquinone is recently reported to be a cytotoxic and mutagenic compound in mammalian cells and is thus banned in several countries. Hydroquinone ban has caused investigators to search for alternative depigmenting agents for the treatment of melasma in recent years. Methimazole is an antithyroid agent orally used in humans since several decades and has been shown that when applied topically, it inhibits melanin synthesis and causes skin depigmentation in lab animals as well as human subjects. Herein, we report two hydroquinone-resistant melasma patients who were successfully treated with methimazole cream. Application of 5% methimazole cream once daily resulted in significant improvement of melasma in both patients after 8 weeks. The efficacy of methimazole for melasma treatment as well as its advantages over other known depigmenting compounds (non-mutagenicity, non-cytotoxicity and high tolerability profile) suggests that topical methimazole should be added to the armamentarium of anti-melasma treatment. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Principal-agent relationships in general practice: the first wave of English Personal Medical Services pilot contracts.

PubMed

Sheaff, R; Lloyd-Kendall, A

2000-07-01

To investigate how far English National Health Service (NHS) Personal Medical Services (PMS) contracts embody a principal-agent relationship between health authorities (HAs) and primary health care providers, especially, but not exclusively, general practices involved in the first wave (1998) of PMS pilot projects; and to consider the implications for relational and classical theories of contract. Content analysis of 71 first-wave PMS contracts. Most PMS contracts reflect current English NHS policy priorities, but few institute mechanisms to ensure that providers realise these objectives. Although PMS contracts have some classical characteristics, relational characteristics are more evident. Some characteristics match neither the classical nor the relational model. First-wave PMS contracts do not appear to embody a strong principal-agent relationship between HAs and primary health care providers. This finding offers little support for the relevance of classical theories of contract, but also implies that relational theories of contract need to be revised for quasi-market settings. Future PMS contracts will need to focus more on evidence-based processes of primary care, health outputs and patient satisfaction and less upon service inputs. PMS contracts will also need to be longer-term contracts in order to promote the 'institutional embedding' of independent general practice in the wider management systems of the NHS.

Maydays and Murphies: A Study of the Effect of Organizational Design, Task, and Stress on Organizational Performance.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lin, Zhiang; Carley, Kathleen

How should organizations of intelligent agents be designed so that they exhibit high performance even during periods of stress? A formal model of organizational performance given a distributed decision-making environment in which agents encounter a radar detection task is presented. Using this model the performance of organizations with various…

19 CFR 4.86 - Intercoastal residue-cargo procedure; optional ports.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... agent is unable at that time to designate the specific port or ports of discharge of that residue cargo... ports, Great Lakes coast,” as the case may be. The traveling manifest shall be similarly noted. Upon arrival of the vessel at the first port on the next coast, the master, owner, or agent must designate the...

Design a Contract: A Simple Principal-Agent Problem as a Classroom Experiment

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gachter, Simon; Konigstein, Manfred

2009-01-01

The authors present a simple classroom experiment that can be used as a teaching device to introduce important concepts of organizational economics and incentive contracting. First, students take the role of a principal and design a contract that consists of a fixed payment and an incentive component. Second, students take the role of agents and…

Imaging efficiency of an X-ray contrast agent-incorporated polymeric microparticle.

PubMed

Ahn, Sungsook; Jung, Sung Yong; Lee, Jin Pyung; Lee, Sang Joon

2011-01-01

Biocompatible polymeric encapsulants have been widely used as a delivery vehicle for a variety of drugs and imaging agents. In this study, X-ray contrast agent (iopamidol) is encapsulated into a polymeric microparticle (polyvinyl alcohol) as a particulate flow tracer in synchrotron X-ray imaging system. The physical properties of the designed microparticles are investigated and correlated with enhancement in the imaging efficiency by experimental observation and theoretical interpretation. The X-ray absorption ability of the designed microparticle is assessed by Beer-Lambert-Bouguer law. Particle size, either in dried state or in solvent, primarily dominates the X-ray absorption ability under the given condition, thus affecting imaging efficiency of the designed X-ray contrast flow tracers. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Towards Time Automata and Multi-Agent Systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hutzler, G.; Klaudel, H.; Wang, D. Y.

2004-01-01

The design of reactive systems must comply with logical correctness (the system does what it is supposed to do) and timeliness (the system has to satisfy a set of temporal constraints) criteria. In this paper, we propose a global approach for the design of adaptive reactive systems, i.e., systems that dynamically adapt their architecture depending on the context. We use the timed automata formalism for the design of the agents' behavior. This allows evaluating beforehand the properties of the system (regarding logical correctness and timeliness), thanks to model-checking and simulation techniques. This model is enhanced with tools that we developed for the automatic generation of code, allowing to produce very quickly a running multi-agent prototype satisfying the properties of the model.

Prevention of oral mucositis in children receiving cancer therapy: a systematic review and evidence-based analysis.

PubMed

Qutob, Akram F; Gue, Sumant; Revesz, Tamas; Logan, Richard M; Keefe, Dorothy

2013-02-01

This systematic review investigated, critically appraised, and rated the evidence on agents used to prevent oral mucositis in children. A comprehensive search of the relevant literature was performed up to December 2011. Articles were included according to the inclusion/exclusion criteria and were critically appraised for validation and quality assessment using a checklist consisting of 18 categories. Each article was then rated for its strength of evidence. 16,471 articles were retrieved from 19 different databases and then reduced to 27 articles that fit the inclusion criteria. Five articles on oral care protocols supported their use to prevent oral mucositis in children. Seven articles on chlorhexidine mouthwash and three on laser therapy had conflicting evidence of its use. The preventative agents that were supported by one or two articles included: benzydamine mouthwash, iseganan mouthwash, granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF) mouthwash, oral/enteral glutamine, oral propantheline and cryotherapy, oral cryotherapy, oral sucralfate suspension, prostaglandin E2 tablets, and chewing gum. The reduction in the rates of occurrence of oral mucositis when using agents of fair (B) to good (A) evidence ranged from 22% to 52%. In conclusion, this review suggests the use of oral care protocols to prevent oral mucositis in children because of their strength of evidence (fair to good). The authors suggest avoiding agents with fair to good evidence against their use (oral sucralfate suspension, prostaglandin E2 tablets, and GM-CSF mouthwash). Agents with conflicting evidence (chlorhexidine mouthwash (used solely), laser therapy, and glutamine) should also be avoided until further research confirms their efficacy. Crown Copyright © 2012. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The utilization of microbes as a fermentation agent to reduce saponin in Trembesi leaves (Sammanea saman)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sariri, A. K.; Mulyono, A. M. W.; Tari, A. I. N.

2018-03-01

This objective of this research was to observe the utilization of microbes as a fermentation agent of trembesi leaves that can increase the quality of trembesi leaves as ruminants feed. Before fermentation, trembesi leaves were divided into three treatments. They were control = non-agentic in fermentation, D-An = the addition of Aspergillus niger as fermentation agent, and D-Lp = the addition of Lactobacillus plantarum as fermentation agent. Each treatment experienced five repetitions. The experimental design used a randomized direct pattern group design. The analysis included proximate analysis consisting of water content, crude protein content, crude fiber content, lipid content, mineral content (ash) and saponin content after fermentation. It could be concluded that the utilization of Aspergillus niger and Lactobacillus plantarum in fermentation could decrease saponin content and could increase the nutrient content of trembesi leaves by increasing crude protein content otherwise by decreasing crude fiber content of trembesi leaves.

Developing a Conceptual Architecture for a Generalized Agent-based Modeling Environment (GAME)

DTIC Science & Technology

2008-03-01

4. REPAST (Java, Python , C#, Open Source) ........28 5. MASON: Multi-Agent Modeling Language (Swarm Extension... Python , C#, Open Source) Repast (Recursive Porous Agent Simulation Toolkit) was designed for building agent-based models and simulations in the...Repast makes it easy for inexperienced users to build models by including a built-in simple model and provide interfaces through which menus and Python

Antifungal Indole and Pyrrolidine-2,4-Dione Derivative Peptidomimetic Lead Design Based on In Silico Study of Bioactive Peptide Families

PubMed Central

Moradi, Shoeib; Azerang, Parisa; Khalaj, Vahid; Sardari, Soroush

2013-01-01

Background The rise of opportunistic fungal infections highlights the need for development of new antimicrobial agents. Antimicrobial Peptides (AMPs) and Antifungal Peptides (AFPs) are among the agents with minimal resistance being developed against them, therefore they can be used as structural templates for design of new antimicrobial agents. Methods In the present study four antifungal peptidomimetic structures named C1 to C4 were designed based on plant defensin of Pisum sativum. Minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) for these structures were determined against Aspergillus niger N402, Candida albicans ATCC 10231, and Saccharomyces cerevisiae PTCC 5052. Results C1 and C2 showed more potent antifungal activity against these fungal strains compared to C3 and C4. The structure C2 demonstrated a potent antifungal activity among them and could be used as a template for future study on antifungal peptidomemetics design. Sequences alignments led to identifying antifungal decapeptide (KTCENLADTY) named KTC-Y, which its MIC was determined on fungal protoplast showing 25 (µg/ml) against Aspergillus fumigatus Af293. Conclusion The present approach to reach the antifungal molecules seems to be a powerful approach in design of bioactive agents based on AMP mimetic identification. PMID:23626876

PEGylated Peptide-Based Imaging Agents for Targeted Molecular Imaging.

PubMed

Wu, Huizi; Huang, Jiaguo

2016-01-01

Molecular imaging is able to directly visualize targets and characterize cellular pathways with a high signal/background ratio, which requires a sufficient amount of agents to uptake and accumulate in the imaging area. The design and development of peptide based agents for imaging and diagnosis as a hot and promising research topic that is booming in the field of molecular imaging. To date, selected peptides have been increasingly developed as agents by coupling with different imaging moieties (such as radiometals and fluorophore) with the help of sophisticated chemical techniques. Although a few successes have been achieved, most of them have failed mainly caused by their fast renal clearance and therefore low tumor uptakes, which may limit the effectively tumor retention effect. Besides, several peptide agents based on nanoparticles have also been developed for medical diagnostics. However, a great majority of those agents shown long circulation times and accumulation over time into the reticuloendothelial system (RES; including spleen, liver, lymph nodes and bone marrow) after systematic administration, such long-term severe accumulation probably results in the possible likelihood of toxicity and potentially induces health hazards. Recently reported design criteria have been proposed not only to enhance binding affinity in tumor region with long retention, but also to improve clearance from the body in a reasonable amount of time. PEGylation has been considered as one of the most successful modification methods to prolong tumor retention and improve the pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic properties for peptide-based imaging agents. This review summarizes an overview of PEGylated peptides imaging agents based on different imaging moieties including radioisotopes, fluorophores, and nanoparticles. The unique concepts and applications of various PEGylated peptide-based imaging agents are introduced for each of several imaging moieties. Effects of PEGylation on their target capability, clearance kinetics and metabolic stability are depicted. Problems and issues relating to the pharmacokinetic and optimization design of peptide-based imaging agents are also discussed.

Enhancement of growth, photosynthetic performance and yield by exclusion of ambient UV components in C3 and C4 plants.

PubMed

Kataria, Sunita; Guruprasad, K N; Ahuja, Sumedha; Singh, Bupinder

2013-10-05

A field experiment was conducted under tropical climate for assessing the effect of ambient UV-B and UV-A by exclusion of UV components on the growth, photosynthetic performance and yield of C3 (cotton, wheat) and C4 (amaranthus, sorghum) plants. The plants were grown in specially designed UV exclusion chambers, wrapped with filters that excluded UV-B (<315nm), UV-A+B (<400nm), transmitted all the UV (280-400nm) or without filters. All the four plant species responded to UV exclusion by a significant increase in plant height, leaf area, leaf biomass, total biomass accumulation and yield. Measurements of the chlorophyll, chlorophyll fluorescence parameters, gas exchange parameters and the activity of Ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase (Rubisco) by fixation of (14)CO2 indicated a direct relationship between enhanced rate of photosynthesis and yield of the plants. Quantum yield of electron transport was enhanced by the exclusion of UV indicating better utilization of PAR assimilation and enhancement in reducing power in all the four plant species. Exclusion of UV-B in particular significantly enhanced the net photosynthetic rate, stomatal conductance and activity of Rubisco. Additional fixation of carbon due to exclusion of ambient UV-B was channeled towards yield as there was a decrease in the level of UV-B absorbing substances and an increase in soluble proteins in all the four plant species. The magnitude of the promotion in all the parameters studied was higher in dicots (cotton, amaranthus) compared to monocots (wheat, sorghum) after UV exclusion. The results indicated a suppressive action of ambient UV-B on growth and photosynthesis; dicots were more sensitive than monocots in this suppression while no great difference in sensitivity was found between C3 and C4 plants. Experiments indicated the suppressive action of ambient UV on carbon fixation and yield of C3 and C4 plants. Exclusion of solar UV-B will have agricultural benefits in both C3 and C4 plants under tropical climate. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Measuring social exclusion in healthcare settings: a scoping review.

PubMed

O'Donnell, Patrick; O'Donovan, Diarmuid; Elmusharaf, Khalifa

2018-02-02

Social exclusion is a concept that has been widely debated in recent years; a particular focus of the discussion has been its significance in relation to health. The meanings of the phrase "social exclusion", and the closely associated term "social inclusion", are contested in the literature. Both of these concepts are important in relation to health and the area of primary healthcare in particular. Thus, several tools for the measurement of social exclusion or social inclusion status in health care settings have been developed. A scoping review of the peer-reviewed and grey literature was conducted to examine tools developed since 2000 that measure social exclusion or social inclusion. We focused on those measurement tools developed for use with individual patients in healthcare settings. Efforts were made to obtain a copy of each of the original tools, and all relevant background literature. All tools retrieved were compared in tables, and the specific domains that were included in each measure were tabulated. Twenty-two measurement tools were included in the final scoping review. The majority of these had been specifically developed for the measurement of social inclusion or social exclusion, but a small number were created for the measurement of other closely aligned concepts. The majority of the tools included were constructed for engaging with patients in mental health settings. The tools varied greatly in their design, the scoring systems and the ways they were administered. The domains covered by these tools varied widely and some of the tools were quite narrow in the areas of focus. A review of the definitions of both social inclusion and social exclusion also revealed the variations among the explanations of these complex concepts. There are several definitions of both social inclusion and social exclusion in use and they differ greatly in scope. While there are many tools that have been developed for measuring these concepts in healthcare settings, these do not have a primary healthcare focus. There is a need for the development of a tool for measuring social inclusion or social exclusion in primary healthcare settings.

Exclusion-Proneness in Borderline Personality Disorder Inpatients Impairs Alliance in Mentalization-Based Group Therapy.

PubMed

Euler, Sebastian; Wrege, Johannes; Busmann, Mareike; Lindenmeyer, Hannah J; Sollberger, Daniel; Lang, Undine E; Gaab, Jens; Walter, Marc

2018-01-01

Interpersonal sensitivity, particularly threat of potential exclusion, is a critical condition in borderline personality disorder (BPD) which impairs patients' social adjustment. Current evidence-based treatments include group components, such as mentalization-based group therapy (MBT-G), in order to improve interpersonal functioning. These treatments additionally focus on the therapeutic alliance since it was discovered to be a robust predictor of treatment outcome. However, alliance is a multidimensional factor of group therapy, which includes the fellow patients, and may thus be negatively affected by the exclusion-proneness of BPD patients. The aim of this pilot study was to examine the predictive value of threat of social exclusion for the therapeutic alliance in MBT-G. In the first part of the study, social exclusion was experimentally induced in 23 BPD inpatients and 28 healthy subjects using the Cyberball paradigm, a virtual ball tossing game. The evoked level of threat was measured with the Need-Threat Scale (NTS) which captures four dimensions of fundamental human needs, i.e., the need for belongingness, for self-esteem, for control, and for a meaningful existence. In the second part of the study, therapeutic alliance was measured on three dimensions, the therapists, the fellow patients and the group as a whole, using the Group-Questionnaire (GQ-D). BPD patients scored higher in their level of threat according to the NTS in both, the inclusion and the exclusion condition. The level of threat after exclusion predicted impairments of the therapeutic alliance in MBT-G. It was associated with more negative relationships, lower positive bonding and a lower positive working alliance with the fellow patients and lower positive bonding to the group as a whole whilst no negative prediction of the alliance to the therapists was found. Consequently, our translational study design has shown that Cyberball is an appropriate tool to use as an approach for clinical questions. We further conclude that exclusion-proneness in BPD is a critical feature with respect to alliance in group treatments. In order to neutralize BPD patients' exclusion bias, therapists may be advised to provide an "inclusive stance," especially in initial sessions. It is also recommendable to strengthen patient to patient relations.

Animated pedagogical agents: How the presence and nonverbal communication of a virtual instructor affect perceptions and learning outcomes in a computer-based environment about basic physics concepts

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Frechette, M. Casey

One important but under-researched area of instructional technology concerns the effects of animated pedagogical agents (APAs), or lifelike characters designed to enhance learning in computer-based environments. This research sought to broaden what is currently known about APAs' instructional value by investigating the effects of agents' visual presence and nonverbal communication. A theoretical framework based on APA literature published in the past decade guided the design of the study. This framework sets forth that APAs impact learning through their presence and communication. The communication displayed by an APA involves two distinct kinds of nonverbal cues: cognitive (hand and arm gestures) and affective (facial expressions). It was predicted that the presence of an agent would enhance learning and that nonverbal communication would amplify these effects. The research utilized a between-subjects experimental design. Participants were randomly assigned to treatment conditions in a controlled lab setting, and group means were compared with a MANCOVA. Participants received (1) a non-animated agent, (2) an agent with hand and arm gestures, (3) an agent with facial expressions, or (4) a fully animated agent. The agent appeared in a virtual learning environment focused on Kepler's laws of planetary motion. A control group did not receive the visual presence of an agent. Two effects were studied: participants' perceptions and their learning outcomes. Perceptions were measured with an attitudinal survey with five subscales. Learning outcomes were measured with an open-ended recall test, a multiple choice comprehension test, and an open-ended transfer test. Learners presented with an agent with affective nonverbal communication comprehended less than learners exposed to a non-animated agent. No significant differences were observed when a group exposed to a fully animated agent was compared to a group with a non-animated agent. Adding both nonverbal communication channels mitigated the disadvantages of adding just one kind of nonverbal cue. No statistically significant differences were observed on measures of recall or transfer, or on the attitudinal survey. The research supports the notion that invoking a human-like presence in a virtual learning environment prompts strong expectations about the character's realism. When these expectations are not met, learning is hindered.

Outbreak of cryptosporidiosis associated with a splash park - Idaho, 2007.

PubMed

2009-06-12

On August 6, 2007, Idaho's Central District Health Department (CDHD) received a complaint of several ill persons with watery diarrhea consistent with cryptosporidiosis after attendance at a municipal splash park on July 26. Cryptosporidium spp. is a protozoan that causes diarrheal illness and has been implicated previously in recreational water illness outbreaks at splash parks. CDHD and the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare (IDHW) initiated an investigation of illness among municipal park visitors who attended reservation-only gatherings at an onsite pavilion July 23-August 10. The investigation revealed five immunofluorescence assay (IFA)-confirmed and 45 clinically compatible cases of cryptosporidiosis among 154 persons interviewed (32% attack rate). Patients were more likely than non-ill park visitors to have been exposed to water from a splash feature (relative risk [RR] = 6.1) [corrected]. Water samples collected from splash features and an adjacent drinking fountain tested positive for Cryptosporidium hominis. This report summarizes the investigation of the outbreak and highlights the importance of splash park design, operation, access to hygiene facilities, and public education in prevention of waterborne cryptosporidiosis and other infectious agents. Educational efforts and enactment of regulations requiring enhanced disinfection technology, exclusion of persons with diarrhea, adequate hygiene facilities, and preconstruction consultation with health departments might decrease the risk for recreational water illness at splash parks.

Autoimmunity-related neutrophilic dermatosis: a newly described entity that is not exclusive of systemic lupus erythematosus.

PubMed

Saeb-Lima, Marcela; Charli-Joseph, Yann; Rodríguez-Acosta, Elva Dalia; Domínguez-Cherit, Judith

2013-08-01

Neutrophilic dermatoses have long been known to be associated with autoinmune systemic diseases. Recently, a small number of cases of a disorder distinct from Sweet syndrome or bullous lupus erythematosus (LE) have been described as specifically related to systemic LE under diverse terms, including nonbullous neutrophilic dermatosis, nonbullous neutrophilic LE, and Sweet-like neutrophilic dermatosis. We describe 7 patients that developed urticarial lesions in the context of a known or concurrently diagnosed autoimmune connective tissue disease. Of a total of 7 patients, 6 were afflicted by systemic LE and 1 by rheumatoid arthritis and secondary Sjögren syndrome. Histological findings in all patients included an interstitial and perivascular neutrophilic infiltrate with leukocytoclasia, vacuolar alteration along the dermal-edidermal junction, and no vasculitis. Most patients had active systemic disease at the time of the cutaneous eruption. Skin lesions resolved rapidly after the administration of immunomodulating agents. In conclusion, we provide additional evidence of the existence of a recently defined nonbullous neutrophilic dermatosis in the context of autoimmune connective tissue diseases and propose the term autoimmunity-related neutrophilic dermatosis as an appropriate designation. Furthermore, we believe that this entity should prompt physicians to screen the presence of an active systemic disorder in afflicted patients.

Conflict of Interest Disclosure in Off-Label Oncology Clinical Trials

PubMed Central

Irwin, Blair; Hirsch, Bradford R.; Samsa, Gregory P.; Abernethy, Amy P.

2012-01-01

Purpose: We sought to determine the prevalence, reliability, and predictors of conflict of interest (COI) and funding disclosure statements for studies of anticancer targeted therapies conducted in the off-label prescribing setting. Methods: As a part of a federally funded systematic review, manuscripts were included in the analysis if they were used to support one of 19 indications for cancer targeted therapies that were off-label but reimbursable according to compendia published in 2006 or before. Studies were categorized according to trial design, trial results, average impact factor of journals, and presence of COI and funding disclosure statements. Results: Among the 69 included studies, prevalence of COI and funding disclosures was low, at 33% and 58% respectively; time trends showed some improvement between 2002 to 2007, but only 60% of studies had disclosures by 2007. Predictors of COI disclosure were publication in high-impact-factor journals (P < .001), large study sample size (P = .001), enrollment exclusively in the United States (P = .04), and study of the targeted therapy in combination with other agents as opposed to the study drug alone (P = .03). Conclusion: Disclosure of potential sources of bias in COI and funding statements in studies of off-label indications for anticancer targeted therapies was low and did not increase substantially over time. PMID:23277767

Structures of Trypanosome Vacuolar Soluble Pyrophosphatases: Anti-Parasitic Drug Targets

PubMed Central

Yang, Yunyun; Ko, Tzu-Ping; Chen, Chun-Chi; Huang, Guozhong; Zheng, Yingying; Liu, Weidong; Wang, Iren; Ho, Meng-Ru; Danny Hsu, Shang-Te; O’Dowd, Bing; Huff, Hannah C.; Huang, Chun-Hsiang; Docampo, Roberto; Oldfield, Eric; Guo, Rey-Ting

2016-01-01

Trypanosomatid parasites are the causative agents of many neglected tropical diseases including the leishmaniases, Chagas disease, and human African trypanosomiasis. They exploit unusual vacuolar soluble pyrophosphatases (VSPs), absent in humans, for cell growth and virulence and as such, are drug targets. Here, we report the crystal structures of VSP1s from Trypanosoma cruzi and T. brucei, together with that of the T. cruzi protein bound to a bisphosphonate inhibitor. Both VSP1s form a hybrid structure containing an (N-terminal) EF-hand domain fused to a (C-terminal) pyrophosphatase domain. The two domains are connected via an extended loop of about 17 residues. Crystallographic analysis and size exclusion chromatography indicate that the VSP1s form tetramers containing head-to-tail dimers. Phosphate and diphosphate ligands bind in the PPase substrate-binding pocket and interact with several conserved residues, and a bisphosphonate inhibitor (BPH-1260) binds to the same site. Based on Cytoscape and other bioinformatics analyses it is apparent that similar folds will be found in most if not all trypanosomatid VSP1s, including those found in insects (Angomonas deanei, Strigomonas culicis), plant pathogens (Phytomonas spp.) and Leishmania spp. Overall, the results are of general interest since they open the way to structure-based drug design for many of the neglected tropical diseases. PMID:26907161

New robotics: design principles for intelligent systems.

PubMed

Pfeifer, Rolf; Iida, Fumiya; Bongard, Josh

2005-01-01

New robotics is an approach to robotics that, in contrast to traditional robotics, employs ideas and principles from biology. While in the traditional approach there are generally accepted methods (e. g., from control theory), designing agents in the new robotics approach is still largely considered an art. In recent years, we have been developing a set of heuristics, or design principles, that on the one hand capture theoretical insights about intelligent (adaptive) behavior, and on the other provide guidance in actually designing and building systems. In this article we provide an overview of all the principles but focus on the principles of ecological balance, which concerns the relation between environment, morphology, materials, and control, and sensory-motor coordination, which concerns self-generated sensory stimulation as the agent interacts with the environment and which is a key to the development of high-level intelligence. As we argue, artificial evolution together with morphogenesis is not only "nice to have" but is in fact a necessary tool for designing embodied agents.

Quadratic stabilisability of multi-agent systems under switching topologies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Guan, Yongqiang; Ji, Zhijian; Zhang, Lin; Wang, Long

2014-12-01

This paper addresses the stabilisability of multi-agent systems (MASs) under switching topologies. Necessary and/or sufficient conditions are presented in terms of graph topology. These conditions explicitly reveal how the intrinsic dynamics of the agents, the communication topology and the external control input affect stabilisability jointly. With the appropriate selection of some agents to which the external inputs are applied and the suitable design of neighbour-interaction rules via a switching topology, an MAS is proved to be stabilisable even if so is not for each of uncertain subsystem. In addition, a method is proposed to constructively design a switching rule for MASs with norm-bounded time-varying uncertainties. The switching rules designed via this method do not rely on uncertainties, and the switched MAS is quadratically stabilisable via decentralised external self-feedback for all uncertainties. With respect to applications of the stabilisability results, the formation control and the cooperative tracking control are addressed. Numerical simulations are presented to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed results.

Ancient typhoid epidemic reveals possible ancestral strain of Salmonella enterica serovar Typhi.

PubMed

Papagrigorakis, Manolis J; Synodinos, Philippos N; Yapijakis, Christos

2007-01-01

In contrast to other serotypes of Salmonella enterica, S. Typhi is exclusively adapted to human hosts. Recently, S. Typhi was identified in ancient skeletal material, thereby incriminating typhoid fever for the Plague of Athens. Since, according to Thucydides' report, animals were also affected by the disease, a working hypothesis is constituted that the causative agent of the Plague might be the anticipated original strain of S. Typhi, purportedly capable of infecting animals as well as humans. Possible future sequencing of the discovered ancient strain of S. Typhi may help towards identifying its genomic differences responsible for its modern specification to humans.

An Evidence-based Approach to the Medical Management of Fibroids: A Systematic Review.

PubMed

Bartels, Chantal B; Cayton, Kamaria C; Chuong, Farah S; Holthouser, Kristine; Arian, Sara E; Abraham, Tara; Segars, James H

2016-03-01

Fibroids are the most common tumor of the female reproductive tract, but approved medical treatments are limited. Patients demand uterine-sparing treatments which preserve fertility and avoid surgery. We systematically reviewed PubMed and Cochrane databases from January 1985 to November 2015 for evidence-based medical therapies for fibroids in the context of disease prevention, treatment of early disease, treatment of symptomatic disease, and preoperative management. We identified 2182 studies, of which 52 studies met inclusion and exclusion criteria. Published data affirm the efficacy of multiple agents, which are promising avenues for the development of medical alternatives to surgery.