17 CFR 229.1100 - (Item 1100) General.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... aggregate asset pool. (3) Present loss and cumulative loss information, as applicable, regarding charge-offs... assets that have experienced a net loss. (4) Categorize all delinquency and loss information by pool... any other material information regarding delinquencies and losses particular to the pool asset type(s...

17 CFR 229.1100 - (Item 1100) General.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... aggregate asset pool. (3) Present loss and cumulative loss information, as applicable, regarding charge-offs... assets that have experienced a net loss. (4) Categorize all delinquency and loss information by pool... any other material information regarding delinquencies and losses particular to the pool asset type(s...

Drivers of spatial heterogeneity in nitrogen processing among three alpine plant communities in the Rocky Mountains

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Churchill, A. C.; Beers, A.; Grinath, J.; Bowman, W. D.

2017-12-01

Nitrogen cycling across the globe has been fundamentally altered due to regional elevated N deposition and there is a cascade of ecosystem consequences including shifts in species composition, eutrophication, and soil acidification. Making predictions that encompass the factors that drive these ecosystem changes has frequently been limited to single ecosystem types, or areas with fairly homogenous abiotic conditions. The alpine is an ecosystem type that exhibits changes under relatively low levels of N depositions due to short growing seasons and shallow soils limiting N storage. While recent work provided estimates for the magnitude of N associated with ecosystem changes, less is known about the within-site factors that may interact to stabilize or amplify the differential response of N pools under future conditions of resource deposition. To examine numerous potential within-site and regional factors (both biotic and abiotic) affecting ecosystem N pools we examined the relationship between those factors and a suite of ecosystem pools of N followed by model selection procedures and structural equation modelling. Measurements were conducted at Niwot Ridge Long Term Ecological Research site and in Rocky Mountain National Park in three distinct alpine meadow ecosystems (dry, moist, and wet meadows). These meadows span a moisture gradient as well as plant community composition, thereby providing high variability of potential biotic and abiotic drivers across small spatial scales in the alpine. In general, regional scale abiotic factors such as site levels of annual average N deposition or precipitation were poor predictors of seasonal pools of N, while spring soil water pools of N were negatively correlated with elevation. Models containing multiple abiotic and biotic drivers, however, were best at predicting soil and plant pools of N across the two sites. Future analysis will include highlight interactions among with-site factors affecting N pools in the alpine using structural equation modelling to statistically examine the bidirectional relationship between plant communities and soil pools of N.

Comparison of soil microbial respiration and carbon turnover under perennial and annual biofuel crops in two agricultural soils

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Szymanski, L. M.; Marin-Spiotta, E.; Sanford, G. R.; Jackson, R. D.; Heckman, K. A.

2015-12-01

Bioenergy crops have the potential to provide a low carbon-intensive alternative to fossil fuels. More than a century of agricultural research has shown that conventional cropping systems can reduce soil organic matter (SOM) reservoirs, which cause long-term soil nutrient loss and C release to the atmosphere. In the face of climate change and other human disruptions to biogeochemical cycles, identifying biofuel crops that can maintain or enhance soil resources is desirable for the sustainable production of bioenergy. The objective of our study was to compare the effects of four biofuel crop treatments on SOM dynamics in two agricultural soils: Mollisols at Arlington Agricultural Research Station in Wisconsin and Alfisols at Kellogg Biological Station in Michigan, USA. We used fresh soils collected in 2013 and archived soils from 2008 to measure the effects of five years of crop management. Using a one-year long laboratory soil incubation coupled with a regression model and radiocarbon measurements, we separated soils into three SOM pools and their corresponding C turnover times. We found that the active pool, or biologically available C, was more sensitive to management and is an earlier indicator of changes to soil C dynamics than bulk soil C measurements. There was no effect of treatment on the active pool size at either site; however, the percent C in the active pool decreased, regardless of crop type, in surface soils with high clay content. At depth, the response of the slow pool differed between annual and perennial cropping systems. The distribution of C among SOM fractions varied between the two soil types, with greater C content associated with the active fraction in the coarser textured-soil and greater C content associated with the slow-cycling fraction in the soils with high clay content. These results suggest that the effects of bioenergy crops on soil resources will vary geographically, with implications for the carbon-cost of biocrop production.

RAS mutation prevalence among patients with metastatic colorectal cancer: a meta-analysis of real-world data.

PubMed

Kafatos, George; Niepel, Daniela; Lowe, Kimberley; Jenkins-Anderson, Sophie; Westhead, Hal; Garawin, Tamer; Traugottová, Zuzana; Bilalis, Antonios; Molnar, Edit; Timar, Jozsef; Toth, Erika; Gouvas, Nikolaos; Papaxoinis, George; Murray, Samuel; Mokhtar, Nadia; Vosmikova, Hana; Fabian, Pavel; Skalova, Alena; Wójcik, Piotr; Tysarowski, Andrzej; Barugel, Mario; van Krieken, J Han; Trojan, Jörg

2017-07-27

A confirmed wild-type RAS tumor status is commonly required for prescribing anti-EGFR treatment for metastatic colorectal cancer. This noninterventional, observational research project estimated RAS mutation prevalence from real-world sources. Aggregate RAS mutation data were collected from 12 sources in three regions. Each source was analyzed separately; pooled prevalence estimates were then derived from meta-analyses. The pooled RAS mutation prevalence from 4431 tumor samples tested for RAS mutation status was estimated to be 43.6% (95% CI: 38.8-48.5%); ranging from 33.7% (95% CI: 28.4-39.3%) to 54.1% (95% CI: 51.7-56.5%) between sources. The RAS mutation prevalence estimates varied among sources. The reasons for this are not clear and highlight the need for further research.

Common Pool Water Markets and their Role in Facilitating Land Use Change in Drying Climates

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Teasley, R. L.; Milke, M.; Raffensperger, J. F.; Zargar, M.

2010-12-01

Concern is growing worldwide that climate change will lead to drier climates in many regions and in turn diminish water resources. To protect these limited resources, users may need to shift water use to more economically productive areas. However, changing the land use associated with water permits can be quite difficult, because water is not easily traded. Water markets have been well researched as a method for trading water between users, but these markets can often be difficult and costly requiring one-to-one trades between buyers and sellers. In contrast to a one-to-one market, a common pool market can reduce the transaction costs associated with trading water. In this research, a common pool market is applied to an example groundwater system set up in GWM2000 with ten users and various environmental constraints. The users represent three types of the largest groundwater users in the Canterbury region of New Zealand: agricultural, dairy and livestock. The response matrix from GWM2000 is used to develop constraints in the market model along with user bids. Bids are calculated from economic and water use data for Canterbury, New Zealand. Varying spatial distributions of water users by type are evaluated for the effect on the market under drying conditions. These conditions are simulated from climate change scenarios produced by the National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research in New Zealand. The results demonstrate potential land use changes falls under drying conditions. As water availability falls, the price for additional water increases, particularly near environmental constraints, driving the land and water towards more efficient uses.

Statistical model specification and power: recommendations on the use of test-qualified pooling in analysis of experimental data

PubMed Central

Colegrave, Nick

2017-01-01

A common approach to the analysis of experimental data across much of the biological sciences is test-qualified pooling. Here non-significant terms are dropped from a statistical model, effectively pooling the variation associated with each removed term with the error term used to test hypotheses (or estimate effect sizes). This pooling is only carried out if statistical testing on the basis of applying that data to a previous more complicated model provides motivation for this model simplification; hence the pooling is test-qualified. In pooling, the researcher increases the degrees of freedom of the error term with the aim of increasing statistical power to test their hypotheses of interest. Despite this approach being widely adopted and explicitly recommended by some of the most widely cited statistical textbooks aimed at biologists, here we argue that (except in highly specialized circumstances that we can identify) the hoped-for improvement in statistical power will be small or non-existent, and there is likely to be much reduced reliability of the statistical procedures through deviation of type I error rates from nominal levels. We thus call for greatly reduced use of test-qualified pooling across experimental biology, more careful justification of any use that continues, and a different philosophy for initial selection of statistical models in the light of this change in procedure. PMID:28330912

Pool spacing in forest channels

Treesearch

David R. Montgomery; John M. Buffington; Richard D. Smith; Kevin M. Schmidt; George Pess

1995-01-01

Field surveys of stream channels in forested mountain drainage basins in southeast Alaska and Washington reveal that pool spacing depends on large woody debris (LWD) loading and channel type, slope, and width. Mean pool spacing in pool-riffle, plane-bed, and forced pool-riffle channels systematically decreases from greater than 13 channel widths per pool to less than 1...

Wnt Signaling Specifies Anteroposterior Progenitor Zone Identity in the Drosophila Visual Center.

PubMed

Suzuki, Takumi; Trush, Olena; Yasugi, Tetsuo; Takayama, Rie; Sato, Makoto

2016-06-15

During brain development, various types of neuronal populations are produced from different progenitor pools to produce neuronal diversity that is sufficient to establish functional neuronal circuits. However, the molecular mechanisms that specify the identity of each progenitor pool remain obscure. Here, we show that Wnt signaling is essential for the specification of the identity of posterior progenitor pools in the Drosophila visual center. In the medulla, the largest component of the visual center, different types of neurons are produced from two progenitor pools: the outer proliferation center (OPC) and glial precursor cells (GPCs; also known as tips of the OPC). We found that OPC-type neurons are produced from the GPCs at the expense of GPC-type neurons when Wnt signaling is suppressed in the GPCs. In contrast, GPC-type neurons are ectopically induced when Wnt signaling is ectopically activated in the OPC. These results suggest that Wnt signaling is necessary and sufficient for the specification of the progenitor pool identity. We also found that Homothorax (Hth), which is temporally expressed in the OPC, is ectopically induced in the GPCs by suppression of Wnt signaling and that ectopic induction of Hth phenocopies the suppression of Wnt signaling in the GPCs. Thus, Wnt signaling is involved in regionalization of the fly visual center through the specification of the progenitor pool located posterior to the medulla by suppressing Hth expression. Brain consists of considerably diverse neurons of different origins. In mammalian brain, excitatory and inhibitory neurons derive from the dorsal and ventral telencephalon, respectively. Multiple progenitor pools also contribute to the neuronal diversity in fly brain. However, it has been unclear how differences between these progenitor pools are established. Here, we show that Wnt signaling, an evolutionarily conserved signaling, is involved in the process that establishes the differences between these progenitor pools. Because β-catenin signaling, which is under the control of Wnt ligands, specifies progenitor pool identity in the developing mammalian thalamus, Wnt signaling-mediated specification of progenitor pool identity may be conserved in insect and mammalian brains. Copyright © 2016 the authors 0270-6474/16/366503-11$15.00/0.

Collaborative Orthopaedic Research Between and Within Institutions.

PubMed

Wolf, Brian R; Verma, Nikhil N; Spindler, Kurt P; Wright, Rick W

2017-02-15

Collaborative research is common in many medical disciplines; however, the field of orthopaedics has been relatively slow to adopt this type of research approach. Collaborative research efforts can occur between multiple institutions and, in some instances, may benefit from subspecialty society sponsorship. Collaborative research efforts between several research spheres within a single institution also can be advantageous. Collaborative research has many benefits, including a larger number of patients in studies, more power in the research, and better generalizability. In addition, collaborative research efforts allow resources to be pooled within and between institutions. The challenges of collaborative research include data management, funding, and the publication of manuscripts that have many authors.

Association between pancreatitis and subsequent risk of pancreatic cancer: a systematic review of epidemiological studies.

PubMed

Tong, Gui-Xian; Geng, Qing-Qing; Chai, Jing; Cheng, Jing; Chen, Peng-Lai; Liang, Han; Shen, Xing-Rong; Wang, De-Bin

2014-01-01

This study aimed to summarize published epidemiological evidence for the relationship between pancreatitis and subsequent risk of pancreatic cancer (PC). We searched Medline and Embase for epidemiological studies published by February 5th, 2014 examining the risk of PC in pancreatitis patients using highly inclusive algorithms. Information about first author, year of publication, country of study, recruitment period, type of pancreatitis, study design, sample size, source of controls and attained age of subjects were extracted by two researchers and Stata 11.0 was used to perform the statistical analyses and examine publication bias. Odds ratios (ORs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated with the random effects model. A total of 17 articles documenting 3 cohort and 14 case-control studies containing 14,667 PC cases and 17,587 pancreatitis cases were included in this study. The pooled OR between pancreatitis and PC risk was 7.05 (95%CI: 6.42-7.75). However, the pooled ORs of case-control and cohort studies were 4.62 (95%CI: 4.08-5.22) and 16.3 (95%CI: 14.3-18.6) respectively. The risk of PC was the highest in patients with chronic pancreatitis (pooled OR=10.35; 95%CI: 9.13-11.75), followed by unspecified type of pancreatitis (pooled OR=6.41; 95%CI: 4.93-8.34), both acute and chronic pancreatitis (pooled OR=6.13; 95%CI: 5.00-7.52), and acute pancreatitis (pooled OR=2.12; 95%CI: 1.59-2.83). The pooled OR of PC in pancreatitis cases diagnosed within 1 year was the highest (pooled OR=23.3; 95%CI: 14.0-38.9); and the risk in subjects diagnosed with pancreatitis for no less than 2, 5 and 10 years were 3.03 (95%CI: 2.41-3.81), 2.82 (95%CI: 2.12-3.76) and 2.25 (95%CI: 1.59-3.19) respectively. Pancreatitis, especially chronic pancreatitis, was associated with a significantly increased risk of PC; and the risk decreased with increasing duration since diagnosis of pancreatitis.

Vulnerability of high-latitude soil organic carbon in North America to disturbance

USGS Publications Warehouse

Grosse, Guido; Harden, Jennifer W.; Turetsky, Merritt; McGuire, A. David; Camill, Philip; Tarnocai, Charles; Frolking, Steve; Schuur, Edward A.G.; Jorgenson, Torre; Marchenko, Sergei; Romanovsky, Vladimir; Wickland, Kimberly P.; French, Nancy; Waldrop, Mark P.; Bourgeau-Chavez, Laura L.; Striegl, Robert G.

2011-01-01

This synthesis addresses the vulnerability of the North American high-latitude soil organic carbon (SOC) pool to climate change. Disturbances caused by climate warming in arctic, subarctic, and boreal environments can result in significant redistribution of C among major reservoirs with potential global impacts. We divide the current northern high-latitude SOC pools into (1) near-surface soils where SOC is affected by seasonal freeze-thaw processes and changes in moisture status, and (2) deeper permafrost and peatland strata down to several tens of meters depth where SOC is usually not affected by short-term changes. We address key factors (permafrost, vegetation, hydrology, paleoenvironmental history) and processes (C input, storage, decomposition, and output) responsible for the formation of the large high-latitude SOC pool in North America and highlight how climate-related disturbances could alter this pool's character and size. Press disturbances of relatively slow but persistent nature such as top-down thawing of permafrost, and changes in hydrology, microbiological communities, pedological processes, and vegetation types, as well as pulse disturbances of relatively rapid and local nature such as wildfires and thermokarst, could substantially impact SOC stocks. Ongoing climate warming in the North American high-latitude region could result in crossing environmental thresholds, thereby accelerating press disturbances and increasingly triggering pulse disturbances and eventually affecting the C source/sink net character of northern high-latitude soils. Finally, we assess postdisturbance feedbacks, models, and predictions for the northern high-latitude SOC pool, and discuss data and research gaps to be addressed by future research.

Reaching Boys: An International Study of Effective Teaching Practices

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Reichert, Michael; Hawley, Richard

2010-01-01

Despite a continuing stream of concern on the part of researchers, demographers, and cultural pundits about a crisis in boys' social development and schooling, surprisingly little attention has been paid to what is perhaps the richest pool of data: current, observable teaching practices that clearly work with boys. In schools of all types in all…

Swimming pool cleaner poisoning

MedlinePlus

Swimming pool cleaner poisoning occurs when someone swallows this type of cleaner, touches it, or breathes in ... The harmful substances in swimming pool cleaner are: Bromine ... copper Chlorine Soda ash Sodium bicarbonate Various mild acids

1968 Listing of Swimming Pool Equipment.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

National Sanitation Foundation, Ann Arbor, MI. Testing Lab.

An up-to-date listing of swimming pool equipment including--(1) companies authorized to display the National Sanitation Foundation seal of approval, (2) equipment listed as meeting NSF swimming pool equipment standards relating to diatomite type filters, (3) equipment listed as meeting NSF swimming pool equipment standard relating to sand type…

48 CFR 9.701 - Definition.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... 9.701 Federal Acquisition Regulations System FEDERAL ACQUISITION REGULATION ACQUISITION PLANNING CONTRACTOR QUALIFICATIONS Defense Production Pools and Research and Development Pools 9.701 Definition. Pool... order to obtain and perform, jointly or in conjunction with each other, defense production or research...

48 CFR 9.701 - Definition.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-10-01

... 9.701 Federal Acquisition Regulations System FEDERAL ACQUISITION REGULATION ACQUISITION PLANNING CONTRACTOR QUALIFICATIONS Defense Production Pools and Research and Development Pools 9.701 Definition. Pool... order to obtain and perform, jointly or in conjunction with each other, defense production or research...

48 CFR 9.701 - Definition.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-10-01

... 9.701 Federal Acquisition Regulations System FEDERAL ACQUISITION REGULATION ACQUISITION PLANNING CONTRACTOR QUALIFICATIONS Defense Production Pools and Research and Development Pools 9.701 Definition. Pool... order to obtain and perform, jointly or in conjunction with each other, defense production or research...

48 CFR 9.701 - Definition.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

... 9.701 Federal Acquisition Regulations System FEDERAL ACQUISITION REGULATION ACQUISITION PLANNING CONTRACTOR QUALIFICATIONS Defense Production Pools and Research and Development Pools 9.701 Definition. Pool... order to obtain and perform, jointly or in conjunction with each other, defense production or research...

48 CFR 9.701 - Definition.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-10-01

... 9.701 Federal Acquisition Regulations System FEDERAL ACQUISITION REGULATION ACQUISITION PLANNING CONTRACTOR QUALIFICATIONS Defense Production Pools and Research and Development Pools 9.701 Definition. Pool... order to obtain and perform, jointly or in conjunction with each other, defense production or research...

Inter-progenitor pool wiring: An evolutionarily conserved strategy that expands neural circuit diversity.

PubMed

Suzuki, Takumi; Sato, Makoto

2017-11-15

Diversification of neuronal types is key to establishing functional variations in neural circuits. The first critical step to generate neuronal diversity is to organize the compartmental domains of developing brains into spatially distinct neural progenitor pools. Neural progenitors in each pool then generate a unique set of diverse neurons through specific spatiotemporal specification processes. In this review article, we focus on an additional mechanism, 'inter-progenitor pool wiring', that further expands the diversity of neural circuits. After diverse types of neurons are generated in one progenitor pool, a fraction of these neurons start migrating toward a remote brain region containing neurons that originate from another progenitor pool. Finally, neurons of different origins are intermingled and eventually form complex but precise neural circuits. The developing cerebral cortex of mammalian brains is one of the best examples of inter-progenitor pool wiring. However, Drosophila visual system development has revealed similar mechanisms in invertebrate brains, suggesting that inter-progenitor pool wiring is an evolutionarily conserved strategy that expands neural circuit diversity. Here, we will discuss how inter-progenitor pool wiring is accomplished in mammalian and fly brain systems. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Diatomite Type Filters for Swimming Pools. Standard No. 9, Revised October, 1966.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

National Sanitation Foundation, Ann Arbor, MI.

Pressure and vacuum diatomite type filters are covered in this standard. The filters herein described are intended to be designed and used specifically for swimming pool water filtration, both public and residential. Included are the basic components which are a necessary part of the diatomite type filter such as filter housing, element supports,…

Sand Type Filters for Swimming Pools. Standard No. 10, Revised October, 1966.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

National Sanitation Foundation, Ann Arbor, MI.

Sand type filters are covered in this standard. The filters described are intended to be designed and used specifically for swimming pool water filtration, both public and residential. Included are the basic components which are a necessary part of the sand type filter such as filter housing, upper and lower distribution systems filter media,…

Analysis of small sample size studies using nonparametric bootstrap test with pooled resampling method.

PubMed

Dwivedi, Alok Kumar; Mallawaarachchi, Indika; Alvarado, Luis A

2017-06-30

Experimental studies in biomedical research frequently pose analytical problems related to small sample size. In such studies, there are conflicting findings regarding the choice of parametric and nonparametric analysis, especially with non-normal data. In such instances, some methodologists questioned the validity of parametric tests and suggested nonparametric tests. In contrast, other methodologists found nonparametric tests to be too conservative and less powerful and thus preferred using parametric tests. Some researchers have recommended using a bootstrap test; however, this method also has small sample size limitation. We used a pooled method in nonparametric bootstrap test that may overcome the problem related with small samples in hypothesis testing. The present study compared nonparametric bootstrap test with pooled resampling method corresponding to parametric, nonparametric, and permutation tests through extensive simulations under various conditions and using real data examples. The nonparametric pooled bootstrap t-test provided equal or greater power for comparing two means as compared with unpaired t-test, Welch t-test, Wilcoxon rank sum test, and permutation test while maintaining type I error probability for any conditions except for Cauchy and extreme variable lognormal distributions. In such cases, we suggest using an exact Wilcoxon rank sum test. Nonparametric bootstrap paired t-test also provided better performance than other alternatives. Nonparametric bootstrap test provided benefit over exact Kruskal-Wallis test. We suggest using nonparametric bootstrap test with pooled resampling method for comparing paired or unpaired means and for validating the one way analysis of variance test results for non-normal data in small sample size studies. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

A new serotyping method for Klebsiella species: development of the technique.

PubMed Central

Riser, E; Noone, P; Poulton, T A

1976-01-01

A new serotyping method for Klebsiella species using indirect immunofluorescence is described. Nonspecific fluorescence has been minimized by carrying out the capsular antigen-antibody reaction at pH 9.0. Commercial antisera have been tested with the 72 antigenic types of Klebsiella, and appropriate dilutions of each pool and specific antisera have been proposed for use in routine typing. Dilutions were chosen to allow strong fluorescence with each type and its specific antiserum and minimal fluorescence with cross reacting antisera. Where the pool antisera gave a weak reaction for one or more of the component types, it is recommended that the specific antisera for these types be added to the pool dilution. The few remaining cross reactions, with the pool and specific antisera in test dilution, are listed in a table. The unique cross reacting patterns of particular types have been found to be useful in identification. Typing Klebsiella by the fluorescent antibody technique is easy to perform and interpret; the results are reproducible, and it is less expensive than the existing capsular swelling method as it is more sensitive and requires less concentrated antisera. This new method of typing should facilitate detailed epidemiological studies of the mode of transmission of Klebsiella species in hospitals and thus allow more effective infection control measures to be instituted. Images PMID:777042

Controls on the size and occurrence of pools in coarse-grained forest rivers

Treesearch

John M. Buffington; Thomas E. Lisle; Richard D. Woodsmith; Sue Hilton

2002-01-01

Controls on pool formation are examined in gravel- and cobble-bed rivers in forest mountain drainage basins of northern California, southern Oregon, and southeastern Alaska. We demonstrate that the majority of pools at our study sites are formed by flow obstructions and that pool geometry and frequency largely depend on obstruction characteristics (size, type, and...

Examining the Effects of Intensive Supervision and Aftercare Programs for At-Risk Youth: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

PubMed

Bouchard, Jessica; Wong, Jennifer S

2018-05-01

Community correctional sentences are administered to more juvenile offenders in North America than any other judicial sentence. Particularly prominent in juvenile corrections is intensive supervision probation and aftercare/reentry, yet the effects of these supervision-oriented interventions on recidivism are mixed. The purpose of this meta-analysis is to determine the effects of intensive supervision probation and aftercare/reentry on juvenile recidivism. An extensive search of the literature and application of strict inclusion criteria resulted in the selection of 27 studies that contributed 55 individual effect sizes. Studies were pooled based on intervention type (intensive supervision probation or aftercare/reentry) and outcome measure (alleged or convicted offenses). The pooled analyses yielded contradictory results with respect to outcome measure; in both cases, supervision had a beneficial effect on alleged offenses and negatively affected convicted offenses. These patterns across intervention type and outcome measure, as well as recommendations for future research, are discussed.

Laboratory investigation and simulation of breakthrough curves in karst conduits with pools

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhao, Xiaoer; Chang, Yong; Wu, Jichun; Peng, Fu

2017-12-01

A series of laboratory experiments are performed under various hydrological conditions to analyze the effect of pools in pipes on breakthrough curves (BTCs). The BTCs are generated after instantaneous injections of NaCl tracer solution. In order to test the feasibility of reproducing the BTCs and obtain transport parameters, three modeling approaches have been applied: the equilibrium model, the linear graphical method and the two-region nonequilibrium model. The investigation results show that pools induce tailing of the BTCs, and the shapes of BTCs depend on pool geometries and hydrological conditions. The simulations reveal that the two-region nonequilibrium model yields the best fits to experimental BTCs because the model can describe the transient storage in pools by the partition coefficient and the mass transfer coefficient. The model parameters indicate that pools produce high dispersion. The increased tailing occurs mainly because the partition coefficient decreases, as the number of pools increases. When comparing the tracer BTCs obtained using the two types of pools with the same size, the more appreciable BTC tails that occur for symmetrical pools likely result mainly from the less intense exchange between the water in the pools and the water in the pipe, because the partition coefficients for the two types of pools are virtually identical. Dispersivity values decrease as flow rates increase; however, the trend in dispersion is not clear. The reduced tailing is attributed to a decrease in immobile water with increasing flow rate. It provides evidence for hydrodynamically controlled tailing effects.

Plant mycorrhizal traits and carbon fates from plot to globe

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Soudzilovskaia, N.; Cornelissen, H. H. C.

2016-12-01

Evidence is accumulating that plant traits related to mycorrhizal symbiosis, i.e. mycorrhizal type and the degree of plant root colonization by mycorrhizal fungi have important consequences for carbon pools and allocation in plants and soil. How plant and soil carbon pools vary among vegetation dominated by plants of different mycorrhizal types is a new and exciting research challenge. Absence of global databases on abundance of mycorrhizal fungi in soil and plant roots retards research aimed to understand involvement of mycorrhizas into soil carbon transformation processes. Using own data and published studies we have assembled currently world-largest database of plant species-per-site degrees root colonization by two most common types of mycorrhizal fungi, arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) and ectomycorrhizal (EM). The database features records for plant root colonization degrees by AM and EM (above 8000 records in total). Using this database, we demonstrate that the degree of mycorrhizal fungal colonization has globally consistent patterns across plant species. This suggests that the level of plant species-specific root colonization can be used as a plant trait. I will discuss how combining plot-level field data, literature data and mycorrhizal infection trait data may help us to quantify the carbon consequences of relative dominance by arbuscular versus ectomycorrhizal symbiosis in vegetation from plot to global scale. To exemplify this method, I will present an assessment of the impacts of EM shrub encroachment on carbon stocks in sub-arctic tundra, and show how the plant trait data (root, leaf, stem and mycorrhizal colonization traits) could predict (1) impacts of AM and EM vegetation on soil carbon budget and (2) changes in soil carbon budget due to increase of EM plants in an AM-dominated ecosystem and visa versa. This approach may help to predict how global change-mediated vegetation shifts, via mycorrhizal carbon pools and dynamics, may affect terrestric and (thereby) atmospheric carbon.

Study on the immunological safety of universal plasma in the Chinese population in vitro.

PubMed

Chen, Guanyi; Zhu, Liguo; Wang, Shufang; Zhuang, Yuan; Yu, Yang; Wang, Deqing

2017-04-01

The prepared procedure for universal plasma in the Chinese population has been developed. However, the immunological safety with the level of antibodies, soluble immune complexes and complements is necessary to investigate. The universal plasma was pooled at the optimal ratio of A:B:AB=6:2.5:1.5 at 22°C for 1 hour. The titer of IgM antibodies was detected by saline agglutination, and the titer of IgG antibodies was detected by a Polybrene test after IgM destroyed by 2-mereaptoethanol. The hemolysis extent of RBC was investigated by an extracorporal hemolysis test, and the concentration of free-hemoglobin was determined by the ortho-tolidine method. The levels of CIC-C1q, C3b and TCC (C5-9) were tested using an enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). The titer of IgM and IgG in universal plasma was lower than 2 and 4, respectively. The hemolysis of the universal plasma with A, B and AB group RBCs was negative with values of 5.5, 6.8 and 5.7, respectively. The level of CIC-C1q and TCC (C5-9) in universal plasma was comparable to that in A or B type pooled plasma, but CIC-C1q was lower than that and TCC (C5-9) was higher than that in AB type pooled plasma. The level of complement C3b was comparable to that in A type pooled plasma, but lower than that in B type pooled plasma and higher than that in AB type pooled plasma. The results of this study demonstrated that the immunological levels were within an acceptable range and confirmed the safety in vitro. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Validation of a Human Papillomavirus (HPV) DNA Cervical Screening Test That Provides Expanded HPV Typing.

PubMed

Demarco, Maria; Carter-Pokras, Olivia; Hyun, Noorie; Castle, Philip E; He, Xin; Dallal, Cher M; Chen, Jie; Gage, Julia C; Befano, Brian; Fetterman, Barbara; Lorey, Thomas; Poitras, Nancy; Raine-Bennett, Tina R; Wentzensen, Nicolas; Schiffman, Mark

2018-05-01

As cervical cancer screening shifts from cytology to human papillomavirus (HPV) testing, a major question is the clinical value of identifying individual HPV types. We aimed to validate Onclarity (Becton Dickinson Diagnostics, Sparks, MD), a nine-channel HPV test recently approved by the FDA, by assessing (i) the association of Onclarity types/channels with precancer/cancer; (ii) HPV type/channel agreement between the results of Onclarity and cobas (Roche Molecular Systems, Pleasanton, CA), another FDA-approved test; and (iii) Onclarity typing for all types/channels compared to typing results from a research assay (linear array [LA]; Roche). We compared Onclarity to histopathology, cobas, and LA. We tested a stratified random sample ( n = 9,701) of discarded routine clinical specimens that had tested positive by Hybrid Capture 2 (HC2; Qiagen, Germantown, MD). A subset had already been tested by cobas and LA ( n = 1,965). Cervical histopathology was ascertained from electronic health records. Hierarchical Onclarity channels showed a significant linear association with histological severity. Onclarity and cobas had excellent agreement on partial typing of HPV16, HPV18, and the other 12 types as a pool (sample-weighted kappa value of 0.83); cobas was slightly more sensitive for HPV18 and slightly less sensitive for the pooled high-risk types. Typing by Onclarity showed excellent agreement with types and groups of types identified by LA (kappa values from 0.80 for HPV39/68/35 to 0.97 for HPV16). Onclarity typing results corresponded well to histopathology and to an already validated HPV DNA test and could provide additional clinical typing if such discrimination is determined to be clinically desirable. This is a work of the U.S. Government and is not subject to copyright protection in the United States. Foreign copyrights may apply.

Weld pool development during GTA and laser beam welding of Type 304 stainless steel; Part I - theoretical analysis

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

Zacharia, T.; David, S.A.; Vitek, J.M.

1989-12-01

A computational and experimental study was carried out to quantitatively understand the influence of the heat flow and the fluid flow in the transient development of the weld pool during gas tungsten arc (GTA) and laser beam welding of Type 304 stainless steel. Stationary gas tungsten arc and laser beam welds were made on two heats of Type 304 austenitic stainless steels containing 90 ppm sulfur and 240 ppm sulfur. A transient heat transfer model was utilized to simulate the heat flow and fluid flow in the weld pool. In this paper, the results of the heat flow and fluidmore » flow analysis are presented.« less

An Analysis of Factors Affecting the Difficulty of Dialogue Items in TOEFL Listening Comprehension. TOEFL Research Reports, 51.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nissan, Susan; And Others

One of the item types in the Listening Comprehension section of the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) test is the dialogue. Because the dialogue item pool needs to have an appropriate balance of items at a range of difficulty levels, test developers have examined items at various difficulty levels in an attempt to identify their…

Systematic literature reviews and meta-analyses: part 6 of a series on evaluation of scientific publications.

PubMed

Ressing, Meike; Blettner, Maria; Klug, Stefanie J

2009-07-01

Because of the rising number of scientific publications, it is important to have a means of jointly summarizing and assessing different studies on a single topic. Systematic literature reviews, meta-analyses of published data, and meta-analyses of individual data (pooled reanalyses) are now being published with increasing frequency. We here describe the essential features of these methods and discuss their strengths and weaknesses. This article is based on a selective literature search. The different types of review and meta-analysis are described, the methods used in each are outlined so that they can be evaluated, and a checklist is given for the assessment of reviews and meta-analyses of scientific articles. Systematic literature reviews provide an overview of the state of research on a given topic and enable an assessment of the quality of individual studies. They also allow the results of different studies to be evaluated together when these are inconsistent. Meta-analyses additionally allow calculation of pooled estimates of an effect. The different types of review and meta-analysis are discussed with examples from the literature on one particular topic. Systematic literature reviews and meta-analyses enable the research findings and treatment effects obtained in different individual studies to be summed up and evaluated.

A fundamental study of nucleate pool boiling under microgravity

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ervin, Jamie S.; Merte, Herman, Jr.

1991-01-01

An experimental study of incipient boiling in short-term microgravity and with a/g = +/- 1 for pool boiling was performed. Calibrated thin gold films sputtered on a smoothly polished quartz surface were used simultaneously for thermal resistance measurements and heating of the boiling surface. The gold films were used for both transient and quasi-steady heating surface temperature measurements. Two test vessels were constructed for precise measurement and control of fluid temperature and pressure: a laboratory pool boiling vessel for the a/g = +/- experiments and a pool boiling vessel designed for the 131 m free-fall in the NASA Lewis Research Center Microgravity Research Facility for the microgravity tests. Measurements included the heater surface temperature, the pressure near the heating surface, and the bulk liquid temperatures. High speed photography was used in the experiments. With high quality microgravity and the measured initial temperature of the quiescent test fluid, R113, the temperature distribution in the liquid at the moment of boiling inception resulting from an imposed step in heat flux is known with a certainty not possible previously. The types of boiling propagation across the large flat heating surface are categorized; the conditions necessary for their occurrence are described. Explosive boiling propagation with a striking pattern of small scale protuberances over the entire vapor mass periphery not observed previously at low heat flux levels is described. For the heater surface with a/g = -1, a step in the heater surface temperature of short duration was imposed. The resulting liquid temperature distribution at the moment of boiling inception was different from that obtained with a step in heat flux.

48 CFR 9.702 - Contracting with pools.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-10-01

... PLANNING CONTRACTOR QUALIFICATIONS Defense Production Pools and Research and Development Pools 9.702... privileges accorded to small business concerns. Approval under the Defense Production Act does not confer...

48 CFR 9.702 - Contracting with pools.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-10-01

... PLANNING CONTRACTOR QUALIFICATIONS Defense Production Pools and Research and Development Pools 9.702... privileges accorded to small business concerns. Approval under the Defense Production Act does not confer...

48 CFR 9.702 - Contracting with pools.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

... PLANNING CONTRACTOR QUALIFICATIONS Defense Production Pools and Research and Development Pools 9.702... privileges accorded to small business concerns. Approval under the Defense Production Act does not confer...

48 CFR 9.702 - Contracting with pools.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-10-01

... PLANNING CONTRACTOR QUALIFICATIONS Defense Production Pools and Research and Development Pools 9.702... privileges accorded to small business concerns. Approval under the Defense Production Act does not confer...

Investigation on the Mechanism and Failure Mode of Laser Transmission Spot Welding Using PMMA Material for the Automotive Industry

PubMed Central

Wang, Xiao; Liu, Baoguang; Liu, Wei; Zhong, Xuejiao; Jiang, Yingjie; Liu, Huixia

2017-01-01

To satisfy the need of polymer connection in lightweight automobiles, a study on laser transmission spot welding using polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) is conducted by using an Nd:YAG pulse laser. The influence of three variables, namely peak voltages, defocusing distances and the welding type (type I (pulse frequency and the duration is 25 Hz, 0.6 s) and type II (pulse frequency and the duration is 5 Hz, 3 s)) to the welding quality was investigated. The result showed that, in the case of the same peak voltages and defocusing distances, the number of bubbles for type I was obviously more than type II. The failure mode of type I was the base plate fracture along the solder joint, and the connection strength of type I was greater than type II. The weld pool diameter:depth ratio for type I was significantly greater than type II. It could be seen that there was a certain relationship between the weld pool diameter:depth ratio and the welding strength. By the finite element simulation, the weld pool for type I was more slender than type II, which was approximately the same as the experimental results. PMID:28772383

Investigation on the Mechanism and Failure Mode of Laser Transmission Spot Welding Using PMMA Material for the Automotive Industry.

PubMed

Wang, Xiao; Liu, Baoguang; Liu, Wei; Zhong, Xuejiao; Jiang, Yingjie; Liu, Huixia

2017-01-01

To satisfy the need of polymer connection in lightweight automobiles, a study on laser transmission spot welding using polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) is conducted by using an Nd:YAG pulse laser. The influence of three variables, namely peak voltages, defocusing distances and the welding type (type I (pulse frequency and the duration is 25 Hz, 0.6 s) and type II (pulse frequency and the duration is 5 Hz, 3 s)) to the welding quality was investigated. The result showed that, in the case of the same peak voltages and defocusing distances, the number of bubbles for type I was obviously more than type II. The failure mode of type I was the base plate fracture along the solder joint, and the connection strength of type I was greater than type II. The weld pool diameter:depth ratio for type I was significantly greater than type II. It could be seen that there was a certain relationship between the weld pool diameter:depth ratio and the welding strength. By the finite element simulation, the weld pool for type I was more slender than type II, which was approximately the same as the experimental results.

Connecting Restricted, High-Availability, or Low-Latency Resources to a Seamless Global Pool for CMS

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Balcas, J.; Bockelman, B.; Hufnagel, D.; Hurtado Anampa, K.; Jayatilaka, B.; Khan, F.; Larson, K.; Letts, J.; Mascheroni, M.; Mohapatra, A.; Marra Da Silva, J.; Mason, D.; Perez-Calero Yzquierdo, A.; Piperov, S.; Tiradani, A.; Verguilov, V.; CMS Collaboration

2017-10-01

The connection of diverse and sometimes non-Grid enabled resource types to the CMS Global Pool, which is based on HTCondor and glideinWMS, has been a major goal of CMS. These resources range in type from a high-availability, low latency facility at CERN for urgent calibration studies, called the CAF, to a local user facility at the Fermilab LPC, allocation-based computing resources at NERSC and SDSC, opportunistic resources provided through the Open Science Grid, commercial clouds, and others, as well as access to opportunistic cycles on the CMS High Level Trigger farm. In addition, we have provided the capability to give priority to local users of beyond WLCG pledged resources at CMS sites. Many of the solutions employed to bring these diverse resource types into the Global Pool have common elements, while some are very specific to a particular project. This paper details some of the strategies and solutions used to access these resources through the Global Pool in a seamless manner.

Long term evaluation of characteristics in an artificial Northern California vernal pool system.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2003-04-01

This report (Phase II) completes an evaluation of 3 sets of 5 artificial vernal pools located on Travis AFB in Solano County CA. The research was done to determine if artificial vernal pools constructed on Travis AFB in 1993 maintained vernal pool ch...

Assessment of the cardiovascular safety of saxagliptin in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus: pooled analysis of 20 clinical trials.

PubMed

Iqbal, Nayyar; Parker, Artist; Frederich, Robert; Donovan, Mark; Hirshberg, Boaz

2014-02-04

It is important to establish the cardiovascular (CV) safety profile of novel antidiabetic drugs. Pooled analyses were performed of 20 randomized controlled studies (N = 9156) of saxagliptin as monotherapy or add-on therapy in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) as well as a subset of 11 saxagliptin + metformin studies. Adjudicated major adverse CV events (MACE; CV death, myocardial infarction [MI], and stroke) and investigator-reported heart failure were assessed, and incidence rates (IRs; events/100 patient-years) and IR ratios (IRRs; saxagliptin/control) were calculated (Mantel-Haenszel method). In pooled datasets, the IR point estimates for MACE and individual components of CV death, MI, and stroke favored saxagliptin, but the 95% CI included 1. IRR (95% CI) for MACE in the 20-study pool was 0.74 (0.45, 1.25). The Cox proportional hazard ratio (95% CI) was 0.75 (0.46, 1.21), suggesting no increased risk of MACE in the 20-study pool. In the 11-study saxagliptin + metformin pool, the IRR for MACE was 0.93 (0.44, 1.99). In the 20-study pool, the IRR for heart failure was 0.55 (0.27, 1.12). Analysis of pooled data from 20 clinical trials in patients with T2DM suggests that saxagliptin is not associated with an increased CV risk.

Addressing data privacy in matched studies via virtual pooling.

PubMed

Saha-Chaudhuri, P; Weinberg, C R

2017-09-07

Data confidentiality and shared use of research data are two desirable but sometimes conflicting goals in research with multi-center studies and distributed data. While ideal for straightforward analysis, confidentiality restrictions forbid creation of a single dataset that includes covariate information of all participants. Current approaches such as aggregate data sharing, distributed regression, meta-analysis and score-based methods can have important limitations. We propose a novel application of an existing epidemiologic tool, specimen pooling, to enable confidentiality-preserving analysis of data arising from a matched case-control, multi-center design. Instead of pooling specimens prior to assay, we apply the methodology to virtually pool (aggregate) covariates within nodes. Such virtual pooling retains most of the information used in an analysis with individual data and since individual participant data is not shared externally, within-node virtual pooling preserves data confidentiality. We show that aggregated covariate levels can be used in a conditional logistic regression model to estimate individual-level odds ratios of interest. The parameter estimates from the standard conditional logistic regression are compared to the estimates based on a conditional logistic regression model with aggregated data. The parameter estimates are shown to be similar to those without pooling and to have comparable standard errors and confidence interval coverage. Virtual data pooling can be used to maintain confidentiality of data from multi-center study and can be particularly useful in research with large-scale distributed data.

Safety and tolerability of exenatide twice daily in patients with type 2 diabetes: integrated analysis of 5594 patients from 19 placebo-controlled and comparator-controlled clinical trials

PubMed Central

MacConell, Leigh; Brown, Carl; Gurney, Kate; Han, Jenny

2012-01-01

Background Exenatide twice daily is a first-in-class glucagon-like peptide receptor agonist approved for the treatment of type 2 diabetes. The objective of this analysis was to evaluate the safety profile of exenatide twice daily and to compare its profile with that of a pooled comparator (placebo and insulin) in patients with type 2 diabetes. Methods Data from 19 completed, randomized, controlled clinical trials of exenatide twice daily (5 μg and 10 μg) were pooled and analyzed; the pooled data included 5594 intent-to-treat patients who were followed for 12–52 weeks. Incidence rates, exposure-adjusted incidence rates, and 95% confidence intervals around risk differences between groups were calculated. Results Baseline demographics and exposure time were comparable between groups (exenatide, N = 3261; pooled comparator, N = 2333; mean exposure time 166–171 days). Transient, mild- to-moderate nausea was the most frequent adverse event with exenatide (36.9% versus 8.3% in the pooled comparator). The incidence of hypoglycemia (minor or major) with concomitant sulfonylurea (exenatide 26.5%, pooled comparator 20.7%) was higher than that without sulfonylurea (exenatide 3.1%, pooled comparator 2.7%) in all groups. Serious adverse events, discontinuations due to serious adverse events, and deaths were reported with similar frequency in the exenatide and pooled comparator groups. Composite exposure-adjusted incidence rates were not statistically different between groups for pancreatitis, renal impairment, or major adverse cardiac events; there was a difference in incidence rates for benign thyroid neoplasm (0.3% versus 0%). Conclusion Overall, this analysis, representing over 1500 patient-years of exposure, demonstrated that exenatide twice daily was safe and generally well tolerated in patients with type 2 diabetes. The incidence of most adverse events, including serious adverse events, was similar in both exenatide-treated and comparator-treated patients. The most distinct differences between groups were in gastrointestinal-related adverse events, which is consistent with other therapies within the glucagon-like peptide class. PMID:22375098

Convenient yet not a convenience sample: Jury pools as experimental subject pools.

PubMed

Murray, Gregg R; Rugeley, Cynthia R; Mitchell, Dona-Gene; Mondak, Jeffery J

2013-01-01

Scholars greatly benefit from access to convenient, inexpensive data sources. Many researchers rely on student subject pools, a practice that raises concern about the "college sophomore problem," or the possibility that findings from student subjects do not generalize beyond the campus. As an accessible, low cost, and heterogeneous data source, some researchers have used subjects recruited from jury pools, which are drawn from randomly-selected citizens required by law to appear for jury duty. In this paper, we discuss the strengths and weaknesses of this approach. First, we review pragmatic considerations involving access to jury pools, substantive content, the administration of survey-experiments, and the financial costs and benefits of this approach. Next, we present evidence regarding the quality of jury pool samples in terms of response rates, diversity, and representativeness. We conclude that jury pools, given proper attention to their limitations, offer an attractive addition to the viable sources of experimental data. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

ECS DAAC Data Pools

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kiebuzinski, A. B.; Bories, C. M.; Kalluri, S.

2002-12-01

As part of its Earth Observing System (EOS), NASA supports operations for several satellites including Landsat 7, Terra, and Aqua. ECS (EOSDIS Core System) is a vast archival and distribution system and includes several Distributed Active Archive Centers (DAACs) located around the United States. EOSDIS reached a milestone in February when its data holdings exceeded one petabyte (1,000 terabytes) in size. It has been operational since 1999 and originally was intended to serve a large community of Earth Science researchers studying global climate change. The Synergy Program was initiated in 2000 with the purpose of exploring and expanding the use of remote sensing data beyond the traditional research community to the applications community including natural resource managers, disaster/emergency managers, urban planners and others. This included facilitating data access at the DAACs to enable non-researchers to exploit the data for their specific applications. The combined volume of data archived daily across the DAACs is of the order of three terabytes. These archived data are made available to the research community and to general users of ECS data. Currently, the average data volume distributed daily is two terabytes, which combined with an ever-increasing need for timely access to these data, taxes the ECS processing and archival resources for more real-time use than was previously intended for research purposes. As a result, the delivery of data sets to users was being delayed in many cases, to unacceptable limits. Raytheon, under the auspices of the Synergy Program, investigated methods at making data more accessible at a lower cost of resources (processing and archival) at the DAACs. Large on-line caches (as big as 70 Terabytes) of data were determined to be a solution that would allow users who require contemporary data to access them without having to pull it from the archive. These on-line caches are referred to as "Data Pools." In the Data Pool concept, data is inserted via subscriptions based on ECS events, for example, arrival of data matching a specific spatial context. Upon acquisition, these data are written to the Data Pools as well as to the permanent archive. The data is then accessed via a public Web interface, which provides a drilldown search, using data group, spatial, temporal and other flags. The result set is displayed as a list of ftp links to the data, which the user can click and directly download. Data Pool holdings are continuously renewed as the data is allowed to expire and is replaced by more current insertions. In addition, the Data Pool may also house data sets that though not contemporary, receive significant user attention, i.e. a Chernobyl-type of incident, a flood, or a forest fire. The benefits are that users who require contemporary data can access the data immediately (within 24 hours of acquisition) under a much improved access technique. Users not requiring contemporary data, benefit from the Data Pools by having greater archival and processing resources (and a shorter processing queue) made available to them. All users benefit now from the capability to have standing data orders for data matching a geographic context (spatial subscription), a capability also developed under the Synergy program. The Data Pools are currently being installed and checked at each of the DAACs. Additionally, several improvements to the search capabilities, data manipulation tools and overall storage capacity are being developed and will be installed in the First Quarter of 2003.

Prevalence of School Bullying Among Youth with Autism Spectrum Disorders: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

PubMed

Maïano, Christophe; Normand, Claude L; Salvas, Marie-Claude; Moullec, Grégory; Aimé, Annie

2016-06-01

The true extent of school bullying among youth with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) remains an underexplored area. The purpose of this meta-analysis is to: (a) assess the proportion of school-aged youth with ASD involved in school bullying as perpetrators, victims or both; (b) examine whether the observed prevalence estimates vary when different sources of heterogeneity related to the participants' characteristics and to the assessment methods are considered; and (c) compare the risk of school bullying between youth with ASD and their typically developing (TD) peers. A systematic literature search was performed and 17 studies met the inclusion criteria. The resulting pooled prevalence estimate for general school bullying perpetration, victimization and both was 10%, 44%, and 16%, respectively. Pooled prevalence was also estimated for physical, verbal, and relational school victimization and was 33%, 50%, and 31%, respectively. Moreover, subgroup analyses showed significant variations in the pooled prevalence by geographic location, school setting, information source, type of measures, assessment time frame, and bullying frequency criterion. Finally, school-aged youth with ASD were found to be at greater risk of school victimization in general, as well as verbal bullying, than their TD peers. Autism Res 2016, 9: 601-615. © 2015 International Society for Autism Research, Wiley Periodicals, Inc. © 2015 International Society for Autism Research, Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

A Fundamental Study of Nucleate Pool Boiling Under Microgravity

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ervin, Jamie S.; Merte, Herman, Jr.

1996-01-01

An experimental study of incipient boiling in short-term microgravity and with a/g = +/- 1 for pool boiling was performed. Calibrated thin gold films sputtered on a smoothly polished quartz surface were used simultaneously for thermal-resistance measurements and heating of the boiling surface. The gold films were used for both transient and quasi-steady heating surface temperature measurements. Two test vessels were constructed for precise measurement and control of fluid temperature and pressure: a laboratory pool boiling vessel for the a/g = +/- 1 experiments and a pool boiling vessel designed for the 131 m free-fall in the NASA Lewis Research Center Microgravity Research Facility for the microgravity tests. Measurements included the heater surface temperature, the pressure near the heating surface, the bulk liquid temperatures. High speed photography (up to 1,000 frames per second) was used in the experiments. With high quality microgravity and the measured initial temperature of the quiescent test fluid, R113, the temperature distribution in the liquid at the moment of boiling inception resulting from an imposed step in heat flux is known with a certainty not possible previously. The types of boiling propagation across the large flat heating surface, some observed here for the first time, are categorized; the conditions necessary for their occurrence are described. Explosive boiling propagation with a striking pattern of small scale protuberances over the entire vapor mass periphery not observed previously at low heat flux levels (on the order of 5 W/cm(exp 2)) is described. For the heater surface with a/g = -1, a step in the heater surface temperature of short duration was imposed. The resulting liquid temperature distribution at the moment of boiling inception was different from that obtained with a step in heat flux.

Carbon Budgets for Four Forests in Northern California

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mattson, K. G.; Zhang, J.; Cohn, E. P.

2016-12-01

Carbon pools and fluxes are being measured in the first two years in four forest types in Northern California as part of a long-term experiment where canopies will be experimentally thinned to test the effects of forest canopy on carbon cycling. All major pools of carbon have been quantified along with most fluxes between pools. The pools are not techincally difficult to measure or estimate, the fluxes can be more difficult. But using our field measures are in a bookkeeping model of carbon pools and annual fluxes we can develop reasonably accurate carbon cycles in these four forests. We use direct measures as much as possible (litterfall, soil CO2 efflux, wood decay, harvests, etc), then make reasonable assumptions for more difficult measures (e.g., annual gross primary production, tree mortality, root decomposition, soil carbon turnover), and finally make some estimates by difference (root mortality or soil carbon turnover). We are able to construct models that balance carbon pools similar to our measures. The four forest types range considerably in their carbon budgets and cycles. Above ground live biomass carbon pool ranges from 104Mg C ha-1 for the 50 year old Ponderosa Pine conversion stands to more than double that 265 for the True Fir stand found at higher elevation (greater than 6,000 feet). The Mixed Conifer (the most representative forest type) and the Oak Stand (up to 60 % basal area California black oak) are both mid way between at 140 and 155, respectively. The detrital carbon pools generally follow the above ground biomass trends and contain greater pool sizes (down to 100 cm soil depths). Approximately 2/3rds of the detrital carbon is stored in the mineral soil but significant amounts are also stored in the forest floors and woody debris. Live small roots are relatively small pools of about 5 Mg C ha-1 but active and nearly turnover each year. Live roots produce about half the soil CO2 efflux. Dead roots are generally twice the size of live roots and turnover at half the rate. Woody debris appears to be an important contributor to below ground carbon. We have derived a humification coefficient where 2/3 of the decomposed carbon leaves the system as CO2 but more importantly up 1/3 remains behind to enter the next pool.

Evolutionarily Conserved Epitopes on Human Immunodeficiency Virus Type 1 (HIV-1) and Feline Immunodeficiency Virus Reverse Transcriptases Detected by HIV-1-Infected Subjects

PubMed Central

Sanou, Missa P.; Roff, Shannon R.; Mennella, Antony; Sleasman, John W.; Rathore, Mobeen H.; Levy, Jay A.

2013-01-01

Anti-human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) cytotoxic T lymphocyte (CTL)-associated epitopes, evolutionarily conserved on both HIV type 1 (HIV-1) and feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV) reverse transcriptases (RT), were identified using gamma interferon (IFN-γ) enzyme-linked immunosorbent spot (ELISpot) and carboxyfluorescein diacetate succinimide ester (CFSE) proliferation assays followed by CTL-associated cytotoxin analysis. The peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) or T cells from HIV-1-seropositive (HIV+) subjects were stimulated with overlapping RT peptide pools. The PBMC from the HIV+ subjects had more robust IFN-γ responses to the HIV-1 peptide pools than to the FIV peptide pools, except for peptide-pool F3. In contrast, much higher and more frequent CD8+ T-cell proliferation responses were observed with the FIV peptide pools than with the HIV peptide pools. HIV-1-seronegative subjects had no proliferation or IFN-γ responses to the HIV and FIV peptide pools. A total of 24% (40 of 166) of the IFN-γ responses to HIV pools and 43% (23 of 53) of the CD8+ T-cell proliferation responses also correlated to responses to their counterpart FIV pools. Thus, more evolutionarily conserved functional epitopes were identified by T-cell proliferation than by IFN-γ responses. In the HIV+ subjects, peptide-pool F3, but not the HIV H3 counterpart, induced the most IFN-γ and proliferation responses. These reactions to peptide-pool F3 were highly reproducible and persisted over the 1 to 2 years of testing. All five individual peptides and epitopes of peptide-pool F3 induced IFN-γ and/or proliferation responses in addition to inducing CTL-associated cytotoxin responses (perforin, granzyme A, granzyme B). The epitopes inducing polyfunctional T-cell activities were highly conserved among human, simian, feline, and ungulate lentiviruses, which indicated that these epitopes are evolutionarily conserved. These results suggest that FIV peptides could be used in an HIV-1 vaccine. PMID:23824804

Item Pool Design for an Operational Variable-Length Computerized Adaptive Test

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

He, Wei; Reckase, Mark D.

2014-01-01

For computerized adaptive tests (CATs) to work well, they must have an item pool with sufficient numbers of good quality items. Many researchers have pointed out that, in developing item pools for CATs, not only is the item pool size important but also the distribution of item parameters and practical considerations such as content distribution…

Hospital hydrotherapy pools treated with ultra violet light: bad bacteriological quality and presence of thermophilic Naegleria.

PubMed Central

De Jonckheere, J. F.

1982-01-01

The microbiological quality of eight halogenated and two u.v.-treated hydrotherapy pools in hospitals was investigated. The microbiological quality of halogenated hydrotherapy pools was comparable to halogenated public swimming pools, although in some Pseudomonas aeruginosa and faecal pollution indicators were more frequent due to bad management. On the other hand u.v.-treated hydrotherapy pools had very bad microbiological quality. Apart from faecal pollution indicators, P. aeruginosa was present in very high numbers. Halogenated hydrotherapy pools were not highly contaminated with amoebae, and Naegleria spp. were never detected. On the other hand u.v.-treated pools contained very high numbers of thermophilic Naegleria. The Naegleria isolated were identified as N. lovaniensis, a species commonly found in association with N. fowleri. Isoenzyme analysis showed a different type of N. lovaniensis was present in each of two u.v.-treated pools. Images Plate 1 PMID:7061835

Antioxidant plasticity and thermal sensitivity in four types of Symbiodinium sp.

PubMed

Krueger, Thomas; Becker, Susanne; Pontasch, Stefanie; Dove, Sophie; Hoegh-Guldberg, Ove; Leggat, William; Fisher, Paul L; Davy, Simon K

2014-12-01

Warmer than average summer sea surface temperature is one of the main drivers for coral bleaching, which describes the loss of endosymbiotic dinoflagellates (genus: Symbiodinium) in reef-building corals. Past research has established that oxidative stress in the symbiont plays an important part in the bleaching cascade. Corals hosting different genotypes of Symbiodinium may have varying thermal bleaching thresholds, but changes in the symbiont's antioxidant system that may accompany these differences have received less attention. This study shows that constitutive activity and up-regulation of different parts of the antioxidant network under thermal stress differs between four Symbiodinium types in culture and that thermal susceptibility can be linked to glutathione redox homeostasis. In Symbiodinium B1, C1 and E, declining maximum quantum yield of PSII (Fv /Fm ) and death at 33°C were generally associated with elevated superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity and a more oxidized glutathione pool. Symbiodinium F1 exhibited no decline in Fv /Fm or growth, but showed proportionally larger increases in ascorbate peroxidase (APX) activity and glutathione content (GSx), while maintaining GSx in a reduced state. Depressed growth in Symbiodinium B1 at a sublethal temperature of 29°C was associated with transiently increased APX activity and glutathione pool size, and an overall increase in glutathione reductase (GR) activity. The collapse of GR activity at 33°C, together with increased SOD, APX and glutathione S-transferase activity, contributed to a strong oxidation of the glutathione pool with subsequent death. Integrating responses of multiple components of the antioxidant network highlights the importance of antioxidant plasticity in explaining type-specific temperature responses in Symbiodinium. © 2014 Phycological Society of America.

Countering the al-Shabaab Insurgency in Somalia: Lessons for U.S. Special Operations Forces

DTIC Science & Technology

2014-02-01

comply with a collection of information if it does not display a currently valid OMB control number. 1. REPORT DATE FEB 2014 2. REPORT TYPE 3...and analysis, publishing on a broad range of issues important to the Special Operations community . A prolific author, Dr. Tur- biville researched and...the enabler, or students from a wide spectrum of disciplines will find the work insightful and informative . Kenneth H. Poole, Ed.D. Director, JSOU

Assessment of the cardiovascular safety of saxagliptin in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus: pooled analysis of 20 clinical trials

PubMed Central

2014-01-01

Background It is important to establish the cardiovascular (CV) safety profile of novel antidiabetic drugs. Methods Pooled analyses were performed of 20 randomized controlled studies (N = 9156) of saxagliptin as monotherapy or add-on therapy in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) as well as a subset of 11 saxagliptin + metformin studies. Adjudicated major adverse CV events (MACE; CV death, myocardial infarction [MI], and stroke) and investigator-reported heart failure were assessed, and incidence rates (IRs; events/100 patient-years) and IR ratios (IRRs; saxagliptin/control) were calculated (Mantel-Haenszel method). Results In pooled datasets, the IR point estimates for MACE and individual components of CV death, MI, and stroke favored saxagliptin, but the 95% CI included 1. IRR (95% CI) for MACE in the 20-study pool was 0.74 (0.45, 1.25). The Cox proportional hazard ratio (95% CI) was 0.75 (0.46, 1.21), suggesting no increased risk of MACE in the 20-study pool. In the 11-study saxagliptin + metformin pool, the IRR for MACE was 0.93 (0.44, 1.99). In the 20-study pool, the IRR for heart failure was 0.55 (0.27, 1.12). Conclusions Analysis of pooled data from 20 clinical trials in patients with T2DM suggests that saxagliptin is not associated with an increased CV risk. PMID:24490835

Associations between food and beverage groups and major diet-related chronic diseases: an exhaustive review of pooled/meta-analyses and systematic reviews.

PubMed

Fardet, Anthony; Boirie, Yves

2014-12-01

Associations between food and beverage groups and the risk of diet-related chronic disease (DRCD) have been the subject of intensive research in preventive nutrition. Pooled/meta-analyses and systematic reviews (PMASRs) aim to better characterize these associations. To date, however, there has been no attempt to synthesize all PMASRs that have assessed the relationship between food and beverage groups and DRCDs. The objectives of this review were to aggregate PMASRs to obtain an overview of the associations between food and beverage groups (n = 17) and DRCDs (n = 10) and to establish new directions for future research needs. The present review of 304 PMASRs published between 1950 and 2013 confirmed that plant food groups are more protective than animal food groups against DRCDs. Within plant food groups, grain products are more protective than fruits and vegetables. Among animal food groups, dairy/milk products have a neutral effect on the risk of DRCDs, while red/processed meats tend to increase the risk. Among beverages, tea was the most protective and soft drinks the least protective against DRCDs. For two of the DRCDs examined, sarcopenia and kidney disease, no PMASR was found. Overweight/obesity, type 2 diabetes, and various types of cardiovascular disease and cancer accounted for 289 of the PMASRs. There is a crucial need to further study the associations between food and beverage groups and mental health, skeletal health, digestive diseases, liver diseases, kidney diseases, obesity, and type 2 diabetes. © 2014 International Life Sciences Institute.

Design of hydrotherapy exercise pools.

PubMed

Edlich, R F; Abidin, M R; Becker, D G; Pavlovich, L J; Dang, M T

1988-01-01

Several hydrotherapy pools have been designed specifically for a variety of aquatic exercise. Aqua-Ark positions the exerciser in the center of the pool for deep-water exercise. Aqua-Trex is a shallow underwater treadmill system for water walking or jogging. Swim-Ex generates an adjustable laminar flow that permits swimming without turning. Musculoskeletal conditioning can be accomplished in the above-ground Arjo shallow-water exercise pool. A hydrotherapy pool also can be custom designed for musculoskeletal conditioning in its shallow part and cardiovascular conditioning in a deeper portion of the pool. Regardless of the type of exercise, there is general agreement that the specific exercise conducted in water requires significantly more energy expenditure than when the same exercise is performed on land.

Can Human Subject Pool Participation Benefit Sociology Students?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chin, Lynn Gencianeo; Gibbs Stayte, Patricia

2015-01-01

Instructors at non-research institutions are less able to expose their students to research firsthand. Utilizing human subject pools (HSPs) in class may be a solution. Given that HSPs tend to be used in introduction to psychology classes at research institutions, we examine a community college HSP to answer three questions: (1) Do community…

Distribution of oligochaetes in a stream in the Atlantic Forest in southeastern Brazil.

PubMed

Rosa, B F J V; Martins, R T; Alves, R G

2015-01-01

The oligochaetes are considered good indicators of ecological conditions and specific types of habitats. Among the factors that influence the distribution of these invertebrates are the water flow and the nature of the substrate. The aim of this study is to describe the composition and distribution of oligochaete species in a first-order stream in Atlantic Forest and try to identify if some species are associated with characteristics of particular types of habitats. In the dry season and in the rainy season, sand and litter samples in two riffle areas and two pool areas were collected in different parts along the stream using a hand net. The greatest observed richness and abundance occurred in sand in the pool, however the greatest estimated richness was obtained for litter in the pool. The Kruskal-Wallis analysis showed effect of the different types of habitat on the abundance and richness of oligochaetes. The Nonmetric Multidimensional Scaling (NMDS) and Multiresponse Permutation Procedure analysis (MRPP) indicated that the variation in the fauna composition had relation with different types of substrates. The indicator species analysis showed that Limnodrilus. hoffmeisteri was an indicator species in both the riffle sand and pool sand and Pristina americana was only an indicator in the pool sand. The high organic matter content in both sandy habitats probably favored the greater abundance of oligochaetes. The results showed that the substrate constitutes an important factor for the local distribution of these invertebrates in streams. The variation of the community structure among mesohabitats and the presence of indicator species of specific types of habitats in the stream demonstrate the importance of environmental heterogeneity for the oligochaetes fauna in forested streams.

48 CFR 9.703 - Contracting with individual pool members.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

... 48 Federal Acquisition Regulations System 1 2011-10-01 2011-10-01 false Contracting with individual pool members. 9.703 Section 9.703 Federal Acquisition Regulations System FEDERAL ACQUISITION REGULATION ACQUISITION PLANNING CONTRACTOR QUALIFICATIONS Defense Production Pools and Research and...

48 CFR 9.703 - Contracting with individual pool members.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-10-01

... 48 Federal Acquisition Regulations System 1 2013-10-01 2013-10-01 false Contracting with individual pool members. 9.703 Section 9.703 Federal Acquisition Regulations System FEDERAL ACQUISITION REGULATION ACQUISITION PLANNING CONTRACTOR QUALIFICATIONS Defense Production Pools and Research and...

48 CFR 9.703 - Contracting with individual pool members.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-10-01

... 48 Federal Acquisition Regulations System 1 2014-10-01 2014-10-01 false Contracting with individual pool members. 9.703 Section 9.703 Federal Acquisition Regulations System FEDERAL ACQUISITION REGULATION ACQUISITION PLANNING CONTRACTOR QUALIFICATIONS Defense Production Pools and Research and...

48 CFR 9.703 - Contracting with individual pool members.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-10-01

... 48 Federal Acquisition Regulations System 1 2012-10-01 2012-10-01 false Contracting with individual pool members. 9.703 Section 9.703 Federal Acquisition Regulations System FEDERAL ACQUISITION REGULATION ACQUISITION PLANNING CONTRACTOR QUALIFICATIONS Defense Production Pools and Research and...

48 CFR 9.703 - Contracting with individual pool members.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... 48 Federal Acquisition Regulations System 1 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Contracting with individual pool members. 9.703 Section 9.703 Federal Acquisition Regulations System FEDERAL ACQUISITION REGULATION ACQUISITION PLANNING CONTRACTOR QUALIFICATIONS Defense Production Pools and Research and...

Comprehensive Identification of Chemical DBPs from Chlorinated and Brominated Swimming Pools

EPA Science Inventory

Swimming pools have been recently recognized as important routes of exposure to potentially harmful chemicals. Previous epidemiologic research has shown increased incidence of asthma and other respiratory effects for people who have significant indoor swimming pool exposures, an...

Effects of riffle length on the short-term movement of fishes among stream pools.

Treesearch

David George Lonzarich; Mary Ruth Elger Lonzrich; Melvin L. Warren

2000-01-01

Recent research has suggested that the within-habitat dynamics of fish populations and assemblages can be affected by the spatial distribution of habitats within streams. In this study, we determined the extent to which pool isolation (length of riffles connecting adjacent pools) influenced fish movement in two Arkansas streams. We marked individuals from 12 pools...

Increased Risk of Tinea Pedis and Onychomycosis Among Swimming Pool Employees in Netanya Area, Israel.

PubMed

Shemer, Avner; Gupta, Aditya K; Amichai, Boaz; Baum, Sharon; Barzilai, Aviv; Farhi, Renata; Kaplan, Yehonathan; MacLeod, Melissa A

2016-12-01

Tinea pedis and onychomycosis often co-occur in individuals. A relationship between swimming pools and tinea pedis exists; however, little research has investigated the relationship between onychomycosis, tinea pedis, and swimming pools. This study sought to examine the prevalence of tinea pedis and onychomycosis among swimming pool employees, a population that may be at risk of tinea infections. Samples were taken from 169 employees at 21 swimming pools in the Netanya area, Israel. KOH microscopy and culture was used to identify fungi. About 46 % of swimming pool employees had concurrent tinea pedis and onychomycosis, 30 % had tinea pedis only, and 6 % had onychomycosis only, compared to 10, 8, and 8 % of controls, respectively. After adjusting for age and gender, swimming pool employees were 20× more likely to have concurrent tinea pedis and onychomycosis, 15× more likely to have tinea pedis only, and 3× more likely to have onychomycosis only compared to controls. The present results are in agreement with previous research and support that swimming pools remain an important source of fungal contamination. More attention to hygienic guidelines and preventative measures may be needed in these settings.

Patient characteristics associated with venous thromboembolic events: a cohort study using pooled electronic health record data

PubMed Central

Foster, Wendy; Gilder, Jason; Love, Thomas E; Jain, Anil K

2012-01-01

Objective To demonstrate the potential of de-identified clinical data from multiple healthcare systems using different electronic health records (EHR) to be efficiently used for very large retrospective cohort studies. Materials and methods Data of 959 030 patients, pooled from multiple different healthcare systems with distinct EHR, were obtained. Data were standardized and normalized using common ontologies, searchable through a HIPAA-compliant, patient de-identified web application (Explore; Explorys Inc). Patients were 26 years or older seen in multiple healthcare systems from 1999 to 2011 with data from EHR. Results Comparing obese, tall subjects with normal body mass index, short subjects, the venous thromboembolic events (VTE) OR was 1.83 (95% CI 1.76 to 1.91) for women and 1.21 (1.10 to 1.32) for men. Weight had more effect then height on VTE. Compared with Caucasian, Hispanic/Latino subjects had a much lower risk of VTE (female OR 0.47, 0.41 to 0.55; male OR 0.24, 0.20 to 0.28) and African-Americans a substantially higher risk (female OR 1.83, 1.76 to 1.91; male OR 1.58, 1.50 to 1.66). This 13-year retrospective study of almost one million patients was performed over approximately 125 h in 11 weeks, part time by the five authors. Discussion As research informatics tools develop and more clinical data become available in EHR, it is important to study and understand unique opportunities for clinical research informatics to transform the scale and resources needed to perform certain types of clinical research. Conclusions With the right clinical research informatics tools and EHR data, some types of very large cohort studies can be completed with minimal resources. PMID:22759621

Carbon pools along headwater streams with differing valley geometry in Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado (Abstract)

Treesearch

Kathleen A. Dwire; Ellen E. Wohl; Nicholas A. Sutfin; Roberto A. Bazan; Lina Polvi-Pilgrim

2012-01-01

Headwaters are known to be important in the global carbon cycle, yet few studies have investigated carbon (C) pools along stream-riparian corridors. To better understand the spatial distribution of C storage in headwater fluvial networks, we estimated above- and below-ground C pools in 100-m-long reaches in six different valley types in Rocky Mountain National Park,...

Deep-learning-based classification of FDG-PET data for Alzheimer's disease categories

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Singh, Shibani; Srivastava, Anant; Mi, Liang; Caselli, Richard J.; Chen, Kewei; Goradia, Dhruman; Reiman, Eric M.; Wang, Yalin

2017-11-01

Fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) positron emission tomography (PET) measures the decline in the regional cerebral metabolic rate for glucose, offering a reliable metabolic biomarker even on presymptomatic Alzheimer's disease (AD) patients. PET scans provide functional information that is unique and unavailable using other types of imaging. However, the computational efficacy of FDG-PET data alone, for the classification of various Alzheimers Diagnostic categories, has not been well studied. This motivates us to correctly discriminate various AD Diagnostic categories using FDG-PET data. Deep learning has improved state-of-the-art classification accuracies in the areas of speech, signal, image, video, text mining and recognition. We propose novel methods that involve probabilistic principal component analysis on max-pooled data and mean-pooled data for dimensionality reduction, and multilayer feed forward neural network which performs binary classification. Our experimental dataset consists of baseline data of subjects including 186 cognitively unimpaired (CU) subjects, 336 mild cognitive impairment (MCI) subjects with 158 Late MCI and 178 Early MCI, and 146 AD patients from Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative (ADNI) dataset. We measured F1-measure, precision, recall, negative and positive predictive values with a 10-fold cross validation scheme. Our results indicate that our designed classifiers achieve competitive results while max pooling achieves better classification performance compared to mean-pooled features. Our deep model based research may advance FDG-PET analysis by demonstrating their potential as an effective imaging biomarker of AD.

ViPAR: a software platform for the Virtual Pooling and Analysis of Research Data.

PubMed

Carter, Kim W; Francis, Richard W; Carter, K W; Francis, R W; Bresnahan, M; Gissler, M; Grønborg, T K; Gross, R; Gunnes, N; Hammond, G; Hornig, M; Hultman, C M; Huttunen, J; Langridge, A; Leonard, H; Newman, S; Parner, E T; Petersson, G; Reichenberg, A; Sandin, S; Schendel, D E; Schalkwyk, L; Sourander, A; Steadman, C; Stoltenberg, C; Suominen, A; Surén, P; Susser, E; Sylvester Vethanayagam, A; Yusof, Z

2016-04-01

Research studies exploring the determinants of disease require sufficient statistical power to detect meaningful effects. Sample size is often increased through centralized pooling of disparately located datasets, though ethical, privacy and data ownership issues can often hamper this process. Methods that facilitate the sharing of research data that are sympathetic with these issues and which allow flexible and detailed statistical analyses are therefore in critical need. We have created a software platform for the Virtual Pooling and Analysis of Research data (ViPAR), which employs free and open source methods to provide researchers with a web-based platform to analyse datasets housed in disparate locations. Database federation permits controlled access to remotely located datasets from a central location. The Secure Shell protocol allows data to be securely exchanged between devices over an insecure network. ViPAR combines these free technologies into a solution that facilitates 'virtual pooling' where data can be temporarily pooled into computer memory and made available for analysis without the need for permanent central storage. Within the ViPAR infrastructure, remote sites manage their own harmonized research dataset in a database hosted at their site, while a central server hosts the data federation component and a secure analysis portal. When an analysis is initiated, requested data are retrieved from each remote site and virtually pooled at the central site. The data are then analysed by statistical software and, on completion, results of the analysis are returned to the user and the virtually pooled data are removed from memory. ViPAR is a secure, flexible and powerful analysis platform built on open source technology that is currently in use by large international consortia, and is made publicly available at [http://bioinformatics.childhealthresearch.org.au/software/vipar/]. © The Author 2015. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the International Epidemiological Association.

Type 2 Diabetes as a Risk Factor for Dementia in Women Compared With Men: A Pooled Analysis of 2.3 Million People Comprising More Than 100,000 Cases of Dementia

PubMed Central

Chatterjee, Saion; Peters, Sanne A.E.; Woodward, Mark; Mejia Arango, Silvia; Batty, G. David; Beckett, Nigel; Beiser, Alexa; Borenstein, Amy R.; Crane, Paul K.; Haan, Mary; Hassing, Linda B.; Hayden, Kathleen M.; Kiyohara, Yutaka; Larson, Eric B.; Li, Chung-Yi; Ninomiya, Toshiharu; Ohara, Tomoyuki; Peters, Ruth; Russ, Tom C.; Seshadri, Sudha; Strand, Bjørn H.; Walker, Rod; Xu, Weili

2016-01-01

OBJECTIVE Type 2 diabetes confers a greater excess risk of cardiovascular disease in women than in men. Diabetes is also a risk factor for dementia, but whether the association is similar in women and men remains unknown. We performed a meta-analysis of unpublished data to estimate the sex-specific relationship between women and men with diabetes with incident dementia. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS A systematic search identified studies published prior to November 2014 that had reported on the prospective association between diabetes and dementia. Study authors contributed unpublished sex-specific relative risks (RRs) and 95% CIs on the association between diabetes and all dementia and its subtypes. Sex-specific RRs and the women-to-men ratio of RRs (RRRs) were pooled using random-effects meta-analyses. RESULTS Study-level data from 14 studies, 2,310,330 individuals, and 102,174 dementia case patients were included. In multiple-adjusted analyses, diabetes was associated with a 60% increased risk of any dementia in both sexes (women: pooled RR 1.62 [95% CI 1.45–1.80]; men: pooled RR 1.58 [95% CI 1.38–1.81]). The diabetes-associated RRs for vascular dementia were 2.34 (95% CI 1.86–2.94) in women and 1.73 (95% CI 1.61–1.85) in men, and for nonvascular dementia, the RRs were 1.53 (95% CI 1.35–1.73) in women and 1.49 (95% CI 1.31–1.69) in men. Overall, women with diabetes had a 19% greater risk for the development of vascular dementia than men (multiple-adjusted RRR 1.19 [95% CI 1.08–1.30]; P < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS Individuals with type 2 diabetes are at ∼60% greater risk for the development of dementia compared with those without diabetes. For vascular dementia, but not for nonvascular dementia, the additional risk is greater in women. PMID:26681727

Associations between Depression and Health Behaviour Change: Findings from 8 Cycles of the Canadian Community Health Survey.

PubMed

Clayborne, Zahra M; Colman, Ian

2018-01-01

The primary objective of this study was to examine associations between depression and several measures of health behaviour change across 8 cycles of a population-based, cross-sectional survey of Canadians. The secondary objective of this study was to describe the prevalence of the types of health behaviour changes undergone/sought and types of barriers to change reported, comparing those with and without depression. The sample comprised 65,801 respondents to the Canadian Community Health Survey between 2007 and 2014. Past-year depression was assessed via structured interview (CIDI-SF). Measures of health behaviour change included recent changes made, desire to make changes, and barriers towards making changes. Analyses involved logistic regression, with estimates across cycles pooled using fixed-effects meta-analyses. Pooled prevalences of types of health behaviour changes undergone/sought and types of barriers to change experienced were reported, and associations with depression were examined. Depression was associated with higher odds of reporting a recent health behaviour change (pooled odds ratio [OR] = 1.39; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.30 to 1.48), desire to make health behaviour changes (pooled OR = 1.61; 95% CI, 1.49 to 1.74), and barriers towards change (pooled OR = 1.54; 95% CI, 1.44 to 1.65). The most common change undergone and sought was increased exercise; the most common barrier reported was a lack of willpower. Individuals dealing with depression are more likely to report recent health behaviour changes and the desire to make changes but are also more likely to report barriers towards change.

Limiting swimming pool outbreaks of cryptosporidiosis - the roles of regulations, staff, patrons and research.

PubMed

Ryan, Una; Lawler, Sheleigh; Reid, Simon

2017-02-01

Cryptosporidium is the leading cause of swimming pool outbreaks of gastroenteritis. Transmission occurs through the ingestion of oocysts that are passed in the faeces of an infected person or animal when an accidental faecal release event occurs. Cryptosporidium parasites present specific challenges for infection control as oocysts are highly resistant to chlorine levels used for pool disinfection, infected individuals can shed large numbers of oocysts, there is a long incubation period and shedding of oocysts occurs even after symptom resolution. The purposes of this review are to identify key barriers to limiting swimming pool-associated outbreaks of cryptosporidiosis and to outline needs for research and collaboration to advance co-ordinated management practices. We reviewed swimming pool-associated cryptosporidiosis outbreaks, disinfection teachniques, current regulations and the role of staff and patrons. Key barriers to limiting swimming pool-associated outbreaks of cryptosporidiosis are a lack of uniform national and international standards, poor adherence and understanding of regulations governing staff and patron behaviour, and low levels of public knowledge and awareness.

Improving management of small natural features on private lands by negotiating the science-policy boundary for Maine vernal pools.

PubMed

Calhoun, Aram J K; Jansujwicz, Jessica S; Bell, Kathleen P; Hunter, Malcolm L

2014-07-29

Vernal pools are far more important for providing ecosystem services than one would predict based on their small size. However, prevailing resource-management strategies are not effectively conserving pools and other small natural features on private lands. Solutions are complicated by tensions between private property and societal rights, uncertainties over resource location and function, diverse stakeholders, and fragmented regulatory authority. The development and testing of new conservation approaches that link scientific knowledge, stakeholder decision-making, and conservation outcomes are important responses to this conservation dilemma. Drawing from a 15-y history of vernal pool conservation efforts in Maine, we describe the coevolution of pool conservation and research approaches, focusing on how research-based knowledge was produced and used in support of management decisions. As management shifted from reactive, top-down approaches to proactive and flexible approaches, research shifted from an ecology-focused program to an interdisciplinary program based on social-ecological systems. The most effective strategies for linking scientific knowledge with action changed as the decision-makers, knowledge needs, and context for vernal pool management advanced. Interactions among stakeholders increased the extent to which knowledge was coproduced and shifted the objective of stakeholder engagement from outreach to research collaboration and development of innovative conservation approaches. New conservation strategies were possible because of the flexible, solutions-oriented collaborations and trust between scientists and decision-makers (fostered over 15 y) and interdisciplinary, engaged research. Solutions to the dilemma of conserving small natural features on private lands, and analogous sustainability science challenges, will benefit from repeated negotiations of the science-policy boundary.

From solid to liquid: assessing the release of organic matter into soil solution in response to land-use conversion in Brazilian Oxisols

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

James, Jason; Gross, Cole; Dwivedi, Pranjal; Bernardi, Rodolpho; Guerrini, Irae; Harrison, Rob; Butman, David

2017-04-01

Recent advances in freshwater research indicate that roughly double the quantity of carbon is exported from soils to streams and rivers than was previously estimated, and that the age of carbon exported from major rivers globally increases with greater human disturbance in the watershed. This implies that human land-use can release old, previously mineral-associated C into solution with subsequent export to groundwater and ultimately freshwater systems where terrestrial organic matter is either mineralized to CO2, stored in aquatic sediments, or exported to the ocean. Consequently, it is important to understand the mechanisms that cause the release of SOM that is mineral-bound into solution in response to human disturbance and land-use change. Research methods have been established to examine both the fast turnover, dissolved pool of soil organic matter (SOM), as well as the slow turnover, mineral-associated pool. However, to better characterize the response of the total SOM pool to disturbance, it is necessary to understand the interactions between these functional pools by examining them both simultaneously. This study seeks to examine the interaction between dissolved organic matter (DOM) and bulk SOM throughout the soil profile in response to conversion of Brazilian Cerrado (savannah forest) to Eucalyptus plantation forest on the same soil type. The water-extractable organic matter was obtained from soil samples down to 150 cm, characterized using fluorescence and NMR spectroscopy, and carbon-dated. Simultaneously, bulk mineral soil samples were analyzed for microbial biomass, carbon content and age, and characterized using Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy. SOM spectra were obtained by washing subsamples with sodium hypochlorite and subtracting the subsequent mineral matrix spectra from bulk soil spectra. Preliminary results show that microbial biomass decreases much more quickly with depth than DOM, suggesting that C released into solution from deeper horizons may be less likely to be intercepted, and thus preferentially leached to groundwater. Native Cerrado forests had substantially more roots compared to Eucalyptus, and also released substantially larger quantities of DOM from their O horizons. Processes operating at the interface between solid and liquid, terrestrial and aquatic are a key unknown in the global carbon cycle. This research permits a unique snapshot into the relationship between DOM and SOM and the response of these pools to land-use change in Brazil.

Proceedings, Annual Meeting, Aquatic Plant Control Research Program (17th) Held at Sacramento, California on 16-18 November 1982.

DTIC Science & Technology

1983-06-01

other pool served as the uninoculated check. The type of inoculum, water pH, water temperature, CO2 concentration in water, light intensity, and plant...crowd out the conifers . Some people decry these protests as purely emotional outbursts of an unin- formed or misinformed public. Whether this is true or...sites. Thus, the time that an effective herbicide concentration remains among sub- mersed aquatic plants after application is reduced. Adjuvants have

48 CFR 9.702 - Contracting with pools.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... PLANNING CONTRACTOR QUALIFICATIONS Defense Production Pools and Research and Development Pools 9.702... of a power of attorney identifying the agent authorized to sign the offer or contract on that member's behalf. The contracting officer shall attach a copy of each power of attorney to each signed copy...

Environmental controls of C, N and P biogeochemistry in peatland pools.

PubMed

Arsenault, Julien; Talbot, Julie; Moore, Tim R

2018-08-01

Pools are common in northern peatlands but studies have seldom focused on their nutrient biogeochemistry, especially in relation to their morphological characteristics and through seasons. We determined the environmental characteristics controlling carbon (C), nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) biogeochemistry in pools and assessed their evolution over the course of the 2016 growing season in a subboreal ombrotrophic peatland of eastern Canada. We showed that water chemistry variations in 62 pools were significantly explained by depth (81.9%) and the surrounding vegetation type (14.8%), but not by pool area or shape. Shallow pools had larger dissolved organic carbon (DOC) and total nitrogen (TN) concentrations and lower pH than deep pools, while pools surrounded by coniferous trees had more recalcitrant DOC than pools where vegetation was dominated by mosses. The influence of depth on pool biogeochemistry was confirmed by the seasonal survey of pools of different sizes with 47.1% of the variation in pool water chemistry over time significantly explained. Of this, 67.3% was explained by the interaction between time and pool size and 32.7% by pool size alone. P concentrations were small in all pools all summer long and combined with high N:P ratios, are indicative of P-limitation. Our results show that pool biogeochemistry is influenced by internal processes and highlight the spatial and temporal heterogeneity of nutrient biogeochemistry in ombrotrophic peatlands. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Classification of upper Mississippi River pools based on contiguous aquatic/geomorphic habitats

USGS Publications Warehouse

Koel, Todd M.

2001-01-01

Navigation pools of the upper Mississippi River (UMR) vary greatly in terms of available contiguous aquatic/geomorphic habitats. These habitats are critical for the biotic diversity and overall productivity of the floodplain corridor of each pool. In this study, similarities among pools 4-26 and an open river reach (river kilometer 47-129) of the UMR were determined from multivariate analysis of eleven habitat types that were hydrologically-contiguous (non-leveed). Isolated floodplain habitats were not included in final analyses because this isolation limits their contribution to overall riverine productivity, in part due to a lack of hydrological connectivity to the main channel during the flood pulse. Cluster analysis based on simple Euclidean distance was used to produce two major pool groups and five pool subgroups. Important habitat variables in defining pool groups, as interpreted from principal components analysis (PCA) axis 1, were contiguous floodplain shallow aquatic area and contiguous impounded area. The habitat variable most important in defining pool subgroups, as interpreted from PCA axis 2, was tertiary channel. Most notably, pool 6 was more similar to pools 14-24 than other upper pools, and pools 19 and 25 were more similar to pools 4-13 than other lower pools. These results were quite different from those of two previous investigators, primarily because only areas of non-isolated aquatic habitat were considered.

Climatic and Edaphic Effects on the Turnover and Composition of Mineral-Associated Soil Organic Matter in Temperate Deciduous Forests

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jastrow, J. D.; Calderon, F. J.; McFarlane, K. J.; Porras, R. C.; Torn, M. S.; Guilderson, T. P.; Hanson, P. J.

2013-12-01

Soil organic matter (SOM) is the largest reservoir of carbon (C) in terrestrial ecosystems. But, efforts to predict future changes in soil C stocks are challenged by our incomplete understanding of how soil C pools stabilized by different mechanisms will respond to changing climatic conditions and other environmental forcing factors. One approach to quantifying soil C pools of differing stability is to physically fractionate SOM into (1) a free light fraction representing an unprotected C pool, (2) an occluded light fraction characterizing a pool physically protected within aggregates, and (3) a mineral-associated dense fraction approximating a pool stabilized by organomineral interactions. Although the two light fractions are generally considered to be relatively homogenous pools, any assumption that the dense fraction represents a homogenous pool is problematic. To explore the potential for reducing the heterogeneity within the dense fraction, we isolated acid-hydrolyzable and acid-resistant C pools from the dense fraction at four sites representing a range of soil types and the climatic extent of Eastern deciduous forest. Soils were collected from before and after 14C-enriched leaf-litter manipulations at each site. Across all sites, 50-75% of the C in the dense fraction was acid-hydrolyzable, and the mean turnover time of C in this fraction was 1-2 orders of magnitude faster (~35-350 y) than that of the acid-resistant fraction (~300-1500 y). Remarkably, in some cases leaf-derived 14C accounted for up to about 5% of the C in one or both dense fraction pools after only 2 years, demonstrating the existence of a very rapid turnover component within both pools at some sites. Characterization of these mineral-associated C pools by mid-infrared spectroscopy showed variations in C chemistry across sites and site differences in the types of C isolated by hydrolysis. Taken together, these results demonstrate considerable differences within the Eastern deciduous forest in the dynamics of mineral-associated soil C pools that can be related to variations in climate, soil texture, and bioturbation.

Prevalence of irritable bowel syndrome-type symptoms in patients with celiac disease: a meta-analysis.

PubMed

Sainsbury, Anita; Sanders, David S; Ford, Alexander C

2013-04-01

Patients with celiac disease (CD) often report symptoms compatible with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). However, the prevalence of these symptoms in patients with CD and their relation to adherence to a gluten-free diet (GFD) have not been assessed systematically. We searched MEDLINE, EMBASE, and EMBASE Classic (through July 2012) to identify cross-sectional surveys or case-control studies reporting prevalence of IBS-type symptoms in adult patients (≥ 16 years old) with established CD. The number of individuals with symptoms meeting criteria for IBS was extracted for each study, according to case or control status and adherence to a GFD. Pooled prevalence and odds ratios (ORs), with 95% confidence intervals (CIs), were calculated. We analyzed data from 7 studies with 3383 participants. The pooled prevalence of IBS-type symptoms in all patients with CD was 38.0% (95% CI, 27.0%-50.0%). The pooled OR for IBS-type symptoms was higher in patients with CD than in controls (5.60; 95% CI, 3.23-9.70). In patients who were nonadherent with a GFD, the pooled OR for IBS-type symptoms, compared with those who were strictly adherent, was 2.69 (95% CI, 0.75-9.56). There was also a trend toward a higher OR for IBS-type symptoms among patients who did not adhere to the GFD, compared with controls (12.42; 95% CI, 6.84-11.75), compared with that observed for adherent CD patients vs controls (4.28; 95% CI, 1.56-11.75). IBS-type symptoms occur frequently in patients with CD and are more common than among controls. Adherence to a GFD might be associated with a reduction in symptoms. Copyright © 2013 AGA Institute. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Interactions between pool geometry and hydraulics

USGS Publications Warehouse

Thompson, Douglas M.; Nelson, Jonathan M.; Wohl, Ellen E.

1998-01-01

An experimental and computational research approach was used to determine interactions between pool geometry and hydraulics. A 20-m-long, 1.8-m-wide flume was used to investigate the effect of four different geometric aspects of pool shape on flow velocity. Plywood sections were used to systematically alter constriction width, pool depth, pool length, and pool exit-slope gradient, each at two separate levels. Using the resulting 16 unique geometries with measured pool velocities in four-way factorial analyses produced an empirical assessment of the role of the four geometric aspects on the pool flow patterns and hence the stability of the pool. To complement the conclusions of these analyses, a two-dimensional computational flow model was used to investigate the relationships between pool geometry and flow patterns over a wider range of conditions. Both experimental and computational results show that constriction and depth effects dominate in the jet section of the pool and that pool length exhibits an increasing effect within the recirculating-eddy system. The pool exit slope appears to force flow reattachment. Pool length controls recirculating-eddy length and vena contracta strength. In turn, the vena contracta and recirculating eddy control velocities throughout the pool.

Meta-analysis for aggregated survival data with competing risks: a parametric approach using cumulative incidence functions.

PubMed

Bonofiglio, Federico; Beyersmann, Jan; Schumacher, Martin; Koller, Michael; Schwarzer, Guido

2016-09-01

Meta-analysis of a survival endpoint is typically based on the pooling of hazard ratios (HRs). If competing risks occur, the HRs may lose translation into changes of survival probability. The cumulative incidence functions (CIFs), the expected proportion of cause-specific events over time, re-connect the cause-specific hazards (CSHs) to the probability of each event type. We use CIF ratios to measure treatment effect on each event type. To retrieve information on aggregated, typically poorly reported, competing risks data, we assume constant CSHs. Next, we develop methods to pool CIF ratios across studies. The procedure computes pooled HRs alongside and checks the influence of follow-up time on the analysis. We apply the method to a medical example, showing that follow-up duration is relevant both for pooled cause-specific HRs and CIF ratios. Moreover, if all-cause hazard and follow-up time are large enough, CIF ratios may reveal additional information about the effect of treatment on the cumulative probability of each event type. Finally, to improve the usefulness of such analysis, better reporting of competing risks data is needed. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

New England salt marsh pools: A quantitative analysis of geomorphic and geographic features

USGS Publications Warehouse

Adamowicz, S.C.; Roman, C.T.

2005-01-01

New England salt marsh pools provide important wildlife habitat and are the object of on-going salt marsh restoration projects; however, they have not been quantified in terms of their basic geomorphic and geographic traits. An examination of 32 ditched and unditched salt marshes from the Connecticut shore of Long Island Sound to southern Maine, USA, revealed that pools from ditched and unditched marshes had similar average sizes of about 200 m2, averaged 29 cm in depth, and were located about 11 m from the nearest tidal flow. Unditched marshes had 3 times the density (13 pools/ha), 2.5 times the pool coverage (83 m pool/km transect), and 4 times the total pool surface area per hectare (913 m2 pool/ha salt marsh) of ditched sites. Linear regression analysis demonstrated that an increasing density of ditches (m ditch/ha salt marsh) was negatively correlated with pool density and total pool surface area per hectare. Creek density was positively correlated with these variables. Thus, it was not the mere presence of drainage channels that were associated with low numbers of pools, but their type (ditch versus creek) and abundance. Tidal range was not correlated with pool density or total pool surface area, while marsh latitude had only a weak relationship to total pool surface area per hectare. Pools should be incorporated into salt marsh restoration planning, and the parameters quantified here may be used as initial design targets.

Livestock Grazing as a Driver of Vernal Pool Ecohydrology

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Michaels, J.; McCarten, N. F.

2017-12-01

Vernal pools are seasonal wetlands that host rare plant communities of high conservation priority. Plant community composition is largely driven by pool hydroperiod. A previous study found that vernal pools grazed by livestock had longer hydroperiods compared with pools excluded from grazing for 10 years, and suggests that livestock grazing can be used to protect plant diversity. It is important to assess whether observed differences are due to the grazing or due to water balance variables including upland discharge into or out of the pools since no a priori measurements were made of the hydrology prior to grazing. To address this question, in 2016 we compared 15 pools that have been grazed continuously and 15 pools that have been fenced off for over 40 years at a site in Sacramento County. We paired pools based on abiotic characteristics (size, shape, slope, soil type) to minimize natural variation. We sampled vegetation and water depth using Solinst level loggers. We found that plant diversity and average hydroperiod was significantly higher in the grazed pools. We are currently measuring groundwater connectivity and upland inputs in order to compare the relative strength of livestock grazing as a driver of hydroperiod to these other drivers.

Less is more: Patient-level meta-analysis reveals paradoxical dose-response effects of a computer-based social anxiety intervention targeting attentional bias.

PubMed

Price, Rebecca B; Kuckertz, Jennie M; Amir, Nader; Bar-Haim, Yair; Carlbring, Per; Wallace, Meredith L

2017-12-01

The past decade of research has seen considerable interest in computer-based approaches designed to directly target cognitive mechanisms of anxiety, such as attention bias modification (ABM). By pooling patient-level datasets from randomized controlled trials of ABM that utilized a dot-probe training procedure, we assessed the impact of training "dose" on relevant outcomes among a pooled sample of 693 socially anxious adults. A paradoxical effect of the number of training trials administered was observed for both posttraining social anxiety symptoms and behavioral attentional bias (AB) toward threat (the target mechanism of ABM). Studies administering a large (>1,280) number of training trials showed no benefit of ABM over control conditions, while those administering fewer training trials showed significant benefit for ABM in reducing social anxiety (P = .02). These moderating effects of dose were not better explained by other examined variables and previously identified moderators, including patient age, training setting (laboratory vs. home), or type of anxiety assessment (clinician vs. self-report). Findings inform the optimal dosing for future dot-probe style ABM applications in both research and clinical settings, and suggest several novel avenues for further research. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Fuel handling system for a nuclear reactor

DOEpatents

Saiveau, James G.; Kann, William J.; Burelbach, James P.

1986-01-01

A pool type nuclear fission reactor has a core, with a plurality of core elements and a redan which confines coolant as a hot pool at a first end of the core separated from a cold pool at a second end of the core by the redan. A fuel handling system for use with such reactors comprises a core element storage basket located outside of the redan in the cold pool. An access passage is formed in the redan with a gate for opening and closing the passage to maintain the temperature differential between the hot pool and the cold pool. A mechanism is provided for opening and closing the gate. A lifting arm is also provided for manipulating the fuel core elements through the access passage between the storage basket and the core when the redan gate is open.

Fuel handling system for a nuclear reactor

DOEpatents

Saiveau, James G.; Kann, William J.; Burelbach, James P.

1986-12-02

A pool type nuclear fission reactor has a core, with a plurality of core elements and a redan which confines coolant as a hot pool at a first end of the core separated from a cold pool at a second end of the core by the redan. A fuel handling system for use with such reactors comprises a core element storage basket located outside of the redan in the cold pool. An access passage is formed in the redan with a gate for opening and closing the passage to maintain the temperature differential between the hot pool and the cold pool. A mechanism is provided for opening and closing the gate. A lifting arm is also provided for manipulating the fuel core elements through the access passage between the storage basket and the core when the redan gate is open.

Mental health, constraints, and organization of work as interactive variables. A study of word processing secretaries.

PubMed

Billette, A; Carrier, M; Bernier, M; de Sève, M

1992-07-01

The effect of a work constraint is specific to the type of work organization. This article deals with the effects of different types of work organization on the mental health of secretaries. The advantage of choosing secretarial work as a research subject lies in the fact that we can identify three distinct types of work organization: (1) a secretary working directly for someone (the "paired" secretary-boss), (2) the "pool," geared toward keyboard input with no specific pairing of secretaries and authors, and (3) the departmental "team," a hybrid of the two preceding types, characterized by the presence of several secretaries, each one assigned to several authors. A study was conducted on the health problems reported by secretaries in the Québec civil service. Data available from a Santé Québec study, carried out at the same time, allowed us to constitute a general population reference group of secretaries and other working women. The findings indicate that secretaries in the general population are no more at risk than are other similar working women, but that secretaries in the provincial civil service are at risk. Regression analysis shows that the same traditional constraints do not affect secretaries in the same way regardless of whether they are members of pair, pool, or team organizations. This suggests that the context of work organization is an interactive or a "specifying variable" of the effect of work constraints on the secretaries' mental health.

Rifaximin for the prevention of spontaneous bacterial peritonitis and hepatorenal syndrome in cirrhosis: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

PubMed

Kamal, Faisal; Khan, Muhammad Ali; Khan, Zubair; Cholankeril, George; Hammad, Tariq A; Lee, Wade M; Ahmed, Aijaz; Waters, Bradford; Howden, Colin W; Nair, Satheesh; Satapathy, Sanjaya K

2017-10-01

Prophylactic antibiotics have been recommended in patients with a previous history of spontaneous bacterial peritonitis (SBP). Recently, there has been interest in the use of rifaximin for the prevention of SBP and hepatorenal syndrome (HRS). We conducted a meta-analysis to evaluate this association of rifaximin. We searched several databases from inception through 24 January 2017, to identify comparative studies evaluating the effect of rifaximin on the occurrence of SBP and HRS. We performed predetermined subgroup analyses based on the type of control group, design of the study, and type of prophylaxis. Pooled odds ratios (ORs) were calculated using a random effects model. We included 13 studies with 1703 patients in the meta-analysis of SBP prevention. Pooled OR [95% confidence interval (CI)] was 0.40 (95% CI: 0.22-0.73) (I=58%). On sensitivity analysis, adjusted OR was 0.29 (95% CI: 0.20-0.44) (I=0%). The results of the subgroup analysis based on type of control was as follows: in the quinolone group, pooled OR was 0.42 (95% CI: 0.14-1.25) (I=55%), and in the no antibiotic group, pooled OR was 0.40 (95% CI: 0.18-0.86) (I=64%). However, with sensitivity analysis, benefit of rifaximin was demonstrable; pooled ORs were 0.32 (95% CI: 0.17-0.63) (I=0%) and 0.28 (95% CI: 0.17-0.45) (I=0%) for the comparison with quinolones and no antibiotics, respectively. Pooled OR based on randomized controlled trials was 0.41 (95% CI: 0.22-0.75) (I=13%). For the prevention of HRS, the pooled OR was 0.25 (95% CI: 0.13-0.50) (I=0%). Rifaximin has a protective effect against the development of SBP in cirrhosis. However, the quality of the evidence as per the GRADE framework was very low. Rifaximin appeared effective for the prevention of HRS.

Status of the NASA-Lewis flat-plate collector tests with a solar simulator

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Simon, F. F.

1974-01-01

Simulator test results of 15 collector types are presented. Collectors are given performance ratings according to their use for pool heating, hot water, absorption A/C or heating, and solar Rankine machines. Collectors found to be good performers in the above categories, except for pool heating, were a black nickel coated, 2 glass collector, and a black paint 2 glass collector containing a mylar honeycomb. For pool heating, a black paint, one glass collector was found to be the best performer. Collector performance parameters of 5 collector types were determined to aid in explaining the factors that govern performance. The two factors that had the greatest effect on collector performance were the collector heat loss and the coating absorptivity.

Improving management of small natural features on private lands by negotiating the science–policy boundary for Maine vernal pools

PubMed Central

Calhoun, Aram J. K.; Jansujwicz, Jessica S.; Bell, Kathleen P.; Hunter, Malcolm L.

2014-01-01

Vernal pools are far more important for providing ecosystem services than one would predict based on their small size. However, prevailing resource-management strategies are not effectively conserving pools and other small natural features on private lands. Solutions are complicated by tensions between private property and societal rights, uncertainties over resource location and function, diverse stakeholders, and fragmented regulatory authority. The development and testing of new conservation approaches that link scientific knowledge, stakeholder decision-making, and conservation outcomes are important responses to this conservation dilemma. Drawing from a 15-y history of vernal pool conservation efforts in Maine, we describe the coevolution of pool conservation and research approaches, focusing on how research-based knowledge was produced and used in support of management decisions. As management shifted from reactive, top-down approaches to proactive and flexible approaches, research shifted from an ecology-focused program to an interdisciplinary program based on social–ecological systems. The most effective strategies for linking scientific knowledge with action changed as the decision-makers, knowledge needs, and context for vernal pool management advanced. Interactions among stakeholders increased the extent to which knowledge was coproduced and shifted the objective of stakeholder engagement from outreach to research collaboration and development of innovative conservation approaches. New conservation strategies were possible because of the flexible, solutions-oriented collaborations and trust between scientists and decision-makers (fostered over 15 y) and interdisciplinary, engaged research. Solutions to the dilemma of conserving small natural features on private lands, and analogous sustainability science challenges, will benefit from repeated negotiations of the science–policy boundary. PMID:25002496

Who Says: "No Fair!"? What Personality and an Experiment in Educational Value Tell Us about Perceptions of Costs and Benefits of Research Pool Requirements

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cromer, Lisa DeMarni; Reynolds, Shannon M.; Johnson, Mitchell D.

2013-01-01

Human subject pools (HSPs) are the basis for much psychological research. There is an explicit assumption that participants receive benefits from their participation, however there is little empirical research about the costs/benefits of participation. We conducted two studies with undergraduate psychology students to evaluate factors that can…

Do mass media campaigns improve physical activity? a systematic review and meta-analysis.

PubMed

Abioye, Ajibola I; Hajifathalian, Kaveh; Danaei, Goodarz

2013-08-02

Mass media campaigns are frequently used to influence the health behaviors of various populations. There are currently no quantitative meta-analyses of the effect of mass media campaigns on physical activity in adults. We searched six electronic databases from their inception to August 2012 and selected prospective studies that evaluated the effect of mass media campaigns on physical activity in adults. We excluded studies that did not have a proper control group or did not report the uncertainties of the effect estimates. Two reviewers independently screened the title/abstracts and full articles. We used random-effects models to pool effect estimates across studies for 3 selected outcomes. Nine prospective cohorts and before-after studies that followed-up 27,601 people over 8 weeks to 3 years met the inclusion criteria. Based on the pooled results from these studies, mass media campaigns had a significant effect on promoting moderate intensity walking (pooled relative risk (RR) from 3 studies=1.53, 95% Confidence Interval: 1.25 to 1.87), but did not help participants achieve sufficient levels of physical activity [4 studies pooled RR=1.02, 95% CI: 0.91 to 1.14)]. The apparent effect of media campaigns on reducing sedentary behavior (pooled RR=1.15, 95% CI: 1.03 to 1.30) was lost when a relatively low-quality study with large effects was excluded in a sensitivity analysis. In subgroup analyses, campaigns that promoted physical activity as a 'social norm' seemed to be more effective in reducing sedentary behavior. Mass media campaigns may promote walking but may not reduce sedentary behavior or lead to achieving recommended levels of overall physical activity. Further research is warranted on different campaign types and in low- and middle- income countries.

Mathematical-Programming Approaches to Test Item Pool Design. Research Report.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Veldkamp, Bernard P.; van der Linden, Wim J.; Ariel, Adelaide

This paper presents an approach to item pool design that has the potential to improve on the quality of current item pools in educational and psychological testing and thus to increase both measurement precision and validity. The approach consists of the application of mathematical programming techniques to calculate optimal blueprints for item…

Detection of Human Immunodeficiency Virus Type 1 (HIV-1) RNA in Pools of Sera Negative for Antibodies to HIV-1 and HIV-2

PubMed Central

Morandi, Pierre-Alain; Schockmel, Gérard A.; Yerly, Sabine; Burgisser, Philippe; Erb, Peter; Matter, Lukas; Sitavanc, Radan; Perrin, Luc

1998-01-01

A total of 234 pools were prepared from 10,692 consecutive serum samples negative for antibodies to human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) and HIV-2 collected at five virological laboratories (average pool size, 45 serum samples). Pools were screened for the presence of HIV-1 RNA by a modified commercial assay (Amplicor HIV-1 Monitor test) which included an additional polyethylene glycol (PEG) precipitation step prior to purification of viral RNA (PEG Amplicor assay). The sensitivity of this assay for HIV-1 RNA detection in individual serum samples within pools matches that of standard commercial assays for individual serum samples, i.e., 500 HIV-1 RNA copies per ml. Five pools were identified as positive, and each one contained one antibody-negative, HIV-1 RNA-positive serum sample, corresponding to an average of 1 infected sample per 2,138 serum samples. Retrospective analysis revealed that the five HIV-1 RNA-positive specimens originated from individuals who had symptomatic primary HIV-1 infection at the time of sample collection and who were also positive for p24 antigenemia. We next assessed the possibility of performing the prepurification step by high-speed centrifugation (50,000 × g for 80 min) of 1.5-ml pools containing 25 μl of 60 individual serum samples, of which only 1 contained HIV-1 RNA (centrifugation Amplicor assay). The sensitivity of this assay also matches the sensitivities of standard commercial assays for HIV-1 RNA detection in individual serum samples. The results demonstrate that both assays with pooled sera can be applied to the screening of large numbers of serum samples in a time- and cost-efficient manner. PMID:9620372

Relation of total sugars, fructose and sucrose with incident type 2 diabetes: a systematic review and meta-analysis of prospective cohort studies

PubMed Central

Tsilas, Christine S.; de Souza, Russell J.; Mejia, Sonia Blanco; Mirrahimi, Arash; Cozma, Adrian I.; Jayalath, Viranda H.; Ha, Vanessa; Tawfik, Reem; Di Buono, Marco; Jenkins, Alexandra L.; Leiter, Lawrence A.; Wolever, Thomas M.S.; Beyene, Joseph; Khan, Tauseef; Kendall, Cyril W.C.; Jenkins, David J.A.; Sievenpiper, John L.

2017-01-01

BACKGROUND: Sugar-sweetened beverages are associated with type 2 diabetes. To assess whether this association holds for the fructose-containing sugars they contain, we conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of prospective cohort studies. METHODS: We searched MEDLINE, Embase, CINAHL and the Cochrane Library (through June 2016). We included prospective cohort studies that assessed the relation of fructose-containing sugars with incident type 2 diabetes. Two independent reviewers extracted relevant data and assessed risk of bias. We pooled risk ratios (RRs) using random effects meta-analyses. The overall quality of the evidence was assessed using the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation (GRADE) system. RESULTS: Fifteen prospective cohort studies (251 261 unique participants, 16 416 cases) met the eligibility criteria, comparing the highest intake (median 137, 35.2 and 78 g/d) with the lowest intake (median 65, 9.7 and 25.8 g/d) of total sugars, fructose and sucrose, respectively. Although there was no association of total sugars (RR 0.91, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.76–1.09) or fructose (RR 1.04, 95% CI 0.84–1.29) with type 2 diabetes, sucrose was associated with a decreased risk of type 2 diabetes (RR 0.89, 95% CI 0.80–0.98). Our confidence in the estimates was limited by evidence of serious inconsistency between studies for total sugars and fructose, and serious imprecision in the pooled estimates for all 3 sugar categories. INTERPRETATION: Current evidence does not allow us to conclude that fructose-containing sugars independent of food form are associated with increased risk of type 2 diabetes. Further research is likely to affect our estimates. Trial registration: ClinicalTrials.gov, no. NCT01608620 PMID:28536126

Relation of total sugars, fructose and sucrose with incident type 2 diabetes: a systematic review and meta-analysis of prospective cohort studies.

PubMed

Tsilas, Christine S; de Souza, Russell J; Mejia, Sonia Blanco; Mirrahimi, Arash; Cozma, Adrian I; Jayalath, Viranda H; Ha, Vanessa; Tawfik, Reem; Di Buono, Marco; Jenkins, Alexandra L; Leiter, Lawrence A; Wolever, Thomas M S; Beyene, Joseph; Khan, Tauseef; Kendall, Cyril W C; Jenkins, David J A; Sievenpiper, John L

2017-05-23

Sugar-sweetened beverages are associated with type 2 diabetes. To assess whether this association holds for the fructose-containing sugars they contain, we conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of prospective cohort studies. We searched MEDLINE, Embase, CINAHL and the Cochrane Library (through June 2016). We included prospective cohort studies that assessed the relation of fructose-containing sugars with incident type 2 diabetes. Two independent reviewers extracted relevant data and assessed risk of bias. We pooled risk ratios (RRs) using random effects meta-analyses. The overall quality of the evidence was assessed using the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation (GRADE) system. Fiffeen prospective cohort studies (251 261 unique participants, 16 416 cases) met the eligibility criteria, comparing the highest intake (median 137, 35.2 and 78 g/d) with the lowest intake (median 65, 9.7 and 25.8 g/d) of total sugars, fructose and sucrose, respectively. Although there was no association of total sugars (RR 0.91, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.76-1.09) or fructose (RR 1.04, 95% CI 0.84-1.29) with type 2 diabetes, sucrose was associated with a decreased risk of type 2 diabetes (RR 0.89, 95% CI 0.80-0.98). Our confidence in the estimates was limited by evidence of serious inconsistency between studies for total sugars and fructose, and serious imprecision in the pooled estimates for all 3 sugar categories. Current evidence does not allow us to conclude that fructose-containing sugars independent of food form are associated with increased risk of type 2 diabetes. Further research is likely to affect our estimates. ClinicalTrials.gov, no. NCT01608620. © 2017 Canadian Medical Association or its licensors.

Study on Dynamic Development of Three-dimensional Weld Pool Surface in Stationary GTAW

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Huang, Jiankang; He, Jing; He, Xiaoying; Shi, Yu; Fan, Ding

2018-04-01

The weld pool contains abundant information about the welding process. In particular, the type of the weld pool surface shape, i. e., convex or concave, is determined by the weld penetration. To detect it, an innovative laser-vision-based sensing method is employed to observe the weld pool surface of the gas tungsten arc welding (GTAW). A low-power laser dots pattern is projected onto the entire weld pool surface. Its reflection is intercepted by a screen and captured by a camera. Then the dynamic development process of the weld pool surface can be detected. By observing and analyzing, the change of the reflected laser dots reflection pattern, for shape of the weld pool surface shape, was found to closely correlate to the penetration of weld pool in the welding process. A mathematical model was proposed to correlate the incident ray, reflected ray, screen and surface of weld pool based on structured laser specular reflection. The dynamic variation of the weld pool surface and its corresponding dots laser pattern were simulated and analyzed. By combining the experimental data and the mathematical analysis, the results show that the pattern of the reflected laser dots pattern is closely correlated to the development of weld pool, such as the weld penetration. The concavity of the pool surface was found to increase rapidly after the surface shape was changed from convex to concave during the stationary GTAW process.

Variability of chlorination by-product occurrence in water of indoor and outdoor swimming pools.

PubMed

Simard, Sabrina; Tardif, Robert; Rodriguez, Manuel J

2013-04-01

Swimming is one of the most popular aquatic activities. Just like natural water, public pool water may contain microbiological and chemical contaminants. The purpose of this study was to study the presence of chemical contaminants in swimming pools, in particular the presence of disinfection by-products (DBPs) such as trihalomethanes (THMs), haloacetic acids (HAAs) and inorganic chloramines (CAMi). Fifty-four outdoor and indoor swimming pools were investigated over a period of one year (monthly or bi-weekly sampling, according to the type of pool) for the occurrence of DBPs. The results showed that DBP levels in swimming pools were greater than DBP levels found in drinking water, especially for HAAs. Measured concentrations of THMs (97.9 vs 63.7 μg/L in average) and HAAs (807.6 vs 412.9 μg/L in average) were higher in outdoor pools, whereas measured concentrations of CAMi (0.1 vs 0.8 mg/L in average) were higher in indoor pools. Moreover, outdoor pools with heated water contained more DBPs than unheated pools. Finally, there was significant variability in tTHM, HAA9 and CAMi levels in pools supplied by the same municipal drinking water network, suggesting that individual pool characteristics (number of swimmers) and management strategies play a major role in DBP formation. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Metabolic profiling of Arabidopsis thaliana epidermal cells

PubMed Central

Ebert, Berit; Zöller, Daniela; Erban, Alexander; Fehrle, Ines; Hartmann, Jürgen; Niehl, Annette; Kopka, Joachim; Fisahn, Joachim

2010-01-01

Metabolic phenotyping at cellular resolution may be considered one of the challenges in current plant physiology. A method is described which enables the cell type-specific metabolic analysis of epidermal cell types in Arabidopsis thaliana pavement, basal, and trichome cells. To achieve the required high spatial resolution, single cell sampling using microcapillaries was combined with routine gas chromatography-time of flight-mass spectrometry (GC-TOF-MS) based metabolite profiling. The identification and relative quantification of 117 mostly primary metabolites has been demonstrated. The majority, namely 90 compounds, were accessible without analytical background correction. Analyses were performed using cell type-specific pools of 200 microsampled individual cells. Moreover, among these identified metabolites, 38 exhibited differential pool sizes in trichomes, basal or pavement cells. The application of an independent component analysis confirmed the cell type-specific metabolic phenotypes. Significant pool size changes between individual cells were detectable within several classes of metabolites, namely amino acids, fatty acids and alcohols, alkanes, lipids, N-compounds, organic acids and polyhydroxy acids, polyols, sugars, sugar conjugates and phenylpropanoids. It is demonstrated here that the combination of microsampling and GC-MS based metabolite profiling provides a method to investigate the cellular metabolism of fully differentiated plant cell types in vivo. PMID:20150518

What Causes Ankle Swelling During Pregnancy - And What Can I do About it?

MedlinePlus

... or walk in the pool. Although there's little research on the use of water pressure for foot and ankle swelling, standing or walking in a pool seems to help compress tissues in the legs and might provide ... Some research suggests that foot massage and reflexology, which involves ...

Rank-based pooling for deep convolutional neural networks.

PubMed

Shi, Zenglin; Ye, Yangdong; Wu, Yunpeng

2016-11-01

Pooling is a key mechanism in deep convolutional neural networks (CNNs) which helps to achieve translation invariance. Numerous studies, both empirically and theoretically, show that pooling consistently boosts the performance of the CNNs. The conventional pooling methods are operated on activation values. In this work, we alternatively propose rank-based pooling. It is derived from the observations that ranking list is invariant under changes of activation values in a pooling region, and thus rank-based pooling operation may achieve more robust performance. In addition, the reasonable usage of rank can avoid the scale problems encountered by value-based methods. The novel pooling mechanism can be regarded as an instance of weighted pooling where a weighted sum of activations is used to generate the pooling output. This pooling mechanism can also be realized as rank-based average pooling (RAP), rank-based weighted pooling (RWP) and rank-based stochastic pooling (RSP) according to different weighting strategies. As another major contribution, we present a novel criterion to analyze the discriminant ability of various pooling methods, which is heavily under-researched in machine learning and computer vision community. Experimental results on several image benchmarks show that rank-based pooling outperforms the existing pooling methods in classification performance. We further demonstrate better performance on CIFAR datasets by integrating RSP into Network-in-Network. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

A web-oriented software for the optimization of pooled experiments in NGS for detection of rare mutations.

PubMed

Evangelista, Daniela; Zuccaro, Antonio; Lančinskas, Algirdas; Žilinskas, Julius; Guarracino, Mario R

2016-02-17

The cost per patient of next generation sequencing for detection of rare mutations may be significantly reduced using pooled experiments. Recently, some techniques have been proposed for the planning of pooled experiments and for the optimal allocation of patients into pools. However, the lack of a user friendly resource for planning the design of pooled experiments forces the scientists to do frequent, complex and long computations. OPENDoRM is a powerful collection of novel mathematical algorithms usable via an intuitive graphical user interface. It enables researchers to speed up the planning of their routine experiments, as well as, to support scientists without specific bioinformatics expertises. Users can automatically carry out analysis in terms of costs associated with the optimal allocation of patients in pools. They are also able to choose between three distinct pooling mathematical methods, each of which also suggests the optimal configuration for the submitted experiment. Importantly, in order to keep track of the performed experiments, users can save and export the results of their experiments in standard tabular and charts contents. OPENDoRM is a freely available web-oriented application for the planning of pooled NGS experiments, available at: http://www-labgtp.na.icar.cnr.it/OPENDoRM. Its easy and intuitive graphical user interface enables researchers to plan theirs experiments using novel algorithms, and to interactively visualize the results.

Tea, talk and technology: patient and public involvement to improve connected health 'wearables' research in dementia.

PubMed

Hassan, Lamiece; Swarbrick, Caroline; Sanders, Caroline; Parker, Angela; Machin, Matt; Tully, Mary P; Ainsworth, John

2017-01-01

There are a growing number of mobile phones, watches and electronic devices which can be worn on the body to track aspects of health and well-being, such as daily steps, sleep and exercise. Dementia researchers think that these devices could potentially be used as part of future research projects, for example to help spot changes in daily activity that may signal the early symptoms of dementia. We asked a range of older people, including people living with dementia and their carers, to participate in interactive discussions about how future participants might find using these devices as part of research projects. We also invited volunteers to borrow a range of devices to test at home, giving them further insights. Discussions revealed that people were generally supportive of this type of research, provided they gave informed consent and that devices were discreet, comfortable and easy to use. They also valued technical support and regular feedback on study progress to encourage ongoing participation. These findings were used to develop a pool of devices for researchers, with computer software and written guidance to help plan, design and support studies. Our work shows that when given the right opportunities, people who are affected by dementia can provide valuable insights that can enhance the design, delivery and quality of future research. Background Increasingly, researchers are recognising the potential for connected health devices, including smartphones and smartwatches, to generate high resolution data about patterns of daily activity and health outcomes. One aim of the Dementias Platform UK (DPUK) project is to provide researchers with a secure means to collect, collate and link data generated by such devices, thereby accelerating this type of research in the field of dementia. We aimed to involve members of the public in discussions about the acceptability and feasibility of different devices and research designs to inform the development of a device pool, software platform and written guidance to support future studies. Methods Over 30 people attended a series of interactive workshops, drop-in sessions and meetings in Greater Manchester. This included people living with dementia and cognitive impairments, carers and people without memory problems. Discussions were tailored to suit different audiences and focused on the feasibility and acceptability of a range of different wearable devices and research designs. We also invited volunteers to borrow a device to test at home, enabling further insights from hands-on interactions with devices. Results Discussions revealed that people were supportive of connected health dementia research in principle, provided they gave informed consent and that devices were discreet, comfortable and easy to use. Moreover, they recommended technical support and regular feedback on study progress to encourage ongoing participation. Conclusion By using a range of discussion-based and practical activities, we found it was feasible to involve people affected by dementia and use their insights to shape the development of a software platform and device pool to support future connected health dementia research. We recommend that researchers planning such studies in future pay adequate attention to designing suitable participant information, technical support and mechanisms of providing study progress updates to support sustained engagement from participants.

Item Pool Construction Using Mixed Integer Quadratic Programming (MIQP). GMAC® Research Report RR-14-01

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Han, Kyung T.; Rudner, Lawrence M.

2014-01-01

This study uses mixed integer quadratic programming (MIQP) to construct multiple highly equivalent item pools simultaneously, and compares the results from mixed integer programming (MIP). Three different MIP/MIQP models were implemented and evaluated using real CAT item pool data with 23 different content areas and a goal of equal information…

Experimental study on the stability and failure of individual step-pool

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Chendi; Xu, Mengzhen; Hassan, Marwan A.; Chartrand, Shawn M.; Wang, Zhaoyin

2018-06-01

Step-pools are one of the most common bedforms in mountain streams, the stability and failure of which play a significant role for riverbed stability and fluvial processes. Given this importance, flume experiments were performed with a manually constructed step-pool model. The experiments were carried out with a constant flow rate to study features of step-pool stability as well as failure mechanisms. The results demonstrate that motion of the keystone grain (KS) caused 90% of the total failure events. The pool reached its maximum depth and either exhibited relative stability for a period before step failure, which was called the stable phase, or the pool collapsed before its full development. The critical scour depth for the pool increased linearly with discharge until the trend was interrupted by step failure. Variability of the stable phase duration ranged by one order of magnitude, whereas variability of pool scour depth was constrained within 50%. Step adjustment was detected in almost all of the runs with step-pool failure and was one or two orders smaller than the diameter of the step stones. Two discharge regimes for step-pool failure were revealed: one regime captures threshold conditions and frames possible step-pool failure, whereas the second regime captures step-pool failure conditions and is the discharge of an exceptional event. In the transitional stage between the two discharge regimes, pool and step adjustment magnitude displayed relatively large variabilities, which resulted in feedbacks that extended the duration of step-pool stability. Step adjustment, which was a type of structural deformation, increased significantly before step failure. As a result, we consider step deformation as the direct explanation to step-pool failure rather than pool scour, which displayed relative stability during step deformations in our experiments.

Dominant factors in controlling marine gas pools in South China

USGS Publications Warehouse

Xu, S.; Watney, W.L.

2007-01-01

In marine strata from Sinian to Middle Triassic in South China, there develop four sets of regional and six sets of local source rocks, and ten sets of reservoir rocks. The occurrence of four main formation periods in association with five main reconstruction periods, results in a secondary origin for the most marine gas pools in South China. To improve the understanding of marine gas pools in South China with severely deformed geological background, the dominant control factors are discussed in this paper. The fluid sources, including the gas cracked from crude oil, the gas dissolved in water, the gas of inorganic origin, hydrocarbons generated during the second phase, and the mixed pool fluid source, were the most significant control factors of the types and the development stage of pools. The period of the pool formation and the reconstruction controlled the pool evolution and the distribution on a regional scale. Owing to the multiple periods of the pool formation and the reconstruction, the distribution of marine gas pools was complex both in space and in time, and the gas in the pools is heterogeneous. Pool elements, such as preservation conditions, traps and migration paths, and reservoir rocks and facies, also served as important control factors to marine gas pools in South China. Especially, the preservation conditions played a key role in maintaining marine oil and gas accumulations on a regional or local scale. According to several dominant control factors of a pool, the pool-controlling model can be constructed. As an example, the pool-controlling model of Sinian gas pool in Weiyuan gas field in Sichuan basin was summed up. ?? Higher Education Press and Springer-Verlag 2007.

Environmental Data Store: A Web-Based System Providing Management and Exploitation for Multi-Data-Type Environmental Data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ji, P.; Piasecki, M.

2012-12-01

With the rapid growth in data volumes, data diversity and data demands from multi-disciplinary research effort, data management and exploitation are increasingly facing significant challenges for environmental scientific community. We describe Environmental data store (EDS), a system we are developing that is a web-based system following an open source implementation to manage and exploit multi-data-type environmental data. EDS provides repository services for the six fundamental data types, which meet the demands of multi-disciplinary environmental research. These data types are: a) Time Series Data, b) GeoSpatial data, c) Digital Data, d) Ex-Situ Sampling data, e) Modeling Data, f) Raster Data. Through data portal, EDS allows for efficient consuming these six types of data placed in data pool, which is made up of different data nodes corresponding to different data types, including iRODS, ODM, THREADS, ESSDB, GeoServer, etc.. EDS data portal offers unified submission interface for the above different data types; provides fully integrated, scalable search across content from the above different data systems; also features mapping, analysis, exporting and visualization, through integration with other software. EDS uses a number of developed systems, follows widely used data standards, and highlights the thematic, semantic, and syntactic support on the submission and search, in order to advance multi-disciplinary environmental research. This system will be installed and develop at the CrossRoads initiative at the City College of New York.

Flow characteristics of Korea multi-purpose research reactor

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

Heonil Kim; Hee Taek Chae; Byung Jin Jun

1995-09-01

The construction of Korea Multi-purpose Research Reactor (KMRR), a 30 MW{sub th} open-tank-in-pool type, is completed. Various thermal-hydraulic experiments have been conducted to verify the design characteristics of the KMRR. This paper describes the commissioning experiments to determine the flow distribution of KMRR core and the flow characteristics inside the chimney which stands on top of the core. The core flow is distributed to within {+-}6% of the average values, which is sufficiently flat in the sense that the design velocity in the fueled region is satisfied. The role of core bypass flow to confine the activated core coolant inmore » the chimney structure is confirmed.« less

Non-stationary Drainage Flows and Cold Pools in Gentle Terrain

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mahrt, L.

2015-12-01

Previous studies have concentrated on organized topography with well-defined slopes or valleys in an effort to understand the flow dynamics. However, most of the Earth's land surface consists of gentle terrain that is quasi three dimensional. Different scenarios are briefly classified. A network of measurements are analyzed to examine shallow cold pools and drainage flow down the valley which develop for weak ambient wind and relatively clear skies. However, transient modes constantly modulate or intermittently eliminate the cold pool, which makes extraction and analysis of the horizontal structure of the cold pool difficult with traditional analysis methods. Singular value decomposition successfully isolates the effects of large-scale flow from local down-valley cold air drainage within the cold pool in spite of the intermittent nature of this local flow. The traditional concept of a cold pool must be generalized to include cold pool intermittency, complex variation of temperature related to some three-dimensionality and a diffuse cold pool top. Different types of cold pools are classified in terms of the stratification and gradient of potential temperature along the slope. The strength of the cold pool is related to a forcing temperature scale proportional to the net radiative cooling divided by the wind speed above the valley. The scatter is large partly due to nonstationarity of the marginal cold pool in this shallow valley

In-depth genome characterization of a Brazilian common bean core collection using DArTseq high-density SNP genotyping.

PubMed

Valdisser, Paula A M R; Pereira, Wendell J; Almeida Filho, Jâneo E; Müller, Bárbara S F; Coelho, Gesimária R C; de Menezes, Ivandilson P P; Vianna, João P G; Zucchi, Maria I; Lanna, Anna C; Coelho, Alexandre S G; de Oliveira, Jaison P; Moraes, Alessandra da Cunha; Brondani, Claudio; Vianello, Rosana P

2017-05-30

Common bean is a legume of social and nutritional importance as a food crop, cultivated worldwide especially in developing countries, accounting for an important source of income for small farmers. The availability of the complete sequences of the two common bean genomes has dramatically accelerated and has enabled new experimental strategies to be applied for genetic research. DArTseq has been widely used as a method of SNP genotyping allowing comprehensive genome coverage with genetic applications in common bean breeding programs. Using this technology, 6286 SNPs (1 SNP/86.5 Kbp) were genotyped in genic (43.3%) and non-genic regions (56.7%). Genetic subdivision associated to the common bean gene pools (K = 2) and related to grain types (K = 3 and K = 5) were reported. A total of 83% and 91% of all SNPs were polymorphic within the Andean and Mesoamerican gene pools, respectively, and 26% were able to differentiate the gene pools. Genetic diversity analysis revealed an average H E of 0.442 for the whole collection, 0.102 for Andean and 0.168 for Mesoamerican gene pools (F ST  = 0.747 between gene pools), 0.440 for the group of cultivars and lines, and 0.448 for the group of landrace accessions (F ST  = 0.002 between cultivar/line and landrace groups). The SNP effects were predicted with predominance of impact on non-coding regions (77.8%). SNPs under selection were identified within gene pools comparing landrace and cultivar/line germplasm groups (Andean: 18; Mesoamerican: 69) and between the gene pools (59 SNPs), predominantly on chromosomes 1 and 9. The LD extension estimate corrected for population structure and relatedness (r 2 SV ) was ~ 88 kbp, while for the Andean gene pool was ~ 395 kbp, and for the Mesoamerican was ~ 130 kbp. For common bean, DArTseq provides an efficient and cost-effective strategy of generating SNPs for large-scale genome-wide studies. The DArTseq resulted in an operational panel of 560 polymorphic SNPs in linkage equilibrium, providing high genome coverage. This SNP set could be used in genotyping platforms with many applications, such as population genetics, phylogeny relation between common bean varieties and support to molecular breeding approaches.

Dorsal motor nucleus of the vagus neurons: a multivariate taxonomy.

PubMed

Jarvinen, M K; Powley, T L

1999-01-18

The dorsal motor nucleus of the vagus (DMNX) contains neurons with different projections and discrete functions, but little success has been achieved in distinguishing the cells cytoarchitectonically. The present experiment employed multivariate analytical techniques to evaluate DMNX neuronal morphology. Male Sprague-Dawley rats (n = 77) were perfused, and the brainstems were stained en bloc with a Golgi-Cox protocol. DMNX neurons in each of three planes (coronal, sagittal, and horizontal; total sample = 607) were digitized. Three-dimensional features quantified included dendritic length, number of segments, spine density, number of primary dendrites, dendritic orientation, and soma form factor. Cluster analyses of six independent samples of 100+ neurons and of three composite replicate pools of 200+ neurons consistently identified similar sets of four distinct neuronal profiles. One profile (spinous, limited dendrites, small somata) appears to correspond to the interneuron population of the DMNX. In contrast, the other three distinctive profiles (e.g., one is multipolar, with large dendritic fields and large somata) are different types of preganglionic neurons. Each of the four types of neurons is found throughout the DMNX, suggesting that the individual columnar subnuclei and other postulated vagal motorneuron pools are composed of all types of neurons. Within individual motor pools, ensembles of the different neuronal types must cooperatively organize different functions and project to different effectors within a target organ. By extension, specializations of the preganglionic motor pools are more likely to result from their afferent inputs, peripheral target tissues, neurochemistry, or physiological features rather than from any unique morphological profiles.

Dissolved inorganic nitrogen pools and surface flux under different brackish marsh vegetation types, common reed (Phragmites australis) and salt hay (Spartina patens)

USGS Publications Warehouse

Windham-Myers, L.

2005-01-01

The current expansion of Phragmites australis into the high marsh shortgrass (Spartina patens, Distichlis spicata) communities of eastern U.S. salt marshes provided an opportunity to identify the influence of vegetation types on pools and fluxes of dissolved inorganic nitrogen (DIN). Two brackish tidal marshes of the National Estuarine Research Reserve system were examined, Piermont Marsh of the Hudson River NERR in New York and Hog Island in the Jacques Coustaeu NERR of New Jersey. Pools of DIN in porewater and rates of DIN surface flux were compared in replicated pairs of recently-expanded P. australis and neighboring S. patens-dominated patches on the high marsh surface. Both marshes generally imported nitrate (NO3-) and exported ammonium (NH4+), such that overall DIN was exported. No differences in surface exchange of NO3- or NH4+ were observed between vegetation types. Depth-averaged porewater NH4+ concentrations over the entire growing season were 56% lower under P. australis than under S. patens (average 1.4 vs. 3.2 mg NH4+ L-1) with the most profound differences in November. Porewater profiles showed an accumulation of NH4+ at depth in S. patens and constant low concentrations in P. australis from the soil surface to 50 cm depth, with no significant differences in porewater salinity. Despite these profound differences in porewater, NH 4+ diffusion from soils of P. australis and S. patens were not measurably different, were similar to other published rates, and were well below estimated rates based on passive diffusion alone. Rapid adsorption and uptake by litter and microbes in surface soils of both communities may buffer NH4+ loss to flooding tides in both communities, thereby reducing the impact of P. australis invasion on NH4+ flux to flooding waters. ?? Springer 2005.

Tax credits and purchasing pools: will this marriage work?

PubMed

Trude, S; Ginsburg, P B

2001-04-01

Bipartisan interest is growing in Congress for using federal tax credits to help low-income families buy health insurance. Regardless of the approach taken, tax credit policies must address risk selection issues to ensure coverage for the chronically ill. Proposals that link tax credits to purchasing pools would avoid risk selection by grouping risks similar to the way large employers do. Voluntary purchasing pools have had only limited success, however. This Issue Brief discusses linking tax credits to purchasing pools. It uses information from the Center for Studying Health System Change's (HSC) site visits to 12 communities as well as other research to assess the role of purchasing pools nationwide and the key issues and implications of linking tax credits and pools.

Current status of the development of high density LEU fuel for Russian research reactors

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

Vatulin, A.; Dobrikova, I.; Suprun, V.

2008-07-15

One of the main directions of the Russian RERTR program is to develop U-Mo fuel and fuel elements/FA with this fuel. The development is carried out both for existing reactors, and for new advanced designs of reactors. Many organizations in Russia, i.e. 'TVEL', RDIPE, RIAR, IRM, NPCC participate in the work. Two fuels are under development: dispersion and monolithic U-Mo fuel, as well two types of FA to use the dispersion U-Mo fuel: with tubular type fuel elements and with pin type fuel elements. The first stage of works was successfully completed. This stage included out-pile, in-pile and post irradiationmore » examinations of U-Mo dispersion fuel in experimental tubular and pin fuel elements under parameters similar to operation conditions of Russian design pool-type research reactors. The results received both in Russia and abroad enabled to go on to the next stage of development which includes irradiation tests both of full-scale IRT pin-type and tube-type fuel assemblies with U-Mo dispersion fuel and of mini-fuel elements with modified U-Mo dispersion fuel and monolithic fuel. The paper gives a generalized review of the results of U-Mo fuel development accomplished by now. (author)« less

Distribution of Salmonella serovars and phage types on 80 Ontario swine farms in 2004

PubMed Central

Farzan, Abdolvahab; Friendship, Robert M.; Dewey, Catherine E.; Muckle, Anne C.; Gray, Jeff T.; Funk, Julie

2008-01-01

The objective of this study was to describe the distribution of Salmonella spp. on Ontario grower–finisher pig farms. Eighty swine farms were visited from January through July 2004. On each farm, fecal samples were collected from 5 pens, 2 rectal samples and 1 pooled sample from fresh manure on the floor per pen. Salmonella was isolated from 91 (11%) of the 800 rectal samples and 73 (18%) of the 397 pooled samples. Overall, Salmonella was recovered from 37 (46%) of the 80 farms. On each positive farm, Salmonella was cultured from 1 to 7 pigs or 1 to 5 pens. Of the 37 farms, 18, 13, 5, and 1 yielded 1, 2, 3, and 4 serovars, respectively. The most common serovars were S. Typhimurium var. Copenhagen, S. Infantis, S. Typhimurium, S. Derby, S. Agona, S. Havana, and S. enterica subsp. I:Rough-O. The 3 most frequent phage types were PT 104, PT 104a, and PT 104b. There was a statistically fair agreement between samples collected directly from pigs and pooled pen samples in determining the Salmonella status at the pen and farm level (κ = 0.6, P < 0.0001). However, in 62 pens, Salmonella status, serovars, or phage types differed between the pig and pooled pen samples. The distribution of Salmonella on the swine farms in this study indicates that, in developing an intervention strategy, priority should be given to farms positive for S. Typhimurium var. Copenhagen. Also, the variation in Salmonella status between pig and pooled pen samples deserves consideration in a sampling strategy. PMID:18214155

Author-based journal selection system that helps authors save time in article submission.

PubMed

Ozturk, Onur; Ileri, Fatih

2018-01-01

Submission to journals takes a lot of time and format related submission requirements vary greatly from one journal to another. Lack of time and motivation in academia reduces scientific outputs and demotivates researchers. Author-based journal selection system (ABJSS) is a platform for pooling manuscripts conceived to minimize the time spent for manuscript submission and to increase scientific output. The system will provide two types of account: "Author" and "Journal Administrator". Each account type will have its own abilities and permissions. The ABJJS system is an ongoing project that will be designed in cooperation with IT experts and academicians and it will be presented to the scientific world as soon as it secures sufficient support.

Job Strain as a Risk Factor for Type 2 Diabetes: A Pooled Analysis of 124,808 Men and Women

PubMed Central

Fransson, Eleonor I.; Heikkilä, Katriina; Ahola, Kirsi; Alfredsson, Lars; Bjorner, Jakob B.; Borritz, Marianne; Burr, Hermann; Dragano, Nico; Goldberg, Marcel; Hamer, Mark; Jokela, Markus; Knutsson, Anders; Koskenvuo, Markku; Koskinen, Aki; Kouvonen, Anne; Leineweber, Constanze; Madsen, Ida E.H.; Magnusson Hanson, Linda L.; Marmot, Michael G.; Nielsen, Martin L.; Nordin, Maria; Oksanen, Tuula; Pejtersen, Jan H.; Pentti, Jaana; Rugulies, Reiner; Salo, Paula; Siegrist, Johannes; Steptoe, Andrew; Suominen, Sakari; Theorell, Töres; Väänänen, Ari; Vahtera, Jussi; Virtanen, Marianna; Westerholm, Peter J.M.; Westerlund, Hugo; Zins, Marie; Batty, G. David; Brunner, Eric J.; Ferrie, Jane E.; Singh-Manoux, Archana

2014-01-01

OBJECTIVE The status of psychosocial stress at work as a risk factor for type 2 diabetes is unclear because existing evidence is based on small studies and is subject to confounding by lifestyle factors, such as obesity and physical inactivity. This collaborative study examined whether stress at work, defined as “job strain,” is associated with incident type 2 diabetes independent of lifestyle factors. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS We extracted individual-level data for 124,808 diabetes-free adults from 13 European cohort studies participating in the IPD-Work Consortium. We measured job strain with baseline questionnaires. Incident type 2 diabetes at follow-up was ascertained using national health registers, clinical screening, and self-reports. We analyzed data for each study using Cox regression and pooled the study-specific estimates in fixed-effect meta-analyses. RESULTS There were 3,703 cases of incident diabetes during a mean follow-up of 10.3 years. After adjustment for age, sex, and socioeconomic status (SES), the hazard ratio (HR) for job strain compared with no job strain was 1.15 (95% CI 1.06–1.25) with no difference between men and women (1.19 [1.06–1.34] and 1.13 [1.00–1.28], respectively). In stratified analyses, job strain was associated with an increased risk of diabetes among those with healthy and unhealthy lifestyle habits. In a multivariable model adjusted for age, sex, SES, and lifestyle habits, the HR was 1.11 (1.00–1.23). CONCLUSIONS Findings from a large pan-European dataset suggest that job strain is a risk factor for type 2 diabetes in men and women independent of lifestyle factors. PMID:25061139

Fragment structure from vapor explosions during the impact of molten metal droplets into a liquid pool

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kouraytem, Nadia; Li, Er Qiang; Vakarelski, Ivan Uriev; Thoroddsen, Sigurdur

2015-11-01

High-speed video imaging is used in order to look at the impact of a molten metal drop falling into a liquid pool. The interaction regimes are three: film boiling, nucleate boiling or vapor explosion. Following the vapor explosion, the metal fragments and different textures are observed. It was seen that, using a tin alloy, a porous structure results whereas using a distinctive eutectic metal, Field's metal, micro beads are formed. Different parameters such as the metal type, molten metal temperature, pool surface tension and pool boiling temperature have been altered in order to assess the role they play on the explosion dynamics and the molten metal's by product.

Comparison of individual, pooled, and composite fecal sampling methods for detection of Salmonella on U.S. dairy operations

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

The objectives of this study were to estimate the prevalence of Salmonella for individual, pooled, and composite fecal samples and to compare culture results from each sample type for determining herd Salmonella infection status and identifying Salmonella serotype(s). The USDA’s National Animal Hea...

The spatial variability of water chemistry and DOC in bog pools: the importance of slope position, diurnal turnover and pool type

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Holden, Joseph; Turner, Ed; Baird, Andy; Beadle, Jeannie; Billett, Mike; Brown, Lee; Chapman, Pippa; Dinsmore, Kerry; Dooling, Gemma; Grayson, Richard; Moody, Catherine; Gee, Clare

2017-04-01

We have previously shown that marine influence is an important factor controlling regional variability of pool water chemistry in blanket peatlands. Here we examine within-site controls on pool water chemistry. We surveyed natural and artificial (restoration sites) bog pools at blanket peatland sites in northern Scotland and Sweden. DOC, pH, conductivity, dissolved oxygen, temperature, cations, anions and absorbance spectra from 220-750nm were sampled. We sampled changes over time but also conducted intensive spatial surveys within individual pools and between pools on the same sampling days at individual study sites. Artificial pools had significantly greater DOC concentrations and different spectral absorbance characteristics when compared to natural pools at all sites studied. Within-pool variability in water chemistry tended to be small, even for very large pools ( 400 m2), except where pools had a layer of loose, mobile detritus on their beds. In these instances rapid changes took place between the overlying water column and the mobile sediment layer wherein dissolved oxygen concentrations dropped from values of around 12-10 mg/L to values less than 0.5 mg/L over just 2-3 cm of the depth profile. Such strong contrasts were not observed for pools which had a hard peat floor and which lacked a significant detritus layer. Strong diurnal turnover occurred within the pools on summer days, including within small, shallow pools (e.g. < 30 cm deep, 1 m2 area). For many pools on these summer days there was an evening spike in dissolved oxygen concentrations which originated at the surface and was then cycled downwards as the pool surface waters cooled. Slope location was a significant control on several pool water chemistry variables including pH and DOC concentration with accumulation (higher concentrations) in pools that were located further downslope in both natural and artificial pool systems. These processes have important implications for our interpretation of water chemistry and gas flux data from pool systems, how we design our sampling strategies and how we upscale results.

Association between adult height, genetic susceptibility and risk of glioma

PubMed Central

Kitahara, Cari M; Wang, Sophia S; Melin, Beatrice S; Wang, Zhaoming; Braganza, Melissa; Inskip, Peter D; Albanes, Demetrius; Andersson, Ulrika; Beane Freeman, Laura E; Buring, Julie E; Carreón, Tania; Feychting, Maria; Gapstur, Susan M; Gaziano, J Michael; Giles, Graham G; Hallmans, Goran; Hankinson, Susan E; Henriksson, Roger; Hsing, Ann W; Johansen, Christoffer; Linet, Martha S; McKean-Cowdin, Roberta; Michaud, Dominique S; Peters, Ulrike; Purdue, Mark P; Rothman, Nathaniel; Ruder, Avima M; Sesso, Howard D; Severi, Gianluca; Shu, Xiao-Ou; Stevens, Victoria L; Visvanathan, Kala; Waters, Martha A; White, Emily; Wolk, Alicja; Zeleniuch-Jacquotte, Anne; Zheng, Wei; Hoover, Robert; Fraumeni, Joseph F; Chatterjee, Nilanjan; Yeager, Meredith; Chanock, Stephen J; Hartge, Patricia; Rajaraman, Preetha

2012-01-01

Background Some, but not all, observational studies have suggested that taller stature is associated with a significant increased risk of glioma. In a pooled analysis of observational studies, we investigated the strength and consistency of this association, overall and for major sub-types, and investigated effect modification by genetic susceptibility to the disease. Methods We standardized and combined individual-level data on 1354 cases and 4734 control subjects from 13 prospective and 2 case–control studies. Pooled odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for glioma and glioma sub-types were estimated using logistic regression models stratified by sex and adjusted for birth cohort and study. Pooled ORs were additionally estimated after stratifying the models according to seven recently identified glioma-related genetic variants. Results Among men, we found a positive association between height and glioma risk (≥190 vs 170–174 cm, pooled OR = 1.70, 95% CI: 1.11–2.61; P-trend = 0.01), which was slightly stronger after restricting to cases with glioblastoma (pooled OR = 1.99, 95% CI: 1.17–3.38; P-trend = 0.02). Among women, these associations were less clear (≥175 vs 160–164 cm, pooled OR for glioma = 1.06, 95% CI: 0.70–1.62; P-trend = 0.22; pooled OR for glioblastoma = 1.36, 95% CI: 0.77–2.39; P-trend = 0.04). In general, we did not observe evidence of effect modification by glioma-related genotypes on the association between height and glioma risk. Conclusion An association of taller adult stature with glioma, particularly for men and stronger for glioblastoma, should be investigated further to clarify the role of environmental and genetic determinants of height in the etiology of this disease. PMID:22933650

Association between adult height, genetic susceptibility and risk of glioma.

PubMed

Kitahara, Cari M; Wang, Sophia S; Melin, Beatrice S; Wang, Zhaoming; Braganza, Melissa; Inskip, Peter D; Albanes, Demetrius; Andersson, Ulrika; Beane Freeman, Laura E; Buring, Julie E; Carreón, Tania; Feychting, Maria; Gapstur, Susan M; Gaziano, J Michael; Giles, Graham G; Hallmans, Goran; Hankinson, Susan E; Henriksson, Roger; Hsing, Ann W; Johansen, Christoffer; Linet, Martha S; McKean-Cowdin, Roberta; Michaud, Dominique S; Peters, Ulrike; Purdue, Mark P; Rothman, Nathaniel; Ruder, Avima M; Sesso, Howard D; Severi, Gianluca; Shu, Xiao-Ou; Stevens, Victoria L; Visvanathan, Kala; Waters, Martha A; White, Emily; Wolk, Alicja; Zeleniuch-Jacquotte, Anne; Zheng, Wei; Hoover, Robert; Fraumeni, Joseph F; Chatterjee, Nilanjan; Yeager, Meredith; Chanock, Stephen J; Hartge, Patricia; Rajaraman, Preetha

2012-08-01

Some, but not all, observational studies have suggested that taller stature is associated with a significant increased risk of glioma. In a pooled analysis of observational studies, we investigated the strength and consistency of this association, overall and for major sub-types, and investigated effect modification by genetic susceptibility to the disease. We standardized and combined individual-level data on 1354 cases and 4734 control subjects from 13 prospective and 2 case-control studies. Pooled odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for glioma and glioma sub-types were estimated using logistic regression models stratified by sex and adjusted for birth cohort and study. Pooled ORs were additionally estimated after stratifying the models according to seven recently identified glioma-related genetic variants. Among men, we found a positive association between height and glioma risk (≥ 190 vs 170-174 cm, pooled OR = 1.70, 95% CI: 1.11-2.61; P-trend = 0.01), which was slightly stronger after restricting to cases with glioblastoma (pooled OR = 1.99, 95% CI: 1.17-3.38; P-trend = 0.02). Among women, these associations were less clear (≥ 175 vs 160-164 cm, pooled OR for glioma = 1.06, 95% CI: 0.70-1.62; P-trend = 0.22; pooled OR for glioblastoma = 1.36, 95% CI: 0.77-2.39; P-trend = 0.04). In general, we did not observe evidence of effect modification by glioma-related genotypes on the association between height and glioma risk. An association of taller adult stature with glioma, particularly for men and stronger for glioblastoma, should be investigated further to clarify the role of environmental and genetic determinants of height in the etiology of this disease.

Peatland Open-water Pool Biogeochemistry: The Influence of Hydrology and Vegetation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Arsenault, J.; Talbot, J.; Moore, T. R.

2017-12-01

Peatland open-water pools are net sources of carbon to the atmosphere. However, their interaction with the surrounding peat remains poorly known. In a previous study, we showed that shallow pools are richer in nutrients than deep pools. While depth was the main driver of biogeochemistry variations across time and space, analyses also showed that pool's adjacent vegetation may have an influence on water chemistry. Our goal is to understand the relationship between the biogeochemistry of open-water pools and their surroundings in a subboreal ombrotrophic peatland of southern Quebec (Canada). To assess the influence of vegetation on pool water chemistry, we compare two areas covered with different types of vegetation: a forested zone dominated by spruce trees and an open area mostly covered by Sphagnum spp. To evaluate the direction of water (in or out of the pools), we installed capacitance water level probes in transects linking pools in the two zones. Wells were also installed next to each probe to collect peat pore water samples. Samples were taken every month during summer 2017 and analyzed for dissolved organic carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus, pH and specific UV absorbance. Preliminary results show differences in peat water chemistry depending on the dominant vegetation. In both zones, water levels fluctuations are disconnected between peat and the pools, suggesting poor horizontal water movement. Pool water chemistry may be mostly influenced by the immediate surrounding vegetation than by the local vegetation pattern. Climate and land-use change may affect the vegetation structure of peatlands, thus affecting pool biogeochemistry. Considering the impact of pools on the overall peatland capacity to accumulate carbon, our results show that more focus must be placed on pools to better understand peatland stability over time.

Fish oil supplementation and insulin sensitivity: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

PubMed

Gao, Huanqing; Geng, Tingting; Huang, Tao; Zhao, Qinghua

2017-07-03

Fish oil supplementation has been shown to be associated with a lower risk of metabolic syndrome and benefit a wide range of chronic diseases, such as cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes and several types of cancers. However, the evidence of fish oil supplementation on glucose metabolism and insulin sensitivity is still controversial. This meta-analysis summarized the exist evidence of the relationship between fish oil supplementation and insulin sensitivity and aimed to evaluate whether fish oil supplementation could improve insulin sensitivity. We searched the Cochrane Library, PubMed, Embase database for the relevant studies update to Dec 2016. Two researchers screened the literature independently by the selection and exclusion criteria. Studies were pooled using random effect models to estimate a pooled SMD and corresponding 95% CI. This meta-analysis was performed by Stata 13.1 software. A total of 17 studies with 672 participants were included in this meta-analysis study after screening from 498 published articles found after the initial search. In a pooled analysis, fish oil supplementation had no effects on insulin sensitivity compared with the placebo (SMD 0.17, 95%CI -0.15 to 0.48, p = 0.292). In subgroup analysis, fish oil supplementation could benefit insulin sensitivity among people who were experiencing at least one symptom of metabolic disorders (SMD 0.53, 95% CI 0.17 to 0.88, p < 0.001). Similarly, there were no significant differences between subgroups of methods of insulin sensitivity, doses of omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (n-3 PUFA) of fish oil supplementation or duration of the intervention. The sensitivity analysis indicated that the results were robust. Short-term fish oil supplementation is associated with increasing the insulin sensitivity among those people with metabolic disorders.

Global Prevalence and Major Risk Factors of Diabetic Retinopathy

PubMed Central

Yau, Joanne W.Y.; Rogers, Sophie L.; Kawasaki, Ryo; Lamoureux, Ecosse L.; Kowalski, Jonathan W.; Bek, Toke; Chen, Shih-Jen; Dekker, Jacqueline M.; Fletcher, Astrid; Grauslund, Jakob; Haffner, Steven; Hamman, Richard F.; Ikram, M. Kamran; Kayama, Takamasa; Klein, Barbara E.K.; Klein, Ronald; Krishnaiah, Sannapaneni; Mayurasakorn, Korapat; O’Hare, Joseph P.; Orchard, Trevor J.; Porta, Massimo; Rema, Mohan; Roy, Monique S.; Sharma, Tarun; Shaw, Jonathan; Taylor, Hugh; Tielsch, James M.; Varma, Rohit; Wang, Jie Jin; Wang, Ningli; West, Sheila; Xu, Liang; Yasuda, Miho; Zhang, Xinzhi; Mitchell, Paul; Wong, Tien Y.

2012-01-01

OBJECTIVE To examine the global prevalence and major risk factors for diabetic retinopathy (DR) and vision-threatening diabetic retinopathy (VTDR) among people with diabetes. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS A pooled analysis using individual participant data from population-based studies around the world was performed. A systematic literature review was conducted to identify all population-based studies in general populations or individuals with diabetes who had ascertained DR from retinal photographs. Studies provided data for DR end points, including any DR, proliferative DR, diabetic macular edema, and VTDR, and also major systemic risk factors. Pooled prevalence estimates were directly age-standardized to the 2010 World Diabetes Population aged 20–79 years. RESULTS A total of 35 studies (1980–2008) provided data from 22,896 individuals with diabetes. The overall prevalence was 34.6% (95% CI 34.5–34.8) for any DR, 6.96% (6.87–7.04) for proliferative DR, 6.81% (6.74–6.89) for diabetic macular edema, and 10.2% (10.1–10.3) for VTDR. All DR prevalence end points increased with diabetes duration, hemoglobin A1c, and blood pressure levels and were higher in people with type 1 compared with type 2 diabetes. CONCLUSIONS There are approximately 93 million people with DR, 17 million with proliferative DR, 21 million with diabetic macular edema, and 28 million with VTDR worldwide. Longer diabetes duration and poorer glycemic and blood pressure control are strongly associated with DR. These data highlight the substantial worldwide public health burden of DR and the importance of modifiable risk factors in its occurrence. This study is limited by data pooled from studies at different time points, with different methodologies and population characteristics. PMID:22301125

Coffee consumption and risk of hepatocellular carcinoma and intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma by sex: The Liver Cancer Pooling Project

PubMed Central

Petrick, Jessica L.; Freedman, Neal D.; Graubard, Barry I.; Sahasrabuddhe, Vikrant V.; Lai, Gabriel Y.; Alavanja, Michael C.; Beane-Freeman, Laura E.; Boggs, Deborah A.; Buring, Julie E.; Chan, Andrew T.; Chong, Dawn Q.; Fuchs, Charles S.; Gapstur, Susan M.; Gaziano, John Michael; Giovannucci, Edward L.; Hollenbeck, Albert R.; King, Lindsay Y.; Koshiol, Jill; Lee, I-Min; Linet, Martha S.; Palmer, Julie R.; Poynter, Jenny N.; Purdue, Mark P.; Robien, Kim; Schairer, Catherine; Sesso, Howard D.; Sigurdson, Alice J.; Zeleniuch-Jacquotte, Anne; Wactawski-Wende, Jean; Campbell, Peter T.; McGlynn, Katherine A.

2015-01-01

Background Coffee consumption has been reported to be inversely associated with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), the most common type of liver cancer. Caffeine has chemopreventive properties, but whether caffeine is responsible for the coffee-HCC association is not well studied. In addition, few studies have examined the relationship by sex, and no studies have examined whether there is an association between coffee and intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma (ICC), the second most common type of liver cancer. Methods In the Liver Cancer Pooling Project, a consortium of U.S.-based cohort studies, data from 1,212,893 individuals (HCC n=860, ICC n=260) in nine cohorts were pooled. Multivariable-adjusted hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) were estimated using proportional hazards regression. Results Higher coffee consumption was associated with lower risk of HCC (HR>3 cups/day vs. non-drinker, 0.73; 95% CI, 0.53-0.99; ptrend cups/day=<0.0001). More notable reduced risk was seen among women than men (pinteraction=0.07). Women who consumed more than three cups of coffee per day were at a 54% lower risk of HCC (HR, 0.46; 95% CI, 0.26-0.81), whereas men had more modest reduced risk of HCC (HR, 0.93; 95% CI, 0.63-1.37). The associations were stronger for caffeinated coffee (HR>3 cups/day vs. non-drinker, 0.71, 95% CI, 0.50-1.01) than decaffeinated coffee (HR, 0.92; 95% CI, 0.55-1.54). There was no relationship between coffee consumption and ICC. Conclusions These findings suggest that, in a U.S. population, coffee consumption is associated with reduced risk of HCC. Impact Further research into specific coffee compounds and mechanisms that may account for these associations is needed. PMID:26126626

Probability judgments under ambiguity and conflict

PubMed Central

Smithson, Michael

2015-01-01

Whether conflict and ambiguity are distinct kinds of uncertainty remains an open question, as does their joint impact on judgments of overall uncertainty. This paper reviews recent advances in our understanding of human judgment and decision making when both ambiguity and conflict are present, and presents two types of testable models of judgments under conflict and ambiguity. The first type concerns estimate-pooling to arrive at “best” probability estimates. The second type is models of subjective assessments of conflict and ambiguity. These models are developed for dealing with both described and experienced information. A framework for testing these models in the described-information setting is presented, including a reanalysis of a multi-nation data-set to test best-estimate models, and a study of participants' assessments of conflict, ambiguity, and overall uncertainty reported by Smithson (2013). A framework for research in the experienced-information setting is then developed, that differs substantially from extant paradigms in the literature. This framework yields new models of “best” estimates and perceived conflict. The paper concludes with specific suggestions for future research on judgment and decision making under conflict and ambiguity. PMID:26042081

Probability judgments under ambiguity and conflict.

PubMed

Smithson, Michael

2015-01-01

Whether conflict and ambiguity are distinct kinds of uncertainty remains an open question, as does their joint impact on judgments of overall uncertainty. This paper reviews recent advances in our understanding of human judgment and decision making when both ambiguity and conflict are present, and presents two types of testable models of judgments under conflict and ambiguity. The first type concerns estimate-pooling to arrive at "best" probability estimates. The second type is models of subjective assessments of conflict and ambiguity. These models are developed for dealing with both described and experienced information. A framework for testing these models in the described-information setting is presented, including a reanalysis of a multi-nation data-set to test best-estimate models, and a study of participants' assessments of conflict, ambiguity, and overall uncertainty reported by Smithson (2013). A framework for research in the experienced-information setting is then developed, that differs substantially from extant paradigms in the literature. This framework yields new models of "best" estimates and perceived conflict. The paper concludes with specific suggestions for future research on judgment and decision making under conflict and ambiguity.

Disability prevalence among healthy weight, overweight, and obese adults.

PubMed

Armour, Brian S; Courtney-Long, Elizabeth A; Campbell, Vincent A; Wethington, Holly R

2013-04-01

Obesity is associated with adverse health outcomes in people with and without disabilities. However, little is known about disability prevalence among people who are obese. The purpose of this study is to determine the prevalence and type of disability among adults who are obese. Pooled data from the 2003-2009 National Health Interview Survey (NHIS) were analyzed to obtain national prevalence estimates of disability, disability type and obesity. The disability prevalence was stratified by body mass index (BMI): healthy weight (BMI 18.5-<25.0), overweight (BMI 25.0-<30.0), and obese (BMI ≥ 30.0). In this pooled sample, among the 25.4% of US adults who were obese, 41.7% reported a disability. In contrast, 26.7% of those with a healthy weight and 28.5% of those who were overweight reported a disability. The most common disabilities among respondents with obesity were movement difficulty (32.5%) and work limitation (16.6%). This research contributes to the literature on obesity by including disability as a demographic in assessing the burden of obesity. Because of the high prevalence of disability among those who are obese, public health programs should consider the needs of those with disabilities when designing obesity prevention and treatment programs. Copyright © 2013 The Obesity Society.

Nateglinide versus repaglinide for type 2 diabetes mellitus in China.

PubMed

Li, Chanjuan; Xia, Jielai; Zhang, Gaokui; Wang, Suzhen; Wang, Ling

2009-12-01

The purpose of this study is to evaluate efficacy and safety of nateglinide tablet administration in comparison with those of repaglinide tablet as control on treating type 2 diabetes mellitus in China. Pooled-analysis with analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) method was applied to assess the efficacy and safety based on original data collected from four independent randomized clinical trials with similar research protocols. However meta-analysis was applied based on the outcomes of the four studies. The results by meta-analysis were comparable to those obtained by pooled-analysis. The means of HbA(1c), and fasting blood glucose in both the nateglinide and repaglinide groups were reduced significantly after 12 weeks duration but no statistical differences in reduction between the two groups. The adverse reaction rates were 9.89 and 6.51% in the nateglinide and repaglinide groups respectively, with the rate difference showing no statistical significance, and the Odds Ratio of adverse reaction rate (95% confidence interval) was 1.59 (0.99, 2.55). Both nateglinide and repaglinide administration have similarly significant effects on reducing HbA(1c) and FBG. However, the adverse reaction rate in the nateglinide group is higher than that in the latter using repaglinide but no statistical significance difference as revealed in the four clinical trials detailed below.

SPERT Destructive Test - I on Aluminum, Highly Enriched Plate Type Core

ScienceCinema

None

2018-01-16

SPERT - Special Power Excursion Reactor Tests Destructive Test number 1 On Aluminum, Highly Enriched Plate Type Core. A test studying the behavior of the reactor under destructive conditions on a light water moderated pool-type reactor with a plate-type core.

Do ungulates accelerate or decelerate nitrogen cycling?

USGS Publications Warehouse

Singer, F.J.; Schoenecker, K.A.

2003-01-01

Nitrogen (N) is an essential nutrient for plants and animals, and N may be limiting in many western US grassland and shrubland ungulate winter ranges. Ungulates may influence N pools and they may alter N inputs and outputs (losses) to the ecosystem in a number of ways. In this paper we compare the ecosystem effects of ungulate herbivory in two western national parks, Rocky Mountain National Park (RMNP), Colorado, and Yellowstone National Park (YNP), Wyoming. We compare ungulate herbivory effects on N pools, N fluxes, N yields, and plant productivity in the context of the accelerating and decelerating nutrient cycling scenarios [Ecology 79 (1998) 165]. We concluded that the YNP grasslands fit the accelerating nutrient cycling scenario for ungulate herbivory: in response to grazing, grassland plant species abundance was largely unaltered, net annual aboveground primary productivity (NAPP) was stimulated (except during drought), consumption of key N-rich forages by ungulates was moderate and their abundance was sustained, soil N mineralization rates doubled, N pools increased, aboveground N yield increased, and N concentrations increased in most grassland plant species. Grazing in grasslands in RMNP resulted in no consistent detectable acceleration or deceleration of nutrient cycling. Grazing effects in short willow and aspen vegetation types in RMNP fit the decelerating nutrient cycling scenario of Ritchie et al. [Ecology 79 (1998) 165]. Key N-rich forages declined due to herbivory (willows, aspen, herbaceous vegetation). Aboveground production declined, soil N mineralization rates declined, N pools declined (NO3− pools were 30% that of ungrazed controls), and aboveground N yield declined. We believe that the higher ungulate densities and rates of plant consumption in RMNP, large declines in N-rich forage plants, and possibly a tendency of ungulates to move N from willow and aspen vegetation types to other types in RMNP, contributed to deceleration of nutrient cycling in two vegetation types in RMNP compared to acceleration in grasslands in YNP.

48 CFR 9904.420-60 - Illustrations.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... typing its overhead cost pool. In submitting a proposal, the engineering department assigns several... established accounting practice does not charge the cost of typing directly to final cost objectives, the...

Systematic review finds that study data not published in full text articles have unclear impact on meta-analyses results in medical research.

PubMed

Schmucker, Christine M; Blümle, Anette; Schell, Lisa K; Schwarzer, Guido; Oeller, Patrick; Cabrera, Laura; von Elm, Erik; Briel, Matthias; Meerpohl, Joerg J

2017-01-01

A meta-analysis as part of a systematic review aims to provide a thorough, comprehensive and unbiased statistical summary of data from the literature. However, relevant study results could be missing from a meta-analysis because of selective publication and inadequate dissemination. If missing outcome data differ systematically from published ones, a meta-analysis will be biased with an inaccurate assessment of the intervention effect. As part of the EU-funded OPEN project (www.open-project.eu) we conducted a systematic review that assessed whether the inclusion of data that were not published at all and/or published only in the grey literature influences pooled effect estimates in meta-analyses and leads to different interpretation. Systematic review of published literature (methodological research projects). Four bibliographic databases were searched up to February 2016 without restriction of publication year or language. Methodological research projects were considered eligible for inclusion if they reviewed a cohort of meta-analyses which (i) compared pooled effect estimates of meta-analyses of health care interventions according to publication status of data or (ii) examined whether the inclusion of unpublished or grey literature data impacts the result of a meta-analysis. Seven methodological research projects including 187 meta-analyses comparing pooled treatment effect estimates according to different publication status were identified. Two research projects showed that published data showed larger pooled treatment effects in favour of the intervention than unpublished or grey literature data (Ratio of ORs 1.15, 95% CI 1.04-1.28 and 1.34, 95% CI 1.09-1.66). In the remaining research projects pooled effect estimates and/or overall findings were not significantly changed by the inclusion of unpublished and/or grey literature data. The precision of the pooled estimate was increased with narrower 95% confidence interval. Although we may anticipate that systematic reviews and meta-analyses not including unpublished or grey literature study results are likely to overestimate the treatment effects, current empirical research shows that this is only the case in a minority of reviews. Therefore, currently, a meta-analyst should particularly consider time, effort and costs when adding such data to their analysis. Future research is needed to identify which reviews may benefit most from including unpublished or grey data.

Systematic review finds that study data not published in full text articles have unclear impact on meta-analyses results in medical research

PubMed Central

Blümle, Anette; Schell, Lisa K.; Schwarzer, Guido; Oeller, Patrick; Cabrera, Laura; von Elm, Erik; Briel, Matthias; Meerpohl, Joerg J.

2017-01-01

Background A meta-analysis as part of a systematic review aims to provide a thorough, comprehensive and unbiased statistical summary of data from the literature. However, relevant study results could be missing from a meta-analysis because of selective publication and inadequate dissemination. If missing outcome data differ systematically from published ones, a meta-analysis will be biased with an inaccurate assessment of the intervention effect. As part of the EU-funded OPEN project (www.open-project.eu) we conducted a systematic review that assessed whether the inclusion of data that were not published at all and/or published only in the grey literature influences pooled effect estimates in meta-analyses and leads to different interpretation. Methods and findings Systematic review of published literature (methodological research projects). Four bibliographic databases were searched up to February 2016 without restriction of publication year or language. Methodological research projects were considered eligible for inclusion if they reviewed a cohort of meta-analyses which (i) compared pooled effect estimates of meta-analyses of health care interventions according to publication status of data or (ii) examined whether the inclusion of unpublished or grey literature data impacts the result of a meta-analysis. Seven methodological research projects including 187 meta-analyses comparing pooled treatment effect estimates according to different publication status were identified. Two research projects showed that published data showed larger pooled treatment effects in favour of the intervention than unpublished or grey literature data (Ratio of ORs 1.15, 95% CI 1.04–1.28 and 1.34, 95% CI 1.09–1.66). In the remaining research projects pooled effect estimates and/or overall findings were not significantly changed by the inclusion of unpublished and/or grey literature data. The precision of the pooled estimate was increased with narrower 95% confidence interval. Conclusions Although we may anticipate that systematic reviews and meta-analyses not including unpublished or grey literature study results are likely to overestimate the treatment effects, current empirical research shows that this is only the case in a minority of reviews. Therefore, currently, a meta-analyst should particularly consider time, effort and costs when adding such data to their analysis. Future research is needed to identify which reviews may benefit most from including unpublished or grey data. PMID:28441452

Mercury in litterfall and upper soil horizons in forested ecosystems in Vermont, USA.

PubMed

Juillerat, Juliette I; Ross, Donald S; Bank, Michael S

2012-08-01

Mercury (Hg) is an atmospheric pollutant that, in forest ecosystems, accumulates in foliage and upper soil horizons. The authors measured soil and litterfall Hg at 15 forest sites (northern hardwood to mixed hardwood/conifer) throughout Vermont, USA, to examine variation among tree species, forest type, and soils. Differences were found among the 12 tree species sampled from at least two sites, with Acer pensylvanicum having significantly greater litterfall total Hg concentration. Senescent leaves had greater Hg concentrations if they originated lower in the canopy or had higher surface:weight ratios. Annual litterfall Hg flux had a wide range, 12.6 to 28.5 µg/m(2) (mean, 17.9 µg/m(2) ), not related to forest type. Soil and Hg pools in the Oi horizon (litter layer) were not related to the measured Hg deposition flux in litterfall or to total modeled Hg deposition. Despite having lower Hg concentrations, upper mineral soil (A horizons) had greater Hg pools than organic soil horizons (forest floor) due to greater bulk density. Significant differences were found in Hg concentration and Hg/C ratio among soil horizons but not among forest types. Overall, our findings highlight the importance of site history and the benefits of collecting litterfall and soils simultaneously. Observed differences in forest floor Hg pools were strongly correlated with carbon pools, which appeared to be a function of historic land-use patterns. Copyright © 2012 SETAC.

How Big Is Big Enough? Sample Size Requirements for CAST Item Parameter Estimation

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chuah, Siang Chee; Drasgow, Fritz; Luecht, Richard

2006-01-01

Adaptive tests offer the advantages of reduced test length and increased accuracy in ability estimation. However, adaptive tests require large pools of precalibrated items. This study looks at the development of an item pool for 1 type of adaptive administration: the computer-adaptive sequential test. An important issue is the sample size required…

Experimental measurement of stationary SS 304, SS 316L and 8630 GTA weld pool surface temperatures

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

Kraus, H.G.

1989-07-01

The optical spectral radiometric/laser reflectance experimental method, previously developed by the author, was extended to obtain high-resolution surface temperature maps of stationary GTA molten weld pools using thick-plate SS 304, SS316L, and 8630 steel. Increasing the welding current from 50 to 200 A resulted in peak pool surface temperatures from 1050{sup 0} to 2400{sup 0}C for the SS 304. At a constant welding current of 150 A, the SS 304 and various heats of SS 316L and 8630 resulted in peak weld pool temperatures from 2300{sup 0} to 2700{sup 0}C. Temperature contour plots of all the welds made are given.more » Surface temperature maps are classified into types that are believed to be indicative of the convective circulation patterns present in the weld pools.« less

Modeling growth and dissolution of inclusions during fusion welding of steels

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hong, Tao

The characteristics of inclusions in the weld metals are critical factors to determine the structure, properties and performance of weldments. The research in the present thesis applied computational modeling to study inclusion behavior considering thermodynamics and kinetics of nucleation, growth and dissolution of inclusion along its trajectory calculated from the heat transfer and fluid flow model in the weld pool. The objective of this research is to predict the characteristics of inclusions, such as composition, size distribution, and number density in the weld metal from different welding parameters and steel compositions. To synthesize the knowledge of thermodynamics and kinetics of nucleation, growth and dissolution of inclusion in the liquid metal, a set of time-temperature-transformation (TTT) diagrams are constructed to represent the effects of time and temperature on the isothermal growth and dissolution behavior of fourteen types of individual inclusions. The non-isothermal behavior of growth and dissolution of inclusions is predicted from their isothermal behavior by constructing continuous-cooling-transformation (CCT) diagrams using Scheil additive rule. A well verified fluid flow and heat transfer model developed at Penn State is used to calculate the temperature and velocity fields in the weld pool for different welding processes. A turbulent model considering enhanced viscosity and thermal conductivity (k-ε model) is applied. The calculations show that there is vigorous circulation of metal in the weld pool. The heat transfer and fluid flow model helps to understand not only the fundamentals of the physical phenomena (luring welding, but also the basis to study the growth and dissolution of inclusions. The calculations of particle tracking of thousands of inclusions show that most inclusions undergo complex gyrations and thermal cycles in the weld pool. The inclusions experience both growth and dissolution during their lifetime. Thermal cycles of thousand of inclusions nucleated in the liquid region are tracked and their growth and dissolution are calculated to estimate the final size distribution and number density of inclusions statistically. The calculations show that welding conditions and weld metal compositions affect the inclusion characteristics significantly. Good agreement between the computed and the experimentally observed inclusion size distribution indicates that the inclusion behavior in the weld pool can be understood from the fundamentals of transport phenomena and transformation kinetics.

Application research of computational mass-transfer differential equation in MBR concentration field simulation.

PubMed

Li, Chunqing; Tie, Xiaobo; Liang, Kai; Ji, Chanjuan

2016-01-01

After conducting the intensive research on the distribution of fluid's velocity and biochemical reactions in the membrane bioreactor (MBR), this paper introduces the use of the mass-transfer differential equation to simulate the distribution of the chemical oxygen demand (COD) concentration in MBR membrane pool. The solutions are as follows: first, use computational fluid dynamics to establish a flow control equation model of the fluid in MBR membrane pool; second, calculate this model by adopting direct numerical simulation to get the velocity field of the fluid in membrane pool; third, combine the data of velocity field to establish mass-transfer differential equation model for the concentration field in MBR membrane pool, and use Seidel iteration method to solve the equation model; last but not least, substitute the real factory data into the velocity and concentration field model to calculate simulation results, and use visualization software Tecplot to display the results. Finally by analyzing the nephogram of COD concentration distribution, it can be found that the simulation result conforms the distribution rule of the COD's concentration in real membrane pool, and the mass-transfer phenomenon can be affected by the velocity field of the fluid in membrane pool. The simulation results of this paper have certain reference value for the design optimization of the real MBR system.

State of the science in ovarian cancer quality of life research: a systematic review.

PubMed

Hess, Lisa M; Stehman, Frederick B

2012-09-01

Health-related quality of life (HRQOL) has become an increasingly important focus of outcomes in cancer care with the movement toward more patient-oriented research. Quality-of-life outcomes are important in ovarian cancer, which has not yet benefitted from improved survival outcomes as have other diseases. This study was designed to systematically assess and summarize HRQOL in ovarian cancer. A systematic search strategy was initiated to identify published literature measuring HRQOL of women with a diagnosis of ovarian cancer (OC). Data were synthesized to evaluate HRQOL and patient-reported outcome data at various time points: before, during, and after chemotherapy. Data were pooled and summary statistics compared across published studies. Comparisons of means were conducted using analysis of variance. There were 170 publications meeting all eligibility criteria, representing 139 unique studies of patients with ovarian cancer, where QOL data were collected. Within this literature, more than 90 different patient-reported outcome (PRO) instruments were administered. The most common HRQOL instruments included the European Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer QLQ-C30 and the Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy. Few studies alone demonstrated significant differences in QOL between the experimental and comparison arm or throughout the treatment period. Pooled data, however, show that baseline QOL may significantly improve, particularly after completion of chemotherapy treatment. Despite the increase in assessment and reporting of QOL in ovarian cancer research studies during the past 15 years, there remains little consistency in the types and format of data collected. There is a need to enhance the standardized collection and reporting of HRQOL data from research involving women with ovarian cancer so that research can build on the cumulative knowledge base to improve outcomes in this patient population.

First detection of mycobacteria in African rodents and insectivores, using stratified pool screening.

PubMed

Durnez, Lies; Eddyani, Miriam; Mgode, Georgies F; Katakweba, Abdul; Katholi, Charles R; Machang'u, Robert R; Kazwala, Rudovik R; Portaels, Françoise; Leirs, Herwig

2008-02-01

With the rising number of patients with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)/AIDS in developing countries, the control of mycobacteria is of growing importance. Previous studies have shown that rodents and insectivores are carriers of mycobacteria. However, it is not clear how widespread mycobacteria are in these animals and what their role is in spreading them. Therefore, the prevalence of mycobacteria in rodents and insectivores was studied in and around Morogoro, Tanzania. Live rodents were trapped, with three types of live traps, in three habitats. Pieces of organs were pooled per habitat, species, and organ type (stratified pooling); these sample pools were examined for the presence of mycobacteria by PCR, microscopy, and culture methods. The mycobacterial isolates were identified using phenotypic techniques and sequencing. In total, 708 small mammals were collected, 31 of which were shrews. By pool prevalence estimation, 2.65% of the animals were carriers of mycobacteria, with a higher prevalence in the urban areas and in Cricetomys gambianus and the insectivore Crocidura hirta. Nontuberculous mycobacteria (Mycobacterium chimaera, M. intracellulare, M. arupense, M. parascrofulaceum, and Mycobacterium spp.) were isolated from C. gambianus, Mastomys natalensis, and C. hirta. This study is the first to report findings of mycobacteria in African rodents and insectivores and the first in mycobacterial ecology to estimate the prevalence of mycobacteria after stratified pool screening. The fact that small mammals in urban areas carry more mycobacteria than those in the fields and that potentially pathogenic mycobacteria were isolated identifies a risk for other animals and humans, especially HIV/AIDS patients, that have a weakened immune system.

Evaluating export container pooling options in MN, WI, and MI's Upper Peninsula.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2013-04-01

Research was undertaken to investigate the issues impacting the expansion of containerized cargo in : Wisconsin, Minnesota and the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. Best practices in container pooling, load matching, : inland ports and electronic tracking...

Insights into soil carbon dynamics across climatic and geologic gradients from time-series and fraction-specific radiocarbon analysis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

van der Voort, Tessa Sophia; Hagedorn, Frank; Zell, Claudia; McIntyre, Cameron; Eglinton, Tim

2016-04-01

Understanding the interaction between soil organic matter (SOM) and climatic, geologic and ecological factors is essential for the understanding of potential susceptibility and vulnerability to climate and land use change. Radiocarbon constitutes a powerful tool for unraveling SOM dynamics and is increasingly used in studies of carbon turnover. The complex and inherently heterogeneous nature of SOM renders it challenging to assess the processes that govern SOM stability by solely looking at the bulk signature on a plot-scale level. This project combines bulk radiocarbon measurements on a regional-scale spanning wide climatic and geologic gradients with a more in-depth approach for a subset of locations. For this subset, time-series and carbon pool-specific radiocarbon data has been acquired for both topsoil and deeper soils. These well-studied sites are part of the Long-Term Forest Ecosystem Research (LWF) program of the Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape research (WSL). Statistical analysis was performed to examine relationships of radiocarbon signatures with variables such as temperature, precipitation and elevation. Bomb-curve modeling was applied determine carbon turnover using time-series data. Results indicate that (1) there is no significant correlation between Δ14C signature and environmental conditions except a weak positive correlation with mean annual temperature, (2) vertical gradients in Δ14C signatures in surface and deeper soils are highly similar despite covering disparate soil-types and climatic systems, and (3) radiocarbon signatures vary significantly between time-series samples and carbon pools. Overall, this study provides a uniquely comprehensive dataset that allows for a better understanding of links between carbon dynamics and environmental settings, as well as for pool-specific and long-term trends in carbon (de)stabilization.

Occurrence of Anti-Drug Antibodies against Interferon-Beta and Natalizumab in Multiple Sclerosis: A Collaborative Cohort Analysis

PubMed Central

Mbogning, Cyprien; Link, Jenny; Ryner, Malin; Ramanujam, Ryan; Auer, Michael; Hyldgaard Jensen, Poul Erik; Koch-Henriksen, Nils; Warnke, Clemens; Ingenhoven, Kathleen; Buck, Dorothea; Grummel, Verena; Lawton, Andy; Donnellan, Naoimh; Hincelin-Mery, Agnès; Sikkema, Dan; Pallardy, Marc; Kieseier, Bernd; Hemmer, Bernard; Hartung, Hans Peter; Soelberg Sorensen, Per; Deisenhammer, Florian; Dönnes, Pierre; Davidson, Julie; Fogdell-Hahn, Anna; Broët, Philippe

2016-01-01

Immunogenicity of biopharmaceutical products in multiple sclerosis is a frequent side effect which has a multifactorial etiology. Here we study associations between anti-drug antibody (ADA) occurrence and demographic and clinical factors. Retrospective data from routine ADA test laboratories in Sweden, Denmark, Austria and Germany (Dusseldorf group) and from one research study in Germany (Munich group) were gathered to build a collaborative multi-cohort dataset within the framework of the ABIRISK project. A subset of 5638 interferon-beta (IFNβ)-treated and 3440 natalizumab-treated patients having data on at least the first two years of treatment were eligible for interval-censored time-to-event analysis. In multivariate Cox regression, IFNβ-1a subcutaneous and IFNβ-1b subcutaneous treated patients were at higher risk of ADA occurrence compared to IFNβ-1a intramuscular-treated patients (pooled HR = 6.4, 95% CI 4.9–8.4 and pooled HR = 8.7, 95% CI 6.6–11.4 respectively). Patients older than 50 years at start of IFNβ therapy developed ADA more frequently than adult patients younger than 30 (pooled HR = 1.8, 95% CI 1.4–2.3). Men developed ADA more frequently than women (pooled HR = 1.3, 95% CI 1.1–1.6). Interestingly we observed that in Sweden and Germany, patients who started IFNβ in April were at higher risk of developing ADA (HR = 1.6, 95% CI 1.1–2.4 and HR = 2.4, 95% CI 1.5–3.9 respectively). This result is not confirmed in the other cohorts and warrants further investigations. Concerning natalizumab, patients older than 45 years had a higher ADA rate (pooled HR = 1.4, 95% CI 1.0–1.8) and women developed ADA more frequently than men (pooled HR = 1.4, 95% CI 1.0–2.0). We confirmed previously reported differences in immunogenicity of the different types of IFNβ. Differences in ADA occurrence by sex and age are reported here for the first time. These findings should be further investigated taking into account other exposures and biomarkers. PMID:27806057

Different Effects of Regional Species Pool on Plant Diversity between Forest and Grassland Biomes in Arid Northwest China.

PubMed

Li, Liping; Liu, Yining; Wang, Xiangping; Fang, Jingyun; Wang, Qingchun; Zhang, Bengang; Xiao, Peigen; Mohammat, Anwar; Terwei, André

2015-01-01

Species pool hypothesis is broadly known and frequently tested in various regions and vegetation types. However it has not been tested in the arid Xinjiang region of China due to lack of data. Here with systematic data from references and field survey, we comprehensively examined species pool hypothesis in this region. Took species richness in 0.1° × 0.1° grid cells as regional species richness (RSR) which were obtained from the distribution maps of vascular plant species, and took species diversity of 190 and 103 plots in forest and grassland biomes across Xinjiang as local species richness (LSR), together with the digitalized soil pH and climate data, we tested the species pool hypothesis in this region. We found that: (1) the average RSR was higher in mountains than that in basins and it was negatively correlated with soil pH in mountains while positively correlated with soil pH in basins in Xinjiang; (2) RSR showed a positive correlation with mean annual precipitation (MAP) while showed a hump-shaped pattern with mean annual temperature (MAT); and the changing patterns of LSR were different for forest and grassland along the geographical and climate gradients; (3) LSR of forest was more affected by RSR than by climate, while on the contrary, LSR of grassland was more affected by climate than by RSR. Our results validated the species pool hypothesis in revealing that RSR had a significant role in shaping LSR patterns in addition to climate. We concluded that the relative effects of climate vs. RSR on LSR differed markedly between the forest and grassland communities across Xinjiang. Our results also showed that RSR revealed a contrasting relationship with soil pH in mountains and in basins, which might reflect differences in evolutionary processes of various habitats. In summary, our research systematically analyzed the correlation of species richness in regional and local scales in Xinjiang which provides more insights into the understanding of species pool hypothesis.

Occurrence of Anti-Drug Antibodies against Interferon-Beta and Natalizumab in Multiple Sclerosis: A Collaborative Cohort Analysis.

PubMed

Bachelet, Delphine; Hässler, Signe; Mbogning, Cyprien; Link, Jenny; Ryner, Malin; Ramanujam, Ryan; Auer, Michael; Hyldgaard Jensen, Poul Erik; Koch-Henriksen, Nils; Warnke, Clemens; Ingenhoven, Kathleen; Buck, Dorothea; Grummel, Verena; Lawton, Andy; Donnellan, Naoimh; Hincelin-Mery, Agnès; Sikkema, Dan; Pallardy, Marc; Kieseier, Bernd; Hemmer, Bernard; Hartung, Hans Peter; Soelberg Sorensen, Per; Deisenhammer, Florian; Dönnes, Pierre; Davidson, Julie; Fogdell-Hahn, Anna; Broët, Philippe

2016-01-01

Immunogenicity of biopharmaceutical products in multiple sclerosis is a frequent side effect which has a multifactorial etiology. Here we study associations between anti-drug antibody (ADA) occurrence and demographic and clinical factors. Retrospective data from routine ADA test laboratories in Sweden, Denmark, Austria and Germany (Dusseldorf group) and from one research study in Germany (Munich group) were gathered to build a collaborative multi-cohort dataset within the framework of the ABIRISK project. A subset of 5638 interferon-beta (IFNβ)-treated and 3440 natalizumab-treated patients having data on at least the first two years of treatment were eligible for interval-censored time-to-event analysis. In multivariate Cox regression, IFNβ-1a subcutaneous and IFNβ-1b subcutaneous treated patients were at higher risk of ADA occurrence compared to IFNβ-1a intramuscular-treated patients (pooled HR = 6.4, 95% CI 4.9-8.4 and pooled HR = 8.7, 95% CI 6.6-11.4 respectively). Patients older than 50 years at start of IFNβ therapy developed ADA more frequently than adult patients younger than 30 (pooled HR = 1.8, 95% CI 1.4-2.3). Men developed ADA more frequently than women (pooled HR = 1.3, 95% CI 1.1-1.6). Interestingly we observed that in Sweden and Germany, patients who started IFNβ in April were at higher risk of developing ADA (HR = 1.6, 95% CI 1.1-2.4 and HR = 2.4, 95% CI 1.5-3.9 respectively). This result is not confirmed in the other cohorts and warrants further investigations. Concerning natalizumab, patients older than 45 years had a higher ADA rate (pooled HR = 1.4, 95% CI 1.0-1.8) and women developed ADA more frequently than men (pooled HR = 1.4, 95% CI 1.0-2.0). We confirmed previously reported differences in immunogenicity of the different types of IFNβ. Differences in ADA occurrence by sex and age are reported here for the first time. These findings should be further investigated taking into account other exposures and biomarkers.

Toward determining melt pool quality metrics via coaxial monitoring in laser powder bed fusion.

PubMed

Fisher, Brian A; Lane, Brandon; Yeung, Ho; Beuth, Jack

2018-01-01

The current industry trend in metal additive manufacturing is towards greater real time process monitoring capabilities during builds to ensure high quality parts. While the hardware implementations that allow for real time monitoring of the melt pool have advanced significantly, the knowledge required to correlate the generated data to useful metrics of interest are still lacking. This research presents promising results that aim to bridge this knowledge gap by determining a novel means to correlate easily obtainable sensor data (thermal emission) to key melt pool size metrics (e.g., melt pool cross sectional area).

Recognition of digital characteristics based new improved genetic algorithm

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Meng; Xu, Guoqiang; Lin, Zihao

2017-08-01

In the field of digital signal processing, Estimating the characteristics of signal modulation parameters is an significant research direction. The paper determines the set of eigenvalue which can show the difference of the digital signal modulation based on the deep research of the new improved genetic algorithm. Firstly take them as the best gene pool; secondly, The best gene pool will be changed in the genetic evolvement by selecting, overlapping and eliminating each other; Finally, Adapting the strategy of futher enhance competition and punishment to more optimizer the gene pool and ensure each generation are of high quality gene. The simulation results show that this method not only has the global convergence, stability and faster convergence speed.

Violations identified from routine swimming pool inspections--selected states and counties, United States, 2008.

PubMed

2010-05-21

Swimming is the third most popular U.S. sport or exercise activity, with approximately 314 million visits to recreational water venues, including treated venues (e.g., pools), each year. The most frequently reported type of recreational water illness (RWI) outbreak is gastroenteritis, the incidence of which is increasing. During 1997--2006, chlorine- and bromine-susceptible pathogens (e.g., Shigella and norovirus) caused 24 (23%) of 104 treated venue--associated RWI outbreaks of gastroenteritis, indicating lapses in proper operation of pools. Pool inspectors help minimize the risk for RWIs and injuries by enforcing regulations that govern public treated recreational water venues. To assess pool code compliance, CDC analyzed 2008 data from 121,020 routine pool inspections conducted by a convenience sample of 15 state and local agencies. Because pool codes and, therefore, inspection items differed across jurisdictions, reported denominators varied. Of 111,487 inspections, 13,532 (12.1%) resulted in immediate closure because of serious violations (e.g., lack of disinfectant in the water). Of 120,975 inspections, 12,917 (10.7%) identified disinfectant level violations. Although these results likely are not representative of all pools in the United States, they suggest the need for increased public health scrutiny and improved pool operation. The results also demonstrate that pool inspection data can be used as a potential source for surveillance to guide resource allocation and regulatory decision-making. Collecting pool inspection data in a standardized, electronic format can facilitate routine analysis to support efforts to reduce health and safety risks for swimmers.

From antidunes to step-pools

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Recking, Alain; Leduc, Pauline

2014-05-01

Step-pools are bed morphologies that are typical in high-gradient streams , recognizable by a staircase-like longitudinal profile resulting from accumulation of cobbles and boulders that are transverse to the channel and alternating with pools containing finer sediments. Within the last two decades step-pools have been the subject of increased efforts to characterize their nature; however their origin is still in debate. Researchers have very soon suspected step-pools to be the residual form of antidunes produced during flooding, but this hypothesis was continuously contested. Other theories has been proposed, considering, that step-pool profile develops a maximum flow resistance, or that pools geometry is controlled by the energy of a falling jet, or that steps form by boulders accumulation in a channel-spanning manner. All these theories gave very satisfying results when compared with experimental data, but does it mean that the antidune theory should we abandoned? We performed new flume experiments on steep slopes to investigate the antidune origin for step-pools. Our experiments showed that step-pools can have several origins, depending on the flow conditions and sediment mixture used. In some circumstances antidunes were well observed but did not produce stable step-pools morphology. In many occasions, step-pools obtained in the flume were isolated step-pools, with no real apparent periodicity. Only a few flow and sediment conditions allowed us to reproduce trains of antidunes which stabilized at the flow recession to produce stable periodical step-pools. These conditions are presented and discussed.

An Experimental Investigation On The Antidune Origin of Step-pools

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Recking, A.; Leduc, P.

2013-12-01

Step-pools are bed morphologies that are typical in high-gradient streams , recognizable by a staircase-like longitudinal profile resulting from accumulation of cobbles and boulders that are transverse to the channel and alternating with pools containing finer sediments. Within the last two decades step-pools have been the subject of increased efforts to characterize their nature; however their origin is still in debate. Researchers have very soon suspected step-pools to be the residual form of antidunes produced during flooding, but this hypothesis was continuously contested. Other theories has been proposed, considering, that step-pool profile develops a maximum flow resistance, or that pools geometry is controlled by the energy of a falling jet, or that steps form by boulders accumulation in a channel-spanning manner. All these theories gave very satisfying results when compared with experimental data, but does it mean that the antidune theory should we abandoned? We performed new flume experiments on steep slopes to investigate the antidune origin for step-pools. Our experiments showed that step-pools can have several origins, depending on the flow conditions and sediment mixture used. In some circumstances antidunes were well observed but did not produce stable step-pools morphology. In many occasions, step-pools obtained in the flume were isolated step-pools, with no real apparent periodicity. Only a few flow and sediment conditions allowed us to reproduce trains of antidunes which stabilized at the flow recession to produce stable periodical step-pools. These conditions are presented and discussed.

An introduction to mid-Atlantic seasonal pools

USGS Publications Warehouse

Brown, L.J.; Jung, R.E.

2005-01-01

Seasonal pools, also known as vernal ponds, provide important ecological services to the mid-Atlantic region. This publication serves as an introduction to seasonal pool ecology and management; it also provides tools for exploring seasonal pools, including a full-color field guide to wildlife. Seasonal pools are defined as having four distinctive features: surface water isolation, periodic drying, small size and shallow depth, and support of a characteristic biological community. Seasonal pools experience regular drying that excludes populations of predatory fish. Thus, pools in the mid-Atlantic region provide critical breeding habitat for amphibian and invertebrate species (e.g., spotted salamander (Ambystoma maculatum), wood frog (Rana sylvatica), and fairy shrimp (Order Anostraca)) that would be at increased risk of predation in more permanent waters. The distinctive features of seasonal pools also make them vulnerable to human disturbance. In the mid-Atlantic region, land-use changes pose the greatest challenges to seasonal pool conservation. Seasonal pools are threatened by direct loss (e.g., filling or draining of the pool) as well as by destruction and fragmentation of adjoining terrestrial habitat. Many of the species that depend on seasonal pools for breeding spend the majority of their lives in the surrounding lands that extend a radius of 1000 feet or more from the pools; these vital habitats are being transected by roads and converted to other land uses. Other threats to seasonal pools include biological introductions and removals, mosquito control practices, amphibian diseases, atmospheric deposition, and climate change. The authors recommend a three-pronged strategy for seasonal pool conservation and management in the mid-Atlantic region: education and research, inventory and monitoring of seasonal pools, and landscape-level planning and management.

Water, sanitation and hygiene interventions for acute childhood diarrhea: a systematic review to provide estimates for the Lives Saved Tool.

PubMed

Darvesh, Nazia; Das, Jai K; Vaivada, Tyler; Gaffey, Michelle F; Rasanathan, Kumanan; Bhutta, Zulfiqar A

2017-11-07

In the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) era, there is growing recognition of the responsibilities of non-health sectors in improving the health of children. Interventions to improve access to clean water, sanitation facilities, and hygiene behaviours (WASH) represent key opportunities to improve child health and well-being by preventing the spread of infectious diseases and improving nutritional status. We conducted a systematic review of studies evaluating the effects of WASH interventions on childhood diarrhea in children 0-5 years old. Searches were run up to September 2016. We screened the titles and abstracts of retrieved articles, followed by screening of the full-text reports of relevant studies. We abstracted study characteristics and quantitative data, and assessed study quality. Meta-analyses were performed for similar intervention and outcome pairs. Pooled analyses showed diarrhea risk reductions from the following interventions: point-of-use water filtration (pooled risk ratio (RR): 0.47, 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.36-0.62), point-of-use water disinfection (pooled RR: 0.69, 95% CI: 0.60-0.79), and hygiene education with soap provision (pooled RR: 0.73, 95% CI: 0.57-0.94). Quality ratings were low or very low for most studies, and heterogeneity was high in pooled analyses. Improvements to the water supply and water disinfection at source did not show significant effects on diarrhea risk, nor did the one eligible study examining the effect of latrine construction. Various WASH interventions show diarrhea risk reductions between 27% and 53% in children 0-5 years old, depending on intervention type, providing ample evidence to support the scale-up of WASH in low and middle-income countries (LMICs). Due to the overall low quality of the evidence and high heterogeneity, further research is required to accurately estimate the magnitude of the effects of these interventions in different contexts.

Landform and vegetation patch type moderate the effects of grazing-induced disturbance on carbon and nitrogen pools in a semi-arid woodland

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Background and aims Dryland soil organic carbon (C) pools account for a large portion of soil C globally, but their response to livestock grazing has been difficult to generalize. We hypothesized that some difficulty generalizing was due to spatial heterogeneity in dryland systems. We examined the i...

Carbon pools and productivity in a 1-km2 heterogeneous forest and peatland mosaic in Minnesota, USA

Treesearch

Peter Weishampel; Randall Kolka; Jennifer Y. King

2009-01-01

Determining the magnitude of carbon (C) storage in forests and peatlands is an important step towards predicting how regional carbon balance will respond to climate change. However, spatial heterogeneity of dominant forest and peatland cover types can inhibit accurate C storage estimates. We evaluated ecosystem C pools and productivity in the Marcell Experimental...

Woody overstorey effects on soil carbon and nitrogen pools in South African savanna

Treesearch

A. T. Hudak; C. A. Wessman; T. R. Seastedt

2003-01-01

Woody plant encroachment in savannas may alter carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) pools over the longterm, which could have regional or global biogeochemical implications given the widespread encroachment observed in the vast savanna biome. Soil and litter %C and %N were surveyed across four soil types in two encroached, semiarid savanna landscapes in northern South Africa....

What strategy should France implement for H2020?

PubMed

Dhainaut, Jean-François; Diebolt, Vincent; Pouletty-Lefèbvre, Brigitte; Baker, Angela; Bassompierre, François; Borel, Thomas; Braunstein, David; Demotes, Jacques; François, Bruno; Huet, Stéphane; Micallef, Joëlle; Misse, Christophe; Molon, Annamaria; Rascol, Olivier; Ravoire, Sophie; Schwartz, Bertrand; Donne, Nathalie; Donne, Nathalie; Fusaï, Guillaume; Pouletty, Philippe; Vicaut, Eric

2015-01-01

The initiation of Horizon 2020--the European Union's 8th Framework Programme for Research and Innovation, allotted a budget of 79 billion euros--provides an opportunity to review France's participation in previous Framework Programmes. Indeed, French participation does not match either its scientific importance or its financial investment. While France contributed 16.5 to 17% of the EU's 7th Framework Programme research budget, its return through the funding of coordinated projects in which French teams are participating stands at around 12.5 to 13%, a shortfall of 600 million euros. Although the situation depends on the type of activity, French participation in clinical research appears to be smaller than that of its neighbours, with fewer responses to European calls for proposals. While France has many assets, which include the assured funding of clinical research, structured thematic networks and the initiation of major national programmes, it suffers from the dilution of resources due to France's regional development policy, the lack of multidisciplinarity and the ignorance of both the medical and scientific community and the institutions to which they belong as to how Horizon 2020 actually works. We propose three types of strategy to encourage proposals for coordinated clinical research projects or projects involving French teams, and to help in the drawing up of applications: Broaden the vision of our children, students and colleagues, helping them to adapt to the globalisation of knowledge throughout their educational and professional lives. Recognise the value of European actions to influence the European landscape and change mentalities. Help and support project initiators by pooling skills within a limited number of expert centres designed to assist them in their funding application. • Broaden the vision of our children, students and colleagues, helping them to adapt to the globalisation of knowledge throughout their educational and professional lives. • Recognise the value of European actions to influence the European landscape and change mentalities. • Help and support project initiators by pooling skills within a limited number of expert centres designed to assist them in their funding application. © 2015 Société Française de Pharmacologie et de Thérapeutique.

Identification of pilin pools in the membranes of Pseudomonas aeruginosa.

PubMed Central

Watts, T H; Worobec, E A; Paranchych, W

1982-01-01

The proteins of purified inner and outer membranes obtained from Pseudomonas aeruginosa strains PAK and PAK/2Pfs were subjected to sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, transferred to nitrocellulose, and treated with antiserum raised against pure pili. Bound antipilus antibodies were visualized by reaction with 125I-labeled protein A from Staphylococcus aureus. The results showed that there are pools of pilin in both the inner and outer membranes of P. aeruginosa and that the pool size in the multipiliated strain is comparable with that of the wild-type strain. Images PMID:6813311

Validation of Single and Pooled Manure Drag Swabs for the Detection of Salmonella Serovar Enteritidis in Commercial Poultry Houses.

PubMed

Kinde, Hailu; Goodluck, Helen A; Pitesky, Maurice; Friend, Tom D; Campbell, James A; Hill, Ashley E

2015-12-01

Single swabs (cultured individually) are currently used in the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) official method for sampling the environment of commercial laying hens for the detection of Salmonella enterica ssp. serovar Enteritidis (Salmonella Enteritidis). The FDA has also granted provisional acceptance of the National Poultry Improvement Plan's (NPIP) Salmonella isolation and identification methodology for samples taken from table-egg layer flock environments. The NPIP method, as with the FDA method, requires single-swab culturing for the environmental sampling of laying houses for Salmonella Enteritidis. The FDA culture protocol requires a multistep culture enrichment broth, and it is more labor intensive than the NPIP culture protocol, which requires a single enrichment broth. The main objective of this study was to compare the FDA single-swab culturing protocol with that of the NPIP culturing protocol but using a four-swab pool scheme. Single and multi-laboratory testing of replicate manure drag swab sets (n  =  525 and 672, respectively) collected from a Salmonella Enteritidis-free commercial poultry flock was performed by artificially contaminating swabs with either Salmonella Enteritidis phage type 4, 8, or 13a at one of two inoculation levels: low, x¯  = 2.5 CFU (range 2.5-2.7), or medium, x¯  = 10.0 CFU (range 7.5-12). For each replicate, a single swab (inoculated), sets of two swabs (one inoculated and one uninoculated), and sets of four swabs (one inoculated and three uninoculated), testing was conducted using the FDA or NPIP culture method. For swabs inoculated with phage type 8, the NPIP method was more efficient (P < 0.05) for all swab sets at both inoculation levels than the reference method. The single swabs in the NPIP method were significantly (P < 0.05) better than four-pool swabs in detecting Salmonella Enteritidis at the lower inoculation level. In the collaborative study (n  =  13 labs) using Salmonella Enteritidis phage type 13a inoculated swabs, there was no significant difference (P > 0.05) between the FDA method (single swabs) and the pooled NPIP method (four-pool swabs). The study concludes that the pooled NPIP method is not significantly different from the FDA method for the detection of Salmonella Enteritidis in drag swabs in commercial poultry laying houses. Consequently based on the FDA's Salmonella Enteritidis rule for equivalency of different methods, the pooled NPIP method should be considered equivalent. Furthermore, the pooled NPIP method was more efficient and cost effective.

Social support network typologies and health outcomes of older people in low and middle income countries--a 10/66 Dementia Research Group population-based study.

PubMed

Thiyagarajan, Jotheeswaran A; Prince, Martin; Webber, Martin

2014-08-01

This study aims to assess the construct validity of the Wenger social support network typology in low and middle income countries. We hypothesize that, in comparison with the integrated network type, the non-integrated network type is associated with loneliness, depression, poor quality of life (less happiness), poor self-reported health, increased disability and higher care needs. Cross-sectional one-phase surveys were conducted of all residents aged 65 and over in catchment areas in eight low and middle income countries (India, China, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Venezuela, Mexico, Peru and Puerto Rico). Wenger's Practitioner Assessment of Network Type (PANT) was used to measure social network type. Family dependent, local self-contained, wider community-focused and private restricted network types were considered non-integrated, in comparison to the locally integrated network type. Overall, 17,031 participants were interviewed. Family dependent and locally integrated network types were the most prevalent. Adjusted pooled estimates across sites showed that loneliness, depression, less happiness, poor health, disability, and need for care were significantly associated with non-integrated network type. The findings of this study support the construct validity of Wenger's network typology in low and middle income countries. However, further research is required to test the criterion validity of Wenger typology using longitudinal data. Identifying older people who are vulnerable could inform the development of social care interventions to support older people and their families in the context of deteriorating health.

Breast-Feeding and Childhood-Onset Type 1 Diabetes

PubMed Central

Cardwell, Chris R.; Stene, Lars C.; Ludvigsson, Johnny; Rosenbauer, Joachim; Cinek, Ondrej; Svensson, Jannet; Perez-Bravo, Francisco; Memon, Anjum; Gimeno, Suely G.; Wadsworth, Emma J.K.; Strotmeyer, Elsa S.; Goldacre, Michael J.; Radon, Katja; Chuang, Lee-Ming; Parslow, Roger C.; Chetwynd, Amanda; Karavanaki, Kyriaki; Brigis, Girts; Pozzilli, Paolo; UrbonaitĖ, Brone; Schober, Edith; Devoti, Gabriele; Sipetic, Sandra; Joner, Geir; Ionescu-Tirgoviste, Constantin; de Beaufort, Carine E.; Harrild, Kirsten; Benson, Victoria; Savilahti, Erkki; Ponsonby, Anne-Louise; Salem, Mona; Rabiei, Samira; Patterson, Chris C.

2012-01-01

OBJECTIVE To investigate if there is a reduced risk of type 1 diabetes in children breastfed or exclusively breastfed by performing a pooled analysis with adjustment for recognized confounders. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS Relevant studies were identified from literature searches using MEDLINE, Web of Science, and EMBASE. Authors of relevant studies were asked to provide individual participant data or conduct prespecified analyses. Meta-analysis techniques were used to combine odds ratios (ORs) and investigate heterogeneity between studies. RESULTS Data were available from 43 studies including 9,874 patients with type 1 diabetes. Overall, there was a reduction in the risk of diabetes after exclusive breast-feeding for >2 weeks (20 studies; OR = 0.75, 95% CI 0.64–0.88), the association after exclusive breast-feeding for >3 months was weaker (30 studies; OR = 0.87, 95% CI 0.75–1.00), and no association was observed after (nonexclusive) breast-feeding for >2 weeks (28 studies; OR = 0.93, 95% CI 0.81–1.07) or >3 months (29 studies; OR = 0.88, 95% CI 0.78–1.00). These associations were all subject to marked heterogeneity (I2 = 58, 76, 54, and 68%, respectively). In studies with lower risk of bias, the reduced risk after exclusive breast-feeding for >2 weeks remained (12 studies; OR = 0.86, 95% CI 0.75–0.99), and heterogeneity was reduced (I2 = 0%). Adjustments for potential confounders altered these estimates very little. CONCLUSIONS The pooled analysis suggests weak protective associations between exclusive breast-feeding and type 1 diabetes risk. However, these findings are difficult to interpret because of the marked variation in effect and possible biases (particularly recall bias) inherent in the included studies. PMID:22837371

Analysis of Combined Data from Heterogeneous Study Designs: A Methodological Proposal from the Patient Navigation Research program

PubMed Central

Roetzheim, Richard G.; Freund, Karen M.; Corle, Don K.; Murray, David M.; Snyder, Frederick R.; Kronman, Andrea C.; Jean-Pierre, Pascal; Raich, Peter C.; Holden, Alan E. C.; Darnell, Julie S.; Warren-Mears, Victoria; Patierno, Steven; Design, PNRP; Committee, Analysis

2013-01-01

Background The Patient Navigation Research Program (PNRP) is a cooperative effort of nine research projects, each employing its own unique study design. To evaluate projects such as PNRP, it is desirable to perform a pooled analysis to increase power relative to the individual projects. There is no agreed upon prospective methodology, however, for analyzing combined data arising from different study designs. Expert opinions were thus solicited from members of the PNRP Design and Analysis Committee Purpose To review possible methodologies for analyzing combined data arising from heterogeneous study designs. Methods The Design and Analysis Committee critically reviewed the pros and cons of five potential methods for analyzing combined PNRP project data. Conclusions were based on simple consensus. The five approaches reviewed included: 1) Analyzing and reporting each project separately, 2) Combining data from all projects and performing an individual-level analysis, 3) Pooling data from projects having similar study designs, 4) Analyzing pooled data using a prospective meta analytic technique, 5) Analyzing pooled data utilizing a novel simulated group randomized design. Results Methodologies varied in their ability to incorporate data from all PNRP projects, to appropriately account for differing study designs, and in their impact from differing project sample sizes. Limitations The conclusions reached were based on expert opinion and not derived from actual analyses performed. Conclusions The ability to analyze pooled data arising from differing study designs may provide pertinent information to inform programmatic, budgetary, and policy perspectives. Multi-site community-based research may not lend itself well to the more stringent explanatory and pragmatic standards of a randomized controlled trial design. Given our growing interest in community-based population research, the challenges inherent in the analysis of heterogeneous study design are likely to become more salient. Discussion of the analytic issues faced by the PNRP and the methodological approaches we considered may be of value to other prospective community-based research programs. PMID:22273587

Analysis of combined data from heterogeneous study designs: an applied example from the patient navigation research program.

PubMed

Roetzheim, Richard G; Freund, Karen M; Corle, Don K; Murray, David M; Snyder, Frederick R; Kronman, Andrea C; Jean-Pierre, Pascal; Raich, Peter C; Holden, Alan Ec; Darnell, Julie S; Warren-Mears, Victoria; Patierno, Steven

2012-04-01

The Patient Navigation Research Program (PNRP) is a cooperative effort of nine research projects, with similar clinical criteria but with different study designs. To evaluate projects such as PNRP, it is desirable to perform a pooled analysis to increase power relative to the individual projects. There is no agreed-upon prospective methodology, however, for analyzing combined data arising from different study designs. Expert opinions were thus solicited from the members of the PNRP Design and Analysis Committee. To review possible methodologies for analyzing combined data arising from heterogeneous study designs. The Design and Analysis Committee critically reviewed the pros and cons of five potential methods for analyzing combined PNRP project data. The conclusions were based on simple consensus. The five approaches reviewed included the following: (1) analyzing and reporting each project separately, (2) combining data from all projects and performing an individual-level analysis, (3) pooling data from projects having similar study designs, (4) analyzing pooled data using a prospective meta-analytic technique, and (5) analyzing pooled data utilizing a novel simulated group-randomized design. Methodologies varied in their ability to incorporate data from all PNRP projects, to appropriately account for differing study designs, and to accommodate differing project sample sizes. The conclusions reached were based on expert opinion and not derived from actual analyses performed. The ability to analyze pooled data arising from differing study designs may provide pertinent information to inform programmatic, budgetary, and policy perspectives. Multisite community-based research may not lend itself well to the more stringent explanatory and pragmatic standards of a randomized controlled trial design. Given our growing interest in community-based population research, the challenges inherent in the analysis of heterogeneous study design are likely to become more salient. Discussion of the analytic issues faced by the PNRP and the methodological approaches we considered may be of value to other prospective community-based research programs.

Perceived health problems in swimmers according to the chemical treatment of water in swimming pools.

PubMed

Fernández-Luna, Álvaro; Burillo, Pablo; Felipe, José Luis; del Corral, Julio; García-Unanue, Jorge; Gallardo, Leonor

2016-01-01

The objective of this study was to determine which chemical treatment used for disinfecting water in indoor swimming pools had the least impact on users' perceptions of health problems, and which generated the greatest satisfaction with the quality of the water. A survey on satisfaction and perceived health problems was given to 1001 users at 20 indoor swimming pools which used different water treatment methods [chlorine, bromine, ozone, ultraviolet lamps (UV) and salt electrolysis]. The findings suggest that there is a greater probability of perceived health problems, such as eye and skin irritation, respiratory problems and skin dryness, in swimming pools treated with chlorine than in swimming pools using other chemical treatment methods. Pools treated with bromine have similar, although slightly better, results. Other factors, such as age, gender, time of day of use (morning and afternoon) and type of user (competitive and recreational), can also affect the probability of suffering health problems. For all of the above, using combined treatment methods as ozone and UV, or salt electrolysis produces a lower probability of perceived health problems and greater satisfaction.

Water inventory management in condenser pool of boiling water reactor

DOEpatents

Gluntz, Douglas M.

1996-01-01

An improved system for managing the water inventory in the condenser pool of a boiling water reactor has means for raising the level of the upper surface of the condenser pool water without adding water to the isolation pool. A tank filled with water is installed in a chamber of the condenser pool. The water-filled tank contains one or more holes or openings at its lowermost periphery and is connected via piping and a passive-type valve (e.g., squib valve) to a high-pressure gas-charged pneumatic tank of appropriate volume. The valve is normally closed, but can be opened at an appropriate time following a loss-of-coolant accident. When the valve opens, high-pressure gas inside the pneumatic tank is released to flow passively through the piping to pressurize the interior of the water-filled tank. In so doing, the initial water contents of the tank are expelled through the openings, causing the water level in the condenser pool to rise. This increases the volume of water available to be boiled off by heat conducted from the passive containment cooling heat exchangers. 4 figs.

Water inventory management in condenser pool of boiling water reactor

DOEpatents

Gluntz, D.M.

1996-03-12

An improved system for managing the water inventory in the condenser pool of a boiling water reactor has means for raising the level of the upper surface of the condenser pool water without adding water to the isolation pool. A tank filled with water is installed in a chamber of the condenser pool. The water-filled tank contains one or more holes or openings at its lowermost periphery and is connected via piping and a passive-type valve (e.g., squib valve) to a high-pressure gas-charged pneumatic tank of appropriate volume. The valve is normally closed, but can be opened at an appropriate time following a loss-of-coolant accident. When the valve opens, high-pressure gas inside the pneumatic tank is released to flow passively through the piping to pressurize the interior of the water-filled tank. In so doing, the initial water contents of the tank are expelled through the openings, causing the water level in the condenser pool to rise. This increases the volume of water available to be boiled off by heat conducted from the passive containment cooling heat exchangers. 4 figs.

Development of AFLP and RAPD markers linked to a locus associated with twisted growth in corkscrew willow (Salix matsudana 'Tortuosa').

PubMed

Lin, Juan; Gunter, Lee E; Harding, Scott A; Kopp, Richard F; McCord, Rachel P; Tsai, Chung-Jui; Tuskan, Gerald A; Smart, Lawrence B

2007-11-01

Salix matsudana Koidz. cultivar 'Tortuosa' (corkscrew willow) is characterized by extensive stem bending and curling of leaves. To investigate the genetic basis of this trait, controlled crosses were made between a corkscrew female (S. matsudana 'Tortuosa') and a straight-stemmed, wild-type male (Salix alba L. Clone 99010). Seventy-seven seedlings from this family (ID 99270) were grown in the field for phenotypic observation. Among the progeny, 39 had straight stems and leaves and 38 had bent stems and curled leaves, suggesting that a dominant allele at a single locus controls this phenotype. As a first step in characterizing the locus, we searched for amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP) and randomly amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) markers linked to the tortuosa allele using bulked segregant analysis. Samples of DNA from 10 corkscrew individuals were combined to produce a corkscrew pool, and DNA from 10 straight progeny was combined to make a wild-type pool. Sixty-four AFLP primer combinations and 640 RAPD primers were screened to identify marker bands amplified from the corkscrew parent and progeny pool, but not from the wild-type parent or progeny pool. An AFLP marker and a RAPD marker linked to and flanking the tortuosa locus were placed on a preliminary linkage map constructed based on segregation among the 77 progeny. Sectioning and analysis of shoot tips revealed that the corkscrew phenotype is associated with vascular cell collapse, smaller cell size in regions near the cambium and less developed phloem fibers than in wild-type progeny. Identification of a gene associated with this trait could lead to greater understanding of the control of normal stem development in woody plants.

[Book review] Ospreys: A natural and unnatural history

USGS Publications Warehouse

Henny, Charles J.

1990-01-01

The Osprey (Pandion haliaetus) is now arguably the world's best known bird of prey. The DDT-related Osprey population crash in the northeastern United States resulted in an unparalleled amount of research during the last 20 years. In 1969, when I published my first paper on Ospreys in The Auk, there were only three or four osprey papers of consequence in the United States, plus an important paper on Swedish Ospreys, which hardly compares to the nearly 300 papers (the great majority dealing with Ospreys) cited by Poole in his book. Based on his detailed investigations in eastern North America and the literature from throughout the world, Poole wrote a book with perfect timing. A synthesis of the massive literature on this species was needed, and judging from the bio- logical soundness, completeness, and clear writing style, Poole was the proper person to write the book. Of course it is one aim to prepare a synthesis but, in addition, Poole carefully points out potential biases in data, gaps in information, and needs for further research. The book is both informative, and points out research problems for the next generation of Osprey investigators.

Long non-coding RNA XIST predicts worse prognosis in digestive system tumors: a systemic review and meta-analysis.

PubMed

Liu, Xuefang; Ming, Xinliang; Jing, Wei; Luo, Ping; Li, Nandi; Zhu, Man; Yu, Mingxia; Liang, Chunzi; Tu, Jiancheng

2018-05-11

Aims: Increasing studies are indicating that long non-coding RNA X-inactive specific transcript (XIST) is associated with the prognosis of cancer patients. However, the results have been disputed. Therefore, we aimed to further explore the prognostic value and clinical significance of XIST in various types of cancers. Then, we focused our research on the comparison of the predictive value of XIST between digestive system tumors and non-digestive system tumors. Methods: We performed a systematic search by looking up PubMed, Embase, Cochrane Library, Web of Science, and Medline (up to January 3, 2018). Fifteen studies which matched to our inclusion criteria with a total of 920 patients for overall survival and 867 patients for clinicopathological characteristics were included in this meta-analysis. Pooled hazard ratios (HR) and odds ratios (ORs) with their corresponding 95% confidence intervals (95% CIs) were calculated to summarize the effects. Results: Our results suggested that high expression levels of XIST were associated with unfavorable overall survival in cancer patients (pooled HR=1.81, 95% CI: 1.45-2.26). Additionally, we found that XIST was more valuable in digestive system tumors (pooled HR=2.24, 95% CI: 1.73-2.92) than in non-digestive system tumors (pooled HR=1.22, 95% CI: 0.60-2.45). Additionally, elevated expression levels of XIST were connection with distant metastasis and tumor stage. Conclusion: XIST was correlated with poor prognosis, which suggested that XIST might serve as a novel predictive biomarker for cancer patients, especially for patients of digestive system tumors. ©2018 The Author(s).

Tobacco and alcohol in relation to male breast cancer: an analysis of the male breast cancer pooling project consortium.

PubMed

Cook, Michael B; Guénel, Pascal; Gapstur, Susan M; van den Brandt, Piet A; Michels, Karin B; Casagrande, John T; Cooke, Rosie; Van Den Eeden, Stephen K; Ewertz, Marianne; Falk, Roni T; Gaudet, Mia M; Gkiokas, George; Habel, Laurel A; Hsing, Ann W; Johnson, Kenneth; Kolonel, Laurence N; La Vecchia, Carlo; Lynge, Elsebeth; Lubin, Jay H; McCormack, Valerie A; Negri, Eva; Olsson, Håkan; Parisi, Dominick; Petridou, Eleni Th; Riboli, Elio; Sesso, Howard D; Swerdlow, Anthony; Thomas, David B; Willett, Walter C; Brinton, Louise A

2015-03-01

The etiology of male breast cancer is poorly understood, partly due to its relative rarity. Although tobacco and alcohol exposures are known carcinogens, their association with male breast cancer risk remains ill-defined. The Male Breast Cancer Pooling Project consortium provided 2,378 cases and 51,959 controls for analysis from 10 case-control and 10 cohort studies. Individual participant data were harmonized and pooled. Unconditional logistic regression was used to estimate study design-specific (case-control/cohort) ORs and 95% confidence intervals (CI), which were then combined using fixed-effects meta-analysis. Cigarette smoking status, smoking pack-years, duration, intensity, and age at initiation were not associated with male breast cancer risk. Relations with cigar and pipe smoking, tobacco chewing, and snuff use were also null. Recent alcohol consumption and average grams of alcohol consumed per day were also not associated with risk; only one subanalysis of very high recent alcohol consumption (>60 g/day) was tentatively associated with male breast cancer (ORunexposed referent = 1.29; 95% CI, 0.97-1.71; OR>0-<7 g/day referent = 1.36; 95% CI, 1.04-1.77). Specific alcoholic beverage types were not associated with male breast cancer. Relations were not altered when stratified by age or body mass index. In this analysis of the Male Breast Cancer Pooling Project, we found little evidence that tobacco and alcohol exposures were associated with risk of male breast cancer. Tobacco and alcohol do not appear to be carcinogenic for male breast cancer. Future studies should aim to assess these exposures in relation to subtypes of male breast cancer. ©2014 American Association for Cancer Research.

A Meta-Analysis of the Global Prevalence Rates of Staphylococcus aureus and Methicillin-Resistant S. aureus Contamination of Different Raw Meat Products.

PubMed

Ou, Qianting; Peng, Yang; Lin, Dongxin; Bai, Chan; Zhang, Ting; Lin, Jialing; Ye, Xiaohua; Yao, Zhenjiang

2017-03-30

Previous research has indicated that raw meats are frequently contaminated with Staphylococcus aureus , but data regarding the pooled prevalence rates of S. aureus and methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA) contamination in different types of raw meat products (beef, chicken, and pork) and across different periods, regions, and purchase locations remain inconsistent. We systematically searched the PubMed, EMBASE, Ovid, Web of Science, and HighWire databases to identify studies published up to June 2016. The STROBE guidelines were used to assess the quality of the 39 studies included in this meta-analysis. We observed no significant differences in the pooled prevalence rates of S. aureus and MRSA contamination identified in various raw meat products, with overall pooled prevalence rates of 29.2% (95% confidence interval [CI], 22.8 to 35.9%) and 3.2% (95% CI, 1.8 to 4.9%) identified for the two contaminants, respectively. In the subgroup analyses, the prevalence of S. aureus contamination in chicken products was highest in Asian studies and significantly decreased over time worldwide. In European studies, the prevalence rates of S. aureus contamination in chicken and pork products were lower than those reported on other continents. The pooled prevalence rates of S. aureus contamination in chicken and pork products and MRSA contamination in beef and pork products were significantly higher in samples collected from retail sources than in samples collected from slaughterhouses and processing plants. These results highlight the need for good hygiene during transportation to and manipulation at retail outlets to reduce the risk of transmission of S. aureus and MRSA from meat products to humans.

DNA pooling: a comprehensive, multi-stage association analysis of ACSL6 and SIRT5 polymorphisms in schizophrenia.

PubMed

Chowdari, K V; Northup, A; Pless, L; Wood, J; Joo, Y H; Mirnics, K; Lewis, D A; Levitt, P R; Bacanu, S-A; Nimgaonkar, V L

2007-04-01

Many candidate gene association studies have evaluated incomplete, unrepresentative sets of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), producing non-significant results that are difficult to interpret. Using a rapid, efficient strategy designed to investigate all common SNPs, we tested associations between schizophrenia and two positional candidate genes: ACSL6 (Acyl-Coenzyme A synthetase long-chain family member 6) and SIRT5 (silent mating type information regulation 2 homologue 5). We initially evaluated the utility of DNA sequencing traces to estimate SNP allele frequencies in pooled DNA samples. The mean variances for the DNA sequencing estimates were acceptable and were comparable to other published methods (mean variance: 0.0008, range 0-0.0119). Using pooled DNA samples from cases with schizophrenia/schizoaffective disorder (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders edition IV criteria) and controls (n=200, each group), we next sequenced all exons, introns and flanking upstream/downstream sequences for ACSL6 and SIRT5. Among 69 identified SNPs, case-control allele frequency comparisons revealed nine suggestive associations (P<0.2). Each of these SNPs was next genotyped in the individual samples composing the pools. A suggestive association with rs 11743803 at ACSL6 remained (allele-wise P=0.02), with diminished evidence in an extended sample (448 cases, 554 controls, P=0.062). In conclusion, we propose a multi-stage method for comprehensive, rapid, efficient and economical genetic association analysis that enables simultaneous SNP detection and allele frequency estimation in large samples. This strategy may be particularly useful for research groups lacking access to high throughput genotyping facilities. Our analyses did not yield convincing evidence for associations of schizophrenia with ACSL6 or SIRT5.

Credit USAF, ca. 1943. Original housed in the Muroc Flight ...

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

Credit USAF, ca. 1943. Original housed in the Muroc Flight Test Base, Unit History, 1 September 1942 - 30 June 1945. Alfred F. Simpson Historical Research Agency. United States Air Force. Maxwell AFB, Alabama. Historic view looking north across southwest end of swimming pool as army personnel work on finishing the pool bottom. View looks towards Mess Hall (T-10) on Second Street - Edwards Air Force Base, North Base, Swimming Pool, Second Street, Boron, Kern County, CA

Use of blood-pool imaging in evaluation of diffuse activity patterns in technetium-99m pyrophosphate myocardial scintigraphy.

PubMed

Cowley, M J; Mantle, J A; Rogers, W J; Russell, R O; Rackley, C E; Logic, J R

1979-06-01

It has been suggested that diffuse Tc-99m pyrophosphate precordial activity may be due to persistent blood-pool activity in routine delayed views during myocardial imaging. To answer this question, we reviewed myocardial scintigrams recorded 60--90 min following the injection of 12--15 mCi of Tc-99m pyrophosphate for the presence of diffuse precordial activity, and compared these with early images of the blood pool in 265 patients. Diffuse activity in the delayed images was identified in 48 patients: in 20 with acute myocardial infarction and in 28 with no evidence of it. Comparison of these routine delayed images with early views of the blood pool revealed two types of patterns. In patients with acute infarction, 95% had delayed images that were distinguishable from blood pool either because the activity was smaller than the early blood pool, or by the presence of localized activity superimposed on diffuse activity identical to blood pool. In those without infarction, 93% had activity distribution in routine delayed views matching that in the early blood-pool images. The usefulness of the diffuse TcPPi precordial activity in myocardial infarction is improved when early blood-pool imaging is used to exclude persistence of blood-pool activity as its cause. Moreover, it does not require additional amounts of radioactivity nor complex computer processing, a feature that may be of value in the community hospital using the technique to "rule out" infarction 24--72 hr after onset of suggestive symptoms.

Effect of mesohabitats on responses of invertebrate community structure in streams under different land uses.

PubMed

da Silva, Marcos Vinícius Dias; Rosa, Beatriz F J V; Alves, Roberto G

2015-11-01

Riparian vegetation is one of the most important abiotic components determining the water flow pattern in lotic ecosystems, influencing the composition, richness, and diversity of invertebrates. We have identified whether differences in the structure of the assemblages of invertebrates between riffles and pools may influence the responses of fauna to the effects of land use. In addition, we investigated which fauna metrics are responsible for the differentiation between riffles and pools in streams subject to different land uses. During the dry season of 2012, the main substrates of riffles and pools were sampled (Surber collector) from nine streams within forest, pasture, and urban areas. Principal component analysis (PCA) and Permanova showed differences in the set of environmental variables between streams and mesohabitats. The first PCA axis distinguished the forest and pasture streams from the urban area streams and was related to variables indicative of nutrient enrichment and land use, while the second axis was formed by velocity flow and by the quantities of ultrafine and coarse sand, which distinguished the riffles and pools of the streams. The faunal composition distinguished the streams in pasture and forest areas from the urban streams. Riffles and pools were not concordant in the representation of the invertebrate fauna, indicating the importance of sampling both mesohabitats in the types of streams investigated. The richness, taxonomic composition, and relative abundance of families of Ephemeroptera, Plecoptera, and Trichoptera showed robust responses in riffles to the effects of environmental changes, while in pools, only the richness showed a significant response. It was possibly concluded that riffles were more sensitive in detecting the effects of land use. The information from this study help to understand how the community of invertebrates and the types of habitats in streams may be affected by anthropogenic impacts.

Pooling job physical exposure data from multiple independent studies in a consortium study of carpal tunnel syndrome

PubMed Central

Kapellusch, Jay M.; Garg, Arun; Bao, Stephen S.; Silverstein, Barbara A.; Burt, Susan E.; Dale, Ann Marie; Evanoff, Bradley A.; Gerr, Frederic E.; Harris-Adamson, Carisa; Hegmann, Kurt T.; Merlino, Linda A.; Rempel, David M.

2015-01-01

Pooling data from different epidemiological studies of musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) is necessary to improve statistical power and to more precisely quantify exposure–response relationships for MSDs. The pooling process is difficult and time-consuming, and small methodological differences could lead to different exposure–response relationships. A subcommittee of a six-study research consortium studying carpal tunnel syndrome: (i) visited each study site, (ii) documented methods used to collect physical exposure data and (iii) determined compatibility of exposure variables across studies. Certain measures of force, frequency of exertion and duty cycle were collected by all studies and were largely compatible. A portion of studies had detailed data to investigate simultaneous combinations of force, frequency and duration of exertions. Limited compatibility was found for hand/wrist posture. Only two studies could calculate compatible Strain Index scores, but Threshold Limit Value for Hand Activity Level could be determined for all studies. Challenges of pooling data, resources required and recommendations for future researchers are discussed. PMID:23697792

STS-39 MS Harbaugh is suspended over JSC's WETF Bldg 29 pool via harness

NASA Image and Video Library

1990-12-07

S90-54763 (7 Dec 1990) --- Astronaut Gregory J. Harbaugh. Mission specialist, participates in emergency egress training. Harbaugh and some of his fellow STS 39 astronauts were in JSC's weightless environment training facility (WET-F). Harbaugh is actually suspended over water. This type training uses the WET-F's 25 ft. deep pool to simulate an ocean parachute landing.

Waste Utilization and Biodiesel Production by the Green Microalga Scenedesmus obliquus▿

PubMed Central

Mandal, Shovon; Mallick, Nirupama

2011-01-01

Scenedesmus obliquus was cultivated in three types of waste discharges to couple waste treatment with biodiesel production. The lipid pool accumulation was boosted to 1.0 g liter−1 against 0.1 g liter−1 for the control. The waste-grown S. obliquus showed an increase in the content of the saturated fatty acid pool, which is desirable for good-quality biodiesel. PMID:21057012

Monitoring Physicochemical and Nutrient Dynamics Along a Development Gradient in Maine Ephemeral Wetlands

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Podzikowski, L. Y.; Capps, K. A.; Calhoun, A.

2014-12-01

Vernal pools are ephemeral wetlands in forested landscapes that fill with snowmelt, precipitation, and/or groundwater in the spring, and characteristically dry down through the summer months. Typically, vernal pool research has focused on the population and community ecology of pool-breeding organisms (amphibians and macroinvertebrates) conducted during their relatively short breeding season. Yet, little is known about the temporal variability of biogeochemical processes within and among vernal pools in urbanizing landscapes. In this study, we monitored physicochemical characteristics and nutrient dynamics in 22 vernal pools in central Maine post thaw in 2014. Four pristine pools were sampled weekly in five locations within the pool for ambient nutrient concentrations (SRP, NH4, NOx) and at three locations for physicochemical characteristics (DO, pH, temperature, conductivity). In the remaining 18 pools, we sampled one location for nutrients and three locations for physicochemical characteristics at least monthly to estimate the influence of increasing urbanization on the physical and chemical environment. Our data suggest most pools found in urbanizing areas have higher conductivity (developed sites ranging 18.52 - 1238 μS cm-1 compared to pristine between 14.08 - 58.4 μS cm-1). Previous work suggests forested pools exhibit dystrophic conditions with high coloration from DOC limiting primary production due to increased light attenuation in pools. However, both pristine and urban pools experienced spikes in DO (>100% saturation) throughout the day, suggesting that high productivity is not a reliable indicator of the effects of urbanization on vernal pools. We argue that continued monitoring of vernal pools along a gradient of urbanization could give insight into the role of ephemeral wetlands as potential biogeochemical hotspots and may also indicate how human development may alter biogeochemical cycling in ephemeral wetlands.

Safety of saxagliptin: events of special interest in 9156 patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus.

PubMed

Hirshberg, Boaz; Parker, Artist; Edelberg, Helen; Donovan, Mark; Iqbal, Nayyar

2014-10-01

A post hoc pooled analysis was undertaken to evaluate the safety of saxagliptin in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus, with attention to events of special interest for dipeptidyl peptidase-4 inhibitors. Pooled analyses were performed for 20 randomized controlled studies (N = 9156) of saxagliptin as monotherapy or add-on therapy, and a subset of 11 saxagliptin + metformin studies. Adverse events and events of special interest (gastrointestinal adverse events, infections, hypersensitivity, pancreatitis, skin lesions, lymphopenia, thrombocytopenia, hypoglycaemia, bone fracture, severe cutaneous adverse reactions, opportunistic infection, angioedema, malignancy, worsening renal function, and specific laboratory events) were assessed; incidence rates (events/100 person-years) and incidence rates ratios (saxagliptin/control) were calculated (Mantel-Haenszel method). In both pooled datasets, the incidence rates for deaths, serious adverse events, discontinuations due to adverse events, pancreatitis, malignancy, and most other events of special interest, excepting bone fractures and hypersensitivity, were similar between treatments, with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for incidence rates ratios including 1. In the 20-study pool, the incidence rates per 100 person-years was higher with saxagliptin versus control for bone fractures [1.1 vs 0.6; incidence rates ratio (95% CI), 1.81 (1.04-3.28)] and hypersensitivity adverse events [1.3 vs 0.8; 1.67 (1.01-2.87)]. Pooled data from 20 studies confirm that saxagliptin has a favourable safety and benefit-risk profile. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Phase diagrams for the spatial public goods game with pool punishment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Szolnoki, Attila; Szabó, György; Perc, Matjaž

2011-03-01

The efficiency of institutionalized punishment is studied by evaluating the stationary states in the spatial public goods game comprising unconditional defectors, cooperators, and cooperating pool punishers as the three competing strategies. Fines and costs of pool punishment are considered as the two main parameters determining the stationary distributions of strategies on the square lattice. Each player collects a payoff from five five-person public goods games, and the evolution of strategies is subsequently governed by imitation based on pairwise comparisons at a low level of noise. The impact of pool punishment on the evolution of cooperation in structured populations is significantly different from that reported previously for peer punishment. Representative phase diagrams reveal remarkably rich behavior, depending also on the value of the synergy factor that characterizes the efficiency of investments payed into the common pool. Besides traditional single- and two-strategy stationary states, a rock-paper-scissors type of cyclic dominance can emerge in strikingly different ways.

Evolution of cooperation by the introduction of the probabilistic peer-punishment based on the difference of payoff.

PubMed

Ohdaira, Tetsushi

2016-05-05

There are two types of costly punishment, i.e. peer-punishment and pool-punishment. While peer-punishment applies direct face to face punishment, pool-punishment is based on multi-point, collective interaction among group members. Regarding those two types of costly punishment, peer-punishment is especially considered to have the flaws that it lowers the average payoff of all players as well as pool-punishment does, and facilitates antisocial behaviour like retaliation of a defector on a cooperator. Here, this study proposes the new peer-punishment that punishment to an opponent player works at high probability when an opponent one is uncooperative, and the difference of payoff between a player and an opponent one becomes large in order to prevent such antisocial behaviour. It is natural to think that players of high payoff do not expect to punish others of lower payoff because they do not have any complaints regarding their economic wealth. The author shows that the introduction of the proposed peer-punishment increases both the number of cooperative players and the average payoff of all players in various types of topology of connections between players.

Evolution of cooperation by the introduction of the probabilistic peer-punishment based on the difference of payoff

PubMed Central

Ohdaira, Tetsushi

2016-01-01

There are two types of costly punishment, i.e. peer-punishment and pool-punishment. While peer-punishment applies direct face to face punishment, pool-punishment is based on multi-point, collective interaction among group members. Regarding those two types of costly punishment, peer-punishment is especially considered to have the flaws that it lowers the average payoff of all players as well as pool-punishment does, and facilitates antisocial behaviour like retaliation of a defector on a cooperator. Here, this study proposes the new peer-punishment that punishment to an opponent player works at high probability when an opponent one is uncooperative, and the difference of payoff between a player and an opponent one becomes large in order to prevent such antisocial behaviour. It is natural to think that players of high payoff do not expect to punish others of lower payoff because they do not have any complaints regarding their economic wealth. The author shows that the introduction of the proposed peer-punishment increases both the number of cooperative players and the average payoff of all players in various types of topology of connections between players. PMID:27146347

Evolution of cooperation by the introduction of the probabilistic peer-punishment based on the difference of payoff

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ohdaira, Tetsushi

2016-05-01

There are two types of costly punishment, i.e. peer-punishment and pool-punishment. While peer-punishment applies direct face to face punishment, pool-punishment is based on multi-point, collective interaction among group members. Regarding those two types of costly punishment, peer-punishment is especially considered to have the flaws that it lowers the average payoff of all players as well as pool-punishment does, and facilitates antisocial behaviour like retaliation of a defector on a cooperator. Here, this study proposes the new peer-punishment that punishment to an opponent player works at high probability when an opponent one is uncooperative, and the difference of payoff between a player and an opponent one becomes large in order to prevent such antisocial behaviour. It is natural to think that players of high payoff do not expect to punish others of lower payoff because they do not have any complaints regarding their economic wealth. The author shows that the introduction of the proposed peer-punishment increases both the number of cooperative players and the average payoff of all players in various types of topology of connections between players.

The representation of non-equilibrium soil types in earth system models and its impact on carbon cycle projections

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hugelius, G.; Ahlström, A.; Canadell, J.; Koven, C. D.; Jackson, R. B.; Luo, Y.

2016-12-01

Soils hold the largest reactive pool of carbon (C) on earth. Global soil organic C stocks (0-200 cm depth plus full peatland depth) are estimated to 2200 Pg C (adapted from Hugelius et al., 2014, Köchy et al., 2015 and Batjes, 2016). Soil C stocks in Earth system models (ESMs) can be generated by running the model over a longer time period until soil C pools are in or near steady-state. Inherent in this concept is the idea that soil C stocks are in (quasi)equilibrium as determined by the balance of net ecosystem input to soil organic matter and its turnover. The rate of turnover is sometimes subdivided into several pools and the rates are affected by various environmental factors. Here we break down the empirically based estimates of global soil C pools into equilibrium-type soils which current (Coupled Model Intercomparison Project, phase 5; CMIP5) generation ESMs are set-up to represent and non-equilibrium type soils which are generally not represented in current ESMs. We define equilibrium soils as those where pedogenesis (and associated soil C formation) is not significantly limited by the environmental factors perennial soil freezing, waterlogging/anoxia or limited unconsolidated soil substrate. This is essentially all permafrost-free mineral soils that are not in a wetland or alpine setting. On the other hand, non-equlibrium soils are defined as permafrost soils, peatlands and alpine soils with a limited fine-soil matrix. Based on geospatial analyses of state-of-the-art datasets on soil C stocks, we estimate that the global soil C pool is divided roughly equally between equilibrium and non-equlibrium type soils. We discuss the ways in which this result affects C cycling in ESMs and projections of soil C sensitivity under a changing climate. ReferencesBatjes N.H. (2016) Geoderma, 269, 61-68, doi: 10.1016/j.geoderma.2016.01.034 Hugelius G. et al. (2014) Biogeosciences, 11, 6573-6593, doi:10.5194/bg-11-6573-2014 Köchy M. et al. (2015) Soil 1, 351-365. DOI: doi:10.5194/soil-1-351-2015

THE COOLING REQUIREMENTS AND PROCESS SYSTEMS OF THE SOUTH AFRICAN RESEARCH REACTOR, SAFARI 1

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

Colley, J.R.

1962-12-01

The SAFARI 1 research reactor is cooled and moderated by light water. There are three process systems, a primary water system which cools the reactor core and surroundings, a pool water system, and a secondary water system which removes the heat from the primary and pool systems. The cooling requirements for the reactor core and experimental facilities are outlined, and the cooling and purification functions of the three process systems are described. (auth)

Methods for estimating the amount of vernal pool habitat in the northeastern United States

USGS Publications Warehouse

Van Meter, R.; Bailey, L.L.; Grant, E.H.C.

2008-01-01

The loss of small, seasonal wetlands is a major concern for a variety of state, local, and federal organizations in the northeastern U.S. Identifying and estimating the number of vernal pools within a given region is critical to developing long-term conservation and management strategies for these unique habitats and their faunal communities. We use three probabilistic sampling methods (simple random sampling, adaptive cluster sampling, and the dual frame method) to estimate the number of vernal pools on protected, forested lands. Overall, these methods yielded similar values of vernal pool abundance for each study area, and suggest that photographic interpretation alone may grossly underestimate the number of vernal pools in forested habitats. We compare the relative efficiency of each method and discuss ways of improving precision. Acknowledging that the objectives of a study or monitoring program ultimately determine which sampling designs are most appropriate, we recommend that some type of probabilistic sampling method be applied. We view the dual-frame method as an especially useful way of combining incomplete remote sensing methods, such as aerial photograph interpretation, with a probabilistic sample of the entire area of interest to provide more robust estimates of the number of vernal pools and a more representative sample of existing vernal pool habitats.

Dissecting Immune Circuits by Linking CRISPR-Pooled Screens with Single-Cell RNA-Seq.

PubMed

Jaitin, Diego Adhemar; Weiner, Assaf; Yofe, Ido; Lara-Astiaso, David; Keren-Shaul, Hadas; David, Eyal; Salame, Tomer Meir; Tanay, Amos; van Oudenaarden, Alexander; Amit, Ido

2016-12-15

In multicellular organisms, dedicated regulatory circuits control cell type diversity and responses. The crosstalk and redundancies within these circuits and substantial cellular heterogeneity pose a major research challenge. Here, we present CRISP-seq, an integrated method for massively parallel single-cell RNA sequencing (RNA-seq) and clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR)-pooled screens. We show that profiling the genomic perturbation and transcriptome in the same cell enables us to simultaneously elucidate the function of multiple factors and their interactions. We applied CRISP-seq to probe regulatory circuits of innate immunity. By sampling tens of thousands of perturbed cells in vitro and in mice, we identified interactions and redundancies between developmental and signaling-dependent factors. These include opposing effects of Cebpb and Irf8 in regulating the monocyte/macrophage versus dendritic cell lineages and differential functions for Rela and Stat1/2 in monocyte versus dendritic cell responses to pathogens. This study establishes CRISP-seq as a broadly applicable, comprehensive, and unbiased approach for elucidating mammalian regulatory circuits. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Comparison of five methods for determination of total plasma protein concentration.

PubMed

Okutucu, Burcu; Dinçer, Ayşşe; Habib, Omer; Zihnioglu, Figen

2007-08-01

Quantitation of exact total protein content is often a key step and is common to many applications in general biochemistry research and routine clinical laboratory practice. Before embarking on any type of protein analysis, particularly comparative techniques, it is important to accurately quantitate the amount of protein in the sample. In order to assess the quality of total protein estimation results, five methods were tested and were applied to the same pooled plasma sample. For this aim, Bradford (Coomassie Brilliant Blue), Lowry (Folin-Ciocalteau), Biüret, Pesce and Strande (Ponceau-S/TCA), and modified method of Schaffner-Weismann (Amido Black 10B) were used. The last two methods employ simultaneous precipitation of proteins with the acid containing dye solutions followed by dissolution of precipitate in a NaOH solution. It is shown that each assay has advantages and disadvantages relative to sensitivity, ease of performance, acceptance in literature, accuracy and reproducibility/coefficient of variation. All of the methods tested show a CV %<6. Besides pooled plasma, a known concentration of human serum albumin was also analyzed and discussed by means of standardization of plasma total protein content.

The UNITAID Patent Pool Initiative: Bringing Patents Together for the Common Good.

PubMed

Bermudez, Jorge; 't Hoen, Ellen

2010-01-19

Developing and delivering appropriate, affordable, well-adapted medicines for HIV/AIDS remains an urgent challenge: as first-line therapies fail, increasing numbers of people require costly second-line therapy; one-third of ARVs are not available in pediatric formulations; and certain key first- and second-line triple fixed-dose combinations do not exist or sufficient suppliers are lacking. UNITAID aims to help solve these problems through an innovative initiative for the collective management of intellectual property (IP) rights - a patent pool for HIV medicines. The idea behind a patent pool is that patent holders - companies, governments, researchers or universities - voluntarily offer, under certain conditions, the IP related to their inventions to the patent pool. Any company that wants to use the IP to produce or develop medicines can seek a license from the pool against the payment of royalties, and may then produce the medicines for use in developing countries (conditional upon meeting agreed quality standards). The patent pool will be a voluntary mechanism, meaning its success will largely depend on the willingness of pharmaceutical companies to participate and commit their IP to the pool. Generic producers must also be willing to cooperate. The pool has the potential to provide benefits to all.

Beta vulgaris crop types: Genomic signatures of selection (GSS) using next generation sequencing of pooled samples

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Beta vulgaris crop types represent highly diverged populations with distinct phenotypes resulting from long-term selection. Differential end use in the crop types includes: leaf quality (chard/leaf beet), root enlargement and biomass, (table beet, fodder beet, sugar beet), and secondary metabolite a...

Vaccinations and childhood type 1 diabetes mellitus: a meta-analysis of observational studies.

PubMed

Morgan, Eileen; Halliday, Sophia R; Campbell, Gemma R; Cardwell, Chris R; Patterson, Chris C

2016-02-01

The aim of this study was to investigate the association between routine vaccinations and the risk of childhood type 1 diabetes mellitus by systematically reviewing the published literature and performing meta-analyses where possible. A comprehensive literature search was performed of MEDLINE and EMBASE to identify all studies that compared vaccination rates in children who subsequently developed type 1 diabetes mellitus and in control children. ORs and 95% CIs were obtained from published reports or derived from individual patient data and then combined using a random effects meta-analysis. In total, 23 studies investigating 16 vaccinations met the inclusion criteria. Eleven of these contributed to meta-analyses which included data from between 359 and 11,828 childhood diabetes cases. Overall, there was no evidence to suggest an association between any of the childhood vaccinations investigated and type 1 diabetes mellitus. The pooled ORs ranged from 0.58 (95% CI 0.24, 1.40) for the measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccination in five studies up to 1.04 (95% CI 0.94, 1.14) for the haemophilus influenza B (HiB) vaccination in 11 studies. Significant heterogeneity was present in most of the pooled analyses, but was markedly reduced when analyses were restricted to study reports with high methodology quality scores. Neither this restriction by quality nor the original authors' adjustments for potential confounding made a substantial difference to the pooled ORs. This study provides no evidence of an association between routine vaccinations and childhood type 1 diabetes.

Scoping studies of vapor behavior during a severe accident in a metal-fueling reactor

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Spencer, B. W.; Marchaterre, J. F.

1985-04-01

The consequences of fuel melting and pin failures for a reactivity-insertion type accident in a sodium-cooled, pool-type reactor fueled with a metal alloy fuel were examined. The principal gas and vapor species released are shown to be Xe, Cs, and bond sodium contained within the fuel porosity. Condensation of sodium vapor as it expands into the upper sodium pool in a jet mixing regime may occur as rapidly as the vapor emerges from the disrupted core. If the predictions of rapid direct-contact condensation can be verified experimentally for the sodium system, the ability of vapor expansion to perform appreciable work on the system and the ability of an expanding vapor bubble to transport fuel and fission produce species to the cover gas region where they may be released to the containment are largely eliminated. The radionuclide species except for fission gas are largely retained within the core and sodium pool.

In situ environment rather than substrate type dictates microbial community structure of biofilms in a cold seep system

PubMed Central

Lee, On On; Wang, Yong; Tian, Renmao; Zhang, Weipeng; Shek, Chun Shum; Bougouffa, Salim; Al-Suwailem, Abdulaziz; Batang, Zenon B.; Xu, Wei; Wang, Guang Chao; Zhang, Xixiang; Lafi, Feras F.; Bajic, Vladmir B.; Qian, Pei-Yuan

2014-01-01

Using microscopic and molecular techniques combined with computational analysis, this study examined the structure and composition of microbial communities in biofilms that formed on different artificial substrates in a brine pool and on a seep vent of a cold seep in the Red Sea to test our hypothesis that initiation of the biofilm formation and spreading mode of microbial structures differs between the cold seep and the other aquatic environments. Biofilms on different substrates at two deployment sites differed morphologically, with the vent biofilms having higher microbial abundance and better structural features than the pool biofilms. Microbes in the pool biofilms were more taxonomically diverse and mainly composed of various sulfate-reducing bacteria whereas the vent biofilms were exclusively dominated by sulfur-oxidizing Thiomicrospira. These results suggest that the redox environments at the deployment sites might have exerted a strong selection on microbes in the biofilms at two sites whereas the types of substrates had limited effects on the biofilm development. PMID:24399144

Childhood Asthma and Environmental Exposures at Swimming Pools: State of the Science and Research Recommendations

EPA Science Inventory

Recent studies have explored the potential for swimming pool disinfection byproducts (DBPs) which are respiratory irritants to cause asthma in young children. While these studies raise concerns, gaps still exist in our knowledge regarding the exact causal agents and mechanisms f...

Transferring Goods or Splitting a Resource Pool

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dijkstra, Jacob; Van Assen, Marcel A. L. M.

2008-01-01

We investigated the consequences for exchange outcomes of the violation of an assumption underlying most social psychological research on exchange. This assumption is that the negotiated direct exchange of commodities between two actors (pure exchange) can be validly represented as two actors splitting a fixed pool of resources (split pool…

Dose-response assessment for influenza A virus based on data sets of infection with its live attenuated reassortants.

PubMed

Watanabe, Toru; Bartrand, Timothy A; Omura, Tatsuo; Haas, Charles N

2012-03-01

Reported data sets on infection of volunteers challenged with wild-type influenza A virus at graded doses are few. Alternatively, we aimed at developing a dose-response assessment for this virus based on the data sets for its live attenuated reassortants. Eleven data sets for live attenuated reassortants that were fit to beta-Poisson and exponential dose-response models. Dose-response relationships for those reassortants were characterized by pooling analysis of the data sets with respect to virus subtype (H1N1 or H3N2), attenuation method (cold-adapted or avian-human gene reassortment), and human age (adults or children). Furthermore, by comparing the above data sets to a limited number of reported data sets for wild-type virus, we quantified the degree of attenuation of wild-type virus with gene reassortment and estimated its infectivity. As a result, dose-response relationships of all reassortants were best described by a beta-Poisson model. Virus subtype and human age were significant factors determining the dose-response relationship, whereas attenuation method affected only the relationship of H1N1 virus infection to adults. The data sets for H3N2 wild-type virus could be pooled with those for its reassortants on the assumption that the gene reassortment attenuates wild-type virus by at least 63 times and most likely 1,070 times. Considering this most likely degree of attenuation, 10% infectious dose of H3N2 wild-type virus for adults was estimated at 18 TCID50 (95% CI = 8.8-35 TCID50). The infectivity of wild-type H1N1 virus remains unknown as the data set pooling was unsuccessful. © 2011 Society for Risk Analysis.

Regional sub-cratonic mantle heterogeneities under the Kaapvaal craton recorded by sulfide inclusions in diamond.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Thomassot, E.; Lorand, J. P.

2016-12-01

Sulfide inclusions in diamonds (SID) have been trapped by their host at depth greater than 150 km and then protected from alteration or reequilibration processes. Subsequently, depending on their initial composition, there have experienced multiple exsolution events at temperatures between 650°C and 200°C. Mineralogical and isotopic composition of SID thus directly reflects their sources whereas their texture give information on the exhumation history of their diamond host. Our samples originating from Koffiefontein, De Beers Pool and Jwaneng kimberlites, include both peridotitic (P-type, n=6) and eclogitic (E-type, n=151) sulfides. P-type sulfides are monosulfide solid solutions (exsolved from a nickeliferous monosulfide solid solution, mss, stable at T>300°C). Their Ni and Cr content indicate that the sublithospheric mantle under Koffiefontein (Ni=26wt%; Cr=0.36 wt%) is more refractory than De Beers Pool (Ni=24wt%; Cr=0.28wt%) and Jwaneng (Ni=17wt%; Cr=0.22wt%). Sulfides from De Beers Pool have S/Se (3900±100) greater than the chondritic values ( 2540) pointing to a metasomatic overprint predating the formation of diamonds. S-isotopic composition (d34S=-0.9 ± 0.5‰, Δ33S=0‰) are homogeneous, and consistent with the composition of MORB. E-type sulfides are unmixed assemblage of chalcopyrite (crystallized from an intermediate solid solution formed at T 650°C) pentlandite (T° from 260 to >200°C) and pyrrhotite. Comparing the chemical composition of the unmixed phases with experimental data, we determined a blocking T° for E-type assemblages ranging from 540°C at Koffiefontein, to less than 200°C at Jwaneng and DeBeersPool. E-type sulfides thus confirm the chemical heterogeneity from one mine to the other, with d34S extended to fractionated values (-9 to +11‰). Our study indicates that SID are robust probes to explore regional scale mantle heterogeneities likely associated to discrete depletion events and possible recycling of ancient sediment, predating the formation of diamonds. Major, trace element and isotopes data will be presented at the conference in order to support this conclusion.

[Soil organic carbon pools and their turnover under two different types of forest in Xiao-xing'an Mountains, Northeast China].

PubMed

Gao, Fei; Jiang, Hang; Cui, Xiao-yang

2015-07-01

Soil samples collected from virgin Korean pine forest and broad-leaved secondary forest in Xiaoxing'an Mountains, Northeast China were incubated in laboratory at different temperatures (8, 18 and 28 °C) for 160 days, and the data from the incubation experiment were fitted to a three-compartment, first-order kinetic model which separated soil organic carbon (SOC) into active, slow, and resistant carbon pools. Results showed that the soil organic carbon mineralization rates and the cumulative amount of C mineralized (all based on per unit of dry soil mass) of the broad-leaved secondary forest were both higher than that of the virgin Korean pine forest, whereas the mineralized C accounted for a relatively smaller part of SOC in the broad-leaved secondary forest soil. Soil active and slow carbon pools decreased with soil depth, while their proportions in SOC increased. Soil resistant carbon pool and its contribution to SOC were both greater in the broad-leaved secondary forest soil than in the virgin Korean pine forest soil, suggesting that the broad-leaved secondary forest soil organic carbon was relatively more stable. The mean retention time (MRT) of soil active carbon pool ranged from 9 to 24 d, decreasing with soil depth; while the MRT of slow carbon pool varied between 7 and 24 a, increasing with soil depth. Soil active carbon pool and its proportion in SOC increased linearly with incubation temperature, and consequently, decreased the slow carbon pool. Virgin Korean pine forest soils exhibited a higher increasing rate of active carbon pool along temperature gradient than the broad-leaved secondary forest soils, indicating that the organic carbon pool of virgin Korean pine forest soil was relatively more sensitive to temperature change.

Light-Dark Changes in Cytosolic Nitrate Pools Depend on Nitrate Reductase Activity in Arabidopsis Leaf Cells1[w

PubMed Central

Cookson, Sarah J.; Williams, Lorraine E.; Miller, Anthony J.

2005-01-01

Several different cellular processes determine the size of the metabolically available nitrate pool in the cytoplasm. These processes include not only ion fluxes across the plasma membrane and tonoplast but also assimilation by the activity of nitrate reductase (NR). In roots, the maintenance of cytosolic nitrate activity during periods of nitrate starvation and resupply (M. van der Leij, S.J. Smith, A.J. Miller [1998] Planta 205: 64–72; R.-G. Zhen, H.-W. Koyro, R.A. Leigh, A.D. Tomos, A.J. Miller [1991] Planta 185: 356–361) suggests that this pool is regulated. Under nitrate-replete conditions vacuolar nitrate is a membrane-bound store that can release nitrate to the cytoplasm; after depletion of cytosolic nitrate, tonoplast transporters would serve to restore this pool. To study the role of assimilation, specifically the activity of NR in regulating the size of the cytosolic nitrate pool, we have compared wild-type and mutant plants. In leaf mesophyll cells, light-to-dark transitions increase cytosolic nitrate activity (1.5–2.8 mm), and these changes were reversed by dark-to-light transitions. Such changes were not observed in nia1nia2 NR-deficient plants indicating that this change in cytosolic nitrate activity was dependent on the presence of functional NR. Furthermore, in the dark, the steady-state cytosolic nitrate activities were not statistically different between the two types of plant, indicating that NR has little role in determining resting levels of nitrate. Epidermal cells of both wild type and NR mutants had cytosolic nitrate activities that were not significantly different from mesophyll cells in the dark and were unaltered by dark-to-light transitions. We propose that the NR-dependent changes in cytosolic nitrate provide a cellular mechanism for the diurnal changes in vacuolar nitrate storage, and the results are discussed in terms of the possible signaling role of cytosolic nitrate. PMID:15908593

Accuracy assessment/validation methodology and results of 2010–11 land-cover/land-use data for Pools 13, 26, La Grange, and Open River South, Upper Mississippi River System

USGS Publications Warehouse

Jakusz, J.W.; Dieck, J.J.; Langrehr, H.A.; Ruhser, J.J.; Lubinski, S.J.

2016-01-11

Similar to an AA, validation involves generating random points based on the total area for each map class. However, instead of collecting field data, two or three individuals not involved with the photo-interpretative mapping separately review each of the points onscreen and record a best-fit vegetation type(s) for each site. Once the individual analyses are complete, results are joined together and a comparative analysis is performed. The objective of this initial analysis is to identify areas where the validation results were in agreement (matches) and areas where validation results were in disagreement (mismatches). The two or three individuals then perform an analysis, looking at each mismatched site, and agree upon a final validation class. (If two vegetation types at a specific site appear to be equally prevalent, the validation team is permitted to assign the site two best-fit vegetation types.) Following the validation team’s comparative analysis of vegetation assignments, the data are entered into a database and compared to the mappers’ vegetation assignments. Agreements and disagreements between the map and validation classes are identified, and a contingency table is produced. This document presents the AA processes/results for Pools 13 and La Grange, as well as the validation process/results for Pools 13 and 26 and Open River South.

The performance of magnetic resonance imaging in the detection of triangular fibrocartilage complex injury: a meta-analysis.

PubMed

Wang, Z X; Chen, S L; Wang, Q Q; Liu, B; Zhu, J; Shen, J

2015-06-01

The aim of this study was to evaluate the accuracy of magnetic resonance imaging in the detection of triangular fibrocartilage complex injury through a meta-analysis. A comprehensive literature search was conducted before 1 April 2014. All studies comparing magnetic resonance imaging results with arthroscopy or open surgery findings were reviewed, and 25 studies that satisfied the eligibility criteria were included. Data were pooled to yield pooled sensitivity and specificity, which were respectively 0.83 and 0.82. In detection of central and peripheral tears, magnetic resonance imaging had respectively a pooled sensitivity of 0.90 and 0.88 and a pooled specificity of 0.97 and 0.97. Six high-quality studies using Ringler's recommended magnetic resonance imaging parameters were selected for analysis to determine whether optimal imaging protocols yielded better results. The pooled sensitivity and specificity of these six studies were 0.92 and 0.82, respectively. The overall accuracy of magnetic resonance imaging was acceptable. For peripheral tears, the pooled data showed a relatively high accuracy. Magnetic resonance imaging with appropriate parameters are an ideal method for diagnosing different types of triangular fibrocartilage complex tears. © The Author(s) 2015.

Computational modeling of GTA (gas tungsten arc) welding with emphasis on surface tension effects

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

Zacharia, T.; David, S.A.

1990-01-01

A computational study of the convective heat transfer in the weld pool during gas tungsten arch (GTA) welding of Type 304 stainless steel is presented. The solution of the transport equations is based on a control volume approach which utilized directly, the integral form of the governing equations. The computational model considers buoyancy and electromagnetic and surface tension forces in the solution of convective heat transfer in the weld pool. In addition, the model treats the weld pool surface as a deformable free surface. The computational model includes weld metal vaporization and temperature dependent thermophysical properties. The results indicate thatmore » consideration of weld pool vaporization effects and temperature dependent thermophysical properties significantly influence the weld model predictions. Theoretical predictions of the weld pool surface temperature distributions and the cross-sectional weld pool size and shape wee compared with corresponding experimental measurements. Comparison of the theoretically predicted and the experimentally obtained surface temperature profiles indicated agreement with {plus minus} 8%. The predicted weld cross-section profiles were found to agree very well with actual weld cross-sections for the best theoretical models. 26 refs., 8 figs.« less

Fuel cells for commercial energy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Huppmann, Gerhard; Weisse, Eckart; Bischoff, Manfred

1990-04-01

The development of various types of fuel cells is described. Advantges and drawbacks are considered for alkaline fuel cells, phosphoric acid fuel cells, and molten carbonate fuel cells. It is shown that their modular construction is particularly adapted to power heat systems. A comparison which is largely in favor of fuel cells, is made between coal, oil, natural gas power stations, and fuel cells. Safety risks in operation are also compared with those of conventional power stations. Fuel cells are particularly suited for dwellings, shopping centers, swimming pools, other sporting installations, and research facilities, whose high current and heat requirements can be covered by power heat coupling.

Effects of Statin Treatment on Inflammation and Cardiac Function in Heart Failure: An Adjusted Indirect Comparison Meta-Analysis of Randomized Trials.

PubMed

Bonsu, Kwadwo Osei; Reidpath, Daniel Diamond; Kadirvelu, Amudha

2015-12-01

Statins are known to prevent heart failure (HF). However, it is unclear whether statins as class or type (lipophilic or hydrophilic) improve outcomes of established HF. The current meta-analysis was performed to compare the treatment effects of lipophilic and hydrophilic statins on inflammation and cardiac function in HF. Outcomes were indicators of cardiac function [changes in left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) and B-type natriuretic peptide (BNP)] and inflammation [changes in highly sensitive C-reactive protein (hsCRP) and interluekin-6 (IL-6)]. We conducted a search of PubMed, EMBASE, and the Cochrane databases until December 31, 2014 for randomized control trials (RCTs) of statin versus placebo in patients with HF. RCTs with their respective extracted information were dichotomized into statin type evaluated and analyzed separately. Outcomes were pooled with random effect approach, producing standardized mean differences (SMD) for each statin type. Using these pooled estimates, we performed adjusted indirect comparisons for each outcome. Data from 6214 patients from 19 trials were analyzed. Lipophilic statin was superior to hydrophilic statin treatment regarding follow-up LVEF (SMD, 4.54; 95% CI, 4.16-4.91; P < 0.001), BNP (SMD, -1.60; 95% CI, -2.56 to -0.65; P < 0.001), hsCRP (SMD, -1.13; 95% CI, -1.54 to -0.72; P < 0.001), and IL-6 (SMD, -3.75; 95% CI, -4.77 to -0.72; P < 0.001) in HF. Lipophilic statin produces greater treatment effects on cardiac function and inflammation compared with hydrophilic statin in patients with HF. Until data from adequately powered head-to-head trial of the statin types are available, our meta-analysis brings clinicians and researchers a step closer to the quest on which statin--lipophilic or hydrophilic--is associated with better outcomes in HF. © 2015 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Diversification of Nitrogen Sources in Various Tundra Vegetation Types in the High Arctic

PubMed Central

Skrzypek, Grzegorz; Wojtuń, Bronisław; Richter, Dorota; Jakubas, Dariusz; Wojczulanis-Jakubas, Katarzyna; Samecka-Cymerman, Aleksandra

2015-01-01

Low nitrogen availability in the high Arctic represents a major constraint for plant growth, which limits the tundra capacity for carbon retention and determines tundra vegetation types. The limited terrestrial nitrogen (N) pool in the tundra is augmented significantly by nesting seabirds, such as the planktivorous Little Auk (Alle alle). Therefore, N delivered by these birds may significantly influence the N cycling in the tundra locally and the carbon budget more globally. Moreover, should these birds experience substantial negative environmental pressure associated with climate change, this will adversely influence the tundra N-budget. Hence, assessment of bird-originated N-input to the tundra is important for understanding biological cycles in polar regions. This study analyzed the stable nitrogen composition of the three main N-sources in the High Arctic and in numerous plants that access different N-pools in ten tundra vegetation types in an experimental catchment in Hornsund (Svalbard). The percentage of the total tundra N-pool provided by birds, ranged from 0–21% in Patterned-ground tundra to 100% in Ornithocoprophilous tundra. The total N-pool utilized by tundra plants in the studied catchment was built in 36% by birds, 38% by atmospheric deposition, and 26% by atmospheric N2-fixation. The stable nitrogen isotope mixing mass balance, in contrast to direct methods that measure actual deposition, indicates the ratio between the actual N-loads acquired by plants from different N-sources. Our results enhance our understanding of the importance of different N-sources in the Arctic tundra and the used methodological approach can be applied elsewhere. PMID:26376204

Diversification of Nitrogen Sources in Various Tundra Vegetation Types in the High Arctic.

PubMed

Skrzypek, Grzegorz; Wojtuń, Bronisław; Richter, Dorota; Jakubas, Dariusz; Wojczulanis-Jakubas, Katarzyna; Samecka-Cymerman, Aleksandra

2015-01-01

Low nitrogen availability in the high Arctic represents a major constraint for plant growth, which limits the tundra capacity for carbon retention and determines tundra vegetation types. The limited terrestrial nitrogen (N) pool in the tundra is augmented significantly by nesting seabirds, such as the planktivorous Little Auk (Alle alle). Therefore, N delivered by these birds may significantly influence the N cycling in the tundra locally and the carbon budget more globally. Moreover, should these birds experience substantial negative environmental pressure associated with climate change, this will adversely influence the tundra N-budget. Hence, assessment of bird-originated N-input to the tundra is important for understanding biological cycles in polar regions. This study analyzed the stable nitrogen composition of the three main N-sources in the High Arctic and in numerous plants that access different N-pools in ten tundra vegetation types in an experimental catchment in Hornsund (Svalbard). The percentage of the total tundra N-pool provided by birds, ranged from 0-21% in Patterned-ground tundra to 100% in Ornithocoprophilous tundra. The total N-pool utilized by tundra plants in the studied catchment was built in 36% by birds, 38% by atmospheric deposition, and 26% by atmospheric N2-fixation. The stable nitrogen isotope mixing mass balance, in contrast to direct methods that measure actual deposition, indicates the ratio between the actual N-loads acquired by plants from different N-sources. Our results enhance our understanding of the importance of different N-sources in the Arctic tundra and the used methodological approach can be applied elsewhere.

Fiber Typing of the Erector Spinae and Multifidus Muscles in Healthy Controls and Back Pain Patients: A Systematic Literature Review.

PubMed

Cagnie, Barbara; Dhooge, Famke; Schumacher, Charline; De Meulemeester, Kayleigh; Petrovic, Mirko; van Oosterwijck, Jessica; Danneels, Lieven

2015-01-01

Understanding the changes in muscle fiber typing is relevant in the context of muscle disorders because it provides information on the metabolic profile and functional capacity. The aim of this study was to systematically review the literature comparing muscle fiber typing in the back muscles of healthy subjects with low back pain (LBP) patients. Predefined keywords regarding muscle fiber typing and back muscles were combined in PubMed and Web of Science electronic search engines from inception to August 2014. Full-text articles were independently screened by 2 independent, blinded researchers. Full texts fulfilling the predefined inclusion criteria were assessed on risk of bias by 2 independent researchers, and relative data were extracted. Data were not pooled because of heterogeneity in biopsy locations and population. From the 214 articles that were identified, 18 met the inclusion criteria. These articles evaluated the muscle fiber type distribution or proportional fiber type area between muscles, muscle layers, men, and women or healthy subjects and LBP patients. Regarding muscle fiber type distribution, findings in healthy subjects and LBP patients show no or inconclusive evidence for intermuscular and interindividual differentiation. Studies evaluating the proportional fiber type area also suggest little intermuscular differentiation but provide plausible evidence that the proportional area occupied by type I fibers is higher in women compared to men. The evidence for differentiation based on the presence of low back pain is conflicting. This study found that the evidence regarding muscle fiber typing in back muscles is either inconclusive or shows little differences. The most plausible evidence exists for differentiation in proportional fiber type area depending on sex. Copyright © 2015 National University of Health Sciences. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Mineral Soil Carbon in Managed Hardwood Forests of the Northeastern US

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vario, C.; Friedland, A.; Hornig, C.

2013-12-01

New England is characterized by extensive forest cover and large reservoirs of soil carbon (C). In northern hardwood forests, mineral soil C can account for up to 50% of total ecosystem C. There has been an increasing demand for forests to serve both as a C sink and a renewable energy source, and effective management of the ecosystem C balance relies on accurate modeling of each compartment of the ecosystem. However, the dynamics of soil C storage with respect to forest use are variable and poorly understood, particularly in mineral soils. For example, current regional models assume C pools after forest harvesting do not change, while some studies suggest that belowground mineral soil C pools can be affected by disturbances at the soil surface. We quantified mineral soil C pools in previously clear-cut stands in seven research or protected forests across New York, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, and Vermont. The ages of the sites sampled ranged from recently cleared to those with no disturbance history, with 21 forest stands represented in the study. Within each research forest studied, physical parameters such as soil type, forest type, slope and land-use history (aside from forest harvest) did not vary between the stands of different ages. Soil samples were collected to a depth of 60 cm below the mineral-organic boundary using a gas-powered augur and 9.5-cm diameter drill bit. Samples were collected in 10-cm increments in shallow mineral soil and 15-cm increments from 30-60 cm depth. Carbon, nitrogen (N), pH, texture and soil mineralogy were measured across the regional sites. At Bartlett Experimental Forest (BEF) in New Hampshire, mineral soil biogeochemistry in cut and uncut sites was studied at a finer scale. Measurements included soil temperature to 55 cm depth, carbon compound analyses using Py-GCMS and soil microbial messenger RNA extractions from mineral soil. Finally, we simulated C dynamics after harvesting by building a model in Stella, with a particular interest in the role that priming effects may play if C is transported from organic to mineral soil layers after forest harvest. Laboratory analyses were conducted at Dartmouth College and at the University of New Hampshire. For the regional study, mineral soil C and N concentrations, and in some cases, pools were highest at locations that had never been harvested. Although sites represented different stages of succession after clearing, there were no significant patterns over time since harvest. At BEF, soil temperature at 55 cm depth in a recently cleared stand was on average 1.5° C higher than surrounding forested sites between June and September, and shallower depths had greater temperature discrepancies. Our model, which was parameterized using published field data from Bartlett and Hubbard Brook forests, showed that inputs of labile C to mineral soil after harvest could prime the decomposition of preexisting mineral soil C and account for up to 40% of the observed difference in C pools between harvested and undisturbed sites.

Hypermethylated APC in serous carcinoma based on a meta-analysis of ovarian cancer.

PubMed

Shen, Chunyan; Sheng, Qifang; Zhang, Xiaojie; Fu, Yuling; Zhu, Kemiao

2016-09-26

The reduced expression of the Adenomatous polyposis coli (APC) gene, a tumor suppressor gene, through promoter hypermethylation has been reported to play a key role in the carcinogenesis. However, the correlation between APC promoter hypermethylation and ovarian cancer (OC) remains to be clarified. A comprehensive literature search was carried out in related research databases. The overall odds ratio (OR) and corresponding 95 % confidence interval (CI) were used to evaluate the effects of APC promoter hypermethylation on OC and clinicopathological characteristics. Ultimately, 12 eligible studies were used in our study, including 806 OC samples, 429 normal controls, 109 benign lesions and 75 LMP samples. The pooled OR showed that APC promoter hypermethylation was significantly higher in OC than in normal and benign controls (OR = 6.18 and OR = 3.26, respectively). No significant correlation was observed between OC and low malignant potential (LMP) tumors (P = 0.436). In the comparison of OC and normal controls, subgroup analysis based on race showed that the overall OR of APC promoter hypermethylation was significant and similar in Asians and Caucasians (OR = 8.34 and OR = 5.39, respectively). A subgroup analysis based on sample type found that the pooled OR was significantly higher in blood than in tissue (OR = 18.71 and OR = 5.74, respectively). A significant association was not observed between APC promoter hypermethylation and tumor grade or tumor stage. The pooled OR indicated that APC promoter hypermethylation was significantly lower in serous carcinoma than in non-serous carcinoma (OR = 0.56, P = 0.02). No obvious publication bias was detected by Egger's test (all P > 0.05). APC promoter hypermethylation may be linked to the increased risk of OC. It was associated with histological type, but not with tumor grade or tumor stage. Moreover, hypermethylated APC may be a noninvasive biomarker using blood samples. Future studies are required to validate these results.

Leveraging the power of pooled data for cancer outcomes research.

PubMed

Hugh-Yeun, Kiara; Cheung, Winson Y

2016-08-02

Clinical trials continue to be the gold standard for determining the efficacy of novel cancer treatments, but they may also expose participants to the potential risks of unpredictable or severe toxicities. The development of validated tools that better inform patients of the benefits and risks associated with clinical trial participation can facilitate the informed consent process. The design and validation of such instruments are strengthened when we leverage the power of pooled data analysis for cancer outcomes research. In a recent study published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology entitled "Determinants of early mortality among 37,568 patients with colon cancer who participated in 25 clinical trials from the adjuvant colon cancer endpoints database," using a large pooled analysis of over 30,000 study participants who were enrolled in clinical trials of adjuvant therapy for early-stage colon cancer, we developed and validated a nomogram depicting the predictors of early cancer mortality. This database of pooled individual-level data allowed for a comprehensive analysis of poor prognostic factors associated with early death; furthermore, it enabled the creation of a nomogram that was able to reliably capture and quantify the benefit-to-risk profile for patients who are considering clinical trial participation. This tool can facilitate treatment decision-making discussions. As China and other Asian countries continue to conduct oncology clinical trials, efforts to collate patient-level information from these studies into a large data repository should be strongly considered since pooled data can increase future capacity for cancer outcomes research, which, in turn, can enhance patient-physician discussions and optimize clinical care.

An Efficient Design Strategy for Logistic Regression Using Outcome- and Covariate-Dependent Pooling of Biospecimens Prior to Assay

PubMed Central

Lyles, Robert H.; Mitchell, Emily M.; Weinberg, Clarice R.; Umbach, David M.; Schisterman, Enrique F.

2016-01-01

Summary Potential reductions in laboratory assay costs afforded by pooling equal aliquots of biospecimens have long been recognized in disease surveillance and epidemiological research and, more recently, have motivated design and analytic developments in regression settings. For example, Weinberg and Umbach (1999, Biometrics 55, 718–726) provided methods for fitting set-based logistic regression models to case-control data when a continuous exposure variable (e.g., a biomarker) is assayed on pooled specimens. We focus on improving estimation efficiency by utilizing available subject-specific information at the pool allocation stage. We find that a strategy that we call “(y,c)-pooling,” which forms pooling sets of individuals within strata defined jointly by the outcome and other covariates, provides more precise estimation of the risk parameters associated with those covariates than does pooling within strata defined only by the outcome. We review the approach to set-based analysis through offsets developed by Weinberg and Umbach in a recent correction to their original paper. We propose a method for variance estimation under this design and use simulations and a real-data example to illustrate the precision benefits of (y,c)-pooling relative to y-pooling. We also note and illustrate that set-based models permit estimation of covariate interactions with exposure. PMID:26964741

Is energy pooling necessary in ultraviolet matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization?

PubMed

Lin, Hou-Yu; Song, Botao; Lu, I-Chung; Hsu, Kuo-Tung; Liao, Chih-Yu; Lee, Yin-Yu; Tseng, Chien-Ming; Lee, Yuan-Tseh; Ni, Chi-Kung

2014-01-15

Energy pooling has been suggested as the key process for generating the primary ions during ultraviolet matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization (UV-MALDI). In previous studies, decreases in fluorescence quantum yields as laser fluence increased for 2-aminobenzoic acid, 2,5-dihydroxybenzoic acid (2,5-DHB), and 3-hydroxypicolinic acid were used as evidence of energy pooling. This work extends the research to other matrices and addresses whether energy pooling is a universal property in UV-MALDI. Energy pooling was investigated in a time-resolved fluorescence experiment by using a short laser pulse (355 nm, 20 ps pulse width) for excitation and a streak camera (1 ps time resolution) for fluorescence detection. The excited-state lifetime of 2,5-DHB decreased with increases in laser fluence. This suggests that a reaction occurs between two excited molecules, and that energy pooling may be one of the possible reactions. However, the excited-state lifetime of 2,4,6-trihydroxyacetophenone (THAP) did not change with increases in laser fluence. The upper limit of the energy pooling rate constant for THAP is estimated to be approximately 100-500 times smaller than that of 2,5-DHB. The small energy pooling rate constant for THAP indicates that the potential contribution of the energy pooling mechanism to the generation of THAP matrix primary ions should be reconsidered. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Failure of bacterial screening to detect Staphylococcus aureus: the English experience of donor follow-up.

PubMed

Brailsford, S R; Tossell, J; Morrison, R; McDonald, C P; Pitt, T L

2018-05-24

Between February 2011 and December 2016, over 1·6 million platelet units, 36% pooled platelets, underwent bacterial screening prior to issue. Contamination rates for apheresis and pooled platelets were 0·02% and 0·07%, respectively. Staphylococcus aureus accounted for 21 contaminations, including four pooled platelets, one confirmed transfusion-transmitted infection (TTI) and three 'near-miss' incidents detected on visual inspection which were negative on screening. We describe follow-up investigations of 16 donors for skin carriage of S. aureus and molecular characterisation of donor and pack isolates. Units were screened by the BacT/ALERT 3D detection system. Contributing donors were interviewed and consent requested for skin and nasal swabbing. S. aureus isolates were referred for spa gene type and DNA macrorestriction profile to determine identity between carriage strains and packs. Donors of 10 apheresis and two pooled packs screen positive for S. aureus were confirmed as the source of contamination; seven had a history of skin conditions, predominantly eczema; 11 were nasal carriers. The 'near-miss' incidents were associated with apheresis donors, two donors harboured strains indistinguishable from the pack strain. The TTI was due to a screen-negative pooled unit, and a nasal isolate of one donor was indistinguishable from that in the unit. Staphylococcus aureus contamination is rare but potentially harmful in platelet units. Donor isolates showed almost universal correspondence in molecular type with pack isolates, thus confirming the source of contamination. The importance of visual inspection of packs prior to transfusion is underlined by the 'near-miss' incidents. © 2018 International Society of Blood Transfusion.

Keyhole behavior and liquid flow in molten pool during laser-arc hybrid welding

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Naito, Yasuaki; Katayama, Seiji; Matsunawa, Akira

2003-03-01

Hybrid welding was carried out on Type 304 stainless steel plate under various conditions using YAG laser combined with TIG arc. During arc and laser-arc hybrid welding, arc voltage variation was measured, and arc plasma, laser-induced plume and evaporation spots as well as keyhole behavior and liquid flow in the molten pool were observed through CCD camera and X-ray real-time transmission apparatus. It was consequently found that hybrid welding possessed many features in comparison with YAG laser welding. The deepest weld bead could be produced when the YAG laser beam of high power density was shot on the molten pool made beforehand stably with TIG arc. A keyhole was long and narrow, and its behavior was rather stable inside the molten pool. It was also confirmed that porosity was reduced by the suppression of bubble formation in hybrid welding utilizing a laser of a moderate power density.

Evolution of the pilot infrastructure of CMS: towards a single glideinWMS pool

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

Belforte, S.; Gutsche, O.; Letts, J.

2014-01-01

CMS production and analysis job submission is based largely on glideinWMS and pilot submissions. The transition from multiple different submission solutions like gLite WMS and HTCondor-based implementations was carried out over years and is coming now to a conclusion. The historically explained separate glideinWMS pools for different types of production jobs and analysis jobs are being unified into a single global pool. This enables CMS to benefit from global prioritization and scheduling possibilities. It also presents the sites with only one kind of pilots and eliminates the need of having to make scheduling decisions on the CE level. This papermore » provides an analysis of the benefits of a unified resource pool, as well as a description of the resulting global policy. It will explain the technical challenges moving forward and present solutions to some of them.« less

Pooling Resources for Excellence and Relevance: An Evolution of Universities as Multi-Scalar Network Organisations

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kitagawa, Fumi

2010-01-01

There are a number of different forms of inter-organisational collaborative arrangements between universities at international, national and sub-national levels. This paper focuses on a particular form of inter-university collaboration mechanisms, which represents one of the key recent policy developments in Scotland. Research pooling initiatives…

Use of In Vitro Assays to Assess the Contribution of Environmental Contaminants on Water Mutagenicity

EPA Science Inventory

Although the formation and associated health effects of disinfection by-products (DBPs) in drinking water have been studied for nearly 40 years, similar research on swimming pool and hot tub (spa) water has begun only recently. Unique to pool and spa waters is the role of human ...

Testing of New Bridge Rail and Transition Designs Vol. XIII Appendix L 32-in (813-mm) Thrie-Beam Transition

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

1997-06-01

This report presents the results of a State Planning and Research (SP&R) pooled-fund study to develop safer bridge rail and transition designsThis pooled-fund study was sponsored by the Federal Highway Administration, 23 States, and the District of C...

Testing of New Bridge Rail and Transition Designs Vol. X APP.I; 42-in (1.07-m) Concrete Parapet Bridge Railing

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

1997-06-01

This report presents the results of a State Planning and Research (SP&R) pooled-fund study to develop safer bridge rail and transition designs.This pooled-fund study was sponsored by the Federal Highway Administration, 23 States, and the District of ...

Assessing Market Potential in the Inquiry Pool. AIR Forum 1982 Paper.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lay, Robert; And Others

The inquiry pool represented by prospective college applicants who seek information from the institution and a marketing response that has been implemented at Boston College are considered. It is suggested that researchers may trace specific individuals from the inquiry stage through application to the final college choice. To benefit from an…

The quest for rare variants: pooled multiplexed next generation sequencing in plants.

PubMed

Marroni, Fabio; Pinosio, Sara; Morgante, Michele

2012-01-01

Next generation sequencing (NGS) instruments produce an unprecedented amount of sequence data at contained costs. This gives researchers the possibility of designing studies with adequate power to identify rare variants at a fraction of the economic and labor resources required by individual Sanger sequencing. As of today, few research groups working in plant sciences have exploited this potentiality, showing that pooled NGS provides results in excellent agreement with those obtained by individual Sanger sequencing. The aim of this review is to convey to the reader the general ideas underlying the use of pooled NGS for the identification of rare variants. To facilitate a thorough understanding of the possibilities of the method, we will explain in detail the possible experimental and analytical approaches and discuss their advantages and disadvantages. We will show that information on allele frequency obtained by pooled NGS can be used to accurately compute basic population genetics indexes such as allele frequency, nucleotide diversity, and Tajima's D. Finally, we will discuss applications and future perspectives of the multiplexed NGS approach.

The UNITAID Patent Pool Initiative: Bringing Patents Together for the Common Good

PubMed Central

Bermudez, Jorge; 't Hoen, Ellen

2010-01-01

Developing and delivering appropriate, affordable, well-adapted medicines for HIV/AIDS remains an urgent challenge: as first-line therapies fail, increasing numbers of people require costly second-line therapy; one-third of ARVs are not available in pediatric formulations; and certain key first- and second-line triple fixed-dose combinations do not exist or sufficient suppliers are lacking. UNITAID aims to help solve these problems through an innovative initiative for the collective management of intellectual property (IP) rights – a patent pool for HIV medicines. The idea behind a patent pool is that patent holders - companies, governments, researchers or universities - voluntarily offer, under certain conditions, the IP related to their inventions to the patent pool. Any company that wants to use the IP to produce or develop medicines can seek a license from the pool against the payment of royalties, and may then produce the medicines for use in developing countries (conditional upon meeting agreed quality standards). The patent pool will be a voluntary mechanism, meaning its success will largely depend on the willingness of pharmaceutical companies to participate and commit their IP to the pool. Generic producers must also be willing to cooperate. The pool has the potential to provide benefits to all. PMID:20309404

Forest nutrient and carbon pools at Walker Branch watershed: changes during a 21-year period

Treesearch

Carl C. Trettin; D.W. Johnson; D.E. Todd

1999-01-01

A 21-yr perspective on changes in nutrient and C pools on undisturbed upland forest sites is provided. Plots originally representing four cover types have been sampled three times. On each plot, forest biomass, forest floor, and soil, to a depth of 60 cm, were measured, sampled, and analyzed for Ca, Mg, C, N, and P. Exchangeable soil Ca and Mg have declined in most...

Credit USAF, ca. 1943. Original housed in the Muroc Flight ...

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

Credit USAF, ca. 1943. Original housed in the Muroc Flight Test Base, Unit History, 1 September 1942 - 30 June 1945. Alfred F. Simpson Historical Research Agency. United States Air Force. Maxwell AFB, Alabama. Historic view looking northeast along southeast edge of swimming pool during construction. The wavy edge of the pool visible here remains as a ground surface feature in 1995. Building in the background is the second Bachelor Officers' Quarters (T-15) built in 1943 - Edwards Air Force Base, North Base, Swimming Pool, Second Street, Boron, Kern County, CA

Comparison of Individual and Pooled Stool Samples for the Assessment of Soil-Transmitted Helminth Infection Intensity and Drug Efficacy

PubMed Central

Mekonnen, Zeleke; Meka, Selima; Ayana, Mio; Bogers, Johannes; Vercruysse, Jozef; Levecke, Bruno

2013-01-01

Background In veterinary parasitology samples are often pooled for a rapid assessment of infection intensity and drug efficacy. Currently, studies evaluating this strategy in large-scale drug administration programs to control human soil-transmitted helminths (STHs; Ascaris lumbricoides, Trichuris trichiura, and hookworm), are absent. Therefore, we developed and evaluated a pooling strategy to assess intensity of STH infections and drug efficacy. Methods/Principal Findings Stool samples from 840 children attending 14 primary schools in Jimma, Ethiopia were pooled (pool sizes of 10, 20, and 60) to evaluate the infection intensity of STHs. In addition, the efficacy of a single dose of mebendazole (500 mg) in terms of fecal egg count reduction (FECR; synonym of egg reduction rate) was evaluated in 600 children from two of these schools. Individual and pooled samples were examined with the McMaster egg counting method. For each of the three STHs, we found a significant positive correlation between mean fecal egg counts (FECs) of individual stool samples and FEC of pooled stool samples, ranging from 0.62 to 0.98. Only for A. lumbricoides was any significant difference in mean FEC of the individual and pooled samples found. For this STH species, pools of 60 samples resulted in significantly higher FECs. FECR for the different number of samples pooled was comparable in all pool sizes, except for hookworm. For this parasite, pools of 10 and 60 samples provided significantly higher FECR results. Conclusion/Significance This study highlights that pooling stool samples holds promise as a strategy for rapidly assessing infection intensity and efficacy of administered drugs in programs to control human STHs. However, further research is required to determine when and how pooling of stool samples can be cost-effectively applied along a control program, and to verify whether this approach is also applicable to other NTDs. PMID:23696905

Seasonal Patterns of the Insect Community Structure in Urban Rain Pools of Temperate Argentina

PubMed Central

Fontanarrosa, M. Soledad; Collantes, Marta B.; Bachmann, Axel O.

2009-01-01

Temporary aquatic environments are widespread in the world, and although there are considerable regional differences in their type and method of formation they have many physical, chemical and biological properties in common. With the aim to increase knowledge of urban temporary pool fauna, the objectives of this work were to assess the seasonal patterns of species composition, richness, and diversity of the aquatic insect community inhabiting rain pools in urban temperate Argentina, and to identify the environmental variables associated to these patterns. Four temporary pools of an urban green space in Buenos Aires City were studied throughout a 1-year period. Eleven flood cycles with very varied hydroperiods and dry periods, mainly associated with rainfall, were identified. Insect species richness in these temporary urban pools, 86 taxa were documented, was found to be within the range reported for wild temporary water bodies of other regions of the world. The present results provide evidence for the existence of a clear link between habitat and community variability. Hydroperiod and seasonality were the main environmental factors involved in structuring the insect communities of the studied water bodies. Urban pools in green spaces have the potential to act to its dwellers like corridors through the urban matrix. Taking into account these characteristics and their accessibility, urban temporary pools can be considered as promising habitats for the study of ecological processes involving the insect community. PMID:19611261

Control of reactor coolant flow path during reactor decay heat removal

DOEpatents

Hunsbedt, Anstein N.

1988-01-01

An improved reactor vessel auxiliary cooling system for a sodium cooled nuclear reactor is disclosed. The sodium cooled nuclear reactor is of the type having a reactor vessel liner separating the reactor hot pool on the upstream side of an intermediate heat exchanger and the reactor cold pool on the downstream side of the intermediate heat exchanger. The improvement includes a flow path across the reactor vessel liner flow gap which dissipates core heat across the reactor vessel and containment vessel responsive to a casualty including the loss of normal heat removal paths and associated shutdown of the main coolant liquid sodium pumps. In normal operation, the reactor vessel cold pool is inlet to the suction side of coolant liquid sodium pumps, these pumps being of the electromagnetic variety. The pumps discharge through the core into the reactor hot pool and then through an intermediate heat exchanger where the heat generated in the reactor core is discharged. Upon outlet from the heat exchanger, the sodium is returned to the reactor cold pool. The improvement includes placing a jet pump across the reactor vessel liner flow gap, pumping a small flow of liquid sodium from the lower pressure cold pool into the hot pool. The jet pump has a small high pressure driving stream diverted from the high pressure side of the reactor pumps. During normal operation, the jet pumps supplement the normal reactor pressure differential from the lower pressure cold pool to the hot pool. Upon the occurrence of a casualty involving loss of coolant pump pressure, and immediate cooling circuit is established by the back flow of sodium through the jet pumps from the reactor vessel hot pool to the reactor vessel cold pool. The cooling circuit includes flow into the reactor vessel liner flow gap immediate the reactor vessel wall and containment vessel where optimum and immediate discharge of residual reactor heat occurs.

Functional pools of oxidative and glycolytic fibers in human muscle observed by 31P magnetic resonance spectroscopy during exercise.

PubMed Central

Park, J H; Brown, R L; Park, C R; McCully, K; Cohn, M; Haselgrove, J; Chance, B

1987-01-01

Quantitative probing of heterogeneous regions in muscle is feasible with phosphorus-31 magnetic resonance spectroscopy because of the differentiation of metabolic patterns of glycolytic and oxidative fibers. A differential recruitment of oxidative and glycolytic fibers during exercise was demonstrated in 4 of 10 untrained young men by following changes in phosphate metabolites. Concentrations of inorganic phosphate (Pi), phosphocreatine, and ATP were estimated in the wrist flexor muscles of the forearm at rest, during two cycles of three grades of exercise, and in recovery. At high work levels (40% of maximum strength), two distinct Pi peaks were observed and identified with Pi pools at pH 6.9 and pH 5.9-6.4, respectively. These could be accounted for as follows. At the lowest level of work (using 20% of maximum strength), early recruitment primarily of oxidative (type I) and possibly some intermediate (type IIA) muscle fibers occurs with relatively little net lactate production and consequently little decrease in pH. At higher work loads, however, primarily glycolytic (type IIB) muscle fibers are recruited, which have relatively high net lactate production and therefore generate a second pool of Pi at low pH. ATP depletion (35-54%) and Pi losses accompanied the reduction in ability to perform during the first exercise cycle. When the cycle of graded exercise was repeated immediately, the total Pi remained high but gave rise to only one peak at pH 6.8-7.0. These observations indicated exhaustion of glycolytic type IIB fibers, removal of lactate by high local blood flow, and sustained contractions largely by oxidative type I and IIA fibers. A functional differentiation of fiber types could also be demonstrated during recovery if exercise was stopped while two pools of Pi were still apparent. In the first 3 min of recovery, the Pi peak at pH 6.8-6.9 disappeared almost entirely, whereas the Pi peak at pH 6.0 remained unaltered, reflecting the faster recovery of oxidative type I fibers. The potential of magnetic resonance spectroscopy to characterize oxidative and glycolytic fibers, predict capacity for aerobic performance, and signal the presence of muscle pathology is discussed. PMID:3480522

A systematic review of the effectiveness of secondary prevention lifestyle interventions designed to change lifestyle behaviour following stroke.

PubMed

Lawrence, Maggie; Kerr, Susan; McVey, Ms Caroline; Godwin, Jon

Background Each year, approximately 15 million people worldwide have a stroke; of these, five million die and another five million are chronically disabled. Stroke recurs in approximately 25% of patients during the first five years post-stroke; recurrence may result in death, increased disability or institutionalisation. Modifiable risk factors for recurrent stroke have been identified, and may be addressed by means of behavioural health promotion interventions.Objectives This systematic review sought to establish the effectiveness of secondary prevention behavioural interventions, which address one or more modifiable lifestyle risk factors for recurrent stroke i.e. tobacco use, unhealthy diet, physical inactivity and excessive alcohol consumption. Types of participants The review included studies that had recruited adults (aged ≥18 years) who had had a stroke, minor stroke or transient ischaemic attack.Types of intervention The review considered studies that evaluated behavioural lifestyle interventions, designed to address the prevention of recurrent stroke.Types of outcomes Primary outcomes were concerned with lifestyle behaviour change i.e. tobacco use, diet, physical activity and alcohol consumption, and with change in physiological measures e.g. blood pressure, total cholesterol, and Body Mass Index. Secondary outcome measures included psychological outcomes, learning outcomes and incidence of stroke recurrence.Types of studies Experimental and non-experimental quantitative studies were considered.Search strategy In August 2009, we searched All EMB Reviews, AMED, ASSIA, British Nursing Index and Archive, CINAHL, Conference Proceedings Citation Index - Science, ProQuest dissertation and theses, EMBASE, MEDLINE, PsycINFO, and bibliographies of retrieved papers.Methodological quality and data extraction Two review authors independently assessed methodological quality using standardised critical appraisal instruments from the Joanna Briggs Institute Meta Analysis of Statistics Assessment and Review Instrument, and extracted data using a review-specific data extraction form.Data analysis Where possible, results from the review papers were pooled in statistical meta-analysis using bespoke software based on the system used by the Early Breast Cancer Trialists Collaborative Group. Where statistical pooling was not possible, findings are presented in narrative form.Results Three studies, two RCTs and one quasi-experimental study, involving 581 participants (baseline) were included in the review. Two models of service delivery were reported: shared care and nurse-led. Interventions were delivered to groups or in one-to-one consultations.Meta-analyses of the pooled lifestyle data favoured the interventions (2p=0.02; Note: here and throughout, 2p represents the two-tailed probability). In terms of physiological outcomes, the pooled data favoured the interventions (2p=0.05), particularly those aiming to reduce blood pressure and cholesterol levels. The pooled secondary outcomes, including perceived health status and stroke knowledge favoured the interventions (2p<0.00001), however, the test for heterogeneity was also highly significant.Conclusions Stroke secondary prevention lifestyle interventions are effective in terms of affecting positive change in relation to lifestyle behaviours, physiological and secondary outcomes. However, there was insufficient evidence to determine the effect of intervention on incidence of stroke recurrence.Implications for practice Clinicians should implement stroke secondary prevention interventions which address lifestyle behaviours, physiological factors, psychological outcomes and stroke knowledge.Implications for research Further large-scale, well-designed trials are needed to determine the factors that impact on the effectiveness of secondary prevention interventions.

Decommissioning ALARA programs Cintichem decommissioning experience

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

Adler, J.J.; LaGuardia, T.S.

1995-03-01

The Cintichem facility, originally the Union Carbide Nuclear Company (UCNC) Research Center, consisted primarily of a 5MW pool type reactor linked via a four-foot-wide by twelve-foot-deep water-filled canal to a bank of five adjacent hot cells. Shortly after going into operations in the early 1960s, the facility`s operations expanded to provide various reactor-based products and services to a multitude of research, production, medical, and education groups. From 1968 through 1972, the facility developed a process of separating isotopes from mixed fission products generated by irradiating enriched Uranium target capsules. By the late 1970s, 20 to 30 capsules were being processedmore » weekly, with about 200,000 curies being produced per week. Several isotopes such as Mo{sup 99}, I{sup 131}, and Xe{sup 133} were being extracted for medical use.« less

Multiplexed droplet single-cell RNA-sequencing using natural genetic variation.

PubMed

Kang, Hyun Min; Subramaniam, Meena; Targ, Sasha; Nguyen, Michelle; Maliskova, Lenka; McCarthy, Elizabeth; Wan, Eunice; Wong, Simon; Byrnes, Lauren; Lanata, Cristina M; Gate, Rachel E; Mostafavi, Sara; Marson, Alexander; Zaitlen, Noah; Criswell, Lindsey A; Ye, Chun Jimmie

2018-01-01

Droplet single-cell RNA-sequencing (dscRNA-seq) has enabled rapid, massively parallel profiling of transcriptomes. However, assessing differential expression across multiple individuals has been hampered by inefficient sample processing and technical batch effects. Here we describe a computational tool, demuxlet, that harnesses natural genetic variation to determine the sample identity of each droplet containing a single cell (singlet) and detect droplets containing two cells (doublets). These capabilities enable multiplexed dscRNA-seq experiments in which cells from unrelated individuals are pooled and captured at higher throughput than in standard workflows. Using simulated data, we show that 50 single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) per cell are sufficient to assign 97% of singlets and identify 92% of doublets in pools of up to 64 individuals. Given genotyping data for each of eight pooled samples, demuxlet correctly recovers the sample identity of >99% of singlets and identifies doublets at rates consistent with previous estimates. We apply demuxlet to assess cell-type-specific changes in gene expression in 8 pooled lupus patient samples treated with interferon (IFN)-β and perform eQTL analysis on 23 pooled samples.

An improved SELEX technique for selection of DNA aptamers binding to M-type 11 of Streptococcus pyogenes.

PubMed

Hamula, Camille L A; Peng, Hanyong; Wang, Zhixin; Tyrrell, Gregory J; Li, Xing-Fang; Le, X Chris

2016-03-15

Streptococcus pyogenes is a clinically important pathogen consisting of various serotypes determined by different M proteins expressed on the cell surface. The M type is therefore a useful marker to monitor the spread of invasive S. pyogenes in a population. Serotyping and nucleic acid amplification/sequencing methods for the identification of M types are laborious, inconsistent, and usually confined to reference laboratories. The primary objective of this work is to develop a technique that enables generation of aptamers binding to specific M-types of S. pyogenes. We describe here an in vitro technique that directly used live bacterial cells and the Systematic Evolution of Ligands by Exponential Enrichment (SELEX) strategy. Live S. pyogenes cells were incubated with DNA libraries consisting of 40-nucleotides randomized sequences. Those sequences that bound to the cells were separated, amplified using polymerase chain reaction (PCR), purified using gel electrophoresis, and served as the input DNA pool for the next round of SELEX selection. A specially designed forward primer containing extended polyA20/5Sp9 facilitated gel electrophoresis purification of ssDNA after PCR amplification. A counter-selection step using non-target cells was introduced to improve selectivity. DNA libraries of different starting sequence diversity (10(16) and 10(14)) were compared. Aptamer pools from each round of selection were tested for their binding to the target and non-target cells using flow cytometry. Selected aptamer pools were then cloned and sequenced. Individual aptamer sequences were screened on the basis of their binding to the 10 M-types that were used as targets. Aptamer pools obtained from SELEX rounds 5-8 showed high affinity to the target S. pyogenes cells. Tests against non-target Streptococcus bovis, Streptococcus pneumoniae, and Enterococcus species demonstrated selectivity of these aptamers for binding to S. pyogenes. Several aptamer sequences were found to bind preferentially to the M11 M-type of S. pyogenes. Estimated binding dissociation constants (Kd) were in the low nanomolar range for the M11 specific sequences; for example, sequence E-CA20 had a Kd of 7±1 nM. These affinities are comparable to those of a monoclonal antibody. The improved bacterial cell-SELEX technique is successful in generating aptamers selective for S. pyogenes and some of its M-types. These aptamers are potentially useful for detecting S. pyogenes, achieving binding profiles of the various M-types, and developing new M-typing technologies for non-specialized laboratories or point-of-care testing. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Early repositioning through compound set enrichment analysis: a knowledge-recycling strategy.

PubMed

Temesi, Gergely; Bolgár, Bence; Arany, Adám; Szalai, Csaba; Antal, Péter; Mátyus, Péter

2014-04-01

Despite famous serendipitous drug repositioning success stories, systematic projects have not yet delivered the expected results. However, repositioning technologies are gaining ground in different phases of routine drug development, together with new adaptive strategies. We demonstrate the power of the compound information pool, the ever-growing heterogeneous information repertoire of approved drugs and candidates as an invaluable catalyzer in this transition. Systematic, computational utilization of this information pool for candidates in early phases is an open research problem; we propose a novel application of the enrichment analysis statistical framework for fusion of this information pool, specifically for the prediction of indications. Pharmaceutical consequences are formulated for a systematic and continuous knowledge recycling strategy, utilizing this information pool throughout the drug-discovery pipeline.

Randomized Trial of Two Dissemination Strategies for a Skin Cancer Prevention Program in Aquatic Settings

PubMed Central

Escoffery, Cam; Elliott, Tom; Nehl, Eric J.

2015-01-01

Objectives. We compared 2 strategies for disseminating an evidence-based skin cancer prevention program. Methods. We evaluated the effects of 2 strategies (basic vs enhanced) for dissemination of the Pool Cool skin cancer prevention program in outdoor swimming pools on (1) program implementation, maintenance, and sustainability and (2) improvements in organizational and environmental supports for sun protection. The trial used a cluster-randomized design with pools as the unit of intervention and outcome. The enhanced group received extra incentives, reinforcement, feedback, and skill-building guidance. Surveys were collected in successive years (2003–2006) from managers of 435 pools in 33 metropolitan areas across the United States participating in the Pool Cool Diffusion Trial. Results. Both treatment groups improved their implementation of the program, but pools in the enhanced condition had significantly greater overall maintenance of the program over 3 summers of participation. Furthermore, pools in the enhanced condition established and maintained significantly greater sun-safety policies and supportive environments over time. Conclusions. This study found that more intensive, theory-driven dissemination strategies can significantly enhance program implementation and maintenance of health-promoting environmental and policy changes. Future research is warranted through longitudinal follow-up to examine sustainability. PMID:25521872

Adverse childhood experiences and risk of type 2 diabetes: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

PubMed

Huang, Hao; Yan, Peipei; Shan, Zhilei; Chen, Sijing; Li, Moying; Luo, Cheng; Gao, Hui; Hao, Liping; Liu, Liegang

2015-11-01

It is evident that adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) can influence health status of adult life, but few large-scale studies have assessed the relation of ACEs with type 2 diabetes. This meta-analysis aimed to summarize existing evidence on the link between ACEs and type 2 diabetes in adults. We searched all published studies from PubMed and EMBASE before Aug 2015 using keywords like adverse childhood experiences and diabetes, and scanned references of relevant original articles. We included studies that reported risk estimates for diabetes by ACEs and matched our inclusion criteria. We examined the overall relationship between ACEs and diabetes, and stratified the analyses by type of childhood adversities, study design and outcome measures, respectively. Seven articles fulfilled the inclusion criteria for this Meta-analysis, comprising 4 cohort and 3 cross-section studies. A total of 87,251 participants and 5879 incident cases of type 2 diabetes were reported in these studies. The exposure of ACEs was positively associated with the risk of diabetes with a combined odds ratio of 1.32 (95% confidence interval 1.16 to 1.51) in the total participants. The influence of neglect was most prominent (pooled odds ratio 1.92, 95% confidence interval 1.43 to 2.57) while the effect of physical abuse was least strong (pooled odds ratio 1.30, 95% confidence interval 1.19 to 1.42). The pooled odds ratio associated with sexual abuse was 1.39 with the 95% confidence intervals from 1.28 to 1.52. The results support a significant association of adverse childhood experiences with an elevated risk of type 2 diabetes in adulthood. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Intelligent uranium fission converter for neutron production on the periphery of the nuclear reactor core (MARIA reactor in Swierk - Poland)

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

Gryzinski, M.A.; Wielgosz, M.

The multipurpose, high flux research reactor MARIA in Otwock - Swierk is an open-pool type, water and beryllium moderated and graphite reflected. There are two not occupied experimental H1 and H2 horizontal channels with complex of empty rooms beside them. Making use of these two channels is not in conflict with other research or commercial employing channels. They can work simultaneously, moreover commercial channels covers the cost of reactor working. Such conditions give beneficial possibility of creating epithermal neutron stand for researches in various field at the horizontal channel H2 of MARIA reactor (co-organization of research at H1 channel ismore » additionally planned). At the front of experimental channels the neutron flux is strongly thermalized - neutrons with energies above 0.625 eV constitute only ∼2% of the total flux. This thermalized neutron flux will be used to achieve high flux of epithermal neutrons at the level of 2x10{sup 9} n cm{sup -2}s{sup -1} by uranium neutron converter (fast neutron production - conversion of reactor core thermal neutrons to fast neutrons - and then filtering, moderating and finally cutting of unwanted gamma radiation). The intelligent converter will be placed in the reactor pool, near the front of the H2 channel. It will replace one graphite block at the periphery of MARIA graphite reflector. The converter will consist of 20 fuel elements - low enriched uranium plates. A fuel plate will be a part which will measure 110 mm wide by 380 mm long and will consist of a thin layer of uranium sealed between two aluminium plates. These plates, once assembled, form the fuel element used in converter. The plates will be positioned vertically. There are several important requirements which should be taken into account at the converter design stage: -maximum efficiency of the converter for neutrons conversion, -cooling of the converter need to be integrated with the cooling circuit of the reactor pool and if needed equipped with self-cooling system (enhanced comparing to the cooling properties inherent with regular rector pool water flows), -proper cooling conditions can be ensured by an appropriate water flow, so the resistance to flow has to be optimised, -the requirement of the minimum resistance to water flow leads to the openwork design of the fuel element separator, which, on the other hand, has to be strong enough to ensure the needed strength for mechanical load due to the fuel weight and forces associated with the water flow, -the possibility of changing beam and flux qualities by rotating the converter or repositioning the converter plates by moving or replacing with another materials. In order to minimize the neutron activation of the fuel in the converter, the possibility was predicted to remove the converter and to replace it with an aluminium dummy for the time when the beam at the channel H2 is not used. This means that both, the converter and the dummy, have to be easily removable from the converter socket. There has to be also the place in the water pool, near the research stand or in technological pool, where the converter can be safely stored (this place have to be proper for operation with plates i.e. changing amount of plates). Thermal and neutron load of the fuel plates in the converter will be inhomogeneous. In order to equalize these loads, the converter should be designed in such way that it would be possible to change the order of fuel plates. Moreover replacing the amount of the plates gives the opportunity to obtain different fluxes of neutrons (quantitatively and qualitatively i.e. energetically). The project of the converter is based on Monte Carlo calculation concerning neutron production and on Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) i.e. modelling of converter for thermodynamical aspects. (authors)« less

Fuel-reduction management alters plant composition, carbon and nitrogen pools, and soil thaw in Alaskan boreal forest

USGS Publications Warehouse

Melvin, April M.; Celis, Gerardo; Johnstone, Jill F.; McGuire, A. David; Genet, Helene; Schuur, Edward A.G.; Rupp, T. Scott; Mack, Michelle C.

2018-01-01

Increasing wildfire activity in Alaska's boreal forests has led to greater fuel-reduction management. Management has been implemented to reduce wildfire spread, but the ecological impacts of these practices are poorly known. We quantified the effects of hand-thinning and shearblading on above- and belowground stand characteristics, plant species composition, carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) pools, and soil thaw across 19 black spruce (Picea mariana) dominated sites in interior Alaska treated 2-12 years prior to sampling. The density of deciduous tree seedlings was significantly higher in shearbladed areas compared to unmanaged forest (6.4 vs. 0.1 stems m−2), and unmanaged stands exhibited the highest mean density of conifer seedlings and layers (1.4 stems m−2). Understory plant community composition was most similar between unmanaged and thinned stands. Shearblading resulted in a near complete loss of aboveground tree biomass C pools while thinning approximately halved the C pool size (1.2 kg C m−2 compared to 3.1 kg C m−2 in unmanaged forest). Significantly smaller soil organic layer (SOL) C and N pools were observed in shearbladed stands (3.2 kg C m−2 and 116.8 g N m−2) relative to thinned (6.0 kg C m−2 and 192.2 g N m−2) and unmanaged (5.9 kg C m−2 and 178.7 g N m−2) stands. No difference in C and N pool sizes in the uppermost 10 cm of mineral soil was observed among stand types. Total C stocks for measured pools was 2.6 kg C m−2 smaller in thinned stands and 5.8 kg C m−2smaller in shearbladed stands when compared to unmanaged forest. Soil thaw depth averaged 13 cm deeper in thinned areas and 46 cm deeper in shearbladed areas relative to adjacent unmanaged stands, although variability was high across sites. Deeper soil thaw was linked to shallower SOL depth for unmanaged stands and both management types, however for any given SOL depth, thaw tended to be deeper in shearbladed areas compared to unmanaged forest. These findings indicate that fuel-reduction management alters plant community composition, C and N pools, and soil thaw depth, with consequences for ecosystem structure and function beyond those intended for fire management.

ACE I/D and MTHFR C677T polymorphisms are significantly associated with type 2 diabetes in Arab ethnicity: a meta-analysis.

PubMed

Al-Rubeaan, Khalid; Siddiqui, Khalid; Saeb, Amr T M; Nazir, Nyla; Al-Naqeb, Dhekra; Al-Qasim, Sara

2013-05-15

In this meta-analysis study, SNPs were investigated for their association with type 2 diabetes (T2D) in both Arab and Caucasian ethnicities. A total of 55 SNPs were analyzed, of which 11 fulfilled the selection criteria, and were used for analysis. It was found that TCF7L2 rs7903146 was significantly associated with a pooled OR of 1.155 (95%C.I.=1.059-1.259), p<0.0001 and I(2)=78.30% among the Arab population, whereas among Caucasians, the pooled OR was 1.45 (95%C.I.=1.386-1.516), p<0.0001 and I(2)=77.20%. KCNJ11 rs5219 was significantly associated in both the populations with a pooled OR of 1.176(1.092-1.268), p<0.0001 and I(2)=32.40% in Caucasians and a pooled OR of 1.28(1.111-1.475), p=0.001 among Arabs. The ACE I/D polymorphism was found to be significantly associated with a pooled OR of 1.992 (95%C.I.=1.774-2.236), p<0.0001 and I(2)=83.20% among the Arab population, whereas among Caucasians, the pooled OR was 1.078 (95%C.I.=0.993-1.17), p=0.073 and I(2)=0%. Similarly, MTHFR C677T polymorphism was also found to be significantly associated among Arabs with a pooled OR of 1.924 (95%C.I.=1.606-2.304), p<0.0001 and I(2)=27.20%, whereas among Caucasians, the pooled OR was 0.986 (95%C.I.=0.868-1.122), p=0.835 and I(2)=0%. Meanwhile PPARG-2 Pro12Ala, CDKN2A/2B rs10811661, IGF2BP2 rs4402960, HHEX rs7923837, CDKAL1 rs7754840, EXT2 rs1113132 and SLC30A8 rs13266634 were found to have no significant association with T2D among Arabs. In conclusion, it seems from this study that both Arabs and Caucasians have different SNPs associated with T2D. Moreover, this study sheds light on the profound necessity for further investigations addressing the question of the genetic components of T2D in Arabs. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Intimate partner violence and HIV infection among women: a systematic review and meta-analysis

PubMed Central

Li, Ying; Marshall, Caitlin M; Rees, Hilary C; Nunez, Annabelle; Ezeanolue, Echezona E; Ehiri, John E

2014-01-01

Introduction To assess evidence of an association between intimate partner violence (IPV) and HIV infection among women. Methods Medline/PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, EBSCO, Ovid, Cochrane HIV/AIDS Group's Specialized Register and Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials were searched up to 20 May 2013 to identify studies that examined the association between IPV and HIV infection in women. We included studies on women aged ≥15 years, in any form of sexually intimate relationship with a male partner. Results Twenty-eight studies [(19 cross-sectional, 5 cohorts and 4 case-control studies) involving 331,468 individuals in 16 countries – the US (eight studies), South Africa (four studies), East Africa (10 studies), India (three studies), Brazil (one study) and multiple low-income countries (two studies)] were included. Results were pooled using RevMan 5.0. To moderate effect estimates, we analyzed all data using the random effects model, irrespective of heterogeneity level. Pooled results of cohort studies indicated that physical IPV [pooled RR (95% CI): 1.22 (1.01, 1.46)] and any type of IPV [pooled RR (95% CI): 1.28 (1.00, 1.64)] were significantly associated with HIV infection among women. Results of cross-sectional studies demonstrated significant associations of physical IPV with HIV infection among women [pooled OR (95% CI): 1.44 (1.10, 1.87)]. Similarly, results of cross-sectional studies indicated that combination of physical and sexual IPV [pooled OR (95% CI): 2.00 (1.24, 3.22) and any type of IPV [pooled OR (95% CI): 1.41 (1.16, 1.73)] were significantly associated with HIV infection among women. Conclusions Available evidence suggests a moderate statistically significant association between IPV and HIV infection among women. To further elucidate the strength of the association between IPV and HIV infection among women, there is a need for high-quality follow-up studies conducted in different geographical regions of the world, and among individuals of diverse racial/cultural backgrounds and varying levels of HIV risks. PMID:24560342

Effects of azilsartan medoxomil compared with olmesartan and valsartan on ambulatory and clinic blood pressure in patients with type 2 diabetes and prediabetes

PubMed Central

White, William B.; Cuadra, René H.; Lloyd, Eric; Bakris, George L.; Kupfer, Stuart

2016-01-01

Background: Angiotensin receptor blockers (ARBs) are preferred antihypertensive therapies in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). Azilsartan medoxomil (AZL-M) is a potent ARB for the treatment of stages 1-2 hypertension. We compared the efficacy, safety, and metabolic effects of AZL-M to both valsartan (VAL) and olmesartan (OLM), separately in patients with impaired fasting glucose (prediabetes mellitus) and T2DM. Methods: A pooled analysis of 3821 patients from three separate randomized placebo-controlled trials comparing the effects of AZL-M (40 and 80 mg), OLM (40 mg), VAL (320 mg), and placebo on changes in ambulatory and clinic blood pressure (BP) among patients with hypertension and prediabetes mellitus or T2DM was performed. Two analysis pools were created to facilitate comparisons: Pool A included patients who received placebo, AZL-M or OLM and Pool B included those who received AZL-M or VAL. Within each pool, patients were stratified by glycemic subgroups (normoglycemic, prediabetes mellitus, or T2DM) based on hemoglobin A1c values. Changes from baseline in both 24-h and clinic SBP were the primary efficacy assessments. Results: Baseline 24-h mean SBPs were approximately 145 and 146 mmHg in the prediabetes mellitus and T2DM subgroups, respectively; corresponding clinic SBPs were approximately 158 and 159 mmHg. Baseline hemoglobin A1c values for each subgroup (both pools) were normoglycemic, 5.3%; prediabetes mellitus, 6.0%; and T2DM, 6.9%. Changes from baseline in 24-h or clinic SBP were significantly greater with AZL-M, 80 mg compared with either OLM 40 mg or VAL 320 mg in all subgroups in each pool. Safety and tolerability were similar among the active treatment and placebo subgroups. Conclusion: These analyses indicate that AZL-M, 80 mg/day lowers SBP by a greater magnitude than OLM or VAL at maximally approved doses in patients with prediabetes mellitus and T2DM. These findings have important clinical implications for this high-risk patient group. PMID:26766564

Effects of azilsartan medoxomil compared with olmesartan and valsartan on ambulatory and clinic blood pressure in patients with type 2 diabetes and prediabetes.

PubMed

White, William B; Cuadra, René H; Lloyd, Eric; Bakris, George L; Kupfer, Stuart

2016-04-01

Angiotensin receptor blockers (ARBs) are preferred antihypertensive therapies in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). Azilsartan medoxomil (AZL-M) is a potent ARB for the treatment of stages 1-2 hypertension. We compared the efficacy, safety, and metabolic effects of AZL-M to both valsartan (VAL) and olmesartan (OLM), separately in patients with impaired fasting glucose (prediabetes mellitus) and T2DM. A pooled analysis of 3821 patients from three separate randomized placebo-controlled trials comparing the effects of AZL-M (40 and 80 mg), OLM (40 mg), VAL (320 mg), and placebo on changes in ambulatory and clinic blood pressure (BP) among patients with hypertension and prediabetes mellitus or T2DM was performed. Two analysis pools were created to facilitate comparisons: Pool A included patients who received placebo, AZL-M or OLM and Pool B included those who received AZL-M or VAL. Within each pool, patients were stratified by glycemic subgroups (normoglycemic, prediabetes mellitus, or T2DM) based on hemoglobin A1c values. Changes from baseline in both 24-h and clinic SBP were the primary efficacy assessments. Baseline 24-h mean SBPs were approximately 145 and 146 mmHg in the prediabetes mellitus and T2DM subgroups, respectively; corresponding clinic SBPs were approximately 158 and 159 mmHg. Baseline hemoglobin A1c values for each subgroup (both pools) were normoglycemic, 5.3%; prediabetes mellitus, 6.0%; and T2DM, 6.9%. Changes from baseline in 24-h or clinic SBP were significantly greater with AZL-M, 80 mg compared with either OLM 40 mg or VAL 320 mg in all subgroups in each pool. Safety and tolerability were similar among the active treatment and placebo subgroups. These analyses indicate that AZL-M, 80 mg/day lowers SBP by a greater magnitude than OLM or VAL at maximally approved doses in patients with prediabetes mellitus and T2DM. These findings have important clinical implications for this high-risk patient group.

Associations between testicular hormones at adolescence and attendance at chlorinated swimming pools during childhood

PubMed Central

Nickmilder, M; Bernard, A

2011-01-01

The goal was to evaluate the associations between testicular hormones at adolescence and the exposure to chlorination by-products when attending chlorinated swimming pools. We obtained serum samples from 361 school male adolescents (aged 14–18 years) who had visited swimming pools disinfected with chlorine or by copper–silver ionization. We analysed serum concentrations of inhibin B (two different assays), total and free testosterone, sex hormone-binding globulin, luteinizing hormone (LH), follicle stimulating hormone (FSH) and dehydroepiandrosterone sulphate (DHEAS). There were strong inverse associations between serum levels of inhibin B (both assays) or of total testosterone, adjusted or unadjusted for gonadotropins and the time adolescents had spent in indoor chlorinated pools, especially during their childhood. Adolescents having attended indoor chlorinated pools for more than 250 h before the age of 10 years or for more than 125 h before the age of 7 years were about three times more likely to have an abnormally low serum inhibin B and/or total testosterone (<10th percentile) than their peers who never visited this type of pool during their childhood (odds ratio, 95% CI, 2.83, 1.06–7.52, p = 0.04 and 3.67, 1.45–9.34, p = 0.006, respectively). Such associations were not seen with free testosterone, LH, FSH and DHEAS or with the attendance of outdoor chlorinated pools or of the copper–silver pool. Swimming in indoor chlorinated pools during childhood is strongly associated with lower levels of serum inhibin B and total testosterone. The absorption of reprotoxic chlorination by-products across the highly permeable scrotum might explain these associations. PMID:21631527

[18F](2S,4R)4-Fluoroglutamine PET Detects Glutamine Pool Size Changes in Triple Negative Breast Cancer in Response to Glutaminase Inhibition

PubMed Central

Pantel, Austin R.; Li, Shihong; Lieberman, Brian P.; Ploessl, Karl; Choi, Hoon; Blankemeyer, Eric; Lee, Hsiaoju; Kung, Hank F.; Mach, Robert H.

2017-01-01

Glutaminolysis is a metabolic pathway adapted by many aggressive cancers, including triple-negative breast cancers (TNBC), to utilize glutamine for survival and growth. In this study, we examined the utility of [18F](2S,4R)4-fluoroglutamine ([18F]4F-Gln) PET to measure tumor cellular glutamine pool size, whose change might reveal the pharmacodynamic (PD) effect of drugs targeting this cancer-specific metabolic pathway. High glutaminase (GLS) activity in TNBC tumors resulted in low cellular glutamine pool size assayed via high-resolution 1H magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS). GLS inhibition significantly increased glutamine pool size in TNBC tumors. MCF-7 tumors, with inherently low GLS activity compared to TNBC, displayed a larger baseline glutamine pool size that did not change as much in response to GLS inhibition. The tumor-to-blood-activity-ratios (T/B) obtained from [18F]4F-Gln PET images matched the distinct glutamine pool sizes of both tumor models at baseline. After a short course of GLS inhibitor treatment, the T/B values increased significantly in TNBC, but did not change in MCF-7 tumors. Across both tumor types and after GLS inhibitor or vehicle treatment, we observed a strong positive correlation between T/B values and tumor glutamine pool size measured using MRS (R2=0.71). In conclusion, [18F]4F-Gln PET tracked cellular glutamine pool size in breast cancers with differential GLS activity and detected increases in cellular glutamine pool size induced by GLS inhibitors. This study accomplished the first necessary step towards validating [18F]4F-Gln PET as a PD marker for glutaminase-targeting drugs. PMID:28202527

Depletion of NAD pool contributes to impairment of endothelial progenitor cell mobilization in diabetes.

PubMed

Wang, Pei; Yang, Xi; Zhang, Zheng; Song, Jie; Guan, Yun-Feng; Zou, Da-Jin; Miao, Chao-Yu

2016-06-01

The impaired mobilization of endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs) from bone marrow (BM) critically contributes to the diabetes-associated vascular complications. Here, we investigated the relationship between the nicotinamide phosphoribosyltransferase (NAMPT)-controlled nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD) metabolism and the impaired mobilization of BM-derived EPCs in diabetic condition. The NAMPT-NAD pool in BM and BM-derived EPCs in wild-type (WT) and diabetic db/db mice was determined. Nicotinamide, a natural substrate for NAD biosynthesis, was administrated for 2weeks in db/db mice to examine the influence of enhancing NAD pool on BM and blood EPCs number. The modulations of stromal cell-derived factor-1α (SDF-1α) and endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS) protein in BM were measured using immunoblotting. The EPCs intracellular NAMPT level and NAD concentration, as well as the blood EPCs number, were compared between 9 healthy people and 16 patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). The T2DM patients were treated with nicotinamide for two weeks and then the blood EPCs number was determined. Moreover, the association between blood EPCs numbers and EPCs intracellular NAD(+)/NAMPT protein levels in 21 healthy individuals was determined. We found that NAD concentration and NAMPT expression in BM and BM-derived EPCs of db/db mice were significantly lower than those in WT mice BM. Enhancing NAD pool not only increased the EPCs intracellular NAD concentration and blood EPCs number, but also improved post-ischemic wound healing and blood reperfusion in db/db mice with hind-limb ischemia model. Enhancing NAD pool rescued the impaired modulations of stromal cell-derived factor-1α (SDF-1α) and endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS) protein levels in db/db mice BM upon hind-limb ischemia. In addition, enhancing NAD pool significantly inhibited PARP and caspase-3 activates in db/db mice BM. The intracellular NAMPT-NAD pool was positively associated with blood EPCs number in healthy individuals. At last, we found that the EPC intracellular NAMPT and NAD(+) levels were reduced in T2DM patients and enhancing NAD pool elevated the circulating blood EPCs number in T2DM patients. Our results indicate that the depletion of NAD pool may contribute to the impairment of EPCs mobilization in diabetic condition, and imply the potential therapeutic value of nicotinamide in the prevention and treatment for cardiovascular complications of diabetes. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Physical and chemical differences between natural and artificial pools in blanket peatlands

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Turner, Ed; Baird, Andy; Billett, Mike; Chapman, Pippa; Dinsmore, Kerry; Holden, Joseph

2014-05-01

Natural pools are common features of many northern peatlands. Numerous artificial pools are being created behind dams installed during drain-blocking, a common peatland restoration technique, significantly increasing the area of open water. Natural pools are known to be major sources of GHGs (e.g. Hamilton et al. 1994), but the reasons they are such 'hotspots' is poorly understood. We hypothesize that pools act as 'biochemical reactors' of particulate and dissolved organic carbon (POC and DOC) transported from surrounding peat that is processed into a range of products including CH4 and CO2. Therefore, understanding the processes operating in both natural and artificial pool systems is fundamental to elucidating this hypothesis. Water levels and temperature have been continuously monitored at six natural and six artificial pools within the 'Flow Country' blanket peatland in northern Scotland since May 2013. Bi-weekly sampling of waters from pools, peat matrix through-flow (via piezometers) and surface flow has been conducted for analysis of DOC, POC, DIC, CH4diss and CO2diss, together with GHG flux measurements from pool surfaces and adjacent peat. We show that, to date, pool water levels rapidly respond to rainfall, although artificial pools appear to respond with greater magnitude. For example, over the course of same rainfall event (20-23 June 2013), natural and artificial pool levels increased between 5.3 and 9.8 cm, and 12.5 and 22.6 cm respectively. Temperature measured at c. 5 cm from the base of each pool shows distinct diurnal fluctuations, which are of greater magnitude in all but one of the natural pools compared to the artificial pools: over the same period (20-23 July 2013), the maximum diurnal variation at the artificial pool site was 5.1 °C compared to 9.2 °C within the natural pools. Vegetation cover is generally higher in artificial pools and may have a moderating effect on variations in pool temperature. Results of pool-water DOC analysis from regular sampling at the study site and a wider regional survey indicate DOC concentrations are consistently higher in artificial pools. The implications of these preliminary results in relation to the carbon cycle and GHGs of blanket peatlands are briefly discussed. Hamilton, J. D., Kelly, C. A., Rudd, J. W. M., Hesslein, R. H. and Roulet, N. T. (1994) Flux to the atmosphere of CH4 and CO2 from wetland ponds on the Hudson Bay lowlands (HBLs). Journal of Geophysical Research 99, 1495-1510.

A cross-sectional survey among patients and prescribers on insulin dosing irregularities and impact of mild (self-treated) hypoglycemia episodes in Spanish patients with type 2 diabetes as compared to other European patients.

PubMed

Ampudia-Blasco, Francisco J; Galán, Manuel; Brod, Meryl

2014-10-01

In Spain, data suggest that 13.8% of adults have diabetes. Two important aspects in diabetes management are mild hypoglycemic episodes and poor treatment adherence. This study assesses the impact of missed insulin doses and prevalence of mistimed and reduced insulin doses and mild hypoglycemia in patients with type 2 diabetes treated with basal insulin analogues in Spain, and compares the data collected to pooled data from 8 other European countries (OECs). GAPP2 was an international, online, cross-sectional study of diabetic patients aged ≥40 years treated with long-acting insulin analogues and their healthcare professionals. Patients and healthcare professionals were recruited from online research panels. Data reported in Spain are compared to pooled data from 8 OECs. In Spain, 1-3% of patients reported they had reduced, missed, or mistimed at least one insulin does in the previous month. Significantly more OEC patients reported dosing irregularities (15-23%; all P<0.01). In Spain, 77% of patients were worried and 59% felt guilty for missing a dose of basal insulin, while 24% reported that they were very worried about nocturnal hypoglycemia. Significantly fewer OEC patients reported worrying (47%; P<0.01) and feeling guilty (37%; P<0.01) about missing an insulin dose, or worry about nocturnal hypoglycemia (12%; P<0.01). In Spain, patients with type 2 diabetes report fewer dosing irregularities and hypoglycemic episodes as compared to patients from OECs. However, Spanish patients appear to have a reduced quality of life related to hypoglycemia as well as worry and guilt related to insulin dosing irregularities. Copyright © 2014 SEEN. Published by Elsevier Espana. All rights reserved.

Boulder Clusters as Flow Refugia for Juvenile Salmonids and Aquatic Invertebrates in Steep Mountain Streams, Klamath Mountains, Northern California

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cover, M. R.; May, C. L.; Dietrich, W. E.; Resh, V. H.

2005-12-01

The availability of flow refugia and cover is an important factor affecting habitat suitability for fish and invertebrates, especially in steep, turbulent streams. In some channels, crevices beneath and between large rocks may be the only available flow refugia that allow rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) to conserve energy and escape from high velocity flow during large storm events. Many aquatic invertebrates, especially large or crawling taxa, require cover that is provided by unembedded crevice space underneath large stones. To investigate the influence of channel type on habitat availability, we performed intensive surveys of crevice habitat for salmonids and benthic invertebrates in 12 reaches in Walker Creek, a 25 square km basin in the Klamath Mountains of Northern California. We identified four reaches in each of three channel types: plane bed (3.1% - 3.7% slope), step-pool (5.4% - 6.5% slope), and cascade (6.3% - 8.5% slope). We used 4 realistic fish models (5, 10, 15, and 20 cm length) to assess the size of crevices and presence of flow refugia associated with all cobble (64 - 256 mm) and boulder (> 256 mm) grains within five 0.5 m-wide diagonal transects. The total abundance of crevices was similar among plane bed (6.3 +/- 1.1 m-2) (Mean +/- SD), step-pool (6.2 +/- 0.25 m-2), and cascade (6.7 +/- 1.2 m-2) reaches. Small (5 cm) crevices made up the majority of crevices in all three reach types. While the presence of 5 cm and 10 cm crevices was not significantly different between the three channel types, there were significantly more large (20 cm) crevices in cascade (0.73 +/- 0.33 m-2) and step-pool (0.68 +/- 0.1 m-2) reaches than in plane bed (0.26 +/- 0.14 m-2) reaches (AVOVA, p < 0.05). Moderately sized (15 cm) crevices were more common in step-pool reaches (0.91 +/- 0.13 m-2) than either cascade (0.54 +/- 0.15 m-2) or plane bed (0.42 +/- 0.13 m-2) reaches. Based on these results we conclude that step-pool reaches provide the most favorable habitat for larger (15 to 20 cm) fish, probably due to the channel-spawning clusters of large cobbles and boulders that define this channel type. Understanding the processes that develop and maintain these open-framework clusters is important for basin-scale assessment of potential aquatic habitat.

Allometric Scaling of the Active Hematopoietic Stem Cell Pool across Mammals

PubMed Central

Dingli, David; Pacheco, Jorge M.

2006-01-01

Background Many biological processes are characterized by allometric relations of the type Y = Y 0 Mb between an observable Y and body mass M, which pervade at multiple levels of organization. In what regards the hematopoietic stem cell pool, there is experimental evidence that the size of the hematopoietic stem cell pool is conserved in mammals. However, demands for blood cell formation vary across mammals and thus the size of the active stem cell compartment could vary across species. Methodology/Principle Findings Here we investigate the allometric scaling of the hematopoietic system in a large group of mammalian species using reticulocyte counts as a marker of the active stem cell pool. Our model predicts that the total number of active stem cells, in an adult mammal, scales with body mass with the exponent ¾. Conclusion/Significance The scaling predicted here provides an intuitive justification of the Hayflick hypothesis and supports the current view of a small active stem cell pool supported by a large, quiescent reserve. The present scaling shows excellent agreement with the available (indirect) data for smaller mammals. The small size of the active stem cell pool enhances the role of stochastic effects in the overall dynamics of the hematopoietic system. PMID:17183646

Thermal Stratification Analysis for Sodium Fast Reactors

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

Schneider, James; Anderson, Mark; Baglietto, Emilio

The sodium fast reactor (SFR) is the most mature reactor concept of all the generation-IV nuclear systems and is a promising reactor design that is currently under development by several organizations. The majority of sodium fast reactor designs utilize a pool type arrangement which incorporates the primary coolant pumps and intermediate heat exchangers within the sodium pool. These components typically protrude into the pool thus reducing the risk and severity of a loss of coolant accidents. To further ensure safe operation under even the most severe transients a more comprehensive understanding of key thermal hydraulic phenomena in this pool ismore » desired. One of the key technology gaps identified for SFR safety is determining the extent and the effects of thermal stratification developing in the pool during postulated accident scenarios such as a protected or unprotected loss of flow incident. In an effort to address these issues, detailed flow models of transient stratification in the pool during an accident can be developed. However, to develop the calculation models, and ensure they can reproduce the underlying physics, highly spatially resolved data is needed. This data can be used in conjunction with advanced computational fluid dynamic calculations to aid in the development of simple reduced dimensional models for systems codes such as SAM and SAS4A/SASSYS-1.« less

Possible effect of biotechnology on plant gene pools in Turkey.

PubMed

Demir, Aynur

2015-01-02

The recent rapid developments in biotechnology have made great contributions to the study of plant gene pools. The application of in vitro methods in freeze storage and DNA protection techniques in fast production studies has made major advances. From that aspect, biotechnology is an indispensable means for the protection of plant gene pools, which includes the insurance of sustainable agriculture and development of species. Besides all the positive developments, one of the primary risks posed by the uncontrolled spreading of genetically modified organisms is the possibility for other non-target organisms to be negatively affected. Genes of plant origin should be given priority in this type of studies by taking into consideration such negative effects that may result in disruption of ecological balance and damage to plant genetic pools. Turkey, due to its ecological conditions and history, has a very important position in terms of plant gene pools. This richness ought to be protected without corrupting its natural quality and natural evolution process in order to provide the sources of species that will be required for future sustainable agricultural applications. Thus, attention should be paid to the use of biotechnological methods, which play an important role especially in the protection and use of local and original plant gene pools.

Possible effect of biotechnology on plant gene pools in Turkey

PubMed Central

Demir, Aynur

2015-01-01

The recent rapid developments in biotechnology have made great contributions to the study of plant gene pools. The application of in vitro methods in freeze storage and DNA protection techniques in fast production studies has made major advances. From that aspect, biotechnology is an indispensable means for the protection of plant gene pools, which includes the insurance of sustainable agriculture and development of species. Besides all the positive developments, one of the primary risks posed by the uncontrolled spreading of genetically modified organisms is the possibility for other non-target organisms to be negatively affected. Genes of plant origin should be given priority in this type of studies by taking into consideration such negative effects that may result in disruption of ecological balance and damage to plant genetic pools. Turkey, due to its ecological conditions and history, has a very important position in terms of plant gene pools. This richness ought to be protected without corrupting its natural quality and natural evolution process in order to provide the sources of species that will be required for future sustainable agricultural applications. Thus, attention should be paid to the use of biotechnological methods, which play an important role especially in the protection and use of local and original plant gene pools. PMID:26019612

Mechanisms of convective cloud organization by cold pools over tropical warm ocean during the AMIE/DYNAMO field campaign

DOE PAGES

Feng, Zhe; Hagos, Samson; Rowe, Angela K.; ...

2015-04-03

This paper investigates the mechanisms of convective cloud organization by precipitation-driven cold pools over the warm tropical Indian Ocean during the 2011 Atmospheric Radiation Measurement (ARM) Madden-Julian Oscillation (MJO) Investigation Experiment / Dynamics of the MJO (AMIE/DYNAMO) field campaign. A high-resolution regional model simulation is performed using the Weather Research and Forecasting model during the transition from suppressed to active phases of the November 2011 MJO. The simulated cold pool lifetimes, spatial extent and thermodynamic properties agree well with the radar and ship-borne observations from the field campaign. The thermodynamic and dynamic structures of the outflow boundaries of isolated andmore » intersecting cold pools in the simulation and the associated secondary cloud populations are examined. Intersecting cold pools last more than twice as long, are twice as large, 41% more intense (measured by buoyancy), and 62% deeper than isolated cold pools. Consequently, intersecting cold pools trigger 73% more convective clouds than isolated ones. This is possibly due to stronger outflows that enhance secondary updraft velocities by up to 45%. However, cold pool-triggered convective clouds grow into deep convection not because of the stronger secondary updrafts at cloud base, but rather due to closer spacing (aggregation) between clouds and larger cloud clusters that formed along the cold pool boundaries when they intersect. The close spacing of large clouds moistens the local environment and reduces entrainment drying, allowing the clouds to further develop into deep convection. Implications to the design of future convective parameterization with cold pool-modulated entrainment rates are discussed.« less

Occurrence of brominated disinfection byproducts in the air and water of chlorinated seawater swimming pools.

PubMed

Manasfi, Tarek; Temime-Roussel, Brice; Coulomb, Bruno; Vassalo, Laurent; Boudenne, Jean-Luc

2017-05-01

An undesirable consequence of disinfection is the formation of chemical contaminants known as disinfection byproducts (DBPs). Chronic exposure to DBPs has been linked to adverse health effects. The occurrence of DBPs in chlorinated pools filled with seawater (such as thalassotherapy pools and pools in spas) has received little attention so far. The present study evaluated the speciation and levels of disinfection byproducts in indoor swimming pools filled with seawater and treated with chlorine. Water and air samples were collected from three indoor swimming pools located in Southern France. Several classes of DBPs including trihalomethanes, haloacetic acids, haloacetonitriles, and trihaloacetaldehydes were analyzed in water. Halogenated volatile organic compounds were analyzed in air. Extractable organic halides (EOX) contents were determined using combustion/micro-coulometry system. The speciation of DBPs identified in the three pools was predominantly brominated. The mean (arithmetic) concentration of bromoform, dibromoacetic acid, tribromoacetic acid, dibromoacetonitrile and bromal hydrate in the three pools was 79.2, 72.9, 59.9, 26.9 and 10.0μg/L, respectively. By weight, HAAs represented the most abundant chemical class followed by THMs. In air, bromoform was the most abundant THM occurring at a mean concentration of 133.2μg/m 3 in the three pools. The mean EOX level was 706μgCl - /L for the three pools. In average, the quantified DBPs accounted for only 14% of EOX, thus 86% of EOX remained unknown. Further research is warranted to identify the unknown DBPs. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier GmbH. All rights reserved.

Swimming Lessons: Learning, New Materialisms, Posthumanism, and Post Qualitative Research Emerge through a Pool Poem

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McKnight, Lucinda

2016-01-01

This article shifts from the formal learning spaces of school and university to an Australian public swimming pool to playfully engage some of the dilemmas that recent theory poses for curriculum studies. The article enacts multiple diffractions (Barad, 2007) as theory becomes swimming and swimming becomes theory, and ideas and movements are…

Report from the International Permafrost Association: carbon pools in permafrost regions

Treesearch

Peter Kuhry; Chien-Lu Ping; Edward A.G. Schuur; Charles Tarnocai; Sergey Zimov

2009-01-01

The IPA Carbon Pools in Permafrost Regions (CAPP) Project started in 2005, with endorsement of the Earth System Science Partnership (EESP) Global Carbon Project and the World Climate Research Programme (WCRP) Climate and Cryosphere Project. CAPP is also a project of the IPY. The project was launched because there is considerable concern and increased awareness both...

Chloroplast and nuclear microsatellite analysis of Aegilops cylindrica.

PubMed

Gandhi, Harish T; Vales, M Isabel; Watson, Christy J W; Mallory-Smith, Carol A; Mori, Naoki; Rehman, Maqsood; Zemetra, Robert S; Riera-Lizarazu, Oscar

2005-08-01

Aegilops cylindrica Host (2n = 4x = 28, genome CCDD) is an allotetraploid formed by hybridization between the diploid species Ae. tauschii Coss. (2n = 2x = 14, genome DD) and Ae. markgrafii (Greuter) Hammer (2n = 2x = 14, genome CC). Previous research has shown that Ae. tauschii contributed its cytoplasm to Ae. cylindrica. However, our analysis with chloroplast microsatellite markers showed that 1 of the 36 Ae. cylindrica accessions studied, TK 116 (PI 486249), had a plastome derived from Ae. markgrafii rather than Ae. tauschii. Thus, Ae. markgrafii has also contributed its cytoplasm to Ae. cylindrica. Our analysis of chloroplast and nuclear microsatellite markers also suggests that D-type plastome and the D genome in Ae. cylindrica were closely related to, and were probably derived from, the tauschii gene pool of Ae. tauschii. A determination of the likely source of the C genome and the C-type plastome in Ae. cylindrica was not possible.

Age at Last Birth in Relation to Risk of Endometrial Cancer: Pooled Analysis in the Epidemiology of Endometrial Cancer Consortium

PubMed Central

Setiawan, Veronica Wendy; Pike, Malcolm C.; Karageorgi, Stalo; Deming, Sandra L.; Anderson, Kristin; Bernstein, Leslie; Brinton, Louise A.; Cai, Hui; Cerhan, James R.; Cozen, Wendy; Chen, Chu; Doherty, Jennifer; Freudenheim, Jo L.; Goodman, Marc T.; Hankinson, Susan E.; Lacey, James V.; Liang, Xiaolin; Lissowska, Jolanta; Lu, Lingeng; Lurie, Galina; Mack, Thomas; Matsuno, Rayna K.; McCann, Susan; Moysich, Kirsten B.; Olson, Sara H.; Rastogi, Radhai; Rebbeck, Timothy R.; Risch, Harvey; Robien, Kim; Schairer, Catherine; Shu, Xiao-Ou; Spurdle, Amanda B.; Strom, Brian L.; Thompson, Pamela J.; Ursin, Giske; Webb, Penelope M.; Weiss, Noel S.; Wentzensen, Nicolas; Xiang, Yong-Bing; Yang, Hannah P.; Yu, Herbert; Horn-Ross, Pamela L.; De Vivo, Immaculata

2012-01-01

Childbearing at an older age has been associated with a lower risk of endometrial cancer, but whether the association is independent of the number of births or other factors remains unclear. Individual-level data from 4 cohort and 13 case-control studies in the Epidemiology of Endometrial Cancer Consortium were pooled. A total of 8,671 cases of endometrial cancer and 16,562 controls were included in the analysis. After adjustment for known risk factors, endometrial cancer risk declined with increasing age at last birth (Ptrend < 0.0001). The pooled odds ratio per 5-year increase in age at last birth was 0.87 (95% confidence interval: 0.85, 0.90). Women who last gave birth at 40 years of age or older had a 44% decreased risk compared with women who had their last birth under the age of 25 years (95% confidence interval: 47, 66). The protective association was similar across the different age-at-diagnosis groups and for the 2 major tumor histologic subtypes (type I and type II). No effect modification was observed by body mass index, parity, or exogenous hormone use. In this large pooled analysis, late age at last birth was independently associated with a reduced risk of endometrial cancer, and the reduced risk persisted for many years. PMID:22831825

Diagnostic accuracy of physical examination for anterior knee instability: a systematic review.

PubMed

Leblanc, Marie-Claude; Kowalczuk, Marcin; Andruszkiewicz, Nicole; Simunovic, Nicole; Farrokhyar, Forough; Turnbull, Travis Lee; Debski, Richard E; Ayeni, Olufemi R

2015-10-01

Determining diagnostic accuracy of Lachman, pivot shift and anterior drawer tests versus gold standard diagnosis (magnetic resonance imaging or arthroscopy) for anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) insufficiency cases. Secondarily, evaluating effects of: chronicity, partial rupture, awake versus anaesthetized evaluation. Searching MEDLINE, EMBASE and PubMed identified studies on diagnostic accuracy for ACL insufficiency. Studies identification and data extraction were performed in duplicate. Quality assessment used QUADAS tool, and statistical analyses were completed for pooled sensitivity and specificity. Eight studies were included. Given insufficient data, pooled analysis was only possible for sensitivity on Lachman and pivot shift test. During awake evaluation, sensitivity for the Lachman test was 89 % (95 % CI 0.76, 0.98) for all rupture types, 96 % (95 % CI 0.90, 1.00) for complete ruptures and 68 % (95 % CI 0.25, 0.98) for partial ruptures. For pivot shift in awake evaluation, results were 79 % (95 % CI 0.63, 0.91) for all rupture types, 86 % (95 % CI 0.68, 0.99) for complete ruptures and 67 % (95 % CI 0.47, 0.83) for partial ruptures. Decreased sensitivity of Lachman and pivot shift tests for partial rupture cases and for awake patients raised suspicions regarding the accuracy of these tests for diagnosis of ACL insufficiency. This may lead to further research aiming to improve the understanding of the true accuracy of these physical diagnostic tests and increase the reliability of clinical investigation for this pathology. IV.

Lesions of the hippocampus or dorsolateral striatum disrupt distinct aspects of spatial navigation strategies based on proximal and distal information in a cued variant of the Morris water task

PubMed Central

Rice, James P.; Wallace, Douglas G.; Hamilton, Derek A.

2015-01-01

The hippocampus and dorsolateral striatum are critically involved in spatial navigation based on extra-maze and intra-maze cues, respectively. Previous reports from our laboratory suggest that behavior in the Morris water task may be guided by both cue types, and rats appear to switch from extra-pool to intra-pool cues to guide navigation in a sequential manner within a given trial. In two experiments, rats with hippocampal or dorsolateral striatal lesions were trained and tested in water task paradigms that involved translation and removal of a cued platform within the pool and translations of the pool itself with respect to the extra-pool cue reference frame. In the first experiment, moment-to-moment analyses of swim behavior indicate that hippocampal lesions disrupt initial trajectories based on extra-pool cues at the beginning of the trial, while dorsolateral striatal lesions disrupt subsequent swim trajectories based on the location of the cued platform at the end of the trial. In the second experiment lesions of the hippocampus, but not the dorsolateral striatum, impaired directional responding in situations where the pool was shifted within the extra-pool cue array. These results are important for understanding the cooperative interactions between the hippocampus and dorsolateral striatum in spatial learning and memory, and establish that these brain areas are continuously involved in goal-directed spatial navigation. These results also highlight the importance of the hippocampus in directional responding in addition to place navigation. PMID:25907746

The Polynesian gene pool: an early contribution by Amerindians to Easter Island.

PubMed

Thorsby, Erik

2012-03-19

It is now generally accepted that Polynesia was first settled by peoples from southeast Asia. An alternative that eastern parts of Polynesia were first inhabited by Amerindians has found little support. There are, however, many indications of a 'prehistoric' (i.e. before Polynesia was discovered by Europeans) contact between Polynesia and the Americas, but genetic evidence of a prehistoric Amerindian contribution to the Polynesian gene pool has been lacking. We recently carried out genomic HLA (human leucocyte antigen) typing as well as typing for mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) and Y chromosome markers of blood samples collected in 1971 and 2008 from reputedly non-admixed Easter Islanders. All individuals carried HLA alleles and mtDNA types previously found in Polynesia, and most of the males carried Y chromosome markers of Polynesian origin (a few had European Y chromosome markers), further supporting an initial Polynesian population on Easter Island. The HLA investigations revealed, however, that some individuals also carried HLA alleles which have previously almost only been found in Amerindians. We could trace the introduction of these Amerindian alleles to before the Peruvian slave trades, i.e. before the 1860s, and provide suggestive evidence that they were introduced already in prehistoric time. Our results demonstrate an early Amerindian contribution to the Polynesian gene pool on Easter Island, and illustrate the usefulness of typing for immunogenetic markers such as HLA to complement mtDNA and Y chromosome analyses in anthropological investigations.

Temperature sensitivity of soil microbial communities: An application of macromolecular rate theory to microbial respiration

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Alster, Charlotte J.; Koyama, Akihiro; Johnson, Nels G.; Wallenstein, Matthew D.; von Fischer, Joseph C.

2016-06-01

There is compelling evidence that microbial communities vary widely in their temperature sensitivity and may adapt to warming through time. To date, this sensitivity has been largely characterized using a range of models relying on versions of the Arrhenius equation, which predicts an exponential increase in reaction rate with temperature. However, there is growing evidence from laboratory and field studies that observe nonmonotonic responses of reaction rates to variation in temperature, indicating that Arrhenius is not an appropriate model for quantitatively characterizing temperature sensitivity. Recently, Hobbs et al. (2013) developed macromolecular rate theory (MMRT), which incorporates thermodynamic temperature optima as arising from heat capacity differences between isoenzymes. We applied MMRT to measurements of respiration from soils incubated at different temperatures. These soils were collected from three grassland sites across the U.S. Great Plains and reciprocally transplanted, allowing us to isolate the effects of microbial community type from edaphic factors. We found that microbial community type explained roughly 30% of the variation in the CO2 production rate from the labile C pool but that temperature and soil type were most important in explaining variation in labile and recalcitrant C pool size. For six out of the nine soil × inoculum combinations, MMRT was superior to Arrhenius. The MMRT analysis revealed that microbial communities have distinct heat capacity values and temperature sensitivities sometimes independent of soil type. These results challenge the current paradigm for modeling temperature sensitivity of soil C pools and understanding of microbial enzyme dynamics.

Land use changing SOC pool: A field investigation from four catchments on the Loess Plateau in China

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Guo, Shengli; Wang, Rui; Hu, Yaxian

2017-04-01

The Loess Plateau in China has long been known for severe erosion, a degraded ecosystem and heavy sediment delivery to the Yellow River. Apart from, the highly erodible loess soil and the hilly geomorphology, intensive cultivation has been caused such most destructive human activities. This made the Loess Plateau once the least fertile region in China with extreme poverty. To restore soil fertility and ecosystem sustainability, a national-level project was launched in 1990s to encourage land use changes via afforestation or conversion of cropland back to grassland or woodland. After nearly three decades of land use conversion, the SOC pool in the soil can be expected to have substantially changed. However, climate conditions, geomorphic types and soil properties were spatially distinctive across the Loess Plateau. Their individual as well interactive impacts on changes of soil carbon pool during land use conversions must thus be properly accounted for. In this study, four watersheds distributed over the Loess Plateau were investigated. The four watersheds mainly consisted of three geomorphic types: wide gully, loess ridge, and round knoll. On each geomorphic feature, three land use types prevailed: cropland, grassland and woodland. In total, 695 soil samples were taken from the top 20 cm of the four watersheds during 2010 and 2011. Our results show: 1) Degrees of erosion hugely differed among the four watersheds, with Catchment A (hilly) having three times more erosion modulus than the least eroded Catchment D (gully) (12000 vs. 1800 Mg per km2 per year). 2) The increasing SOC content from 4 mg g-1 at Catchment A to 8.1 mg g-1 at Catchment D agreed well with their decreasing erosion, suggesting that geomorphology induced erosion history was the predominant factor to set the general level of watershed-scale SOC reservoir. 3) Within each watershed, grassland and woodland consistently had at least 34% more SOC than cropland, demonstrating the influence of land use changes on local SOC pool. Overall, our field investigation suggests that on watershed scale, geomorphic types and the associated erosion are the decisive factor regulating the local SOC reservoir. Within each watershed, land use conversions from cropland to grassland and woodland had significantly improved SOC pool.

Land Use Changing SOC pool: A Field Investigation from Six Catchments on the Loess Plateau in China

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Guo, S.; Wang, R.; Hu, Y.

2016-12-01

The Loess Plateau in China has long been known for severe erosion, degraded ecosystem and heavy sediment delivery to the Yellow River. Besides the highly erodible loess soil and the hilly geomorphology nature, intensive cultivation has been accused as one of the most destructive anthropogenic activities undermining erosion situation on the Loess Plateau. This made the Loess Plateau once the least fertile region in China with extreme poverty. To preserve soil fertility and ecosystem sustainability, a magnificent national-level project was launched in 1990s to encourage land use changes via afforestation or conversion cropland back to grassland or woodland. After nearly three decades, SOC pool must have been substantially changed following land use conversions. However, climate conditions, geomorphic types and soil properties were spatially distinctive across the Loess Plateau. Their individual as well interactive impacts on changes of soil carbon pool during land use conversions must be properly accounted for. In this study, six watersheds well distributed on the Loess Plateau were investigated. The six watersheds mainly represented three geomorphic types (wide gully, loess ridge, and round knoll), each with three land use types (cropland, grassland and woodland). In total, 695 soil samples were taken from the top 20 cm of the six watersheds during 2010 and 2011. Our results show: 1) Degrees of erosion hugely differed among the six watersheds, with Huangfuchuan having three times more erosion modulus than the least eroded Gaoquangou (21000 vs. 6120 t km-2 per year). 2) The increasing SOC content from 4 mg g-1 at Huangfuchuan to 8.1 mg g-1 at Gaoquangou agreed well with their decreasing erosion modulus, suggesting that geomorphology induced erosion history was the predominant factor to set the general level of watershed-scale SOC reservoir. 3) Within each watershed, grassland and woodland consistently had at least 34% more SOC than cropland, demonstrating the influence of land use changes on local SOC pool. Overall, our field investigation suggests that in watershed scale, geomorphic types and the thus induced erosion degrees are the decisive factor to regulate local SOC reservoir. Within each watershed, land use conversions from cropland to grassland and woodland had significantly improved SOC pool.

Biogenic silicon pools in terrestrial biogeosystems and their significance for silicon cycling

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Puppe, Daniel; Höhn, Axel; Kaczorek, Danuta; Ehrmann, Otto; Wanner, Manfred; Sommer, Michael

2017-04-01

On a global scale the biogeochemical cycles of silicon (Si) and carbon are connected by weathering processes and fluxes of dissolved Si from terrestrial to aquatic ecosystems. Various pro- and eukaryotic organisms are evolutionarily adapted to synthesize amorphous siliceous structures (biosilicification). In soils these siliceous structures can accumulate and form biogenic Si (BSi) pools, whereat it can be differentiated between phytogenic (BSi synthesized by plants), zoogenic (BSi synthesized by sponges), microbial (BSi synthesized by bacteria and fungi) and protistic (BSi synthesized by unicellular organisms) pools. Accumulation and recycling of BSi in terrestrial biogeosystems influence fluxes of dissolved Si from the continents to the oceans, thus act as a filter in the global Si cycle. As research has primarily been focused on the role of phytogenic Si pools until now there is only little information available on the other BSi pools in soils. In order to fill this knowledge gap we examined different BSi pools in soils of initial and forested terrestrial biogeosystems using modern microscopical methods (laser scanning and scanning electron microscopy). In forested biogeosystems we further analyzed abiotic (e.g. soil pH) and biotic (earthworm biomasses) influencing factors on BSi pool size, while samples of initial biogeosystems were used to analyze spatiotemporal BSi pool dynamics. We found that especially biotic interactions are important factors for protistic BSi pools (represented by testate amoebae) and that phytogenic Si pools are about several 100-times bigger than protistic (testate amoebae) Si pools (0.2-4.7 kg Si ha-1). However, annual biosilicification rates of testate amoebae (up to 80 kg Si ha-1) are comparable to or even can exceed annual silicon uptake by trees. Our studies of initial biogeosystems revealed that BSi pool sizes increased markedly within a relatively short time span (<10 years) of ecosystem development. Differences in quantities, dynamics and resistibility against dissolution of various BSi pools indicated their possibility to influence biogeochemical Si cycling relatively rapid (protistic Si pools) or slow (zoogenic Si pools). In conclusion, our results are crucial for a detailed understanding and a more precise modeling of Si fluxes from terrestrial to aquatic ecosystems.

Response of the Antarctic Stratosphere to Two Types of El Nino Events

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hurwitz, M. M.; Newman, P. A.; Oman, L. D.; Molod, A. M.

2010-01-01

This study is the first to identify a robust El Nino/Southern Oscillation (ENSO) signal in the Antarctic stratosphere. El Nino events are classified as either conventional "cold tongue" events (positive SST anomalies in the Nino 3 region) or "warm pool" events (positive SST anomalies in the Nino 4 region). The ERA-40, NCEP and MERRA meteorological reanalyses are used to show that the Southern Hemisphere stratosphere responds differently to these two types of El Nino events. Consistent with previous studies, "cold tongue" events do not impact temperatures in the Antarctic stratosphere. During "warm pool" El Nino events, the poleward extension and increased strength of the South Pacific Convergence Zone (SPCZ) favor an enhancement of planetary wave activity during the SON season. On average, these conditions lead to higher polar stratospheric temperatures and a weakening of the Antarctic polar jet in November and December, as compared with neutral ENSO years. The phase of the quasi-biennial oscillation (QBO) modulates the stratospheric response to "warm pool" El Nino events: the strongest planetary wave driving events are coincident with the easterly phase of the QBO.

A Highly Efficient Design Strategy for Regression with Outcome Pooling

PubMed Central

Mitchell, Emily M.; Lyles, Robert H.; Manatunga, Amita K.; Perkins, Neil J.; Schisterman, Enrique F.

2014-01-01

The potential for research involving biospecimens can be hindered by the prohibitive cost of performing laboratory assays on individual samples. To mitigate this cost, strategies such as randomly selecting a portion of specimens for analysis or randomly pooling specimens prior to performing laboratory assays may be employed. These techniques, while effective in reducing cost, are often accompanied by a considerable loss of statistical efficiency. We propose a novel pooling strategy based on the k-means clustering algorithm to reduce laboratory costs while maintaining a high level of statistical efficiency when predictor variables are measured on all subjects, but the outcome of interest is assessed in pools. We perform simulations motivated by the BioCycle study to compare this k-means pooling strategy with current pooling and selection techniques under simple and multiple linear regression models. While all of the methods considered produce unbiased estimates and confidence intervals with appropriate coverage, pooling under k-means clustering provides the most precise estimates, closely approximating results from the full data and losing minimal precision as the total number of pools decreases. The benefits of k-means clustering evident in the simulation study are then applied to an analysis of the BioCycle dataset. In conclusion, when the number of lab tests is limited by budget, pooling specimens based on k-means clustering prior to performing lab assays can be an effective way to save money with minimal information loss in a regression setting. PMID:25220822

A highly efficient design strategy for regression with outcome pooling.

PubMed

Mitchell, Emily M; Lyles, Robert H; Manatunga, Amita K; Perkins, Neil J; Schisterman, Enrique F

2014-12-10

The potential for research involving biospecimens can be hindered by the prohibitive cost of performing laboratory assays on individual samples. To mitigate this cost, strategies such as randomly selecting a portion of specimens for analysis or randomly pooling specimens prior to performing laboratory assays may be employed. These techniques, while effective in reducing cost, are often accompanied by a considerable loss of statistical efficiency. We propose a novel pooling strategy based on the k-means clustering algorithm to reduce laboratory costs while maintaining a high level of statistical efficiency when predictor variables are measured on all subjects, but the outcome of interest is assessed in pools. We perform simulations motivated by the BioCycle study to compare this k-means pooling strategy with current pooling and selection techniques under simple and multiple linear regression models. While all of the methods considered produce unbiased estimates and confidence intervals with appropriate coverage, pooling under k-means clustering provides the most precise estimates, closely approximating results from the full data and losing minimal precision as the total number of pools decreases. The benefits of k-means clustering evident in the simulation study are then applied to an analysis of the BioCycle dataset. In conclusion, when the number of lab tests is limited by budget, pooling specimens based on k-means clustering prior to performing lab assays can be an effective way to save money with minimal information loss in a regression setting. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Topography Battles Surface Texture: An Experimental Study of Pool-riffle Formation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chartrand, S. M.; Hassan, M. A.; Jellinek, M.

2016-12-01

Pool-riffles are perhaps the most common streambed shape found in streams and rivers, and not surprisingly, they are essential to salmon ecology, and are a central focus of many restoration actions. Yet, when an applied earth scientist or engineer is faced with developing a pool-riffle design, there is a lack of clear and rigorously developed design guidelines. Given the volumes of money spent annually within the restoration industry, this is a real problem. Recognition of this problem is growing, however, and an increasing level of attention has been directed to questions of pool-riffle formation in the past decade. At this point and given certain landscape characteristics, it is well established that streamwise gradients in channel width are associated with pool-riffles. Specifically, pools are associated with negative gradients in width, and riffles with positive gradients. Importantly, these associations have now been documented from field-derived data, as well as via experimental and numerical investigations. There is much to build from the present knowledge base, and central to this are questions related to (a) how pool-riffles evolve during the formative process, (b) what are the basic set of ingredients necessary for pool-riffle formation within systems characterized by relatively non-erodible channel margins, and (c) do pool-riffles persist, once formed, under a broad range of forcing conditions? We have completed four physical experiments examining the process and evolution of pool-riffle formation under a large range of upstream boundary, as well as physical channel conditions. We will report on two of the completed experiments. Our work will highlight two new non-dimensional channel evolution numbers, derived to help describe and characterize bedform development, as well as response to perturbations from near-equilibrium conditions. The channel evolution numbers lay the foundation for development of a new regime diagram, which quantifies the basic ingredients needed to drive pool-riffle formation, as well as formation of other types of gravel bedforms. We believe our work holds promise for application in identifying suitable conditions for pool-riffle construction, and natural maintenance over typical restoration project time frames.

Utilizing the ultrasensitive Schistosoma up-converting phosphor lateral flow circulating anodic antigen (UCP-LF CAA) assay for sample pooling-strategies.

PubMed

Corstjens, Paul L A M; Hoekstra, Pytsje T; de Dood, Claudia J; van Dam, Govert J

2017-11-01

Methodological applications of the high sensitivity genus-specific Schistosoma CAA strip test, allowing detection of single worm active infections (ultimate sensitivity), are discussed for efficient utilization in sample pooling strategies. Besides relevant cost reduction, pooling of samples rather than individual testing can provide valuable data for large scale mapping, surveillance, and monitoring. The laboratory-based CAA strip test utilizes luminescent quantitative up-converting phosphor (UCP) reporter particles and a rapid user-friendly lateral flow (LF) assay format. The test includes a sample preparation step that permits virtually unlimited sample concentration with urine, reaching ultimate sensitivity (single worm detection) at 100% specificity. This facilitates testing large urine pools from many individuals with minimal loss of sensitivity and specificity. The test determines the average CAA level of the individuals in the pool thus indicating overall worm burden and prevalence. When requiring test results at the individual level, smaller pools need to be analysed with the pool-size based on expected prevalence or when unknown, on the average CAA level of a larger group; CAA negative pools do not require individual test results and thus reduce the number of tests. Straightforward pooling strategies indicate that at sub-population level the CAA strip test is an efficient assay for general mapping, identification of hotspots, determination of stratified infection levels, and accurate monitoring of mass drug administrations (MDA). At the individual level, the number of tests can be reduced i.e. in low endemic settings as the pool size can be increased as opposed to prevalence decrease. At the sub-population level, average CAA concentrations determined in urine pools can be an appropriate measure indicating worm burden. Pooling strategies allowing this type of large scale testing are feasible with the various CAA strip test formats and do not affect sensitivity and specificity. It allows cost efficient stratified testing and monitoring of worm burden at the sub-population level, ideally for large-scale surveillance generating hard data for performance of MDA programs and strategic planning when moving towards transmission-stop and elimination.

Omega-6 fatty acid biomarkers and incident type 2 diabetes: pooled analysis of individual-level data for 39 740 adults from 20 prospective cohort studies.

PubMed

Wu, Jason H Y; Marklund, Matti; Imamura, Fumiaki; Tintle, Nathan; Ardisson Korat, Andres V; de Goede, Janette; Zhou, Xia; Yang, Wei-Sin; de Oliveira Otto, Marcia C; Kröger, Janine; Qureshi, Waqas; Virtanen, Jyrki K; Bassett, Julie K; Frazier-Wood, Alexis C; Lankinen, Maria; Murphy, Rachel A; Rajaobelina, Kalina; Del Gobbo, Liana C; Forouhi, Nita G; Luben, Robert; Khaw, Kay-Tee; Wareham, Nick; Kalsbeek, Anya; Veenstra, Jenna; Luo, Juhua; Hu, Frank B; Lin, Hung-Ju; Siscovick, David S; Boeing, Heiner; Chen, Tzu-An; Steffen, Brian; Steffen, Lyn M; Hodge, Allison; Eriksdottir, Gudny; Smith, Albert V; Gudnason, Vilmunder; Harris, Tamara B; Brouwer, Ingeborg A; Berr, Claudine; Helmer, Catherine; Samieri, Cecilia; Laakso, Markku; Tsai, Michael Y; Giles, Graham G; Nurmi, Tarja; Wagenknecht, Lynne; Schulze, Matthias B; Lemaitre, Rozenn N; Chien, Kuo-Liong; Soedamah-Muthu, Sabita S; Geleijnse, Johanna M; Sun, Qi; Harris, William S; Lind, Lars; Ärnlöv, Johan; Riserus, Ulf; Micha, Renata; Mozaffarian, Dariush

2017-12-01

The metabolic effects of omega-6 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) remain contentious, and little evidence is available regarding their potential role in primary prevention of type 2 diabetes. We aimed to assess the associations of linoleic acid and arachidonic acid biomarkers with incident type 2 diabetes. We did a pooled analysis of new, harmonised, individual-level analyses for the biomarkers linoleic acid and its metabolite arachidonic acid and incident type 2 diabetes. We analysed data from 20 prospective cohort studies from ten countries (Iceland, the Netherlands, the USA, Taiwan, the UK, Germany, Finland, Australia, Sweden, and France), with biomarkers sampled between 1970 and 2010. Participants included in the analyses were aged 18 years or older and had data available for linoleic acid and arachidonic acid biomarkers at baseline. We excluded participants with type 2 diabetes at baseline. The main outcome was the association between omega-6 PUFA biomarkers and incident type 2 diabetes. We assessed the relative risk of type 2 diabetes prospectively for each cohort and lipid compartment separately using a prespecified analytic plan for exposures, covariates, effect modifiers, and analysis, and the findings were then pooled using inverse-variance weighted meta-analysis. Participants were 39 740 adults, aged (range of cohort means) 49-76 years with a BMI (range of cohort means) of 23·3-28·4 kg/m 2 , who did not have type 2 diabetes at baseline. During a follow-up of 366 073 person-years, we identified 4347 cases of incident type 2 diabetes. In multivariable-adjusted pooled analyses, higher proportions of linoleic acid biomarkers as percentages of total fatty acid were associated with a lower risk of type 2 diabetes overall (risk ratio [RR] per interquintile range 0·65, 95% CI 0·60-0·72, p<0·0001; I 2 =53·9%, p heterogeneity =0·002). The associations between linoleic acid biomarkers and type 2 diabetes were generally similar in different lipid compartments, including phospholipids, plasma, cholesterol esters, and adipose tissue. Levels of arachidonic acid biomarker were not significantly associated with type 2 diabetes risk overall (RR per interquintile range 0·96, 95% CI 0·88-1·05; p=0·38; I 2 =63·0%, p heterogeneity <0·0001). The associations between linoleic acid and arachidonic acid biomarkers and the risk of type 2 diabetes were not significantly modified by any prespecified potential sources of heterogeneity (ie, age, BMI, sex, race, aspirin use, omega-3 PUFA levels, or variants of the FADS gene; all p heterogeneity ≥0·13). Findings suggest that linoleic acid has long-term benefits for the prevention of type 2 diabetes and that arachidonic acid is not harmful. Funders are shown in the appendix. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

CD4+ T-Cell Reactivity to Orexin/Hypocretin in Patients With Narcolepsy Type 1.

PubMed

Ramberger, Melanie; Högl, Birgit; Stefani, Ambra; Mitterling, Thomas; Reindl, Markus; Lutterotti, Andreas

2017-03-01

Narcolepsy type 1 is accompanied by a selective loss of orexin/hypocretin (hcrt) neurons in the lateral hypothalamus caused by yet unknown mechanisms. Epidemiologic and genetic associations strongly suggest an immune-mediated pathogenesis of the disease. We compared specific T-cell reactivity to orexin/hcrt peptides in peripheral blood mononuclear cells of narcolepsy type 1 patients to healthy controls by a carboxyfluorescein succinimidyl ester proliferation assay. Orexin/hcrt-specific T-cell reactivity was also determined by cytokine (interferon gamma and granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor) analysis. Individuals were considered as responders if the cell division index of CD3+CD4+ T cells and both stimulation indices of cytokine secretion exceeded the cutoff 3. Additionally, T-cell reactivity to orexin/hcrt had to be confirmed by showing reactivity to single peptides present in different peptide pools. Using these criteria, 3/15 patients (20%) and 0/13 controls (0%) showed orexin/hcrt-specific CD4+ T-cell proliferation (p = .2262). The heterogeneous reactivity pattern did not allow the identification of a preferential target epitope. A significant role of orexin/hcrt-specific T cells in narcolepsy type 1 patients could not be confirmed in this study. Further studies are needed to assess the exact role of CD4+ T cells and possible target antigens in narcolepsy type 1 patients. © Sleep Research Society 2016. Published by Oxford University Press [on behalf of the Sleep Research Society].

Disparities in Health Care Access and Receipt of Preventive Services by Disability Type: Analysis of the Medical Expenditure Panel Survey

PubMed Central

Horner-Johnson, Willi; Dobbertin, Konrad; Lee, Jae Chul; Andresen, Elena M

2014-01-01

Objective To examine differences in access to health care and receipt of clinical preventive services by type of disability among working-age adults with disabilities. Data Source Secondary analysis of Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS) data from 2002 to 2008. Study Design We conducted cross-sectional logistic regression analyses comparing people with different types of disabilities on health insurance status and type; presence of a usual source of health care; delayed or forgone care; and receipt of dental checkups and cancer screening. Data Collection We pooled annualized MEPS data files across years. Our analytic sample consisted of adults (18–64 years) with physical, sensory, or cognitive disabilities and nonmissing data for all variables of interest. Principal Findings Individuals with hearing impairment had better health care access and receipt than people with other disability types. People with multiple types of limitations were especially likely to have health care access problems and unmet health care needs. Conclusions There are differences in health care access and receipt of preventive care depending on what type of disability people have. More in-depth research is needed to identify specific causes of these disparities and assess interventions to address health care barriers for particular disability groups. PMID:24962662

Immunogenicity and safety of measles-mumps-rubella and varicella vaccines coadministered with a fourth dose of Haemophilus influenzae type b and Neisseria meningitidis serogroups C and Y-tetanus toxoid conjugate vaccine in toddlers: a pooled analysis of randomized trials.

PubMed

Bryant, Kristina; McVernon, Jodie; Marchant, Colin; Nolan, Terry; Marshall, Gary; Richmond, Peter; Marshall, Helen; Nissen, Michael; Lambert, Stephen; Aris, Emmanuel; Mesaros, Narcisa; Miller, Jacqueline

2012-08-01

A pooled analysis was conducted of 1257 toddlers who received a fourth dose of Haemophilus influenzae type b-Neisseria meningitidis serogroups C and Y-tetanus toxoid conjugate vaccine (HibMenCY-TT) or Hib conjugate vaccine (Hib polysaccharide conjugated to N. meningitidis outer membrane protein) coadministered with measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) and varicella (VAR) vaccines (NCT00134719/NCT00289783). Noninferiority of immunological responses to MMR and VAR was demonstrated between groups and incidences of MMR- and VAR-specific solicited symptoms were similar, indicating that HibMenCY-TT can be coadministered with MMR and VAR.

STC Synthesis of Best Practices for Determining Value of Research Results : Research Project Capsule

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2012-09-01

The RAC Region II has initiated a collaborative research program consortium : through the Transportation Pooled Fund (TPF) Program. The research program : is called the Southeast Transportation Consortium (STC) and is intended to : encourage coordina...

STC synthesis of research results for water quality management at construction sites : research project capsule.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2012-07-01

The RAC Region II has initiated a collaborative research program consortium through the : Transportation Pooled Fund (TPF) Program. The research program is called the Southeast : Transportation Consortium (STC) and is intended to encourage coordinati...

AbMiner: a bioinformatic resource on available monoclonal antibodies and corresponding gene identifiers for genomic, proteomic, and immunologic studies.

PubMed

Major, Sylvia M; Nishizuka, Satoshi; Morita, Daisaku; Rowland, Rick; Sunshine, Margot; Shankavaram, Uma; Washburn, Frank; Asin, Daniel; Kouros-Mehr, Hosein; Kane, David; Weinstein, John N

2006-04-06

Monoclonal antibodies are used extensively throughout the biomedical sciences for detection of antigens, either in vitro or in vivo. We, for example, have used them for quantitation of proteins on "reverse-phase" protein lysate arrays. For those studies, we quality-controlled > 600 available monoclonal antibodies and also needed to develop precise information on the genes that encode their antigens. Translation among the various protein and gene identifier types proved non-trivial because of one-to-many and many-to-one relationships. To organize the antibody, protein, and gene information, we initially developed a relational database in Filemaker for our own use. When it became apparent that the information would be useful to many other researchers faced with the need to choose or characterize antibodies, we developed it further as AbMiner, a fully relational web-based database under MySQL, programmed in Java. AbMiner is a user-friendly, web-based relational database of information on > 600 commercially available antibodies that we validated by Western blot for protein microarray studies. It includes many types of information on the antibody, the immunogen, the vendor, the antigen, and the antigen's gene. Multiple gene and protein identifier types provide links to corresponding entries in a variety of other public databases, including resources for phosphorylation-specific antibodies. AbMiner also includes our quality-control data against a pool of 60 diverse cancer cell types (the NCI-60) and also protein expression levels for the NCI-60 cells measured using our high-density "reverse-phase" protein lysate microarrays for a selection of the listed antibodies. Some other available database resources give information on antibody specificity for one or a couple of cell types. In contrast, the data in AbMiner indicate specificity with respect to the antigens in a pool of 60 diverse cell types from nine different tissues of origin. AbMiner is a relational database that provides extensive information from our own laboratory and other sources on more than 600 available antibodies and the genes that encode the antibodies' antigens. The data will be made freely available at http://discover.nci.nih.gov/abminer.

Wellness

MedlinePlus

... Nurses Exercise for Polio Survivors Anesthesia Concerns Pool/Water Therapy Other Resources Reports & CD from Task Force Medical/Clinical Publications ADVOCACY Issues Organizations Resources RESEARCH About The Research Fund New Request for 2018 ...

Orthotics

MedlinePlus

... Nurses Exercise for Polio Survivors Anesthesia Concerns Pool/Water Therapy Other Resources Reports & CD from Task Force Medical/Clinical Publications ADVOCACY Issues Organizations Resources RESEARCH About The Research Fund New Request for 2018 ...

Coughing

MedlinePlus

... Nurses Exercise for Polio Survivors Anesthesia Concerns Pool/Water Therapy Other Resources Reports & CD from Task Force Medical/Clinical Publications ADVOCACY Issues Organizations Resources RESEARCH About The Research Fund New Request for 2018 ...

Comparison of heat transfer coefficients of open micro-channels and plain micro-fins

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kaniowski, Robert; Pastuszko, Robert

2018-06-01

The paper describes results of analysis of pool boiling heat transfer on enhanced surfaces. Two types of structural surfaces were used: open microchannel surfaces consisting of a system of parallel micro-channels 0.3 mm wide, from 0.2 to 0.5 mm deep and with a pitch of 0.6 mm, and plain micro-fins 0.5 mm in height, uniformly spaced on the base surface with a spacing from 0.6 to1.5 mm. Pool boiling data at atmospheric pressure were obtained for saturated water, ethanol and FC-72. The effects of micro-channel/micro-fin dimensions on heat transfer coefficient in nucleate pool boiling were examined. Substantial enhancement of heat transfer coefficient was observed.

Characterization of instream hydraulic and riparian habitat conditions and stream temperatures of the Upper White River Basin, Washington, using multispectral imaging systems

USGS Publications Warehouse

Black, Robert W.; Haggland, Alan; Crosby, Greg

2003-01-01

Instream hydraulic and riparian habitat conditions and stream temperatures were characterized for selected stream segments in the Upper White River Basin, Washington. An aerial multispectral imaging system used digital cameras to photograph the stream segments across multiple wavelengths to characterize fish habitat and temperature conditions. All imageries were georeferenced. Fish habitat features were photographed at a resolution of 0.5 meter and temperature imageries were photographed at a 1.0-meter resolution. The digital multispectral imageries were classified using commercially available software. Aerial photographs were taken on September 21, 1999. Field habitat data were collected from August 23 to October 12, 1999, to evaluate the measurement accuracy and effectiveness of the multispectral imaging in determining the extent of the instream habitat variables. Fish habitat types assessed by this method were the abundance of instream hydraulic features such as pool and riffle habitats, turbulent and non-turbulent habitats, riparian composition, the abundance of large woody debris in the stream and riparian zone, and stream temperatures. Factors such as the abundance of instream woody debris, the location and frequency of pools, and stream temperatures generally are known to have a significant impact on salmon. Instream woody debris creates the habitat complexity necessary to maintain a diverse and healthy salmon population. The abundance of pools is indicative of a stream's ability to support fish and other aquatic organisms. Changes in water temperature can affect aquatic organisms by altering metabolic rates and oxygen requirements, altering their sensitivity to toxic materials and affecting their ability to avoid predators. The specific objectives of this project were to evaluate the use of an aerial multispectral imaging system to accurately identify instream hydraulic features and surface-water temperatures in the Upper White River Basin, to use the multispectral system to help establish baseline instream/riparian habitat conditions in the study area, and to qualitatively assess the imaging system for possible use in other Puget Sound rivers. For the most part, all multispectral imagery-based estimates of total instream riffle and pool area were less than field measurements. The imagery-based estimates for riffle habitat area ranged from 35.5 to 83.3 percent less than field measurements. Pool habitat estimates ranged from 139.3 percent greater than field measurements to 94.0 percent less than field measurements. Multispectral imagery-based estimates of turbulent habitat conditions ranged from 9.3 percent greater than field measurements to 81.6 percent less than field measurements. Multispectral imagery-based estimates of non-turbulent habitat conditions ranged from 27.7 to 74.1 percent less than field measurements. The absolute average percentage of difference between field and imagery-based habitat type areas was less for the turbulent and non-turbulent habitat type categories than for pools and riffles. The estimate of woody debris by multispectral imaging was substantially different than field measurements; percentage of differences ranged from +373.1 to -100 percent. Although the total area of riffles, pools, and turbulent and non-turbulent habitat types measured in the field were all substantially higher than those estimated from the multispectral imagery, the percentage of composition of each habitat type was not substantially different between the imagery-based estimates and field measurements.

Automatic Welding System of Aluminum Pipe by Monitoring Backside Image of Molten Pool Using Vision Sensor

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Baskoro, Ario Sunar; Kabutomori, Masashi; Suga, Yasuo

An automatic welding system using Tungsten Inert Gas (TIG) welding with vision sensor for welding of aluminum pipe was constructed. This research studies the intelligent welding process of aluminum alloy pipe 6063S-T5 in fixed position and moving welding torch with the AC welding machine. The monitoring system consists of a vision sensor using a charge-coupled device (CCD) camera to monitor backside image of molten pool. The captured image was processed to recognize the edge of molten pool by image processing algorithm. Neural network model for welding speed control were constructed to perform the process automatically. From the experimental results it shows the effectiveness of the control system confirmed by good detection of molten pool and sound weld of experimental result.

Dismantling the nuclear research reactor Thetis

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

Michiels, P.

The research reactor Thetis, in service since 1967 and stopped in 2003, is part of the laboratories of the institution of nuclear science of the University of Ghent. The reactor, of the pool-type, was used as a neutron-source for the production of radio-isotopes and for activation analyses. The reactor is situated in a water pool with inner diameter of 3 m. and a depth of 7.5 m. The reactor core is situated 5.3 m under water level. Besides the reactor, the pool contains pneumatic loops, handling tools, graphite blocks for neutron moderation and other experimental equipment. The building houses storagemore » rooms for fissile material and sources, a pneumatic circuit for transportation of samples, primary and secondary cooling circuits, water cleaning resin circuits, a ventilation system and other necessary devices. Because of the experimental character of the reactor, laboratories with glove boxes and other tools were needed and are included in the dismantling program. The building is in 3 levels with a crawl-space. The ground-floor contains the ventilation installation, the purification circuits with tanks, cooling circuits and pneumatic transport system. On the first floor, around the reactor hall, the control-room, visiting area, end-station for pneumatic transport, waste-storage room, fuel storage room and the labs are located. The second floor contains a few laboratories and end stations of the two high speed transfer tubes. The lowest level of the pool is situated under ground level. The reactor has been operated at a power of 150 kW and had a max operating power of 250 kW. Belgoprocess has been selected to decommission the reactor, the labs, storage halls and associated circuits to free release the building for conventional reuse and for the removal of all its internals as legal defined. Besides the dose-rate risk and contamination risk, there is also an asbestos risk of contamination. During construction of the installation, asbestos-containing materials were used, which must be removed in controlled conditions. The ventilation system is considered free from nuclear contamination but it contains asbestos. This paper covers the organization of the dismantling work, the technical execution aspect and conclusions already known (dismantling is ongoing as this is written). (authors)« less

Institutional property rights structure, common pool resource (CPR), tragedy of the urban commons: A Review

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ling, G.; Ho, C. S.; Ali, H. M.

2014-02-01

There have been a plethora of researches on the significance of public open space (POS) in contributing to societies' sustainability. However, by virtue of identified maladaptive policy-based-property rights structure, such a shared good becomes vulnerable to tragedy of the urban commons (overexploitation) that subsequently leads to burgeoning number of mismanaged POS e.g., degraded and unkempt urban public spaces. By scrutinising the literatures within property rights domain and commons resources, an objective is highlighted in this paper which is to insightfully discourse institutional property rights structure pertaining to the mechanism, roles and interrelationship between property-rights regimes, bundle of property rights and resource domains; types of goods on how they act upon and tie in the POS with the social quandary. In summary, urban POS tragedy can potentially be triggered by the institutional structure especially if the ownership is left under open-access resource regime and ill-defined property rights which both successively constitute the natures of Common Pool Resource (CPR) within the commons, POS. Therefore, this paper sparks an idea to policy makers that property rights structure is a determinant in sustainably governing the POS in which adaptive assignment of property regimes and property rights are impelled.

Research Personnel: An Essay on Policy.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

National Commission on Research, Washington, DC.

The national need for an ample pool of research scientists is considered. Research in universities and in the federally funded research facilities is described, and the importance of the research these institutions do and the interweaving of research and instruction in universities are noted. Some manpower projections are included and questions…

Omega-6 fatty acid biomarkers and incident type 2 diabetes: Pooled analysis of individual-level data for 39740 adults from 20 prospective cohort studies

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

The metabolic effects of omega-6 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) remain contentious, and little evidence is available regarding their potential role in primary prevention of type 2 diabetes. We aimed to assess the associations of linoleic acid and arachidonic acid biomarkers with incident type 2...

75 FR 22814 - Guidance for Industry: Nucleic Acid Testing (NAT) for Human Immunodeficiency Virus Type 1 (HIV-1...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-04-30

... Immunodeficiency Virus Type 1 (HIV-1) and Hepatitis C Virus (HCV): Testing, Product Disposition, and Donor Deferral... Industry: Nucleic Acid Testing (NAT) for Human Immunodeficiency Virus Type 1 (HIV-1) and Hepatitis C Virus... Acid Test (NAT) and Hepatitis C Virus (HCV) NAT, on testing individual samples or pooled samples from...

Cold Intolerance

MedlinePlus

... Nurses Exercise for Polio Survivors Anesthesia Concerns Pool/Water Therapy Other Resources Reports & CD from Task Force Medical/Clinical Publications ADVOCACY Issues Organizations Resources RESEARCH About The Research Fund New Request for 2018 ...

Alternative Therapies

MedlinePlus

... Nurses Exercise for Polio Survivors Anesthesia Concerns Pool/Water Therapy Other Resources Reports & CD from Task Force Medical/Clinical Publications ADVOCACY Issues Organizations Resources RESEARCH About The Research Fund New Request for 2018 ...

Cigarette smoking as a risk factor for type 2 diabetes in women compared with men: a systematic review and meta-analysis of prospective cohort studies.

PubMed

Yuan, Shuai; Xue, Hong-Liang; Yu, Hong-Jie; Huang, Yao; Tang, Bo-Wen; Yang, Xu-Hao; Li, Qing-Xiao; He, Qi-Qiang

2018-06-13

Few studies have investigated the effect of smoking on type 2 diabetes in women compared with men, even though several epidemiological studies provided a clear picture of the risk among the entire population. We systematically searched PubMed and Embase up to August 2017 for prospective studies that were stratified by sex with measures of the relative risk (RR) for type 2 diabetes and current smoking compared with non-smoking. The sex-specific RRs and their ratios (RRRs), comparing women with man, were pooled using random-effects models. Seventeen articles were identified including 20 prospective cohorts with 5 077 289 participants and 223 084 incident cases of type 2 diabetes. The pooled RRR suggested a similar risk of type 2 diabetes associated with smoking in women compared with men (RRR: 0.98, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.96-1.01). Furthermore, no significant sex difference in the RR was found between former smokers and those who had never smoked (RRR: 0.98, 95% CI: 0.92-1.04). The findings of this meta-analysis indicate that female smokers had similar risk of type 2 diabetes with male smokers.

Using the Self-Directed Search in Research: Selecting a Representative Pool of Items to Measure Vocational Interests

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Poitras, Sarah-Caroline; Guay, Frederic; Ratelle, Catherine F.

2012-01-01

Using Item Response Theory (IRT) and Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA), the goal of this study was to select a reduced pool of items from the French Canadian version of the Self-Directed Search--Activities Section (Holland, Fritzsche, & Powell, 1994). Two studies were conducted. Results of Study 1, involving 727 French Canadian students,…

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

Sarta, Jose A.; Castiblanco, Luis A

With cooperation of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and the Department of Energy (DOE) of the United States, several calculations and tasks related to the waste disposal of spent MTR fuel enriched nominally to 93% were carried out for the conversion of the IAN-R1 Research Reactor from MTR-HEU fuel to TRIGA-LEU fuel. In order to remove the spent MTR-HEU fuel of the core and store it safely a program was established at the Instituto de Ciencias Nucleares y Energias Alternativas (INEA). This program included training, acquisition of hardware and software, design and construction of a decay pool, transfer ofmore » the spent HEU fuel elements into the decay pool and his final transport to Savannah River in United States. In this paper are presented data of activities calculated for each relevant radionuclide present in spent MTR-HEU fuel elements of the IAN-R1 Research Reactor and the total activity. The total activity calculated takes in consideration contributions of fission, activation and actinides products. The data obtained were the base for shielding calculations for the decay pool concerning the storage of spent MTR-HEU fuel elements and the respective dosimetric evaluations in the transferring operations of fuel elements into the decay pool.« less

Tennessee State University (TSU) Research Project For Increasing The Pool of Minority Engineers

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rogers, Decatur B.; Merritt, Sylvia (Technical Monitor)

2000-01-01

The NASA Glenn Research Center funded the 1998-1999 Tennessee State University (TSU) Research Project for Increasing the Pool of Minority Engineers. The NASA/GRC-TSU Research Project developed a cadre of engineers who have academic and research expertise in technical areas of interest to NASA, in addition to having some familiarity with the mission of the NASA/Glenn Research Center. Increased minority participation in engineering was accomplished by: (1) introducing and exposing minority youth to engineering careers and to the required high school preparation necessary to access engineering through two campus based precollege programs: Minority Introduction to Engineering (MITE), and Engineering and Technology Previews; (2) providing financial support through the Research Scholars Program for minority youth majoring in engineering disciplines of interest to NASA; (3) familiarization with the engineering profession and with NASA through field trips and summer internships at the Space and Rocket Center, and (4) with practical research exposure and experiences through research internships at NASA/GRC and at TSU.

Pooled efficacy and safety of eslicarbazepine acetate as add-on treatment in patients with focal-onset seizures: Data from four double-blind placebo-controlled pivotal phase III clinical studies.

PubMed

Elger, Christian; Koepp, Mathias; Trinka, Eugen; Villanueva, Vicente; Chaves, João; Ben-Menachen, Elinor; Kowacs, Pedro A; Gil-Nagel, António; Moreira, Joana; Gama, Helena; Rocha, José-Francisco; Soares-da-Silva, Patrício

2017-12-01

Pooled evaluation of the key efficacy and safety profile of eslicarbazepine acetate (ESL) added-on to stable antiepileptic therapy in adults with focal-onset seizures. Data from 1703 patients enrolled in four phase III double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled studies were pooled and analyzed. Following a 2 week titration period, ESL was administered at 400 mg, 800 mg, and 1200 mg once-daily doses for 12 weeks (maintenance period). Pooled efficacy variable was standardized (/4 weeks) seizure frequency (SSF) analyzed over the maintenance period as reduction in absolute and relative SSF and proportion of responders (≥50% reduction in SSF). Pooled safety was analyzed by means of adverse events and clinical laboratory assessments. SSF was significantly reduced with ESL 800 mg (P < 0.0001) and 1200 mg (P < 0.0001) compared to placebo. Median relative reduction in SSF was 33.4% for ESL 800 mg and 37.8% for 1200 mg (placebo: 17.6%), and responder rate was 33.8% and 43.1% (placebo: 22.2%). ESL was more efficacious than placebo regardless of gender, geographical region, epilepsy duration, age at time of diagnosis, seizure type, and type of concomitant antiepileptic drugs (AED). Incidence of adverse events (AEs) and AEs leading to discontinuation was dose dependent. Most common AEs (>10% patients) were dizziness, somnolence, and nausea. The incidence of treatment-emergent AEs (dizziness, somnolence, ataxia, vomiting, and nausea) was lower in patients who began taking ESL 400 mg (followed by 400 mg increments to 800 or 1200 mg) than in those who began taking ESL 600 mg or 800 mg. Once-daily ESL 800 mg and 1200 mg showed consistent results across all efficacy and safety endpoints, independent of study population characteristics and type of concomitant AEDs. Treatment initiated with ESL 400 mg followed by 400 mg increments to 800 or 1200 mg provides optimal balance of efficacy and tolerability. © 2017 The Authors. CNS Neuroscience & Therapeutics Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Solidification microstructures in single-crystal stainless steel melt pools

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

Sipf, J.B.; Boatner, L.A.; David, S.A.

1994-03-01

Development of microstructure of stationary melt pools of oriented stainless steel single crystals (70%Fe-15%Ni-15%Cr was analyzed. Stationary melt pools were formed by electron-beam and gas-tungsten-arc heating on (001), (011), and (111) oriented planes of the austenitic, fcc-alloy crystals. Characterization and analysis of resulting microstructure was carried out for each crystallographic plane and welding method. Results showed that crystallography which favors ``easy growth`` along the <100> family of directions is a controlling factor in the microstructural formation along with the melt-pool shape. The microstructure was found to depend on the melting method, since each method forms a unique melt-pool shape. Thesemore » results are used in making a three-dimensional reconstruction of the microstructure for each plane and melting method employed. This investigation also suggests avenues for future research into the microstructural properties of electron-beam welds as well as providing an experimental basis for mathematical models for the prediction of solidification microstructures.« less

Changes in Landscape-level Carbon Balance of an Arctic Coastal Plain Tundra Ecosystem Between 1970-2100, in Response to Projected Climate Change

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lara, M. J.; McGuire, A. D.; Euskirchen, E. S.; Genet, H.; Sloan, V. L.; Iversen, C. M.; Norby, R. J.; Zhang, Y.; Yuan, F.

2014-12-01

Northern permafrost regions are estimated to cover 16% of the global soil area and account for approximately 50% of the global belowground organic carbon pool. However, there are considerable uncertainties regarding the fate of this soil carbon pool with projected climate warming over the next century. In northern Alaska, nearly 65% of the terrestrial surface is composed of polygonal tundra, where geomorphic land cover types such as high-, flat-, and low-center polygons influence local surface hydrology, plant community composition, nutrient and biogeochemical cycling, over small spatial scales. Due to the lack of representation of these fine-scale geomorphic types and ecosystem processes, in large-scale terrestrial ecosystem models, future uncertainties are large for this tundra region. In this study, we use a new version of the terrestrial ecosystem model (TEM), that couples a dynamic vegetation model (in which plant functional types compete for water, nitrogen, and light) with a dynamic soil organic model (in which temperature, moisture, and associated organic/inorganic carbon and nitrogen pools/fluxes vary together in vertically resolved layers) to simulate ecosystem carbon balance. We parameterized and calibrated this model using data specific to the local climate, vegetation, and soil associated with tundra geomorphic types. We extrapolate model results at a 1km2 resolution across the ~1800 km2 Barrow Peninsula using a tundra geomorphology map, describing ten dominant geomorphic tundra types (Lara et al. submitted), to estimate the likely change in landscape-level carbon balance between 1970 and 2100 in response to projected climate change. Preliminary model runs for this region indicated temporal variability in carbon and active layer dynamics, specific to tundra geomorphic type over time. Overall, results suggest that it is important to consider small-scale discrete polygonal tundra geomorphic types that control local structure and function in regional estimates of carbon balance in northern Alaska.

Self-rated health and type 2 diabetes risk in the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition-InterAct study: a case-cohort study

PubMed Central

Wennberg, Patrik; Rolandsson, Olov; van der A, Daphne L; Spijkerman, Annemieke M W; Kaaks, Rudolf; Boeing, Heiner; Feller, Silke; Bergmann, Manuela M; Langenberg, Claudia; Sharp, Stephen J; Forouhi, Nita; Riboli, Elio; Wareham, Nicholas

2013-01-01

Objectives To investigate the association between self-rated health and risk of type 2 diabetes and whether the strength of this association is consistent across five European centres. Design Population-based prospective case-cohort study. Setting Enrolment took place between 1992 and 2000 in five European centres (Bilthoven, Cambridge, Heidelberg, Potsdam and Umeå). Participants Self-rated health was assessed by a baseline questionnaire in 3399 incident type 2 diabetic case participants and a centre-stratified subcohort of 4619 individuals from the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC)-InterAct study which was drawn from a total cohort of 340 234 participants in the EPIC. Primary outcome measure Prentice-weighted Cox regression was used to estimate centre-specific HRs and 95% CIs for incident type 2 diabetes controlling for age, sex, centre, education, body mass index (BMI), smoking, alcohol consumption, energy intake, physical activity and hypertension. The centre-specific HRs were pooled across centres by random effects meta-analysis. Results Low self-rated health was associated with a higher hazard of type 2 diabetes after adjusting for age and sex (pooled HR 1.67, 95% CI 1.48 to 1.88). After additional adjustment for health-related variables including BMI, the association was attenuated but remained statistically significant (pooled HR 1.29, 95% CI 1.09 to 1.53). I2 index for heterogeneity across centres was 13.3% (p=0.33). Conclusions Low self-rated health was associated with a higher risk of type 2 diabetes. The association could be only partly explained by other health-related variables, of which obesity was the strongest. We found no indication of heterogeneity in the association between self-rated health and type 2 diabetes mellitus across the European centres. PMID:23471609

Grassland bird associations with introduced and native grass Conservation Reserve Program fields in the Southern High Plains

USGS Publications Warehouse

Thompson, Thomas R.; Boal, Clint W.; Lucia, Duane

2009-01-01

We examined relative abundances of grassland birds among Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) fields seeded with 2 monocultures of introduced grass species and 2 mixes of native grasses in the Southern High Plains of Texas. We assessed bird compositions among these 4 cover types and between the cover types pooled into categories of introduced and native fields. Breeding season bird diversity and total abundance did not differ among cover types or between introduced and native fields. Grasshopper Sparrows (Ammodramus savannarum), Cassin's Sparrows (Aimophila cassinii), and Western Meadowlarks (Sturnella neglecta) accounted for more than 90% of breeding season detections. Grasshopper Sparrows were the most abundant and found in all cover types. Cassin's Sparrows were 38% to 170% more abundant among the native seed mix without buffalograss (Buchloë dactyloides) compared to 3 other cover types. Although this association was statistically lost when cover types were pooled into introduced or native fields (U = 93.5, P = 0.91), the species was still 50% more abundant among native CRP than introduced CRP fields. Meadowlarks occurred ubiquitously but at very low numbers during the breeding season. During winter, avian abundance was 44% greater among native CRP than introduced CRP fields. Meadowlarks, Homed Larks (Eremophila alpestris), and Savannah Sparrows (Passerculus sandwichensis) accounted for 94% of all winter detections. Meadowlarks occurred ubiquitously, but Horned Larks and Savannah Sparrows were 157% and 96% more abundant, respectively, among native CRP than introduced CRP fields. Our data suggest that monocultures of introduced grasses may benefit some bird species but also that native seed mixes may have a more positive influence through increased diversity and abundance of grassland birds. However, pooling cover types into the broader categories of introduced or native grasses may dampen or occlude biologically meaningful results. It may be prudent to avoid broad categorization of CRP fields based solely on native or introduced grass cover when assessing habitat associations of grassland birds.

Dietary flavonoid intakes and risk of type 2 diabetes in US men and women12345

PubMed Central

Wedick, Nicole M; Pan, An; Cassidy, Aedín; Rimm, Eric B; Sampson, Laura; Rosner, Bernard; Willett, Walter; Hu, Frank B; Sun, Qi; van Dam, Rob M

2012-01-01

Background: Data from mechanistic studies support a beneficial effect of specific flavonoids on insulin sensitivity. However, few studies have evaluated the relation between intakes of different flavonoid subclasses and type 2 diabetes. Objective: The objective was to evaluate whether dietary intakes of major flavonoid subclasses (ie, flavonols, flavones, flavanones, flavan-3-ols, and anthocyanins) are associated with the risk of type 2 diabetes in US adults. Design: We followed up a total of 70,359 women in the Nurses’ Health Study (NHS; 1984–2008), 89,201 women in the NHS II (1991–2007), and 41,334 men in the Health Professionals Follow-Up Study (1986–2006) who were free of diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and cancer at baseline. Results: During 3,645,585 person-years of follow-up, we documented 12,611 incident cases of type 2 diabetes. Higher intakes of anthocyanins were significantly associated with a lower risk of type 2 diabetes (pooled HR for the 3 cohorts from a comparison of extreme quintiles: 0.85; 95% CI: 0.80, 0.91; P-trend < 0.001) after multivariate adjustment for age, BMI, and lifestyle and dietary factors. Consumption of anthocyanin-rich foods, particularly blueberries (pooled HR: 0.77 from a comparison of ≥2 servings/wk with <1 serving/mo; 95% CI: 0.68, 0.87; P-trend < 0.001) and apples/pears (pooled HR: 0.77 from a comparison of ≥5 servings/wk with <1 serving/mo; 95% CI: 0.65, 0.83; P-trend < 0.001), was also associated with a lower risk of type 2 diabetes. No significant associations were found for total flavonoid intake or other flavonoid subclasses. Conclusion: A higher consumption of anthocyanins and anthocyanin-rich fruit was associated with a lower risk of type 2 diabetes. PMID:22357723

Upward counterfactual thinking and depression: A meta-analysis.

PubMed

Broomhall, Anne Gene; Phillips, Wendy J; Hine, Donald W; Loi, Natasha M

2017-07-01

This meta-analysis examined the strength of association between upward counterfactual thinking and depressive symptoms. Forty-two effect sizes from a pooled sample of 13,168 respondents produced a weighted average effect size of r=.26, p<.001. Moderator analyses using an expanded set of 96 effect sizes indicated that upward counterfactuals and regret produced significant positive effects that were similar in strength. Effects also did not vary as a function of the theme of the counterfactual-inducing situation or study design (cross-sectional versus longitudinal). Significant effect size heterogeneity was observed across sample types, methods of assessing upward counterfactual thinking, and types of depression scale. Significant positive effects were found in studies that employed samples of bereaved individuals, older adults, terminally ill patients, or university students, but not adolescent mothers or mixed samples. Both number-based and Likert-based upward counterfactual thinking assessments produced significant positive effects, with the latter generating a larger effect. All depression scales produced significant positive effects, except for the Psychiatric Epidemiology Research Interview. Research and theoretical implications are discussed in relation to cognitive theories of depression and the functional theory of upward counterfactual thinking, and important gaps in the extant research literature are identified. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Simulation of Laser Additive Manufacturing and its Applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lee, Yousub

Laser and metal powder based additive manufacturing (AM), a key category of advanced Direct Digital Manufacturing (DDM), produces metallic components directly from a digital representation of the part such as a CAD file. It is well suited for the production of high-value, customizable components with complex geometry and the repair of damaged components. Currently, the main challenges for laser and metal powder based AM include the formation of defects (e.g., porosity), low surface finish quality, and spatially non-uniform properties of material. Such challenges stem largely from the limited knowledge of complex physical processes in AM especially the molten pool physics such as melting, molten metal flow, heat conduction, vaporization of alloying elements, and solidification. Direct experimental measurement of melt pool phenomena is highly difficult since the process is localized (on the order of 0.1 mm to 1 mm melt pool size) and transient (on the order of 1 m/s scanning speed). Furthermore, current optical and infrared cameras are limited to observe the melt pool surface. As a result, fluid flows in the melt pool, melt pool shape and formation of sub-surface defects are difficult to be visualized by experiment. On the other hand, numerical simulation, based on rigorous solution of mass, momentum and energy transport equations, can provide important quantitative knowledge of complex transport phenomena taking place in AM. The overarching goal of this dissertation research is to develop an analytical foundation for fundamental understanding of heat transfer, molten metal flow and free surface evolution. Two key types of laser AM processes are studied: a) powder injection, commonly used for repairing of turbine blades, and b) powder bed, commonly used for manufacturing of new parts with complex geometry. In the powder injection simulation, fluid convection, temperature gradient (G), solidification rate (R) and melt pool shape are calculated using a heat transfer and fluid flow model, which solves the mass, momentum and energy transport equations using the volume of fluid (VOF) method. These results provide quantitative understanding of underlying mechanisms of solidification morphology, solidification scale and deposit side bulging. In particular, it is shown that convective mixing alters solidification conditions (G and R), cooling trend and resultant size of primary dendrite arm spacing. Melt pool convexity in multiple layer LAM is associated not only with the convex shape of prior deposit but also with Marangoni flow. Lastly, it is shown that the lateral width of bulge is possibly controlled by the type of surface tension gradient. It is noted that laser beam spot size in the powder injection AM is about 2 mm and it melts hundreds of powder particles. Hence, the injection of individual particles is approximated by a lumped mass flux into the molten pool. On the other hand, for laser powder bed AM, the laser beam spot size is about 100 microm and thus it only melts a few tens of particles. Therefore, resolution of individual powder particles is essential for the accurate simulation of laser powder bed AM. To obtain the powder packing information in the powder bed, dynamic discrete element simulation (DEM) is used. It considers particle-particle interactions during packing to provide the quantitative structural powder bed properties such as particle arrangement, size and packing density, which is then an inputted as initial geometry for heat transfer and fluid flow simulation. This coupled 3D transient transport model provides a high spatial resolution while requiring less demanding computation. The results show that negatively skewed particle size distribution, faster scanning speed, low power and low packing density worsen the surface finish quality and promote the formation of balling defects. Taken together, both powder injection and powder bed models have resulted in an improved quantitative understanding of heat transfer, molten metal flow and free surface evolution. Furthermore, the analytical foundation that is developed in this dissertation provides the temperature history in AM, a prerequisite for predicting the solid-state phase transformation kinetics, residual stresses and distortion using other models. Moreover, it can be integrated with experimental monitoring and sensing tools to provide the capability of controlling melt pool shape, solidification microstructure, defect formation and surface finish.

Rayleigh matches in carriers of inherited color vision defects: the contribution from the third L/M photopigment.

PubMed

Sun, Yang; Shevell, Steven K

2008-01-01

The mother or daughter of a male with an X-chromosome-linked red/green color defect is an obligate carrier of the color deficient gene array. According to the Lyonization hypothesis, a female carrier's defective gene is expressed and thus carriers may have more than two types of pigments in the L/M photopigment range. An open question is how a carrier's third cone pigment in the L/M range affects the postreceptoral neural signals encoding color. Here, a model considered how the signal from the third pigment pools with signals from the normal's two pigments in the L/M range. Three alternative assumptions were considered for the signal from the third cone pigment: it pools with the signal from (1) L cones, (2) M cones, or (3) both types of cones. Spectral-sensitivity peak, optical density, and the relative number of each cone type were factors in the model. The model showed that differences in Rayleigh matches among carriers can be due to individual differences in the number of the third type of L/M cone, and the spectral sensitivity peak and optical density of the third L/M pigment; surprisingly, however, individual differences in the cone ratio of the other two cone types (one L and the other M) did not affect the match. The predicted matches were compared to Schmidt's (1934/1955) report of carriers' Rayleigh matches. For carriers of either protanomaly or deuteranomaly, these matches were not consistent with the signal from the third L/M pigment combining with only the signal from M cones. The matches could be accounted for by pooling the third-pigment's response with L-cone signals, either exclusively or randomly with M-cone responses as well.

Effects of nitrogen deposition on carbon cycle in terrestrial ecosystems of China: A meta-analysis.

PubMed

Chen, Hao; Li, Dejun; Gurmesa, Geshere A; Yu, Guirui; Li, Linghao; Zhang, Wei; Fang, Huajun; Mo, Jiangming

2015-11-01

Nitrogen (N) deposition in China has increased greatly, but the general impact of elevated N deposition on carbon (C) dynamics in Chinese terrestrial ecosystems is not well documented. In this study we used a meta-analysis method to compile 88 studies on the effects of N deposition C cycling on Chinese terrestrial ecosystems. Our results showed that N addition did not change soil C pools but increased above-ground plant C pool. A large decrease in below-ground plant C pool was observed. Our result also showed that the impacts of N addition on ecosystem C dynamics depend on ecosystem type and rate of N addition. Overall, our findings suggest that 1) decreased below-ground plant C pool may limit long-term soil C sequestration; and 2) it is better to treat N-rich and N-limited ecosystems differently in modeling effects of N deposition on ecosystem C cycle. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Lin28a regulates germ cell pool size and fertility

PubMed Central

Shinoda, Gen; de Soysa, T. Yvanka; Seligson, Marc T.; Yabuuchi, Akiko; Fujiwara, Yuko; Huang, Pei Yi; Hagan, John P.; Gregory, Richard I.; Moss, Eric G.; Daley, George Q.

2013-01-01

Overexpression of LIN28A is associated with human germ cell tumors and promotes primordial germ cell (PGC) development from embryonic stem cells in vitro and in chimeric mice. Knockdown of Lin28a inhibits PGC development in vitro, but how constitutional Lin28a deficiency affects the mammalian reproductive system in vivo remains unknown. Here, we generated Lin28a knockout (KO) mice and found that Lin28a deficiency compromises the size of the germ cell pool in both males and females by affecting PGC proliferation during embryogenesis. Interestingly however, in Lin28a KO males the germ cell pool partially recovers during postnatal expansion, while fertility remains impaired in both males and females mated to wild type mice. Embryonic overexpression of let-7, a microRNA negatively regulated by Lin28a, reduces the germ cell pool, corroborating the role of the Lin28a/let-7 axis in regulating the germ lineage. PMID:23378032

Energy Pooling Upconversion in Free Space and Optical Cavities

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

LaCount, Michael D.

The ability to efficiently convert the wavelength of light has value in a wide range of disciplines that include the fields of photovoltaics, plant growth, optics and medicine. The processes by which such transformations are carried out are known as upconversions and downconversions. There are several ways to up/down convert light, each with its own attributes, issues, and competing mechanisms. Most are associated with one-body or two-body processes. Three-body dynamics are also possible though, going by the names of quantum cutting (downconversion) and energy pooling (upconversion). These use virtual excited electronic states to mediate conversions as has been experimentally realized using lanthanide ions embedded in wide bandgap materials. The use of lanthanides to convert light is not ideal due to their relative scarcity, toxicity, and the limited range of light frequencies that can be absorbed and emitted. Organic molecules, on the other hand, are typically non-toxic, are made up of abundant elements, and can be designed with tailored spectral properties. At issue is whether or not they can be used to carry out efficient energy pooling, the central question to be answered in this thesis. The research presented here draws on a perturbative quantum electrodynamics framework previously established for generic energy pooling. It was used to develop a computational methodology for determining the rate of energy pooling and its competing processes. This, in turn, draws on a combination of time-dependent density functional theory, quantum electrodynamics, and perturbation theory to generate the requisite material property data. This computational model was applied to two test systems consisting of stilbene-fluorescein and hexabenzocoronene-oligothiophene. The stilbene-fluorescein system was found to have a maximum energy pooling rate efficiency (as compared to competing processes) of 17% and the hexabenzocoronene-oligothiophene system was found to have a maximum energy pooling rate efficiency of 99%. This demonstrates that the energy pooling rate can be made faster than its competing processes. Based on the results of this study, a set of design rules was developed to optimize the rate efficiency of energy pooling. Prior to this research, no attempt had been made to determine if energy pooling could be made to out-pace competing processes--i.e. whether or not a molecular system could be designed to utilize energy pooling as an efficient means of upconversion. This initial investigation was part of a larger effort involving a team of researchers at the University of Colorado, Boulder and at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory. After establishing our computational proof-of-concept, we collectively used the new design rules to select an improved system for energy pooling. This consisted of rhodamine 6G and stilbene-420. These molecules were fabricated into a thin film, and the maximum internal quantum yield was measured to be 36% under sufficiently high intensity light. To further increase the efficiency of energy pooling, encapsulation within optical cavities was considered as a way of changing the rate of processes characterized by electric dipole-dipole coupling. This was carried out using a combination of classical electromagnetism, quantum electrodynamics, and perturbation theory. It was found that, in the near field, if the distance of the energy transfer is smaller than the distance from the energy transfer site and the cavity wall, then the electric dipole-dipole coupling tensor is not influenced by the cavity environment and the rates of energy transfer processes are the same as those in free space. Any increase in energy transfer efficiencies that are experimentally measured must therefore be caused by changing the rate of light absorption and emission. This is an important finding because earlier, less rigorous studies had concluded otherwise. It has been previously demonstrated that an optical cavity can be used to inhibit the spontaneous emission of atoms or molecules placed within it. This too was examined as a possible means of increasing energy pooling efficiency. Using first-principles methods, quantum electrodynamics, perturbation theory, and a kinetic model, the efficiency of energy pooling upconversion within a tuned rectangular cavity was found to be significantly larger than in free space. A model system with a free-space energy pooling upconversion efficiency of 23% was found to increase to 47% when placed in a tuned rectangular cavity.

Race, self-selection, and the job search process.

PubMed

Pager, Devah; Pedulla, David S

2015-01-01

While existing research has documented persistent barriers facing African-American job seekers, far less research has questioned how job seekers respond to this reality. Do minorities self-select into particular segments of the labor market to avoid discrimination? Such questions have remained unanswered due to the lack of data available on the positions to which job seekers apply. Drawing on two original data sets with application-specific information, we find little evidence that blacks target or avoid particular job types. Rather, blacks cast a wider net in their search than similarly situated whites, including a greater range of occupational categories and characteristics in their pool of job applications. Additionally, we show that perceptions of discrimination are associated with increased search breadth, suggesting that broad search among African-Americans represents an adaptation to labor market discrimination. Together these findings provide novel evidence on the role of race and self-selection in the job search process.

Race, Self-Selection, and the Job Search Process1

PubMed Central

Pager, Devah; Pedulla, David S.

2015-01-01

While existing research has documented persistent barriers facing African American job seekers, far less research has questioned how job seekers respond to this reality. Do minorities self-select into particular segments of the labor market to avoid discrimination? Such questions have remained unanswered due to the lack of data available on the positions to which job seekers apply. Drawing on two original datasets with application-specific information, we find little evidence that blacks target or avoid particular job types. Rather, blacks cast a wider net in their search than similarly situated whites, including a greater range of occupational categories and characteristics in their pool of job applications. Finally, we show that perceptions of discrimination are associated with increased search breadth, suggesting that broad search among African Americans represents an adaptation to labor market discrimination. Together these findings provide novel evidence on the role of race and self-selection in the job search process. PMID:26046224

Vertical Stability of Ephemeral Step-Pool Streams Largely Controlled By Tree Roots, Central Kentucky, USA

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Macmannis, K. R.; Hawley, R. J.

2013-12-01

The mechanisms controlling stability on small streams in steep settings are not well documented but have many implications related to stream integrity and water quality. For example, channel instability on first and second order streams is a potential source of sediment in regulated areas with Total Maximum Daily Loads (TMDLs) on water bodies that are impaired for sedimentation, such as the Chesapeake Bay. Management strategies that preserve stream integrity and protect channel stability are critical to communities that may otherwise require large capital investments to meet TMDLs and other water quality criteria. To contribute to an improved understanding of ephemeral step-pool systems, we collected detailed hydrogeomorphic data on 4 steep (0.06 - 0.12 meter/meter) headwater streams draining to lower relief alluvial valleys in Spencer County, Kentucky, USA. The step-pool streams (mean step height of 0.47 meter, mean step spacing of 4 meters) drained small undeveloped catchments dominated by early successional forest. Data collection for each of the 4 streams included 2 to 3 cross section surveys, bed material particle counts at cross section locations, and profile surveys ranging from approximately 125 to 225 meters in length. All survey data was systematically processed to understand geometric parameters such as cross sectional area, depth, and top width; bed material gradations; and detailed profile measurements such as slope, pool and riffle lengths, pool spacing, pool depth, step height, and step length. We documented the location, frequency, and type of step-forming materials (i.e., large woody debris (LWD), rock, and tree roots), compiling a database of approximately 130 total steps. Lastly, we recorded a detailed tree assessment of all trees located within 2 meters of the top of bank, detailing the species of tree, trunk diameter, and approximate distance from the top of bank. Analysis of geometric parameters illustrated correlations between channel characteristics (e.g., step height was positively correlated to slope while pool spacing was inversely correlated to slope). Most importantly, we assessed the step-forming materials with respect to channel stability. LWD has been widely documented as an important component of geomorphic stability and habitat diversity across many settings; however, our research highlights the importance of roots in providing bed stability in steep, first and second-order ephemeral streams, as 40 percent of the steps in these step-pool systems were controlled by tree roots. Similar to the key member in naturally-occurring log jams, lateral tree roots frequently served as the anchor for channel steps that were often supplemented by rocks or LWD. Assessment of the trees throughout the riparian zone suggested average tree densities of 0.30 trees/square meter or 0.40 trees/meter could provide adequate riparian zone coverage to promote channel stability. These results have implications to land use planning and stormwater management. For example, on developments draining to step-pool systems, maintaining the integrity of the riparian zone would seem to be as important as ensuring hydrologic mimicry if channel integrity is to be preserved.

Experimental analysis of 7.62 mm hydrodynamic ram in containers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Deletombe, E.; Fabis, J.; Dupas, J.; Mortier, J. M.

2013-02-01

The design of fuel tanks with a reduced vulnerability with respect to hydrodynamic ram pressure (HRAM) effects is of an increasing need in the Civil (e.g. the Concorde accident), and Defence (military aircraft, unmanned vehicle systems) aircraft industries. The presented work concerns experimental research which aims at observing two hydraulic ram events - both induced by a 7.62 mm bullet shot in very different containers - throughout their various steps until the final collapse of the generated cavity, in order to study the nature of HRAM, the influence of the containers geometry, and to measure original dynamic data for numerical modelling developments and validation. For that purpose, test configurations and experimental results are described, documented and discussed. They concern two types of firing tests that were performed at ONERA using the NATO 7.62 mm projectile, respectively in the frame of ONERA (pool) and EUCLID (caisson) funded research projects. The authors concentrate on two topics: on the one hand, digital image analysis to measure the cavity geometry during its growth and collapse phases and, on the other hand, pressure measurements that catch the transient shock wave. The originality of the work consists in the fact that - compared with other published works - the phenomenon is studied up to tens of milliseconds in a very large pool for theoretical analysis of the bullet/liquid interactions only, and in a realistic fuel tank specimen to consider influence of boundary conditions onto the cavity characteristics (geometry, dynamics).

Interfacial heat transfer in multiphase molten pools with gas injection

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bilbao Y Leon, Rosa Marina

1998-12-01

In the very unlikely event of a severe reactor accident involving core meltdown and pressure vessel failure, it is vital to identify the circumstances that would allow the molten core material to cool down and resolidify, bringing core debris to a safe and stable state. In this type of accident, the molten material which escapes from the reactor pressure vessel will accumulate as a molten pool in the reactor cavity below. To achieve coolability of the corium in this configuration it has been proposed to flood the cavity with water from above forming a layered structure where upward heat loss from the molten pool to the water will cause the core material to quench and solidify. The effectiveness of this procedure depends largely on the rate of upward heat loss as well as on the formation and stability of an upper crust. In this situation the molten pool becomes a three phase mixture: the solid and liquid slurry formed by the molten pool cooled to a temperature below the temperature of liquidus, agitated by the gases formed in the concrete ablation process. The present work quantifies the partition of the heat losses upward and downward considering the influence of the solid fraction in the pool and the viscosity effects, and the rate of heat loss through a solid layer. To complete this task a intermediate scale experimental test section has been designed and built at the University of Wisconsin - Madison, in which simulant materials are used to model the process of heat and mass transfer which involves the molten pool, the solid layer atop and the coolant layer above. The design includes volumetric heating, gas injection from the bottom and solids within the pool. New experimental results showing the heat transfer behavior for pools with different viscosities and various solid fractions are presented. The current results indicate a power split which favors heat transfer upward to the coolant simulant above by a 2:1 or 3:1 ratio. In addition, the power split is unaffected by the viscosity of the pool, the solid fractions in the pool and the superficial velocity.

Evaluation of the use of nonesterified fatty acids and β-hydroxybutyrate concentrations in pooled serum samples for herd-based detection of subclinical ketosis in dairy cows during the first week after parturition.

PubMed

Borchardt, Stefan; Staufenbiel, Rudolf

2012-04-15

To evaluate the use of nonesterified fatty acids (NEFA) and β-hydroxybutyrate (BHBA) concentrations in pooled serum samples for herd-based detection of subclinical ketosis (SCK) in dairy cows after calving. Cross-sectional study. 1,100 dairy cows from 110 herds. Blood samples were collected from 10 healthy cows/herd in the first week after parturition. Aliquots of serum were mixed to create a pooled sample. Concentrations of NEFA and BHBA were measured to estimate prevalence of SCK. Pooled sample test results were compared with those obtained for individual samples. Linear regression and receiver-operating characteristic curve analysis were performed; Bland-Altman plots were used to evaluate agreement between methods. Overall prevalence of SCK was 30.7%, 19.3%, and 13.6%, as determined by use of BHBA threshold concentrations of 1,000, 1,200, and 1,400 μmol/L, respectively. Pooled sample concentrations of NEFA and BHBA were significantly correlated (r = 0.98 and 0.97, respectively) with individual sample means and with the number of cows that had NEFA (R(2) range, 0.81 to 0.84) or BHBA (R(2) range, 0.65 to 0.76) concentrations above predefined thresholds. Pooled sample concentrations of NEFA and BHBA were very accurate to highly accurate for herd-based detection of SCK. Analysis of NEFA and BHBA concentrations in pooled serum samples was useful for herd-based detection of SCK. A sample size of 10 cows/herd was deemed adequate for monitoring dairy herds for SCK. Reference criteria specific to pooled samples should be used for this type of herd-based testing.

The role of cold pools in tropical convective systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Grant, Leah; Lane, Todd; van den Heever, Susan

2017-04-01

Convective systems in the tropics have received less attention than their midlatitude counterparts, despite their important influences on the global circulation and the state of the tropical atmosphere. It is widely accepted that cold pools play key roles in the intensity, maintenance, and propagation of midlatitude organized convective systems. In the tropics, however, cold pools are weaker because the boundary layer is more humid, and the cold pools may interact with the convective systems differently than in the classic midlatitude system archetype, as suggested by recent studies. The goal of this research is to investigate the physical mechanisms by which cold pools impact tropical convective system intensity and propagation. To address this goal, a simulation of radiative-convective equilibrium (RCE) on a large (3000 km by 200 km) channel domain with an ocean SST of 300 K was conducted at 1 km horizontal resolution, as an idealized representation of the tropical atmosphere. Two different long-lived, organized convective systems - one more intense than the other - were selected from the base RCE simulation and simulated at higher (250 m horizontal) resolution. Next, the cold pools were effectively eliminated by shutting off the sub-cloud evaporation, in order to elucidate their roles in the convective systems' behavior. Surprisingly, the cold pools did not impact the propagation of either convective system. However, they did impact the intensities - cold pools acted to weaken one system but intensify the other system. Through composite analysis and additional simulations including tracers within the cold pools, the physical mechanisms explaining these results have been analyzed and will be presented.

Design of association studies with pooled or un-pooled next-generation sequencing data.

PubMed

Kim, Su Yeon; Li, Yingrui; Guo, Yiran; Li, Ruiqiang; Holmkvist, Johan; Hansen, Torben; Pedersen, Oluf; Wang, Jun; Nielsen, Rasmus

2010-07-01

Most common hereditary diseases in humans are complex and multifactorial. Large-scale genome-wide association studies based on SNP genotyping have only identified a small fraction of the heritable variation of these diseases. One explanation may be that many rare variants (a minor allele frequency, MAF <5%), which are not included in the common genotyping platforms, may contribute substantially to the genetic variation of these diseases. Next-generation sequencing, which would allow the analysis of rare variants, is now becoming so cheap that it provides a viable alternative to SNP genotyping. In this paper, we present cost-effective protocols for using next-generation sequencing in association mapping studies based on pooled and un-pooled samples, and identify optimal designs with respect to total number of individuals, number of individuals per pool, and the sequencing coverage. We perform a small empirical study to evaluate the pooling variance in a realistic setting where pooling is combined with exon-capturing. To test for associations, we develop a likelihood ratio statistic that accounts for the high error rate of next-generation sequencing data. We also perform extensive simulations to determine the power and accuracy of this method. Overall, our findings suggest that with a fixed cost, sequencing many individuals at a more shallow depth with larger pool size achieves higher power than sequencing a small number of individuals in higher depth with smaller pool size, even in the presence of high error rates. Our results provide guidelines for researchers who are developing association mapping studies based on next-generation sequencing. (c) 2010 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

Transportation pooled fund project: energy sector developments.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2016-08-01

The purpose of this research is to provide a mechanism for partner states to share information and experiences concerning responses to energy sector developments, and identify : areas for needed research.

49 CFR 192.16 - Customer notification.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

... ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION (CONTINUED) PIPELINE SAFETY TRANSPORTATION OF NATURAL AND OTHER GAS... serve yard lanterns, pool heaters, or other types of secondary equipment. Also, “maintain” means monitor...

Research Project for Increasing the Pool of Minority Engineers

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Gott, Susan F. (Technical Monitor); Rogers, Decatur B.

2003-01-01

The NASA Glenn Research Center (GRC) funded the 2001-2002 Tennessee State University (TSU) Research Project for increasing the pool of minority engineers. The NASA GRC/TSU Research Project is designed to develop a cadre of SMET professionals who have academic and research expertise in technical areas of interest to NASA, in addition to having some familiarity with the mission of the NASA Glenn Research Center. The goal of increasing minority participation in SMET disciplines was accomplished by: (1) introducing and exposing 96 minority youth to Science, Math, Engineering, and Technology (SMET) careers and to the required high school preparation necessary to make high school graduation, college attendance and engineering careers a reality through the campus based pre-college SMET program: Minority Introduction to Engineering (MITE); (2) by providing financial support through scholarships for four (4) TSU engineering students to NASA; (3) familiarization with the SMET profession and with NASA through summer internships at NASA GRC for two TSU NASA Glenn Research Scholars; and experiences through research internships at NASA GRC.

Effects of land use on arbuscular mycorrhizal fungal communities in Estonia.

PubMed

Sepp, Siim-Kaarel; Jairus, Teele; Vasar, Martti; Zobel, Martin; Öpik, Maarja

2018-04-01

Arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungal communities vary across habitat types, as well as across different land use types. Most relevant research, however, has focused on agricultural or other severely human-impacted ecosystems. Here, we compared AM fungal communities across six habitat types: calcareous grassland, overgrown ungrazed calcareous grassland, wooded meadow, farmyard lawn, boreonemoral forest, and boreonemoral forest clear-cut, exhibiting contrasting modes of land use. AM fungi in the roots of a single host plant species, Prunella vulgaris, and in its rhizosphere soil were identified using 454-sequencing from a total of 103 samples from 12 sites in Estonia. Mean AM fungal taxon richness per sample did not differ among habitats. AM fungal community composition, however, was significantly different among habitat types. Both abandonment and land use intensification (clearcutting; trampling combined with frequent mowing) changed AM fungal community composition. The AM fungal communities in different habitat types were most similar in the roots of the single host plant species and most distinct in soil samples, suggesting a non-random pattern in host-fungal taxon interactions. The results show that AM fungal taxon composition is driven by habitat type and land use intensity, while the plant host may act as an additional filter between the available and realized AM fungal species pool.

Epistasis in intra- and inter-gene pool crosses of the common bean.

PubMed

Borel, J C; Ramalho, M A P; Abreu, A F B

2016-02-26

Epistasis has been shown to have an important role in the genetic control of several quantitative traits in the common bean. This study aimed to investigate the occurrence of epistasis in intra- and inter-pool gene crosses of the common bean. Four elite lines adapted to Brazilian conditions were used as parents, two from the Andean gene pool (ESAL 686; BRS Radiante) and two from the Mesoamerican gene pool (BRSMG Majestoso; BRS Valente). Four F2 populations were obtained: "A" (ESAL 686 x BRS Radiante), "B" (BRSMG Majestoso x BRS Valente), "C" (BRS Radiante x BRSMG Majestoso), and "D" (BRS Valente x ESAL 686). A random sample of F2 plants from each population was backcrossed to parents and F1 individuals, according to the triple test cross. Three types of progenies from each population were evaluated in contiguous trials. Seed yield and 100-seed weight were evaluated. Dominance genetic variance was predominant in most cases. However, the estimates of genetic variance may be biased by the occurrence of linkage disequilibrium and epistasis. Epistasis was detected for both traits; however, the occurrence differed among the populations and between the two traits. The results of this study reinforce the hypothesis that epistasis is present in the genetic control of traits in the common bean and suggest that the phenomenon is more frequent in inter-gene pool crosses than in intra-gene pool crosses.

Intelligent Information Fusion in the Aviation Domain: A Semantic-Web based Approach

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ashish, Naveen; Goforth, Andre

2005-01-01

Information fusion from multiple sources is a critical requirement for System Wide Information Management in the National Airspace (NAS). NASA and the FAA envision creating an "integrated pool" of information originally coming from different sources, which users, intelligent agents and NAS decision support tools can tap into. In this paper we present the results of our initial investigations into the requirements and prototype development of such an integrated information pool for the NAS. We have attempted to ascertain key requirements for such an integrated pool based on a survey of DSS tools that will benefit from this integrated pool. We then advocate key technologies from computer science research areas such as the semantic web, information integration, and intelligent agents that we believe are well suited to achieving the envisioned system wide information management capabilities.

RELAP5 Analysis of the Hybrid Loop-Pool Design for Sodium Cooled Fast Reactors

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

Hongbin Zhang; Haihua Zhao; Cliff Davis

2008-06-01

An innovative hybrid loop-pool design for sodium cooled fast reactors (SFR-Hybrid) has been recently proposed. This design takes advantage of the inherent safety of a pool design and the compactness of a loop design to improve economics and safety of SFRs. In the hybrid loop-pool design, primary loops are formed by connecting the reactor outlet plenum (hot pool), intermediate heat exchangers (IHX), primary pumps and the reactor inlet plenum with pipes. The primary loops are immersed in the cold pool (buffer pool). Passive safety systems -- modular Pool Reactor Auxiliary Cooling Systems (PRACS) – are added to transfer decay heatmore » from the primary system to the buffer pool during loss of forced circulation (LOFC) transients. The primary systems and the buffer pool are thermally coupled by the PRACS, which is composed of PRACS heat exchangers (PHX), fluidic diodes and connecting pipes. Fluidic diodes are simple, passive devices that provide large flow resistance in one direction and small flow resistance in reverse direction. Direct reactor auxiliary cooling system (DRACS) heat exchangers (DHX) are immersed in the cold pool to transfer decay heat to the environment by natural circulation. To prove the design concepts, especially how the passive safety systems behave during transients such as LOFC with scram, a RELAP5-3D model for the hybrid loop-pool design was developed. The simulations were done for both steady-state and transient conditions. This paper presents the details of RELAP5-3D analysis as well as the calculated thermal response during LOFC with scram. The 250 MW thermal power conventional pool type design of GNEP’s Advanced Burner Test Reactor (ABTR) developed by Argonne National Laboratory was used as the reference reactor core and primary loop design. The reactor inlet temperature is 355 °C and the outlet temperature is 510 °C. The core design is the same as that for ABTR. The steady state buffer pool temperature is the same as the reactor inlet temperature. The peak cladding, hot pool, cold pool and reactor inlet temperatures were calculated during LOFC. The results indicate that there are two phases during LOFC transient – the initial thermal equilibration phase and the long term decay heat removal phase. The initial thermal equilibration phase occurs over a few hundred seconds, as the system adjusts from forced circulation to natural circulation flow. Subsequently, during long-term heat removal phase all temperatures evolve very slowly due to the large thermal inertia of the primary and buffer pool systems. The results clearly show that passive safety PRACS can effectively transfer decay heat from the primary system to the buffer pool by natural circulation. The DRACS system in turn can effectively transfer the decay heat to the environment.« less

Development and Content Validation of the Transition Readiness Inventory Item Pool for Adolescent and Young Adult Survivors of Childhood Cancer.

PubMed

Schwartz, Lisa A; Hamilton, Jessica L; Brumley, Lauren D; Barakat, Lamia P; Deatrick, Janet A; Szalda, Dava E; Bevans, Katherine B; Tucker, Carole A; Daniel, Lauren C; Butler, Eliana; Kazak, Anne E; Hobbie, Wendy L; Ginsberg, Jill P; Psihogios, Alexandra M; Ver Hoeve, Elizabeth; Tuchman, Lisa K

2017-10-01

The development of the Transition Readiness Inventory (TRI) item pool for adolescent and young adult childhood cancer survivors is described, aiming to both advance transition research and provide an example of the application of NIH Patient Reported Outcomes Information System methods. Using rigorous measurement development methods including mixed methods, patient and parent versions of the TRI item pool were created based on the Social-ecological Model of Adolescent and young adult Readiness for Transition (SMART). Each stage informed development and refinement of the item pool. Content validity ratings and cognitive interviews resulted in 81 content valid items for the patient version and 85 items for the parent version. TRI represents the first multi-informant, rigorously developed transition readiness item pool that comprehensively measures the social-ecological components of transition readiness. Discussion includes clinical implications, the application of TRI and the methods to develop the item pool to other populations, and next steps for further validation and refinement. © The Author 2017. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Society of Pediatric Psychology. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com

Trends in ecological research during the last three decades--a systematic review.

PubMed

Carmel, Yohay; Kent, Rafi; Bar-Massada, Avi; Blank, Lior; Liberzon, Jonathan; Nezer, Oded; Sapir, Gill; Federman, Roy

2013-01-01

It is thought that the science of ecology has experienced conceptual shifts in recent decades, chiefly from viewing nature as static and balanced to a conception of constantly changing, unpredictable, complex ecosystems. Here, we ask if these changes are reflected in actual ecological research over the last 30 years. We surveyed 750 articles from the entire pool of ecological literature and 750 articles from eight leading journals. Each article was characterized according to its type, ecological domain, and applicability, and major topics. We found that, in contrast to its common image, ecology is still mostly a study of single species (70% of the studies); while ecosystem and community studies together comprise only a quarter of ecological research. Ecological science is somewhat conservative in its topics of research (about a third of all topics changed significantly through time), as well as in its basic methodologies and approaches. However, the growing proportion of problem-solving studies (from 9% in the 1980s to 20% in the 2000 s) may represent a major transition in ecological science in the long run.

Trends in Ecological Research during the Last Three Decades – A Systematic Review

PubMed Central

Carmel, Yohay; Kent, Rafi; Bar-Massada, Avi; Blank, Lior; Liberzon, Jonathan; Nezer, Oded; Sapir, Gill; Federman, Roy

2013-01-01

It is thought that the science of ecology has experienced conceptual shifts in recent decades, chiefly from viewing nature as static and balanced to a conception of constantly changing, unpredictable, complex ecosystems. Here, we ask if these changes are reflected in actual ecological research over the last 30 years. We surveyed 750 articles from the entire pool of ecological literature and 750 articles from eight leading journals. Each article was characterized according to its type, ecological domain, and applicability, and major topics. We found that, in contrast to its common image, ecology is still mostly a study of single species (70% of the studies); while ecosystem and community studies together comprise only a quarter of ecological research. Ecological science is somewhat conservative in its topics of research (about a third of all topics changed significantly through time), as well as in its basic methodologies and approaches. However, the growing proportion of problem-solving studies (from 9% in the 1980s to 20% in the 2000 s) may represent a major transition in ecological science in the long run. PMID:23637740

Cigarette smoking and risk of ovarian cancer: a pooled analysis of 21 case–control studies

PubMed Central

Faber, Mette T.; Kjær, Susanne K.; Dehlendorff, Christian; Chang-Claude, Jenny; Andersen, Klaus K.; Høgdall, Estrid; Webb, Penelope M.; Jordan, Susan J.; Rossing, Mary Anne; Doherty, Jennifer A.; Lurie, Galina; Thompson, Pamela J.; Carney, Michael E.; Goodman, Marc T.; Ness, Roberta B.; Modugnos, Francesmary; Edwards, Robert P.; Bunker, Clareann H.; Goode, Ellen L.; Fridley, Brooke L.; Vierkant, Robert A.; Larson, Melissa C.; Schildkraut, Joellen; Cramer, Daniel W.; Terry, Kathryn L.; Vitonis, Allison F.; Bandera, Elisa V.; Olson, Sara H.; King, Melony; Chandran, Urmila; Kiemeney, Lambertus A.; Massuger, Leon F. A. G.; van Altena, Anne M.; Vermeulen, Sita H.; Brinton, Louise; Wentzensen, Nicolas; Lissowska, Jolanta; Yang, Hannah P.; Moysich, Kirsten B.; Odunsi, Kunle; Kasza, Karin; Odunsi-Akanji, Oluwatosin; Song, Honglin; Pharaoh, Paul; Shah, Mitul; Whittemore, Alice S.; McGuire, Valerie; Sieh, Weiva; Sutphen, Rebecca; Menon, Usha; Gayther, Simon A.; Ramus, Susan J.; Gentry-Maharaj, Aleksandra; Pearce, Celeste Leigh; Wu, Anna H.; Pike, Malcolm C.; Risch, Harvey A.

2013-01-01

Purpose The majority of previous studies have observed an increased risk of mucinous ovarian tumors associated with cigarette smoking, but the association with other histological types is unclear. In a large pooled analysis, we examined the risk of epithelial ovarian cancer associated with multiple measures of cigarette smoking with a focus on characterizing risks according to tumor behavior and histology. Methods We used data from 21 case–control studies of ovarian cancer (19,066 controls, 11,972 invasive and 2,752 borderline cases). Study-specific odds ratios (OR) and 95 % confidence intervals (CI) were obtained from logistic regression models and combined into a pooled odds ratio using a random effects model. Results Current cigarette smoking increased the risk of invasive mucinous (OR = 1.31; 95 % CI: 1.03–1.65) and borderline mucinous ovarian tumors (OR = 1.83; 95 % CI: 1.39–2.41), while former smoking increased the risk of borderline serous ovarian tumors (OR = 1.30; 95 % CI: 1.12–1.50). For these histological types, consistent dose– response associations were observed. No convincing associations between smoking and risk of invasive serous and endometrioid ovarian cancer were observed, while our results provided some evidence of a decreased risk of invasive clear cell ovarian cancer. Conclusions Our results revealed marked differences in the risk profiles of histological types of ovarian cancer with regard to cigarette smoking, although the magnitude of the observed associations was modest. Our findings, which may reflect different etiologies of the histological types, add to the fact that ovarian cancer is a heterogeneous disease. PMID:23456270

Heterogeneity in leaf litter decomposition in a temporary Mediterranean stream during flow fragmentation.

PubMed

Abril, Meritxell; Muñoz, Isabel; Menéndez, Margarita

2016-05-15

In temporary Mediterranean streams, flow fragmentation during summer droughts originates an ephemeral mosaic of terrestrial and aquatic habitat types. The heterogeneity of habitat types implies a particular ecosystem functioning in temporary streams that is still poorly understood. We assessed the initial phases of leaf litter decomposition in selected habitat types: running waters, isolated pools and moist and dry streambed sediments. We used coarse-mesh litter bags containing Populus nigra leaves to examine decomposition rates, microbial biomass, macroinvertebrate abundance and dissolved organic carbon (DOC) release rates in each habitat type over an 11-day period in late summer. We detected faster decomposition rates in aquatic (running waters and isolated pools) than in terrestrial habitats (moist and dry streambed sediments). Under aquatic conditions, decomposition was characterized by intense leaching and early microbial colonization, which swiftly started to decompose litter. Microbial colonization in isolated pools was primarily dominated by bacteria, whereas in running waters fungal biomass predominated. Under terrestrial conditions, leaves were most often affected by abiotic processes that resulted in small mass losses. We found a substantial decrease in DOC release rates in both aquatic habitats within the first days of the study, whereas DOC release rates remained relatively stable in the moist and dry sediments. This suggests that leaves play different roles as a DOC source during and after flow fragmentation. Overall, our results revealed that leaf decomposition is heterogeneous during flow fragmentation, which has implications related to DOC utilization that should be considered in future regional carbon budgets. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Clinical Research That Matters: Designing Outcome-Based Research for Older Adults to Qualify for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses.

PubMed

Lee, Jeannie K; Fosnight, Susan M; Estus, Erica L; Evans, Paula J; Pho, Victoria B; Reidt, Shannon; Reist, Jeffrey C; Ruby, Christine M; Sibicky, Stephanie L; Wheeler, Janel B

2018-01-01

Though older adults are more sensitive to the effects of medications than their younger counterparts, they are often excluded from manufacturer-based clinical studies. Practice-based research is a practical method to identify medication-related effects in older patients. This research also highlights the role of a pharmacist in improving care in this population. A single study rarely has strong enough evidence to change geriatric practice, unless it is a large-scale, multisite, randomized controlled trial that specifically targets older adults. It is important to design studies that may be used in systematic reviews or meta-analyses that build a stronger evidence base. Recent literature has documented a gap in advanced pharmacist training pertaining to research skills. In this paper, we hope to fill some of the educational gaps related to research in older adults. We define best practices when deciding on the type of study, inclusion and exclusion criteria, design of the intervention, how outcomes are measured, and how results are reported. Well-designed studies increase the pool of available data to further document the important role that pharmacists have in optimizing care of older patients.

Nitrogen release from rock and soil under simulated field conditions

USGS Publications Warehouse

Holloway, J.M.; Dahlgren, R.A.; Casey, W.H.

2001-01-01

A laboratory study was performed to simulate field weathering and nitrogen release from bedrock in a setting where geologic nitrogen has been suspected to be a large local source of nitrate. Two rock types containing nitrogen, slate (1370 mg N kg-1) and greenstone (480 mg N kg-1), were used along with saprolite and BC horizon sand from soils derived from these rock types. The fresh rock and weathered material were used in batch reactors that were leached every 30 days over 6 months to simulate a single wet season. Nitrogen was released from rock and soil materials at rates between 10-20 and 10-19 mo1 N cm-2 s-1. Results from the laboratory dissolution experiments were compared to in situ soil solutions and available mineral nitrogen pools from the BC horizon of both soils. Concentrations of mineral nitrogen (NO3- + NH4+) in soil solutions reached the highest levels at the beginning of the rainy season and progressively decreased with increased leaching. This seasonal pattern was repeated for the available mineral nitrogen pool that was extracted using a KCl solution. Estimates based on these laboratory release rates bracket stream water NO3-N fluxes and changes in the available mineral nitrogen pool over the active leaching period. These results confirm that geologic nitrogen, when present, may be a large and reactive pool that may contribute as a non-point source of nitrate contamination to surface and ground waters. ?? 2001 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.

Compendium of Operations Research and Economic Analysis Studies.

DTIC Science & Technology

1988-09-01

Project 6034 ) 88-19. Enhanced DLA Distribution System (EDDS) - "Pooling" (June 1988) This study looked at the "pooling" concept as proposed under the EIDDS...1-3., Mi3 1 1 ionl. 81-19. LLt Warenousia, tiju Stkrj’.te t\\UL~jidJ’L ytot!ai .ca Analysis (mady 1961) *This r elpr L dOUCctIens anl UCOnIO:li

High field conduction in Pb doped amorphous Se-Te system

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Anjali, Patial, Balbir Singh; Thakur, Nagesh

2018-05-01

In the present study, DC conductivity measurements of as-Se80-xTe20Pbx (x = 0, 1 and 2) glassy alloys are made in the temperature range 298-318 K and in the voltage range 0-180 V. Current-voltage (I-V) characteristics point toward ohmic behavior at low electric field and non-ohmic is observed at high electric field. The variation of ln(I/V) against V are nearly found straight curves but slope of these curves does not decrease linearly with temperature indicates that the space charge limited conduction (SCLC) is absent. Instead the linear relation between ln(I) and V1/2 confirms that the conduction is either Poole-Frenkel type or Schottky emission. A detailed analysis shows that the dominant mechanism is Poole-Frenkel type conduction.

Ecosystem vs. community recovery 25 years after grass invasions and fire in a subtropical woodland

USGS Publications Warehouse

D'Antonio, Carla M.; Yelenik, Stephanie G.; Mack, Michelle C.

2017-01-01

Despite a large body of research documenting invasive plant impacts, few studies have followed individual invaded sites over decades to observe how they change, and none have contrasted how compositional impacts from invasion compare to ecosystem-process impacts over a multi-decadal time-scale. Using direct measurements of plant density and composition and of ecosystems processes, we evaluate how ecosystem structure, above-ground net primary production (ANPP), and above-ground and soil nutrient pools compare over 25 years since fire and C4 grass invasions disrupted seasonally dry Hawaiian woodlands. We compare structure and function between primary woodland that has never burned and is largely native species-dominated, with sites that had been the same woodland type but burned in alien-grass-fuelled fires in the 1970s and 1980s. The sites have not experienced fires since 1987. We report here that woody plant composition and structure continue to be dramatically changed by the initial invasions and fires that occurred 25 years ago and invaders continue to dominate in burned sites. This is reflected in continued low plant carbon pools in burned compared to unburned sites. Yet ANPP and N storage, which were dramatically lower in the initial decade after invasive-grass fuelled fires, have increased and are now indistinguishable from values measured in intact woodlands. Soil carbon pools were resilient to both invasion and fire initially and over time. Above-ground net primary production has recovered because of invasion of burned sites by a non-native N-fixing tree rather than because of recovery of native species. This invasive N-fixing tree is unlikely to return C storage of the invaded sites to those of unburned woodland because of its tissue and growth characteristics and its interactions with invasive grasses. It does not facilitate native species but rather promotes a persistent invasive grass/N-fixer savanna. Synthesis. We conclude that fire, an unusual disturbance in this system, has perpetuated the dominance of these sites by invasive species and that despite the dramatic recovery of above-ground net primary production and N pools, the ecosystem continues to be in a distinctly different state than the pre-fire, pre-Melinis community. Thus, despite the absence of further disturbance (fire), there is no evidence that succession towards the original ecosystem is occurring. The fact that N pools and above-ground net primary production recover because of a new invader (Morella faya), highlights the unpredictability of ecosystem trajectories in the face of altered regional species pools.

Carriers

MedlinePlus

... Funding Opportunities Research Conference Recruit for Clinical Trials Research Publications Spinraza Support & Care For Newly Diagnosed Care Packages Information Packets Equipment Pool Living With SMA Medical Issues Palliative Breathing Orthopedics Nutrition Equipment Daily Life At School At Home ...

Late Effects of Polio: An Overview

MedlinePlus

... Nurses Exercise for Polio Survivors Anesthesia Concerns Pool/Water Therapy Other Resources Reports & CD from Task Force Medical/Clinical Publications ADVOCACY Issues Organizations Resources RESEARCH About The Research Fund New Request for 2018 ...

Type I and II Endometrial Cancers: Have They Different Risk Factors?

PubMed Central

Setiawan, Veronica Wendy; Yang, Hannah P.; Pike, Malcolm C.; McCann, Susan E.; Yu, Herbert; Xiang, Yong-Bing; Wolk, Alicja; Wentzensen, Nicolas; Weiss, Noel S.; Webb, Penelope M.; van den Brandt, Piet A.; van de Vijver, Koen; Thompson, Pamela J.; Strom, Brian L.; Spurdle, Amanda B.; Soslow, Robert A.; Shu, Xiao-ou; Schairer, Catherine; Sacerdote, Carlotta; Rohan, Thomas E.; Robien, Kim; Risch, Harvey A.; Ricceri, Fulvio; Rebbeck, Timothy R.; Rastogi, Radhai; Prescott, Jennifer; Polidoro, Silvia; Park, Yikyung; Olson, Sara H.; Moysich, Kirsten B.; Miller, Anthony B.; McCullough, Marjorie L.; Matsuno, Rayna K.; Magliocco, Anthony M.; Lurie, Galina; Lu, Lingeng; Lissowska, Jolanta; Liang, Xiaolin; Lacey, James V.; Kolonel, Laurence N.; Henderson, Brian E.; Hankinson, Susan E.; Håkansson, Niclas; Goodman, Marc T.; Gaudet, Mia M.; Garcia-Closas, Montserrat; Friedenreich, Christine M.; Freudenheim, Jo L.; Doherty, Jennifer; De Vivo, Immaculata; Courneya, Kerry S.; Cook, Linda S.; Chen, Chu; Cerhan, James R.; Cai, Hui; Brinton, Louise A.; Bernstein, Leslie; Anderson, Kristin E.; Anton-Culver, Hoda; Schouten, Leo J.; Horn-Ross, Pamela L.

2013-01-01

Purpose Endometrial cancers have long been divided into estrogen-dependent type I and the less common clinically aggressive estrogen-independent type II. Little is known about risk factors for type II tumors because most studies lack sufficient cases to study these much less common tumors separately. We examined whether so-called classical endometrial cancer risk factors also influence the risk of type II tumors. Patients and Methods Individual-level data from 10 cohort and 14 case-control studies from the Epidemiology of Endometrial Cancer Consortium were pooled. A total of 14,069 endometrial cancer cases and 35,312 controls were included. We classified endometrioid (n = 7,246), adenocarcinoma not otherwise specified (n = 4,830), and adenocarcinoma with squamous differentiation (n = 777) as type I tumors and serous (n = 508) and mixed cell (n = 346) as type II tumors. Results Parity, oral contraceptive use, cigarette smoking, age at menarche, and diabetes were associated with type I and type II tumors to similar extents. Body mass index, however, had a greater effect on type I tumors than on type II tumors: odds ratio (OR) per 2 kg/m2 increase was 1.20 (95% CI, 1.19 to 1.21) for type I and 1.12 (95% CI, 1.09 to 1.14) for type II tumors (Pheterogeneity < .0001). Risk factor patterns for high-grade endometrioid tumors and type II tumors were similar. Conclusion The results of this pooled analysis suggest that the two endometrial cancer types share many common etiologic factors. The etiology of type II tumors may, therefore, not be completely estrogen independent, as previously believed. PMID:23733771

Bayesian Analysis of Silica Exposure and Lung Cancer Using Human and Animal Studies.

PubMed

Bartell, Scott M; Hamra, Ghassan Badri; Steenland, Kyle

2017-03-01

Bayesian methods can be used to incorporate external information into epidemiologic exposure-response analyses of silica and lung cancer. We used data from a pooled mortality analysis of silica and lung cancer (n = 65,980), using untransformed and log-transformed cumulative exposure. Animal data came from chronic silica inhalation studies using rats. We conducted Bayesian analyses with informative priors based on the animal data and different cross-species extrapolation factors. We also conducted analyses with exposure measurement error corrections in the absence of a gold standard, assuming Berkson-type error that increased with increasing exposure. The pooled animal data exposure-response coefficient was markedly higher (log exposure) or lower (untransformed exposure) than the coefficient for the pooled human data. With 10-fold uncertainty, the animal prior had little effect on results for pooled analyses and only modest effects in some individual studies. One-fold uncertainty produced markedly different results for both pooled and individual studies. Measurement error correction had little effect in pooled analyses using log exposure. Using untransformed exposure, measurement error correction caused a 5% decrease in the exposure-response coefficient for the pooled analysis and marked changes in some individual studies. The animal prior had more impact for smaller human studies and for one-fold versus three- or 10-fold uncertainty. Adjustment for Berkson error using Bayesian methods had little effect on the exposure-response coefficient when exposure was log transformed or when the sample size was large. See video abstract at, http://links.lww.com/EDE/B160.

Passive shut-down heat removal system

DOEpatents

Hundal, Rolv; Sharbaugh, John E.

1988-01-01

An improved shut-down heat removal system for a liquid metal nuclear reactor of the type having a vessel for holding hot and cold pools of liquid sodium is disclosed herein. Generally, the improved system comprises a redan or barrier within the reactor vessel which allows an auxiliary heat exchanger to become immersed in liquid sodium from the hot pool whenever the reactor pump fails to generate a metal-circulating pressure differential between the hot and cold pools of sodium. This redan also defines an alternative circulation path between the hot and cold pools of sodium in order to equilibrate the distribution of the decay heat from the reactor core. The invention may take the form of a redan or barrier that circumscribes the inner wall of the reactor vessel, thereby defining an annular space therebetween. In this embodiment, the bottom of the annular space communicates with the cold pool of sodium, and the auxiliary heat exchanger is placed in this annular space just above the drawn-down level that the liquid sodium assumes during normal operating conditions. Alternatively, the redan of the invention may include a pair of vertically oriented, concentrically disposed standpipes having a piston member disposed between them that operates somewhat like a pressure-sensitive valve. In both embodiments, the cessation of the pressure differential that is normally created by the reactor pump causes the auxiliary heat exchanger to be immersed in liquid sodium from the hot pool. Additionally, the redan in both embodiments forms a circulation flow path between the hot and cold pools so that the decay heat from the nuclear core is uniformly distributed within the vessel.

A Clear Vision.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fawcett, Paul

2000-01-01

Explores the process of keeping pool water safe and healthful through careful planning of filter purchases and replacement. Deciding when filters need replacing, the type of filter required, and installation planning are discussed. (GR)

Effect of pooled comparative information on judgments of quality

PubMed Central

Baumgart, Leigh A.; Bass, Ellen J.; Voss, John D.; Lyman, Jason A.

2015-01-01

Quality assessment is the focus of many health care initiatives. Yet it is not well understood how the type of information used in decision support tools to enable judgments of quality based on data impacts the accuracy, consistency and reliability of judgments made by physicians. Comparative pooled information could allow physicians to judge the quality of their practice by making comparisons to other practices or other specific populations of patients. In this study, resident physicians were provided with varying types of information derived from pooled patient data sets: quality component measures at the individual and group level, a qualitative interpretation of the quality measures using percentile rank, and an aggregate composite quality score. 32 participants viewed thirty quality profiles consisting of information applicable to the practice of thirty de-identified resident physicians. Those provided with quality component measures and a qualitative interpretation of the quality measures (rankings) judged quality of care more similarly to experts and were more internally consistent compared to participants who were provided with quality component measures alone. Reliability between participants was significantly less for those who were provided with a composite quality score compared to those who were not. PMID:26949581

Using Data Pooling to Measure the Density of Sodas: An Introductory Discovery Experiment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Herrick, Richard S.; Nestor, Lisa P.; Benedetto, David A.

1999-10-01

We have developed an experiment in which students measure the density of Coke and Diet Coke. In the first part of the experiment they make measurements using a buret, pipet, and graduated cylinder. The density data are pooled and plotted for each type of glassware. Students discover that Coke and Diet Coke have different densities. Discussion of the data also shows students the relative advantages and disadvantages of each type of apparatus and introduces them to the concept of error analysis. In the second half of the experiment each student uses a buret to accurately measure an assigned volume of either Coke or Diet Coke. Volumes in the range of 2 to 30 mL are assigned. These data are pooled. The slope of the mass-vs-volume plot provides an accurate measurement of the density and also shows that density is an intensive property. The difference in densities is due to the large amount of sugar in Coke compared to the relatively small amount of artificial sweetener in Diet Coke. Information read from soda cans is used to estimate the accuracy of these measurements. This experiment is used as the first experiment for college science students.

Population data of six STR loci using hexaplex PCR amplification and typing system, "Midi-6" in four regional populations in Japan.

PubMed

Uchihi, Rieko; Yamamoto, Toshimichi; Yoshimoto, Takashi; Inoue, Chikako; Kishida, Tetsuko; Yoshioka, Naofumi; Katsumata, Yoshinao

2007-07-04

The genetic differences of the allele frequency distributions for six STR loci (D20S480, D6S2439, D6S1056, D9S1118, D4S2639, and D17S1290) among regions in Japan were examined using our recently designed hexaplex amplification and typing system, "Midi-6" newly named, to construct a database in the Japanese population. Genotypes at six loci were analyzed in 198, 200, 175, and 196 individuals from the area of Akita, Nagoya, Oita, and Okinawa, respectively, in Japan. The allele frequency distributions were significantly different (p<0.05) at from one to five loci among the four populations when compared pairwise. Significant differences were also observed at two or three loci between Oita- or Okinawa-Japanese and the "pooled" population (n=769), respectively. However, since F(ST) (theta) values were extremely low (<0.05), ranging from 0.0020 to 0.0118 for six loci, genetic differentiation within the pooled Japanese population was negligible. Therefore, it suggested that the data of the allele frequencies at six loci in the pooled population would be employed as the base of calculation for statistical probabilities.

Medical Issues: Breathing

MedlinePlus

... Funding Opportunities Research Conference Recruit for Clinical Trials Research Publications Spinraza Support & Care For Newly Diagnosed Care Packages Information Packets Equipment Pool Living With SMA Medical Issues Palliative Breathing Orthopedics Nutrition Equipment Daily Life At School At Home ...

Cure SMA

MedlinePlus

... Funding Opportunities Research Conference Recruit for Clinical Trials Research Publications Spinraza Support & Care For Newly Diagnosed Care Packages Information Packets Equipment Pool Living With SMA Medical Issues Palliative Breathing Orthopedics Nutrition Equipment Daily Life At School At Home ...

Medical Issues: Nutrition

MedlinePlus

... Funding Opportunities Research Conference Recruit for Clinical Trials Research Publications Spinraza Support & Care For Newly Diagnosed Care Packages Information Packets Equipment Pool Living With SMA Medical Issues Palliative Breathing Orthopedics Nutrition Equipment Daily Life At School At Home ...

Information about the Late Effects of Polio

MedlinePlus

... Nurses Exercise for Polio Survivors Anesthesia Concerns Pool/Water Therapy Other Resources Reports & CD from Task Force Medical/Clinical Publications ADVOCACY Issues Organizations Resources RESEARCH About The Research Fund New Request for 2018 ...

Heterogeneous Effects of Fructose on Blood Lipids in Individuals With Type 2 Diabetes

PubMed Central

Sievenpiper, John L.; Carleton, Amanda J.; Chatha, Sheena; Jiang, Henry Y.; de Souza, Russell J.; Beyene, Joseph; Kendall, Cyril W.C.; Jenkins, David J.A.

2009-01-01

OBJECTIVE Because of blood lipid concerns, diabetes associations discourage fructose at high intakes. To quantify the effect of fructose on blood lipids in diabetes, we conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of experimental clinical trials investigating the effect of isocaloric fructose exchange for carbohydrate on triglycerides, total cholesterol, LDL cholesterol, and HDL cholesterol in type 1 and 2 diabetes. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS We searched MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL, and the Cochrane Library for relevant trials of ≥7 days. Data were pooled by the generic inverse variance method and expressed as standardized mean differences with 95% CI. Heterogeneity was assessed by χ2 tests and quantified by I2. Meta-regression models identified dose threshold and independent predictors of effects. RESULTS Sixteen trials (236 subjects) met the eligibility criteria. Isocaloric fructose exchange for carbohydrate raised triglycerides and lowered total cholesterol under specific conditions without affecting LDL cholesterol or HDL cholesterol. A triglyceride-raising effect without heterogeneity was seen only in type 2 diabetes when the reference carbohydrate was starch (mean difference 0.24 [95% CI 0.05–0.44]), dose was >60 g/day (0.18 [0.00–0.37]), or follow-up was ≤4 weeks (0.18 [0.00–0.35]). Piecewise meta-regression confirmed a dose threshold of 60 g/day (R2 = 0.13)/10% energy (R2 = 0.36). A total cholesterol–lowering effect without heterogeneity was seen only in type 2 diabetes under the following conditions: no randomization and poor study quality (−0.19 [−0.34 to −0.05]), dietary fat >30% energy (−0.33 [−0.52 to −0.15]), or crystalline fructose (−0.28 [−0.47 to −0.09]). Multivariate meta-regression analyses were largely in agreement. CONCLUSIONS Pooled analyses demonstrated conditional triglyceride-raising and total cholesterol–lowering effects of isocaloric fructose exchange for carbohydrate in type 2 diabetes. Recommendations and large-scale future trials need to address the heterogeneity in the data. PMID:19592634

Carbon Pool Dynamics in the Lower Fraser Basin from 1827 to 1990

PubMed

Boyle; Lavkulich

1997-05-01

/ To understand the total impact of humans on the carbon cycle, themodeling and quantifying of the transfer of carbon from terrestrial pools tothe atmosphere is becoming more critical. Using previously published data,this research sought to assess the change in carbon pools caused by humans inthe Lower Fraser Basin (LFB) in British Columbia, Canada, since 1827 anddefine the long-term, regional contribution of carbon to the atmosphere. Theresults indicate that there has been a transfer of 270 Mt of carbon frombiomass pools in the LFB to other pools, primarily the atmosphere. The majorlosses of biomass carbon have been from logged forests (42%), wetlands(14%), and soils (43%). Approximately 48% of the forestbiomass, almost 20% of the carbon of the LFB, lies within old-growthforest, which covers only 19% of the study area. Landfills are nowbecoming a major sink of carbon, containing 5% of the biomass carbonin the LFB, while biomass carbon in buildings, urban vegetation, mammals, andagriculture is negligible. Approximately 26% of logged forest biomasswould still be in a terrestrial biomass pool, leaving 238 Mt of carbon thathas been released to the atmosphere. On an area basis, this is 29 times theaverage global emissions of carbon, providing an indication of the pastcontributions of developed countries such as Canada to global warming andpossible contributions from further clearing of rainforest in both tropicaland temperate regions.KEY WORDS: Carbon pools; Global warming; Carbon release to atmosphere;Greenhouse effect

Evaluating Mineral-Associated Soil Organic Matter Pools as Indicators of Forest Harvesting Disturbance

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kellman, L. M.; Gabriel, C. E.

2015-12-01

Soil organic matter (SOM) in northern forest soils is associated with a suite of minerals that can confer SOM stability, resulting in the potential for long-term storage of carbon. Increasingly, evidence is suggesting that SOM in certain mineral phases is dynamic and vulnerable to soil disturbance. The objective of this research was to investigate changes in a suite of mineral-associated pools of SOM through depth in a temperate forest soil to determine which mineral-associated carbon pools are most sensitive to forest harvesting disturbance. Sequential selective dissolutions representing increasingly stable SOM pools (soluble minerals (deionized water); humus-mineral complexes (Na-pyrophosphate); poorly crystalline minerals (HCl hydroxylamine); and crystalline secondary minerals (Na-dithionite + HCl)) of mineral soils through depth to 50 cm were carried out in podzolic soils sampled from temperate red spruce forests of contrasting stand age in Nova Scotia, Canada. Results of this analysis point to a loss of carbon from SOM within the B-horizon of the most recently harvested site from the pyrophosphate-extracted humus mineral complexed SOM, suggesting that it is this exchangeable pool that appears to be destabilized following clearcut harvesting at these study sites. This suggests that recovery from this landuse disturbance is dependent upon increasing storage of this SOM pool, and that mineral-associated pools, particularly pyrophosphate-extractable SOM, may be a useful indicator of changes to soil carbon storage following land use change.

A general framework for the regression analysis of pooled biomarker assessments.

PubMed

Liu, Yan; McMahan, Christopher; Gallagher, Colin

2017-07-10

As a cost-efficient data collection mechanism, the process of assaying pooled biospecimens is becoming increasingly common in epidemiological research; for example, pooling has been proposed for the purpose of evaluating the diagnostic efficacy of biological markers (biomarkers). To this end, several authors have proposed techniques that allow for the analysis of continuous pooled biomarker assessments. Regretfully, most of these techniques proceed under restrictive assumptions, are unable to account for the effects of measurement error, and fail to control for confounding variables. These limitations are understandably attributable to the complex structure that is inherent to measurements taken on pooled specimens. Consequently, in order to provide practitioners with the tools necessary to accurately and efficiently analyze pooled biomarker assessments, herein, a general Monte Carlo maximum likelihood-based procedure is presented. The proposed approach allows for the regression analysis of pooled data under practically all parametric models and can be used to directly account for the effects of measurement error. Through simulation, it is shown that the proposed approach can accurately and efficiently estimate all unknown parameters and is more computational efficient than existing techniques. This new methodology is further illustrated using monocyte chemotactic protein-1 data collected by the Collaborative Perinatal Project in an effort to assess the relationship between this chemokine and the risk of miscarriage. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Registry in a tube: multiplexed pools of retrievable parts for genetic design space exploration.

PubMed

Woodruff, Lauren B A; Gorochowski, Thomas E; Roehner, Nicholas; Mikkelsen, Tarjei S; Densmore, Douglas; Gordon, D Benjamin; Nicol, Robert; Voigt, Christopher A

2017-02-17

Genetic designs can consist of dozens of genes and hundreds of genetic parts. After evaluating a design, it is desirable to implement changes without the cost and burden of starting the construction process from scratch. Here, we report a two-step process where a large design space is divided into deep pools of composite parts, from which individuals are retrieved and assembled to build a final construct. The pools are built via multiplexed assembly and sequenced using next-generation sequencing. Each pool consists of ∼20 Mb of up to 5000 unique and sequence-verified composite parts that are barcoded for retrieval by PCR. This approach is applied to a 16-gene nitrogen fixation pathway, which is broken into pools containing a total of 55 848 composite parts (71.0 Mb). The pools encompass an enormous design space (1043 possible 23 kb constructs), from which an algorithm-guided 192-member 4.5 Mb library is built. Next, all 1030 possible genetic circuits based on 10 repressors (NOR/NOT gates) are encoded in pools where each repressor is fused to all permutations of input promoters. These demonstrate that multiplexing can be applied to encompass entire design spaces from which individuals can be accessed and evaluated. © The Author(s) 2016. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Nucleic Acids Research.

Reserve growth in oil pools of Alberta: Model and forecast

USGS Publications Warehouse

Verma, M.; Cook, T.

2010-01-01

Reserve growth is recognized as a major component of additions to reserves in most oil provinces around the world, particularly in mature provinces. It takes place as a result of the discovery of new pools/reservoirs and extensions of known pools within existing fields, improved knowledge of reservoirs over time leading to a change in estimates of original oil-in-place, and improvement in recovery factor through the application of new technology, such as enhanced oil recovery methods, horizontal/multilateral drilling, and 4D seismic. A reserve growth study was conducted on oil pools in Alberta, Canada, with the following objectives: 1) evaluate historical oil reserve data in order to assess the potential for future reserve growth; 2) develop reserve growth models/ functions to help forecast hydrocarbon volumes; 3) study reserve growth sensitivity to various parameters (for example, pool size, porosity, and oil gravity); and 4) compare reserve growth in oil pools and fields in Alberta with those from other large petroleum provinces around the world. The reported known recoverable oil exclusive of Athabasca oil sands in Alberta increased from 4.5 billion barrels of oil (BBO) in 1960 to 17 BBO in 2005. Some of the pools that were included in the existing database were excluded from the present study for lack of adequate data. Therefore, the known recoverable oil increased from 4.2 to 13.9 BBO over the period from 1960 through 2005, with new discoveries contributing 3.7 BBO and reserve growth adding 6 BBO. This reserve growth took place mostly in pools with more than 125,000 barrels of known recoverable oil. Pools with light oil accounted for most of the total known oil volume, therefore reflecting the overall pool growth. Smaller pools, in contrast, shrank in their total recoverable volumes over the years. Pools with heavy oil (gravity less than 20o API) make up only a small share (3.8 percent) of the total recoverable oil; they showed a 23-fold growth compared to about 3.5-fold growth in pools with medium oil and 2.2-fold growth in pools with light oil over a fifty-year period. The analysis indicates that pools with high porosity reservoirs (greater than 30 percent porosity) grew more than pools with lower porosity reservoirs which could possibly be attributed to permeability differences between the two types. Reserve growth models for Alberta, Canada, show the growth at field level is almost twice as much as at pool level, possibly because the analysis has evaluated fields with two or more pools with different discovery years. Based on the models, the growth in oil volumes in Alberta pools over the next five-year period (2006-2010) is expected to be about 454 million barrels of oil. Over a twenty-five year period, the cumulative reserve growth in Alberta oil pools has been only 2-fold compared to a 4- to- 5-fold increase in other petroleum producing areas such as Saskatchewan, Volga-Ural, U.S. onshore fields, and U.S. Gulf of Mexico. However, the growth at the field level compares well with that of U.S. onshore fields. In other petroleum provinces, the reserves are reported at field levels rather than at pool levels, the latter basically being the equivalent of individual reservoirs. ?? 2010 by the Canadian Society of Petroleum Geologists.

Using Facebook to Supplement Participant Pools for Class Research Projects: Should We Like It?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sciutto, Mark J.

2015-01-01

In-class research projects are a valuable way of providing research experience for undergraduate students in psychology. This article evaluates the use of online social networks to supplement sample recruitment for in-class research projects. Specifically, this article presents a systematic analysis of seven student research projects that…

Microorganisms Trapped Within Permafrost Ice In The Fox Permafrost Tunnel, Alaska

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Katayama, T.; Tanaka, M.; Douglas, T. A.; Cai, Y.; Tomita, F.; Asano, K.; Fukuda, M.

2008-12-01

Several different types of massive ice are common in permafrost. Ice wedges are easily recognized by their shape and foliated structure. They grow syngenetically or epigenetically as a result of repeated cycles of frost cracking followed by the infiltration of snow, melt water, soil or other material into the open frost cracks. Material incorporated into ice wedges becomes frozen and preserved. Pool ice, another massive ice type, is formed by the freezing of water resting on top of frozen thermokarst sediment or melting wedges and is not foliated. The Fox Permafrost Tunnel in Fairbanks was excavated within the discontinuous permafrost zone of central Alaska and it contains permafrost, ice wedges, and pool ice preserved at roughly -3°C. We collected samples from five ice wedges and three pool ice structures in the Fox Permafrost Tunnel. If the microorganisms were incorporated into the ice during its formation, a community analysis of the microorganisms could elucidate the environment in which the ice was formed. Organic material from sediments in the tunnel was radiocarbon-dated between 14,000 and 30,000 years BP. However, it is still not clear when the ice wedges were formed or subsequently deformed because they are only partially exposed and their upper surfaces are above the tunnel walls. The objectives of our study were to determine the biogeochemical conditions during massive ice formation and to analyze the microbial community within the ices by incubation-based and DNA-based analyses. The geochemical profile and the PCR-DGGE band patterns of bacteria among five ice wedge and 3 portions of pool ice samples were markedly different. The DGGE band patterns of fungi were simple with a few bands of fungi or yeast. The dominant bands of ice wedge and pool ice samples were affiliated with the genus Geomyces and Doratomyces, respectively. Phylogenetic analysis using rRNA gene ITS regions indicated isolates of Geomyces spp. from different ice wedges were affiliated with different clusters. The enumeration of fungal colonies among the ice wedge and pool ice samples were also different. These results demonstrate that different massive ice structures had different microbial and geochemical environments or backgrounds when they were formed.

The role of reforestation in carbon sequestration

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nave, L. E.; Walters, B. F.; Hofmeister, K.; Perry, C. H.; Mishra, U.; Domke, G. M.; Swanston, C.

2017-12-01

In the United States (U.S.), the maintenance of forest cover is a legal mandate for federally managed forest lands. Reforestation is one option for maintaining forest cover on managed or disturbed lands, and as a land use change can increase forest cover on previously non-forested lands, enhancing carbon (C)-based ecosystem services and functions such as the production of woody biomass for forest products and the mitigation of atmospheric CO2 pollution and climate change. Nonetheless, multiple assessments indicate that reforestation in the U.S. lags behind its potential, with continued ecosystem services and functions at risk if reforestation is not increased. In this context, there is need for multiple independent analyses that quantify the role of reforestation in C sequestration. Here, we report the findings of a large-scale data synthesis aimed at four objectives: 1) estimate C storage in major pools in forest and other land cover types; 2) quantify sources of variation in C pools; 3) compare the impacts of reforestation and afforestation on C pools; 4) assess whether results hold or diverge across ecoregions. Our data-driven analysis provides four key inferences regarding reforestation and other land use impacts on C sequestration. First, soils are the dominant C pool under all land cover types in the U.S., and spatial variation in soil C pool sizes has less to do with land cover than with other factors. Second, where historically cultivated lands are being reforested, topsoils are sequestering significant amounts of C, with the majority of reforested lands yet to reach sequestration capacity (relative to forested baseline). Third, the establishment of woody vegetation delivers immediate to multi-decadal C sequestration benefits in biomass and coarse woody debris pools, with two- to three-fold C sequestration benefits during the first several decades following planting. Fourth, opportunities to enhance C sequestration through reforestation vary among ecoregions, according to current levels of planting, typical forest growth rates, and past land uses (especially cultivation). Altogether, our results suggest that an immediate, but phased and spatially targeted approach to reforestation can enhance C sequestration in forest biomass and soils in the U.S. for decades to centuries to come.

Interventions to improve water quality for preventing diarrhoea: systematic review and meta-analysis

PubMed Central

Schmidt, Wolf-Peter; Rabie, Tamer; Roberts, Ian; Cairncross, Sandy

2007-01-01

Objective To assess the effectiveness of interventions to improve the microbial quality of drinking water for preventing diarrhoea. Design Systematic review. Data sources Cochrane Infectious Diseases Group's trials register, CENTRAL, Medline, Embase, LILACS; hand searching; and correspondence with experts and relevant organisations. Study selection Randomised and quasirandomised controlled trials of interventions to improve the microbial quality of drinking water for preventing diarrhoea in adults and in children in settings with endemic disease. Data extraction Allocation concealment, blinding, losses to follow-up, type of intervention, outcome measures, and measures of effect. Pooled effect estimates were calculated within the appropriate subgroups. Data synthesis 33 reports from 21 countries documenting 42 comparisons were included. Variations in design, setting, and type and point of intervention, and variations in defining, assessing, calculating, and reporting outcomes limited the comparability of study results and pooling of results by meta-analysis. In general, interventions to improve the microbial quality of drinking water are effective in preventing diarrhoea. Effectiveness was not conditioned on the presence of improved water supplies or sanitation in the study setting and was not enhanced by combining the intervention with instructions on basic hygiene, a water storage vessel, or improved sanitation or water supplies—other common environmental interventions intended to prevent diarrhoea. Conclusion Interventions to improve water quality are generally effective for preventing diarrhoea in all ages and in under 5s. Significant heterogeneity among the trials suggests that the level of effectiveness may depend on a variety of conditions that research to date cannot fully explain. PMID:17353208

Identifying nitrogen limitations to organic sediments accumulation in various vegetation types of arctic tundra (Hornsund, Svalbard)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Skrzypek, G.; Wojtuń, B.; Hua, Q.; Richter, D.; Jakubas, D.; Wojczulanis-Jakubas, K.; Samecka-Cymerman, A.

2015-12-01

Arctic and subarctic regions play important roles in the global carbon balance. However, nitrogen (N) deficiency is a major constraint for organic carbon sequestration in the High Arctic. Hence, the identification of the relative contributions from different N-sources is critical for understanding the constraints that limit tundra growth. The stable nitrogen composition of the three main N-sources and numerous plants were analyzed in ten tundra types in the Fuglebekken catchment (Hornsund Fjord, Svalbard, 77°N 15°E). The percentage of the total tundra N-pool provided by seabirds' feces (colonially breeding, planktivorous Alle alle), ranged from 0-21% in Patterned-ground tundra to 100% in Ornithocoprophilous tundra. The total N-pool utilized by tundra plants in the studied catchment was built in 36% by birds, 38% by atmospheric deposition, and 26% by N2-fixation. The results clearly show that N-pool in the tundra is significantly supplemented by nesting seabirds. Thus, if they experienced substantial negative environmental pressure associated with climate change, it would adversely influence the tundra N-budget [1]. The growth rates and the sediment thickness (<15 cm) in different tundra types varied considerably but the tundra age was similar, <450 cal BP. The only exception was Ornithocoprophilous tundra with very diverse ages ranging from 235 to 2300 cal BP and thickness up to 110cm. The growth rates for this tundra (62 cm core, 18 AMS 14C dates) were high (1.5-3.0 mm/yr) between 1568 and 1804 AD and then substantially declined for the period between 1804 and 1929 AD (0.2 mm/yr). These findings deliver an additional argument, that the organic matter accumulation is driven not only directly by climatic conditions but also by birds' contribution to the tundra N-pool. [1] Skrzypek G, Wojtuń B, Richter D, Jakubas D, Wojczulanis-Jakubas K, Samecka-Cymerman A, 2015. Diversification of nitrogen sources in various tundra vegetation types in the high Arctic. PLoS ONE (in review).

The Relation of Clinical Research to Practice and the Apparent Crisis of Confidence.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Grubb, Henry Jefferson

Barlow (1981) lists nine reasons why clinical psychologists do not undertake research and why traditional research does not influence clinicians. These reasons focus on: (1) lack of access to a large subject pool; (2) manpower costs of conducting research; (3) financial costs of conducting research; (4) ethics; (5) research's overreliance on…

Fire in the Brazilian Amazon : 3. Dynamics of biomass, C, and nutrient pools in regenerating forests.

PubMed

Hughes, R F; Kauffman, J B; Cummings, D L

2000-09-01

Regenerating forests have become a common land-cover type throughout the Brazilian Amazon. However, the potential for these systems to accumulate and store C and nutrients, and the fluxes resulting from them when they are cut, burned, and converted back to croplands and pastures have not been well quantified. In this study, we quantified pre- and post-fire pools of biomass, C, and nutrients, as well as the emissions of those elements, at a series of second- and third-growth forests located in the states of Pará and Rondônia, Brazil. Total aboveground biomass (TAGB) of second- and third-growth forests averaged 134 and 91 Mg ha -1 , respectively. Rates of aboveground biomass accumulation were rapid in these systems, but were not significantly different between second- and third-growth forests, ranging from 9 to 16 Mg ha -1 year -1 . Residual pools of biomass originating from primary forest vegetation accounted for large portions of TAGB in both forest types and were primarily responsible for TAGB differences between the two forest types. In second-growth forests this pool (82 Mg ha -1 ) represented 58% of TAGB, and in third-growth forests (40 Mg ha -1 ) it represented 40% of TAGB. Amounts of TAGB consumed by burning of second- and third-growth forests averaged 70 and 53 Mg ha -1 , respectively. Aboveground pre-fire pools in second- and third-growth forests averaged 67 and 45 Mg C ha -1 , 821 and 707 kg N ha -1 , 441 and 341 kg P ha -1 , and 46 and 27 kg Ca ha -1 , respectively. While pre-fire pools of C, N, S and K were not significantly different between second- and third-growth forests, pools of both P and Ca were significantly higher in second-growth forests. This suggests that increasing land use has a negative impact on these elemental pools. Site losses of elements resulting from slashing and burning these sites were highly variable: losses of C ranged from 20 to 47 Mg ha -1 ; N losses ranged from 306 to 709 kg ha -1 ; Ca losses ranged from 10 to 145 kg ha -1 ; and P losses ranged from 2 to 20 kg ha -1 . Elemental losses were controlled to a large extent by the relative distribution of elemental mass within biomass components of varying susceptibilities to combustion and the temperatures of volatilization of each element. Due to a relatively low temperature of volatilization and its concentration in highly combustible biomass pools, site losses of N averaged 70% of total pre-fire pools. In contrast, site losses of P and Ca resulting from burning were 33 and 20% of total pre-fire pools, respectively, as much of the mass of those elements was deposited on site as ash. Pre- and post-fire biomass and elemental pools of second- and third-growth forests, as well as the emissions from those systems, were intermediate between those of primary forests and pastures in the Brazilian Amazon. Overall, regenerating forests have the capacity to act as either large terrestrial sinks or sources of C and nutrients, depending on the course of land-use patterns within the Brazilian Amazon. Combining remote sensing techniques with field measures of aboveground C accumulation in regenerating forests and C fluxes from those forests when they are cut and burned, we estimate that during 1990-1991 roughly 104 Tg of C was accumulated by regenerating forests across the Brazilian Amazon. Further, we estimate that approximately 103 Tg of C was lost via the cutting and burning of regenerating forests across the Brazilian Amazon during this same period. Since average C accumulations (5.5 Mg ha -1 year -1 ) in regenerating forests were 19% of the C lost when such forests are cut and burned (29.3 Mg ha -1 ), our results suggest that when less than 19% of the total area accounted for by secondary forests is cut and burned in a given year, those forests will be net accumulators of C during that year. Conversely, when more than 19% of regenerating forests are burned, those forests will be a net source of C to the atmosphere.

A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Medical Students’ Perspectives on the Engagement in Research

PubMed Central

Naing, Cho; Wai, Victor Nyunt; Durham, Jo; Whittaker, Maxine A.; Win, Ni Ni; Aung, Kyan; Mak, Joon Wah

2015-01-01

Abstract Engaging students in active learning lies at the center of effective higher education. In medical schools, students’ engagement in learning and research has come under increasing attention. The objective of this study was to synthesize evidence on medical students’ perspectives on the engagement in research. We performed a systematic review and meta-analysis. Relevant studies were searched in electronic databases. The methodological quality of the included studies was assessed. Overall, 14 observational studies (with 17 data sets) were included. In general, many studies did not use the same questionnaires and the outcome measurements were not consistently reported; these presented some difficulties in pooling the results. Whenever data permitted, we performed pooled analysis for the 4 education outcomes. A Bayesian meta-analytical approach was supplemented as a measure of uncertainty. A pooled analysis showed that 74% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.57%–11.07%; I2: 95.2%) of those students who engaged in research (while at the medical school) had positive attitudes toward their research experiences, whereas 49.5% (95% CI: 36.4%–62.7%; I2: 93.4%) had positive attitudes toward the study of medical sciences, 62.3% (95% CI: 46.7%–77.9%; I2: 96.3%) had self-reported changes in their practices, and 64% (95% CI: 30.8%–96.6%; I2: 98.5%) could have published their work. There was substantial heterogeneity among studies. We acknowledged the caveats and the merit of the current review. Findings showed that engagement in research resulted in favorable reactions toward research and academic learning. Future well-designed studies using standardized research tools on how to engage students in research are recommended. PMID:26181541

The Effects of Large Wood on Stream Channel Morphology on Three Low-Gradient Stream Reaches in the Coastal Redwood Region

Treesearch

Scott Carroll; E. George Robison

2007-01-01

Several studies have shown that large wood has a prominent role in habitat quality, however there is little research on the role of wood on pool characteristics and other habitat components in low gradient streams (channel slopes less than one percent). Longitudinal profiles are used to analyze general residual pool characteristics of three approximately 1000-meter...

A prospective field evaluation of an enzyme immunoassay: Detection of eastern equine encephalomyelitis virus antigen in pools of Culiseta melanura

USGS Publications Warehouse

Scott, T.W.; Olson, J.G.; Lewis, T.E.; Carpenter, J.W.; Lorenz, L.H.; Lembeck, L.A.; Joseph, S.R.; Pagac, B.B.

1987-01-01

A prospective field study was conducted to determine the sensitivity and specificity of an enzyme immunoassay (EIA) compared to virus isolation in cell culture for the detection of eastern equine encephalomyelitis (EEE) virus in naturally infected mosquitoes. A total of 10,811 adult female Culiseta melanura were collected in light traps during 1985 from four locations in Maryland. Eastern equine encephalomyelitis virus was isolated from 5 of 495 mosquito pools in African green monkey kidney and baby hamster kidney cell cultures. All five virus-infected pools were detected by the EIA, and all 490 uninfected pools were correctly scored as not containing virus. The EIA did not produce false positive or false negative results. Results support the assertion of previous researchers that the antigen detection EIA is a rapid, sensitive, specific, and simple alternative to traditional bioassays for the detection of EEE virus in mosquitoes.

Research on Optimization of Pooling System and Its Application in Drug Supply Chain Based on Big Data Analysis

PubMed Central

2017-01-01

Reform of drug procurement is being extensively implemented and expanded in China, especially in today's big data environment. However, the pattern of supply mode innovation lags behind procurement improvement. Problems in financial strain and supply break frequently occur, which affect the stability of drug supply. Drug Pooling System is proposed and applied in a few pilot cities to resolve these problems. From the perspective of supply chain, this study analyzes the process of setting important parameters and sets out the tasks of involved parties in a pooling system according to the issues identified in the pilot run. The approach is based on big data analysis and simulation using system dynamic theory and modeling of Vensim software to optimize system performance. This study proposes a theoretical framework to resolve problems and attempts to provide a valuable reference for future application of pooling systems. PMID:28293258

Large-eddy simulations of a Salt Lake Valley cold-air pool

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Crosman, Erik T.; Horel, John D.

2017-09-01

Persistent cold-air pools are often poorly forecast by mesoscale numerical weather prediction models, in part due to inadequate parameterization of planetary boundary-layer physics in stable atmospheric conditions, and also because of errors in the initialization and treatment of the model surface state. In this study, an improved numerical simulation of the 27-30 January 2011 cold-air pool in Utah's Great Salt Lake Basin is obtained using a large-eddy simulation with more realistic surface state characterization. Compared to a Weather Research and Forecasting model configuration run as a mesoscale model with a planetary boundary-layer scheme where turbulence is highly parameterized, the large-eddy simulation more accurately captured turbulent interactions between the stable boundary-layer and flow aloft. The simulations were also found to be sensitive to variations in the Great Salt Lake temperature and Salt Lake Valley snow cover, illustrating the importance of land surface state in modelling cold-air pools.

Using pseudoalignment and base quality to accurately quantify microbial community composition

PubMed Central

Novembre, John

2018-01-01

Pooled DNA from multiple unknown organisms arises in a variety of contexts, for example microbial samples from ecological or human health research. Determining the composition of pooled samples can be difficult, especially at the scale of modern sequencing data and reference databases. Here we propose a novel method for taxonomic profiling in pooled DNA that combines the speed and low-memory requirements of k-mer based pseudoalignment with a likelihood framework that uses base quality information to better resolve multiply mapped reads. We apply the method to the problem of classifying 16S rRNA reads using a reference database of known organisms, a common challenge in microbiome research. Using simulations, we show the method is accurate across a variety of read lengths, with different length reference sequences, at different sample depths, and when samples contain reads originating from organisms absent from the reference. We also assess performance in real 16S data, where we reanalyze previous genetic association data to show our method discovers a larger number of quantitative trait associations than other widely used methods. We implement our method in the software Karp, for k-mer based analysis of read pools, to provide a novel combination of speed and accuracy that is uniquely suited for enhancing discoveries in microbial studies. PMID:29659582

OBSIP: An Evolving Facility for the Future of Geoscience

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Evers, B.; Aderhold, K.

2015-12-01

The Ocean Bottom Seismograph Instrument Pool "OBSIP" is a National Science Foundation (NSF) sponsored instrument facility that provides ocean bottom seismometers and technical support for research in the areas of marine geology, seismology, and geodynamics. OBSIP provides both short period instruments (for active source seismic refraction studies) and long period instruments (for long term passive experiments). OBSIP is comprised of three Institutional Instrument Contributors each of whom contribute instruments and technical support to the pool and an OBSIP Management Office. In 2015, OBSIP will provide instruments for six experiments and support nine research cruises recovering and/or deploying instruments. This includes the final recoveries for the Cascadia Initiative experiment and the Eastern North American Margin experiment, both multi-year community seismic experiments integrating large onshore and offshore deployments of instruments from multiple IICs. OBSIp supported additional experiments in New Zealand and Malawi, Africa. An active source experiment to image the magma plumbing of Santorini employs OBSIP's entire short period sensor pool. OBSIP is also incorporating new technical developments in the OBSIP fleet including long duration OBS technology, new shielding designs, and sensor upgrades. OBSIP continues to enable innovation in experiment design, instrument capabilities, and data return/QAQC tracking and adapts to the needs of a rapidly increasing and diversifying pool of users.

Observations of Cold Pool Properties during GoAmazon2014/5

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mayne, S. L.; Schumacher, C.; MacDonald, L.; Turner, D. D.

2017-12-01

Convectively generated cold pools are instrumental in both the development of the sub-cloud layer and the organization of deep convection. Despite this, analyses of cold pools in the tropics are constrained by a lack of observational data; insight into the phenomena therefore relies heavily on numerical models. GoAmazon2014/5, a 2-year DOE-sponsored field campaign centered on Manacapuru, Brazil in the central Amazon, provides a unique opportunity to characterize tropical cold pools and allows for the comparison of observational data with theoretical results from model cold pool simulations and parameterizations. This investigation analyzes radar, disdrometer, and profiler measurements at the DOE mobile facility site to study tropical cold pool characteristics. The Brazilian military (SIPAM) operational S-band radar in Manaus is used to provide a broad context of convective systems, while measurements from Parsivel disdrometers are used to assess drop-size distributions (DSDs) at the surface. A unique aspect of this research is the use of the Atmospheric Emitted Radiance Interferometer (AERI) instrument, which utilizes down-welling IR measurements to obtain vertical profiles of thermodynamic quantities such as temperature and water vapor in the lowest few km of the atmosphere. Combined with surface observations and sounding data, these datasets will result in a thorough investigation of the horizontal and vertical characteristics of cold pools over the tropical rain forest. Preliminary analyses of 20 events reveal a mean cold pool height of 220 m and a mean radius of approximately 8.5 km. The average cold pool experienced a temperature (specific humidity) decrease of approximately 1 K (0.4 g/kg) at the surface. The temperature decrease is consistent with modeling studies and limited observations from previous studies over the tropics. The small decrease in specific humidity is attributed to the high moisture content within the cold pools. AERI retrievals of potential temperature and specific humidity profiles show promising similarities with theoretical results produced using the cold pool parameterization presented by Del Genio et al. (2015); however, results are sensitive to both the mass of air injected into the cold pool after its formation, and the thermodynamic characteristics of the downdraft.

Use of mini-refuges by female northern pintails wintering in southwestern Louisiana

USGS Publications Warehouse

Cox, Robert R.; Afton, Alan D.

1998-01-01

The Gulf Coast Joint Venture of the North American Waterfowl Management Plan began contracting private agricultural lands (hereafter mini-refuges) in 1988 to expand existing sanctuaries for northern pintails (Anas acuta) in southwestern Louisiana. Previous research suggested that mini-refuges may prove more attractive to pintails than permanent, open-water pools (pools) on refuges because mini-refuges provide sanctuary and food during the day, whereas pools generally provide only sanctuary (Rave and Cordes 1993). We used radiotelemetry to compare diel use of mini-refuges and pools (Lacassine Pool and Amoco Pool) by female pintails in southwestern Louisiana during winters of 1991-1992 and 1992-1993. We examined variation in use of these areas in relation to female age (immature or adult), time period (prehunting season, first hunting season, time between split hunting seasons, second hunting season, and posthunting season), and winter (1991-1992 and 1992-1993). Diurnal use of min-refuges and pools differed among time periods, but differences were not consistent between winters. Mini-refuges accounted for <2% of diurnal use by pintails in 7 of 10 time-period and winter comparisons. Diurnal use of mini-refuges was lower than that of Lacassine Pool in 8 of 10 time-period and winter comparisons. Diurnal use of mini-refuges was lower than tha of Amoco pool during first hunting season in 1992-1993, but use of these areas did not differ within other time periods and winters. Nocturnal use of mini-refuges and pools did not differ in relation to female age, time period, winter, or individual bird. Nocturnal use of mini-refuges did not differ from that of Lacassine Pool. In contrast to predictions and findings by Rave and Cordes (1993), we found that: (1) female pintails did not use mini-refuges more than pools, and (2) female pintails used mini-refuges at night. We believe that use of mini-refuges by pintails could be increased if mini-refuges were (1) located in areas of traditionally high pintail use, (2) increased in size, (3) flooded immediately prior to hunting season, and (4) cleared of dense vegetation by rolling, disking, or burning.

The use of (GTG)5 oligonucleotide as an RAPD primer to type Campylobacter concisus.

PubMed

Matsheka, M I; Lastovica, A J; Zappe, H; Elisha, B G

2006-06-01

DNA fingerprinting using (GTG)(5) oligonucleotide as a primer in a random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) assay was assessed by typing isolates of Campylobacter concisus strains, collected over a period of 8 years. RAPD analysis using the (GTG)(5) oligonucleotide as a primer was used to type 100 isolates of C. concisus comprising mostly isolates from children with diarrhoea. Using this method, 86% of the isolates were found to be genotypically diverse. Of these heterogeneous isolates, 25 of the strains were also shown to be genetically distinct in a previous study using pulsed field gel electrophoresis. The remaining isolates (14) could be classified into five profile groups based on the DNA fingerprinting patterns. The assay successfully identified epidemiologically linked strains from the unrelated genetically diverse pool of strains. Laboratory RADP typing using the (GTG)(5) primer proved to be useful in distinguishing related strains of C. concisus from a large pool of unrelated strains of this organism. RAPD typing using (GTG)(5) is a simple method that could be used to investigate the epidemiology of C. concisus. The results suggest that homologous lineages of C. concisus may exist within an otherwise heterogeneous species complex. However, these data need to be confirmed using a more robust typing method.

Pooling Data from Multiple Longitudinal Studies: The Role of Item Response Theory in Integrative Data Analysis

PubMed Central

Curran, Patrick J.; Hussong, Andrea M.; Cai, Li; Huang, Wenjing; Chassin, Laurie; Sher, Kenneth J.; Zucker, Robert A.

2010-01-01

There are a number of significant challenges encountered when studying development over an extended period of time including subject attrition, changing measurement structures across group and developmental period, and the need to invest substantial time and money. Integrative data analysis is an emerging set of methodologies that overcomes many of the challenges of single sample designs through the pooling of data drawn from multiple existing developmental studies. This approach is characterized by a host of advantages, but this also introduces several new complexities that must be addressed prior to broad adoption by developmental researchers. In this paper we focus on methods for fitting measurement models and creating scale scores using data drawn from multiple longitudinal studies. We present findings from the analysis of repeated measures of internalizing symptomatology that were pooled from three existing developmental studies. We describe and demonstrate each step in the analysis and we conclude with a discussion of potential limitations and directions for future research. PMID:18331129

What Do Subject Matter Experts Have to Say about Participating in Education and Outreach?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Manning, Colleen; NASA's Universe of Learning Team

2018-01-01

NASA’s Universe of Learning partners wish to actively engage with Subject Matter Experts (scientists and engineers) throughout the design, development, and delivery of products, programs, and professional development. In order to ensure these engagement efforts aligned with the needs of Subject Matter Experts, the external evaluators conducted an online survey. The subject pool included the scientists and engineers employed at the partner organizations as well as other scientists and engineers affiliated with NASA’s Astrophysics missions and research programs. This presentation will describe scientists’/engineers’ interest in various types of education/outreach, their availability to participate in education/outreach, factors that would encourage their participation in education/outreach, and the preparation and support they have for participation in education/outreach.

Measurements and Modeling of Turbulent Fluxes during Persistent Cold Air Pool Events in Salt Lake Valley, Utah

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ivey, C. E.; Sun, X.; Holmes, H.

2017-12-01

Land surface processes are important in meteorology and climate research since they control the partitioning of surface energy and water exchange at the earth's surface. The surface layer is coupled to the planetary boundary layer (PBL) by surface fluxes, which serve as sinks or sources of energy, moisture, momentum, and atmospheric pollutants. Quantifying the surface heat and momentum fluxes at the land-atmosphere interface, especially for different surface land cover types, is important because they can further influence the atmospheric dynamics, vertical mixing, and transport processes that impact local, regional, and global climate. A cold air pool (CAP) forms when a topographic depression (i.e., valley) fills with cold air, where the air in the stagnant layer is colder than the air aloft. Insufficient surface heating, which is not able to sufficiently erode the temperature inversion that forms during the nighttime stable boundary layer, can lead to the formation of persistent CAPs during wintertime. These persistent CAPs can last for days, or even weeks, and are associated with increased air pollution concentrations. Thus, realistic simulations of the land-atmosphere exchange are meaningful to achieve improved predictions of the accumulation, transport, and dispersion of air pollution concentrations. The focus of this presentation is on observations and modeling results using turbulence data collected in Salt Lake Valley, Utah during the 2010-2011 wintertime Persistent Cold Air Pool Study (PCAPS). Turbulent fluxes and the surface energy balance over seven land use types are quantified. The urban site has an energy balance ratio (EBR) larger than one (1.276). Negative Bowen ratio (-0.070) is found at the cropland site. In addition to turbulence observations, half-hourly WRF simulated net radiation, latent heat, sensible heat, ground heat fluxes during one persistent CAP event are evaluated using the PCAPS observations. The results show that sensible and latent heat fluxes during the CAP event are overestimated. The sensitivity of WRF results to large-scale forcing datasets, PBL schemes and land surface models (LSMs) are also investigated. The optimal WRF configuration for simulating surface turbulent fluxes and atmospheric mixing during CAP events is determined.

Metal fires and their implications for advanced reactors.

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

Nowlen, Steven Patrick; Figueroa, Victor G.; Olivier, Tara Jean

This report details the primary results of the Laboratory Directed Research and Development project (LDRD 08-0857) Metal Fires and Their Implications for Advance Reactors. Advanced reactors may employ liquid metal coolants, typically sodium, because of their many desirable qualities. This project addressed some of the significant challenges associated with the use of liquid metal coolants, primary among these being the extremely rapid oxidation (combustion) that occurs at the high operating temperatures in reactors. The project has identified a number of areas for which gaps existed in knowledge pertinent to reactor safety analyses. Experimental and analysis capabilities were developed in thesemore » areas to varying degrees. In conjunction with team participation in a DOE gap analysis panel, focus was on the oxidation of spilled sodium on thermally massive surfaces. These are spills onto surfaces that substantially cool the sodium during the oxidation process, and they are relevant because standard risk mitigation procedures seek to move spill environments into this regime through rapid draining of spilled sodium. While the spilled sodium is not quenched, the burning mode is different in that there is a transition to a smoldering mode that has not been comprehensively described previously. Prior work has described spilled sodium as a pool fire, but there is a crucial, experimentally-observed transition to a smoldering mode of oxidation. A series of experimental measurements have comprehensively described the thermal evolution of this type of sodium fire for the first time. A new physics-based model has been developed that also predicts the thermal evolution of this type of sodium fire for the first time. The model introduces smoldering oxidation through porous oxide layers to go beyond traditional pool fire analyses that have been carried out previously in order to predict experimentally observed trends. Combined, these developments add significantly to the safety analysis capabilities of the advanced-reactor community for directly relevant scenarios. Beyond the focus on the thermally-interacting and smoldering sodium pool fires, experimental and analysis capabilities for sodium spray fires have also been developed in this project.« less

Topographic heterogeneity influences fish use of an experimentally restored tidal marsh.

PubMed

Larkin, Daniel J; Madon, Sharook P; West, Janelle M; Zedler, Joy B

2008-03-01

Ecological theory predicts that incorporating habitat heterogeneity into restoration sites should enhance diversity and key functions, yet research is limited on how topographic heterogeneity affects higher trophic levels. Our large (8-ha) southern California restoration experiment tested effects of tidal creek networks and pools on trophic structure of salt marsh habitat and high-tide use by two regionally dominant fish species, California killifish (Fundulus parvipinnis) and longjaw mudsucker (Gillichthys mirabilis). We expected tidal creeks to function as "conduits" that would enhance connectivity between subtidal and intertidal habitat and pools to serve as microhabitat "oases" for fishes. Pools did provide abundant invertebrate prey and were a preferred microhabitat for F. parvipinnis, even when the entire marsh was inundated (catch rates were 61% higher in pools). However, G. mirabilis showed no preference for pools. At a larger scale, effects of tidal creek networks were also mixed. Areas containing creeks had 12% higher catch rates of G. mirabilis, but lower catch rates and feeding rates of F. parvipinnis. Collectively, the results indicate that restoring multiple forms of heterogeneity is required to provide opportunities for multiple target consumers.

Improving Estimates and Forecasts of Lake Carbon Pools and Fluxes Using Data Assimilation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zwart, J. A.; Hararuk, O.; Prairie, Y.; Solomon, C.; Jones, S.

2017-12-01

Lakes are biogeochemical hotspots on the landscape, contributing significantly to the global carbon cycle despite their small areal coverage. Observations and models of lake carbon pools and fluxes are rarely explicitly combined through data assimilation despite significant use of this technique in other fields with great success. Data assimilation adds value to both observations and models by constraining models with observations of the system and by leveraging knowledge of the system formalized by the model to objectively fill information gaps. In this analysis, we highlight the utility of data assimilation in lake carbon cycling research by using the Ensemble Kalman Filter to combine simple lake carbon models with observations of lake carbon pools. We demonstrate the use of data assimilation to improve a model's representation of lake carbon dynamics, to reduce uncertainty in estimates of lake carbon pools and fluxes, and to improve the accuracy of carbon pool size estimates relative to estimates derived from observations alone. Data assimilation techniques should be embraced as valuable tools for lake biogeochemists interested in learning about ecosystem dynamics and forecasting ecosystem states and processes.

Post-Polio Health International including International Ventilator Users Network

MedlinePlus

... Nurses Exercise for Polio Survivors Anesthesia Concerns Pool/Water Therapy Other Resources Reports & CD from Task Force Medical/Clinical Publications ADVOCACY Issues Organizations Resources RESEARCH About The Research Fund New Request for 2018 ...

REPORT ON 2017 MnROAD CONSTRUCTION ACTIVITIES

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2018-05-01

The National Road Research Alliance (NRRA), a multi-state pooled-fund program, exists to provide strategic implementation of pavement engineering solutions through cooperative research. NRRA is led by an Executive Committee of state DOT partners, and...

Retrospective use of next-generation sequencing reveals the presence of Enteroviruses in acute influenza-like illness respiratory samples collected in South/South-East Asia during 2010-2013.

PubMed

Rutvisuttinunt, Wiriya; Klungthong, Chonticha; Thaisomboonsuk, Butsaya; Chinnawirotpisan, Piyawan; Ajariyakhajorn, Chuanpis; Manasatienkij, Wudtichai; Phonpakobsin, Thipwipha; Lon, Chanthap; Saunders, David; Wangchuk, Sonam; Shrestha, Sanjaya K; Velasco, John Mark S; Alera, Maria Theresa P; Simasathien, Sriluck; Buddhari, Darunee; Jarman, Richard G; Macareo, Louis R; Yoon, In-Kyu; Fernandez, Stefan

2017-09-01

Emerging and re-emerging respiratory pathogens represent an increasing threat to public health. Etiological determination during outbreaks generally relies on clinical information, occasionally accompanied by traditional laboratory molecular or serological testing. Often, this limited testing leads to inconclusive findings. The Armed Forces Research Institute of Medical Sciences (AFRIMS) collected 12,865 nasopharyngeal specimens from acute influenza-like illness (ILI) patients in five countries in South/South East Asia during 2010-2013. Three hundred and twenty-four samples which were found to be negative for influenza virus after screening with real-time RT-PCR and cell-based culture techniques demonstrated the potential for viral infection with evident cytopathic effect (CPE) in several cell lines. To assess whether whole genome next-generation sequencing (WG-NGS) together with conventional molecular assays can be used to reveal the etiology of influenza negative, but CPE positive specimens. The supernatant of these CPE positive cell cultures were grouped in 32 pools containing 2-26 supernatants per pool. Three WG-NGS runs were performed on these supernatant pools. Sequence reads were used to identify positive pools containing viral pathogens. Individual samples in the positive pools were confirmed by qRT-PCR, RT-PCR, PCR and Sanger sequencing from the CPE culture and original clinical specimens. WG-NGS was an effective way to expand pathogen identification in surveillance studies. This enabled the identification of a viral agent in 71.3% (231/324) of unidentified surveillance samples, including common respiratory pathogens (100/324; 30.9%): enterovirus (16/100; 16.0%), coxsackievirus (31/100; 31.0%), echovirus (22/100; 22.0%), human rhinovirus (3/100; 3%), enterovirus genus (2/100; 2.0%), influenza A (9/100; 9.0%), influenza B, (5/100; 5.0%), human parainfluenza (4/100; 4.0%), human adenovirus (3/100; 3.0%), human coronavirus (1/100; 1.0%), human metapneumovirus (2/100; 2.0%), and mumps virus (2/100; 2.0%), in addition to the non-respiratory pathogen herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) (172/324; 53.1%) and HSV-1 co-infection with respiratory viruses (41/324; 12.7%). Copyright © 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

7 CFR 501.6 - Gambling.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-01-01

... of the Department of Agriculture (Continued) AGRICULTURAL RESEARCH SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE CONDUCT ON U.S. MEAT ANIMAL RESEARCH CENTER, CLAY CENTER, NEBRASKA § 501.6 Gambling. Participating in... lottery or pool, or the selling or purchasing of numbers tickets, in or on Research Center property, is...

7 CFR 501.6 - Gambling.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-01-01

... of the Department of Agriculture (Continued) AGRICULTURAL RESEARCH SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE CONDUCT ON U.S. MEAT ANIMAL RESEARCH CENTER, CLAY CENTER, NEBRASKA § 501.6 Gambling. Participating in... lottery or pool, or the selling or purchasing of numbers tickets, in or on Research Center property, is...

7 CFR 501.6 - Gambling.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-01-01

... of the Department of Agriculture (Continued) AGRICULTURAL RESEARCH SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE CONDUCT ON U.S. MEAT ANIMAL RESEARCH CENTER, CLAY CENTER, NEBRASKA § 501.6 Gambling. Participating in... lottery or pool, or the selling or purchasing of numbers tickets, in or on Research Center property, is...

NASA Research Announcement

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Chiaramonte, Fran

2002-01-01

This paper presents viewgraphs of NASA's strategic and fundamental research program at the Office of Biological and Physical Research (OBPR). The topics include: 1) Colloid-Polymer Samples; 2) Pool Boiling Experiment; 3) The Dynamics of Miscible Interfaces: A Space Flight Experiment (MIDAS); and 4) ISS and Ground-based Facilities.

A simple and specific procedure to permeabilize the plasma membrane of Schizosaccharomyces pombe.

PubMed

Chardwiriyapreecha, Soracom; Hondo, Kana; Inada, Hiroko; Chahomchuen, Thippayarat; Sekito, Takayuki; Iwaki, Tomoko; Kakinuma, Yoshimi

2009-09-01

Cu(2+)-treatment is a useful technique in selectively permeabilizing the fungal plasma membrane. We describe herein a practical application with Schizosaccharomyces pombe. Incubation of cells with 0.5 mM CuCl(2) at 30 degrees C for 20 min induced efficient leakage of cytosolic constituents. The kinetic characteristics of the calcium and amino acid flux from Cu(2+)-treated S. pombe cells suggested that the Cu(2+) treatment permeabilized the plasma membrane without loss of vacuolar function. As a further application of the method, the amino acid contents of Cu(2+)-treated and untreated cells were also determined. The amino acid pool of Cu(2+)-treated wild-type cells was enriched in basic amino acids but not in acidic amino acids, as is characteristic of the vacuolar amino acid pool of fungi, including Saccharomyces cerevisiae and Neurosporra crassa. The amino acid pool of the S. pombe V-ATPase mutant vma1Delta was also successfully determined. We conclude that the vacuolar amino acid pool of S. pombe can be measured using Cu(2+)-treated cells. The method is simple, inexpensive, and rapid relative to the isolation of vacuolar vesicles, making it useful in estimating vacuolar pools and transport across the vacuolar membrane.

Exposure to UV radiation and risk of Hodgkin lymphoma: a pooled analysis

PubMed Central

Glaser, Sally L.; Schupp, Clayton W.; Ekström Smedby, Karin; de Sanjosé, Silvia; Kane, Eleanor; Melbye, Mads; Forétova, Lenka; Maynadié, Marc; Staines, Anthony; Becker, Nikolaus; Nieters, Alexandra; Brennan, Paul; Boffetta, Paolo; Cocco, Pierluigi; Glimelius, Ingrid; Clavel, Jacqueline; Hjalgrim, Henrik; Chang, Ellen T.

2013-01-01

Ultraviolet radiation (UVR) exposure has been inversely associated with Hodgkin lymphoma (HL) risk, but only inconsistently, only in a few studies, and without attention to HL heterogeneity. We conducted a pooled analysis of HL risk focusing on type and timing of UVR exposure and on disease subtypes by age, histology, and tumor-cell Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) status. Four case-control studies contributed 1320 HL cases and 6381 controls. We estimated lifetime, adulthood, and childhood UVR exposure and history of sunburn and sunlamp use. We used 2-stage estimation with mixed-effects models and weighted pooled effect estimates by inverse marginal variances. We observed statistically significant inverse associations with HL risk for UVR exposures during childhood and adulthood, sunburn history, and sunlamp use, but we found no significant dose-response relationships. Risks were significant only for EBV-positive HL (pooled odds ratio, 0.56; 95% confidence interval, 0.35 to 0.91 for the highest overall UVR exposure category), with a significant linear trend for overall exposure (P = .03). Pooled relative risk estimates were not heterogeneous across studies. Increased UVR exposure may protect against HL, particularly EBV-positive HL. Plausible mechanisms involving UVR induction of regulatory T cells or the cellular DNA damage response suggest opportunities for new prevention targets. PMID:24016459

Vessel Classification in Cosmo-Skymed SAR Data Using Hierarchical Feature Selection

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Makedonas, A.; Theoharatos, C.; Tsagaris, V.; Anastasopoulos, V.; Costicoglou, S.

2015-04-01

SAR based ship detection and classification are important elements of maritime monitoring applications. Recently, high-resolution SAR data have opened new possibilities to researchers for achieving improved classification results. In this work, a hierarchical vessel classification procedure is presented based on a robust feature extraction and selection scheme that utilizes scale, shape and texture features in a hierarchical way. Initially, different types of feature extraction algorithms are implemented in order to form the utilized feature pool, able to represent the structure, material, orientation and other vessel type characteristics. A two-stage hierarchical feature selection algorithm is utilized next in order to be able to discriminate effectively civilian vessels into three distinct types, in COSMO-SkyMed SAR images: cargos, small ships and tankers. In our analysis, scale and shape features are utilized in order to discriminate smaller types of vessels present in the available SAR data, or shape specific vessels. Then, the most informative texture and intensity features are incorporated in order to be able to better distinguish the civilian types with high accuracy. A feature selection procedure that utilizes heuristic measures based on features' statistical characteristics, followed by an exhaustive research with feature sets formed by the most qualified features is carried out, in order to discriminate the most appropriate combination of features for the final classification. In our analysis, five COSMO-SkyMed SAR data with 2.2m x 2.2m resolution were used to analyse the detailed characteristics of these types of ships. A total of 111 ships with available AIS data were used in the classification process. The experimental results show that this method has good performance in ship classification, with an overall accuracy reaching 83%. Further investigation of additional features and proper feature selection is currently in progress.

The Dimensions of Reading Comprehension in Dutch Children: Is Differentiation by Text and Question Type Necessary?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Muijselaar, Marloes M. L.; Swart, Nicole M.; Steenbeek-Planting, Esther G.; Droop, Mienke; Verhoeven, Ludo; de Jong, Peter F.

2017-01-01

Many recent studies have aimed to demonstrate that specific types of reading comprehension depend on different underlying cognitive abilities. In these studies, it is often implicitly assumed that reading comprehension is a multidimensional construct. The general aim of this study was to examine the dimensionality of a large pool of reading…

A New Item Selection Procedure for Mixed Item Type in Computerized Classification Testing.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lau, C. Allen; Wang, Tianyou

This paper proposes a new Information-Time index as the basis for item selection in computerized classification testing (CCT) and investigates how this new item selection algorithm can help improve test efficiency for item pools with mixed item types. It also investigates how practical constraints such as item exposure rate control, test…

Comparative performance of twenty-three types of flat plate solar energy collectors

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Simon, F. F.

1975-01-01

Report compares efficiencies of 23 solar collectors for four different purposes: operating a Rankine-cycle engine, heating or absorption air conditioning, heating hot water, and heating a swimming pool.

Quantitation and immunocytochemical localization of ubiquitin conjugates within rat red and white skeletal muscles

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Riley, Danny A.; Bain, James L. W.; Haas, Arthur L.; Ellis, Stanley

1988-01-01

Solid-phase immunochemical methods were employed to probe the dynamics of ubiquitin pools within selected rat skeletal muscles. The total ubiquitin content of red muscles was greater than that of white muscles, even though the fractional conjugation was similar for both types of muscles. The specificity for conjugated ubiquitin in solid-phase applications, previously demonstrated for an affinity-purified antibody against SDS-denatured ubiquitin, was retained when used as a probe for ubiquitin-protein adducts in tissue sections. Immunohistochemical localization revealed that differences in ubiquitin pools derived from the relative content of red (oxidative) vs white (glycolytic) fibers, with the former exhibiting a higher content of ubiquitin conjugates. Subsequent immunogold labeling demonstrated statistically significant enhanced localization of ubiquitin conjugates to the Z-lines in both red and white muscle fiber types.

Experimental research on the dynamic behaviors of the keyhole and molten pool in laser deep-penetration welding

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Yi; Lin, Qida; Yin, Xuni; Li, Simeng; Deng, Jiquan

2018-04-01

Both the morphology and temperature are two important characteristics of the keyhole and the molten pool in laser deep-penetration welding. The modified ‘sandwich’ method was adopted to overcome the difficulty in obtaining inner information about the keyhole and the molten pool. Based on this method, experimental platforms were built for observing the variations in the surface morphology, the longitudinal keyhole profile and the internal temperature. The experimental results of three dynamic behaviors exbibit as follows. The key factor, which makes the pool width go into a quasi-steady state, lies in the balance between the vortex and the sideways flows around the keyhole. Experimental observation shows that the keyhole goes through three stages in laser welding: the rapid drilling stage, the slow drilling stage and the quasi-steady state. The time for achieving a relative fixed keyhole depth is close to the formation time of the maximum pool width. The internal temperatures inside the keyhole and the molten pool first experience a rapid increase, then a decrease and finally go into a quasi-steady state. Compared to that in the unstable stage, the liquid–metal uphill formed in the stable stage of laser welding has less influence on the internal temperature.

Analysis of Terrestrial Carbon Stocks in a Small Catchment of Northeastern Siberia

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Heard, K.; Natali, S.; Bunn, A. G.; Loranty, M. M.; Kholodov, A. L.; Schade, J. D.; Berner, L. T.; Spektor, V.; Zimov, N.; Alexander, H. D.

2015-12-01

As arctic terrestrial ecosystems comprise about one-third of the global terrestrial ecosystem carbon total, understanding arctic carbon cycling and the feedback of terrestrial carbon pools to accelerated warming is an issue of global concern. For this research, we examined above- and belowground carbon stocks in a larch-dominated catchment underlain by yedoma and located within the Kolyma River watershed in northeastern Siberia. We quantified carbon stocks in vegetation, active layer, and permafrost, and we assessed the correlation between plant and active layer carbon pools and four environmental correlates — slope, solar insolation, canopy density, and leaf area index ­— at 20 sites. Carbon in the active layer was approximately four times greater than aboveground carbon pools (972 g C m-2), and belowground carbon to 1 m depth was approximately 18 times greater than aboveground carbon pools. Canopy density and slope had a robust positive association with aboveground carbon pools, and soil moisture was positively related to %C in organic, thawed mineral and permafrost soil. Thaw depth was negatively correlated with moss cover and larch biomass, highlighting the importance of vegetation and surface characteristics on permafrost carbon vulnerability. These data suggest that landscape and ecosystem characteristics affect carbon accumulation and storage, but they also play an important role in stabilizing permafrost carbon pools.

Sodium-glucose cotransporter 2 (SGLT2) inhibitors and fracture risk in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus: A meta-analysis.

PubMed

Ruanpeng, Darin; Ungprasert, Patompong; Sangtian, Jutarat; Harindhanavudhi, Tasma

2017-09-01

Sodium-glucose cotransporter 2 (SGLT2) inhibitors could potentially alter calcium and phosphate homeostasis and may increase the risk of bone fracture. The current meta-analysis was conducted to investigate the fracture risk among patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus treated with SGLT2 inhibitors. Randomized controlled trials that compared the efficacy of SGLT2 inhibitors to placebo were identified. The risk ratios of fracture among patients who received SGLT2 inhibitors versus placebo were extracted from each study. Pooled risk ratios and 95% confidence intervals were calculated using a random-effect, Mantel-Haenszel analysis. A total of 20 studies with 8286 patients treated with SGLT2 inhibitors were included. The pooled risk ratio of bone fracture in patients receiving SGLT2 inhibitors versus placebo was 0.67 (95% confidence interval, 0.42-1.07). The pooled risk ratio for canagliflozin, dapagliflozin, and empagliflozin was 0.66 (95% confidence interval, 0.37-1.19), 0.84 (95% confidence interval, 0.22-3.18), and 0.57 (95% confidence interval, 0.20-1.59), respectively. Increased risk of bone fracture among patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus treated with SGLT2 inhibitors compared with placebo was not observed in this meta-analysis. However, the results were limited by short duration of treatment/follow-up and low incidence of the event of interest. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Considering the Spatial Layout Information of Bag of Features (BoF) Framework for Image Classification.

PubMed

Mu, Guangyu; Liu, Ying; Wang, Limin

2015-01-01

The spatial pooling method such as spatial pyramid matching (SPM) is very crucial in the bag of features model used in image classification. SPM partitions the image into a set of regular grids and assumes that the spatial layout of all visual words obey the uniform distribution over these regular grids. However, in practice, we consider that different visual words should obey different spatial layout distributions. To improve SPM, we develop a novel spatial pooling method, namely spatial distribution pooling (SDP). The proposed SDP method uses an extension model of Gauss mixture model to estimate the spatial layout distributions of the visual vocabulary. For each visual word type, SDP can generate a set of flexible grids rather than the regular grids from the traditional SPM. Furthermore, we can compute the grid weights for visual word tokens according to their spatial coordinates. The experimental results demonstrate that SDP outperforms the traditional spatial pooling methods, and is competitive with the state-of-the-art classification accuracy on several challenging image datasets.

Comparison the effects of poor health and low income on early retirement: a systematic review and meta-analysis

PubMed Central

HOMAIE RAD, Enayatollah; RASHIDIAN, Arash; ARAB, Mohamad; SOURI, Ali

2017-01-01

The main aim of this study was to estimate the effects of poor health and low income on early retirement. For this purpose systematic review and meta-analysis were conducted. Web of Science, PUBMED and Scopus databases were searched systematically. Finally 17 surveys were added in meta-analysis. These studies were conducted in 13 countries. At the end a Meta regression was done to show the effects of welfare system type on effect sizes of poor health and low income. The results of this study showed that poor health had effect on the risk of early retirement. (Poor health pooled effect sizes: 1.279 CI: (1.15 1.41), low income pooled effect sizes: 1.042 CI: (0.92 1.17), (poor health pooled marginal effects: 0.046 CI: (−0.03 0.12), low income pooled marginal effects: −0.002 CI: (−0.003 0.000). The results of this study showed that association between poor health and early retirement was stronger in comparison with low income and early retirement. PMID:28484145

Endogenous miRNA and Target Concentrations Determine Susceptibility to Potential ceRNA Competition

PubMed Central

Bosson, Andrew D.; Zamudio, Jesse R.; Sharp, Phillip A.

2016-01-01

SUMMARY Target competition (ceRNA crosstalk) within miRNA-regulated gene networks has been proposed to influence biological systems. To assess target competition, we characterize and quantitate miRNA networks in two cell types. Argonaute iCLIP reveals that hierarchical binding of high- to low-affinity miRNA targets is a key characteristic of in vivo activity. Quantification of cellular miRNA and mRNA/ncRNA target pool levels indicates that miRNA:target pool ratios and an affinity partitioned target pool accurately predict in vivo Ago binding profiles and miRNA susceptibility to target competition. Using single-cell reporters, we directly test predictions and estimate that ~3,000 additional high-affinity target sites can affect active miRNA families with low endogenous miRNA:target ratios, such as miR-92/25. In contrast, the highly expressed miR-294 and let-7 families are not susceptible to increases of nearly 10,000 sites. These results show differential susceptibility based on endogenous miRNA:target pool ratios and provide a physiological context for ceRNA competition in vivo. PMID:25449132

Comparison the effects of poor health and low income on early retirement: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

PubMed

Homaie Rad, Enayatollah; Rashidian, Arash; Arab, Mohamad; Souri, Ali

2017-08-08

The main aim of this study was to estimate the effects of poor health and low income on early retirement. For this purpose systematic review and meta-analysis were conducted. Web of Science, PUBMED and Scopus databases were searched systematically. Finally 17 surveys were added in meta-analysis. These studies were conducted in 13 countries. At the end a Meta regression was done to show the effects of welfare system type on effect sizes of poor health and low income. The results of this study showed that poor health had effect on the risk of early retirement. (Poor health pooled effect sizes: 1.279 CI: (1.15 1.41), low income pooled effect sizes: 1.042 CI: (0.92 1.17), (poor health pooled marginal effects: 0.046 CI: (-0.03 0.12), low income pooled marginal effects: -0.002 CI: (-0.003 0.000). The results of this study showed that association between poor health and early retirement was stronger in comparison with low income and early retirement.

Competitions between prosocial exclusions and punishments in finite populations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, Linjie; Chen, Xiaojie; Szolnoki, Attila

2017-04-01

Prosocial punishment has been proved to be a powerful mean to promote cooperation. Recent studies have found that social exclusion, which indeed can be regarded as a kind of punishment, can also support cooperation. However, if prosocial punishment and exclusion are both present, it is still unclear which strategy is more advantageous to curb free-riders. Here we first study the direct competition between different types of punishment and exclusion. We find that pool (peer) exclusion can always outperform pool (peer) punishment both in the optional and in the compulsory public goods game, no matter whether second-order sanctioning is considered or not. Furthermore, peer exclusion does better than pool exclusion both in the optional and in the compulsory game, but the situation is reversed in the presence of second-order exclusion. Finally, we extend the competition among all possible sanctioning strategies and find that peer exclusion can outperform all other strategies in the absence of second-order exclusion and punishment, while pool exclusion prevails when second-order sanctioning is possible. Our results demonstrate that exclusion is a more powerful strategy than punishment for the resolution of social dilemmas.

Mentoring the Next Researcher Generation: Reflections on Three Years of Building VET Research Capacity and Infrastructure

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Barratt-Pugh, Llandis Gareth

2012-01-01

During 2008-2011, the National Centre for Vocational Education Research (NCVER) funded a programme to build Australian VET research capacity and rejuvenate what has been seen as the existing "greying" researcher pool. This paper is a reflective narrative about experiences of constructing the programme with a specific focus on the…

Growing Researchers from the Historically Disadvantaged Groups through Internships

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mda, Thobeka

2013-01-01

This article provides an overview of the nature and quality of research supervision and mentorship practices employed by supervisors and mentors of interns in a South African research council in an attempt to increase the pool and change the face of researchers in the country. Through a series of studies conducted by the research council, the…

Mapping the EORTC QLQ-C30 onto the EQ-5D-3L: assessing the external validity of existing mapping algorithms.

PubMed

Doble, Brett; Lorgelly, Paula

2016-04-01

To determine the external validity of existing mapping algorithms for predicting EQ-5D-3L utility values from EORTC QLQ-C30 responses and to establish their generalizability in different types of cancer. A main analysis (pooled) sample of 3560 observations (1727 patients) and two disease severity patient samples (496 and 93 patients) with repeated observations over time from Cancer 2015 were used to validate the existing algorithms. Errors were calculated between observed and predicted EQ-5D-3L utility values using a single pooled sample and ten pooled tumour type-specific samples. Predictive accuracy was assessed using mean absolute error (MAE) and standardized root-mean-squared error (RMSE). The association between observed and predicted EQ-5D utility values and other covariates across the distribution was tested using quantile regression. Quality-adjusted life years (QALYs) were calculated using observed and predicted values to test responsiveness. Ten 'preferred' mapping algorithms were identified. Two algorithms estimated via response mapping and ordinary least-squares regression using dummy variables performed well on number of validation criteria, including accurate prediction of the best and worst QLQ-C30 health states, predicted values within the EQ-5D tariff range, relatively small MAEs and RMSEs, and minimal differences between estimated QALYs. Comparison of predictive accuracy across ten tumour type-specific samples highlighted that algorithms are relatively insensitive to grouping by tumour type and affected more by differences in disease severity. Two of the 'preferred' mapping algorithms suggest more accurate predictions, but limitations exist. We recommend extensive scenario analyses if mapped utilities are used in cost-utility analyses.

Metabolic heterogeneity in human calf muscle during maximal exercise

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

Vandenborne, K.; McCully, K.; Kakihira, H.

1991-07-01

Human skeletal muscle is composed of various muscle fiber types. The authors hypothesized that differences in metabolism between fiber types could be detected noninvasively with {sup 31}P nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy during maximal exercise. This assumes that during maximal exercise all fiber types are recruited and all vary in the amount of acidosis. The calf muscles of seven subjects were studied. Two different coils were applied: an 11-cm-diameter surface coil and a five-segment meander coil. The meander coil was used to localize the {sup 31}P signal to either the medial or the lateral gastrocnemius. Maximal exercise, consisting of rapid plantarmore » flexions, resulted in an 83.7% {plus minus} 7.8% decrease of the phosphocreatine pool and an 8-fold increase of the inorganic phosphate (P{sub i}) pool. At rest the P{sub i} pool was observed as a single resonance (pH 7.0). Toward the end of the first minute of exercise, three subjects showed three distinct P{sub i} peaks. During the second minute of exercise the pH values stabilized. The same pattern was seen when the signal was collected from the medial or lateral gastrocnemius. In four subjects only two distinct P{sub i} peaks were observed. The P{sub i} peaks had differing relative areas in different subjects, but they were reproducible in each individual. This method allowed is to study the appearance and disappearance of the different P{sub i} peaks, together with the changes in pH. Because multiple P{sub i} peaks were seen in single muscles they most likely identify different muscle fiber types.« less

Clinical- and Cost-effectiveness of Telemedicine in Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis

PubMed Central

Zhai, Yun-kai; Zhu, Wei-jun; Cai, Yan-ling; Sun, Dong-xu; Zhao, Jie

2014-01-01

Abstract Emerging telemedicine programs offer potential low-cost solutions to the management of chronic disease. We sought to evaluate the clinical effectiveness and cost effectiveness of telemedicine approaches on glycemic control in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus. Using terms related to type 2 diabetes and telemedicine, MEDLINE, Cochrane, EMBASE, and CINAHL Plus were searched to identify relevant studies published through February 28, 2014. Data from identified clinical trials were pooled according to telemedicine approach, and evaluated using conventional meta-analytical methods. We identified 47 articles, from 35 randomized controlled trials, reporting quantitative outcomes for hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c). Twelve of the 35 studies provided intervention via telephone, either in the form of a call or a text message; 19 studies tested internet-based programs, employing video-conferencing and/or informational websites; and four studies used interventions involving electronically transmitted recommendations made by clinicians in response to internet-based reporting by patients. Overall, pooled results from these studies revealed a small, but statistically significant, decrease in HbA1c following intervention, compared to conventional treatment (pooled difference in means = −0.37, 95% CI = −0.49 to −0.25, Z = −6.08, P < 0.001). Only two of the 35 studies included assessment of cost-effectiveness. These studies were disparate, both in terms of overall expense and relative cost-effectiveness. Optimization of telemedicine approaches could potentially allow for more effective self-management of disease in type 2 diabetes patients, though evidence to-date is unconvincing. Furthermore, significant publication bias was detected, suggesting that the literature should be interpreted cautiously. PMID:25526482

The association of household food insecurity with the risk of type 2 diabetes mellitus in adults: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

PubMed

Abdurahman, Ahmed A; Chaka, Eshetu E; Nedjat, S; Dorosty, Ahmed Reza; Majdzadeh, R

2018-05-02

The link between household food insecurity and risk of type 2 diabetes mellitus still remains controversial. Therefore, we performed a systematic review and meta-analysis to clarify the association between household food insecurity and type 2 diabetes mellitus. EMBASE, PubMed, ISI Web of Science and Scopus databases were searched up to March 2017. The selection of studies, data extraction and assessing the risk of bias in the included studies were carried out by two reviewers independently. Study-specific odds ratios (ORs) were pooled using a random effects model. A total of 18 articles including a total of 55,353,915 adult participants were included in the meta-analysis. The pooled ORs of the cross-sectional studies revealed that household food insecurity was significantly associated with the odds of T2DM (OR 1.27, 95% CI 1.11-1.42) with no evidence of publication bias (p = 0.63) but heterogeneity between studies (I 2  = 61.1%). Similarly, subgroup analyses showed that the country where the study conducted and household food insecurity assessment tool used to influence the effect of household food insecurity on the odds of T2DM. However, the pooled ORs for two case-control and one cohort studies were not significantly associated between household food insecurity and T2DM in adults. This study strengthens the hypothesis of the household food insecurity effect on the odds of T2DM among adults. Further longitudinal studies based on larger, and more representative samples are needed to identify the underlying relationships between food insecurity and type 2 diabetes mellitus.

University Research Funding: The United States Is Behind and Falling

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Atkinson, Robert D.; Stewart, Luke A.

2011-01-01

Research and development drives innovation and innovation drives long-run economic growth, creating jobs and improving living standards in the process. University-based research is of particular importance to innovation, as the early-stage research that is typically performed at universities serves to expand the knowledge pool from which the…

High-Throughput Parallel Sequencing to Measure Fitness of Leptospira interrogans Transposon Insertion Mutants during Acute Infection

PubMed Central

Matsunaga, James; Haake, David A.

2016-01-01

Pathogenic species of Leptospira are the causative agents of leptospirosis, a zoonotic disease that causes mortality and morbidity worldwide. The understanding of the virulence mechanisms of Leptospira spp is still at an early stage due to the limited number of genetic tools available for this microorganism. The development of random transposon mutagenesis in pathogenic strains a decade ago has contributed to the identification of several virulence factors. In this study, we used the transposon sequencing (Tn-Seq) technique, which combines transposon mutagenesis with massive parallel sequencing, to study the in vivo fitness of a pool of Leptospira interrogans mutants. We infected hamsters with a pool of 42 mutants (input pool), which included control mutants with insertions in four genes previously analyzed by virulence testing (loa22, ligB, flaA1, and lic20111) and 23 mutants with disrupted signal transduction genes. We quantified the mutants in different tissues (blood, kidney and liver) at 4 days post-challenge by high-throughput sequencing and compared the frequencies of mutants recovered from tissues to their frequencies in the input pool. Control mutants that were less fit in the Tn-Seq experiment were attenuated for virulence when tested separately in the hamster model of lethal leptospirosis. Control mutants with unaltered fitness were as virulent as the wild-type strain. We identified two mutants with the transposon inserted in the same putative adenylate/guanylate cyclase gene (lic12327) that had reduced in vivo fitness in blood, kidney and liver. Both lic12327 mutants were attenuated for virulence when tested individually in hamsters. Growth of the control mutants and lic12327 mutants in culture medium were similar to that of the wild-type strain. These results demonstrate the feasibility of screening large pools of L. interrogans transposon mutants for those with altered fitness, and potentially attenuated virulence, by transposon sequencing. PMID:27824878

Social network typologies and mortality risk among older people in China, India, and Latin America: A 10/66 Dementia Research Group population-based cohort study.

PubMed

Santini, Ziggi Ivan; Koyanagi, Ai; Tyrovolas, Stefanos; Haro, Josep M; Fiori, Katherine L; Uwakwa, Richard; Thiyagarajan, Jotheeswaran A; Webber, Martin; Prince, Martin; Prina, A Matthew

2015-12-01

Restricted social networks have been associated with higher mortality in several developed countries but there are no studies on this topic from developing countries. This gap exists despite potentially greater dependence on social networks for support and survival due to various barriers to health care and social protection schemes in this setting. Thus, this study aims to examine how social network type at baseline predicts all-cause mortality among older adults in six Latin American countries, China, and India. Population-based surveys were conducted of all individuals aged 65+ years in eight countries (Cuba, Dominican Republic, Peru, Venezuela, Mexico, Puerto Rico, China, and India). Data on mortality were obtained at follow-up (mean 3.8 years after cohort inception). Follow-up data for 13,891 individuals were analysed. Social network types were assessed using Wenger's Practitioner Assessment of Network Type (PANT). Cox proportional hazard models were constructed to estimate the impact of social network type on mortality risk in each country, adjusting for socio-demographics, receipt of pension, disability, medical conditions, and depression. Meta-analysis was performed to obtain pooled estimates. The prevalence of private network type was 64.4% in urban China and 1.6% in rural China, while the prevalence of locally integrated type was 6.6% in urban China and 86.8% in rural China. The adjusted pooled estimates across (a) all countries and (b) Latin America showed that, compared to the locally integrated social network type, the locally self-contained [(b) HR = 1.24, 95% CI 1.01-1.51], family dependent [(a) HR = 1.13, 95% CI 1.01-1.26; (b) HR = 1.13, 95% CI 1.001-1.28], and private [(a) HR = 1.36, 95% CI 1.06-1.73; (b) HR = 1.45, 95% CI 1.20-1.75] social network types were significantly associated with higher mortality risk. Survival time is significantly reduced in individuals embedded in restricted social networks (i.e. locally self-contained, family dependent, and private network types). Social care interventions may be enhanced by addressing the needs of those most at risk of neglect and deteriorating health. Health policy makers in developing countries may use this information to plan efficient use of limited resources by targeting those embedded in restricted social networks. Copyright © 2015 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

Environmental sun protection and supportive policies and practices: an audit of outdoor recreational settings in NSW coastal towns.

PubMed

Potente, Sofia; Anderson, Caroline; Karim, Muhsin

2011-08-01

The results of a sun protection audit of outdoor recreational environments in three NSW coastal towns. Thirty public swimming pools, beaches, sports grounds and skate parks were visited at two time points before and after summer (October 2009 and April 2010) and audited for the availability of sun protection, supportive polices and signage. There was insufficient shade in more than half (58%) of the observed sites at sports grounds, 49% of areas at beaches and 40% of areas at skate parks with most of these sites relying on natural shade (47-58%). Although pools were more likely to have shade available over most of the observed areas (36%) and permanent shade structures (75%), no shade was observed over any main outdoor pools. Similarly, there was only shade available over one of the main sporting grounds, one main beach and none of the main skate ramps. For other types of sun protection, sunscreen was the most popular product available either for free (nine sites) or for sale (eight sites). All pools had at least one supportive sun protection policy but only two of the total 30 sites had any related signage. This study demonstrates recent findings in relation to the accessibility of sun protection in these settings and the need for health promoting organisations to support and engage councils to invest in more sun protection strategies. The areas of focus should be shade provision particularly at beaches, skate parks and sports grounds; extending the availability of other types of sun protection; and introducing related policies and signage in more sites.

Association between switching antiepileptic drug products and healthcare utilization: A systematic review.

PubMed

Kwan, Patrick; Palmini, André

2017-08-01

There is ongoing concern whether switching between different antiepileptic drug (AED) products may compromise patient care. We systematically reviewed changes in healthcare utilization following AED switch. We searched MEDLINE and EMBASE databases (1980-October 2016) for studies that assessed the effect of AED switching in patients with epilepsy on outpatient visits, emergency room visits, hospitalization and hospital stay duration. A total of 14 articles met the inclusion criteria. All were retrospective studies. Four provided findings for specific AEDs only (lamotrigine, topiramate, phenytoin and divalproex), 9 presented pooled findings from multiple AEDs, and 1 study provided both specific (lamotrigine, topiramate, oxcarbazepine, and levetiracetam) and pooled findings. Three studies found an association between a switch of topiramate and an increase in healthcare utilization. Another three studies found that a brand-to-generic lamotrigine switch was not associated with an increased risk of emergently treated events (ambulance use, ER visits or hospitalization). The outcomes of the pooled AED switch studies were inconsistent; 5 studies reported an increased healthcare utilization while 5 studies did not. Studies that have examined the association between an AED switch and a change in healthcare utilization report conflicting findings. Factors that may explain these inconsistent outcomes include inter-study differences in the type of analysis undertaken (pooled vs individual AED data), the covariates used for data adjustment, and the type of switch examined. Future medical claim database studies employing a prospective design are encouraged to address these and other factors in order to enhance inter-study comparability and extrapolation of findings. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Kinship and mate choice in a historic eastern Blue Ridge community, Madison County, Virginia.

PubMed

Frankenberg, S R

1990-12-01

Potential mates analysis is difficult to apply to small historic populations that lack clear boundaries or regular vital event registration. Here I analyze the actual mate pool as an alternative way to identify causes of nonrandom mating when unmarried members are unknown. Factors influencing mate choice within a historic eastern Blue Ridge community in Madison County, Virginia, are examined for four marriage cohorts: 1850-1879, 1880-1899, 1900-1919, and 1920-1939. These factors include nuclear kin avoidance, preferred age differences between mates, and preferences for more distant kin. A simulation is used to recombine members of the cohort-specific pools of married individuals to generate the probabilities of various types of kin marriages. The pedigree and vital statistics data are derived from first-time marriage licenses filled by community members in Madison County from 1794 to 1939. The numbers of marriages examined for each cohort are 88, 120, 132, and 132, respectively; the mate pools constructed from the samples are viewed from the female perspective. The results generated by simulation on the actual mate pools consist of mean kinship coefficients, numbers of marriages between "allowed" kin types, and probabilities of these values when marriage is random with respect to kinship. The results indicate significantly high levels of inbreeding in all four marriage cohorts, primarily because of high levels of first-cousin marriages in the first three cohorts and of first-cousin once-removed marriages in the 1920 cohort. The observed mating patterns are discussed in terms of the social history of the Blue Ridge community and restrictions of the data.

Multiphase flow and phase change in microgravity: Fundamental research and strategic research for exploration of space

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Singh, Bhim S.

2003-01-01

NASA is preparing to undertake science-driven exploration missions. The NASA Exploration Team's vision is a cascade of stepping stones. The stepping-stone will build the technical capabilities needed for each step with multi-use technologies and capabilities. An Agency-wide technology investment and development program is necessary to implement the vision. The NASA Exploration Team has identified a number of areas where significant advances are needed to overcome all engineering and medical barriers to the expansion of human space exploration beyond low-Earth orbit. Closed-loop life support systems and advanced propulsion and power technologies are among the areas requiring significant advances from the current state-of-the-art. Studies conducted by the National Academy of Science's National Research Council and Workshops organized by NASA have shown that multiphase flow and phase change play a crucial role in many of these advanced technology concepts. Lack of understanding of multiphase flow, phase change, and interfacial phenomena in the microgravity environment has been a major hurdle. An understanding of multiphase flow and phase change in microgravity is, therefore, critical to advancing many technologies needed. Recognizing this, the Office of Biological and Physical Research (OBPR) has initiated a strategic research thrust to augment the ongoing fundamental research in fluid physics and transport phenomena discipline with research especially aimed at understanding key multiphase flow related issues in propulsion, power, thermal control, and closed-loop advanced life support systems. A plan for integrated theoretical and experimental research that has the highest probability of providing data, predictive tools, and models needed by the systems developers to incorporate highly promising multiphase-based technologies is currently in preparation. This plan is being developed with inputs from scientific community, NASA mission planners and industry personnel. The fundamental research in multiphase flow and phase change in microgravity is aimed at developing better mechanistic understanding of pool boiling and ascertaining the effects of gravity on heat transfer and the critical heat flux. Space flight experiments conducted in space have shown that nucleate pool boiling can be sustained under certain conditions in the microgravity environment. New space flight experiments are being developed to provide more quantitative information on pool boiling in microgravity. Ground-based investigations are also being conducted to develop mechanistic models for flow and pool boiling. An overview of the research plan and roadmap for the strategic research in multiphase flow and phase change as well as research findings from the ongoing program will be presented.

Efficacy of Alteplase® in a mouse model of acute ischemic stroke: a retrospective pooled analysis

PubMed Central

Orset, Cyrille; Haelewyn, Benoit; Allan, Stuart M.; Ansar, Saema; Campos, Francesco; Cho, Tae Hee; Durand, Anne; El Amki, Mohamad; Fatar, Marc; Garcia-Yébenes, Isaac; Gauberti, Maxime; Grudzenski, Saskia; Lizasoain, Ignacio; Lo, Eng; Macrez, Richard; Margaill, Isabelle; Maysami, Samaneh; Meairs, Stephen; Nighoghossian, Norbert; Orbe, Josune; Paramo, Jose Antonio; Parienti, Jean-Jacques; Rothwell, Nancy J.; Rubio, Marina; Waeber, Christian; Young, Alan R.

2016-01-01

Background and purpose The debate over the fact that experimental drugs proposed for the treatment of stroke fail in the translation to the clinical situation, has attracted considerable attention in the literature. In this context, we present a retrospective pooled analysis of a large dataset from pre-clinical studies, in order to examine the effects of early versus late administration of intravenous recombinant tissue type plasminogen activator (rt-PA). Methods We collected data from 26 individual studies from 9 international centers (13 researchers, 716 animals) that compared rt-PA to controls, in a unique mouse model of thromboembolic stroke induced by an in situ injection of thrombin into the middle cerebral artery. Studies were classified into early (<3h) versus late (≥3h) drug administration. Final infarct volumes, assessed by histology or MRI, were compared in each study and the absolute differences were pooled in a random-effect meta-analysis. The influence of time of administration was tested. Results When compared to saline controls, early rt-PA administration was associated with a significant benefit (absolute difference = −6.63 mm3; 95%CI, −9.08 to −4.17; I2=76%) whereas late rt-PA treatment showed a deleterious effect (+5.06 mm3; 95%CI, +2.78 to +7.34; I2=42%, Pint<0.00001). Results remained unchanged following subgroup analyses. Conclusion Our results provide the basis needed for the design of future pre-clinical studies on recanalization therapies using this model of thromboembolic stroke in mice. The power analysis reveals that a multi-center trial would require 123 animals per group instead of 40 for a single center trial. PMID:27032444

Temperature Field During Flame Spread over Alcohol Pools: Measurements and Modelling

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Miller, Fletcher J.; Ross, Howard D.; Schiller, David N.

1994-01-01

A principal difference between flame spread over solid fuels and over liquid fuels is, in the latter case, the presence of liquid-phase convection ahead of the leading edge of the flame. The details of the fluid dynamics and heat transfer mechanisms in both the pulsating and uniform flame spread regimes were heavily debated, without resolution, in the 1960s and 1970s; recently, research on flame spread over pools was reinvigorated by the advent of enhanced diagnostic techniques and computational power. Temperature fields in the liquid, which enable determination of the extent of preheating ahead of the flame, were determined previously by the use of thermocouples and repetitive tests, and suggested that the surface temperature does not decrease monotonically ahead of the pulsating flame front, but that there exists a surface temperature valley. Recent predictions support this suggestion. However, others' thermocouple measurements and the recent field measurements using Holographic Interferometry (HI) did not find a similar valley. In this work we examine the temperature field using Rainbow Schlieren Deflectometry (RSD), with a measurement threshold exceeding that of conventional interferometry by a factor of 20:1, for uniform and pulsating flame spread using propanol and butanol as fuels. This technique was not applied before to flame spread over liquid pools, except in some preliminary measurements reported earlier. Noting that HI is sensitive to the refractive index while RSD responds to refractive index gradients, and that these two techniques might therefore be difficult to compare, we utilized a numerical simulation, described below, to predict and compare both types of field for the uniform and pulsating spread regimes. The experimental data also allows a validation of the model at a level of detail greater than has been attempted before.

Stratification of pseudoprogression and true progression of glioblastoma multiform based on longitudinal diffusion tensor imaging without segmentation

PubMed Central

Qian, Xiaohua; Tan, Hua; Zhang, Jian; Zhao, Weilin; Chan, Michael D.; Zhou, Xiaobo

2016-01-01

Purpose: Pseudoprogression (PsP) can mimic true tumor progression (TTP) on magnetic resonance imaging in patients with glioblastoma multiform (GBM). The phenotypical similarity between PsP and TTP makes it a challenging task for physicians to distinguish these entities. So far, no approved biomarkers or computer-aided diagnosis systems have been used clinically for this purpose. Methods: To address this challenge, the authors developed an objective classification system for PsP and TTP based on longitudinal diffusion tensor imaging. A novel spatio-temporal discriminative dictionary learning scheme was proposed to differentiate PsP and TTP, thereby avoiding segmentation of the region of interest. The authors constructed a novel discriminative sparse matrix with the classification-oriented dictionary learning approach by excluding the shared features of two categories, so that the pooled features captured the subtle difference between PsP and TTP. The most discriminating features were then identified from the pooled features by their feature scoring system. Finally, the authors stratified patients with GBM into PsP and TTP by a support vector machine approach. Tenfold cross-validation (CV) and the area under the receiver operating characteristic (AUC) were used to assess the robustness of the developed system. Results: The average accuracy and AUC values after ten rounds of tenfold CV were 0.867 and 0.92, respectively. The authors also assessed the effects of different methods and factors (such as data types, pooling techniques, and dimensionality reduction approaches) on the performance of their classification system which obtained the best performance. Conclusions: The proposed objective classification system without segmentation achieved a desirable and reliable performance in differentiating PsP from TTP. Thus, the developed approach is expected to advance the clinical research and diagnosis of PsP and TTP. PMID:27806598

Isolation, banking, encapsulation and transplantation of different types of Langerhans islets.

PubMed

Antosiak-Iwańska, Magdalena; Sitarek, Elzbieta; Sabat, Marek; Godlewska, Ewa; Kinasiewicz, Joanna; Weryński, Andrzej

2009-05-01

The discovery of a cure for diabetes is a dream of many medical researchers. The transplantation of Langerhans islets is a potential treatment of choice for patients with type 1 diabetes as a source of endogenous insulin for the recipient. The aim of the experiment was to transplant Langerhans islets without immunosuppression. To protect the grafts against transplant rejection, semipermeable membranes could be used. Langerhans islets were isolated from rats and pigs and immunoisolated by encapsulation in alginate-protamine-heparin (APH) or alginate-poly-L-lysine-alginate (APA) membranes. Islets were pooled in a controlled manner. Tests for cryopreservation and biocompatibility were also performed. The capsules coated with APH are more resistant than the capsules coated with APA. After transplantation of the islets immunoisolated with APA, euglycemia is maintained longer than after transplantation of the islets immunoisolated with APH. Microencapsulation protects the islets from destruction by the host. It is feasible to treat experimental diabetes by transplantation of encapsulated Langerhans islets without immunosuppression.

Two decades of dendrimers as versatile MRI agents: a tale with and without metals.

PubMed

McMahon, Michael T; Bulte, Jeff W M

2018-05-01

Dendrimers or dendritic polymers are a class of compounds with great potential for nanomedical use. Some of their properties, including their rigidity, low polydispersity and the ease with which their surfaces can be modified make them particularly well suited for use as MRI diagnostic or theranostic agents. For the past 20 years, researchers have recognized this potential and refined dendrimer formulations to optimize these nanocarriers for a host of MRI applications, including blood pool imaging agents, lymph node imaging agents, tumor-targeted theranostic agents and cell tracking agents. This review summarizes the various types of dendrimers according to the type of MR contrast they can provide. This includes the metallic T 1 , T 2 and paraCEST imaging agents, and the non-metallic diaCEST and fluorinated ( 19 F) heteronuclear imaging agents. This article is categorized under: Diagnostic Tools > In Vivo Nanodiagnostics and Imaging Implantable Materials and Surgical Technologies > Nanomaterials and Implants. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

"Ripples" in an Aluminum Pool?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rohr, James; Wang, Si-Yin; Nesterenko, Vitali F.

2018-05-01

Our motivation for this article is for students to realize that opportunities for discovery are all around them. Discoveries that can still puzzle present day researchers. Here we explore an observation by a middle school student concerning the production of what appears to be water-like "ripples" produced in aluminum foil when placed between two colliding spheres. We both applaud and explore the student's reasoning that the ripples were formed in a melted aluminum pool.

Yoga for improving health-related quality of life, mental health and cancer-related symptoms in women diagnosed with breast cancer.

PubMed

Cramer, Holger; Lauche, Romy; Klose, Petra; Lange, Silke; Langhorst, Jost; Dobos, Gustav J

2017-01-03

Breast cancer is the cancer most frequently diagnosed in women worldwide. Even though survival rates are continually increasing, breast cancer is often associated with long-term psychological distress, chronic pain, fatigue and impaired quality of life. Yoga comprises advice for an ethical lifestyle, spiritual practice, physical activity, breathing exercises and meditation. It is a complementary therapy that is commonly recommended for breast cancer-related impairments and has been shown to improve physical and mental health in people with different cancer types. To assess effects of yoga on health-related quality of life, mental health and cancer-related symptoms among women with a diagnosis of breast cancer who are receiving active treatment or have completed treatment. We searched the Cochrane Breast Cancer Specialised Register, MEDLINE (via PubMed), Embase, the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL; 2016, Issue 1), Indexing of Indian Medical Journals (IndMED), the World Health Organization (WHO) International Clinical Trials Registry Platform (ICTRP) search portal and Clinicaltrials.gov on 29 January 2016. We also searched reference lists of identified relevant trials or reviews, as well as conference proceedings of the International Congress on Complementary Medicine Research (ICCMR), the European Congress for Integrative Medicine (ECIM) and the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO). We applied no language restrictions. Randomised controlled trials were eligible when they (1) compared yoga interventions versus no therapy or versus any other active therapy in women with a diagnosis of non-metastatic or metastatic breast cancer, and (2) assessed at least one of the primary outcomes on patient-reported instruments, including health-related quality of life, depression, anxiety, fatigue or sleep disturbances. Two review authors independently collected data on methods and results. We expressed outcomes as standardised mean differences (SMDs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) and conducted random-effects model meta-analyses. We assessed potential risk of publication bias through visual analysis of funnel plot symmetry and heterogeneity between studies by using the Chi 2 test and the I 2 statistic. We conducted subgroup analyses for current treatment status, time since diagnosis, stage of cancer and type of yoga intervention. We included 24 studies with a total of 2166 participants, 23 of which provided data for meta-analysis. Thirteen studies had low risk of selection bias, five studies reported adequate blinding of outcome assessment and 15 studies had low risk of attrition bias.Seventeen studies that compared yoga versus no therapy provided moderate-quality evidence showing that yoga improved health-related quality of life (pooled SMD 0.22, 95% CI 0.04 to 0.40; 10 studies, 675 participants), reduced fatigue (pooled SMD -0.48, 95% CI -0.75 to -0.20; 11 studies, 883 participants) and reduced sleep disturbances in the short term (pooled SMD -0.25, 95% CI -0.40 to -0.09; six studies, 657 participants). The funnel plot for health-related quality of life was asymmetrical, favouring no therapy, and the funnel plot for fatigue was roughly symmetrical. This hints at overall low risk of publication bias. Yoga did not appear to reduce depression (pooled SMD -0.13, 95% CI -0.31 to 0.05; seven studies, 496 participants; low-quality evidence) or anxiety (pooled SMD -0.53, 95% CI -1.10 to 0.04; six studies, 346 participants; very low-quality evidence) in the short term and had no medium-term effects on health-related quality of life (pooled SMD 0.10, 95% CI -0.23 to 0.42; two studies, 146 participants; low-quality evidence) or fatigue (pooled SMD -0.04, 95% CI -0.36 to 0.29; two studies, 146 participants; low-quality evidence). Investigators reported no serious adverse events.Four studies that compared yoga versus psychosocial/educational interventions provided moderate-quality evidence indicating that yoga can reduce depression (pooled SMD -2.29, 95% CI -3.97 to -0.61; four studies, 226 participants), anxiety (pooled SMD -2.21, 95% CI -3.90 to -0.52; three studies, 195 participants) and fatigue (pooled SMD -0.90, 95% CI -1.31 to -0.50; two studies, 106 participants) in the short term. Very low-quality evidence showed no short-term effects on health-related quality of life (pooled SMD 0.81, 95% CI -0.50 to 2.12; two studies, 153 participants) or sleep disturbances (pooled SMD -0.21, 95% CI -0.76 to 0.34; two studies, 119 participants). No trial adequately reported safety-related data.Three studies that compared yoga versus exercise presented very low-quality evidence showing no short-term effects on health-related quality of life (pooled SMD -0.04, 95% CI -0.30 to 0.23; three studies, 233 participants) or fatigue (pooled SMD -0.21, 95% CI -0.66 to 0.25; three studies, 233 participants); no trial provided safety-related data. Moderate-quality evidence supports the recommendation of yoga as a supportive intervention for improving health-related quality of life and reducing fatigue and sleep disturbances when compared with no therapy, as well as for reducing depression, anxiety and fatigue, when compared with psychosocial/educational interventions. Very low-quality evidence suggests that yoga might be as effective as other exercise interventions and might be used as an alternative to other exercise programmes.

Aging and stem cell therapy: AMPK as an applicable pharmacological target for rejuvenation of aged stem cells and achieving higher efficacy in stem cell therapy.

PubMed

Khorraminejad-Shirazi, Mohammadhossein; Farahmandnia, Mohammad; Kardeh, Bahareh; Estedlal, Alireza; Kardeh, Sina; Monabati, Ahmad

2017-10-19

In recent years, tissue regeneration has become a promising field for developing stem cell-based transplantation therapies for human patients. Adult stem cells are affected by the same aging mechanisms that involve somatic cells. One of the mechanisms involved in cellular aging is hyperactivation of mechanistic target of rapamycin complex 1 (mTORC1) and disruption of 5' adenosine monophosphate-activated protein kinase (AMPK). Aging of stem cells results in their impaired regenerative capacity and depletion of stem cell pools in adult tissue, which results in lower efficacy of stem cell therapy. By utilizing an effective therapeutic intervention for aged stem cells, stem cell therapy can become more promising for future application. mTORC1 inhibition is a practical approach to preserve the stem cell pool. In this article, we review the dynamic interaction between sirtuin (silent mating type information regulation 2 homolog) 1, AMPK, and mTORC1. We propose that using AMPK activators such as 5-aminoimidazole-4-carboxamide ribonucleotide, A769662, metformin, and oxidized nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD + ) are practical ways to be employed for achieving better optimized results in stem cell-based transplantation therapies. Copyright © 2017 King Faisal Specialist Hospital & Research Centre. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Fires in storages of LFO: Analysis of hazard of structural collapse of steel-aluminium containers.

PubMed

Rebec, A; Kolšek, J; Plešec, P

2016-04-05

Pool fires of light fuel oil (LFO) in above-ground storages with steel-aluminium containers are discussed. A model is developed for assessments of risks of between-tank fire spread. Radiative effects of the flame body are accounted for by a solid flame radiation model. Thermal profiles evolved due to fire in the adjacent tanks and their consequential structural response is pursued in an exact (materially and geometrically non-linear) manner. The model's derivation is demonstrated on the LFO tank storage located near the Port of Koper (Slovenia). In support of the model, data from literature are adopted where appropriate. Analytical expressions are derived correspondingly for calculations of emissive characteristics of LFO pool fires. Additional data are collected from experiments. Fire experiments conducted on 300cm diameter LFO pans and at different wind speeds and high-temperature uniaxial tension tests of the analysed aluminium alloys types 3xxx and 6xxx are presented. The model is of an immediate fire engineering practical value (risk analyses) or can be used for further research purposes (e.g. sensitivity and parametric studies). The latter use is demonstrated in the final part of the paper discussing possible effects of high-temperature creep of 3xxx aluminium. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Cool pool development. Quarterly technical report No. 1, April-June 1979

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

Crowther, K.

1979-10-15

The Cool Pool is a passive cooling system consisting of a shaded, evaporating roof pond which thermosiphons cool water into water-filled, metal columns (culvert pipes) located within the building living space. The water in the roof pond is cooled by evaporation, convection and radiation. Because the water in the pool and downcomer is colder and denser than the water in the column a pressure difference is created and the cold water flows from the pool, through the downcomer and into the bottom of the column. The warm column water rises and flows through a connecting pipe into the pool. Itmore » is then cooled and the cycle repeats itself. The system requires no pumps. The water column absorbs heat from the building interior primarily by convection and radiation. Since the column is radiating at a significantly lower temperature than the interior walls it plays a double role in human comfort. Not only does it cool the air by convection but it provides a heat sink to which people can radiate. Since thermal radiation is important to the cooling of people, the cold water column contributes substantially to their feelings of comfort. Research on the Cool Pool system includes the following major tasks: control of biological organisms and debris in the roof pond and water cylinders; development of a heat exchanger; experimental investigation of the system's thermal performance; and development of a predictive computer simulation of the Cool Pool. Progress in these tasks is reported.« less

Meteorological Modeling of Wintertime Cold Air Pool Stagnation Episodes in the Uintah and Salt Lake Basins

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Crosman, E.; Horel, J.; Blaylock, B. K.; Foster, C.

2014-12-01

High wintertime ozone concentrations in rural areas associated with oil and gas development and high particulate concentrations in urban areas have become topics of increasing concern in the Western United States, as both primary and secondary pollutants become trapped within stable wintertime boundary layers. While persistent cold air pools that enable such poor wintertime air quality are typically associated with high pressure aloft and light winds, the complex physical processes that contribute to the formation, maintenance, and decay of persistent wintertime temperature inversions are only partially understood. In addition, obtaining sufficiently accurate numerical weather forecasts and meteorological simulations of cold air pools for input into chemical models remains a challenge. This study examines the meteorological processes associated with several wintertime pollution episodes in Utah's Uintah and Salt Lake Basins using numerical Weather Research and Forecasting model simulations and observations collected from the Persistent Cold Air Pool and Uintah Basin Ozone Studies. The temperature, vertical structure, and winds within these cold air pools was found to vary as a function of snow cover, snow albedo, land use, cloud cover, large-scale synoptic flow, and episode duration. We evaluate the sensitivity of key atmospheric features such as stability, planetary boundary layer depth, local wind flow patterns and transport mechanisms to variations in surface forcing, clouds, and synoptic flow. Finally, noted deficiencies in the meteorological models of cold air pools and modifications to the model snow and microphysics treatment that have resulted in improved cold pool simulations will be presented.

Pool Formation in Boulder-Bed Streams: Implications From 1-D and 2-D Numerical Modeling

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Harrison, L. R.; Keller, E. A.

2003-12-01

In mountain rivers of Southern California, boulder-large roughness elements strongly influence flow hydraulics and pool formation and maintenance. In these systems, boulders appear to control the stream morphology by converging flow and producing deep pools during channel forming discharges. Our research goal is to develop quantitative relationships between boulder roughness elements, temporal patterns of scour and fill, and geomorphic processes that are important in producing pool habitat. The longitudinal distribution of shear stress, unit stream power and velocity were estimated along a 48 m reach on Rattlesnake Creek, using the HEC-RAS v 3.0 and River 2-D numerical models. The reach has an average slope of 0.02 and consists of a pool-riffle sequence with a large boulder constriction directly above the pool. Model runs were performed for a range of stream discharges to test if scour and fill thresholds for pool and riffle environments could be identified. Results from the HEC-RAS simulations identified that thresholds in shear stress, unit stream power and mean velocity occur above a discharge of 5.0 cms. Results from the one-dimensional analysis suggest that the reversal in competency is likely due to changes in cross-sectional width at varying flows. River 2-D predictions indicated that strong transverse velocity gradients were present through the pool at higher modeled discharges. At a flow of 0.5 cms (roughly 1/10th bankfull discharge), velocities are estimated at 0.6 m/s and 1.3 m/s for the pool and riffle, respectively. During discharges of 5.15 cms (approximate bankfull discharge), the maximum velocity in the pool center increased to nearly 3.0 m/s, while the maximum velocity over the riffle is estimated at approximately 2.5 cms. These results are consistent with those predicted by HEC-RAS, though the reversal appears to be limited to a narrow jet that occurs through the pool head and pool center. Model predictions suggest that the velocity reversal is produced by a boulder-bedrock constriction that rapidly decreases the channel width above the pool by roughly 25 percent. The width constriction creates highly turbulent flow capable of scouring bed material through the pool. The high velocity core that is produced through the pool center appears to be enhanced by the formation of a large eddy directly below the boulder. Values of unit stream power and shear stress indicate that the pool exit is an area of deposition of bed material due to a decrease in tractive force. The presence of a strong transverse velocity gradient suggests that only a portion of the flow is responsible for scouring bed material. After we eliminate the dead water zone, the lowest five percent of the velocity range, patterns of effective width between pools and riffles begin to emerge. The ratio of flow width between adjacent pools and riffles is one measure of flow convergence. At a discharge of 0.5 cms, the ratio of effective width between pools and riffles is roughly 1:1, implying that there is uniform flow with little flow convergence. At a discharge of 5.15 cms the width ratio between the pool and riffle is about 1:3, demonstrating the strong convergent flow patterns at the pool head. The observed effective width relationship suggests that when considering restoration designs, boulders should be placed in areas that replicate natural convergence and divergence patterns in order to maximize pool area and depth.

Sensitivity and Tolerance of Riparian Arthropod Communities to Altered Water Resources along a Drying River

PubMed Central

McCluney, Kevin E.; Sabo, John L.

2014-01-01

Background Rivers around the world are drying with increasing frequency, but little is known about effects on terrestrial animal communities. Previous research along the San Pedro River in southeastern AZ, USA, suggests that changes in the availability of water resources associated with river drying lead to changes in predator abundance, community composition, diversity, and abundance of particular taxa of arthropods, but these observations have not yet been tested manipulatively. Methods and Results In this study, we constructed artificial pools in the stream bed adjacent to a drying section of the San Pedro River and maintained them as the river dried. We compared pitfall trapped arthropods near artificial pools to adjacent control sites where surface waters temporarily dried. Assemblage composition changed differentially at multiple taxonomic levels, resulting in different assemblages at pools than at control sites, with multiple taxa and richness of carabid beetle genera increasing at pools but not at controls that dried. On the other hand, predator biomass, particularly wolf spiders, and diversity of orders and families were consistently higher at control sites that dried. These results suggest an important role for colonization dynamics of pools, as well as the ability of certain taxa, particularly burrowing wolf spiders, to withstand periods of temporary drying. Conclusions Overall, we found some agreement between this manipulative study of water resources and a previous analysis of river drying that showed shifts in composition, changes in diversity, and declines in abundance of certain taxa (e.g. carabid beetles). However, colonization dynamics of pools, as well as compensatory strategies of predatory wolf spiders seem to have led to patterns that do not match previous research, with control sites maintaining high diversity, despite drying. Tolerance of river drying by some species may allow persistence of substantial diversity in the face of short-term drying. The long-term effects of drying remain to be investigated. PMID:25295874

Rapid changes in the permafrost soil carbon pool in response to warming

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schuur, E.; Plaza, C.; Pegoraro, E.; Bracho, R. G.; Celis, G.; Crummer, K. G.; Hutchings, J. A.; Hicks Pries, C.; Mauritz, M.; Natali, S.; Salmon, V. G.; Schaedel, C.; Webb, E.

2017-12-01

Current evidence suggests that 5 to 15% of the vast pool of soil carbon stored in northern permafrost zone ecosystems could be emitted as greenhouse gases by 2100 under the current path of global warming. Despite this forecasted release of billions of tons of additional carbon to the atmosphere that would accelerate climate change, direct measurements of change in soil carbon remain scarce and are not typically part of planned Arctic research and observation networks. This is largely because of ground subsidence that occurs as high-ice permafrost (perennially-frozen) soils begin to thaw. Profound physical alterations to the soil profile confound the application of traditional methods for quantifying carbon pool changes to fixed depths or using soil horizons. These issues can be overcome if carbon is quantified in relation to a fixed ash content, which uses the relatively stable mineral component of soil as a metric for pool comparisons through time. Here we apply this approach and show a 26% (95% confidence interval: 12, 39) loss in soil carbon over five years across both experimentally warmed and ambient tundra ecosystems at a site in Alaska where permafrost is degrading due to climate change. Losses were primarily concentrated in the middle of the soil profile, whereas any soil carbon losses from the surface were likely replaced with new carbon inputs from increased plant productivity. These surprisingly large losses overwhelmed increased plant biomass carbon uptake and were not fully detected by measurements of ecosystem-atmosphere carbon dioxide exchange. This research highlights the potential to directly detect changes in the soil carbon pool of this rapidly transforming landscape, and that current methodologies for quantifying ecosystem carbon dynamics may be underestimating soil losses. It also points to the need to make repeat soil carbon pool measurements at sentinel sites across permafrost regions, as this feedback to climate change may be occurring faster than previously thought.

Sensitivity and tolerance of Riparian arthropod communities to altered water resources along a drying river.

PubMed

McCluney, Kevin E; Sabo, John L

2014-01-01

Rivers around the world are drying with increasing frequency, but little is known about effects on terrestrial animal communities. Previous research along the San Pedro River in southeastern AZ, USA, suggests that changes in the availability of water resources associated with river drying lead to changes in predator abundance, community composition, diversity, and abundance of particular taxa of arthropods, but these observations have not yet been tested manipulatively. In this study, we constructed artificial pools in the stream bed adjacent to a drying section of the San Pedro River and maintained them as the river dried. We compared pitfall trapped arthropods near artificial pools to adjacent control sites where surface waters temporarily dried. Assemblage composition changed differentially at multiple taxonomic levels, resulting in different assemblages at pools than at control sites, with multiple taxa and richness of carabid beetle genera increasing at pools but not at controls that dried. On the other hand, predator biomass, particularly wolf spiders, and diversity of orders and families were consistently higher at control sites that dried. These results suggest an important role for colonization dynamics of pools, as well as the ability of certain taxa, particularly burrowing wolf spiders, to withstand periods of temporary drying. Overall, we found some agreement between this manipulative study of water resources and a previous analysis of river drying that showed shifts in composition, changes in diversity, and declines in abundance of certain taxa (e.g. carabid beetles). However, colonization dynamics of pools, as well as compensatory strategies of predatory wolf spiders seem to have led to patterns that do not match previous research, with control sites maintaining high diversity, despite drying. Tolerance of river drying by some species may allow persistence of substantial diversity in the face of short-term drying. The long-term effects of drying remain to be investigated.

Applying Equity Theory to Students' Perceptions of Research Participation Requirements

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Miles, Shannon R.; Cromer, Lisa DeMarni; Narayan, Anupama

2015-01-01

Human subject pools have been a valuable resource to universities conducting research with student participants. However, the costs and benefits to student participants must be carefully weighed by students, researchers, and institutional review board administrators in order to avoid coercion. Participant perceptions are pivotal in deciding…

Promising drug target could restore immune system’s ability to fight HIV | Center for Cancer Research

Cancer.gov

Scientists in NCI’s Center for Cancer Research have identified a new target for drugs that could help people who are HIV-positive eliminate recalcitrant pools of the virus. The research findings were published January 5 in Science. Read more…

Snow removal performance metrics : final report.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2017-05-01

This document is the final report for the Clear Roads project entitled Snow Removal Performance Metrics. The project team was led by researchers at Washington State University on behalf of Clear Roads, an ongoing pooled fund research effort focused o...

Specific types of alcoholic beverage consumption and risk of type 2 diabetes: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

PubMed

Huang, Jin; Wang, Xiuling; Zhang, Yadong

2017-01-01

Previous meta-analyses identified an inverse association of total alcohol consumption with the risk of type 2 diabetes. The current study further explored the relationship between specific types of alcoholic beverage and the incidence of type 2 diabetes. A search of PubMed, Embase and Cochrane Library databases from January 1966 to February 2016 was carried out for prospective cohort studies that assessed the effects of specific types of alcoholic beverage on the risk of type 2 diabetes. The pooled relative risks with 95% confidence interval were calculated using random- or fixed-effect models when appropriate. A total of 13 prospective studies were included in this meta-analysis, with 397,296 study participants and 20,641 cases of type 2 diabetes. Relative to no or rare alcohol consumption, wine consumption was associated with a significant reduction of the risk of type 2 diabetes, with the pooled relative risks of 0.85, whereas beer or spirits consumption led to a slight trend of decreasing risk of type 2 diabetes (relative risk 0.96, 0.95, respectively). Further dose-response analysis showed a U-shaped relationship between all three alcohol types and type 2 diabetes. Additionally, the peak risk reduction emerged at 20-30 g/day for wine and beer, and at 7-15 g/day for spirits, with a decrease of 20, 9 and 5%, respectively. Compared with beer or spirits, wine was associated with a more significant decreased risk of type 2 diabetes. The present study showed that wine might be more helpful for protection against type 2 diabetes than beer or spirits. © 2016 The Authors. Journal of Diabetes Investigation published by Asian Association for the Study of Diabetes (AASD) and John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd.

Strategic responses by hospitals to increased financial risk in the 1980s.

PubMed Central

Friedman, B.; Farley, D.

1995-01-01

OBJECTIVE. This research addresses the following types of responses by hospitals to increased financial risk: (a) increases in prices to privately insured patients (testing separately the effects of risk from the effects of "cost-shifting" that depends on level of Medicare payment in relation to case mix-adjusted cost); (b) changes in service mix offered and selectivity in acceptance of patients to reduce risk; and (c) efforts to reduce variation in resource use for those patients admitted. DATA SOURCES. The database includes a national panel of over 400 hospitals providing information from patient discharge abstracts, hospital financial reports, and county level information over the period 1980-1987. STUDY DESIGN. Econometric methods suitable to panel data are implemented, with tests for pooling, hospital-specific fixed effects, and possible problems of selection bias. PRINCIPAL FINDINGS. The prices paid by private insurers to a particular hospital were affected by the changes in risk imposed by Medicare prospective payment, the generosity of Medicare payment, state rate regulation, and ability of the hospital to bear risk. The risk-weighted measure of case mix did not respond to changes in payment policy, but other variables reflecting the management of care after admission to reduce risk did change in the predicted directions. CONCLUSIONS. Some of the findings in this article are relevant to current Medicare policies that involve risk-sharing, for instance, special allowances for "outlier" patients with unusually high cost, and for sole community hospitals. The first type of allowance appears successful in preserving access to care, while the second type is not well justified by the findings. State rate regulation programs were associated not only with lower hospital prices but also with less risk reduction behavior by hospitals. The design of regulation as a sort of risk-pooling arrangement across payers and hospitals may be attractive to hospitals and help explain their support for regulation is some states. PMID:7649752

Transmission dispatch and congestion management in open market systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fang, Risheng

This thesis is located in the domain of electricity supply industry restructuring. It deals with emerging issues, whose understanding is essential to advancing knowledge of open access transmission theory and proceeds to develop approaches for solving the transmission dispatch and congestion management problem. An overview of current trends and experiences in utility restructuring and the main models for restructuring, as well as the classifications of system operators, is first presented. A fully unbundled competitive electricity market model, called the bilateral/multilateral trades model, is then developed. A survey of current research in transmission dispatch and congestion management is included with discussion of transmission capacity and ancillary services. A methodology for the power dispatch problem in a structure dominated by bilateral and multilateral transmission contracts is presented. Group structures are mathematically formulated and explored and three basic types of curtailment strategies proposed for use by market participants. A more complex model is then developed, which takes into account the co-existence of bilateral and multilateral contracts with pool type dynamic supplies and demands based on bids and market clearing prices. An integrated dispatch strategy to reconcile all three types of transactions (bilateral, multilateral and pool) is then developed. Prioritization of electricity transactions and related curtailment strategies are explored and a mechanism for coordination between market participants to achieve additional economic advantages is described. A theory of security based rescheduling is presented in order to investigate the security-related aspects of operation in an unbundled and deregulated system. The impact of post-contingency corrective capability on optimal rescheduling results has been identified and the advantage of incorporating post-contingency corrective rescheduling into the objective function demonstrated. Finally, integrated congestion management procedures in real-time system operation and in forward energy markets are developed. Market price response and coordination of dispatch by the ISO are incorporated to achieve an overall strategy.

U.S. Department of Energy physical protection upgrades at the Latvian Academy of Sciences Nuclear Research Center, Latvia

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

Haase, M.; Hine, C.; Robertson, C.

1996-12-31

Approximately five years ago, the Safe, Secure Dismantlement program was started between the US and countries of the Former Soviet Union (FSU). The purpose of the program is to accelerate progress toward reducing the risk of nuclear weapons proliferation, including such threats as theft, diversion, and unauthorized possession of nuclear materials. This would be accomplished by strengthening the material protection, control, and accounting systems within the FSU countries. Under the US Department of Energy`s program of providing cooperative assistance to the FSU countries in the areas of Material Protection, Control, and Accounting (MPC and A), the Latvian Academy of Sciencesmore » Nuclear Research Center (LNRC) near Riga, Latvia, was identified as a candidate site for a cooperative MPC and A project. The LNRC is the site of a 5-megawatt IRT-C pool-type research reactor. This paper describes: the process involved, from initial contracting to project completion, for the physical protection upgrades now in place at the LNRC; the intervening activities; and a brief overview of the technical aspects of the upgrades.« less

Preliminary study on new configuration with LEU fuel assemblies for the Dalat nuclear research reactor

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

Van Lam Pham; Vinh Vinh Le; Ton Nghiem Huynh

2008-07-15

The fuel conversion of the Dalat Nuclear Research Reactor (DNRR) is being realized. The DNRR is a pool type research reactor which was reconstructed from the 250 kW TRIGA- MARK II reactor. The reconstructed reactor attained its nominal power of 500 kW in February 1984. According to the results of design and safety analyses performed by the joint study between RERTR Program at Argonne National Laboratory (ANL) and Vietnam Atomic Energy Commission (VAEC) the mixed core of irradiated HEU and new LEU WWR-M2 fuel assemblies will be created soon. This paper presents the results of preliminary study on new configurationmore » with only LEU fuel assemblies for the DNRR. The codes MCNP, REBUS and VARI3D are used to calculate neutron flux performance in irradiation positions and kinetics parameters. The idea of change of Beryllium rod reloading enables to get working configuration assured shutdown margin, thermal-hydraulic safety and increase in thermal neutron flux in neutron trap at the center of DNRR active core. (author)« less

POOLMS: A computer program for fitting and model selection for two level factorial replication-free experiments

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Amling, G. E.; Holms, A. G.

1973-01-01

A computer program is described that performs a statistical multiple-decision procedure called chain pooling. It uses a number of mean squares assigned to error variance that is conditioned on the relative magnitudes of the mean squares. The model selection is done according to user-specified levels of type 1 or type 2 error probabilities.

[THE EFFECT OF 5 DAYS IMMERSION IN DEAD SEA WATER ON BLOOD GLUCOSE LEVELS IN TYPE 2 DIABETES MELLITUS PATIENTS].

PubMed

Brzezinski Sinai, Isaac; Lior, Yotam; Brzezinski Sinai, Noa; Harari, Marco; Liberty, Idit F

2016-02-01

Body immersion in plain water or mineral water induces significant and unique physiological changes in most body systems. In a previous pilot study, a significant reduction in blood glucose levels among diabetes mellitus (DM) patients was found following a single immersion in Dead Sea water but not after immersion in plain water. To study the immediate and long term effects of immersion in mineral water for five consecutive days on blood glucose in patients with type 2 DM. A total of 34 patients with type 2 DM were divided into 2 groups: The first immersed in a plain water pool and the second immersed in a Dead Sea water pool; both pools were warmed to a temperature of 35°C. Immersions for 20 minutes occurred twice daily: two hours after breakfast and before dinner. Seven samples of capillary blood glucose levels were taken: fasting, before and after every immersion, prior to lunch and before bedtime. Hemoglobin A1C (HbA1c) was taken prior to the study and a re-check was conducted during the 12 weeks following the study. Blood glucose levels significantly decreased immediately after immersion both in Dead Sea water and plain water compared to their values prior to immersion (p<0.001). No significant difference was noted between both types of water. A decrease in fasting glucose levels was observed only in the group immersed in Dead Sea water when compared to plain water (6.83±5.68 mg/dl versus 4.37±1.79 respectively and the difference was close to statistical significance (p=0.071. There were no changes in HbA1c levels. Immersion for 20 minutes in water (Dead Sea or plain water) at a temperature of 35°C induced an immediate reduction in glucose levels in patients with type 2 DM.

1993 annual status report: a summary of fish data in six reaches of the upper Mississippi River system

USGS Publications Warehouse

Gutreuter, Steve; Burkhardt, Randy W.; Stopyro, Mark; Bartels, Andrew; Kramer, Eric; Bowler, Melvin C.; Cronin, Frederick A.; Soergel, Dirk W.; Petersen, Michael D.; Herzog, David P.; Raibley, Paul T.; Irons, Kevin S.; O'Hara, Timothy M.

1997-01-01

The Long Term Resource Monitoring Program (LTRMP) completed 1,994 collections of fishes from stratified random and permanently fixed sampling locations in six study reaches of the Upper Mississippi River System during 1993. Collection methods included day and night electrofishing, hoop netting, fyke netting (two net sizes), gill netting, seining, and trawling in select aquatic area classes. The six LTRMP study reaches are Pools 4 (excluding Lake Pepin), 8, 13, and 26 of the Upper Mississippi River, an unimpounded reach of the Mississippi River near Cape Girardeau, Missouri, and the La Grange Pool of the Illinois River. A total of 62-78 fish species were detected in each study reach. For each of the six LTRMP study reaches, this report contains summaries of: (1) sampling efforts in each combination of gear type and aquatic area class, (2) total catches of each species from each gear type, (3) mean catch-per-unit of gear effort statistics and standard errors for common species from each combination of aquatic area class and selected gear type, and (4) length distributions of common species from selected gear types.

1994 annual status report: a summary of fish data in six reaches of the upper Mississippi River system

USGS Publications Warehouse

Gutreuter, Steve; Burkhardt, Randy W.; Stopyro, Mark; Bartels, Andrew; Kramer, Eric; Bowler, Melvin C.; Cronin, Frederick A.; Soergel, Dirk W.; Petersen, Michael D.; Herzog, David P.; Raibley, Paul T.; Irons, Kevin S.; O'Hara, Timothy M.

1997-01-01

The Long Term Resource Monitoring Program (LTRMP) completed 2,653 collections of fishes from stratified random and permanently fixed sampling locations in six study reaches of the Upper Mississippi River System during 1994. Collection methods included day and night electrofishing, hoop netting, fyke netting (two net sizes), gill netting, seining, and trawling in select aquatic area classes. The six LTRMP study areas are Pools 4 (excluding Lake Pepin), 8, 13, and 26 of the Upper Mississippi River, and unimpounded reach of the Mississippi River near Cape Girardeau, Missouri, and the La Grange Pool of the Illinois River. A total of 61-79 fish species were detected in each study area. For each of the six LTRMP study areas, this report contains summaries of (1) sampling efforts in each combination of gear type and aquatic area class, (2) total catches of each species from each gear type, (3) mean catch-per-unit of gear effort statistics and standard errors for common species from each combination of aquatic area class and selected gear type, and (4) length distributions of common species from selected gear types.

Photo- and heterotrophic nitrogenase activity by the cyano-bacterium Nostoc in symbiosis with the bryophyte Anthoceros

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

Steinberg, N.A.; Meeks, J.C.

1987-04-01

In symbiosis with Anthoceros, Nostoc is thought to do little or no photosynthesis. However, light-dependent /sup 14/CO/sub 2/ fixation by symbiotic Nostoc, freshly isolated from pure cultures of the reconstituted Anthoceros-Nostoc association, was 16% of that by free-living Nostoc. A DCMU-resistant mutant of Nostoc was isolated that fixed CO/sub 2/ at rates comparable to wild-type in both symbiotic and free-living growth states. To determine if symbiotic Nostoc can use its photosynthate directly to fix nitrogen, acetylene reduction by Anthoceros associations reconstituted with wild-type Nostoc was compared to associations with the DCMU-resistant mutant. In wild-type Anthoceros-Nostoc acetylene reduction was inhibited 97%more » by 5 ..mu..M DCMU, while inhibition of the DCMU-resistant Nostoc association was only 63%. Additions of glucose, fructose, maltose or sucrose to wild-type associations completely restored DCMU-inhibited acetylene reduction in the light. Acetylene reduction in the dark was stimulated by glucose, attaining 84% of the uninhibited light-dependent value. The authors conclude that symbiotic Nostoc maintains a pool of photosynthate which supports nitrogenase activity. The pool can also be supplemented from plant sources.« less

Creating a data exchange strategy for radiotherapy research: towards federated databases and anonymised public datasets.

PubMed

Skripcak, Tomas; Belka, Claus; Bosch, Walter; Brink, Carsten; Brunner, Thomas; Budach, Volker; Büttner, Daniel; Debus, Jürgen; Dekker, Andre; Grau, Cai; Gulliford, Sarah; Hurkmans, Coen; Just, Uwe; Krause, Mechthild; Lambin, Philippe; Langendijk, Johannes A; Lewensohn, Rolf; Lühr, Armin; Maingon, Philippe; Masucci, Michele; Niyazi, Maximilian; Poortmans, Philip; Simon, Monique; Schmidberger, Heinz; Spezi, Emiliano; Stuschke, Martin; Valentini, Vincenzo; Verheij, Marcel; Whitfield, Gillian; Zackrisson, Björn; Zips, Daniel; Baumann, Michael

2014-12-01

Disconnected cancer research data management and lack of information exchange about planned and ongoing research are complicating the utilisation of internationally collected medical information for improving cancer patient care. Rapidly collecting/pooling data can accelerate translational research in radiation therapy and oncology. The exchange of study data is one of the fundamental principles behind data aggregation and data mining. The possibilities of reproducing the original study results, performing further analyses on existing research data to generate new hypotheses or developing computational models to support medical decisions (e.g. risk/benefit analysis of treatment options) represent just a fraction of the potential benefits of medical data-pooling. Distributed machine learning and knowledge exchange from federated databases can be considered as one beyond other attractive approaches for knowledge generation within "Big Data". Data interoperability between research institutions should be the major concern behind a wider collaboration. Information captured in electronic patient records (EPRs) and study case report forms (eCRFs), linked together with medical imaging and treatment planning data, are deemed to be fundamental elements for large multi-centre studies in the field of radiation therapy and oncology. To fully utilise the captured medical information, the study data have to be more than just an electronic version of a traditional (un-modifiable) paper CRF. Challenges that have to be addressed are data interoperability, utilisation of standards, data quality and privacy concerns, data ownership, rights to publish, data pooling architecture and storage. This paper discusses a framework for conceptual packages of ideas focused on a strategic development for international research data exchange in the field of radiation therapy and oncology. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Creating a data exchange strategy for radiotherapy research: Towards federated databases and anonymised public datasets

PubMed Central

Skripcak, Tomas; Belka, Claus; Bosch, Walter; Brink, Carsten; Brunner, Thomas; Budach, Volker; Büttner, Daniel; Debus, Jürgen; Dekker, Andre; Grau, Cai; Gulliford, Sarah; Hurkmans, Coen; Just, Uwe; Krause, Mechthild; Lambin, Philippe; Langendijk, Johannes A.; Lewensohn, Rolf; Lühr, Armin; Maingon, Philippe; Masucci, Michele; Niyazi, Maximilian; Poortmans, Philip; Simon, Monique; Schmidberger, Heinz; Spezi, Emiliano; Stuschke, Martin; Valentini, Vincenzo; Verheij, Marcel; Whitfield, Gillian; Zackrisson, Björn; Zips, Daniel; Baumann, Michael

2015-01-01

Disconnected cancer research data management and lack of information exchange about planned and ongoing research are complicating the utilisation of internationally collected medical information for improving cancer patient care. Rapidly collecting/pooling data can accelerate translational research in radiation therapy and oncology. The exchange of study data is one of the fundamental principles behind data aggregation and data mining. The possibilities of reproducing the original study results, performing further analyses on existing research data to generate new hypotheses or developing computational models to support medical decisions (e.g. risk/benefit analysis of treatment options) represent just a fraction of the potential benefits of medical data-pooling. Distributed machine learning and knowledge exchange from federated databases can be considered as one beyond other attractive approaches for knowledge generation within “Big Data”. Data interoperability between research institutions should be the major concern behind a wider collaboration. Information captured in electronic patient records (EPRs) and study case report forms (eCRFs), linked together with medical imaging and treatment planning data, are deemed to be fundamental elements for large multi-centre studies in the field of radiation therapy and oncology. To fully utilise the captured medical information, the study data have to be more than just an electronic version of a traditional (un-modifiable) paper CRF. Challenges that have to be addressed are data interoperability, utilisation of standards, data quality and privacy concerns, data ownership, rights to publish, data pooling architecture and storage. This paper discusses a framework for conceptual packages of ideas focused on a strategic development for international research data exchange in the field of radiation therapy and oncology. PMID:25458128

Selection of Optimal Polypurine Tract Region Sequences during Moloney Murine Leukemia Virus Replication

PubMed Central

Robson, Nicole D.; Telesnitsky, Alice

2000-01-01

Retrovirus plus-strand synthesis is primed by a cleavage remnant of the polypurine tract (PPT) region of viral RNA. In this study, we tested replication properties for Moloney murine leukemia viruses with targeted mutations in the PPT and in conserved sequences upstream, as well as for pools of mutants with randomized sequences in these regions. The importance of maintaining some purine residues within the PPT was indicated both by examining the evolution of random PPT pools and from the replication properties of targeted mutants. Although many different PPT sequences could support efficient replication and one mutant that contained two differences in the core PPT was found to replicate as well as the wild type, some sequences in the core PPT clearly conferred advantages over others. Contributions of sequences upstream of the core PPT were examined with deletion mutants. A conserved T-stretch within the upstream sequence was examined in detail and found to be unimportant to helper functions. Evolution of virus pools containing randomized T-stretch sequences demonstrated marked preference for the wild-type sequence in six of its eight positions. These findings demonstrate that maintenance of the T-rich element is more important to viral replication than is maintenance of the core PPT. PMID:11044073

In-situ characterization of laser-powder interaction and cooling rates through high-speed imaging of powder bed fusion additive manufacturing

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

Scipioni Bertoli, Umberto; Guss, Gabe; Wu, Sheldon

We report detailed understanding of the complex melt pool physics plays a vital role in predicting optimal processing regimes in laser powder bed fusion additive manufacturing. In this work, we use high framerate video recording of Selective Laser Melting (SLM) to provide useful insight on the laser-powder interaction and melt pool evolution of 316 L powder layers, while also serving as a novel instrument to quantify cooling rates of the melt pool. The experiment was performed using two powder types – one gas- and one water-atomized – to further clarify how morphological and chemical differences between these two feedstock materialsmore » influence the laser melting process. Finally, experimentally determined cooling rates are compared with values obtained through computer simulation, and the relationship between cooling rate and grain cell size is compared with data previously published in the literature.« less

Evaluation of alloy 690 process pot at the contact with borosilicate melt pool during vitrification of high-level nuclear waste

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sengupta, Pranesh; Kaushik, C. P.; Kale, G. B.; Das, D.; Raj, K.; Sharma, B. P.

2009-08-01

Understanding the material behaviour under service conditions is essential to enhance the life span of alloy 690 process pot used in vitrification of high-level nuclear waste. During vitrification process, interaction of alloy 690 with borosilicate melt takes place for substantial time period. Present experimental studies show that such interactions may result in Cr carbide precipitation along grain boundaries, Cr depletion in austenitic matrix and intergranular attack close to alloy 690/borosilicate melt pool interfaces. Widths of Cr depleted zone within alloy 690 is found to follow kinetics of the type x = 10.9 × 10 -6 + 1 × 10 -8t1/2 m. Based on the experimental results it is recommended that compositional modification of alloy 690 process pot adjacent to borosilicate melt pool need to be considered seriously for any efforts towards reduction and/or prevention of process pot failures.

Culex Flavivirus During West Nile Virus Epidemic and Interepidemic Years in Chicago, United States.

PubMed

Newman, Christina M; Krebs, Bethany L; Anderson, Tavis K; Hamer, Gabriel L; Ruiz, Marilyn O; Brawn, Jeffrey D; Brown, William M; Kitron, Uriel D; Goldberg, Tony L

2017-08-01

Culex flavivirus (CxFV) is an insect-specific flavivirus infecting Culex mosquitoes, which are important vectors of West Nile virus (WNV). CxFV and WNV cocirculate in nature and coinfect Culex mosquitoes, including in a WNV "hotspot" in suburban Chicago. We previously identified a positive association between CxFV and WNV in mosquito pools collected from suburban Chicago in 2006. To further investigate this phenomenon, we compared the spatial and temporal distribution of CxFV during an interepidemic year (2011) and an epidemic year (2012) for WNV. Both viruses were more prevalent in mosquito pools in 2012 compared to 2011. During both years, the CxFV infection status of mosquito pools was associated with environmental factors such as habitat type and precipitation frequency rather than coinfection with WNV. These results support the idea that WNV and CxFV are ecologically associated, perhaps because both viruses respond to similar environmental drivers of mosquito populations.

In-situ characterization of laser-powder interaction and cooling rates through high-speed imaging of powder bed fusion additive manufacturing

DOE PAGES

Scipioni Bertoli, Umberto; Guss, Gabe; Wu, Sheldon; ...

2017-09-21

We report detailed understanding of the complex melt pool physics plays a vital role in predicting optimal processing regimes in laser powder bed fusion additive manufacturing. In this work, we use high framerate video recording of Selective Laser Melting (SLM) to provide useful insight on the laser-powder interaction and melt pool evolution of 316 L powder layers, while also serving as a novel instrument to quantify cooling rates of the melt pool. The experiment was performed using two powder types – one gas- and one water-atomized – to further clarify how morphological and chemical differences between these two feedstock materialsmore » influence the laser melting process. Finally, experimentally determined cooling rates are compared with values obtained through computer simulation, and the relationship between cooling rate and grain cell size is compared with data previously published in the literature.« less

Work Program. Fiscal Year 1969 for The Department of the Army. Research and Development in Training, Motivation, and Leadership

DTIC Science & Technology

1969-01-01

job requiremeits in these skills , and (2) developing technique.; for improving literacy skills through training. In addition, manpower pools for a given...job requirements in these skills , and (2) developing techniques for improving literacy skills through training. In addition, manpower pools for a...visual and psychomotor skills -for accurate .nd’efficient operation, and performance variations among gunners are the largest source of error in system

Using Data Pooling To Measure the Density of Sodas: An Introductory Discovery Experiment.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Herrick, Richard S.; Nestor, Lisa P.; Benedetto, David A.

1999-01-01

Describes an experiment in which students determine the density of Coke and Diet Coke, consider density as an intensive property, and compare the accuracy and precision of different types of glassware. (WRM)

Pooled analysis of two Swedish case-control studies on the use of mobile and cordless telephones and the risk of brain tumours diagnosed during 1997-2003.

PubMed

Mild, Kjell Hansson; Hardell, Lennart; Carlberg, Michael

2007-01-01

Here we present the pooled analysis of 2 case-control studies on the association of brain tumours with mobile phone use. Use of analogue cellular phones increased the risk for acoustic neuroma by 5%, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 2-9% per 100 hrs of use. The risk increased for astrocytoma grade III-IV with latency period with highest estimates using >10-year time period from first use of these phone types. The risk increased per one year of use of analogue phones by 10%, 95% CI = 6-14%, digital phones by 11%, 95% CI = 6-16%, and cordless phones by 8%, 95% CI = 5-12%. For all studied phone types OR for brain tumours, mainly acoustic neuroma and malignant brain tumours, increased with latency period, especially for astrocytoma grade III-IV.

Declassification of radioactive water from a pool type reactor after nuclear facility dismantling

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Arnal, J. M.; Sancho, M.; García-Fayos, B.; Verdú, G.; Serrano, C.; Ruiz-Martínez, J. T.

2017-09-01

This work is aimed to the treatment of the radioactive water from a dismantled nuclear facility with an experimental pool type reactor. The main objective of the treatment is to declassify the maximum volume of water and thus decrease the volume of radioactive liquid waste to be managed. In a preliminary stage, simulation of treatment by the combination of reverse osmosis (RO) and evaporation have been performed. Predicted results showed that the combination of membrane and evaporation technologies would result in a volume reduction factor higher than 600. The estimated time to complete the treatment was around 650 h (25-30 days). For different economical and organizational reasons which are explained in this paper, the final treatment of the real waste had to be reduced and only evaporation was applied. The volume reduction factor achieved in the real treatment was around 170, and the time spent for treatment was 194 days.

Myosin Heavy Chain Gene Expression in Developing Neonatal Skeletal Muscle: Involvement of the Nerve, Gravity, and Thyroid State

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Baldwin, K. M.; Adams, G.; Haddad, F.; Zeng, M.; Qin, A.; Qin, L.; McCue, S.; Bodell, P.

1999-01-01

The myosin heavy chain (MHC) gene family encodes at least six MHC proteins (herein designated as neonatal, embryonic, slow type I (beta), and fast IIa, IIx, and IIb) that are expressed in skeletal muscle in a muscle-specific and developmentally-regulated fashion. At birth, both antigravity (e.g. soleus) and locomotor (e.g., plantaris) skeletal muscles are undifferentiated relative to the adult MHC phenotype such that the neonatal and embryonic MHC isoforms account for 80 - 90% of the MHC pool in a fast locomotor muscle; whereas, the embryonic and slow, type I isoforms account for approx. 90% of the pool in a typical antigravity muscle. The goal of this study was to investigate the role of an intact nerve, gravity and thyroid hormone (T3), as well as certain interactions of these interventions, on MHC gene expression in developing neonatal skeletal muscles of rodents.

Weld pool development during GTA and laser beam welding of Type 304 stainless steel; Part II-experimental correlation

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

Zacharia, T.; David, S.A.; Vitek, J.M.

1989-12-01

In part I of the paper, the results of the heat flow and the fluid flow analysis were presented. Here, in Part II of the paper, predictions of the computational model are verified by comparing the numerically predicted and experimentally observed fusion zone size and shape. Stationary gas tungsten arc and laser beam welds were made on Type 304 stainless steel for different times to provide a variety of solidification conditions such as cooling rate and temperature gradient. Calculated temperatures and cooling rates are correlated with the experimentally observed fusion zone structure. In addition, the effect of sulfur on GTAmore » weld penetration was quantitatively evaluated by considering two heats of 304 stainless steel containing 90 and 240 ppm sulfur. Sulfur, as expected, increased the depth/width ratio by altering the surface tension gradient driven flow in the weld pool.« less

Afterlife of a Drop Impacting a Liquid Pool

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Saha, Abhishek; Wei, Yanju; Tang, Xiaoyu; Law, Chung K.

2017-11-01

Drop impact on liquid pool is ubiquitous in industrial processes, such as inkjet printing and spray coating. While merging of drop with the impacted liquid surface is essential to facilitate the printing and coating processes, it is the afterlife of this merged drop and associated mixing which control the quality of the printed or coated surface. In this talk we will report an experimental study on the structural evolution of the merged droplet inside the liquid pool. First, we will analyze the depth of the crater created on the pool surface by the impacted drop for a range of impact inertia, and we will derive a scaling relation and the associated characteristic time-scale. Next, we will focus on the toroidal vortex formed by the moving drop inside the liquid pool and assess the characteristic time and length scales of the penetration process. The geometry of the vortex structure which qualitatively indicates the degree of mixedness will also be discussed. Finally, we will present the results from experiments with various viscosities to demonstrate the role of viscous dissipation on the geometry and structure formed by the drop. This work is supported by the Army Research Office and the Xerox Corporation.

The association between human papillomavirus infection and lung cancer: a system review and meta-analysis

PubMed Central

Xiong, Wei-Min; Xu, Qiu-Ping; Li, Xu; Xiao, Ren-Dong; Cai, Lin; He, Fei

2017-01-01

To estimate the global attributable fraction of human papillomavirus (HPV) in lung cancer, we provided updated information through a system review and meta-analysis. We did a literature search on PubMed, Ovid and Web of Science to identify case-control studies and cohort studies that detected HPV in lung carcinomas. We included studies that tested 30 or more cases and were published before Feb 28, 2017. We collected information about gender, smoking status, HPV detection methods, HPV types, materials and clinical features. If it was not possible to abstract the required information directly from the papers, we contacted the authors. A meta-analysis was performed to calculate the pooled effect sizes (OR/RR) with 95% confidence intervals (CI) including subgroup analysis and meta-regression to explore sources of heterogeneity, by Stata 13.0 software. 36 case-control studies, contributing data for 6,980 cases of lung cancer and 7,474 controls from 17 countries and one cohort study with 24,162 exposed and 1,026,986 unexposed from China were included. HPV infection was associated with cancer of lung, pooled OR was 3.64 (95% CI: 2.60–5.08), calculated with the random-effects model. Pooled OR for allogeneic case-control studies, self-matched case-control studies and nested case-control studies were 6.71 (95% CI: 4.07–11.07), 2.59 (95% CI: 1.43–4.69) and 0.92 (95% CI: 0.63–1.36), respectively. Pooled OR for HPV 16 and HPV 18 infection, were 3.14 (95% CI: 2.07–4.76) and 2.25 (95% CI: 1.49–3.40), respectively. We also found that HPV infection may be associated with squamous cell carcinoma, adenocarcinoma and small cell carcinoma. There is evidence that HPV infection, especially HPV 16 and HPV 18 infection, significantly increase the risk of lung cancer. Future research needs to focus attention toward whether an HPV vaccine can effectively reduce the incidence of lung cancer. PMID:29221217

Intestinal Escherichia coli colonization in a mallard duck population over four consecutive winter seasons.

PubMed

Rödiger, Stefan; Kramer, Toni; Frömmel, Ulrike; Weinreich, Jörg; Roggenbuck, Dirk; Guenther, Sebastian; Schaufler, Katharina; Schröder, Christian; Schierack, Peter

2015-09-01

We report the population structure and dynamics of one Escherichia coli population of wild mallard ducks in their natural environment over four winter seasons, following the characterization of 100 isolates each consecutive season. Macro-restriction analysis was used to define isolates variously as multi- or 1-year pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) types. Isolates were characterized genotypically based on virulence-associated genes (VAGs), phylogenetic markers, and phenotypically based on haemolytic activity, antimicrobial resistance, adhesion to epithelial cells, microcin production, motility and carbohydrate metabolism. Only 12 out of 220 PFGE types were detectable over more than one winter, and classified as multi-year PFGE types. There was a dramatic change of PFGE types within two winter seasons. Nevertheless, the genetic pool (VAGs) and antimicrobial resistance pattern remained remarkably stable. The high diversity and dynamics of this E. coli population were also demonstrated by the occurrence of PFGE subtypes and differences between isolates of one PFGE type (based on VAGs, antimicrobial resistance and adhesion rates). Multi- and 1-year PFGE types differed in antimicrobial resistance, VAGs and adhesion. Other parameters were not prominent colonization factors. In conclusion, the high diversity, dynamics and stable genetic pool of an E. coli population seem to enable their successful colonization of host animal population over time. © 2015 Society for Applied Microbiology and John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

The Prognostic Role of Angiotensin II Type 1 Receptor Autoantibody in Non-Gravid Hypertension and Pre-eclampsia

PubMed Central

Lei, Jinghui; Li, Yafeng; Zhang, Suli; Wu, Ye; Wang, Pengli; Liu, Huirong

2016-01-01

Abstract Angiotensin II type 1 receptor autoantibody (AT1-AA) is found in patients with non-gravid hypertension or pre-eclampsia, but the relationship is uncertain. The aim of the present study was to assess the association between AT1-AA and high blood pressure using meta-analysis, and to evaluate the prognosis value of AT1-AA for hypertensive diseases. Literature search from PubMed, Embase, and Cochrane databases were conducted using keywords “hypertension” or “pre-eclampsia,” “angiotensin II receptor type 1 autoantibody,” and its aliases from April 1999 to December 2015. Studies evaluating the association between AT1-AA and non-gravid hypertension or pre-eclampsia were included in this analysis. The quality of the eligible studies was assessed based on the Newcastle–Ottawa Scale with some modifications. Two researchers then independently reviewed all included studies and extracted all relevant data. Association between AT1-AA and hypertension was tested with pooled odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs). Finally, we evaluated whether AT1-AA predicted the prognosis of hypertension by using a summary receiver-operating characteristic (ROC) curve and sensitivity analysis. Ten studies were finally included in this meta-analysis. AT1-AA showed more significant association with pre-eclampsia than that with non-gravid hypertension (pooled OR 32.84, 95% CI 17.19–62.74; and pooled OR 4.18, 95% CI 2.20–7.98, respectively). Heterogeneity among studies was also detected probably due to different hypertensive subtypes and AT1-AA measuring methods. Area under summary ROC curve (AUC) of pre-eclampsia was 0.92 (sensitivity 0.76; specificity 0.86). Area under the ROC curve of overall hypertensive diseases or non-gravid hypertension was lower than that of pre-eclampsia (0.86 and 0.72, respectively) with lower sensitivities (0.46 and 0.26, respectively). The major limitation of this analysis was the publication bias due to lack of unpublished data and the language limitation during literature search. Prospective study with large simple size and specific measuring data collection are needed to enhance our findings in the future. Our analysis confirms that elevated AT1-AA in serum is significantly associated with hypertensive disorder, especially pre-eclampsia. AT1-AA may be a valuable indicator for poorer prognosis of patients with pre-eclampsia, and could be used in patients with hypertensive disease for risk evaluation and making individual treatment decision. PMID:27124051

Remarriage Beliefs as Predictors of Marital Quality and Positive Interaction in Stepcouples: An Actor-Partner Interdependence Model.

PubMed

Garneau, Chelsea L; Higginbotham, Brian; Adler-Baeder, Francesca

2015-12-01

Using an Actor-Partner Interdependence Model, we examined remarriage beliefs as predictors of marital quality and positive interaction in a sample of 179 stepcouples. Three beliefs were measured using subscales from the Remarriage Belief Inventory (RMBI) including success is slim, children are the priority, and finances should be pooled. Several significant actor and partner effects were found for both wives' and husbands' beliefs. Wives' marital quality was positively associated with their own beliefs that finances should be pooled and negatively associated with their own beliefs that success is slim. Wives' reports of their own and spouses' positive interaction were both positively associated with their beliefs that finances should be pooled. Their reports of spouses' positive interaction were also negatively associated with husbands' beliefs that success is slim. Husbands' marital quality was positively associated with wives' beliefs that children are the priority, positively associated with their own beliefs that finances should be pooled, and negatively with success is slim. Positive interaction for husbands was positively associated with wives' beliefs that finances should be pooled and negatively associated with their own beliefs that success is slim. Finally, husbands' reports of positive interaction for their spouses were positively associated with wives' beliefs that finances should be pooled. Implications for future research utilizing dyadic data analysis with stepcouples are addressed. © 2015 Family Process Institute.

The numerical model of the sediment distribution pattern at Lampulo National fisheries port

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Irham, M.; Setiawan, I.

2018-01-01

The spatial distribution of sediment pattern was studied at Lampulo Fisheries Port, Krueng Aceh estuarial area, Banda Aceh. The research was conducted using the numerical model of wave-induced currents at shallow water area. The study aims to understand how waves and currents react to the pattern of sediment distribution around the beach structure in that region. The study demonstrated that the port pool area had no sedimentation and erosion occurred because the port was protected by the jetty as the breakwater to defend the incoming waves toward the pool. The protected pool created a weak current circulation to distribute the sediments. On the other hand, the sediments were heavily distributed along the beach due to the existence of longshore currents near the shoreline (outside the port pool area). Meanwhile, at the estuarial area, the incoming fresh water flow responded to the coastal shallow water currents, generating Eddy-like flow at the mouth of the river.

Gene pools in wild Lima bean (Phaseolus lunatus L.) from the Americas: evidences for an Andean origin and past migrations.

PubMed

Serrano-Serrano, Martha L; Hernández-Torres, Jorge; Castillo-Villamizar, Genis; Debouck, Daniel G; Sánchez, María I Chacón

2010-01-01

The aims of this research were to assess the genetic structure of wild Phaseolus lunatus L. in the Americas and the hypothesis of a relatively recent Andean origin of the species. For this purpose, nuclear and non-coding chloroplast DNA markers were analyzed in a collection of 59 wild Lima bean accessions and six allied species. Twenty-three chloroplast and 28 nuclear DNA haplotypes were identified and shown to be geographically structured. Three highly divergent wild Lima bean gene pools, AI, MI, and MII, with mostly non-overlapping geographic ranges, are proposed. The results support an Andean origin of wild Lima beans during Pleistocene times and an early divergence of the three gene pools at an age that is posterior to completion of the Isthmus of Panama and major Andean orogeny. Gene pools would have evolved and reached their current geographic distribution mainly in isolation and therefore are of high priority for conservation and breeding programs.

Does human pancreas contain salivary-type isoamylase?

PubMed Central

Shimamura, J; Fridhandler, L; Berk, J E

1975-01-01

Amylase isoenzyme analysis was made of extracts of normal human pancreatic tissue by first conducting ion exchange chromatography of the purified material. This gave evidence of only pancreatic type (P-type) isoamylase for all purposes. However, when effluent fractions in which salivary type isoamylase would ordinarily be expected to be present were harvested, pooled, concentrated, and rechromatographed, the pancreatic extracts were found to contain some salivary type (S-type) isoamylase. The latter accounted for approximately 0-8 to 1-7% of the total recovered amylase activity. This finding of S-type isoamylase in normal human pancreas potentially has important bearing on the interpretation of isamylase analysis. PMID:1218813

Statistical tests and identifiability conditions for pooling and analyzing multisite datasets

PubMed Central

Zhou, Hao Henry; Singh, Vikas; Johnson, Sterling C.; Wahba, Grace

2018-01-01

When sample sizes are small, the ability to identify weak (but scientifically interesting) associations between a set of predictors and a response may be enhanced by pooling existing datasets. However, variations in acquisition methods and the distribution of participants or observations between datasets, especially due to the distributional shifts in some predictors, may obfuscate real effects when datasets are combined. We present a rigorous statistical treatment of this problem and identify conditions where we can correct the distributional shift. We also provide an algorithm for the situation where the correction is identifiable. We analyze various properties of the framework for testing model fit, constructing confidence intervals, and evaluating consistency characteristics. Our technical development is motivated by Alzheimer’s disease (AD) studies, and we present empirical results showing that our framework enables harmonizing of protein biomarkers, even when the assays across sites differ. Our contribution may, in part, mitigate a bottleneck that researchers face in clinical research when pooling smaller sized datasets and may offer benefits when the subjects of interest are difficult to recruit or when resources prohibit large single-site studies. PMID:29386387

Non-suicidal self-injury and life stress: A systematic meta-analysis and theoretical elaboration

PubMed Central

Liu, Richard T.; Cheek, Shayna M.; Nestor, Bridget A.

2016-01-01

Recent years have seen a considerable growth of interest in the study of life stress and non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI). The current article presents a systematic review of the empirical literature on this association. In addition to providing a comprehensive meta-analysis, the current article includes a qualitative review of the findings for which there were too few cases (i.e., < 3) for reliable approximations of effect sizes. Across the studies included in the meta-analysis, a significant but modest relation between life stress and NSSI was found (pooled OR = 1.81 [95% CI = 1.49–2.21]). After an adjustment was made for publication bias, the estimated effect size was smaller but still significant (pooled OR = 1.33 [95% CI = 1.08–1.63]). This relation was moderated by sample type, NSSI measure type, and length of period covered by the NSSI measure. The empirical literature is characterized by several methodological limitations, particularly the frequent use of cross-sectional analyses involving temporal overlap between assessments of life stress and NSSI, leaving unclear the precise nature of the relation between these two phenomena (e.g., whether life stress may be a cause, concomitant, or consequence of NSSI). Theoretically informed research utilizing multi-wave designs, assessing life stress and NSSI over relatively brief intervals, and featuring interview-based assessments of these constructs holds promise for advancing our understanding of their relation. The current review concludes with a theoretical elaboration of the association between NSSI and life stress, with the aim of providing a conceptual framework to guide future study in this area. PMID:27267345

Plant species richness at different scales in native and exotic grasslands in Southeastern Arizona

USGS Publications Warehouse

McLaughlin, S.P.; Bowers, Janice E.

2006-01-01

Species richness in Madrean mixed-grass prairies dominated by native or exotic species in southeastern Arizona was characterized at the community and point scales using ten 1-m2 quadrats nested within each of eight 1000-m2 plots. In the 1000-m2 plots average richness was significantly higher in oak savanna (OS, 121.0 species) than in exotic grassland on mesa tops (EMT, 52.0 species), whereas native grassland on mesa slopes (NMS, 92.5 species) and native grassland on mesa tops (NMT, 77.0 species) did not differ significantly in richness from OS or EMT When richness was partitioned by life form, EMT was notably poorer than other community types in species of perennial grasses, perennial herbs, and summer annuals. In the 1-m2 quadrats, OS (21.2 species), NMS (20.9 species), and NMT (20.7 species) were significantly richer than EMT (5.9 species). Cover in 1-m2 plots was significantly higher in EMT than in NMT, NMS, or OS. Species richness at the point scale showed a unimodal relation to canopy cover, with cover accounting for 30% of the variation in number of species in 1-m2 quadrats. Competitive exclusion and allelopathy have perhaps limited species richness at the point scale in exotic grassland. There was no evidence of a species-pool effect between point and community scales, but such an effect between community and landscape scales was supported. Madrean mixed-grass prairies are landscapes with high species richness in comparison to other grassland types in North America, providing a large pool of potential colonizing species at the community scale. Beta-diversity (between communities) within the landscape of the Appleton-Whittell Research Ranch was consequently high despite a relative lack of habitat diversity.

Meta-analysis of association between K469E polymorphism of the ICAM-1 gene and retinopathy in type 2 diabetes

PubMed Central

Fan, Wen-Ying; Liu, Ning-Pu

2015-01-01

AIM To collectively evaluate the association of intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1) gene K469E polymorphism (rs5498) with diabetic retinopathy (DR) in patients with type 2 diabetic mellitus (T2DM). METHODS Overall review of available literatures relating K469E polymorphism to the risk of DR was conducted on 4 electronic databases. Meta-analysis was performed by Stata 12.0 to calculate pooled odds ratios (ORs). Potential sources of heterogeneity and bias were explored. RESULTS Seven studies with genotype frequency data including 1120 cases with DR and 956 diabetic controls free of DR were included. Meta-analysis did not show significant association of K469E polymorphism with DR (P>0.05). A statistically significant association was detected between the K469E polymorphism and proliferative diabetic retinopathy (PDR) in Asians only in dominant model (GG+AG vs AA) with pooled OR of 0.729 (95%CI: 0.564-0.942, P=0.016, Pheterogeneity=0.143), however, this association was not detected in recessive model (GA+AA vs GG; OR=1.178, 95%CI: 0.898-1.545, P=0.236, Pheterogeneity=0.248) or allelic model (G vs A; OR=0.769, 95% CI: 0.576-1.026, P=0.074, Pheterogeneity=0.094). No publication bias was found by Funnel plot, Begg's and Egger's test. CONCLUSION This research found no statistically significant association between ICAM-1 gene K469E polymorphism and DR in patients with T2DM, but showed significant association of the K469E polymorphism with PDR in Asian diabetic patients only in dominant model. Further investigation would be required to consolidate the conclusion. PMID:26086016

Predictors of breeding site occupancy by amphibians in montane landscapes

USGS Publications Warehouse

Groff, Luke A.; Loftin, Cynthia S.; Calhoun, Aram J.K.

2017-01-01

Ecological relationships and processes vary across species’ geographic distributions, life stages and spatial, and temporal scales. Montane landscapes are characterized by low wetland densities, rugged topographies, and cold climates. Consequently, aquatic-dependent and low-vagility ectothermic species (e.g., pool-breeding amphibians) may exhibit unique ecological associations in montane landscapes. We evaluated the relative importance of breeding- and landscape-scale features associated with spotted salamander (Ambystoma maculatum) and wood frog (Lithobates sylvaticus) wetland occupancy in Maine's Upper Montane-Alpine Zone ecoregion, and we determined whether models performed better when the inclusive landscape-scale covariates were estimated with topography-weighted or circular buffers. We surveyed 135 potential breeding sites during May 2013–June 2014 and evaluated environmental relationships with multi-season implicit dynamics occupancy models. Breeding site occupancy by both species was influenced solely by breeding-scale habitat features. Spotted salamander occupancy probabilities increased with previous or current beaver (Castor canadensis) presence, and models generally were better supported when the inclusive landscape-scale covariates were estimated with topography-weighted rather than circular buffers. Wood frog occupancy probabilities increased with site area and percent shallows, but neither buffer type was better supported than the other. Model rank order and support varied between buffer types, but model inferences did not. Our results suggest pool-breeding amphibian conservation in montane Maine include measures to maintain beaver populations and large wetlands with proportionally large areas of shallows ≤1-m deep. Inconsistencies between our study and previous studies substantiate the value of region-specific research for augmenting species’ conservation management plans and suggest the application of out-of-region inferences may promote ineffective conservation. 

Estimating Disability Prevalence Among Adults by Body Mass Index: 2003–2009 National Health Interview Survey

PubMed Central

Courtney-Long, Elizabeth; Campbell, Vincent A.; Wethington, Holly R.

2012-01-01

Introduction Obesity is associated with adverse health outcomes in people with and without disabilities; however, little is known about disability prevalence among people who are obese. The purpose of this study was to determine the prevalence and type of disability among obese adults in the United States. Methods We analyzed pooled data from sample adult modules of the 2003–2009 National Health Interview Survey (NHIS) to obtain national prevalence estimates of disability, disability type, and obesity by using 30 questions that screened for activity limitations, vision and hearing impairment, and cognitive, movement, and emotional difficulties. We stratified disability prevalence by category of body mass index (BMI, measured as kg/m2): underweight, less than 18.5; normal weight, 18.5 to 24.9; overweight, 25.0 to 29.9; and obese, 30.0 or higher. Results Among the 25.3% of adult men and 24.6% of women in our pooled sample who were obese, 35.2% and 46.9%, respectively, reported a disability. In contrast, 26.7% of men and 26.8% women of normal weight reported a disability. Disability was much higher among obese women than among obese men (46.9% vs 35.2%, P < .001). Movement difficulties were the most common disabilities among obese men and women, affecting 25.3% of men and 37.9% of women. Conclusion This research contributes to the literature on obesity by including disability as a demographic in characterizing people by body mass index. Because of the high prevalence of disability among those who are obese, public health programs should consider the needs of those with disabilities when designing obesity prevention and treatment programs. PMID:23270667

Association of Plasminogen Activator Inhibitor-Type 1 (-675 4G/5G) Polymorphism with Pre-Eclampsia: Systematic Review

PubMed Central

Morgan, Jessie A.; Bombell, Sarah; McGuire, William

2013-01-01

Background and Aims Excessive generation of plasminogen activator inhibitor-type 1 (PAI-1) is implicated in the pathogenesis of pre-eclampsia and related conditions. The PAI-1 (−675 4G/5G) promoter polymorphism (rs1799889) affects transcriptional activity and is a putative genetic risk factor for pre-eclampsia. The aim of this study was identify, appraise and synthesise the available evidence for the association of the PAI-1 (−675 4G/5G) polymorphism with pre-eclampsia. Methods Systematic review and random effects meta-analysis of genetic association studies. Results We found 12 eligible genetic association studies in which a total of 1511 women with pre-eclampsia, eclampsia or HELLP syndrome and 3492 controls participated. The studies were generally small (median number of cases 102, range 24 to 403) and underpowered to detect plausible association sizes. Meta-analysis of all of the studies detected statistically significant gene-disease associations in the recessive [pooled odds ratio 1.28 (95% confidence interval 1.09, 1.50); population attributable risk 7.7%] and dominant [pooled odds ratio 1.21 (95% confidence interval 1.01, 1.44); population attributable risk 13.7%] models. We did not find evidence of statistical heterogeneity, funnel plot asymmetry or small study bias. Conclusions These data suggest that the fibrinolytic pathway regulated by the PAI-1 gene may contribute to the pathogenesis of pre-eclampsia and related conditions. This association, if confirmed in larger genetic association studies, may inform research efforts to develop novel interventions or help to prioritise therapeutic targets that merit evaluation in randomised clinical trials. PMID:23457639

Investigation into the Use of the Concept Laser QM System as an In-Situ Research and Evaluation Tool

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bagg, Stacey

2014-01-01

The NASA Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) is using a Concept Laser Fusing (Cusing) M2 powder bed additive manufacturing system for the build of space flight prototypes and hardware. NASA MSFC is collecting and analyzing data from the M2 QM Meltpool and QM Coating systems for builds. This data is intended to aide in understanding of the powder-bed additive manufacturing process, and in the development of a thermal model for the process. The QM systems are marketed by Concept Laser GmbH as in-situ quality management modules. The QM Meltpool system uses both a high-speed near-IR camera and a photodiode to monitor the melt pool generated by the laser. The software determines from the camera images the size of the melt pool. The camera also measures the integrated intensity of the IR radiation, and the photodiode gives an intensity value based on the brightness of the melt pool. The QM coating system uses a high resolution optical camera to image the surface after each layer has been formed. The objective of this investigation was to determine the adequacy of the QM Meltpool system as a research instrument for in-situ measurement of melt pool size and temperature and its applicability to NASA's objectives in (1) Developing a process thermal model and (2) Quantifying feedback measurements with the intent of meeting quality requirements or specifications. Note that Concept Laser markets the system only as capable of giving an indication of changes between builds, not as an in-situ research and evaluation tool. A secondary objective of the investigation is to determine the adequacy of the QM Coating system as an in-situ layer-wise geometry and layer quality evaluation tool.

Post-test examination of a pool boiler receiver

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Dreshfield, Robert L.; Moore, Thomas J.; Bartolotta, Paul A.

1992-01-01

A subscale pool boiler test apparatus to evaluate boiling stability developed a leak after being operated with boiling NaK for 791.4 hr at temperatures from 700 to 750 C. The boiler was constructed using Inconel 625 with a type 304L stainless steel wick for the boiler and type 316 stainless steel for the condenser. The boiler assembly was metallurgically evaluated to determine the cause of the leak and to assess the effects of the NaK on the materials. It was found that the leak was caused by insufficient (about 30 pct.) joint penetration in a butt joint. There was no general corrosion of the construction materials, but the room temperature ductility of the Inconel 625 was only about 6.5 pct. A crack in the heat affected zone of the Inconel 625 near the Inconel 625 to type 316 stainless steel butt joint was probably caused by excessive heat input. The crack was observed to have a zone depleted of iron at the crack surface and porosity below that zone. The mechanism of the iron depletion was not conclusively determined.

Livers provide a reliable matrix for real-time PCR confirmation of avian botulism.

PubMed

Le Maréchal, Caroline; Ballan, Valentine; Rouxel, Sandra; Bayon-Auboyer, Marie-Hélène; Baudouard, Marie-Agnès; Morvan, Hervé; Houard, Emmanuelle; Poëzevara, Typhaine; Souillard, Rozenn; Woudstra, Cédric; Le Bouquin, Sophie; Fach, Patrick; Chemaly, Marianne

2016-04-01

Diagnosis of avian botulism is based on clinical symptoms, which are indicative but not specific. Laboratory investigations are therefore required to confirm clinical suspicions and establish a definitive diagnosis. Real-time PCR methods have recently been developed for the detection of Clostridium botulinum group III producing type C, D, C/D or D/C toxins. However, no study has been conducted to determine which types of matrices should be analyzed for laboratory confirmation using this approach. This study reports on the comparison of different matrices (pooled intestinal contents, livers, spleens and cloacal swabs) for PCR detection of C. botulinum. Between 2013 and 2015, 63 avian botulism suspicions were tested and 37 were confirmed as botulism. Analysis of livers using real-time PCR after enrichment led to the confirmation of 97% of the botulism outbreaks. Using the same method, spleens led to the confirmation of 90% of botulism outbreaks, cloacal swabs of 93% and pooled intestinal contents of 46%. Liver appears to be the most reliable type of matrix for laboratory confirmation using real-time PCR analysis. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Detection of porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus (PRRSV) and influenza A virus (IAV) in oral fluid of pigs.

PubMed

Biernacka, Kinga; Karbowiak, Paweł; Wróbel, Paweł; Charęza, Tomasz; Czopowicz, Michał; Balka, Gyula; Goodell, Christa; Rauh, Rolf; Stadejek, Tomasz

2016-12-01

Recently oral fluid has become a novel sample type for pathogen nucleic acid and antibody detection, as it is easy to obtain with non-invasive procedures. The objective of the study was to analyze porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus (PRRSV) and influenza A virus (IAV) circulation in growing pigs from three Polish production farms, using Real Time PCR and ELISA testing of oral fluid and serum. Oral fluids were collected every 2weeks, in the same 3-4 pens of pigs aged between 5 and 17weeks. Additionally, blood samples were collected every 4weeks from 4 pigs corresponding to the same pens as oral fluid and tested for the presence of PRRSV nucleic acid (pooled by 4) and antibodies. In farm A no PRRSV circulation was detected and only maternal antibodies were present. In farm B and farm C antibodies to PRRSV in serum and oral fluid were detected in most samples. In farm B PRRSV Type 1 was detected in 80.9% of oral fluid samples and in 58.3% of serum pools, and in farm C in 92.8% of oral fluid samples and 75% serum pools. Striking differences were observed between different pens in PRRSV detection patterns. In farms B and C ORF5 sequence analysis showed the presence of wild type strains which were about 84-85% identical to the modified live vaccine used. In all three farms two waves of IAV shedding with oral fluid were detected, in weaners and fatteners. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Zinc: an essential but elusive nutrient123

PubMed Central

King, Janet C

2011-01-01

Zinc is essential for multiple aspects of metabolism. Physiologic signs of zinc depletion are linked with diverse biochemical functions rather than with a specific function, which makes it difficult to identify biomarkers of zinc nutrition. Nutrients, such as zinc, that are required for general metabolism are called type 2 nutrients. Protein and magnesium are examples of other type 2 nutrients. Type 1 nutrients are required for one or more specific functions: examples include iron, vitamin A, iodine, folate, and copper. When dietary zinc is insufficient, a marked reduction in endogenous zinc loss occurs immediately to conserve the nutrient. If zinc balance is not reestablished, other metabolic adjustments occur to mobilize zinc from small body pools. The location of those pools is not known, but all cells probably have a small zinc reserve that includes zinc bound to metallothionein or zinc stored in the Golgi or in other organelles. Plasma zinc is also part of this small zinc pool that is vulnerable to insufficient intakes. Plasma zinc concentrations decline rapidly with severe deficiencies and more moderately with marginal depletion. Unfortunately, plasma zinc concentrations also decrease with a number of conditions (eg, infection, trauma, stress, steroid use, after a meal) due to a metabolic redistribution of zinc from the plasma to the tissues. This redistribution confounds the interpretation of low plasma zinc concentrations. Biomarkers of metabolic zinc redistribution are needed to determine whether this redistribution is the cause of a low plasma zinc rather than poor nutrition. Measures of metallothionein or cellular zinc transporters may fulfill that role. PMID:21715515

Semi-quantitative assessment of the physical vulnerability of buildings for the landslide risk analysis. A case study in the Loures municipality, Lisbon district, Portugal

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Guillard-Gonçalves, Clémence; Zêzere, José Luis; Pereira, Susana; Garcia, Ricardo

2016-04-01

The physical vulnerability of the buildings of Loures (a Portuguese municipality) to landslides was assessed, and the landslide risk was computed as the product of the landslide hazard by the vulnerability and the market economic value of the buildings. First, the hazard was assessed by combining the spatio-temporal probability and the frequency-magnitude relationship of the landslides, which was established by plotting the probability of a landslide area. The susceptibility of deep-seated and shallow landslides was assessed by a bi-variate statistical method and was mapped. The annual and multiannual spatio-temporal probabilities were estimated, providing a landslide hazard model. Then, an assessment of buildings vulnerability to landslides, based on an inquiry of a pool of landslide European experts, was developed and applied to the study area. The inquiry was based on nine magnitude scenarios and four structural building types. A sub-pool of the landslide experts who know the study area was extracted from the pool, and the variability of the answers coming from the pool and the sub-pool was assessed with standard deviation. Moreover, the average vulnerability of the basic geographic entities was compared by changing the map unit and applying the vulnerability to all the buildings of a test site (included in the study area), the inventory of which was listed on the field. Next, the market economic value of the buildings was calculated using an adaptation of the Portuguese Tax Services approach. Finally, the annual and multiannual landslide risk was computed for the nine landslide magnitude scenarios and different spatio-temporal probabilities by multiplying the potential loss (Vulnerability × Economic Value) by the hazard probability. As a rule, the vulnerability values given by the sub-pool of experts who know the study area are higher than those given by the European experts, namely for the high magnitude landslides. The obtained vulnerabilities vary from 0.2 to 1 as a function of the structural building types and the landslide magnitude, and are maximal for 10 and 20 meters landslide depths. However, the highest annual risk was found for the 3 m deep landslides, with a maximum value of 25.68 € per 5 m pixel, which is explained by the combination of a relatively high frequency in the Loures municipality with a substantial potential damage.

In Silico Analysis of Six Known Leishmania major Antigens and In Vitro Evaluation of Specific Epitopes Eliciting HLA-A2 Restricted CD8 T Cell Response

PubMed Central

Seyed, Negar; Zahedifard, Farnaz; Safaiyan, Shima; Gholami, Elham; Doustdari, Fatemeh; Azadmanesh, Kayhan; Mirzaei, Maryam; Saeedi Eslami, Nasir; Khadem Sadegh, Akbar; Eslami far, Ali; Sharifi, Iraj; Rafati, Sima

2011-01-01

Background As a potent CD8+ T cell activator, peptide vaccine has found its way in vaccine development against intracellular infections and cancer, but not against leishmaniasis. The first step toward a peptide vaccine is epitope mapping of different proteins according to the most frequent HLA types in a population. Methods and Findings Six Leishmania (L.) major-related candidate antigens (CPB,CPC,LmsTI-1,TSA,LeIF and LPG-3) were screened for potential CD8+ T cell activating 9-mer epitopes presented by HLA-A*0201 (the most frequent HLA-A allele). Online software including SYFPEITHI, BIMAS, EpiJen, Rankpep, nHLApred, NetCTL and Multipred were used. Peptides were selected only if predicted by almost all programs, according to their predictive scores. Pan-A2 presentation of selected peptides was confirmed by NetMHCPan1.1. Selected peptides were pooled in four peptide groups and the immunogenicity was evaluated by in vitro stimulation and intracellular cytokine assay of PBMCs from HLA-A2+ individuals recovered from L. major. HLA-A2− individuals recovered from L. major and HLA-A2+ healthy donors were included as control groups. Individual response of HLA-A2+ recovered volunteers as percent of CD8+/IFN-γ+ T cells after in vitro stimulation against peptide pools II and IV was notably higher than that of HLA-A2− recovered individuals. Based on cutoff scores calculated from the response of HLA-A2− recovered individuals, 31.6% and 13.3% of HLA-A2+ recovered persons responded above cutoff in pools II and IV, respectively. ELISpot and ELISA results confirmed flow cytometry analysis. The response of HLA-A2− recovered individuals against peptide pools I and III was detected similar and even higher than HLA-A2+ recovered individuals. Conclusion Using in silico prediction we demonstrated specific response to LmsTI-1 (pool II) and LPG-3- (pool IV) related peptides specifically presented in HLA-A*0201 context. This is among the very few reports mapping L. major epitopes for human HLA types. Studies like this will speed up polytope vaccine idea towards leishmaniasis. PMID:21909442

The Effect of Omega-3 on Circulating Adiponectin in Adults with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials.

PubMed

Bahreini, Mehdi; Ramezani, Amir-Hossein; Shishehbor, Farideh; Mansoori, Anahita

2018-01-04

Whether consumption of omega-3 affects circulating adiponectin has not been established. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of omega-3 (food or supplement) on circulating adiponectin in patients with type 2 diabetes through a systematic review of meta-analyses of randomized controlled trials. PubMed, Scopus and Web of Science were searched for relevant studies through May 2016. Two researchers screened and abstracted the literature independently. Pooled estimates were obtained using the random-effects models. Overall, omega-3 increased adiponectin by 0.57 µg/mL (95% confidence interval [CI] 0.15 to 1.31; p=0.01, I-square=74.2% p for heterogeneity <0.001). The source of observed heterogeneity was explored by subgroup analyses. In subgroup analyses, adiponectin levels increased only in those who had consumed omega-3 for more than 8 weeks. This systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized, placebo-controlled clinical trials suggests that omega-3 in patients with type 2 diabetes increases circulating adiponectin. These findings support the potentially beneficial effects of dietary omega-3 in patients with type 2 diabetes on pathways related to adiponectin metabolism. Copyright © 2017 Diabetes Canada. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Out-of-office blood pressure and target organ damage in children and adolescents: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

PubMed

Kollias, Anastasios; Dafni, Maria; Poulidakis, Emmanouil; Ntineri, Angeliki; Stergiou, George S

2014-12-01

In children, out-of-office blood pressure (BP) assessment (especially ambulatory monitoring) is regarded as indispensable for accurate hypertension diagnosis. This article reviewed the evidence on the association between out-of-office BP measurements and preclinical organ damage indices in children. A systematic review and meta-analysis of 93 relevant articles (1974-2012) was performed. Analysis of 10 studies (n = 480, pooled age 14.4 years, with hypertension 33%, renal disease 27%, type 1 diabetes 10%) revealed a significant association between systolic ambulatory BP and left ventricular mass index (LVMI), with pooled correlation coefficient r = 0.40 [95% confidence interval (CI) 0.30-0.50]. Eleven studies reported data on LVMI differences between normotensive (n = 428) and hypertensive children (n = 432), with higher values in the latter group by 6.53 g/m(2.7) (95% CI 4.73-8.33). A moderate association was found between systolic ambulatory BP and carotid intima-media thickness (three studies, n = 231, age 13.3 years, pooled r = 0.32, 95% CI 0.21-0.44), as well as between diastolic ambulatory BP and urine albumin excretion (five studies, n = 355, age 13.1 years, type 1 diabetes 42%, reflux nephropathy 28%, pooled r = 0.32, 95% CI 0.05-0.58). Two studies reported on the association between home BP and LVMI, with one of them showing comparable coefficients as for ambulatory monitoring. The available evidence suggests a moderate but significant association between ambulatory BP and preclinical organ damage, mainly based on studies in nephropathy and/or diabetes. More data are needed in essential hypertension without nephropathy or diabetes, as well as with home measurements.

Pooled clustering of high-grade serous ovarian cancer gene expression leads to novel consensus subtypes associated with survival and surgical outcomes

PubMed Central

Wang, Chen; Armasu, Sebastian M.; Kalli, Kimberly R.; Maurer, Matthew J.; Heinzen, Ethan P.; Keeney, Gary L.; Cliby, William A.; Oberg, Ann L.; Kaufmann, Scott H.; Goode, Ellen L.

2017-01-01

Purpose Here we assess whether molecular subtyping identifies biological features of tumors that correlate with survival and surgical outcomes of high-grade serous ovarian cancer (HGSOC). Experimental Design Consensus clustering of pooled mRNA expression data from over 2,000 HGSOC cases was used to define molecular subtypes of HGSOCs. This de novo classification scheme was then applied to 381 Mayo Clinic HGSOC patients with detailed survival and surgical outcome information. Results Five molecular subtypes of HGSOC were identified. In the pooled dataset, three subtypes were largely concordant with prior studies describing proliferative, mesenchymal, and immunoreactive tumors (concordance > 70%), and the group of tumors previously described as differentiated type was segregated into two new types, one of which (anti-mesenchymal) had down-regulation of genes that were typically upregulated in the mesenchymal subtype. Molecular subtypes were significantly associated with overall survival (p<0.001) and with rate of optimal surgical debulking (≤1 cm, p=1.9E-4) in the pooled dataset. Among stage III-C or IV Mayo Clinic patients, molecular subtypes were also significantly associated with overall survival (p=0.001), as well as rate of complete surgical debulking (no residual disease; 16% in mesenchymal tumors comparing to >28% in other subtypes; p=0.02). Conclusions HGSOC tumors may be categorized into five molecular subtypes that associate with overall survival and the extent of residual disease following debulking surgery. Because mesenchymal tumors may have features that were associated with less favorable surgical outcome, molecular subtyping may have future utility in guiding neoadjuvant treatment decisions for women with HGSOC. PMID:28280090